Chapter 318: Tense Atmosphere
"All students must return to their house common rooms by 6:00 p.m., and no student is to leave after that time. You will be escorted by a professor to each of your classes, and wandering the castle alone before your professor arrives is strictly forbidden. Quidditch training and matches are postponed, and there will be no evening activities..."
The students sat at the long tables in the Great Hall, listening in solemn silence to Professor McGonagall's announcement.
Professor McGonagall was genuinely afraid.
Before the holidays, the Ministry of Magic had grown increasingly concerned about the situation at Hogwarts. After the attack on Professor Charity Burbage, who taught Muggle Studies, there had even been talk of temporarily closing Hogwarts to focus all efforts on finding the Chamber of Secrets. Though this proposal was initially rejected by a majority, the mounting attacks had brought it back onto the table just before Christmas. This time, it had far fewer opponents.
One of the few reasons the Ministry had remained silent was Dumbledore's continued presence at Hogwarts. That, and the fact that no students had been seriously harmed so far. But Professor McGonagall knew this luck wouldn't last forever.
The peace was fragile, like a stack of dynamite barrels waiting for the slightest spark. Some people in the shadows were already waiting for an opportunity to act, and McGonagall was certain that if even one student were seriously harmed, or if attacks increased further, those forces would seize the chance to set everything ablaze.
No one could predict what might happen then. And Professor McGonagall couldn't bear the thought of students getting hurt.
These were the most crucial days. The Mandrake roots were nearly mature, and once the petrified students and ghosts were revived, they would be able to tell what they had seen, perhaps even revealing secrets about the Chamber of Secrets and the creature within it. McGonagall was sure the Heir of Slytherin was aware of this, too. He would either lie low or become more reckless to protect his secrets.
And the petrified Dwarves were proof that he had chosen the latter.