Last night, the moon quietly sank westward beyond the window. Graves Hermione was still dragging that moment with her. Six days until the full moon. The stone chamber at the lake's bottom. Wilkes Ronalda's voice saying "I'll absolutely protect you." The Slytherin gossip she'd overheard in the corridor——it was all jumbled together in her head as she sat at the breakfast table in the Great Hall. The Great Hall——the vast dining room sprawling across the center of the castle's first floor, its ceiling enchanted to reflect the outdoor sky——was bustling as always this morning. The clatter of dishes for about a thousand people, the sound of bread being torn, laughter rising from the Gryffindor and Hufflepuff tables. But the sky on the ceiling was a little cloudy. Heavy-colored since morning, Graves Hermione thought. Holding a spoon of oatmeal, she spread her investigation notebook across her lap. The diary fragment she'd copied last night——"The entrance to the stone chamber is beneath the rocks on the south shore of the lake"——she read that one line for what felt like the hundredth time. Beside her, Wilkes Ronalda was cheerfully spooning oatmeal into her mouth. Her reddish-brown curly hair was especially messy from the morning, and she'd propped a Chocolate Frog card on the edge of the table. Maybe she wasn't asking directly about last night out of consideration. That was like Ronalda. (Professor Snape's summons——what's going to happen? Malfoy Dracona said she had "something to discuss," but nothing yet——) "Graves." A low voice flew across the table. Graves Hermione looked up. Long silver hair swept smoothly to one side. Cold silver eyes. A green jade ear cuff on one ear——Malfoy Dracona, Slytherin prefect, was standing directly in front of the Gryffindor table with perfect composure. It was rare for a Slytherin to walk all the way to a table outside their own house. The surrounding gazes converged. "[cold]Stay by my side." Dracona continued. Not lowering her voice, speaking with a volume that echoed across the entire Great Hall. "[cold]I'll help with your investigation. That's all." Graves Hermione froze. (Help with the investigation……?) Right at the moment Ronalda was putting oatmeal in her mouth beside her. Pfffttt!! The oatmeal sprayed out spectacularly. Across the table, the edge of parchment, the sleeve of Graves Hermione's robe——scattering in all directions. "[scared]W-wait——!" Ronalda grabbed a napkin and pressed it to her mouth, but it was already too late. Her face went past blue straight to white. "[serious]Ronalda!" "[scared]S-sorry, just——" While that chaos continued, footsteps approached from another direction. Quick ones. "Um, Hermione senpai." A voice cut in. A small figure came to stand beside the table. Deep purple short bob. Heterochromatic eyes——gold and blue——different colors on each side. There was a rumor that a moon-mark tattoo was hidden on her arm——Lorkwood Jinia, a Ravenclaw student. Despite her delicate appearance, there was something oddly composed in the depths of her eyes. "[gentle]I've already told Harriet senpai too." Jinia spoke directly to Graves Hermione, unbothered by the Great Hall's noise. "[serious]I'm really interested in you too, senpai. Even if your appearance changed, it doesn't matter." A smile. Completely unguarded. Graves Hermione's mouth hung open as she looked in three directions in turn. Right——Dracona. Left——Jinia. Diagonally behind——Ronalda with a napkin covering half her face. (What, huh, that——what does this mean!?) Something shorted out spectacularly in her head. Looking up at the ceiling, the sky that had been cloudy moments before was rapidly darkening. Storm clouds were beginning to swirl in circles. It was said that Hogwarts' ceiling magic was pulled by the emotions of the students in the Great Hall, and this was exactly that moment. "[surprised]Huh……ah……um." That was all that came out of Graves Hermione's mouth. Dracona slowly glanced at Ronalda. "[sarcastic]You think someone as timid as you could protect her?" A cold smile. The voice wasn't that loud, but the surroundings heard it. Giggles rose from the Slytherin section. Ronalda stood up abruptly. Clenching her fist. Opening her mouth——and then her foot caught on the hem of her skirt. She stumbled, her hip hitting the edge of the table hard. A juice cup tipped over. Its contents flowed across the table. "Whoa!" The surrounding students burst out laughing. Ronalda's face went from white to bright red. "[angry]U……ugh!" The words she wrung out were just that. Dracona quietly returned her gaze to Graves Hermione. Not a triumphant smile, but something like confirmation. "[serious]Give me your answer by noon." She said it curtly, flipped her long silver hair, and returned to the Slytherin table. Graves Hermione turned her gaze to