You head through the brightening corridors, following the familiar sweep of red and gold until the castle opens into a quieter passage near the Gryffindor common room. Ginny Weasley appears at the end of the hall, moving with sharp purpose and her hair catching the pale morning light. She spots you at once, and her expression shifts from wary curiosity to something more serious, as if she has been expecting trouble too. The castle feels alert around you, every portrait and suit of armor seeming to listen.

Ginny lowers her voice and tells you she has noticed odd footsteps in places where no one should be, crossing and recrossing the same stretch of stone. She believes someone is using the castle’s hidden routes, and she has a hunch the trail leads near the old staircases above the dungeons. Before she can say more, a distant clang echoes through the corridor, and both of you turn at once. Whatever is happening, it is already moving closer.