Chapter 326: Return
The Basilisk's eyes were reflected in the armor at the end of the corridor, and within moments, Professor Burbage was petrified, frozen mid-step before she could even react.
"Sleep well..." Kyle whispered, invoking the "shutdown password" Slytherin had shared with him. The Basilisk obeyed, slithering back to the Chamber of Secrets as commanded.
Now, however, Kyle faced a new problem. Charity Burbage wasn't supposed to be found until later that night, but it was still broad daylight, and this corridor was a main passage to the fourth floor. If he left her here, someone would discover her too soon. With no other option, Kyle carefully moved her to an empty classroom nearby, hiding her safely before hastily leaving the area.
That evening, he returned to the kitchen under the pretense of practicing magic and requested the House-elves to tidy up the corridors as a favor. The House-elves were all too happy to oblige.
...
As time moved forward, December brought the usual ghostly festivities, and Valentine's Day came with its Dwarven serenades, all without any major incidents. Kyle found himself adapting to his strange routine—spending his days reading, practicing Nonverbal Spells, and refining his control over wandless magic.
He found wandless magic both fascinating and challenging. Without the aid of a wand, his spells were weak and imprecise, as if he were trying to split wood with his bare hands instead of an axe. Still, after nearly two months of practice, he finally managed to transform a beetle into a button... though the result was rather lopsided and resembled Ron's attempts at best.
However, one unexpected inconvenience was the frequent visits from the Gryffindor trio to the Room of Requirement. Fortunately, Hogwarts Castle was large enough for Kyle to slip away unnoticed and read somewhere else.
...
But when Hagrid was taken away by the Ministry, a new tension settled over Kyle. He found it difficult to focus, knowing that the fifth attack was approaching. This time, the stakes felt higher: Ron's impending petrification marked the beginning of the end of this strange time loop, and the weight of it pressed on him.
One evening, just five days after Hagrid's departure, Kyle, lost in thought, carelessly opened the Room of Requirement without casting his Disillusionment Charm. To his shock, he nearly bumped into Hermione, who had just come up the stairs.