Ronalda. Ronalda was trying to press the cup's contents down with her hand, failing, and spreading it further. "[gentle]Ronalda, are you okay?" "[serious]I'm fine! Totally fine!" She said it quickly, turning her face away. Her ears were red. All her frustration was written across her face. (Ronalda……) Something tightened in Graves Hermione's chest. Before she could think about what it was, Jinia was still standing beside her. "[gentle]Senpai, please take your time thinking. I'm not trying to rush you." She smiled and returned to the Ravenclaw table. Graves Hermione stared blankly ahead at the empty space. (……why today of all days) (The curse investigation is the least of it) She hugged the investigation notebook on her lap tightly. --- Lunch break. After the meal, three people were at the edge of the Gryffindor table. Graves Hermione and Wilkes Ronalda, and for some reason Jinia had come along too. Jinia completely ignored Ronalda's "why are you coming?" look and sat beside Graves Hermione. Dracona approached after the meal. With the same tone as before, the same cold eyes. "[cold]Have you considered my offer?" "[serious]Could I have a little more time?" "[cold]I gave you time." "[serious]Just five more minutes, please. Sorry, I need to go to the washroom first——" "……" Dracona silently sat down across from the table. It seemed like consent. Graves Hermione left her seat, leaving the investigation notebook on the table. Three minutes passed. When she returned, the air at the table had changed. Ronalda was standing. Her face was red. Her finger was pointing at Dracona. "[angry]They touched it! I definitely saw them!" "[cold]Evidence?" Dracona returned coolly. Graves Hermione picked up the notebook. She checked quickly. Flipped through pages. The section on the lake's stone chamber. That page was open. Fingerprints were on it. The ink had smudged slightly. This page had been closed until just now. "[serious]……worst case." Her voice was small. But the words definitely came out. She could feel her face turning pale. If that information spread——students without water-breathing magic would dive into the Black Lake at night. The deepest part of that lake was 120 meters. There were merpeople. There was the giant squid. (It's because of me……) "[angry]It's not your fault! The ones who peeked are the problem!" Ronalda said it loudly. Not directing her anger at Graves Hermione. But Graves Hermione's expression didn't change. Jinia said quietly. "[gentle]Senpai……" Dracona said nothing. She just watched Graves Hermione with narrowed eyes. --- Late afternoon. After classes ended and she was walking down the corridor, a Gryffindor dormitory student ran up to her. A second-year girl. "[serious]Graves senpai! There's a weird rumor spreading in the Slytherin corridor. That there's a stone chamber at the lake's bottom with a way to break the curse written in it." Graves Hermione stopped walking. "[scared]I heard Ravenclaw students went to scout the south shore of the lake." "……" After the dormitory student ran off, three people remained in the corridor. Ronalda, Jinia, Graves Hermione. "[serious]Let's report it to a teacher. Right now——" "[serious]But if it comes out that we snuck into the library at night without permission, they might take away my restricted section pass." "[serious]That's worse than someone falling in the lake right now!" Ronalda's words were right. She knew it. But another voice in her head said: if I lose the pass, I can't continue the investigation. Only six days until the full moon. Both were right, and choosing one meant losing the other. "[gentle]Senpai, please don't carry everything alone." Jinia's voice was soft. "[serious]I'm fine." Graves Hermione answered with a smile. Probably not a very good one. At the end of the corridor, behind a pillar, there was a figure. Silver hair. It was Dracona. Even from a distance, it was clear she was looking at them. Those gray eyes were narrowed. Eyes that seemed to read exactly the situation of Graves Hermione being cornered. She didn't move from that spot. Just watched. A little further away, what seemed to be Dracona's entourage——two people——were talking in low voices. One of them leaned close to the ear of a passing student. "Hey, the one who went into the restricted section first was that Gryffindor girl, right……" The voice was distant, only half-heard. But that half was enough to make Graves Hermione's chest feel heavy. Ronalda looked at Graves Hermione with "did you hear that?" Graves Hermione hugged the investigation notebook to her chest. (Six days until the full moon) (I have to move before someone jumps into the lake) (But how can I do this alone——) Beyond the window, the moon hung thinly in the twilight sky. Still far from full. But it was definitely rounder than three days ago.