Underneath it All

A/N : Finally, we're in October. =) Only a few more months to go! ; ) Lolz.

Let me just say that writing the entry for October 1st was really hard… I wrote it several times, and I wasn't happy with it, so, please understand if it's not the best… I just didn't know exactly how to continue from that last entry… I'm still not satisfied with it, but, I hope you guys don't mind too much… =)

I've decided to continue on until June – it'll take quite some time, and be a lot of work, but it'll be worth it in the end. =) I may, after that, make a sequel and do Seventh Year, but, I'm not thinking that far ahead now, lolz.

By the way, I have a short little one shot fic up called Watching From Afar… It's not the best, but, if you want to, then, check it out, lolz.

Oh yes, and, happy New Year everybody!!

DISCLAIMER : All characters and places are brought to you by JK Rowling - not me.

This disclaimer has been brought to you by…

The letter D for DISCLAIMER

And…

The number 10 for the number of times I could be sued without it.

Reviews-

You guys are all so awesome… Always sending me nice reviews and everything… =) =) Thanks so much!!

Thanks:
        LyssasPen - Thank you! And same here, lolz. Most of this story, like I said before, is based on things from my life, lolz.

          hp/charmed obsesed - Thanks – I was just wondering what you guys wanted. If I do Seventh Year, it will probably be a new story. =) And I agree about the Harry/Hermione ship… I don't like it either. And, you'll just have to wait and see what it all meant, and who the bracelet was from, won't you? ; )

          Teen Typist - Thanks for the review. =) And not as much as she should lately, lolz.

          noseyMCnosey - Thanks for the wonderful review!! =) And thanks so much for the compliment. =) I always love reading your reviews… They're so flattering and helpful, lolz. =)

          foxXy - Aw, thank you so much!! =)

                Leanah - Thanks for the review… You'll just to wait and so. =)


Now we begin...

October 1st,

I really didn't know what to expect today… I mean, what was today going to be like? Would I just go back to normal, with the knowledge of yesterday tucked in my head? Or, would I change, little by little into someone knew? Or, would I just drastically change into a completely different person?

Well, when I woke up, I didn't FEEL any different, so, I guess that I just have the knowledge, and will change some minor things, but, I'll mainly stay the same… All day I was looking for those changes, but, I couldn't find them… Perhaps I was looking to hard… Or, perhaps they're just not there…

Everyone kept commenting on how great I looked. That smile was still on my face – it hadn't left at all! A few people asked me how I could be so happy after how sad I was yesterday… I just started to laugh and walked away. It's funny how good life seems when you're finally happy and free…

Nothing could dampen my mood – even when Snape asked me if I wanted detention for smiling so much. Honestly, how can you give detention for smiling? It's quite stupid if you ask me… But, that's Snape for you. He likes to give detention and take points of from Gryffindors for silly things. Normally it bothers me, but, you know what, who cares? Let him be a bitter, old man. If he wants to hold a petty school boy grudge, then he can just go ahead – it just goes to show you how pathetic he is…

Although, wouldn't it be something if he gave points to Gryffindor, just once? Or, better, if he took away points from Slytherin? That would certainly be shocking… Too bad it's never going to happen…

He gave us time to work on our projects in class today. I didn't really need the time since I've already finished, so, I just went to the Library and read up a bit on wands. I remember a while back when my first wand was malfunctioning, and I had to get a new one… Well, I'm still curious as to why that happened – I've never heard of that. I've also taken out a few books on the properties of a wand – perhaps I can figure out what my wand is made of, and why Ollivander wouldn't tell me anything about it…

No one said anything when they saw me carrying those books, but, I could tell that they thought something was wrong with me. I mean, they're used to seeing me taking out many books, but, never on wands and their properties. Thank Merlin nobody asked me why, because, I myself don't truly understand why I'm reading up on it… I mean, I want to know, but, I can't help thinking that there's something else behind that…

At least the time I had in the Library was quite useful, apart from finding all of those books that is. I started reading one of them – Woods of the Wands – and I found out something quite interesting… Well, wands are made out of wood from trees; such as oak, pine, redwood, etc – except for mine, that is. You see, it showed pictures of the types of woods, and I matched up my wand to see which type of wood it looked the most like. I wasn't having much luck until I got to the last chapter of the book. It said there that, though wands were made out of tree wood, there were several wands - no more than 10 - that were made out of the wood from other things; such as ferns and treelike plants. The wood of my wand perfectly matches the wood of the "Alsophila australis;" the largest of all ferns.

