Chapter 2 - The Group Arrives
"If everyone would settle down, I will read your group assignments," Snape told them as Professor Flitwick walked in with a piece of paper. "Once your name is read, please swiftly exit the classroom and a teacher will guide you from there. Okay, the first group is…"
Ignoring the groups that did not include them, Harry and Ron were bugging Hermione about her 'obsession' with trying to find out her NEWT score. "I do not OBSESS over it, I am just…overly curious. Honestly, I would have thought that you two would want to know as much as I do, considering how much rides on how well you performed!" She responded in annoyance then talked with Lavender instead.
"Well, honestly!" Ron said, mocking her tone of voice in a once-again perfect impersonation, which they both laughed at for a good two minutes.
"Crabbe, Finnigan, Thomas, Goyle, Zambini. Please meet Professor Trelawney outside the classroom immediately. Granger, Longbottom, Weasley, Potter…Malfoy. Outside as well," Professor Snape seemed to stutter over the last part, obviously perplexed over the group assignments he was reading off the sheet. Ron and Harry stared at each other, sharing the same shocked expression. Neville just poked at them on his way out the door with Hermione. Nobody had the guts to glance at Draco, to gauge his reaction.
The man in question was also…weirded out to say the least. He did not understand why Dumbledore put him with those four but he had no real choice in the matter so conceded to make the most of it. Or at least not kill anyone…right away. A sort of reluctant truce, he thought as he exited his favorite class.
"Before you say anything let me tell you there is no other choices and that I helped pick your group for a very specific reason. All of you are exemplary students and in my opinion needed a slightly…altered challenge to compensate for your experience in the wizarding world," Professor McGonagall declared before anyone else could get a word in.
"Yes, professor," Hermione, Neville, and Harry relented. Draco was staring (always with that air of supremacy around him) and Ron was seemingly just barely controlling his emotions. That's the thing with redheads, Neville thought, you can tell what they're thinking quite easily.
"Enough chatter. Go to your dormitories, change into Muggle clothing and be prepared to leave immediately, nothing but the clothes and your wand, remember."
They were all back in their old Transfiguration classroom in about ten minutes. Neville and Ron were the first to arrive, followed by Hermione and Harry (who walked in very cheerfully) and Draco waltzed in about five minutes after them. Hermione had worn the same skirt, and added a crimson sweater she had bought in London last weekend. Harry was dressed in jeans and a T-shirt with 'Co-Ed Naked Quidditch' on it (which McGonagall frowned at but remained silent). Ron was wearing a shirt Charlie had sent from Romania and his khaki cargos. Draco was the most finely dressed (big surprise there) in his black cords and silk shirt.
Professor McGonagall waved her wand and the next thing they knew they were standing in the middle of a classroom from the looks of it. Neville, Harry, and Draco had all landed uncomfortably (caught on assorted objects or whatnot), Hermione landing on her feet and Ron landed on his arse. "Where do you think we are?" Harry asked the question it seemed everyone was thinking. Everything looked different here for some reason; just the feel of it was…different. He looked around the room to try and get clues to their location but did not end up with anything.
"Methuen High School, whatever that means," Hermione informed them, reading off a paper near the door. "So it's a Muggle school. Look through the desks, Neville. Harry you take that cabinet in the back, Draco could you look on that side and Ron take the other? We are supposed to try and get back to Hogwarts I'm assuming, using nothing but Muggle means," Hermione tended to think out loud and was the self-appointed 'leader' of their group, being by far the most organized and level-headed.
All in all they did come up with some inkling as to where they were…sort of. Neville was not sure if he liked the idea of being in America but he supposed he might as well enjoy it while he was here. "So, we know we are in the United States, Massachusetts is the state. We know this is a school. We are assuming that there is next to no magic involved in their lives or teachings and we cannot use our own unless the situation calls for it so…what now?"
"Look for some people to help us," Draco called from the corner where he was perched on a desk, book open in his lap. Harry was surprised to hear the words 'ask for help' from Mr. Know-It-All but somehow he had also expected it. Since he talked and volunteered less information, he was not well-known for his intelligence but Harry himself knew Draco's mind was rival to Hermione's in most, and even their Potions Master had to defer to Malfoy a time or two. They had been stuck together when Harry had requested a Potions tutor and had looked at him differently since then.
"Okay, what do we say--Hi, I'm a wizard, can you help me? From what my Gran used to tell me, Muggles don't respond well to that, you know," Neville protested.
"It's worth a try, what's the worst that could happen?" Ron asked ignorantly.