A/N: I know its been a while, but here's another chapter for you all! Some lines from this have been taken directly from JKR's Prisoner of Azkaban (although for one of them the speaker has been changed to fit my story) - if you've read the book you should be able to spot them! Other details in this chapter have been made up myself (mainly the layout of the passageways) although I have tried to keep Hogwarts as we know it without changes - nothing mentioned in canon is gone. That said, my main source of knowledge to avoid trawling throgh the books is the Harry Potter Wiki, and I don't know how much on it has been invented by the creators. I know its not an overly interesting chapter, but it acts as a filler and to set the scene of some locations I will be using rather frequently. I have now got over my slight writer's block, and know where I want the story to go now. That said, I do at some point want to go back and improve the earlier chapters, so that may happen first. Anyway, I hope you enjoy it, and please favourite and review - it makes writing worth it! (Disclaimer in Chapter 1).
Chapter 14 - Business as Usual
"So, we are taking matters into our own hands."
"What are you going to do?" The twins asked in unison, looking uncharacteristically solemn.
"For now," Harry started, "nothing much. Maybe we'll plan a few pranks for Ron, given he's sticking his nose in where it doesn't belong, but I don't think it will work to try and prank Dumbledore. We could always try I guess. Currently, we just want to concentrate on our studies, as strange as it sounds, and have a bit of fun. At Christmas, I think we'll visit Ragnok again, and hope he has some more information for us."
The twins' faces lit up at the idea of pranking, and they glanced at each other briefly. Turning back to Harry, they said simultaneously, "We've got some ideas for pranks - we'll get back to you soon on that so you can help plan." They sounded almost devilish.
"That sounds good, but for now, we should go have looked lunch. I know I'm hungry, and given your family trait, you three probably are too." Harry replied.
Ginny looked shocked, then her face morphed to an expression of anger and she slapped him lightly on the arm and exclaimed "Are you suggesting that my being a Weasley automatically means I crave food all the time?"
Harry looked worried, and backtracked. "I didn't mean... that is..."
Luckily for him, a small smile appeared on Ginny's face. "It's OK Harry!" She giggled at his expression. "I was just teasing you, and besides, what other impression would you have gotten, from seeing Ron forever hungry the last two years and my mum cooking a feast for every meal? I'll have you remember that I'm not like that though - usually!"
The twins had already decided though, that the opportunity was too good to miss, even with Ginny's apparent temper being revealed as a show. They had already found a way to tease the young couple. "But Ginny, he can't have meant that anyway, I mean, you're not a Weasley anymore - now you're a Potter." Fred started slyly.
George continued, "Actually Fred, I can't think of anything else that he could possibly have meant. Harrikins..." he said in a false sweet voice. "You're not forgetting about your wife already are you?"
Harry looked aghast. "That's not what I meant guys!" He protested. Ginny took pity on him.
"I know Harry, and even though I am a Potter, I was still born a Weasley. Those twin gits just don't know when to stop." She lightly snuggled into his chest where he still sat on the sofa, and a relieved Harry wrapped his arms around her. Then she turned on the twins, her expression completely different. "But you two, scaring my Husband like that. How could you?" She drew her wand quickly, and pointed it at them threateningly. They rose their hands in front of them, as if they were going to try to fend of a spell.
"Really Ginny..."
"...we didn't mean..."
"...anything by it..."
"...We just saw..."
"...a perfect oppurtunity..."
"...to tease you..."
"...and we wouldn't..."
"...be us if we..."
"...didn't make use..."
"...of it immediately!" They attempted to placate her.
When Ginny growled slightly, Harry leaned down and lightly kissed her cheek. He then whispered in her ear "It's OK. The twins are known for teasing everyone and I did kind of set myself up for it."
Slowly her wand lowered, until she sighed and put it away again. The twins relaxed slightly. Fred got a small grin. "Protective much?" He asked his sister.
"Watch it!" She responded, her hand reaching back for her wand.