There was an entire section devoted to the Aslophila australis. It said that that wood was particularly strong when it came to wands, and could be extremely powerful when mixed with certain cores. And, from what I read, only three wands have ever been made of it. One of them is mine, while the others seems to be, well, lost.

Unfortunately, I didn't get to read much else since Potions was over by the time I had found and read that. And, I didn't have time after classes to read some more. Perhaps tomorrow I'll learn more about it… So far though, I can see why Ollivander had reacted the way he had… Not only is it not made out of tree wood, but, it is also one of the only two wands made of that particular wood in existence… It's a shame that I can't figure out what the core of the wand is. Although, I have a plan that just might work…

Now, I know that I really shouldn't have, and, I know that I really should have been paying attention, but, I couldn't help it! Although, at least I paid attention when Professor Binns told us what we were going to be learning – witch hunts. And, luckily, I already read up on that. If anything, I can always get someone's notes. You see, I just HAD to read up a bit more on the Aslophila australis, so, I took the book, put it in my lap, and read it during History of Magic… Thank Merlin I wasn't caught! No one noticed either… They were too busy passing notes, finishing up homework, chatting, everything BUT paying attention. I feel so guilty though… I mean, the classes are here for a reason… But, I just couldn't resist! Was it really so bad to tune out during just one class?

And it's not like I was doing something unproductive or something that could get me in trouble. I was reading up on my wand! I think that I have a right to know and understand my wand… After all, according to Wands and Wizards, the more you know about your wand, the better you and your wand will work together, and the stronger your magical abilities will be. So, I was, in a way, strengthening my magical powers by reading during class, right? I mean, interesting as History of Magic is – no sarcasm intended – it isn't really going to help me if I need to use magic to help myself… I can't help but feel like a criminal though…

But, I promised myself that I would read the chapter on Medieval Witches and Wizards, and even take out a few books on witch hunts so that I wouldn't fall behind in History of Magic. So, not only am I becoming a more powerful witch, but, I'm also going to learn MORE about what Professor Binns taught us. If that doesn't make up for it, then I don't know what will…

And it's not like I'm going to make a habit of ignoring my lessons and studying whatever else I want to – it was just this once – I'll never do it again.

Well, after classes, Ginny wanted to talk to me, so, we went to the Kitchens so that we could have a bite to eat and catch up. It turned out that she wanted to hear everything about what happened between me and Ron, and why my mood had suddenly changed. I didn't really know what to tell her. I mean, on the one hand, I didn't want to keep secrets from her; after all, she's one of my best friends. But, on the other hand, I didn't really want to tell her anything… I ended up telling her the main points, but I skipped over several things…

After that, we just kept talking until it was time for dinner. Since we had eaten while we were talking though, we didn't bother to go down to the Great Hall. Well, I didn't. For Ginny, that's the time to socialize and catch up on everyone's day. So, I just went up to the Common Room. I had about an hour to myself, so, I decided that I may as well do my homework. I mean, how often do you get an hour of silence in the Common Room? I got a great deal done – the Common Room is very comfortable, and the silence gave me the right atmosphere to do my homework. I finished faster than I ever have before.

There was a DA meeting after dinner, but, I didn't end up knowing until the fake Galleon started to burn quite hot. That's when I finally remembered about it, and threw it out of my pocket. I nearly burned myself; it was so hot! I cast a Cooling Charm on it, and then after a few moments when I was sure that it wasn't burning hot, I read the numerals on the side… I had about 5 minutes to get to the Room of Requirement!

