Тейлор Поттер и философский виал / Taylor Potter and the Philosophical Vial: Глава 10. Рождественские каникулы

Chapter 10. Christmas Holydays
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Camrad_RIP 03.01.26 в 21:59

"That's much better," Lisa said with a grin, taking the bracelet off her wrist. "Time to get down to the case!"

Camrad_RIP 04.01.26 в 06:38

"What case?" Taylor asked, surprised, peering into Lisa's shower stall.

Camrad_RIP 04.01.26 в 06:39

"The case of the giant three-headed dog!" Granger exclaimed pompously and winked. "Come on, wash up and we'll discuss it all in the living room!"

Camrad_RIP 04.01.26 в 06:39

"We all saw the dog, and Amy even touched it and determined that it was not alive," said Lisa, walking around the living room, waving her arms and combing her hair at the same time.

Camrad_RIP 04.01.26 в 06:40

“Uh-huh,” Amy responded, not taking her eyes off the tablet.

Camrad_RIP 04.01.26 в 06:40

Her fingers were flickering as she typed something on the screen.

Camrad_RIP 04.01.26 в 06:41

"We didn't see any traces of the contamination Headmistress Dumbledore told us about at the beginning of the year!" Lisa continued. "But we did see a dog!"

Camrad_RIP 04.01.26 в 06:41

"And Snape went there too!" Taylor added.

Camrad_RIP 04.01.26 в 06:41

"Exactly," Lisa nodded. "Let's assume the dog was resistant to manipulation, rumors, information, and hacking, unlike the other systems and students of Wormwarts!"

Camrad_RIP 04.01.26 в 06:42

"Then why didn't Headmistress Dumbledore eliminate him?" Amy asked, still looking at her tablet.

Camrad_RIP 04.01.26 в 06:42

"What are you typing there?" Taylor asked.

Camrad_RIP 04.01.26 в 06:42

"An essay on the history of the Capes," Weasley responded dejectedly. "Imagine what would have happened if the Hero had intervened in the First World War, wanting to bring peace to everyone?" It needs two thousand words, I've only got five hundred, and I'm already tired... Lisa, you're a Thinker, aren't you?"

Camrad_RIP 04.01.26 в 06:43

"You know the price.” Granger’s smile seemed ready to crawl beyond the back of her head.

Camrad_RIP 04.01.26 в 06:44

Amy snorted grimly and looked back at her tablet.

Camrad_RIP 04.01.26 в 06:44

"So," said Lisa, "we don't know Headmistress Dumbledore's motives, but! We have the three-headed key, and we'll start solving this mystery with it, since I'm no longer restricted in my movements!"

Camrad_RIP 04.01.26 в 06:45

"When?"

Camrad_RIP 04.01.26 в 06:45

"In three days, the Christmas holidays begin, the students will leave, but we will remain."

Camrad_RIP 04.01.26 в 06:45

Taylor nodded rapidly in response, having absolutely no desire to go home to the Dursleys. Amy waved her hand listlessly and mumbled something.

Camrad_RIP 04.01.26 в 06:46

"And Hagrid will stay," Lisa continued to outline her "insidious" plan. "We'll go to her, talk, bring gifts, drink for her, and meat for the dogs. And we'll find out everything about this three-headed dog, thus getting a direction for our search, since Hagrid alone is simply incapable of organizing what we saw."

Camrad_RIP 04.01.26 в 06:47

"Aren't you going home?" Taylor asked with some hidden fear.

Camrad_RIP 04.01.26 в 06:47

"Of course not," Granger smirked. "I just took off my bracelet! The mysteries of Wormwarts won't solve themselves!"

Camrad_RIP 04.01.26 в 06:47

Taylor hadn't expected any presents for Christmas, or any other day, even her birthday, but suddenly she realized she'd been wrong. Amy had given her a wonderful beetle painted in Herofindor's colors, and Lisa a wonderful reference book, "Genetically Modified Insects: A to Z." Among the gifts was a whistle from Hagrid, some candy, and even a gift from the Dursleys: a brand-new tampon in its wrapper, which made Taylor blush and Lisa laugh long and loud.

