Chapter 6: The Restricted Section
She watched the dot labeled Draco Malfoy for a few moments. He turned a corner and stepped into an empty classroom. He appeared to move to the window and stay there.
'Interesting,' thought Hermione. She watched the Map closely for a few moments, to be certain that no one else was near, before continuing her silent passage to the library.
Quietly she pointed her wand at the door whispered 'alohomora' and pushed open one of the heavy doors until she was able to squeeze through. With a gentle click she closed the door behind her. She took a deep breath and checked the Map one more time. No one was in that wing of the castle. She tapped the Map with her wand and breathed the words "mischief managed". The halls, rooms and dots of the Map faded.
Quietly she folded up the Map, stuck it in her robe and crept through the empty library to the Restricted Section. It felt as though her heart was attempting to break free from her ribcage. She took a deep calming breath, slipped the Cloak hood off, and pulled out her wand.
"Lumos," she whispered.
A brilliant light burst forth from the tip of her wand. She slowly moved to the back of the Restricted Section and began running her fingers along the spines. She wasn't exactly sure what to look for.
When she started to pull books from the shelves, Harry's Cloak kept getting in the way. Frustrated, she pulled it off, carefully folding it up and placing it on a nearby chair. Without the added hindrance, she was able to quickly remove books and skim through them with ease.
As she carefully replaced another useless, though interesting text, she heard a noise. With a gasp, she reached for the Cloak, throwing it around her shoulders, and put out her wand. Desperately, she tried to control her rapid breathing, finally clamping a hand firmly over her mouth to lessen the noise.
Tensely, she waited.
After what seemed like hours, but was really only seconds, she remembered that she had the Map. Retrieving it from her pocket, she carefully whispered the spell, and watched as the Map reformed the interior of Hogwarts. She carefully looked at the dots moving about.
Finding the library, she squinted in the low light and made out a name: Draco Malfoy.
Furious, she muttered, 'mischief managed', shoved the Map back into her robe, threw off the Invisibility Cloak, and marched quickly down the aisle. Turning, she ran into a surprised Draco.
"What the hell are you doing here?" she hissed.
For a moment, Draco didn't know what to say, but he quickly recovered.
"I could ask you the same, Mudblood," he drawled, nonchalantly leaning against the edge of a row of books.
Hermione glared at him for a long moment, her cinnamon eyes flashing with anger.
"Well?" he questioned, a smirk painting his features.
With an annoyed sigh, she looked at him.
"If you must know, I am looking for more information about the Island of Malnese. Seeing as I couldn't find anything more in the regular part of the library, I figured I would look in the restricted section."
"Breaking rules? I wouldn't have thought that was your style, Granger," he replied. Secretly he was impressed. Hermione had always seemed like such a rule follower, he never would have guessed she had a bit of a wild streak in her.
"Yeah, well, that doesn't answer why you're here."
He looked at her for a long time before deciding to give her an answer.
"I suppose it wouldn't hurt to tell you. I'm here for the same reason." He smirked at the surprise that flickered across her face. "What? Didn't think I'd be strolling around Hogwarts after hours unless I was up to something evil?"
"That's not what I was thinking," Hermione said, defensively.
"Yeah, right," he scoffed.
"You know, if you're here for the same reason as me, we might as well combine our efforts. Not that I want to be around you, but---well, it's a bit of an overwhelming job," she finished lamely, gesturing to the rows of books.
Draco looked behind her. He understood what she meant. The Restricted Section wasn't put in any particular order; made it more difficult for unauthorized students, such as themselves, to find things. He looked back to her expectant face.
"Well, I suppose we could work together, this once," he answered, feeling strangely happy when he saw a look of relief and --- thanks? --- spread across her face.
"Good. Okay, I have already looked through the shelves in the back two rows," she explained, pointing towards a dark corner. "Maybe we should start here and work our way back towards the two I finished?"
He nodded his assent and the two students, wands lit, searched the spines for the elusive information.
"Hey, Malfoy," Hermione quietly said, "I think I found something."
Expectantly, she moved closer to Draco, propping the book, ::A Curse Upon Thee::, author unknown, up on an empty shelf. Draco leaned closer to Hermione in order to read the text with her.