I used a Speed Charm so that I could make it in time to the meeting. Surprisingly, I was the first person there. I decided that I may as well go into the room and wait for everyone there. At least I could read a book while I waited. I settled down on a cushion, and opened a book called Cursing on the Run. It really was quite interesting – I got a bit lost in it. After a while, I noticed that no one was in the room with me, so, I checked my watch – 7:20PM; the meeting had been scheduled for 7:00PM. I found it quite odd that no one had turned up… But, I really wanted to finish the book, so, I just kept reading.

I must not have noticed the door open, but, the next thing I knew, the book was flying out of my hands, and someone was trying to disarm me of my wand! Strange thing though – they kept trying and trying with different spells, but, my wand wouldn't budge. I didn't notice until they screamed 'Expelliarmus' at the top of their lungs – and the wand STILL didn't budge. I wonder why…

I didn't have enough time to react or anything – the person quickly left the room muttering 'Damn you.' Then, I heard them magically locking the door. I figured that 'Alohomora' would open the door, but, it didn't work! I tried every opening charm that I could think of, but, none of them worked… Evidently, this person had put a lot of time and effort into planning that.

I wonder who it was, and what they wanted… I mean, they were obviously after me, since, I was the only one in the Room of Requirement. All I know is that they're very powerful – they had managed it so that only my Galleon burned and so that only the numerals on my Galleon changed… But to do that, they would have to know about the Protean Charm I had placed on the Galleons for the DA meetings… If they can do that, and find a spell that locks me into here, then must truly be very powerful…

But, what I really want to know is who would do that. It's not like some random person wakes up one morning thinking, 'Let's lock Hermione in a room for the fun of it.' So, obviously, this person must have a grudge against me to go to all of this trouble… I was thinking about it the whole time that I was locked in the room, and I couldn't think of anyone that would do it to me… I'm not saying that I'm someone perfect that everyone likes, but, it's not like I'm someone that people hate, am I?

Oh, but luckily I wasn't locked in there forever… I didn't really stop to think about how long I might be stuck in there, but, when Dobby came, I was so relieved to get outside. He had no trouble at all getting in, so, I suppose that, somehow, the person managed a charm that made the door only locked from the inside… Dobby was quite surprised to see me there though. I just kept thanking and thanking him and asking him what I could do to repay him… He said that he wanted socks… Well, at least I can knit, so, that shouldn't be too hard to do.

By the time I got back to the Common Room it was nearly 9:00PM – I had been in there for nearly two hours! The time sure went by fast. I didn't tell anyone what had happened though… I don't know why. I mean, they could have helped, but, then again, anyone could be after me… it's quite scary to think that someone out there really hates me that much… If they can do that, then, I'm scared to think of what else they'll do to hurt me…

Luckily, I have the Library excuse. Sometimes, it's good when people always assume you're somewhere. It sure comes in handy when you need to cover for yourself… No one really cared after I told them that – they had, as usual, assumed that that was there I had been.

Now, I was considering joining Ron and Harry, but, I didn't really think that I was ready to jump right back into being friends with Ron right away. I mean, I know that I'll be able to, but, I just don't think that I can at the moment… But then again, everyone else was busy doing something else, and I didn't want to bother them and make them alter whatever they were doing just for me. And, I wasn't ready to go to bed, so, I just joined Ron and Harry.

After all, though I'm not ready to be best friends at the moment, I've got to start somewhere if I ever want to have that friendship again. Harry must have known that that was what I was thinking when he saw me approaching him and Ron… He smiled encouragingly, which made it much easier to get over there. Just because I wasn't that close to Ron anymore, didn't mean that I'd lost Harry.

I really don't know how Ron felt to have me there… I mean, at first I thought that he was a bit surprised that I had gone over to them. But, then, I don't know why, but, I was under the impression that he was angry… I was his best friend since First Year, so, I know what he's like when he's mad… He goes all tense for a bit, and then he isn't really that warm and nice as he usually is. I noticed him tensing up for a moment, but then he seemed to relax, so, I may have been imagining things… But, I also just had this feeling that he was angry… I don't know what to think, really.

