Halloween arrived in the blink of an eye.
For the past several days, Harry and Ron had genuinely believed they were secretly tracking Lucien without being discovered.
Ron, especially, was incredibly proud of himself.
What they didn't realize was that Lucien had noticed them almost immediately.
Every awkward glance, every suspicious attempt at "casually" following him through corridors, every poorly hidden conversation behind corners—Lucien saw all of it clearly.
At the same time, the older students in Slytherin had already begun putting his earlier suggestions into action.
Groups of upper-years secretly gathered together, discussing plans to prepare a Halloween "surprise" for Snape.
Lucien was fairly certain Snape would indeed be surprised.
Whether he would appreciate it, however, was another matter entirely.
The other houses quickly followed suit after hearing rumours about the Slytherin plans. Before long, large groups of students from every house were discussing visits to their own Heads of House after the feast.
Perfect.
Lucien casually scanned the Great Hall and quickly spotted Hermione sitting among the Ravenclaws. Her expression looked rather gloomy tonight, but at least she was safely surrounded by people.
Seeing that, Lucien quietly relaxed.
Now it was time for the second half of the plan.
Percy Weasley.
That was the person Lucien had ultimately chosen.
As Gryffindor prefect, one of Hogwarts' most academically gifted students, and a member of the Weasley family, Percy's abilities were absolutely underestimated by most people.
Although Percy rarely fought openly in the original timeline, the fact that he later defeated one of Voldemort's puppet ministers during the final war proved his strength clearly enough.
Without Hermione Granger overshadowing everyone academically, Percy would likely have become one of the Ministry's future stars.
Lucien had already planned everything carefully.
Once Harry and Ron saw him secretly sneaking away tonight, they would absolutely follow him.
And once Percy discovered Harry and Ron breaking away from the group, he would naturally chase after them to protect them.
As for escaping afterward?
Lucien wasn't worried at all.
Not with the Marauder's Map in his possession.
The script was already complete.
All that remained was for the actors to step onto the stage.
…
Night fell quickly over Hogwarts.
The castle was brightly illuminated, with enchanted pumpkin lanterns hanging throughout the corridors and staircases. Even the ceiling of the Great Hall had transformed into a dark, eerie sky filled with drifting shadows and ghostly mist.
The atmosphere was perfectly festive.
At the professors' table, most of the Heads of House wore relaxed smiles while watching the excited students below.
Only Snape looked like he wanted to murder someone.
Meanwhile, the students themselves were equally entertaining.
The Slytherins appeared relatively restrained, though many still looked excited beneath their composed expressions. The students from the other houses, however, behaved like overexcited children after consuming dangerous amounts of sugar.
Lucien shook his head slightly at the sight.
"Tch. I honestly expected something stranger from you, Lucien."
Draco scoffed while stuffing food into his mouth.
"So you dressed as Death itself? How original."
Lucien merely smiled without responding.
His black robes and skeletal silver mask weren't chosen for dramatic effect.
Black was simply the best colour for moving unnoticed through dark corridors.
Lucien carefully glanced around the hall once more, making sure Hermione, Pansy, Daphne, and the others were all present before quietly tightening his grip around his wand beneath the table.
Then—
Bang!
The doors to the Great Hall suddenly burst open.
Quirrell stumbled inside looking absolutely terrified.
"Troll!" he screamed breathlessly.
"In the dungeons!"
"There's a troll in the dungeons!"
The lively hall instantly fell silent.
Then Quirrell collapsed dramatically onto the floor.
Panic exploded across the room.
Screams erupted everywhere as students jumped to their feet in terror, many already trying to rush toward the exits.
Lucien remained perfectly silent.
At moments like this, stepping forward to calm people would undoubtedly earn him prestige and admiration.
But it would also make him the centre of attention.
And that would completely ruin everything planned for tonight.
Dumbledore slowly rose to his feet.
"Quiet!"
His voice thundered through the hall with magical force.
"Please remain calm!"
"Prefects will escort students back to their dormitories immediately."
"Professors, follow me to the dungeons."
Under Dumbledore's command, the panicked atmosphere gradually settled.
Students quickly began gathering with their prefects before filing out of the hall house by house.
Snape's eyes flashed briefly with something resembling alarm before he quietly slipped out through a side door.
At the same moment, Lucien's operation officially began.
