Chapter 116: George Descends from the Sky
"It should have been you who got attacked."
As Hermione pulled George out of the library, he thought to himself.
Most of the students were at the Quidditch pitch, leaving only him, Hermione, and a few others still in the castle. The basilisk would naturally target Hermione, a Muggle-born witch, first.
Especially since, to Voldemort, Hermione was also Harry's close friend.
But George wasn't worried. He had planned to lure the basilisk out to clear Hagrid's name and temporarily remove Dumbledore from the school.
Now was the perfect opportunity.
"It's here!"
Not long after leaving the library, at a corner, George sensed the basilisk's presence.
His psychic abilities weren't as strong as Professor X's, but he could still sense the area around him. The basilisk's malice was unmistakable.
"George, something feels off."
After a few steps, Hermione suddenly stopped, her voice trembling.
She faintly heard the sound of the basilisk moving toward them.
"Don't look back. It might be the basilisk. If you see its eyes, you're dead.
Listen to me, keep moving forward!"
George grabbed Hermione's trembling hand and quickly led her toward the stairs.
As George and Hermione picked up their pace, the basilisk seemed to sense their movement and charged toward them.
Hearing the sound getting closer, Hermione's legs were starting to give out. But as a Gryffindor, she was brave enough to say:
"George, go find Dumbledore and tell him about the basilisk. I'll hold it off!"
She even pulled out her wand.
But George wrapped an arm around Hermione's waist and drew his own wand.
"Trust me, we can escape. Close your eyes, and whatever you do, don't look at the basilisk's eyes!"
Feeling the basilisk's presence right behind them, George activated his "Wing" magic, sprouting a pair of pure white wings. He lifted Hermione into the air just as the basilisk's massive jaws snapped shut below them.
At the same time, he waved his wand downward:
"Sectumsempra!"
A transparent blade shot from his wand and struck the basilisk's rising head.
The basilisk's magical defenses were formidable, and the Sectumsempra spell didn't break through, but it did cause enough pain to make the basilisk lower its massive head.
George took the opportunity to accelerate, flying toward the stairs.
Meanwhile, Hermione, startled by the sudden flight, instinctively clung to George, burying her face in his chest and exclaiming:
"George, you... you can fly?"
"Now's not the time for that."
George flapped his wings, speeding up as the basilisk chased them relentlessly.
In truth, this situation was entirely under George's control. He hadn't pushed his flying speed to the limit, mainly because he didn't want the basilisk to give up.
In fact, when the distance between them grew too large, he deliberately slowed down.
If the basilisk showed signs of giving up, he'd casually fire another Sectumsempra spell to keep it angry.
Today, he needed to make a big scene. At the very least, the portraits at the staircases needed to see the basilisk to make the story credible.
Otherwise, without proof, it would be hard to convince anyone that it was a basilisk and not an Acromantula.
"Oh my, what is that?"
"How terrifying! Hide!"
"Poor little wizards, run!"
Finally, after George's continuous taunting, the basilisk was lured to the moving staircases of Hogwarts, where it was seen by the portraits on the walls.
With his goal achieved, George flew upward with Hermione in his arms, while the basilisk, unable to follow through the moving stairs, let out an angry hiss and retreated into a nearby pipe.
"Dumbledore should be at the Quidditch pitch. Let's head there directly."
Having escaped the basilisk, George didn't stop. He flew to the eighth floor, found a window, and flew out with Hermione.
Now, all they needed to do was find Dumbledore and explain the situation.
As for the flying magic he had displayed, it was, of course, a spell he had "invented" as a prodigy.
If Snape could create spells like Sectumsempra and Levicorpus during his school years, then it wasn't too far-fetched for George to have invented a flying spell.
After all, in everyone's eyes, George had always been exceptionally talented.
He had been building up his reputation as a genius for moments like this.
Even though he was only a first-year, geniuses didn't follow the rules, right?
As George thought about how to explain things at the Quidditch pitch, he didn't notice the way Hermione was looking at him, her eyes filled with something new.
"Hi, everyone! Today is the fourth Quidditch match of the season, Gryffindor versus Ravenclaw. Let's welcome... Oh, Merlin's pants, what is that?"
In the stands, commentator Lee Jordan was about to announce the players when he suddenly saw George, with his white wings, flying into the stadium with Hermione in his arms. He was utterly stunned.
Of course, it wasn't just Lee who was stunned—the entire school was.
"Over there!"
George flew over the Quidditch pitch, spotted Dumbledore in the professors' stand, and flew straight toward him.
"George, what is this?"
Snape was the first to react, standing up as George landed and set Hermione down.
George didn't beat around the bush:
"Professor, Headmaster, Hermione and I were just attacked by the basilisk near the library..."
After hearing George and Hermione's account, all the professors gasped.
Dumbledore's expression showed a hint of surprise—whether it was because the monster in the Chamber was a basilisk or because George and Hermione had escaped its pursuit, no one could tell.
In fact, George wasn't sure if Dumbledore already knew about the basilisk. He suspected Dumbledore did, but only Dumbledore knew for sure.
"Minerva, cancel the Quidditch match. Have all the students remain here until we've inspected the castle. Then they can return to their common rooms."
Professor McGonagall nodded gravely and used a Sonorus Charm to relay Dumbledore's orders.
"You've done well. Twenty points to Slytherin and Gryffindor each."
Dumbledore smiled kindly at George and Hermione before leading Snape, Flitwick, and the other professors toward the castle. McGonagall stayed behind to maintain order at the pitch.
(End of Chapter)