Chapter 11

"Why Ginny?!? You know Harry isn't crazy!" Hermione said.

"You didn't see him! It wasn't like at school! He was really losing it. I-" Ginny broke off, wrapping herself in her arms and crying.

"I'm s-sorry. I freaked. I didn't know what to- what to do!" She sobbed, leaning into Hermione.

Hermione patted her awkwardly on the back, "Don't worry. The doctors just want to run few tests but I'm sure we can get him out soon."

"I doubt it." Ron said, walking into the room. "He's just disappeared! Knocked all the medics out and ran off. One of the medics says they injected the morphine in him, and that's fast acting stuff so unless he managed to hide really well really fast then he must have apparated."

"You can-! How come they don't have spells to prevent people from apparating?" Hermione cried.

Ron shrugged, "Don' ask me! Let's go find him."

* * * *

"James? James!" Albus called, running down the hallway.

James turned abruptly on his heel, "What?"

"Shouldn't we talk about the dream or whatever it was?"

"It was two days ago and we did talk about it!"

"Why are you avoiding me?"

"I'm not-"

"But you are! Yesterday around lunch you started hanging around with that Bella twin and now you won't talk to me and you keep disappearing all the time!" Albus paused to catch his breath.

James looked down at his brother, scowling. After a moment he sighed and folded his arms across his chest, "I'll talk to you some other time. Now stop badgering me!"

Albus stalked back to the common room frustrated. He got more annoyed what with the door asking an unusually hard riddle:

"I turn polar bears white
and I will make you cry.
I make guys have to pee
and girls comb their hair.
I make celebrities look stupid
and normal people look like celebrities.
I turn pancakes brown
and make your champagne bubble.
If you squeeze me, I'll pop.
If you look at me, you'll pop.
Can you guess the riddle?"

Eventually he just yelled 'no' and kicked the door. It opened and he huffed in, not realizing he'd solved a previously unanswered riddle. Eric stopped him just as began he stomping up the stairs to the dorms,

"What's wrong?"

"You mean besides our best friend being in a magical coma? Just my brother! He does this all the time! He'll meet a girl, thinking he's so awesome and cool and he'll stop talking to me! He met with Marvin's sister the other day at lunch and he's stopped talking to me!"

"Al, it's been a day. How do you know he's not talking to you? Besides you're in different houses, maybe something's going on in Gryffindor?"

"Wouldn't we have heard about it? No, he's avoiding me."

"You seem a little obsessed." Erik said, watching his friend carefully.

"Hmm? No, I'm really tired though." Albus said absently.

Erik shook his head, "Tomorrow is a Saturday you can sleep in. You can go to bed now and we can talk to your brother in the morning?"

Albus nodded, nearly falling over and slowly climbed the steps, rubbing his forehead, leaving Erik alone.

"Wizards in this country are weird."