To notwritten: Thanks for the review.
To yellow 14: Sorry about it not being as good as the others. I hope this one will be better.
To Jackie Pappillion: Thanks for the review and I'm glad that you liked the idea that Harry was possessed by the Sword Card.
To everyone else: I'll come back with another chapter on Monday. Keep the reviews coming.
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Chapter 36: Another Kero Moment
"So any luck with finding Li?" Lavender asked three days after Hermione had captured the Sword Card.
Hermione was shocked by this question. She hadn't heard his name for a week or so.
"I don't know," Hermione said, getting over her shock.
Lavender gave Hermione a worried look.
"And what about Draco?" Lavender asked.
"I don't know," Hermione repeated. "I think that Professor McGonagall might call on the Ministry to help and find him."
"Well I think Snape should be the only one looking for him," Ron told them, giving Hermione a dirty look. "He's a Slytherin and this is a Slytherin matter."
Hermione felt hot anger flooding her.
"Well I think that Ministry should get involved," Lavender butted in. "I mean, he could die."
Ron laughed at that.
"The blonde boy will be alright."
And he left.
Hermione felt angry with Ron for the rest of the day. True, Malfoy hadn't been nice to anyone that she knew but he didn't deserve to die without any hope of being rescued. Hermione decided to see if Kero had any idea on what Clow Reed might do if something like this ever happened.
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"He would use a Tracking Spell," Kero answered Hermione's question.
"A Tracking Spell," Hermione said.
Kero nodded.
"So how do you use a Tracking Spell?" Lavender asked.
"Well there's just using a spell that Clow Reed created, but then you can use the Shadow Card," Kero explained. "Of course I would use the Shadow Card."
"Alright, we'll do it tonight," Hermione said.
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Night fell upon Hogwarts as Hermione raced with Lavender, Kero, and Severus to where Hermione would start the Tracking Spell. Her staff was already out and she had an idea on where to start at. A Hufflepuff went past her but she ignored him, her mind on what she had to do. Finally she found the perfect spot.
"Shadow Card," Hermione intoned. "Find Draco Malfoy."
She slammed her staff against the Shadow Card and the figure in black appeared. It then sunk into the floor and started to race forward.
"Follow it," Hermione told them.
And they were off.
The Shadow Card went up one set of stairs to the next. They had to pause so that one of the staircases could come up to their floor and then they were off again. As they ran Hermione felt as though her lungs were about to burst. And then the Shadow Card stopped in-front of a blank wall.
"Return," Hermione ordered and the Shadow Card returned. "Professor, what do you think this means?"
Severus took out his wand and touched the end of it. He muttered something that Hermione couldn't understand and then stood back.
"There's a room here," he told her. "But I don't know how to break it."
Hermione saw Kero thinking. She wondered if he had some idea.
"Hermione, use the Through Card," he suggested. "The card is immune from any form of magic."
Hermione nodded and took out the Through Card.
"Through Card, let me get through this wall."
She slammed her staff and she then felt the magic going over her. She took a deep breath and walked through the wall.
Draco was deathly thin when Hermione found him. He wasn't even looking at her, which meant that he didn't know that someone was there. Normally she would have been happy, but this wasn't a place to have such thoughts. She lifted him slowly, though she didn't know how she did it, and both of them went through the wall.
"We need to get him to the Hospital Wing," Severus told them. "He'll die if we don't."
Hermione understood at once.
Now that Draco was safe with Madam Pomfrey Hermione could turn her attention to pressing matters. The amount of homework that she been given was almost making finding the Clow Cards impossible. Kero didn't help matters, but she ignored him and he did the same after she wouldn't talk to him for a few hours each day. Of course Lavender wasn't as easy to ignore as Kero was.
"So when do these cards appear?" she asked.
"When they want to," Hermione answered. "Look, I really need to get this Muggle Studies work done."
Lavender gave her a sour expression and then left.
The month of November continued and the weather was showing it. Hermione wasn't sure if she wanted to spend another Christmas at Hogwarts but then she knew that this was where the cards were at and they would probably destroy half the school before she returned. During the next Defense Against the Dark Arts she decided to ask Professor Lupin, after class, what his plans were during the Christmas break.
"I don't know," he answered. "I was thinking about staying at Hogwarts when the students leave."
"Well I hope you have a Merry Christmas," Hermione said and she left.
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"I'm sorry that your not going home this Christmas," Ginny said when Hermione told her that she intended on signing Professor McGonagall's list.
"I know, but at least I'll be staying here."
Ginny grinned at her.
"So what are you going to do this break?" Hermione asked her.
Ginny's grin faded and she sighed.
"I don't know," Ginny told Hermione. "I mean, Harry's staying here for the break but that's because his family doesn't want him. My parents want me to come home for the holidays, but I just want to be around Harry."
Hermione instantly felt bad for her.
"Are you sure that's the right thing to do," Hermione asked her.
Ginny looked at her.
"What do you mean?" she asked.
"Well," Hermione said slowly. "Harry hasn't shown any interest in you and your just throwing yourself on him. I don't-."
She paused at Ginny's red face.
"Ginny, are you-."
"Just because you don't have a life doesn't mean that you need to bother everyone else that does," Ginny hissed. "Why don't you just go around your books since that's all that you care about?"
And Ginny stormed off.
"Ginny, that's not what I meant," Hermione called out after her but she was gone.
"I can't believe that she acted like that," Hermione told Lavender. "I was just keeping her from breaking her heart."
Lavender shook her head.
"I'm sure that you meant well, but some people just set themselves up to be disappointed."
"I know, but I just don't want her to cry."
Lavender patted Hermione on the shoulder, which helped a little.