"I think lunch would be an excellent idea Harry old chap!" George said, slightly louder than was strictly speaking necessary, in an attempt to diffuse the situation. Harry removed his arms from around Ginny and stood, then held a hand out to her to help her up as well. She smiled at him appreciatively as she took hold and he pulled her to her feet. Pulling her into a quick hug, he whispered, "I think you've scared them enough for today." Giving her a quick peck on the cheek again, he turned around, keeping Ginny's left hand in his right. "Let's go." He said to the twins, and with that, they headed down to the great hall for lunch.
As they'd only had one day of classes, and neither Professors Lupin, Sprout nor Hagrid had set any homework, Harry and Ginny chose to spend the free weekend this afforded them exploring the castle. They spent Saturday afternoon wandering about hand in hand, enjoying some time together, but quickly realised they couldn't use the map. They were out in the open, and the corridors were rather busy as it was quite cold outside on the grounds.
In the end, the pair decided to just head back to common room, and play some games for the evening. They spotted Neville Longbottom, from Harry's Dorm, and Demelza Robbins, from Ginny's Dorm, sitting at two adjacent tables in the corner of the common room, which were otherwise empty. They made their way over.
"Hey Neville." Harry said. "You want to join us for a game of exploding snap?"
"Oh, um... sure, Harry." he replied. "Just let me put this book back in the dorm, I was reading up on what we'll be learning about in Herbology this year."
Harry quickly told Ginny, "I'll be back in a minute, I just want to get my exploding snap cards from my trunk." He quickly followed Neville up the stairs. This actually served another purpose, now at least some people would see him going to his trunk in his dorm, so they'd be less likely to believe the rumours about him sleeping elsewhere.
While he was gone, Ginny turned to Demelza, who had been watching the conversation out of the corner of her eye. "Hi Demelza, would you like to join us?"
"Sure Ginny, but are you sure you want me to?"
"Yes, we're sure. I know we didn't get to talk much last year, but there was a very good reason for that. It's too long to explain now. You want to play then?"
"Yeah, sounds like fun, its not like I have anything else to do this weekend."
Meanwhile, Harry had reached his dorm, and moved over to his trunk, pulling it out from where it rested slightly underneath his bed. As he rummaged around the bottom for his deck of cards, he heard a throat being cleared behind him.
"Um, Harry?" Neville's tentative voice asked.
"Yes Neville?"
"Why did you ask me to play, I mean you've hardly spoken to me these last two years."
"I know, and I'm sorry about that. I was too caught up in having my first real friends in Ron and Hermione, to try befriending anyone else. Now that they, or at least Ron, is angry with me, I realise I need all the friends I can get. The only reason I'm not wallowing in self pity from Ron's actions is that I have Ginny now, but I need to have other people I can talk to."
"But why me then, why not Dean or Seamus?"
"You're a very smart and able boy Neville, and don't say otherwise. You do really well in Herbology, and I bet without Snape breathing down your neck, you could perform quite well in Potions. The other subjects you just need a bit more practice. But beyond that, I've seen you with the younger years, trying to be helpful and caring towards them when they want to speak to someone. I need more people like that in my life. And who knows, maybe eventually we'll get some practice time, and you might see your grades improve!"
"Thanks Harry, I never thought of myself as all that special."
"Your welcome, now do you want to head back downstairs, I've found my cards."
"Let's go."
They arrived back downstairs to find that Demelza and Ginny had claimed a small circular table with four chairs in the corner. Sitting down Harry dealt out the cards, and they had an enjoyable game amongst friends.
A short while later, Ron and Hermione clambered through the portrait hole. Upon spotting them, Ron's face turned angry, and he stormed off up to the dorm room. Hermione on the other hand, looked wishfully over at them, and frustratedly at Ron's retreating back. Ginny was slightly confused at what she saw, but put it to the back of her mind.
After their game of exploding snap, it was getting quite late, and past the curfew for first through third years. Harry took his exploding snap cards back upstairs, and snuck his invisibility cloak into his pocket before returning to the common room. The four new friends talked a bit longer about what they were looking forward to that year, before heading upstairs to bed. Under the guise of a goodnight kiss at the bottom of the stairs, Harry stealthily slid the invisibility cloak into Ginny's hand.
"Go upstairs, and pretend you're going to bed. Then use the charm the twins told us about before slipping under the cloak and coming to my room." He whispered in her ear.
