By the time Harry and the other two hurried to the hospital wing, they didn't even have to ask to find Hermione.
Because her crying was just... way too loud.
The moment the three of them actually laid eyes on Hermione, they all froze, eyes wide in disbelief.
"I take back everything I said about Professor Trelawney being a fraud…" Ron muttered.
"She's a real genius!"
The three of them sincerely praised Professor Trelawney.
"...Did you really have to say that in front of me? Even if you whispered it behind my back, that would've been better, sniff.." Hermione said as she wiped the few tears from the corners of her eyes, her previously bright eyes now turned into a pair of dead-fish eyes as she complained.
"Oh, sorry, but honestly... it is kinda funny." Ron said as he walked over and flicked the two little horns that had grown on Hermione's forehead with his fingernail.
They'd broken through the skin—thankfully Madam Pomfrey had quickly given her some pain potion and applied a special ointment.
"It's not just funny, it's actually cool. Really. You should paint those horns red. It's just a shame Halloween's already over… Maybe next Halloween, you could drink some more Skelegrow and…" Harry also came over and joined in the teasing.
"Is there a way to get rid of these horns? They won't leave scars, right?" Neville muttered.
Hermione's mood improved a little. "Among the three of you, only Neville speaks like a normal person. As for the other two… heh."
As she spoke, she cast a sideways, disdainful glance at Harry and Ron.
"There probably won't be any scars. Bone growth injuries should just be pure physical trauma. Normal potions should be enough to heal them," Harry said, trying to reassure her.
"Oh… I hope so. But right now, I just don't know what method Madam Pomfrey will use to remove my two horns. Maybe some kind of miraculous potion?" Hermione sighed as she replied.
Harry, Ron, and Neville subtly glanced at each other. In a blink, a full 3-way party telepathy kicked in.
The next second, Ron immediately spoke up: "Not sure, but when we came in, we saw Madam Pomfrey holding two huge steel saws. No idea what she's planning to do with them."
Hermione's face instantly turned pale—deathly pale. "Steel saws?"
"Yeah, besides the saws, there were also metal files—like a carpenter," Harry added.
Hermione was so shocked she forgot to keep wiping her tears. She stared blankly at the ceiling, and a bizarre scene unfolded in her mind.
A terrifying iron rack held her head in place.
Madam Pomfrey, one hand gripping a steel saw and the other grabbing her horn, began furiously sawing away.
After cutting, worried it wasn't smooth enough, she even used a file to grind it down, followed by sandpaper polishing.
From then on, Hermione could only walk around with two chalk-white stubs on her forehead.
Every person who saw her for the first time would say things like: "Whoa, what happened to your forehead…"
"Hey there—polished those yet?"
"NooOoo!! I'm finished… I'm done for… my life is over… I have no future…"
When Madam Pomfrey came in, the first thing she saw was a completely soulless Hermione, like an empty shell. She looked at the three little companions with some confusion.
"What happened to her?"
The three of them took turns explaining the situation, and Madam Pomfrey, a little exasperated, pulled out a bottle of potion.
"This is exactly what happens when young wizards only learn applied magic and ignore magic medical theory."
"Drink this, and you'll be completely fine."
Hermione accepted the potion, then glanced at Madam Pomfrey's empty hands.
"…So you're not going to need saws or files for my horns?"
"Do you know why some people who are attacked by dark magic suffer permanent bodily damage, or why Muggles sometimes feel phantom pain after losing a limb?" Madam Pomfrey didn't answer directly, but started with a question.
The four of them all shook their heads. Hermione seemed to forget the two horns on her head and momentarily regained her classroom vibe.
"Because of the soul. Dark magic damages the body while simultaneously harming the corresponding part of the soul. So, conventional methods that repair the body based on the soul's integrity can't restore it—only specific counter-curses can," Madam Pomfrey explained.
"In the case of Muggle amputations, the body is damaged, but the soul remains completely intact. So the so-called phantom limb pain is actually a manifestation of some anomaly in the soul."
Hermione immediately caught on: "So these two horns of mine don't have any soul attached? Then this bottle of potion is enough?"
Madam Pomfrey nodded. "But it'll hurt a little. That's because the potion works by destroying your body while simultaneously allowing it to regrow based on the soul's template... I don't know if you've studied Muggle biology—complete metamorphosis in insects?"
"Well, in terms of effect, it's pretty similar. So I'll need to make a cocoon for you." ᴛʜɪs ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ ɪs ᴜᴘᴅᴀᴛᴇ ʙʏ 𝓷𝓸𝓿𝓮𝓵~𝕗𝕚𝕣𝕖~𝙣𝙚𝙩
After hearing Madam Pomfrey's explanation, Hermione felt her whole body go numb. As someone who excelled in both Muggle and magical academics, she of course knew what metamorphosis meant.
Simply put, it's when an insect melts itself into goo inside a cocoon... and then gets reassembled...
"Can't we use another method? Like... using a saw or something?"
Madam Pomfrey shook her head. "Pain-relief potions only work on muscles and skin. But those two horns of yours are fully equipped with nerves and blood vessels—you wouldn't be able to withstand the pain."
"Then this potion..." Hermione looked at the bottle in her hand, still full of resistance.
"It'll only take one night, Miss Granger. And this is Hogwarts—we have magic. Of course we're not really going to melt you down into liquid and then reassemble you. The destruction and reassembly happen simultaneously. Relax a little," Madam Pomfrey comforted her.
"Then… the cocoon you mentioned?"
"That's for hygiene, poor child." Madam Pomfrey casually waved her wand, and a bubble began to expand from inside Hermione's body outward.
"Oh... I don't have any other choice, do I?" Hermione swallowed hard and then downed the potion in one go.
"...Cool and sweet," she commented.
"Next, you'll need to get some sleep. After all, this kind of pain is like pi—never-ending. It's best to sleep through it," Madam Pomfrey said as she raised her wand again. After Hermione nodded, she gently tapped her: "Somnus."
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