Sherlock Holmes at Hogwarts.

Chapter 411 Sherlock: Gemma, it's not your turn yet.
Hermione had only wanted to find a different place so she could have a proper talk with Sherlock about the Time-Turner and her coursework.

After all, talking about menstruation in public is really embarrassing.

But what he didn't expect was that the location had changed, and so had the people.

After experiencing it firsthand, Hermione admitted that the Room of Requirement was indeed a good place.

But is it really necessary to call Gemma over as well?
Even if she was the one who told Sherlock the secret of this house.

Even though Gemma earned twelve certificates in fifth grade.

So the problem has returned to where it was before.

"Sherlock, you know perfectly well that my situation is different from Chairman Gemma's."

I need to catch up on all my classes, I need to pass the OWLs, I need to…

"What you need is to take the exam with a healthy body and a clear mind, not to exhaust yourself halfway through."

Sherlock's voice wasn't loud, but it was extremely penetrating, and every word was crystal clear:
"In just the last two weeks, your nerve reaction speed has noticeably slowed down."

Because you were too tired, you forgot to go to your arithmetic and divination class.

You mistakenly identified the poison ivy that Professor Sprout had arranged as mandrake rhizomes.

You made a spelling mistake in your course on ancient runes.

You should know very well that this is not a random mistake, but the result of excessive mental strain—not to mention you're only sleeping a few hours a day!

Hermione looked at Sherlock in surprise. She never expected that Sherlock knew everything about her.

So even though Sherlock used an accusatory tone, Hermione was not angry at all; in fact, she was quite touched.

Gemma watched this scene with great interest.

She already knew that Sherlock valued Hermione highly when he wrote to her asking for her help.

It now seems that Sherlock values ​​Hermione even more than she imagined.

"Sherlock, I didn't... I didn't..."

Since she was moved, Hermione instinctively tried to argue when faced with Sherlock's questioning.

Unexpectedly, Sherlock interrupted him without any politeness:

Hermione, you've put too much pressure on yourself.

This has exceeded the limits of your physical endurance—the decline in performance is the most direct and powerful proof of this.

If you continue like this, you will age much faster than you should.

Sherlock's tone was flat, yet carried an undeniable sense of analysis.

His grey eyes stared directly at Hermione, making the latter unable to meet her gaze at that moment.

Just as Hermione suspected, Sherlock did not tell Gemma about the Time-Turner in his letter to her.

He simply said he needed Gemma's help to seduce Hermione.

However, neither Harry, who came to Sherlock to ask him to persuade Hermione, nor Hermione herself realized the seriousness of the matter.

The key to the problem lies in the time converter itself.

Hermione uses the Time-Turner, seemingly giving her more time than others, but the effort she puts in goes far beyond just double the energy.

All I can say is that she is still too young and unaware that every gift bestowed by fate has already been secretly priced.

Every extra hour that the Time-Turner operated on Hermione was directly impacting her biological age.

According to Sherlock's observations, Hermione's actual age has increased by at least four to six months since she started using the Time-Turner.

Furthermore, although Hermione is currently only using the Time-Turner to go back in time to attend classes, Sherlock sees the potential dangers involved.

Sherlock always believed that if time was considered a form of magic, then it was definitely more dangerous than transfiguration.

Last time in Hogsmeade, after learning that Hermione had used a time-turner to achieve her goal of attending classes in three classrooms simultaneously, Sherlock questioned this matter in front of Hermione.

Anything becomes exceptionally troublesome once time is involved.

A butterfly flapping its wings in South America could trigger a tornado in Texas.

Chaotic phenomena like the butterfly effect are even more pronounced when combined with time converters.

A seemingly insignificant, small change can very likely affect the course of events.

So far, Harry and Ron have discovered Hermione's elusive behavior more than once.

Because these were just some minor things in their daily lives, they did not cause any serious consequences.

If you walk by the river often, you're bound to get your feet wet.

