When morning came, bad news came with it. Black had, once again, managed to get away. The security around the castle was being tightened greatly, from the teachers teaching the front doors to recognize Black to Filch boarding up every hole and crack he could find. Sir Cadogan had been removed and the Fat Lady was back, now with security trolls positioned around her.
Bryt didn't like having to walk past them every day, remembering her first year when she and Hermione had been trapped in a bathroom by a mountain troll. Thus, when she learned Neville was forbidden to have the password and would have to wait in the hall for another student to let him in the common room, Bryt told Neville that he could come to her and she would go with him to let him in, no matter what she was doing at the time.
Though with all the extra security, the quartet noticed that the statue of the one-eyed witch (which Harry had told them was the entrance to the passage to Hogsmeade) was unguarded.
"D'you reckon we should tell someone?" Harry asked in a whisper while walking to class one morning.
"We know he's not coming in through Honeyduke's," Ron answered, "We'd've heard if the shop had been broken into."
"I hope you're right, Ron," Bryt said as they entered their History of Magic class and found seats.
"I know I am," Ron said, "Besides, if that passageway gets closed, Harry won't be able to come to Hogsmeade anymore."
"I'm not sure Harry should go anyway," Hermione commented.
"What? Why not?" Bryt asked, giving her friend a strange look.
"After what Black nearly did, I don't think Harry should take the risk anymore," Hermione answered matter-of-factly, a worried look on her face.
"C'mon, Hermione!" Ron complained, "Harry didn't even get to see half of Hogsmeade last time!"
"What if he uses his cloak?" Bryt asked and all three of her friends looked at her, "What? It's perfect. No one will know he's there, especially not Black."
Hermione seemed to be thinking it over, but she finally gave a reluctant nod. At that moment, Binns drifted through the wall at the front of the classroom, signaling the beginning of the most boring class of the day.
xxxxx
Two days after Black's second break-in to the castle, the morning mail came as usual and brought Neville the worst letter a young witch or wizard could receive—a Howler. Bryt winced, remembering how she had to listen to Mrs. Weasley's amplified voice the year before when Ron received a Howler after crashing his father's flying car into the Whomping Willow.
Neville had ran from the Great Hall, but it did little good. Bryt could still hear Neville's grandmother's screaming from where she sat. Trying to distract herself, she turned to her barn owl sitting in front of her. Only one letter today, from Sofí. She was probably wanting to know if Bryt had an official date for her Hogsmeade date with Terry. Bryt wished that Sofí would actually use the linked diaries that Hermione and Julio shared, but Sofí said she found it annoying trying to keep a 'scheduled time to talk' and preferred waiting for letters.
"Ouch! Oh—thanks, Hedwig."
Bryt looked up to see Harry taking a letter from his owl and she was immediately curious. Harry practically never got mail—except for an occasional note from Hagrid inviting the quartet to tea.
In fact, that's what this letter was. Hagrid said he would meet them in the entrance hall at six, that they weren't allowed outside on their own.
"He probably wants to hear all about Black!" Ron said excitedly. Bryt resisted the urge to roll her eyes. Ever since the word got around about Black's recent attack, Ron was becoming increasingly popular—and the boy was enjoying every second of it. Of course, Bryt had to remind herself that Ron was the second-youngest of seven children—and the youngest son. Not to mention he was friends with 'the famous Harry Potter'. Ron was probably just glad to have attention for once—and not for being around others.
At six, the quartet headed to the entrance hall where Hagrid was already waiting.
"All right, Hagrid!" Ron greeted, "S'pose you want to hear about Saturday night, do you?"
"I've already heard abou' it," Hagrid answered, starting to lead them outside. Ron suddenly looked disappointed and Bryt had to fight back a laugh.
Once inside Hagrid's home, Bryt immediately noticed Buckbeak on Hagrid's bed, eating a plate of ferrets.
Bryt turned away, not wanting to watch the hippogriff eat, and made a face as she noticed a horrible-looking hairy suit and ugly yellow-and-orange tie hung up next to Hagrid's wardrobe.
"What're they for, Hagrid?" Harry asked. Obviously he noticed it, too.
