The marble floors of the Ministry of Magic were as polished as mirrors, reflecting the numb and suppressed figures of Wizards hurrying to and fro.
A strange scent, a mixture of disinfectant and despair, drifted in the air.
This was no longer the center of power for Britain's magical world, but a massive, cold tomb.
Harry, Ron, and Hermione had each taken Polyjuice Potion, transforming into three unremarkable Ministry employees.
They blended into the crowd, walking toward the elevators leading underground.
In the crook of Hermione's arm, a pure white Ragdoll Cat was curled up quietly.
Lia kept her eyes closed, the tip of her long tail flicking occasionally.
To her, this cramped space was uncomfortable, but Hermione's scent enveloped her, giving her a sufficient sense of security.
What's more, there was the smell of food.
That "pink toad," and the "stinking rotten meat" hanging around her neck.
The elevator doors made a dull thud, and the three of them stepped into the corridor outside the courtroom.
Umbridge was inside, presiding over the trials of Muggle-born Wizards.
Through the small window in the door, they could see the squat woman sitting high up on the bench.
Around her neck, Slytherin's locket shimmered with an evil green light under the lamps.
That power seemed to make her even more excited; a sickly sweet yet cruel smile hung on her face as she interrogated a trembling Witch in a shrill voice.
Two Dementors floated behind the accused, feasting on her last bits of happiness.
"We have to find a way to lure her out," Harry whispered.
"It's too hard; she's surrounded by Aurors and Dementors." Ron's face looked exceptionally pale under the effects of the Polyjuice Potion.
Hermione didn't join their discussion.
She simply reached into her pocket and gently scratched Lia's chin.
"Lia," she murmured in her heart, "can you do it?"
"Mm," Lia's voice rang directly in her mind.
"Be careful."
"Okay."
Hermione withdrew her hand and said to Harry and Ron, "Get ready to move."
"What? Here?" Harry was startled.
"Follow my lead," Hermione's tone was calm.
The next second, a piercing scream suddenly erupted from inside the courtroom!
It wasn't the prisoner's; it was Umbridge's!
Everyone turned to look, only to see Umbridge leap from her chair, her hands clutching her neck tightly as if something were burning her.
"Ah—! Hot! It's so hot!"
The locket around her neck was now emitting visible black smoke, and the gold chain looked as if it had been heated to a glow, branding a ring of charred marks onto her thick neck.
"What's happening?!" The surrounding Aurors were in an uproar.
Amidst this chaos, a white shadow, almost impossible to catch with the naked eye, flashed out of Hermione's pocket, stayed low to the ground, and slipped silently into the courtroom.
In her agony, Umbridge scrambled to take off the necklace.
But the chain seemed to have grown into her flesh, and no matter how she tugged, it wouldn't come off.
She watched in horror as the serpentine "S" on the locket seemed to come alive; its emerald eyes stared fixedly at her, and a chill that reached into her very marrow spread through her body along the chain.
Using the Dark Arts knowledge seized from Malfoy Manor, combined with Lia's perception of souls, Hermione had found a tiny "backdoor."
She couldn't control the Horcrux directly, but she could briefly intensify the Horcrux's erosion of the wearer's soul—especially when the wearer's soul was already filthy.
This intense pain was the signal to create an opportunity for Lia.
"Quick! Help me get it off!" Umbridge shrieked at the Aurors.
An Auror had just approached when they were violently pushed back by a burst of powerful magic from the locket, hitting the wall and falling unconscious.
The chaos intensified.
No one noticed that a pure white cat had already gracefully leaped onto the bench, its blue eyes devoid of any ripples.
Lia looked at Umbridge rolling and screaming on the floor, as if looking at a fat marmot caught in a trap, struggling in vain.
She raised a paw.
Beneath the paw pads, sharp claws extended, glinting with an eerie green light.
It wasn't cutting; it was "devouring."
She aimed at the burning gold chain and gave it a gentle swipe.
Sizzle—
A soft sound, like ice cubes dropping into hot oil.
That chain, reinforced by Dark Arts and supposedly indestructible, had a gap silently "eaten" out of it by Lia's claws, like a hot knife through butter.
The locket fell to the floor.
Lia didn't stay for a moment; she picked up the locket in her mouth, turned, and ran.
"Stop!"
An Auror who had reacted fired a spell at the white shadow.
But it was too late.
The white shadow flashed and had already rushed out of the courtroom.
"There!" Harry shouted, immediately following.
The three humans and one cat began a desperate escape through the long corridors of the Ministry of Magic.
"Impedimenta!"
"Stupefy!"
Spells rained down from behind like raindrops.
"Hermione!" Lia's voice rang in Hermione's mind.
Without hesitation, Hermione pulled a handful of black powder from her beaded bracelet and threw it hard toward the nearest fireplace!
"Peruvian Instant Darkness Powder!"
Bang!
Thick, impenetrable black smoke instantly filled the entire corridor; the Aurors' curses and coughing sounds rang out together.
The three took the opportunity to rush into the fireplace and, with a burst of green flames, disappeared from the Ministry of Magic.
12 Grimmauld Place.
The fireplace flames flared up, and the three of them tumbled out in a mess.
Lia jumped down from Hermione's arms and spat the locket onto the floor.
"We did it!" Ron shouted excitedly.
Sirius and Lupin immediately gathered around, looking at the Horcrux on the floor that emitted an ominous aura, their expressions grave.
"Now, how do we destroy it?" Lupin asked the most crucial question.
They tried every jinx they could think of; the spells hit the locket without leaving even a trace.
Harry ordered it to open in Parseltongue, but it didn't react at all.
This thing was like an indestructible piece of taffy.
"Incendio!" Sirius used his strongest fire spell, but the flames only licked the locket, unable to harm it in the slightest.
"It's no use," Hermione said calmly. "A Horcrux can only be destroyed by a few powerful magics, like a Basilisk's venomous fangs, or Fiendfyre."
"Fiendfyre is too dangerous; the consequences of losing control are too severe," Lupin immediately countered.
Just as everyone was at their wits' end, Lia leaned in again.
She extended a paw, trying to "eat" a part of the locket just as she had done before.
However, the moment her paw touched the locket, a powerful repulsive force bounced her back.
"No," Lia shook her head, returning to Hermione's side. "This shell is very hard. Can't eat it."
Her gaze remained fixed on the locket, remembering when she had eaten other parts of Lord Voldemort before.
"But... the stuff inside... smells... edible."
...
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