Lys let out a sigh of relief, rolling her eyes at the same time. This whole ordeal had been a complete waste of her study time and the opportunity to experiment with spells under Professor Flitwick's guidance.
But there wasn't much she could do about it. Lys had never dealt with something like this before. Stirring up Barty Crouch Jr. to escalate the matter in the common room was the best solution she could come up with.
Teaming up with a fanatic supporter of the Dark Lord's rhetoric to teach a fool who tarnished the Dark Lord's name seemed far better than being accused of retaliation after her identity and intentions were exposed.
During her detention, Lys even managed to obtain a permission slip for the Restricted Section from the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor. There wasn't much excuse or explanation involved; she simply mentioned her interest in the professor's books and how some of the related texts were in the Restricted Section.
Initially, the professor hesitated. Not knowing what he was thinking, Lys added that she was particularly interested in the Patronus Charm but that all the books related to souls were located in the Restricted Section, and she hoped the professor could help.
When the tip of Lys's wand emitted a silver mist that filled most of the room after she cast "Expecto Patronum," the plump professor hurriedly wrote her a note:
"Permission granted for Stalys Black to access certain books in the Restricted Section for the current school year."
He signed his name and handed it to her.
"May the light of righteousness always shine in our hearts, right, child?"
Not understanding the deeper meaning behind the professor's words, Lys smiled politely, nodded, and bid him farewell.
Since the start of the term, this professor had issued no fewer than ten permission slips for the Restricted Section to top students from various houses.
However, Madam Pince didn't approve of this at all. She only allowed these students to borrow books once. "Allowing unrestricted access is absurd. I won't permit it—this is the Restricted Section!"
But when it came to Lys, Madam Pince, seeing her holding the note and the knitted scarf she had gifted her, allowed her to repeatedly enter the Restricted Section under her supervision. Lys would retrieve books and read them in a small cubicle.
In fact, Madam Pince even took over the last ten days of Lys's detention, claiming she needed help with library maintenance, particularly cleaning the Restricted Section.
It was indeed cleaning work. Ever since Madam Pince had been injured in the Restricted Section one Christmas, she hadn't cleaned it herself.
The previous incident had been caused by some outdated protective measures, which Dumbledore had since repaired.
However, the psychological shadow remained. Madam Pince had Lys pick books from the first few shelves while she handled the cleaning herself. Many of the bookshelves were enchanted with various spells, and using magic carelessly on them could result in accidental injuries.
So Madam Pince resorted to manual dusting and cleaning.
"Be careful, Madam," Lys said, standing motionless in the aisle and watching Madam Pince through two bookshelves.
She didn't flip through any books. On the one hand, Lys vividly remembered the chilling and terrifying night of the previous incident. On the other hand, she wanted to familiarize herself with the books on the shelves and see if there were any special detection mechanisms in place.
After gathering enough information, Lys carried a basin of dirty water out of the Restricted Section, cast "Evanesco" to vanish the dirty water, and refilled the basin with clean water using "Aguamenti."
She returned to Madam Pince, using a feather duster to clean the high and hard-to-reach corners.
Looking at the child beside her, Madam Pince remarked, "You're as meticulous as a girl. You even know how to knit scarves. Even your name sounds like one. Perhaps your mother thought you were going to be a girl?"
Lys squinted her eyes to avoid the flying dust and corrected her, "Madam, I don't know what my mother thought at the time, but I am a girl."
Madam Pince's expression didn't change, but her movements became noticeably heavier. "Ahem, such dust! You handle this shelf; I'll check the ones in the back…"
It wasn't entirely Madam Pince's fault for the misunderstanding. Lys's rusty-red hair barely reached her ears, her face was gaunt, and her jawline was sharp. Her narrow gray eyes gave her an air of gloom when she wasn't smiling.
Among her peers, Lys was tall, dressed in an old green shirt and black vest, paired with simple black trousers. Her black school robes and the silver pocket watch chain swinging slightly against them gave her a lean and elegant appearance.
Recalling how this child had spent previous years wearing old men's shirts, trousers, and second-hand robes, all tattered and frayed, it was hard to imagine she was a girl. She had always exuded an air of nervousness and desperation.
What kind of family raises a child like this?
Look at her hands, handing over tools—not soft and round like other girls', but adorned with a man's ring and oversized beads. Not a trace of femininity...
Tsk, why hadn't anyone told her this child was a girl?
By the time Lys and Madam Pince finished cleaning the last bit of the floor, the topic of her gender was never brought up again.
Later, when Lys visited the Restricted Section to read, Madam Pince treated her the same as before, showing no change in demeanor.
Aside from delving into peculiar knowledge, Lys also searched for records from the era of plague doctors. These included dissections of both Muggle and wizard bodies, devoid of emotional bias.
The chroniclers' thirst for knowledge and the unknown lent a sharp and serious tone to these blood-soaked records, far more dignified than the experimental notes in Lys's possession.
The spells that forced the separation of flesh and tendons, the curses extracting power from the bones of the dead, and the terrifying Muggle diseases were all documented in this fabric-bound book.
Lys even found an old notebook among her father's books, which she used to record these findings. Besides the mixed bloodlines, her father's current issue stemmed from the remnants of dark magic on his intact lumbar vertebrae.
Perhaps the curse related to bones could be worth a try, provided she could ensure its safety.
From then on, Lys began paying closer attention to the creatures at Hagrid's hut.
She was upfront with Hagrid about her intentions, expressing her desire to experiment with some extreme medical techniques. If there were any animals making a last-ditch effort to survive, she hoped Hagrid could give both her and the animal a chance.
Recently, whenever Lys visited Hagrid's hut, she sat upright and proper. She no longer let Gagong crawl freely around the house. Knowing Hagrid needed to feed the owls, she occasionally brought some ugly black toads from the Black Lake.
Hagrid felt that Lys had changed since that night when she ran into James and his friends. She no longer seemed like the same child.
She was always polite but distant, no longer bringing quirky or amusing gifts as she used to.
Hagrid found it a pity but said nothing, watching as Lys carried Gagong away.
The next time Lys visited, Hagrid gifted her a wooden lily. The clumsy yet heartfelt craftsmanship was evident in the knife marks on its surface. However…
"James and his little gang are just too mischievous…"
What did that mean? Lys's expression, just beginning to relax, tensed up again.
Perhaps realizing his words were ill-suited, Hagrid finally closed his mouth, refraining from further excuses for the Marauders.
Back in her dormitory, Lys placed the wooden lily in a small box.
Inside the box were two nearly empty bottles of dittany essence and tooth-strengthening potion, a pouch of coins from her mother, finely written parchment, candies, a silver quill, a few Galleons, Gagong's first shed skin, and a lily sealed in amber.
Sifting through the sparse contents, Lys closed the lid, yawned, and went to sleep.
Time was tight, and there was so much to do.
"""
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