SEEN ✱ WATCHING THE MOVIES (HARRY POTTER)

{42} TO THE CHAMBER OF SECRETS

"You're telling me that there really was a basilisk loose in the castle?" Pansy asked Mia and Ron, her voice tinged with disbelief. There had been whispers and rumors about the monster being a basilisk, but they had lacked concrete evidence.

"Yes," Mia and Ron replied simultaneously, their words carrying a weight of grim certainty. The revelation left most people in stunned shock and fear, while others shivered from the implications. Some experienced a combination of both emotions. Hagrid, however, was visibly fascinated. The idea of a basilisk roaming the grounds intrigued him; after all, encountering such a rare and dangerous creature would have been a thrill.

"Okay, so a basilisk, which was hidden by Salazar Slytherin a thousand years ago, was let loose in the castle and was responsible for petrifying people?" Fudge clarified, a look of incredulity on his face as Umbridge observed the stunned individuals, and Amelia diligently took notes.

Mia mulled over Fudge's words, silently acknowledging that perhaps he wasn't a complete idiot after all.

"Yes," she responded with a solemn nod, and the weight of her confirmation seemed to settle heavily upon the listeners.

"So the basilisk killed the girl in the bathroom fifty years ago?" A Ravenclaw student asked fearfully, voicing the collective apprehension of the room.

Mia met the student's gaze and replied with a solemn nod, conveying empathy for his evident fear.

"But who is the Heir of Slytherin? I mean, it can't be the same person who released the basilisk fifty years ago," Blaise inquired, his tone laced with urgency.

"It's both a surprise and not a surprise at the same time," Mia responded.

"And only you heard it because you can speak Parseltongue?" Bill asked carefully, his expression reflecting a mix of curiosity and concern.

Mia's frustration was palpable. "Yes." she said, her annoyance evident at the oversimplification of the situation by others.

Ron: [processing the information they just read] But if it kills by looking people in the eye, why is it no one's dead?

"Good question, Ron," Charlie praised his little brother, a proud smile spreading across his face. Ron returned the smile, encouraged by the praise from his older sibling.

Mia: [thinking for a few seconds then looking at the window] Because no one did look it in the eye. Not directly, at least.

"What?" Everyone asked in confusion, their puzzled expressions mirroring their collective bewilderment at the unexpected turn of events.

Mia: [they walk along as they go over how each of the victims were petrified] Colin saw it through his camera. Justin... Justin must've seen the Basilisk through Nearly Headless Nick. Nick got the full blast of it, but he's a ghost. He couldn't die again. And Hermione... had the mirror. I bet you anything she was using it to look around corners in case it came along.

Everyone felt a twinge of embarrassment for not having seen through that part a little bit earlier, since it was now so obvious, after Mia had pointed it out.

Ron: And Mrs. Norris? I'm pretty sure she didn't have a camera or a mirror, Mia.

"Another excellent question, Ron," commended Arthur, acknowledging his youngest son's contribution.

Ron blushed once more, and Mia offered a warm smile. She understood that in the bustling household of the Weasleys, it was all too simple for one of the children to be unintentionally excluded. As the youngest brother, Ron sometimes struggled to stand out amid his siblings, particularly Ginny, the sole girl in the family. Mia felt reassured that he hadn't been entirely overlooked.