"Buckbeak's case against the Committee fer the Disposal o' Dangerous Creatures," Hagrid answered, "This Friday. Him an' me'll be goin' down ter London together. I've booked two beds on the Knight Bus..."
Bryt bit her lip, running her hand through her hair. She knew that the hearing had been moved up to mid-February, but Bryt was hoping it was still in April. It meant they would have more time to build a case.
'Probably why it got moved up,' Bryt thought sourly, 'To cut time.'
"Bryt and I got you a lot of good information, Hagrid," Hermione said gently, "I'm sure you'll win."
As Bryt gave an agreeing nod, she noticed Harry and Ron exchanging awkward looks.
"Hagrid, we should've helped as well," Harry said, "Sorry..."
"I'm not blamin' yeh two," Hagrid said with a wave, "Gawd knows yeh've had enough ter be gettin' on with. I've seen yeh practicin' Quidditch ev'ry hour o' the day an' night."
Harry, again, got an awkward look on his face.
"I didn't have that excuse," Ron said, looking uncomfortable, "I really should have helped..."
Hagrid told Ron not to worry about it and the subject was changed to their chances at the Quidditch Cup. They stayed on the subject until nine when Hagrid walked them back up to the castle and they made their way back to the Gryffindor common room.
"What's goin' on?" Bryt asked as she noticed a group of people crowded around the bulletin board.
Ron, being the tallest among them, went to check while Harry, Bryt, and Hermione found a table, Hermione immediately immersing herself in her homework.
"Hogsmeade, next weekend!" Ron said happily as he sat down with his friends.
"Man, I can't wait!" Bryt said, immediately thinking of Terry, "I'm so ready to make Terry pay up for drinks on our date."
Ron suddenly got a strange look on his face, but turned to pull out one of his books before Bryt could really tell what it was. Bryt heard Hermione sigh and looked at her just in time to see the bushy-haired girl shake her head slightly as she had glanced at Ron.
'What's up with them?' Bryt thought, but then pushed it out of her mind, preferring to fantasize about her upcoming date. She grinned as she leaned back, finding herself hoping that she could get more than a peck on the cheek from Terry this time.
'I know I will,' Bryt thought after a few minutes, 'Even if I'm the one who has to do it.'
Bryt's excitement carried through the next few days, leaving her in an almost hyperactive mood. This led to a very annoyed Ron, which Bryt couldn't understand. Hermione seemed to know, but any time Bryt tried to pester her friend about it, Hermione insisted she didn't have a clue. When Bryt reminded her once and Hermione was a horrible liar, Hermione replied sharply "It isn't for me to say" and Bryt chose not to bring up the subject again.
Saturday came and Bryt got dressed as quickly as she could, pulling on her favorite fiery orange turtleneck sweater and her usual cargo pants and sneakers. She brushed through her hair as quickly as possible, making sure she could get out every tangle.
"Bryt, don't you want to dress up a little?" Lavender asked as Bryt finally put away her brush. Bryt turned to her roommate, a little surprised. Then she remembered Lavender being overly interested in Bryt's upcoming date the night before.
"Why?" Bryt asked, "I think I look just fine how I am."
"But you're going on a date. You should look your best...Maybe wear a nice skirt."
"There's no way in hell you're ever gettin' me in a skirt," Bryt replied, crossing her arms over her chest and making a face, "Besides, I'm pretty sure Terry don't care how I'll look when we're just gonna walk around Hogsmeade."
Lavender made a face, obviously taking offense to Bryt's insistence on not dressing up. Lavender seemed to take it on herself that Bryt was going to at least 'do something with her hair', saying leaving it down all the time without any accessories was 'dreadfully dull'. Bryt decided to let Lavender have her way on the one area and sat down on the edge of her bed.
"Just don't go overboard," Bryt said simply, already dreading what Lavender was planning.
"Don't worry, I have the perfect hairstyle for you," Lavender said confidently, grabbing Bryt's brush, "By the way, I've been thinking about what you said last night. The Three Broomsticks doesn't sound like a very romantic place for a date. Everyone goes there, after all."