"Many dark and dangerous nights did I spend on the Island," the unknown author wrote. "I have seen terrors that only existed in my dreams, before now. In truth, I never believed I would get off that cursed place."
"Well, what do you think?" Hermione asked.
Before he could answer, they heard the doors to the library creak open, and the unmistakable mew of Mrs. Norris.
Without any thought, Hermione reached once again for the discarded Invisibility Cloak, darkened her wand, shut the book, and covered herself with the Cloak.
Draco watched her as she performed the motions, his eyes going wide when she apparently dissaparated. It took a moment before he realized that she couldn't have dissaparated, not in Hogwarts.
"Where did you go?" he hissed, while desperately looking for a place to hide in the wide aisle. He could hear Filch and Mrs. Norris getting closer. He almost screamed when he felt an invisible hand grab his arm.
The next thing he knew, he was staring into a pair of annoyed brown eyes. Before he could say anything, Hermione clamped one hand over his mouth and grabbed the front of his robe with her other hand. She began to pull him down the aisle. As they fled, he noticed that he was under something that resembled a sheet.
Hermione stopped her swift retreat when she reached a small alcove in the wall at the end of the aisle. Quickly she pressed herself and Malfoy into the too small space, never once removing her hand from Malfoy's mouth.
They had managed to get themselves settled thus, just as Mrs. Norris turned the corner at the end of the other aisle. For a long moment her lamp like eyes stared at the alcove.
"What is it, my dear?" Filch's gravelly voiced wondered. He came around the corner, lifted his lantern, and looked carefully along the wall. With a shrug, he continued to walk through the library, passing the alcove within inches of Hermione and Draco.
For fifteen minutes, the two students stood in the alcove, frozen like statues. Finally, the faint glow of the lantern disappeared with the metallic click of a closing lock. Draco and Hermione released their breath.
Suddenly, it occurred to him, Filch and Mrs. Norris hadn't seen them. "How the hell didn't they see us?" Draco questioned.
"You have to swear to keep this to yourself, Malfoy, or I swear," she hissed. With that, she removed the sheet object from the two of them. When she did, Malfoy noticed that it wasn't a sheet, but rather an outstandingly beautiful cloak.
"Is that an Invisibility Cloak?" he breathed.
"Yes. But you have to keep this to yourself."
"How in the world did a Mudblood get a hold of an Invisibility Cloak?" he questioned.
With venom in her eyes, she answered, "It's not mine, it belonged to Harry's father. He got it from Dumbledore his first Christmas here."
"Really?" he asked, an evil grin spreading across his face.
"Damn you, Malfoy," she growled. "Look, it's not any of your business. Just forget the whole thing, okay?"
"Yeah, right, forget that Potter has an Invisibility Cloak? You must be kidding, Granger," he said, scornfully.
"Oh, sod off, Malfoy."
With that, Hermione grasped the book tightly against her, threw the Cloak back around her shoulders and disappeared. Draco could hear her moving down the aisle. He waited until her heard the sound of the door open and close, then he headed on his way. _______________________________________________________________________
Well, there you are, chapter 6. PLEASE REVIEW!!!!!!!
To my current reviewers:
- Misao Blacksoul: thanks
- Anonymous: Thank you. I never actually gave any thought to the pairing of Ron and Pansy, but now that you mention it, I'm thinking about how to work it in. As far as saving each other, well.you'll just have to see. ::grins evilly::
- Fiery-chan: don't feel bad. I'm guilty of the same sin. The island thing just sorta happened as I wrote the chapter. That's the fun thing about writing, sometimes the story just takes over.
- Angelgirl89uk: I certainly hope that it will be brilliant. =)
- Shivohnsongbreeze: Thanks, I will.
- f0xyness39: I'm glad you love my story. I will e-mail you as soon as I update.
- CatalinaRose: I don't know how I managed to crank out two chapters in one weekend, I didn't even really have time. It just sorta happened. No problem about the e-mails. In answer to your questions: Are they going to end up on that Island? Only time will tell, sometimes a story takes over and you have no choice in the matter. Exactly what is the curse? Your guess is as good as mine at this point.
SPEAKING OF THE CURSE ON THE ISLAND: If you have any suggestions, feel free to e-mail them to me. I am looking for lots of creativity here. If I use your idea, I will give you due credit.