Harry watched her as she walked up the girls stairs, then turned and made his way up the boys side. Once in his dorm he went through his nightly routine, bid goodnight to his friends, and pulled his curtains almost all the way round. Luckily, he had the bed next to the door, so he left a small gap open closest to the door. He whispered "Apparent Dormio" while pointing his wand at the bed, and watched as the covers and pillows rearranged themselves to a state which looked well slept in. It would also help his case that Ron had been in the dorm and watched him close his curtains, so thought he was there that night.
A short while later, the curtain rustled slightly and moved to the side next to the gap, to leave more space. Suddenly, Ginny appeared from underneath the cloak. Harry quickly held his finger to his lips, silently telling her to be quiet. He got off the bed and joined Ginny under the cloak. They carefully made their way back downstairs, avoiding the other boys heading to bed, and reached the portrait hole just before eleven.
The two teens knew that the Prefect patrols ended at eleven o'clock, and that in order to avoid arousing suspicion they needed to leave the portrait hole invisible while it was in use by someone else. Sure enough, a few minutes later, the two Gryffindor fifth year prefects turned up, having the patrol closest to the tower, and they quickly snuck out of the portrait hole as the Prefects climbed in. Harry quickly withdrew the Marauders Map from another pocket, and scanned their route to the Study.
It appeared to be clear on the main staircase, so they quickly made their way to the centre of the castle, and came out onto a balcony. Currently there were no staircases to that balcony, but one was starting to turn towards them, so they decided to wait for it, as the teachers were all elsewhere. Luckily, once it had reached them, a route all the way to the third floor was available, so they managed to get down very quickly.
Outside the entrance to the Study, Harry handed the map to Ginny so she could keep a look out, as it would be obvious when he opened the door. While those walking past couldn't see it closed, they would be able to when it was open. Just as he was about to open the door, Ginny grabbed his arm and pulled him back, backing them against the far wall. Just then Professor Sprout walked past, patrolling the third floor. Once she turned at the end of the corridor, Harry moved forward and raised his arm again, opening the door. They quickly entered the study, and closed the door behind them before taking the cloak off. Godric appeared to already be asleep in his portrait, so they made their way into the master bedroom and left the invisibility cloak folded on the bedside table, before getting into bed and curling up together, with one of Harry's arms over Ginny, wrapping round her back to hold her close.
The next morning, Harry once again woke before Ginny. After a few minutes of watching her sleep peacefully, he slipped quietly out of the bed, and headed to a new door they hadn't noticed before. Remembering what Godric had said before, he could guess what was behind it given what he'd been thinking they really needed, and sure enough, Harry opened the door into a spacious ensuite bathroom.
One side of the room had a large bathtub along the entire length of the wall, with a shower head at one end, along with several taps for filling the bath with different scents of water. On the other side of the room, stood several cabinets, and a sink, above which a large mirror was setback slightly, so as to be flush with the wall. On the far end to the door, a set of rails were attached to the wall, with several towels hanging off them, and when Harry reached to touch one he found it quite hot. He quickly withdrew his hand. Below the heated rails a discrete flap was hidden in the wall, blending in well until you pushed it open. Harry assumed that it led down to the laundry, similar to the chutes found in the dormitory bathrooms of Gryffindor Tower.
Harry quickly retrieved the set of clothes he'd been wearing on the train. The house-elves had washed them, and hung them up in the large wardrobe standing in one corner of the master bedroom, as if knowing that he would be sleeping there. They'd done the same with Ginny's muggle clothes from the train. Re-entering the bathroom, he locked the door and turned the shower on.
Twenty minutes later, a fully refreshed Harry Potter emerged from the bathroom, to see Ginny still sleeping peacefully on the bed, slightly more spread out than she had been while he was there. She looked so cute lying there that Harry wished he didn't have to wake her, but a quick glance at the clock showed that he did, if she wanted to get a shower before breakfast ended.
He sat down lightly on the edge of the bed closest to Ginny. Leaning over, he then placed a light kiss on her lips before stroking his fingers through her long fiery red hair repeatedly. "Come on Ginny, time to wake up." He whispered in her ear.