"It's what we agreed on," Bryt said, feeling awkward as Lavender began gathering her hair together. Sure, Bryt had often let Sofí play with her hair when they were younger, but Lavender was a girl that Bryt didn't talk with very often, despite sharing a room with the girl for nine months of the year.
"You should try Madam Puddifoot's Tea Shop. Several older students say that's the most romantic place for couples."
Bryt blushed, getting the image in her head of her and Terry in a candle-lit restaurant like from the 'romantic date' scenes in the romance movies she hated so much, yet Sofí or her mother would insist they watch together. She wasn't too sure she liked the idea of a date like that, it just didn't seem to sit well with her.
"I'll ask Terry when we get to Hogsmeade," Bryt said finally.
Surprisingly, it didn't take Lavender too long to fix Bryt's hair. When Bryt looked in the mirror Lavender handed her, she actually very much liked the hairstyle. Her hair was still left down, as Bryt had preferred for the past year, yet a scarf-like cloth(that surprisingly matched Bryt's sweater) had been tied in it like a headband with the knot behind Bryt's left ear so the strands fell over her shoulder.
"Wow, thanks a lot, Lavender," Bryt said, grinning. She had expected Lavender to do some over-the-top, lavish hairstyle, not something so simple and a style that Bryt was becoming increasingly tempted to keep using for now on.
"I told you I knew the perfect style for you," Lavender said, obviously pleased by Bryt's reaction.
Bryt grinned, standing up and turning to Lavender. She thanked Lavender again, and, again, said she would consider Lavender's suggestion of going to Madam Puddifoot's Tea Shop, then turned and headed downstairs to meet Harry, Ron, and Hermione for breakfast. Bryt wasn't surprised that Harry and Ron didn't seem to notice Bryt's change in hairstyle, but Hermione complimented the look. Bryt told her that Lavender had been responsible, and she personally liked it. After that short conversation, the quartet headed down to eat.
After breakfast, the quartet headed into the entrance hall where Bryt noticed Terry waiting near the front doors. Bryt gave a quick goodbye to her friends before hurrying over to Terry, grinning brightly.
"Mornin'!" Bryt said happily, "I've really been lookin' forward to this."
"Same here," Terry replied with a grin and looked Bryt up and down, "You look good in orange."
Bryt felt herself blushing as she thanked Terry. The two headed out of the castle and Bryt grinned brightly when Terry offered out his hand and she grasped it in her own. They ended up talking about magical creatures and Bryt told Terry about Buckbeak's trial being the day before. Bryt mentioned that she and Hermione should receive a letter sometime that day telling them how it turned out and Terry made her promise to tell him afterward.
They were still discussing Buckbeak's case when they reached Hogsmeade and stopped on the side of the street, looking around.
"Where should we go first?" Terry asked, "Maybe Three Broomsticks?"
"Want to get through the bet quick, huh?" Bryt asked with a laugh.
Terry just gave a shrug and Bryt looked off down the street, trying to see if she could spot the tea shop that Lavender had suggested.
"A friend told me about a nice place, y'know," Bryt said, "How 'bout we check it out first?"
"Do you know where it is?" Terry asked and Bryt shook her head.
"But that's the fun of an adventure, right?" she smirked up at Terry, "Findin' the places."
"You have an interesting view, don't you?" Terry asked as they started back down the street.
"I blame it on Sofí. She's practically insane and I grew up around that."
"Any girl who doesn't like Quidditch has to be insane," Terry said with a smirk.
Bryt laughed at that. They soon found a steamy-windowed shop with 'Madam Puddifoot's Tea Shop' written in a loopy-lettered script on the window. Bryt wrinkled her nose slightly, not sure if this was a good or bad first impression.
"Well, should we go in?" Terry offered, opening the door for Bryt.
Bryt grinned at him and walked into the shop, but didn't make it far past the door as she looked around. She found the place looking very much like it was decorated by someone's deranged grandmother, the tables having frilly and lacy tablecloths. Almost every table was occupied by a couple who were either staring at each other or leaning over the table, kissing. Bryt made a face and looked up at Terry, who seemed uncomfortable.