We didn't really do much… We played a few games of Exploding Snap, and a few games of chess – me and Harry both lost to Ron. Ron couldn't play that long since he had to finish up homework that was due tomorrow – a Divination assignment. For all of September, it seems that they've been reviewing what they've learned so far, and now they need to make a prediction for every month and say how they got it. As usual, Ron made up ludicrous predictions. I'm amazed that Professor Trelawny believes that he actually did his homework, but, then again… But, really. I mean, some of his "predictions" are so far-fetched! For example, he said that he saw in his crystal ball that the Minister of Magic would resign, and his father would become Minister of Magic! Now, I'm not saying his father wouldn't make a good Minister of Magic, but, Fudge wouldn't resign. And he said that even though it didn't affect him very much, it still did since it would be his father! Honestly!

Although, I must give him some credit… He said that in the middle of February he would have to heal a broken heart. Professor Trelawny is going to love that one since she just loves including pain and despair in her predictions… And since the middle of February is Valentine's Day… While Ron thought up of reasons for finding his predictions, Harry and I kept playing chess. We didn't even finish one game though…

It was quite late, so, we decided to just head upstairs after Ron had finished. I must say, I'm quite glad that I decided to join Ron and Harry… At least now it hopefully won't feel so awkward when I'm near Ron… I just can't bear it! During the day, there were several times when we were around each other, and, conversation just seemed to stop and everyone felt awkward – so I just left; I don't want to be the cause of awkwardness.

There I was, thinking that I would have a break from all of this Ron business from everyone, when who should come up but Lavender and Parvati. It turns out that they had been looking for me all day and had wanted to talk to me… Honestly, they're wonderful friends, but, at times they can get quite annoying what with all of their gossip and all. But, something made me tell them everything – well, ALMOST everything. Lavender already knew most of it, and, surprisingly, she hadn't told Parvati. So, I had to fill her in on everything that had happened.

It was quite nice to get it all off my back though. I feel much lighter now that I've actually said it all out loud… They didn't really say much about it; after all, what is there to say? But, at least they listened patiently and let me finish. It always amazes me how they can be so quiet and understanding when needed…

By the time I had told them everything, it really was quite late, so, we decided to go to bed. But, since our beds are all near each others, we kept talking until the other two girls that we share the dorm with came back. They're nice girls, but, there's something about them that unsettles me… Don't ask me why, it's just a feeling…

I've been having a lot of those lately. And I've been relying on them every time I've had them too. They haven't failed me yet, so, I'm just going to keep trusting them…

~*~

October 2nd,

The Potions assignment was due today… I noticed that some people hadn't finished – they were working on it in the Common Room and then there were some people in the Great Hall trying to eat breakfast and finish Potions. In fact, I noticed that some people who had Potions with me skipped their first class since they weren't even close to finishing!

Ron said that he had already finished, but, at the last minute, he remembered that he had forgotten to write down something; he didn't say what. Harry said that he had finished last night in the Common Room after dinner. At least Snape wouldn't get mad at us. I decided to check on Neville since Potions was his worst subject – I'd offered to help him with the project if he needed it, but, he told me that he wanted to do it himself. I was looking over his notes, and they're quite good. Neville really isn't that bad at Potions, but, it's the fact that Snape is always there discouraging him that makes him falter… It's quite sad, since he told me that he wants to be an Auror and needs a good mark in Potions.

I remember last year when we were visiting Ron's father in St. Mungo's and we accidentally went to the Permanent Spell Damage Ward… We saw Lockhart there, but, we also saw Neville… I was wondering what he was doing there, but, then his grandmother seemed to answer that question… I never knew… It was such a heartbreaking sight – I felt like crying on the spot. Poor Neville; his mother didn't even know that she was his mother! And I found it so touching that he kept the bubblegum wrapper that his mother gave him… Oh, Merlin… That was something I'll never forget. And then also in the Department of Mysteries… I was knocked out for most of the time, but, I regained consciousness and I saw several of the deatheaters using the Cruciatus Curse on Neville as one of them was taunting him about his parents… And how he kept standing up for himself, trying hard not to falter… I didn't see much, but, I kept slipping to and from consciousness and I saw small parts of what was happening… I hated being so helpless!!