Ginny slowly stirred to Harry's hands running through her hair, and him whispering in her ear. Still half asleep, she curled in on herself slightly, and murmured, "Don't want to get up - comfy, still sleepy!"
"I know Gin, we've had a busy few days, but you need to get up if you want a shower before breakfast. Look - the Study has given us a great bathroom."
With his gentle urging Ginny eventually rolled out of bed, until she was sitting next to Harry on the edge. Standing, Harry pulled her to her feet, then led her by their joined hands over to the wardrobe. "Look, the house-elves have brought our clothes from the train here, so you go take a shower, and I'll clean up in here before we head to breakfast." He gave her a gentle push in the direction of the bathroom.
"Thanks Harry." She responded sleepily as she closed and locked the door.
Half an hour later, Harry and Ginny, holding hands, emerged from Godric's Study and made their way down to the great hall for a late breakfast. Walking in, it seemed that they were not the only ones to rise late that morning, and the majority of the hall was already full. Ron and Hermione were sitting about halfway down the table, but they spied Neville sitting at the other end, on the main aisle side, and decided to join him instead.
"Morning Neville." They said, simultaneously, then immediately clapped their free hands over their mouths.
Neville didn't seem to think anything was amiss. "Hi Harry, hi, Ginny." He said. "You're a bit late for breakfast, aren't you?" He commented.
"We just struggled a bit to get up this morning, is all. You mind if we sit with you?" Harry spoke, with Ginny making an effort to stay quiet.
"No that's fine. What are you going to do today?" Neville asked as they sat down.
"Not much - we'll probably take a walk around the grounds - less likely to run into Ron out there."
"Why are you suddenly avoiding Ron all of a sudden? Sorry - I know its not my place to ask, but you used to be best friends, then yesterday he was shooting death glares at you."
"No, its OK Neville. He just seems to have a problem with me and Ginny being together. I don't kno-"
"Oh come on Harry, you do know why!" Ginny broke in. "He's being an overprotective git. He thinks he needs to protect me from all boys for my entire life. Where he gets off doing that given he ignored me for practically the whole of last year I have no idea."
"I think he might be trying to make up for that." Harry turned to Ginny.
"Don't try to make excuses for him. I think also its because he's jealous. For two years he and Hermione have been your only friends. He's had to share everything with me for pretty much his whole life, I think he liked having you as a friend and didn't want you to split your time between him and me. But it doesn't matter - you chose me over him."
"Of course I did, and I always will." Harry leaned it to give her a quick kiss.
Neville had looked away politely, but when it became apparent they were done, he picked up his questioning. "So you two are together then? I'd heard the rumours, but didn't know if they were true." He asked.
Harry and Ginny started loading food onto their plates, but Ginny answered. "Of course we are - Harry realised just how wonderful I am and I wasn't going to turn him down."
"Of course that's how it happened." Harry muttered.
"Shush you." Ginny said sharply to him.
"Sounds like there's quite a story there." Neville commented.
"Of course, like everything surrounding Harry. But we can't tell you here. Too many people around. We'll find someplace private eventually to tell you, but for now it will have to wait."
"You don't have to tell me if you don't want to. I understand if it is private."
"We don't have to, but we want to. You're our friend. And really its not private, just secret - not everyone should know about it." Ginny said, starting to eat.
"I'm honoured you trust me enough to keep your secrets." Neville said, humbly.
"Of course." They fell silent then, all three eating quickly before breakfast ended.
A short while later, Harry and Ginny finished off their breakfast, then rose as one and joined hands. Saying goodbye to Neville, they headed out of the Great Hall, and onto the grounds. Unconsciously making a beeline for the Great Lake, they wandered across the grounds in a peaceful silence. Nearby the lake, Harry spied a copse of trees and pulled Ginny with him behind them.
Giggling, Ginny asked him "Harry! what are you doing?" Barely staying on her feet from the abrupt tug on her wrist.
"I've got the invisibility cloak and Marauder's Map with me. I thought we could try exploring again, now that no one else will be able to see us."
"That's a great idea!" Ginny said eagerly. "But first..." She wrapped her arms around his neck and pulling his head down pressed a short but firm kiss to his lips, before pulling away. Slightly dazed, Harry reached into his pocket and withdrew the cloak, throwing it over their heads before retrieving the map from his other pocket.