She watched the dot labeled Draco Malfoy for a few moments. He turned a corner and stepped into an empty classroom. He appeared to move to the window and stay there.
'Interesting,' thought Hermione. She watched the Map closely for a few moments, to be certain that no one else was near, before continuing her silent passage to the library.
Quietly she pointed her wand at the door whispered 'alohomora' and pushed open one of the heavy doors until she was able to squeeze through. With a gentle click she closed the door behind her. She took a deep breath and checked the Map one more time. No one was in that wing of the castle. She tapped the Map with her wand and breathed the words "mischief managed". The halls, rooms and dots of the Map faded.
Quietly she folded up the Map, stuck it in her robe and crept through the empty library to the Restricted Section. It felt as though her heart was attempting to break free from her ribcage. She took a deep calming breath, slipped the Cloak hood off, and pulled out her wand.
"Lumos," she whispered.
A brilliant light burst forth from the tip of her wand. She slowly moved to the back of the Restricted Section and began running her fingers along the spines. She wasn't exactly sure what to look for.
When she started to pull books from the shelves, Harry's Cloak kept getting in the way. Frustrated, she pulled it off, carefully folding it up and placing it on a nearby chair. Without the added hindrance, she was able to quickly remove books and skim through them with ease.
As she carefully replaced another useless, though interesting text, she heard a noise. With a gasp, she reached for the Cloak, throwing it around her shoulders, and put out her wand. Desperately, she tried to control her rapid breathing, finally clamping a hand firmly over her mouth to lessen the noise.
Tensely, she waited.
After what seemed like hours, but was really only seconds, she remembered that she had the Map. Retrieving it from her pocket, she carefully whispered the spell, and watched as the Map reformed the interior of Hogwarts. She carefully looked at the dots moving about.
Finding the library, she squinted in the low light and made out a name: Draco Malfoy.
Furious, she muttered, 'mischief managed', shoved the Map back into her robe, threw off the Invisibility Cloak, and marched quickly down the aisle. Turning, she ran into a surprised Draco.
"What the hell are you doing here?" she hissed.
For a moment, Draco didn't know what to say, but he quickly recovered.
"I could ask you the same, Mudblood," he drawled, nonchalantly leaning against the edge of a row of books.
Hermione glared at him for a long moment, her cinnamon eyes flashing with anger.
"Well?" he questioned, a smirk painting his features.
With an annoyed sigh, she looked at him.
"If you must know, I am looking for more information about the Island of Malnese. Seeing as I couldn't find anything more in the regular part of the library, I figured I would look in the restricted section."
"Breaking rules? I wouldn't have thought that was your style, Granger," he replied. Secretly he was impressed. Hermione had always seemed like such a rule follower, he never would have guessed she had a bit of a wild streak in her.
"Yeah, well, that doesn't answer why you're here."
He looked at her for a long time before deciding to give her an answer.
"I suppose it wouldn't hurt to tell you. I'm here for the same reason." He smirked at the surprise that flickered across her face. "What? Didn't think I'd be strolling around Hogwarts after hours unless I was up to something evil?"
"That's not what I was thinking," Hermione said, defensively.
"Yeah, right," he scoffed.
"You know, if you're here for the same reason as me, we might as well combine our efforts. Not that I want to be around you, but---well, it's a bit of an overwhelming job," she finished lamely, gesturing to the rows of books.
Draco looked behind her. He understood what she meant. The Restricted Section wasn't put in any particular order; made it more difficult for unauthorized students, such as themselves, to find things. He looked back to her expectant face.
"Well, I suppose we could work together, this once," he answered, feeling strangely happy when he saw a look of relief and --- thanks? --- spread across her face.
"Good. Okay, I have already looked through the shelves in the back two rows," she explained, pointing towards a dark corner. "Maybe we should start here and work our way back towards the two I finished?"
He nodded his assent and the two students, wands lit, searched the spines for the elusive information.
"Hey, Malfoy," Hermione quietly said, "I think I found something."
Expectantly, she moved closer to Draco, propping the book, ::A Curse Upon Thee::, author unknown, up on an empty shelf. Draco leaned closer to Hermione in order to read the text with her.