When we got back to Hogwarts, I remember that Ron, Ginny, and Luna were sleeping. Neville and I weren't tired, so, we just started talking. Well, somehow, we touched the topic of what happened at the Department of Mysteries… I already knew most of what happened from what I saw and from what I heard from everyone, but, he told me a bit more… And then he told me about his parents… Oh Merlin, it was so sad. They were tortured by Bellatrix Lestrange - the same woman that was torturing Neville – with the Cruciatus Cruse until they reached insanity. It's because of her that Neville's parents don't know him… I just felt like crying… I never knew…

Ever since he was young and understood what had happened to his parents, Neville has wanted to become an Auror. He said that he joined the DA so that he could get better at hexes and jinxes so that he could become a better Auror… He wants to be the one that captures Bellatrix Lestrange… Oh Merlin, it's so… I just wish that he can accomplish his dream of becoming an Auror. And I truly do wish that he is the one that captures Bellatrix Lestrange – just so long as he doesn't have to suffer the same fate as his parents… Wouldn't that be ironic?

I promised myself from that day, that I would help Neville reach that goal. He, like Harry, had experienced so much pain in his life because of Voldemort… They both deserve to be happy… And I wish them all of the happiness in the world.

I've kept my word… I keep reminding Neville that if he needs help, then he can just ask me, but, I somehow get the feeling that even if he needed it, he wouldn't. So, I just keep offering every once in a while. He's getting better in his classes though, I must say. Especially Potions. When we had Career Advice last year, he was getting an A in Potions. But now, he's getting an E! Pretty soon, and he'll be getting an O…

Anyways. After Herbology, I had to head down to the dungeons for Potions. Half-way there, I remembered that I had left the vial with the potion up in my dormitory. I didn't have enough time to run all the way there, get it, and then come back – Snape would get quite angry if I was late. Now, I know that doing magic in the halls is against the rules, but, I really needed that vial… So, I summoned it. Ooh, I'm just so glad that there were no teachers around or else I would get caught… I would probably lose some points or get detention… At least I have the vial though.

I still had to run to make it to the dungeons on time. We spent the whole class having Snape record our marks while we tested out our potions. It took a while since some people added too many butterfly wings; which made the potion last longer. And Snape couldn't give them a potion to fix it since he couldn't see them. So, we had to wait until the potion wore off… Although, it wouldn't have been that hard to find out where they were; I mean, we ARE magical… But, no one bothered to give Snape any ideas. He'd just get mad at us for trying to show him up or something like that. And it was a nice break from a class where we had to do work…

Almost no one's potion lasted only 5 minutes… Only Malfoy's and mine did. Although, Harry's lasted 6 minutes, and that's quite close… But it's not good enough for Snape.

It was quite funny though, what some people were doing while they were invisible. Most people just sort of stood there, waiting for the Potion to wear off, but, some people were creating pandemonium! Someone, I don't remember who, started to take out all of the ingredients from the Potions Cabinet and throwing them to the floor. In the middle of this, they became visible again, except they didn't notice. So, they kept going at it, while Snape stood behind them – THEN they noticed. Obviously, they got detention.

Ron kept saying how much he wanted to do something to Malfoy, but, when his turn came, he took the potion – which wore off almost right after he took it.

Once Snape had tested most of the class, some people found that there was still some potion left over… Needless to say, chaos ensued. Several people mixed some drops together of several people's potions and drank that… Many people were invisible, and Snape had quite a hard time figuring out who it was… How he managed to finish testing everyone I've no idea – it must have been hard for him to time everyone when he couldn't tell when they were becoming visible. And the fact that other people kept going from invisible to visible didn't help much.

Finally, he just decided to give the whole class detention. Everyone calmed down after that… Snape decided that it would be easier to just give us all one detention than to give us separate ones, so, we're all to go down to the dungeons tomorrow night at 7:00PM; right after dinner. He hasn't decided how long it's going to last, or what we're going to do. He just said that the chances that we would be let out before midnight were slim. I wonder what he's going to make us do…

The rest of my classes went by quite well – nothing happened out of the ordinary. Except in Charms… We were practicing the 'Separado' Charm, and someone somehow made everything separate from the floor… It took Professor Flitwick quite a bit of time to bring everything back to normal. By the time everything was in its place, class had already ended, and everyone was rushing to get to their classrooms. Luckily, the Arithmancy class is nearby – only a few doors down.

