Top Secret

Still by HermioneFan, funnily enough

Disclaimer: Oh please.

Author's Note: At last! Sorry this has taken me so long to post – I've been on holiday (in Cape Town, for anyone out there who actually cares). I'm sure you were eagerly awaiting this ::cough, I wish, cough::.

The prefect who comes in late is a sort of private joke. I have a friend called Jess (with a different surname) and we use each other's names in our fanfics. You may know her as Cho ChangRULES! Or you may not. In case you're at all interested, I'm the first year who falls down all the staircases in her fics. That was your useless info for the day. OK, I'll shut up and let you read the next chapter now…

Oh, no I won't. Sorry. You all have to tell me what you think of Cho Chang, OK? Great.

Thanks to all my reviewers. I love you all! (In a friendly sort of way).

Oh, and…::Ducks sharp objects aimed at head:: All right, all right! I'm going! Sheesh…

***

At two o'clock that afternoon, the prefects held their first meeting of the year. There were sixteen of them all told, clustered around the ancient wooden table in the centre of the Prefects' common room. Hannah smiled and waved at Ron, who ignored her completely, tracing the inevitable "Penny loves Percy" with his finger, followed by the equally inevitable "I so do not!", still scowling at Hermione.

Hermione did a quick head count. "Fifteen," she said. "Who's missing?"

"Jess," chorused Alison and Juliet, the Clearwater twins.

"Who else?" sighed the Head Girl. "Oh well, her bad luck. We'll just have to start without her."

The meeting got underway, and went reasonably smoothly (as Hogwarts Prefects' meetings go), unless you counted fifth year Jess Vujovic bursting in half an hour late, which nobody saw as an interruption, this being a regular occurrence.

Suddenly Hermione said, "Some of the students have requested a ball at Christmas this year, similar to the one we had in our fourth year, remember?" she addressed the seventh years.

"As if we could forget," muttered Ron.

Hermione, ignoring him, continued, "I thought I'd put the idea to the Prefects. Well?"

"I like it!" piped up sixth year Emily MacMillan, of Hufflepuff.

"Yeah, you weren't at the last one!" said Ron loudly. "It was such a load of-"

"No, I think it's a good idea," Mandy Brocklehurst cut him off with a reproving look. "After all, we seventh years were the youngest ones to go, so most of the other students have never been to one before."

Ron muttered, "Yeah, the lucky little-"

"Shall we vote on it?" said Terry, ignoring Ron yet again. "All in favour…"

Fourteen hands rose into the air, even, to most people's surprise, Bob's (she was, after all, not the sort of person you'd usually catch dead in a room full of loud music and dancing).

"Against?"

Harry and Ron. "Outnumbered again," Harry sighed.

"That's settled, then." said Hermione, taking charge once more. "Christmas Eve? Good. Meeting adjourned. We'll meet again next weekend to finalise plans."

Bob made her way back towards Gryffindor tower, where she met Ginny, who was leaning against the wall alongside the Fat Lady, still in her scarlet Quidditch robes.

"Bad news," Ginny said, as her friend approached, and explained about the Quidditch practice. "It looks like our plan's not going too well," she concluded.

"I have better news," said Bob, when Ginny had finished. "They've decided to have another Yule Ball! It's a perfect opportunity to work on our plan!"

Ginny stared at Bob as if she had gone mad. "You off your broomstick? I thought you said 'good news'!" She winced. Apparently, her toes had still not recovered.

"It is good news!" Bob protested. "We need something to help with our plan, and this seems like just the thing-"

"To ruin everything," Ginny put in firmly. "Think, Bob. It's supposed to be what you're good at. They're still fighting about the last ball. All we need is another one."

"Yeah, I suppose you're right," Bob agreed reluctantly, "but you must admit, it is a good opportunity to get Hannah and Terry out of the way."

Ginny sighed. "All right," she said, "but you are in charge."

***

A/N: Sorry about the not very exciting chapter. It takes all sorts to make a fanfic…

Tell me what you think of Cho Chang! So far, most people seem to have agreed with me: SHE MUST DIE! I particularly like Ciara Moondagger's "she needs to go dig a hole next to Cedric and die there" I must remember that…

Next chapter: Ginny sets her homework alight, Bob is in detention and a Slytherin gets the famous "what-on-earth-did-you-think-you-were-doing-disturbing-the-quiet-of-the-library" speech.