"Many dark and dangerous nights did I spend on the Island," the unknown author wrote. "I have seen terrors that only existed in my dreams, before now. In truth, I never believed I would get off that cursed place."
"Well, what do you think?" Hermione asked.
Before he could answer, they heard the doors to the library creak open, and the unmistakable mew of Mrs. Norris.
Without any thought, Hermione reached once again for the discarded Invisibility Cloak, darkened her wand, shut the book, and covered herself with the Cloak.
Draco watched her as she performed the motions, his eyes going wide when she apparently dissaparated. It took a moment before he realized that she couldn't have dissaparated, not in Hogwarts.
"Where did you go?" he hissed, while desperately looking for a place to hide in the wide aisle. He could hear Filch and Mrs. Norris getting closer. He almost screamed when he felt an invisible hand grab his arm.
The next thing he knew, he was staring into a pair of annoyed brown eyes. Before he could say anything, Hermione clamped one hand over his mouth and grabbed the front of his robe with her other hand. She began to pull him down the aisle. As they fled, he noticed that he was under something that resembled a sheet.
Hermione stopped her swift retreat when she reached a small alcove in the wall at the end of the aisle. Quickly she pressed herself and Malfoy into the too small space, never once removing her hand from Malfoy's mouth.
They had managed to get themselves settled thus, just as Mrs. Norris turned the corner at the end of the other aisle. For a long moment her lamp like eyes stared at the alcove.
"What is it, my dear?" Filch's gravelly voiced wondered. He came around the corner, lifted his lantern, and looked carefully along the wall. With a shrug, he continued to walk through the library, passing the alcove within inches of Hermione and Draco.
For fifteen minutes, the two students stood in the alcove, frozen like statues. Finally, the faint glow of the lantern disappeared with the metallic click of a closing lock. Draco and Hermione released their breath.
Suddenly, it occurred to him, Filch and Mrs. Norris hadn't seen them. "How the hell didn't they see us?" Draco questioned.
"You have to swear to keep this to yourself, Malfoy, or I swear," she hissed. With that, she removed the sheet object from the two of them. When she did, Malfoy noticed that it wasn't a sheet, but rather an outstandingly beautiful cloak.
"Is that an Invisibility Cloak?" he breathed.
"Yes. But you have to keep this to yourself."
"How in the world did a Mudblood get a hold of an Invisibility Cloak?" he questioned.
With venom in her eyes, she answered, "It's not mine, it belonged to Harry's father. He got it from Dumbledore his first Christmas here."
"Really?" he asked, an evil grin spreading across his face.
"Damn you, Malfoy," she growled. "Look, it's not any of your business. Just forget the whole thing, okay?"
"Yeah, right, forget that Potter has an Invisibility Cloak? You must be kidding, Granger," he said, scornfully.
"Oh, sod off, Malfoy."
With that, Hermione grasped the book tightly against her, threw the Cloak back around her shoulders and disappeared. Draco could hear her moving down the aisle. He waited until her heard the sound of the door open and close, then he headed on his way. _______________________________________________________________________
Well, there you are, chapter 6. PLEASE REVIEW!!!!!!!
To my current reviewers:
- Misao Blacksoul: thanks
- Anonymous: Thank you. I never actually gave any thought to the pairing of Ron and Pansy, but now that you mention it, I'm thinking about how to work it in. As far as saving each other, well.you'll just have to see. ::grins evilly::
- Fiery-chan: don't feel bad. I'm guilty of the same sin. The island thing just sorta happened as I wrote the chapter. That's the fun thing about writing, sometimes the story just takes over.
- Angelgirl89uk: I certainly hope that it will be brilliant. =)
- Shivohnsongbreeze: Thanks, I will.
- f0xyness39: I'm glad you love my story. I will e-mail you as soon as I update.
- CatalinaRose: I don't know how I managed to crank out two chapters in one weekend, I didn't even really have time. It just sorta happened. No problem about the e-mails. In answer to your questions: Are they going to end up on that Island? Only time will tell, sometimes a story takes over and you have no choice in the matter. Exactly what is the curse? Your guess is as good as mine at this point.
SPEAKING OF THE CURSE ON THE ISLAND: If you have any suggestions, feel free to e-mail them to me. I am looking for lots of creativity here. If I use your idea, I will give you due credit.