Bad Lesson and Igor the Gross

It was a new day that found the trio and Artimis walking about. Harry got a message from Sirius to meet at Hogsmeade, and as the four of them walked they crashed into Malfoy's group. Mythal walked towards them with a shake of her head and said, "Don't let it get to you Hermione…" Before she dragged a laughing Draco towards their Potion's lesson, Hermione took the newspaper thrown at her but didn't open it until they were in class sitting out the back.

Artimis pulled the paper away when the trio were done and read it herself, listening to Ron saying 'scarlet woman' and Hermione giggling. The three of them kept talking as Artimis read until Snape was over them. "Ten points from Gryffindor." He snatched the paper away from Artimis who had an expression of shock, she was getting right into the reading. He then began to read the paper out, both the trio and Artimis stiffened up in anger as the Slytherin's giggled and laughed at each pause. Mythal looked back at them, then at Draco to give him a warning look to which he quickly shut up to with a gulp.

Snape swiftly separated the golden trio to different areas of the room, Artimis watched as Harry sat in front of Snape's desk pounding his beetles into dust in his anger. The potions master was whispering something to the boy that finally riled him up. 'Must be about the Gillyweed Dobby got him…' She was calmly mixing her own potion until Pansy spun around and loudly said, "So Artimis, how many love letters do you send off to Lupin?" Artimis paused in cutting her roots, eyes down as Snape and Harry quickly looked around.

"Love letters? Have you seen me prancing around like you and your friends spraying perfume at letters or giggling at the most childish of things? No thank you, if I had a choice between love letters and hanging myself… I will hang…" She began chopping again, Pansy puffed up then whispered to her friend. Mythal and Draco overheard and quickly sent Artimis a warning glance. "And there is nothing between me and Lupin…"

"Oh, then how did poor little homeless you get so much for the ball? Someone must have given you all that money…"

"Yeah, sure … and you think it was Lupin, in all his lavish robes?" She looked up with a slight grin, "And for your information the money we got was from the government, unlike you both I and Mythal don't go out spending millions on make-up and fake nails. I also happen to work over the break between the years…" She scraped her cut roots into her cauldron and began mincing her next ingredient. "Now, if you don't mind I will like to finish my potion. Annoy me one more time and I will not hesitate to use my Head Girl privileges to make you spend a night cleaning with Filch…" Pansy instantly paled and closed her mouth.

Someone stopped anything else from escaping Pansy as they knocked on the door. "Enter!" Snape yelled out, obviously angry at being distracted twice now from Harry. In came Igor who was so determined to speak to Snape that he didn't even notice Artimis sinking beneath her desk, since the ball his impression of her had changed drastically since the first night with her French joke. Snape yelled at him to speak after class, but Igor stood near the door instead. His eyes went from Snape to Harry, around the room before falling on Artimis who was pretending not to have noticed him as she poured another ingredient into her cauldron. He looked her potion-dishevelled hair that was puffing up in her high ponytail, he gave her a small smile that she literally felt in a shiver.

When it was the end of the lesson she instantly packed up, sighing in relief when Igor was instantly annoying Snape again. Harry was on the ground cleaning his Armadillo Bile, listening in on the pair as they whispered. Artimis quickly packed away her potion's book and rushed from the room, crying out in surprise when Igor quickly caught her before she could get away. "Miss Knight? It has been some time since I last spoke with you, My Dear."

"Yes sir, since the Ball if I recall…" She placed a smile on her face, as she walked forward in an attempt to get away from Igor's arm. Harry dived out of the room behind them, he spotted Artimis attempting to escape Igor and instantly jumped between them.

"Art we need to go, NOW. Hurry up, hurry up!" He grabbed her arm and fled away from Igor, without turning to look at him the pair escaped down the halls until slowing to take deep breaths. "Are you alright?"

"Yes and no… I think I need a bodyguard…" Just as she said that, Bastet appeared around the corner with the ever chubby Crookshanks beside her. Bastet leapt up onto her shoulder and Crook into her arms. "Are you two here to protect me? My heroes!" The two purred and Harry scratched at Bastet's head causing her to stick her claws into Artimis' shoulder. Later the pair parted, one to meet up with his friends and the other to hide.

Elves, Boils and Puzzles

Harry and Co found Artimis the next day curled up on the Head Girl couch with a potion's book in her hands and her homework spread out on the table in front of her. Bastet was curled around her stomach area and Crookshanks was over her feet. "Hey Art, just got back from speaking with… Snuffles."

"Snuffles…? How is he… eating alright without me and Myth to feed him?" Harry shook his head in disagreement.

"His living in a cave as a stray and looks like when we first met him… his hair is long again…" Artimis hissed, saying in a frustrated voice that she had trouble trying to cut that jungle of knots the first time. "We fed him some chicken though…" Hermione answered quickly as she leaned over Artimis' homework to make sure she was doing it right.

"What are you doing now?"

"We are going to the kitchen to give Dobby a gift." Artimis nodded to Harry and took her homework safely to her room, she joined them on their trek to the kitchens where the trio were greeted by Dobby, Sky and Bubble. The other elves all bowed and greeted Artimis cheerfully, all offering her and her friends food even though breakfast was only minutes ago. Artimis and Ron instantly went into the Éclair's, both cheerful as they stood to the side to watch Harry and Dobby.

Bubble tugged at Artimis' jumper sleave and held up a mug of coffee, it was cold with ice and cream. "Oooo an iced coffee, thank you Bubble!" She scooped the cream out and ate it happily, Ron asked Bubble what it was before the trio tried to get info from Winky about Crouch which ended in Hermione and Ron fighting and the elves to feel agitated. Harry quickly rushed them out with an apology, Artimis stayed for a few more minutes to 'taste test' food before she decided to leave as well.