"I solemnly swear that I'm up to no good." With a quick tap, the map activated, inking crisscrossing lines onto itself to map out the castle, and finally adding the markers for where everyone in the castle was. They made their way out of the copse and back around the lake - the copse was quite a way around from the castle, making it even more private, as very few actually wanted to venture that far - many acceptable spots could be found on the castle side of the lake.
Eventually arriving at the castle, Harry and Ginny crept back inside, past the doors to the Great Hall, and then down a hallway the other side of it. Eventually they reached a staircase down a level, below the ground. They had spotted what appeared to be a service corridor, as all that was down there was the kitchen and the laundry rooms, as well as a few other unmarked rooms. However, what had drawn Ginny's attention, and made the pair want to head there first, was what appeared to be a secret passage from opposite the kitchen up into the main castle. So it was that they descended into the bowels of the castle, finding another corridor at the bottom of the stairs.
Further down the corridor, they stopped outside the room labelled as 'Kitchen' on the map and removed the cloak - no one else was around. As the staircase had doubled back, the kitchen was now somewhere on their left, with the passage they were investigating on their right. Deciding to forgo the kitchen for now, they turned toward the tapestry on the wall to the right, evenly spaced three metres apart from several other tapestries down that hallway, looking as if there was nothing out of the ordinary. Reaching out, Harry pulled the tapestry back to reveal a blank wall.
Disappointed, Ginny stepped forward. "What happened? Why do you think the passage isn't here?" She asked.
"I don't know. I guess the castle may have just shut it up after years of abandon, but somehow I doubt it. And presumably, the Marauders used it, if they knew about it. It would be a very useful way to reach the kitchen undetected."
"Wait a minute Harry. Look here." Ginny had been running her fingers over the wall carefully. "See - there's a slight notch. The shadows inside it blend in well with the stone wall - even up close it can pass as just a darker coloured stone."
"I see Ginny. Do you reckon it is significant?"
"I'm sure of it. Let's see." She ran a finger around the inside of the nook, around the edges. When she reached the top, she felt something give slightly, and moved her hand away, jumping back in surprise. "Something moved!"
Before Harry could reply, the wall shimmered slightly and disappeared. Whereas before had been there had been a solid stone wall, now there was air, and the pair could clearly see the passageway behind it. Daringly, Harry stepped through, with Ginny following closely behind him. As soon as they cleared the entrance, another shimmer preceded the wall reappearing in its original location. This time, Harry searched for another nook on the wall, while Ginny cast "Lumos" to give him some light to see by.
Before long, Harry had found another nook, it was in the same location as the other side - in the direct centre. Pressing up with a finger inside it, the wall once again disappeared. "How do you reckon it decides to reappear?" He asked.
"I don't know. Maybe it has an enchantment to 'know' when the users have passed through, then closes up after that." Ginny replied.
"I guess that could work." Harry said. "Let's test it." He stepped back out into the corridor, and once again Ginny followed him. Sure enough, the wall closed up behind them. Activating it once again, Ginny led the way this time, her wand outstretched in front of her with the tip still lit. Harry followed behind, watching the wall close up to seal them into the passage. Looking at the Marauder's Map again, he traced the route of the passage, noting it was mostly a steep staircase, with a few landings on it.
They walked in an eerie silence for about 10 minutes, noting that there appeared to be no obvious change in the walls the entire way up. Unless every door to this corridor was the same as the one they first encountered down near the kitchens, the passageway seemed to be completely enclosed, with only two ways out - one at each end. Finally they reached the end of the passageway, there was nowhere else they could go, so Ginny put her hand to the wall again and started running it across the cold, hard stones.
Once again, the middle of the wall was home to a nook, which Ginny pressed up in causing the section of wall to disappear. Stepping out, the couple realised that they had come out behind a suit of armour in one of the fourth floor corridors, roughly halfway between the History of Magic Classroom and the Hospital Wing. Like before, the suit of armour was one of many down the corridor, so it looked in no way out of place.
