Shrieking Shack

"The Shrieking Shack? That seems like a bit of a stretch, that house has been empty for ages. How do we know if the last turner is there? Somebody could've stolen it by now." Ron questioned.

"Well think about it, tricky magic, an abandoned house, and a inventive wizard. It seems to me, that the rumors were made by Lithgow himself! How else would a crazy wizard protect his valuables after he died, but to scare everyone else away?" Ron grinned at me.

"Brilliant, what if the emerald cruelty never killed him? What if he started that rumor to keep them from trying to find the last turner?" I flipped through the book to more information about the Shrieking Shack.

"Here, the Shrieking Shack was once owned by a famous wizard named Xander Lithgow, who moved into the eerie house after the death of his friend, Camdus Peverell. Though the house was home to the notorious murders of a muggle family and known to be haunted by the souls of the family, Lithgow still moved in. Lithgow, a inventive wizard was only seen a few times before his tragic death, after only living at the Shrieking Shack a few years. Rumors say that Lithgow was accidentally killed after a mishap with one of his time turners. It also rumored that he was killed by the spirits of the muggle family. None of the rumors have yet to be proven, in that no one has ventured to the shack after it was sealed off after the discovery of his body. After the rumor of the time turner death, the Shrieking Shack and time turners were casted off as unwanted and unsafe. No one has entered the shack since." I looked at Ron.

"Well that's not true."

I screamed in terror to see a mangy black dog bite down on Ron's leg and drag him into a hole underneath the whomping willow. I tried desperately to pull him away from the dog. I watched as our fingers slipped apart, my heart ached when he disappeared from view. "Ron!" Harry dove and covered me from a whipping branch trying to hit me. "We have to save him!" I started to stand, but I got hooked by an oncoming branch. I was being whipped around like a rag doll. Finally Harry was within reach and I took a tuff of his collar and veered him into the hole. He fell into the break in the whomping willow and I gave in and let go of the branch and followed Harry and Ron down the hole. I collapsed on Harry earning a groan from him. "Sorry Harry." We noticed Ron's trail of blood quickly and tracked it up a mysteriously small tunnel till we reached the Shrieking Shack. There Ron was completely terrified, his leg obviously broken, and my heart was aching. It took me back to first year when he sacrificed himself to help us.

"I remember the first time we were there, it broke my heart to see you in that much pain." I flipped through the book to see if there was anymore information we needed to know. Surprisingly, Ron kissed me. I slowly closed the book, entangling my fingers in his hair. "I suppose we should figure out what we are going to do, steal my turner or go explore the Shrieking Shack?" I tried to catch my breath, since Ron seemed to steal it with every kiss.

"Seeing as we only have a couple of hours till dinner and quidditch, we should focus on the turner we know the exact location of. We should probably turn back to before the feast that evening, you did go back to change before right? Then you left the turner there." I nodded, remembering exactly where I left it.

"You and Harry should go to the feast, I'll be fine. Sneak me back something." Ron grinned at me. I agreed and we left Ron to go get changed. The Gryffindor tower was nearly empty since everyone was already heading to the feast. Harry and I parted and ascended the stairs to our dorms. My room was a relief to see, my bed looked so comfortable and inviting to my sore body. I dragged to get changed and cleaned up. All I wanted to do was go back and sit with poor Ron, not go to a boring feast. I changed into my uniform, finally as I pushed my feet into shoes I realized the time turner was still hanging around my neck. I lifted it and placed into my small jewelry box and back into my trunk.

"I know where it is! I put it in my jewelry box and then into my trunk! I left you to go to the feast."

"So we have to go back to right before dinner, third year." I nodded. "Let's see the Tempus Luna." I gave Ron my beaded bag to hold as I stretched my arm into the bag, pushing through the books, the galleons, and at last I felt the chain brush against my fingertips.

"Got it." I pulled the turner out and tucked my bag back into my pocket. "Let's go." I draped the chain around Ron's neck and then my own. I grazed my fingers across the turner, I started to rotate the it. It twisted quickly, spinning faster and faster, and spiraling in my hand. Suddenly the scenery began to lapse past us. Ron squeezed my hand as our years went in reverse. It was like going right back to getting our acceptance letter to leaving Hogwarts those years ago. Finally our surroundings slowed to a stop. I lifted the chain from around our necks and placed it in my pocket.

"Wow, I never realized how weird the library looks nearly ten years in the past. How are we going to get to the tower without being noticed? Not to mention, how are we going to get in?" Ron questioned.

"I think I may have a uniform for both of us in here. I used the bag when I came back for seventh year and you came to dinner that one time, remember?" I fished out the forgotten uniforms for both of us and started to undress.

"What about getting into the tower?" I became slightly mesmerized by his muscular freckled shoulders and arms, it was like our train ride to Hogwarts our sixth year. "Hermione?"

"Right. Neville, he dropped the passwords somewhere in the castle third year and where did Neville spend most of his time?" I tugged my pants down and pulled my skirt up.

"The greenhouses or the library!" I threw on my Gryffindor robe and started to scour the library floor. There in stacks of Herbology and unusual plants was a tiny scroll of parchment with Neville Longbottom's scrawl of passwords. "You found it!" I read the paper, pixie plums, I twisted to look at Ron. His uniform was a bit tight due to his growth in height, but it pronounced his muscles to perfection. "Now leave the paper there, so poor Neville can find it later." I tucked it back into the book and Ron and I ventured into the castle. There was no turning back now.