AN: Here's the second part of chapter 9. Rough week so sorry about the late update.

Cassidy (Cas) Walker

Chapter 9.2

I'm utterly disappointed. I had twenty minutes of rummaging through Filtch's office uninterrupted while Jo kept watch, but I couldn't find any rocks. I wanted a rock. I really wanted a rock. I got the short stick with the whole Christmas sack drawing. Jo got a pocket knife. Fred got a magic rock that makes a black box of air. Even George got the promise of Quidditch lessons. I got a piece of parchment. Parchment.

I get a warning call from Jo that I'm taking too long, so I do one last scan of the shelves, realize that there are no more magic rocks, and steal Mrs. Norris's little cat bowl and a picture of some random person from off the wall. I storm off to the Slytherin common room with Jo on my tail for part of the way, but I yell at her that there were no magic rocks and to have fun with her knife without me. Then I throw the cat bowl and picture down and leave her to deal with that. She doesn't. I knew she wouldn't. Instead she just yells that I made a mess and that she'll see me tomorrow.

I go into the common room and find Fred bouncing his ball next to the fireplace.

"So...there were no more magic rocks in his office," I tell him. He looks up at me and stops bouncing his ball.

"What was that, Cas? I mean- I certainly didn't see it coming."

"No one did- I thought it was just a rock. I'm going to do some research and see if I can find a clue or place to buy it or a spell, but I'm not-"

"Not the rock, you idiot," he laughs at me. "The spell!"

"What spell?"

"Oh, I don't know, the one that flooded the room? The one you used to distract Filtch?" I mentally kick myself- I should have flooded his office, not taken some tacky knick-knacks. I'll remember for next time.

"Cas?"

"Right- oh, well...yeah. Remember that spell book I was showing you? That was a spell I saw in it. I never tried it before- it just came to me, you know? Seemed appropriate. I don't know." He just gives me a look that says that my answer was pathetic and in no way what he was looking for. I don't know what to tell him- that's just the truth of it.

"Well that's...uhh...I don't what that is, Cas. Special? I mean, most people just don't learn that fast. I don't." He starts bouncing that ball again, so I pull out my Christmas parchment and try to unfold it. It's hard and, like, layered, so I give up and shove it back in my pocket. Fred sniggers. I glare, and he just bursts out laughing. It bothers me that I'm not intimidating.

Regular classes resume the next day and we all have trouble adjusting- except me, of course. Jo gets yelled at during her first class, and Fred and George fall asleep in the one class we all have together. I have no trouble adjusting, considering I've been waking up early all through holiday just to wander around and cause trouble. I try to brag about this fact to Fred at lunch, but he just calls me a nerd and an overachiever while he stuffs his face.

After classes we all end up in the room where the magic rock mishap occurred. It's kind of becoming our meeting place, but we never plan it- we all just end up going there when we get bored. I'm usually the first to get bored.

Today I went to the library and checked out a book on magical minerals hoping to find out what the rock was. I bring the book with me to the meeting room and curl up on a chair. Jo joins me and tries to talk, but I'm not responding. Or listening. Eventually she falls asleep. Then George comes in, calls me Cassidy (which I really do not appreciate, a point I have made clear to him numerous times) and he pokes Jo until she wakes up. Their talking makes it hard for me to focus, so I pull out my parchment and just fiddle around with it.

Then Fred comes in. For some reason he seems surprised we're all there together, but he accepts it and sits down.

"You up to mischief again, Cas?" He's teasing me, knowing my frustration over the parchment.

"You know it, Fred."

"You sure?" Why on earth would he ask something like that? Sometimes I worry that Fred doesn't understand sarcasm. At the same time, I'm not going to teach it to him straight- sarcasm is something people have to figure out for themselves.

"I solemnly swear, Fred- I'm up to no good." I state dryly. His eyes nearly pop out of his skull. I roll my eyes, "Come on, Fred. I'm kidding. Cool it, okay? It's a joke. Just a joke." He looks at me funny, and then I hear Jo gasp.

"What?"

"Cas, the parchment!" She points at my lap, where the parchment is lying. I look down. It doesn't look like my parchment anymore. It looks more like a book or a drawing or something. It looks like a picture of Hogwarts.

I start to unfold it, and with each flip I see more of the castle. Now Jo and the twins are hovering over my shoulder pointing and gasping and oohing and ahhhing. I hunch myself over the paper and tell them all to sit down and cool it. Each page has different rooms and their names drawn in, and there are tiny little ink footprints walking around, each set of footprints with a little name hovering over it.

Then I see something. Actually, two things. First I see Jo's hair hanging over my shoulder, and I shove her away and tell her reading over people's shoulders is rude. She hmphs but gives me my space. Once she's a couple of steps away, I tell everyone to come over and look at what I found.

The twins rush back from their seats and Jo proceeds to hit me over the head for being "annoying". I point out a spot on the page I have open. There are eight tiny feet cluttered together. Around the feet are four names. Fred Weasley, Cassidy Walker, Jolene Zocchi, George Weasley.

I tell Jo to go to the other side of the room and she promptly hits me again, thinking I'm still trying to be annoying. I'm not, but I don't feel like being laughed at so I don't even try to hit her back. Instead I ask Fred if he would kindly walk a few steps away, and he complies. I look at the parchment- Fred's feet moved.

"I think- Fred, you can come back over...I think this thing tracks us. Tracks everyone in the castle!" I exclaim. Jo makes a face.

"So has Filtch been spying on everyone this whole time?" We all cringe at the thought. We continue flipping through the pages for a while- pointing out people we know and places we have or haven't been to yet.

"We have to keep this a secret," I say eventually. Everyone agrees. I fold up the map.

"...so, how do I turn it off?"

"How did you turn it on?"

"I don't know."

George pokes it. Nothing happens. I poke it and say "Turn off!". The castle on the front goes away, but then writing replaces it. No. All across the page. George pokes it again. Nothing.

"Is it...sassing us?" Jo asks. The paper answers. Am I sassing you? I wonder. Fred laughs.

"This isn't funny, we have to turn it off!" I whine. I'm fully aware that I'm whining but frankly this is worth sounding like a child.

You sound like a child. "I'm well aware!" I shout at the parchment.

"Can parchment laugh? I swear it's laughing at you." Jo is not a helpful person. Fred and George, who can and are laughing, are not helpful either.

How old are you? You're children, aren't you?

I don't appreciate this. I'm actually quite done with it. "Jo- shut up. Fred and George- start being helpful. How did I turn this thing on, and how do I turn it off?" Everyone shuts up. Except the parchment.

Taking control, are you? Maybe you're not such a child after all. Too bad. If you were children, you might realize you "turned it on" with the magic words. And I could tell you the magic words that turn it off. Too bad indeed.

"Well I'm a child so you can tell me!"
"Yeah, tell George- he's the biggest child here!"
"Just don't tell Cas, she's the bossy one, not much fun."
"It's my parchment, remember! And I am too fun."

The paper goes blank.

"So...we just have to make fun of each other? That's how we turn it off?" George is not bright.

How thick are you? No. I told you- there are magic words. "I solemnly swear that I am up to no good." That's on. "Mischief managed." That's off. Simple really.

I decide to try it. "Mischief managed." The paper goes blank. No more rude comments, no more jokes or digs. Just a regular parchment again. Mischief managed, indeed.

AN: so they found the map... So much potential. please review and let us know what you think of the girls so far.