Quickly checking the map to ensure that no one was nearby, Harry and Ginny clambered out from behind the armour, and into the main corridor. They made their way down to the Study Area, which naturally was deserted. The Study Area was generally used by students needing to complete homework outside the noisy confines of their common room, and away from the watchful eye of Madam Pince in the library. It was shared by all four houses, and as such, very few Slytherins were ever seen in it - they didn't tend to like mingling with the other houses.
The empty study area suited them just fine, as they'd spotted another two secret passages on the map leading from the room. Ginny pulled back a tapestry in one corner, while Harry studied the map. His marker gained a speech bubble containing tiny writing, which read Draconifers.
"Draconifers." He said steadily, aloud, while Ginny looked at him strangely. She had no idea why he was saying that. But sure enough, the wooden panel behind the tapestry slid aside, opening up the passage.
"How did you know that was the password?" Ginny asked.
"I didn't. I was just looking at the map when a speech bubble appeared next to my name, with Draconifers written in it. I just said it aloud, and the door opened."
Ginny gasped. "Do you think the map will show you the password to any door?"
"It might - I guess we'll have to test that theory sometime." In silent mutual agreement, they stepped through the doorway, which closed behind them. Following the corridor down a short flight of steps, this journey was a lot quicker than the last, only descending one floor. They emerged from a darkened alcove at the far end of the corridor containing the entrance to the Study. As the corridor was in general empty - there was nothing of importance at the end of it - the door to the passage was unlikely to be noticed. They made their way back up to the Study Area, just pushing the door aside this time (there was a handle on the inside), and headed to the other side of the room.
This secret passageway was more well-known - they'd seen students use it before but had never used it themselves, not knowing where it came out. As a result of its near constant use, there was no door over the end of it, just a somewhat threadbare canvas sheet. Harry held it back to allow Ginny through first. Again because it was well used, this passageway was lit, unlike the other two, by flickering candles on one side, so Ginny did not need to light her wand again.
They climbed the three flights of stairs ahead of them, and exited out onto the seventh floor landing through a portrait hole not unlike the Fat Lady, leading to Gryffindor Tower. Closing the portrait behind them, they turned to speak to its inhabitant. As soon as he saw them however, he said "What villains are these that trespass upon my private lands? Who dares challenge Sir Cadogan? Back, you scurvy braggarts, you rogues!"
Taken aback by the sudden questioning, Harry and Ginny were surprised, and it showed on their faces.
"Yes you, answer me! Who are you young ones, who dare challenge the great Sir Cadogan? Why have your travels brought you here, my private lands?"
Ginny studied the portrait closely. In it, she could see a short man holding an oversized sword, and nearby a fat pony, in a grassy field. The pony was too busy eating the grass in the portrait to care what was going on around it. "You're Sir Cadogan! From the Tales of King Arthur!" She exclaimed.
"Who?" Harry asked dumbly. He really hated being brought up in the Muggle World sometimes - he had no idea what she was on about.
"He's one of the knights of the Round Table - one of the lesser-known ones at that. He doesn't appear in any muggle versions of the tale I don't think, so you wouldn't have heard of him." Ginny answered him knowledgeably.
"Lesser-known? I'm wounded! I defeat the great Wyvern of Wye, risking my very life in such an endeavour, saving the West from an existence of tragic misery, and the tale is not told across the world?"
"I'm afraid not sir." Ginny told him. "But I don't know why."
Sir Cadogan sighed. "Oh how the world has forgotten - the ignorance! Now, villains, you still haven't answered me - who are you and why are you here? I'll drive you off!" He brandished his sword, seemingly forgetting that just two minutes ago he'd been having a civil conversation with Ginny, and that he'd spent the last few centuries in a portrait.
Harry spoke up. "Oh, well, I'm Harry, and this is my girlfriend Ginny. We just came through the passageway behind your portrait and wanted to see where it came out."
"I know we're on the seventh floor." Ginny continued. "Do you know how to reach the entrance to Gryffindor Tower from here?" She asked the knight.
"Aha - a quest! That's my type of life! Let us begin, we will find the Tower of Gryffindor as quickly as possible." He ran towards the left of his portrait, then immediately turned around and headed the other way. "This way - let the adventure begin!"
