Disclaimer 1: This is fanfic. That means I do not own any of it. I just borrow it to play with for a little while and let people see the pathetic results if they really want to.

Disclaimer 2: I'm not making any money from it. It's just for fun.

Disclaimer 3: What isn't borrowed is all made up. None of this is real or most likely at all realistic. Please don't trust any of the information in here. Most likely you know more about whatever I'm writing about than I do.

Disclaimer 4: Attitudes, views and opinions expressed by the characters or in the story are not necessarily those of the author. Even when writing Science Fiction or Fantasy I do not tend to attempt to create perfect/better worlds in which everybody gets a happy end ... or whatever is best for them. Please accept that some characters will have a bad ending or be unhappy.

Disclaimer 5: I intend no insult to anyone. If I offend anyone I'm very sorry. Please understand that it was an accident as I tend to be very clumsy in these things.

Notes: Yes, I know the potions ingredients theft is a chapter too early, but it didn't make sense to me that they'd start brewing without knowing where they'd get some of the ingredients from.

Chapter 10: The Rouge Bludger

There was only one downside to Hermione's plan. The recipe for the potion was in a restricted book and they weren't old enough to get permission to read those.

"We'll tell Professor Snape that we're just curious because he mentioned it in class. We just want to have a look at the book," Hermione said.

"But that's a lie," Harry reminded her. "A lie to a teacher. If we get caught nobody will ever believe a word we say anymore!"

"Even better," Hermione said ignoring Harry. "You ask him, Draco. You're in his house and good in Potions. He's sure to believe you're interested."

But either Hermione had overestimated Draco's persuasive skills, or underestimated Professor Snape's cleverness. Draco returned not only without the book, but also without the request form he'd brought the Professor to sign.

"He threw it into the fire," he reported. "And asked me whether he looked like Lockhart to me. But he didn't take points or anything. I think it amused him."

"But ... he doesn't look at all like Lockhart," Harry said confused.

"Maybe he meant we ought to have asked Lockhart for the book?" Ron suggested.

"But it's a Potions book," Gregory said. "Lockhart teaches Defence Against the Dark Arts. That has nothing to do with Potions."

"Yes, it does. There are dark arts potions as well as spells," Hermione said. "And in Gadding with Ghouls Professor Lockhart used half a page to describe slow-acting poisons. It's rather confusing, though. Probably too advanced for us."

Harry hadn't read Gadding with Ghouls yet. He didn't like Professor Lockhart's books all that much. Apparently the others didn't have anything to say about it either because for a while none of them spoke.

"That's it!" Hermione exclaimed suddenly. "We'll ask Professor Lockhart for the book, because we think it'll help us understand that bit in Gadding with Ghouls!"

"We do?" asked Vincent.

"Well, no," Hermione admitted. "It probably has nothing to do with slow acting poisons, but it's the best excuse I can think of. Maybe Professor Lockhart hasn't read it."

"We'll be caught lying to a teacher, just like Harry said," Ron worried, but none of them could think of any other way to get the book so Hermione tried it anyway.

To their surprise it worked, though they soon found that merely getting the book was far from the hardest part of their plan. The recipe was awfully complicated and they needed several ingredients that could only be found in one place in the institute: Professor Snape's office.

After a long discussion and much poring over their Potions book they came up with a plan, though. Harry and Ron deliberately messed up their potion in the next lesson causing it to emit blinding smoke.

They'd meant for it to happen right when Professor Snape bent over their cauldron so he'd be unable to see Draco slip into his office to steal the ingredients, but that part didn't work out. Instead they only blinded themselves, but they acted very panicked and Hermione faked an attack of hysterics over her friends' sudden blindness. So Snape, who also had to brew the antidote, had very little attention to spare for his other students and Draco accomplished his task safely.

"In hindsight," Hermione said afterwards. "It's lucky that we didn't blind Professor Snape. Just imagine if he'd found out we'd done it on purpose! And who'd have brewed the antidote if he hadn't been able to see what he was doing?"

"Professor Lockhart most likely," Ron said. "He's always volunteering to do everything."

"Madam Pomfrey or Professor Sprout," Draco insisted. "Their fields are much more closely related to Potions. I'm sure they'd have known where to find the recipe, if they don't know it by heart like Professor Snape does."

"He could just have told them how to brew it anyway," Hermione pointed out.

"See," said Ron. "It would have been no problem at all."

Where to brew the polyjuice potion however was one. They couldn't leave it standing around in a common room or dorm, because their fellow students would be curious about the 'Potions project' and might upset the cauldron accidentally.

After several long discussions Hermione decided on Moaning Myrtle's bathroom, a girls' toilet nobody ever used, because Myrtle haunted it. This had two downsides, though. The first was that it was right across from the place where Mrs Norris had been found. The spooky inscription about the Chamber of Secrets was still there and Mr. Filch spent a lot of time scrubbing at it or simply patrolling that corridor. Apparently he was hoping that Slytherin's monster would come back so he could give it detention.

The other downside was that most of them were boys and while they soon learned how to avoid being caught by Mr. Filch, Percival, a Gryffindor prefect caught Harry and Ron coming out on one occasion and they got an awful scolding.

All Hermione's assurances that she'd only shown them in after checking that there was nobody but Myrtle in there availed them nothing. Professor McGonagall declared that there was no excuse for entering a bathroom of the opposite sex under any circumstances. If Hermione wanted to introduce boys to Moaning Myrtle she ought to ask the ghost to float outside.

As if that hadn't been enough trouble for one week somebody had sabotaged one of the bludgers for the first Quiddich match of the season so that it kept attacking Harry until it finally broke his arm causing Gryffindor to lose the match.

Professor Lockhart, helpful as usual, made the broken bone disappear ... along with all the other bones in Harry's right arm, which landed Harry in the hospital wing overnight while his bones grew back.

In the middle of that night he woke up to find Dobby by his bedside and the strange elf openly admitted to being the one who'd hexed the bludger so Harry would be sent to some place called St. Mungo's and be out of reach of Slytherin's monster.

"Oh Master Harry doesn't know what he means to us! And especially to poor Dobby! But Dobby will protect Master Harry! Dobby's love died to save Master Harry. Her sacrifice must not be in vain!"

Before Harry could ask what he was talking about, who had died to save him and why, the door opened and Professors Dumbledore and McGonagall floated the stiff form of Colin into the room.

Harry sat up in bed and watched in wide eyed horror.

"What happened?" he asked.

"Don't worry, Harry," Dumbledore said kindly. "Your young friend isn't dead. He's been petrified, just like Mrs Norris. As soon as Professor Sprout's mandrakes are fully mature we will be able to cure them both."