The next day found Artimis and Hermione travelling from the hospital wing to Snape's dungeon, Hermione's hands were blistering from a prank pulled on her over Rita's writing. Apparently Poppy had no more salves to soothe the blisters so the woman gave the pair bandages and an order to get down to Snape to get some kind of ingredient that would help when mixed with lukewarm water. "Snape won't help…"

"I will persuade him… kindly of course… don't stress and for the love of everything DON'T open letters from owls you don't know." Hermione nodded her head as the older girl pushed open the door to Snape's classroom in a dramatic swing. Said professor looked up from his marking, face showing he did not want anyone to distract him. When the pair walked in his expression changed to a mix of frustration and curiosity.

"Sorry to bother you Professor. We were sent here from the Hospital Wing, they had no more salve so Poppy asked me to… what was the name of the thing again?" Hermione said the ingredient's name while looking at the ground. Without a word Snape stood up and looked in his storage. "I have a few jars left, what does she want it for?" When he came back out Artimis pointed at Hermione's fingers which were covered in blisters.

"Some childish prank over Rita Skeeter's article, can we heat some water here?" Snape scoffed and pulled out a cauldron which he filled with water and placed over a flame. He went back to his marking after informing them that if they made any annoying noises he will give them a month worth of detention. Artimis poured the jar into the water, following Hermione's instructions. "Now keep stirring it until it becomes thick, almost like jelly that hasn't chilled properly.

"Right, I got you there… mmm jelly…" Artimis kept stirring until the liquid became thick, her arm burning. She stopped and pulled the cauldron off the flame and sat it on a cooler. Artimis made Hermione lift her hands so she could see them. "If Mythal was here she could be very helpful, you know she was part of a junior medic group back when we lived in Australia and went to a Muggle school?"

"No, is that why she is taking special lessons at the Hospital?" Artimis nodded her head as she tested the mixture, nodding her head the younger girl eased her hands into the mush. Artimis placed a hand on the girls back and soothed her with rubbing and sounds as the girl stiffened and bit her lip. "Next full moon will sniff those letters and hunt the perpetrators…"

"If you're planning to do anything in that stage Miss Knight I will lock you in a cage." Snape sniped without looking up at the pair, Artimis sent him a glare.

"Then what about if I hunt down Rita?" Snape peered over at her, even though his expression didn't change his eyes said he wanted her gone too.

"I still can't work out how she knew about things when she wasn't there or no one was around…" Hermione grounded out through her teeth as she hunched over the cauldron. Artimis scratched her chin as Hermione continued, "Unless she was… Animagi? No, she would have to be registered…"

"I can think of numerous people who aren't Registered…" Hermione nodded in understanding then looked at her in shock.

"You know, don't you!" Hermione must have forgotten about Snape, but the professor didn't make a sound, instead he was pretending not to listen.

"…Maybe…"

"Well… what then, how does she do it?" Hermione now not only forgot about Snape but also the pain in her hands.

"Hermione, your clever and can put two and two together very quickly. After all, you were the only person to work out that Snape's lesson about werewolves last year was about me and Lupin." Snape snorted making Hermione jump, Artimis turned and grabbed the bandages in her attempt to hide her grin. Snape peered up and caught the look before returning to his work.

"Are you two finished yet, I find your chatter irritating…"

"Yes we are just about done here, there we go all bandaged. Let's get back to Hagrid's lesson, the Nuffler's are so cute... in a snuggly treasure hunting way. I should ask if I can have one…" She bandaged Hermione's hands and lifted the cauldron, Snape jabbed his quill tip at a sink which Artimis poured the liquid down. "Thank you Professor, we will take our leave now…" Snape just sent them away with a snort and glare.

Madmen and Study

Many days later Hermione kept getting hate mail and howlers. The girl was desperate in finding out how Rita Skeeter could hear everything after being banned from the school. She didn't turn to Artimis to answer her questions but instead wanted to work it out herself.

Harry and Artimis along with the other Champions were shown the maze that was growing for their last test, and when Harry had gone off with Krum something had happened. Crouch had appeared in the forest, and when Harry had gone to find Dumbledore, Victor Krum was stunned from behind and Crouch vanished.

The Trio sent a message out to Sirius early in the morning after seeing Crouch and went to find Moody half way through the day. After that the Trio and Artimis worked either together or alone at preparing for the last task. Artimis was unlucky, there was a full moon the night before the task.

Sitting with Mythal in the Room of Requirement, the pair finally had some alone time to talk about the next test. "You remember what happens right? Reckon you can stop it?"

"I don't think so, as much as I would love to change the course of a whole world… I don't know what would happen if Harry isn't caught at the test. At the very least Cedric won't die this time… the best we can do is save as many lives as we can." Mythal nodded then leaned back in her beanbag, books lay out around her.

"You're not going to put yourself into danger instead are you?"

"Hopefully not, unlike Cedric if I end up with Harry in that cemetery I won't stand around like an open target for someone to shoot the death curse at me… I hope." Artimis lifted her DADA and Potion books to study, many sheets of paper around her.

"Funny that we are studying something, back at home we didn't…" Mythal used a pencil to write notes in the side of her book, something she spotted Artimis doing with her Potion books.

"That's right, usually you would skip out of class whenever it was a sports day or if you had bad lessons all together in that day... And I joined you sometimes at a phone call." Artimis placed her books down and popped her neck, the cracks echoed in the room making Mythal flinch and give her friend a disgusted look.

"Bitch please, stop doing that!" Artimis raised her arms quickly in a surrender pose, worried she would get slapped. Mythal simply grinned and shook her head. "Well your full moon is in a few more days, then the test right after. Will you be alright?"

"I'm going to die, hahahaha!"

"Pft… wait what?"

End of chapter 11