Ron’s parents and the twins arrive at Hogwarts to see Ron, who is out cold in the hospital wing; Hermione and Hagrid visit him, too, the former quiet and white-faced. They all wonder about the person behind the poison. Hermione suggests they may be a connection between the poison and the necklace: besides both having been almost fatal, neither object seemed to have reached its intended victim, making the perpetrator all the more dangerous as they don’t seem to care how many people are harmed along the way. As Hagrid, Harry, and Hermione leave the hospital wing, Hagrid inadvertently reveals that Dumbledore is angry with Snape; he overheard Snape saying he didn’t want to do something anymore, as well as Dumbledore asking Snape to make investigations in Slytherin house.

With Ron out of action, McLaggen replaces him as Keeper for the upcoming match and annoys everyone on the team by constantly doling out advice on how they can play better. Harry is dogged by McLaggen and Lavender Brown, the former to talk Quidditch strategy and the latter to talk about Ron, who seems to be avoiding her by pretending to be asleep when she visits. On the day of the match, Harry sees Draco with a couple of young girls heading in the opposite direction of the pitch; Harry’s curiosity is piqued, but he resists the urge to follow them.