I didn't have much homework today because of what happened in Potions and Charms, but, the homework that I did have I finished quite fast. I even read a bit ahead to find out what we would be learning next class. Now, my homework wasn't done as good as I could have made it, but, I was just so anxious to read some of the books on wands that I'd taken out from the Library. I really want to know more about my wand – it's obviously a special wand, and, perhaps dangerous since Ollivander wouldn't tell me anything about it.

Even though I had a lot of time ahead of me, I didn't get much reading done. I went back to the Library to find some other books about finding out what the core of your wand is. I read through several books before I found a method that I could actually use. Basically, you need to brew the Revelar Potion, say an incantation, and put your wand into the potion. If you do everything correctly, then from the potion, the wood and the core will be separated so that you can see what the core is.

The potion takes about a week to brew, and then it has to sit for 3 days. It's quite complicated since you have to add each ingredient on a different day. But, the thing is, they have to be added at the exact same time each day. Also, the potion can't be moved at all; only to stir, for the entire time that you're brewing and letting it sit. And then, when you put your wand in, it has to be at the stroke of midnight on the beginning of the third day for it to work. If you add something even a minute later, then the potion will be worthless. At least the ingredients aren't hard to come by; I have all of them already.

I decided to start brewing the potion tomorrow since I really wanted to read a bit more about Aslophila australis and about some cores that might be in my wand. Apparently, the Aslophila australis can't have the core of an animal or else it will be completely useless. And the three wands made of it share the same core… It's really quite an interesting wood to have in a wand; not only because only two wands are made out of it.

I never knew how interesting wands really were. I just thought that they were sticks that you used to use magic, but, they're really quite complex and interesting. I read up a bit on several cores as well. Basically, the more common the core is, the less powerful the wand is; and the rarer the core is, then the more powerful the wand is. And then there's this thing called Priori Incantatem. You see, sometimes, there are wands that have the core of the same creature. When those wands meet, then they won't work properly against each other. But, if the owners of the wands try to force them to do so, then one of the wands will make the other show the spells that it last used – in reverse. It's really quite interesting to think that that could happen…

It also said in the same book that wands with the same core AND wood do something quite strange. So, if my wand were to meet on of the other wandw make of Aslophila australis, then they would join as one if forced to fight. Then, the owners of the wands would become each other for several moments before becoming spirits that would go around the world, unable to communicate or do anything with anyone that wasn't in their position… This only happened once before, and that was when Merlin was dueling with Dezdrokton. It's quite eerie to think that they're somewhere in the world; just floating about having to watch everything…

Now, I hope that I never have to fight one of the other people with a wand made of Aslophila australis… I would hate for that to happen to me… I hate feeling helpless, but to have to go around the world, and watch terrible things happening, and being unable to do anything… I wouldn't be able to stand that!

By the time I finally read all of this information, it was quite late – I was the only one in the Common Room. I didn't think that it would take that long to read all of that… But, it did, and when I closed the book and looked around, I realized how tired I was. It's always like that… I can read a book for hours into the night, and be wide awake, wanting to keep going. But, as soon as I close the book, the tiredness sets in, and I'm practically falling asleep as I go to bed…

I really wanted to write down everything that happened today, so, I put a small little charm on myself to keep me awake for a few minutes… Oh, I can feel it wearing off n

~*~

October 3rd,

I was so tired all of today… I really considered using a spell to keep me awake, but, I didn't need that once I got to Care of Magical Creatures… Hagrid decided to introduce us all to Grawp, and start a unit on giants. Of course, Grawp recognized me, and shouted 'Hermy!' before grabbing me and pulling me up to him. Merlin, I'm scared to death of heights – especially when I'm being held by a giant! That was enough to shake the sleepiness out of me!