Sir Cadogan started running through the portraits, from one to another, following the corridor. Harry and Ginny tried to keep up with him, noticing the trail of destruction he was leaving behind in each painting. In one, an important looking dinner between several dignitaries had been interrupted, the food being thrown to the floor as the table was overturned by the knight jumping over it. The occupants of the portrait were all shouting at him as he departed for the next.
"This way comrades, it's not far now!" He shouted back at the pair.
About 10 minutes later, they finally arrived at the portrait of the Fat Lady. She was looking in horror at the knight who had just entered her portrait uninvited. "And what are you doing here?" She asked crossly.
"Why, my dear lady, I'm helping my comrades find their way - they got lost around my corridor." He lifted one of her hands, then bent over and pressed his lips to it quickly before letting it drop. The fat lady surreptitiously wiped it with her handkerchief.
Meanwhile, Harry and Ginny had caught up and were watching the exchange with some amount of amusement, although Harry couldn't help but think there must have been a quicker way than the route they had just been taken on.
Sir Cadogan turned to them. "Farewell, comrades. If ever you have the need of a noble heart and steely sinew call upon Sir... Cadogan."
Ginny replied quietly, so that he couldn't hear her, but Harry could, "Yeah, we'll call you... if we ever need anyone as crazy as you."
Harry grinned slightly, but managed to hold onto his laugh until Sir Cadogan was out of earshot, leaping dramatically through the portraits back to his own. It seemed his laughter was infectious, as Ginny joined in.
"Really, that man!" The Fat Lady huffed. "I spend a nice Sunday practicing my glass-breaking singing, and he comes barging in to interrupt me!" This just caused Harry and Ginny to laugh harder. "Well, do you want to go in?" She asked impatiently.
Eventually Ginny managed to stop laughing long enough to gasp out, "Yes please."
"Password?"
"Fortuna Major." She said firmly, having recovered, with Harry in the process of doing so.
"Thank you." The Fat Lady said, displeased at having to wait so long. She swung her portrait forward, and Harry and Ginny climbed in the portrait hole.
"Why don't you go and get a change of clothes or two in your bag, and meet me back down here in about ten minutes?" Harry asked. "We cant take them downstairs and have another set of clothes to wear."
"That sounds like a good idea." Ginny replied. They parted ways at the bottom of the staircases, Ginny turning left and Harry right.
Ten minutes later Harry and Ginny met up again in the common room. Luckily, no one was there as it was lunch time, so they didn't have to worry about looking strange carrying their schoolbags around on a Sunday. Harry drew out the cloak and threw it over them again, before they made their way back to the portrait of Sir Cadogan, using the map this time so it was a lot quicker.
Staying invisible, they pulled back the portrait and clambered into the hole behind it, closing it back in place. Sir Cadogan didn't seem to have made it back from their earlier 'adventure' yet, so didn't notice anything out of the ordinary. His fat pony looked around once, then seemingly deciding nothing was the matter, went back to eating the grass in the portrait again.
The pair quickly made their way down to the Study Area, and across it into the other passageway. They emerged into the corridor containing Godric's Study again, and with a quick glance at the map to make sure no one was around, they entered the room.
"I guess we'll just have to repeat this for a while until we have everything of importance down here with us." Harry commented. "We can't just lug our trunks down four floors, and they need to stay upstairs to keep up appearances anyway."
Ginny made a sound of agreement as she hung the two sets of clothes she'd brought down up in the wardrobe. "We'll just have to go back upstairs early tomorrow. I couldn't bring my school robes down so I'll have to get changed up in my dorm. Maybe we'll find a way around that soon. If the worst comes to the worst, it won't be for too long. The elves seem to know we are, for all intents and purposes, living out of this room, and so our washed clothes and robes will reappear back in this wardrobe. Once we've worn every set of robes, and brought all our muggle clothes down, we won't need to continue these trips anymore."
"Yes, that's true." Harry stated as he hung his own two sets of clothes up. "I made the same decision about the robes." He placed the second hanger back onto the pole and closed the door, then turned and took Ginny's hand. With a glance at the clock, he asked, "Now what do you say to lunch. It's too late to eat in the Great Hall, but now that we know where the kitchens are, we could go and ask them for a picnic, to take out to our spot by the lake."
