The locked door fascinated and puzzled her. Thus far, none of her spells had worked, and the lock remained firmly engaged. Tilting her head to consider the heavy iron knob, Hermione felt a faint thrill of excitement course through her. It had been weeks since she'd been this challenged by anything!
Ever since the twins had given Harry that ridiculous Marauder's Map she, Harry, and Ron had been exploring the castle covertly (using the Invisibility Cloak) during breaks and weekends. Hermione wasn't a fool, though—she knew Harry, and probably Ron, went exploring at nighttime when she wasn't along to ruin their adventure.
But Harry really ought to be more careful where he leaves those things laying around, Hermione thought, grinning. She, too, had taken her share of after-hours wanderings about the castle, aided by the Map and the Cloak. It had started innocently enough—she wanted to remain in the library for as long as she felt like it—but soon she found herself exploring.
And now that the school year was nearing the end, Hermione felt confident that she knew every corridor, classroom, and chamber in the school. She had spelled, charmed, and jinxed her way into every office, common room, and greenhouse. She had grown a bit addicted to the thrill that coursed through her when she illicitly entered a locked office-perhaps a bit too addicted. There had been no room in the castle which had remained off-limits to her. Which was why it was so peculiar that she was currently unable to enter this room.
Staring at the door in front of her again, Hermione tapped her wand against her palm. She was out of ideas for unlocking spells. Her shoulders slumped as she realized that the mystery of how the door was locked paled in comparison to the reason why the door was locked.
This was perhaps the most puzzling. She was supposed to be serving detention with Professor Snape tonight, a detention which had been carefully planned and earned during Potions class earlier in the week. A deliberate whisper to Neville when she knew Professor Snape was watching was all it took, and she found herself assigned to Thursday evening detention in the Potions classroom.
So where was Professor Snape? Had he forgotten? Hermione was filled with bitter disappointment at the thought. She'd wanted to have his undivided attention for a few hours, especially in light of the suspicions she had about the assignment he'd given them when he'd stepped in for their Defense class last week.
She'd thought that scrubbing cauldrons while alone in the classroom with him would provide her an opportunity to broach her suspicions about Professor Lupin. Surely Professor Snape knew, which was why he'd given them that particular bit of reading. And if she was right...well, then she had a number of questions to ask, and she knew she could trust Professor Snape to answer truthfully.
But this dratted door was ruining all of her carefully laid plans. In order to serve her detention, she needed to enter the classroom. To enter the classroom, she needed to get the door open... Frustrated, Hermione thumped the heavy wooden door with her hand. Surprisingly, the door seemed to hum with something akin to electricity. Whatever spells or enchantments were upon the door, they were unknown to her; yet, they felt indescribably familiar.
Out of ideas, Hermione poked the offending lock with her wand. To her complete shock the door glowed purple for a moment before she heard the lock click, and then the door was swinging open, almost as though it recognized her. Hurrying inside before the door could change its mind, Hermione nearly fainted at the sight that met her eyes.
A/N: Written for the wonderful WeasleySeeker's One Line Competition, Round 2, on HPFC. The first line must be: "The locked door fascinated and puzzled her." This is currently unbeta'd; if you're interested in helping me clean it up please let me know. There are several more chapters on the way, and from here on out, the chapter title will let you know from whose POV it's in (although hopefully it's somewhat clear while you're reading, as well...again, anyone want to beta? :) ). This chapter is third-year Hermione. I'm not JK Rowling because I doubt she would ever force her characters to behave in this manner.