Even Sherlock, who is skilled at using deductive reasoning to analyze problems, cannot guarantee that if Hermione were to use the Time-Turner to travel back in time, her unintentional action might cause huge changes due to the butterfly effect.

As he just mentioned, Hermione forgot a divination lesson because she was tired.

Based on established facts from the past and the memories of others who attended the class, Hermione simply did not attend that class.

So no matter how much Hermione used the Time-Turner, she couldn't make up for this lesson.

Because Hermione did not appear at that point in time.

Therefore, when the past flows into the present, Hermione can no longer appear.

A time paradox would occur if she tried to alter history.

This is absolutely not allowed.

But what if history were to change due to some accident? What would become of the present and the future?
Although, according to Professor McGonagall, the Ministry of Magic has strict limitations on the use of the Time-Turner, however…

Sherlock had absolutely no confidence in the management skills of those bureaucrats.

Then the problem is coming.

Given the existence of time-twisters, how can people know whether history has been rewritten?
How can we be sure that what is happening now is not derived from a history that has already been distorted?
The result is that it is impossible to know.

Even if Sherlock himself came, it wouldn't help.

This is also why Sherlock is not interested in the time-tamper.

This thing is so buggy.

When Sherlock finished speaking, the room fell silent instantly, with only the crackling of the burning firewood in the hearth.

Hermione's face was as white as paper, and her lips trembled slightly.

Gemma's understanding of that statement was only superficial, but Hermione knew very well that Sherlock was revealing a cold reality she instinctively wanted to avoid—she was indeed aging faster.

Furthermore, when Professor McGonagall gave her the Time-Turner, she also told her about the terrible things that happened after wizards tampered with time:
Many people mistakenly kill their past or future selves.

Even more remarkably, some minor changes were made, yet history was repeatedly overwritten because of these subtle alterations, thus creating an entirely new history.

The most terrifying thing is that no one on the new timeline will remember the other part of history that has already happened.

According to the Ministry of Magic's calculations, time travel that causes serious damage to the user of the Time-Turner or to time itself usually occurs five hours earlier.

Therefore, the time-twister that Professor McGonagall gave to Hermione was the standard version.

The only option is to return her to a point within the last five hours.

More advanced time converters are also stored in the Ministry of Magic.

However, with Gemma around, it was inconvenient to tell Sherlock these things. Thinking this, Hermione stubbornly raised her head to look at Sherlock.

Her eyes held a complex mix of awe, grievance, and a stubborn persistence.

Ultimately, she just wanted to prove herself.

He wanted to be worthy of the life he had saved.

I wanted to stand before this powerful and wise person without appearing weak.

She gave up the divination class last time, partly because she thought Professor Trelawney was a big fraud and the divination class itself was meaningless.

On the other hand, it was because heeded Sherlock's advice and appropriately chose to give up.

However, she did not expect that even if she gave up the divination course, she still would not be able to bear such a high workload.

While feeling helpless, she also developed a strong sense of dissatisfaction with herself.

It's just taking two more courses than others, why can't I do it?

Why am I so useless?

No, I can definitely do it! My potential hasn't been fully realized yet!
No matter what, we must grit our teeth and persevere this time.

Thinking of this, she took a deep breath and looked at Sherlock, saying:

"Sherlock, I don't care, and I can control myself!"

I know exactly what I'm doing, and this time, I won't give up.

Hermione's voice was firm, but it carried a hint of a sob that she herself didn't even realize.

Sherlock frowned upon hearing this.

Hermione's stubbornness exceeded his logical expectations.

My straightforward, fact-based statement of harm did not achieve the desired effect.

No, it seems we need to step up our efforts!
Just as Sherlock was about to speak, Gemma, who had been quietly observing, stepped forward:
"Sherlock, why don't I speak with Miss Hermione?"

"It's not your turn yet."

Hermione and Gemma: "..."

As expected of you!