"That sounds like a good idea." Ginny replied. They left the study, with Godric once again asleep in his portrait, and used the secret passageways to make their way downstairs to the basement corridor. Once again they could see on the map that the kitchen was just through the wall opposite the secret passageway, but the only thing on the wall was a painting of a fruit bowl. Not knowing what else to do, Harry walked up to it and looked at the map again.
As before, some text appeared above his name and footprints, but not in a speech bubble this time. It read, 'Tickle the pear'. Shrugging, Harry did so, using his forefinger and middle finger to lightly tickle the pear in the fruit bowl depicted. Before long, the pear giggled slightly, and the painting swung forward to reveal the kitchens. Four long tables filled the middle of the room, perpendicular to the doorway so that they matched the house tables in the Great Hall above. Around the edges elves were hard at work at a large amount of stoves and sinks, an more elves were scurrying around, carrying stacks of plates from the tables to the sinks, and collected food from various cupboards and cold cupboards at the left hand end of the room. At the other end, several doors led out of the kitchen, but Harry and Ginny could not see where they went. The room was well lit, with a large number of candles hovering above the tables, much like the ones in the Great Hall above, although the ceiling wasn't enchanted to look like the outside sky in the kitchens.
Immediately after entering, Harry and Ginny were accosted by several small elves, crowding round the pair. "Good afternoons, Sir and Miss, is there anythings we can do for yous?" The elf at the front asked, excitedly. She was practically jumping on the balls of her feet.
It was Ginny who spoke, while Harry was busy taking in his surroundings as well as putting the map and cloak back into his pockets. "Would it be possible to have a picnic in a basket? We want to take a walk on the grounds and we missed lunch."
"Certainly, Sir and Miss. Right aways!" The elf said, and the group all scurried around the kitchen collecting food into a basket that appeared on the Ravenclaw table, the closest to where Harry and Ginny currently stood.
The basket filled up quickly, and Harry and Ginny spotted lots of cakes and other treats entering amongst the other, more savoury items. Eventually, one elf declared it full, closed the lid on the basket, and waved his hand over it, creating a silver glow that descended into it. He carried it over to the pair.
"Here's you go." He said. "I's has put a featherweight charm and a preservation charm ons it. We hopes its to your likings!" He piped up, handing the basket to Harry.
"Thank you very much - you were very quick getting this prepared." Harry said. The elves almost fell over at the praise.
"It was nothing's. Be sure to comes back if you ever want anythings else!" The elf said.
"We will, thank you." Ginny assured, as they clambered out of the hole, and watched the fruit bowl swing back into place, the pear seemingly falling back to sleep. "They were very happy to help us." She commented.
"Yes, it seems they like ensuring everyone is well fed - they couldn't stand the idea that we might have missed lunch." Harry replied. They headed back up the stairs to the main entrance, and out onto the grounds, before strolling over to their new found copse of trees by the lake.
Setting the basket down, Harry opened it to find a blanket that he had seen be placed in at the end sitting on top, nearly folded. He withdrew it, unfolded it, and lay it over the ground near some trees at the back of the copse, but away from any roots. Its location afforded anyone sitting on it a wonderful view of the lake, while simultaneously hiding them from the sight of anyone walking around the lake, passing close by the copse. Ginny sat down on the blanket and pulled the basket over, removing some of the top items and arranging them around her. Harry sat down behind her, leaning against a tree trunk, and pulled Ginny back to nestle between his legs, her head on his chest and his arms around her stomach.
They spent the afternoon lounging in that position, Ginny occasionally taking a bite of food from the array available on the blanket, and sometimes feeding a bite to Harry. The rest of the time they spent cuddling, and getting to know each other even better than they did already.
Eventually, they got up, replaced the uneaten food in the basket and folded up the blanket, before Harry picked up the basket in one hand and took Ginny's hand in his other. They made their way back to the castle. They had missed dinner as well, but that was fine due to the sheer volume of food in the basket - they'd barely eaten half of it. They ventured back up to the seventh floor to visit Demelza and Neville in the Gryffindor Common Room, before repeating their actions the night before and sneaking out of the portrait hole as the Prefects returned to get to Godric's Study, though this time with another two sets of clothes each.