So many years had passed since elementary school, life had changed, but the suggestion worked. Richie froze and reached into his bag... But his hand felt empty. The bag wasn't in its usual place; just over half an hour ago, Richard had handed it to a Squib soldier. Perhaps he'd been overly cautious, but better safe than sorry. What if the Headmaster organized a massive search, say, at night with the help of house elves? And in the bag, what a surprise, was the Philosopher's Stone and the tools used to steal it!
The first-floor corridor near the stairs was empty. For a moment, Richard thought he saw a shadow flicker behind him. He froze and peered intently into the corridor, but saw and heard nothing. The torches cast uneven shadows, so Richie attributed the movement to them.
Soon footsteps were heard on the stairs, and Harry and Ron appeared.
"There really is no one," Harry stated, looking around.
"I suggest we find an empty office," Richard suggested.
"Great idea!" Ron agreed.
The boys walked down the hallway and started tugging at door handles. The second classroom from the stairs was unlocked. It was dusty inside, and the desks were old and half-rotted. It seemed like they would fall apart if you sneezed on them.
The boys entered the office and closed the door. Richie immediately cast his wand: a cleaning charm cleared away the dust in a couple of minutes, and levitation helped move the desks toward the wall. However, not all the old furniture survived the move-some desks fell apart during the process.
By the time Richard had finished cleaning, Ron had already taken the owl out of his bag and Harry had prepared the potion.
The owl regained consciousness and tried to break free from Ron's steely grip. It looked at Harry approaching with horror and tried to peck him. But Ron grabbed the owl's head with his left hand and, with a deft movement, inserted a wooden brace he had prepared into its beak. Harry somehow managed to pour the potion down the bird's throat, spilling most of the vial in the process.
Richard watched all this with concealed horror. It would have been better for him to release the owl and pretend to lose the Philosopher's Stone. He didn't want to expose the boys. Better to blame the loss of the Stone on the owl. His overactive imagination gave Richard the idea of using a reversal spell on the owl, while suggesting to the boys that the owl's consumption might have ruined the Philosopher's Stone. He felt sorry for the bird, of course, but it was a small loss.
"Guys," Richard began, drawing Harry and Ron's attention, "I've been thinking: we know nothing about the properties of the Philosopher's Stone... Perhaps stomach acid could ruin it. Or maybe it would be digested in the owl like hamburger. And who knows what would happen after that. Maybe the bird would die, or become immortal. Or maybe some kind of mysterious magical reaction would occur."
Harry glanced at Richard for just a moment before turning his attention to the owl.
"If only the stone were intact," he said hopefully.
"I hope you're wrong, Richie," Ron muttered.
Weasley was tired of holding the owl, which continued to actively struggle and try to peck him. Moreover, he understood perfectly well what would happen after taking the laxative potion, and he absolutely did not want to ruin his robes with bird droppings.
"Harry, tie her up," he said.
"What?" Potter looked around in bewilderment.
"I have some Scotch tape in my left pocket," Weasley replied.
Harry pulled some tape from Ron's robes pocket and, with great difficulty, bound the owl's wings to its body. He also tied the feet.
After that, Ron put the owl on the floor with relief.
Harry tilted his head to the side and looked closely at the bird.
"Um, Ron," he said, "how's she supposed to shit lying down? Do you think birds can do that?"
"What, am I an ornithologist?" Ron replied indignantly. "How should I know how birds shit?!"
Richard, watching this obscenity, wanted to put his right palm to his face.
"You put her on her paws," he suggested.
"What?!" Harry exclaimed. "Her paws are tied!"
"You could make some supports," Richie nodded at the pile of junk that had once been old desks. "Look at all the material. If only there was a will..."
"Richie is right," Ron said, and then immediately went to gather some boards and wood chips.
Harry and Ron, using old junk, constructed a monstrous structure of slanted poles that supported the owl on all sides. Ron even thought to Transfigure the whole thing to strengthen it so the flimsy structure wouldn't collapse. The result was something like a round wooden owl stand, held by the middle of its body and supported by three slanted supports.
Ron and Harry stared at the owl with eager anticipation.
Richie took a deep breath and thought:
"Even though I feel sorry for the bird, its sacrifice will not be in vain."
He stealthily drew his wand and, from behind his comrades' backs, pointed it at the owl. An invisible, enhanced version of the Counterspell (Finita Maxima) erupted from the wand. This was one of the charms Madam Marchbanks had taught Richard. She insisted that this spell be mastered not only nonverbally, but also wandlessly.
The spell had no visible effect, but Richie was certain it must have worked. He quickly hid the magical instrument in the sheath on his belt. No one noticed his actions.
"When will she shit herself?!" Ron exclaimed impatiently.
"Now, go ahead, squeeze out the larva!" Harry said excitedly, like a fan chanting for his team.
Suddenly, the three boys heard Draco Malfoy's hysterical and extremely indignant cry behind them:
- You sick perverts, what are you doing to my owl?!
A complete silence fell over the room. Richie, Ron, and Harry turned their faces in astonishment to find Malfoy standing in the open doorway. Draco stared at his owl with an indescribable mixture of surprise, anger, and indignation.
The sight that greeted him was incredible: a bird, bound with tape, was trapped inside a strange structure that resembled a fireworks launcher. Meanwhile, his three enemies were staring at the owl with eerie gazes, and two of them were still waiting with anticipation for the bird to lay its eggs.
"Psychos!" Draco whispered, a look of horror on his face. "You're completely out of your mind... It wasn't enough for you to beat me, you also stole my bird and are abusing it! What the hell is going on here?!"
"Uh..." Harry said, looking confused. "Malfoy, it's not what you think..."
"What was I thinking?!" Draco exploded with indignation. "You need to be isolated from society! You're a bunch of sick, perverted people who love watching birds shit!!! I'll report you to Professor Snape and my father."
"Does anyone know how to erase memories?" Richard asked unexpectedly, in a calm tone.
"No," Ron answered with great regret.
"No," Harry shook his head negatively.
Draco, looking warily at the three boys, backed away.
"You want to erase my memory too?!" he was horrified.
"It's a pity, but it won't work," Richard said sadly.