However, Gemma did not grant Sherlock's wish this time.

She smiled and said, "Sherlock, you're the one who asked me to come and help this time."

"so?"

"So you have to listen to me this time."

Gemma rarely chose to stand up for Sherlock.

Sherlock pondered for three seconds and then nodded.

Gemma is right. I specifically asked her to come over today because I hoped her experience could help Hermione.

Although she felt it wasn't her turn yet, since she volunteered, she would let her take the lead.

Gemma smiled slightly, first gracefully and calmly pouring Sherlock a cup of tea, then taking Hermione's hand and walking to the other side of the room.

It seems they don't intend to let Sherlock hear their conversation.

Sherlock didn't care.

He casually pulled a book on criminal psychology from the bookshelf and began to read it.

On the other side of the room, Gemma was still holding Hermione's hand, her sea-blue eyes looking at her gently.

That look was completely different from Sherlock's; it lacked sharp analysis and the judgment of an observer, and was more like that of a caring older sister who understood the pressure of academics.

“Dear Hermione, no one questions your abilities, and no one thinks you’re messing around.”

Managing so many courses simultaneously is an extraordinary feat; compared to everything you're doing now, my experience in my third year is nothing short of shameful.

Gemma smiled slightly. "You know what? Last week I went to the library to do some research and happened to overhear some Slytherin wizards talking about you."

"They must be saying I'm arrogant, disdainful, and extremely annoying, right?"

"Quite the opposite, Hermione."

Gemma gently patted Hermione's slightly cool hand, her sea-blue eyes filled with a smile as gentle as the afternoon sun.
"They say, 'Granger, from that Muggle family in Gryffindor, is a living encyclopedia. She takes all the courses and still gets top marks.'"

From first grade onwards, no problem has ever stumped her; she is in no way inferior to the Lion King of Gryffindor, renowned for his wisdom.

Her voice was kind and gentle, carrying a genuine sense of agreement.

Hermione paused for a long while before hesitatingly saying:

"President Gemma, is that really what they said? I mean, a bunch of upperclassmen from Slytherin praising me?"

It's no wonder Hermione refused to believe it; Slytherin and Gryffindor have always been at odds.

In her opinion, it was already polite of these people not to call her Mudblood in private, so how could they possibly praise her?

Gemma laughed: "Is that why you've always been wary of me, Miss Know-It-All?"

Hermione wasn't angry at being called that.

Because she could tell that Gemma's words were a good-natured jest, unlike Professor Snape's sarcastic remarks.

“President Gemma, I know you’re different from the other Slytherins, but the others…”

"Hermione, just take this as me bragging, but what I'm trying to say is that you don't have to be prejudiced against Slytherins."

Also, it's not that I'm different from other Slytherins, but rather that people like Malfoy and Pansy are different from Slytherins.

We cannot deny the excellence of Slytherin just because there are many people like them.

Gemma sighed softly as she finished speaking:

“I know you’ve heard bad things and suffered grievances, and those things are real.”

But I must tell you, I've also seen girls in Slytherin bandaging wounded animals in the Forbidden Forest, and boys who were willing to be late and punished to help younger students from other houses find their lost cauldrons.

Hermione was stunned.

She clearly hadn't expected Gemma to say that.

In her mind, Slytherin students were always associated with words like "arrogant," "cold," and "cliques and exclusion."

The scene Gemma described was something she had never even imagined, let alone seen.

Gemma continued:

"Professor McGonagall said when we entered the university that the four houses were simply divided by different qualities, and the Sorting Hat song every year emphasizes this point:"
The courage of Gryffindor, the loyalty of Hufflepuff, the wisdom of Ravenclaw, and the ambition of Slytherin.

I think you should know very well that ambition is not a derogatory term, and there is nothing wrong with it in itself.

Just as excessive courage can turn into recklessness, misused wisdom can turn into scheming.

The academy—it's just a label; it doesn't represent everyone.

(End of this chapter)