At the end of the letter, she even "thoughtfully" attached a CC list: Amelia Bones, Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, and Albus Dumbledore, Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot.
She didn't threaten; she simply stated the facts and made Malfoy understand that if he wanted to play power games, she would use the "rules" he despised the most to make him hoist himself by his own petard.
After mailing the letter, the frost on Hermione's face gradually melted away.
She walked over to Lia, gathered the Cat-girl's soft body into her arms, and rested her chin on the top of Lia's head.
"Don't be afraid. I'm here. No one will dare touch you."
Lia, held in her arms, didn't respond, just leaned against her quietly. Hermione looked down and saw Lia staring back at her. In those azure eyes, the usual soft dependency was gone, replaced by a cold indifference that saw through everything.
"Hermione," Lia whispered, "that person called Lucius Malfoy, his soul... must taste terrible."
Hermione's heart instantly sank to the bottom... The Grangers hadn't noticed the undercurrents between their daughter and her "pet." They proceeded with their original plan to take their two "children" on a trip to France.
The sun shone brightly in Paris, and the Seine River shimmered, but for Lia, the city was like a sensory hell.
When they walked into Notre Dame Cathedral, Lia's Eye of Truth was passively activated. Instantly, the mighty torrent of emotions accumulated there over centuries surged toward her like a tsunami.
The devout prayers of countless believers, the fleeting astonishment of tourists, the sadness left over from wartime, the vows made by lovers... these invisible "soul noises" wove into a giant net, violently assaulting her mind.
"Ah—"
Lia let out a painful moan, clutching her head as her body curled up. The voices screamed in her mind, giving her a splitting headache.
"Lia! What's wrong?"
Hermione quickly steadied her and immediately held her tightly in her arms.
Miraculously, as Lia's cheek pressed against Hermione's body, and as the scent unique to Hermione enveloped her, the chaotic "soul noises" from outside seemed to be cut off by an invisible barrier.
The world instantly became quiet.
She gasped for breath like a fish out of water, burying her face deep in Hermione's embrace, unwilling to look up.
The Grangers watched her worriedly. Hermione could only weakly explain that Lia might be suffering from motion sickness and acclimatization issues.
This incident gave Hermione a deeper understanding of Lia's new ability.
It was powerful, but also extremely dangerous, especially in places with a long history and dense crowds, posing a huge burden on Lia's mind.
However, the real crisis erupted in Louvre.
To prevent another accident, Hermione held Lia (in her cat form) in her arms almost the entire time, using her body to shield her from the external "noise."
They walked past the gallery displaying the Mona Lisa and through the corridor housing the statue of the Winged Victory, and everything remained relatively calm.
Until they entered the Egyptian Gallery.
Under the dim lighting, a pharaoh's sarcophagus from thousands of years ago lay silently in the center of the exhibition hall.
The sarcophagus was covered in ancient hieroglyphs and deities' patterns, and an ancient, majestic, and deathly silent aura assaulted them.
The moment they approached the sarcophagus, the dormant "black crystal" deep within Lia's soul suddenly pulsed.
A cold, seductive voice, one that was not her own, rang out clearly in her mind for the first time:
"Devour it..."
Lia's body stiffened.
"Do you feel it? That lingering, weak King's Soul... Though decayed, it is excellent nourishment..."
The voice carried a superior, judgmental tone, as if a gourmet were critiquing a dish.
"Devour it, and you will become stronger. This is far more delicious than those boring emotional fragments..."
"No..." Lia silently opened her mouth. fear, like cold vines, spread from her heart throughout her body. She could feel the magic inside her uncontrollably reaching out toward the sarcophagus, driven by a primal, greedy desire.
That was the craving belonging to Tom Riddle.
He not only sought eternal life but also wanted to strengthen himself by devouring other souls!
And now, he was trying to turn Lia into a monster just like him!
"What are you resisting? Only the weak resist power. This is a gift, a shortcut to evolution. Accept it, we are fundamentally one..."
"No! Get out!" Lia screamed frantically in her mind.
"Lia?" Hermione felt the violent trembling of the little creature in her arms. She looked down and saw Lia's eyes tightly shut, her face pale, and her forehead covered in fine cold sweat.
"No... don't..."
Lia's delirium was full of desperate resistance. Her little claws desperately clutched Hermione's clothes, as if they were her last lifeline.
The next second, in the confrontation with that greedy will, Lia's mind completely snapped. Her vision went black, and she fainted on the spot.
"Lia!"
Hermione's cry of alarm was particularly jarring in the quiet Egyptian Gallery.
Holding the unconscious Lia in her arms, she looked at the silent pharaoh's sarcophagus not far away, and a chilling dread shot from her feet to the top of her head.
She finally understood what Dumbledore meant by, "You are her anchor."
That thing inside Lia... it wasn't a passive toxin; it was an awakening predator.
And it had already begun to hunt.
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