"Um...I vote for turnin' around and pretended I never even mentioned comin' here," Bryt said and Terry immediately looked relieved, leading Bryt back outside.
"I say I pick the next place to visit," Terry said once they were back outside, "Your taste sucks."
"Hey, this was suggested by a friend," Bryt defended herself.
"I'm still picking the next place."
Bryt shook her head, though she grinned, as she let Terry take her hand again and lead her back to the main street. They spent most of the morning going from shop to shop, deciding they'd visit Three Broomsticks later in the day, and Bryt was enjoying herself more and more. Terry was being insistent on paying for Bryt when they visited Honeydukes, and Bryt let him, but said that this didn't mean he was getting out of paying for the butterbeers. Terry had only laughed in response as they left the shop and started along the street.
"Can I ask you something?" Terry asked suddenly, stopping and pulling Bryt away from the flow of students through the streets.
"Sure, what's up?" Bryt asked, cocking her head slightly.
Terry looked uncomfortable, shifting his weight from foot-to-foot and looking sideways at the crowd of people walking past them, paying no mind.
"Terry, what's wrong?" Bryt asked, starting to feel uncomfortable. She had thought the day was going great. After all, she really enjoyed being with Terry. It was just as easy as when they joked and talked in the library, the days that Terry admitted he had considered 'sort-of dates'. Now Bryt was worried that Terry was about to tell her that he didn't want to continue the relationship that they were beginning to build up.
"Well, I know this is only our first 'official' date..." Terry started, seeming to have trouble looking Bryt in the face, but he was gripping both of Bryt's hands in his, "But, I was hoping...Maybe making...us...official? You know..."
Bryt blinked, though the worry left her instantly as she began grinning. Terry seemed to be happy with Bryt's reaction because he started to grin himself and then moved a little closer to her. Bryt's breath caught slightly, much as it had the night outside of the Gryffindor common room after the last Quidditch match. This time, though, she was sure she would get more than a kiss on the cheek. Bryt closed her eyes in anticipation and pushed herself up onto her toes, leaning up against Terry slightly...
"Oi! Bryt!"
Bryt and Terry jerked away from each other, both turning to glare at the intruder. Bryt growled slightly under her breath, already planning to punch the boy who just interrupted what was about to be her first kiss.
Ron ran up to Bryt and Terry, sweating and out of breath slightly. He looked at Bryt, not even glancing at Terry, a worried look on his face. Bryt's anger vanished instantly, already knowing something was wrong. Only one thing came to mind.
'Harry...' Bryt thought.
Bryt turned to Terry before Ron could confirm or deny why he was there.
"Sorry, somethin's wrong, I gotta go with Ron..." she said slowly.
Terry glanced at Ron, then back at Bryt, giving a short nod.
"I understand. Maybe it's news about Buckbeak," he said, "See you around?"
Bryt nodded, letting go of Terry's hands and turning back to Ron. As she reached her friend, she stopped and looked back over her shoulder at Terry, biting her lip. Suddenly, without thinking, Bryt ran back over to Terry. She gripped the front of his robes and shoved herself up onto her toes, squeezing her eyes shut and pressing her mouth as hard as she could against Terry's.
Bryt relaxed slightly, grinning into the kiss. For a second, she thought about just throwing her arms around Terry's neck and letting the kiss deepen, not caring who would see...
'Harry!' Bryt reminded herself, pulling away, unable to hold back the laugh at Terry's face. He looked shocked, but at the same time, he had an odd grin on his face. He looked very much like he was in some sort of daze, as if he was experiencing a very enjoyable daydream.
"You still owe me the butterbeer," Bryt said, turning and heading back to Ron again. She blinked as she noticed him standing in the same spot, glaring slightly with his arms crossed over his chest.
"What?" Bryt asked.
"Nothing," Ron replied sourly, "We need to get back to the castle."
Ron turned, breaking into a fast run up the street. Bryt sighed, going to follow. It wasn't long at all before she was having trouble keeping up with Ron. After all, her friend was a good bit taller, so he had longer legs and a much longer stride than her.
"What happened?" Bryt asked, trying to get Ron to slow down slightly by talking with her.
