Harry Potter and the Secret Treasures

In the Great Hall, the mood was somewhat awkward.

Ron and Hermione looked at Harry fading away, and no one spoke.

Ron said savvy, with a long sigh, “Harry has always been like this, blindly trusting others; he’s always too optimistic.”

Ron turned to look at Hermione as if expecting something.

“Like Harry, I believe in Evan, too.” Hermione repeated, “He’s done a lot to prove that he’s not like an evil Dark wizard…”

“I believe in him too. We all believe in him!” Ron said ruefully, waving his tableware vigorously. “I know; Evan is very good. He has done a lot of great things I can’t do all my life. But the problem now is that he is just an ordinary person, and he may not be able to resist the temptation of power. The evil black magic is much stronger than ordinary magic, maybe that’s why he is strong. You understand what I mean, Hermione?”

The more Ron spoke, the more he leaned towards this possibility. If Evan did not study black magic, how to explain all the magical power he had at such a young age?

Evan was just an ordinary Muggle-born. He never had any encounter with magic before he came to Hogwarts. If it wasn’t for some special “reasons”, he couldn’t have become so powerful so fast, even surpassing all the pure-blood young wizards.

Ron did not deny that Evan was really hard-working. But with just hard work, he should be at most in Hermione’s league, not more.

This was very abnormal. He must be studying the evil black magic secretly. At the thought of this possibility, Ron felt this was more unfair than frightening. In his opinion, Evan was cheating.

Evan deceived others and got what he should not have.

Thinking of this, Ron’s breathing became a bit faster. After being saved by Evan last semester, he had intended to give up on all of his wicked thoughts and decided to see Evan as his true friend, just like Harry and Hermione.

But Ron was uncomfortable with the thought that Evan might be studying the Dark Arts, and that everyone was blinded, and that he currently got everything. The idea kept creeping into his mind that if he had studied the Dark Arts himself, he might not be much worse than Evan.

Immense strength, great fame, others’ eyes worship, supreme glory, and the affection of Hermione… All those things were initially out of reach, but there was suddenly a shortcut, and he had just to stretch out his hand to get there.

Ron had this fantasy, and then shook his head and repeatedly told himself that he would not do it.

Unlike Evan, he would not degenerate into the study of evil black magic. Such a thing should be absolutely prohibited.

Hermione didn’t answer when she heard Ron’s words. She shook her head blankly.

“I mean, Evan is also likely to make mistakes.” Ron was dissatisfied with Hermione’s reaction, and he continued, frowning. “We have to be careful, and if Evan is really working on the Dark Arts now, we have to take action.”

“What do you want to do?” Hermione looked scared.

“I haven’t thought about it yet, but at least I should stop him and publish it so that everyone knows what he’s doing. That’s fair, isn’t it?”

“Listen to me, Ron!” Hermione took a deep breath and made up her mind to say, “If you want to ask others what they think about this, I don’t think Evan’s study of the Dark Arts would be anything to be surprised about. Others would probably think the same, and that’s the main reason why no one believes that ridiculous rumour. We all know what kind of person Evan is. He studies magic not to use it, but to enhance his power against future powerful enemies.”

“What a noble reason. What enemies does he need to face?” Ron scorned and said, “Pettigrew has been caught. This is HOGWARTS. Dumbledore is HERE. How could there be any enemies?”

“Did you forget the prophecy that Evan told us the other day in the Christmas holidays?” Hermione said, “Voldemort will come back, and he will be stronger than ever, with the help of some chosen one.”

“You mean the prophecy made by Professor Trelawney, I thought you never believed it?!” Ron waved indifferently. “We all know she’s faking it again, bluffing Evan to make Christmas more exciting.”

“Professor Trelawney may be a liar, but you can’t deny that she might make a real prophecy.” Hermione continued, trying to persuade Ron, “Besides this, Evan mentioned the Secret Treasure left by the Four Founders. There must be something they knew was coming that made them leave something behind.”

“It’s just that Evan himself is the one who said that he had seen it, or that he had returned to Hogwarts a thousand years ago. No one can guarantee it’s true.” Ron said stubbornly, “Even if the Four Founders really left any magic items, it’s another matter if they would work properly. After all, it’s been so long, any kind of magic should be ineffective!”

“But Evan said that in the Centaur’s colony in the Forbidden Forest…”

“Don’t change the topic, Hermione. We’re all talking about Evan doing research on the Dark Arts. It’s not about the Four Founders or the Centaurs in the Forbidden Forest.” Ron looked at Hermione and said expectantly, “Come with me to look for evidence, Hermione. I’m sure Evan’s working on the Dark Arts. We can go and uncover him. I feel like I’m on the verge of getting to the truth.”

“No, whatever it is, I believe in Evan!” Hermione repeated again, with a firm voice.

There was no need for any evidence. What Ron said, Evan had already told her about it, and she had also made her decision.

“I know, I believe in him too!” Ron stood up straight and said violently. “I can’t understand. What’s the matter with you two? Look at you and Harry. It looks like I am doing the wrong thing again. I’m just kind enough to remind you that if you’re not careful, you’ll probably regret it in the future.”

Attracted by Ron’s cry, everyone in the Great Hall turned to him in surprise, wondering what had happened and what he was talking about.

Feeling everyone’s gaze, Ron sat down with a red face, and ears as red as bricks.

A few seconds later, seeing Hermione’s unchanged eyes, he was like a deflated balloon, powerlessly saying, “Well, maybe you’re right, I’m just too sensitive. You know, because when it comes to black magic, I want to be more careful.”

“I understand what you mean, Ron!” Hermione patted Ron’s shoulder and comforted him. “We really should be careful. I will persuade Evan. But I still say that I believe in him. He promised me that he would never let me down.”

The corner of Gryffindor’s long table was quiet again, and neither Ron nor Hermione spoke. They ate breakfast silently.

The two of them seemed to have their worries and didn’t know what the other was thinking.