Camrad_RIP 04.01.26 в 06:50

Taylor also received a tight sweater from Victoria Weasley, with something on it: a six-legged, winged creature with horns and a heart. While Amy scribbled an angry letter to her little sister and Taylor struggled to fit into the sweater without taking off the rest of her clothes, Lisa fiddled with the last gift: a small box.

Camrad_RIP 04.01.26 в 06:51

“What’s there?” Taylor asked. “Open up!”

Camrad_RIP 04.01.26 в 06:51

"Touch it with your finger," Granger said thoughtfully.

Camrad_RIP 04.01.26 в 06:51

The friends gathered around the box, and Taylor touched the surface with her finger. It rippled, and an image appeared: a faceless mask in the void, and the caption:

Camrad_RIP 04.01.26 в 06:52

Your father left it to me before he died.

Camrad_RIP 04.01.26 в 06:52

It's time to give it back to you.

Camrad_RIP 04.01.26 в 06:53

Use it wisely.

Camrad_RIP 04.01.26 в 06:53

Merry Christmas to you.

Camrad_RIP 04.01.26 в 06:53

"What's this?" Taylor asked.

Camrad_RIP 04.01.26 в 06:54

“I think if I’m right…,” Lisa said, opening the box, “and I’m right, yeah!”

Camrad_RIP 04.01.26 в 06:56

"It can't be!" Amy exclaimed admiringly. "This is a very rare and valuable thing!"

Camrad_RIP 04.01.26 в 06:57

Taylor blinked, peering into the box.

Camrad_RIP 04.01.26 в 06:54

There lay a red bandage, rolled into a ball. Two buttons on the bandage had a symbol engraved on the surface: a triangle containing a circle, intersected by a line.

Camrad_RIP 04.01.26 в 06:56

"It's an invisibility bandage," Lisa whispered, "and not some kind of homemade, new-fangled thing, no!"

Camrad_RIP 04.01.26 в 06:58

She had already grabbed the token, was turning it over in her hands, sniffing it, even licking it, and for a second, Taylor thought that an image of some famous cape would appear on the surface of the token.

Camrad_RIP 04.01.26 в 08:47

"This is a Dragon-made headband!" Granger proclaimed. "One of those she personally crafted, with her own metal hands, to aid the Founders."

Camrad_RIP 04.01.26 в 08:48

"So what? What does the invisibility have to do with it?"

Camrad_RIP 04.01.26 в 08:48

"As long as you wear this bandage, you'll be invisible to any tracking devices, whether they were created by humans or the Tinkers," Lisa smiled. "Do you know what that means?"

Camrad_RIP 04.01.26 в 08:50

"No," Taylor replied, puzzled.

Camrad_RIP 04.01.26 в 08:51

"You can wander anywhere in Wormwarts, and the castle won't even notice! Right, I need to visit the library immediately!"

Camrad_RIP 04.01.26 в 08:51

Granger quickly tied a red ribbon around her wrist and poked at the buttons. She thought for a second.

Camrad_RIP 04.01.26 в 06:58

"Press two buttons and identify yourself," she told Taylor.

Camrad_RIP 04.01.26 в 06:59

"Taylor Potter."

Camrad_RIP 04.01.26 в 06:59

"System activated," a voice came from the headband. "Owner identified. User not identified. User identified: Lisa Granger. Authorization and use denied."

Camrad_RIP 04.01.26 в 07:00

"I think I misunderstood something again," Taylor replied.

Camrad_RIP 04.01.26 в 07:00

"It's all good," Lisa grinned. "How would you like to stroll through Wormwarts handholding?"

Camrad_RIP 04.01.26 в 07:00

"What are we doing here?" Taylor asked quietly, looking around.

Camrad_RIP 04.01.26 в 07:01