"Malfoy saw Harry," Ron replied shortly.
Ron didn't need to say anything else. Bryt swallowed hard, trying not to think about what would happen if a teacher found out Harry had been in Hogsmeade.
Bryt was out of breath by the time they reached the castle and she bent over, her hands on her knees, taking deep breaths as she and Ron stumbled to a stop.
"Where...where d'you think they are?" Bryt asked, panting.
"Maybe...Snape's office?" Ron suggested.
Bryt agreed it was the best bet, so the two turned and headed down into the dungeons. Ron reached the doors a good bit before Bryt, barging into the office and saying something, but Bryt couldn't really hear. The long run had her sweating and hot, her heart pounding hard enough that it was pounding in her ears.
Bryt bent over as she reached the door, panting hard. Now that she came to a sudden stop, her legs were feeling strange...As if they were made of some sort of lead jelly.
"Well!" Lupin's voice surprised Bryt and she looked up instantly, "That seems to clear that up! Severus, I'll take this back, shall I?"
Bryt swallowed, realizing the parchment Lupin was folding up and pocketing the Marauder's Map. At least, she was very sure that's what the parchment was. After all, what else could it be?
"Harry, Ron, Bryt, come with me," Lupin said as he started for the door, "I need a word about my vampire essay—excuse us, Severus—"
Bryt, still trying to catch her breath slightly, turned and followed her teacher and friends from the room. They were back in the entrance hall before any of the three friends spoke up—Harry.
"Professor, I—" Harry started, but Lupin cut him off.
"I don't want to hear explanations," their teacher said, looking around before continuing in a lower voice, "I happen to know that this map was confiscated by Mr. Filch many years ago."
Bryt's mouth fell open in shock. Lupin knew about the map? Apparently, Harry and Ron seemed just as surprised due to how Lupin continued.
"Yes, I know it's a map," he said, "I don't want to know how it fell into your possession. I am, however, astounded that you didn't hand it in. Particularly after what happened the last time a student left information about the castle lying around. And I can't let you have it back, Harry."
Harry got a look on his face that showed he had expected as much.
"Why did Snape think I'd got it form the manufacturers?" Harry asked.
"Because...Because these mapmakers would have wanted to lure you out of the school. They'd think it extremely entertaining."
Bryt cocked her head to the side, staring at their teacher. She had a feeling he knew more than he was letting on.
"Do you know them?" Harry asked.
"We've met," Lupin said, then continued before any of the three could press the subject, "Don't expect me to cover up for you again, Harry. I cannot make you take Sirius Black seriously. But I would have thought that what you have heard when the dementors draw near you would have had more of an effect on you. Your parents gave their lives to keep you alive, Harry. A poor way to repay them—gambling their sacrifice for a bag of magic tricks."
Bryt swallowed hard as Lupin walked away.
"Hermione was right, we shouldn't've let you keep goin' to Hogwarts," Bryt said slowly as they finally got themselves to move, heading up the stairs to the common room. Bryt was feeling miserable now. Her day had been going so great...She was having a wonderful date with Terry, and even had her first kiss. Now...Bryt felt like that had happened months ago, not only an hour...
The three remained quiet until they passed the statue of the one-eyed witch. Bryt glanced at it, thinking of the passageway. Suddenly, a thought crossed her mind.
"This just proves the passageway is safe, though," Bryt said, looking at her friends.
"What?" Ron asked.
"Well, Professor Lupin knows about the map," Bryt said, "Which means he most likely knows about the passageways. Considerin' he never told the other teachers about the one behind the one-eyed witch, he must feel there's no way Black can get through it. At least we were right in thinkin' that it was safe."
Even with it said, it didn't make the three feel much better and they fell into silence again as they continued on to the common room. They had just reached the corridor with the trolls when Hermione hurried over to them, gripping something in her hands.
"I just got Hagrid's letter about the trial," Hermione said, holding it out, "I haven't opened it yet—I was waiting for you."
Bryt nodded, anxiety starting to build in her stomach as she took the envelope addressed to her and Hermione. Slowly, Bryt flipped the envelope over and tore open the back flap...