"Harry!" Ron whispered excitedly. "Look at that Dark Wizard!"
Harry turned immediately and spotted Lucien quietly slowing his pace at the back of the Slytherin line.
Then, during a moment when nobody seemed to notice him—
Lucien vanished around a corner.
Harry frowned slightly.
Could he actually be hiding something?
"He disappeared!" Ron hissed excitedly. "Quick! We've got to follow him!"
Without waiting for a response, Ron grabbed Harry and rushed after Lucien immediately.
Neither of them noticed Percy standing nearby taking attendance for Gryffindor.
"Ron?" Percy called out sharply. "Ron Weasley!"
Damn it.
Percy watched helplessly as both boys abandoned the group entirely.
He wanted to shout louder and stop them immediately, but causing a scene during an emergency would only get Gryffindor into even more trouble.
Grinding his teeth, Percy turned quickly toward Penelope Clearwater and the Weasley twins.
"Fred, George—you three escort everyone back to the common room."
"What about you?" Penelope asked in confusion.
"I have something to deal with."
Without another word, Percy hurried after Harry and Ron.
Thus, the chase officially began.
Lucien led the way.
Harry and Ron followed Lucien.
And Percy followed Harry and Ron.
The entire group moved steadily toward the forbidden third floor.
Thanks to the Marauder's Map, Lucien already knew every hidden passage nearby. Taking advantage of a blind corner where Harry briefly lost sight of him, Lucien slipped smoothly into a secret passage concealed behind an armour display.
By the time Harry and Ron reached the corridor, Lucien was already hidden safely nearby, quietly observing everything through a narrow gap.
Meanwhile, Harry and Ron had completely lost him.
"What happened?" Ron whispered anxiously. "Where did he go?"
"I don't know," Harry admitted nervously. "Maybe he's nearby somewhere."
Ron immediately charged deeper into the dark corridor without hesitation.
Harry sighed helplessly before following him.
Behind them, Percy stared in disbelief.
No.
Absolutely not.
You two cannot possibly be this brave.
This is a restricted area!
Are you actively trying to get Gryffindor expelled from Hogwarts?
Percy opened his mouth several times, wanting to call out to them, but every time he stopped himself out of fear that shouting would attract professors.
Left with no better choice, he hurried after them instead.
Harry and Ron continued cautiously through the eerie corridor until they finally reached the hidden chamber's entrance.
"There's no way through," Harry muttered helplessly.
The two boys stared blankly at the locked door.
Without Hermione around, neither of them could even cast Alohomora properly.
They could only stand there awkwardly.
Then—
Creak.
The door suddenly opened from the inside.
Snape stepped out limping heavily, his expression dark and furious. One leg moved stiffly beneath his robes, as though badly injured.
Both Harry and Ron froze instantly.
Snape also looked visibly stunned after spotting them there.
For several long seconds, nobody spoke.
Then Snape's face twisted with fury.
"Excellent," he said dangerously. "Simply excellent."
The moment he noticed Harry's eyes drifting toward his injured leg, Snape immediately pulled his robes down to cover it completely.
"Mr. Potter. Mr. Weasley."
Snape's voice was colder than ice.
"You had better possess an extraordinarily convincing explanation for why you are standing here."
"I—we—"
Harry instantly began stammering.
Ron, meanwhile, looked too terrified to speak at all.
"Mr. Potter," Snape sneered viciously, "if you wished to demonstrate your heroic saviour instincts by hunting trolls, you should perhaps try the dungeons."
"Or are you both so unbelievably stupid that you cannot distinguish between the third floor and underground corridors?"
At that exact moment, Percy finally arrived.
The moment he saw Snape standing over Harry and Ron, his soul nearly left his body.
Finished.
Absolutely finished.
Percy could already picture tomorrow's disciplinary meeting in horrifying detail.
Still, Ron was his younger brother, and Percy was Gryffindor prefect.
Taking a deep breath, he forced himself forward.
"Professor Snape…"
Percy desperately tried to invent an excuse.
"Harry and Ron were… they were…"
Nothing came out.
If this had been literally any other professor, Percy might have managed to salvage the situation somehow.
Unfortunately, it had to be Snape.
While Percy struggled desperately for an explanation, none of them noticed the shadowy figure standing silently in the darkness farther down the corridor.
Watching them all with cold, gloomy eyes.
....
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