Hagrid kept trying to get Grawp to put me down, but, it wasn't working. At least he didn't send me plummeting to the ground – instead, he set me on top of the South Tower. Which was just lovely since it was quite slippery and there was only a small stone to hold onto!! That really didn't help me get over my fear…

I don't know how long I was up there; too scared to move. At first, I'd lost my voice, but, after I regained it, I started screaming as loud as I possibly could for someone to get me down from there. Of course, seeing me, scared to death, clinging to a small stone on top of the South Tower made everyone start laughing. So, there I was, red in the face, angry as ever, scared to death, and no one was helping.

Finally though, Harry got the idea of getting his Firebolt to fly up and get me… Now, I'm not a big fan of flying, but, for once, I was very happy to be on a broom. Although, I think that I may have been holding onto Harry a bit too tight… Well, he can't blame me – he would too if he was in my position!

At least everyone stopped laughing once I was finally on the ground. Grawp tried to pick me up again, but, Hagrid must have done something to get him away while I was hiding behind Harry. I absolutely hate heights!!

Luckily I had Transfiguration after that – my favourite subject! We were learning how to transfigure water into candles, and if we managed that, then burning candles. It was quite easy – most of the class could to it by the time it was time for lunch. I got it in my first few tries, and there was still a lot of class time left, so, I kept practicing – now, I can transfigure water into a lovely candle with a flower print on a candle stand, and an ever burning flame. Professor McGonagall was quite pleased with my progress – she gave 10 points to Gryffindor when I first got it, and then 5 after she saw how I had improved.

By lunchtime, everyone must have heard about what had happened in Care of Magical Creatures, because whenever someone would see me in the hall, they would yell 'Hermy!' and laugh while walking away. It got quite annoying after almost everyone that I passed commented on what had happened… All through lunch people would stop by where I was sitting to tease me for it. I managed to stay calm and NOT be rude to anyone – something I'm quite proud of myself for.

For the rest of the day, no one made any comments about what had happened. Although, I suspect that that was because when Luna had Care of Magical Creatures – they were learning about Thestrals – she climbed up on one of them and they started to fly her around. Not many people could see them, so, it scared them to see her flying in the sky on an invisible creature. At least the spotlight was off me – although, my friends and the people who were in the class with me still teased me a bit about it…

I didn't get a chance to brew the potion before dinner - Harry decided to hold a DA Meeting. He said that he couldn't find his fake Galleon, so, he had to tell everyone in person. I promised him that I would make him a new one…

Isn't that strange? The person who's after me must have gone to a lot of trouble to steal Harry's fake Galleon… And somehow, they made sure that he didn't notice… They probably did it while he had a Quidditch practice or while he was sleeping or something… This just makes me even more curious!

Well, this time, I decided that I would head over with Harry and Ron – that way I was less likely to be cornered again. There were already some people in the Room of Requirement when we went there; which made me feel safer.

Draco was there again… I still can't get over the fact that he's so different. I mean, really. No rude remarks so far – and there have been plenty of opportunities. I don't think that anyone is ever going to get used to having him in the DA, but, we don't really have a choice. He had to be with Harry again since no one else wanted to be with him…

Although, I think that it's good that he's there and with Harry. He's very bright and good at casting magic – like Harry. But if Harry didn't practice with someone as good as him, then he might get a big head and think that he didn't need practice. This way, he gets to keep practicing his skills and improving; and so does Malfoy. They keep each other on the toes since they're so competitive with one another.

Harry decided to teach us something new today. He thought that we should learn how to throw curses and jinxes while we're moving – after all, it's not like when you fight deatheaters or anyone else that you're just going to stand there and throw spells at each other. It was a bit complicated since the room is quite small, but, it seemed to expand ever so subtly if we needed it to.

At first, I thought that it wouldn't be a good idea to use this room since Dobby had suggested; and Dobby had guided us the wrong way several times. He had good intentions, but… Sometimes, they're just not the best ideas. Although, once Harry told me that Dumbledore had mentioned it in passing – if Dumbledore knows about it and thinks it's fine, then, it's good to use, right?

And it is quite useful. We don't have to bring any supplies that we might need for each meeting; which would get quite annoying. Now, it's provided to us just by thinking it! I really wouldn't mind having one of these rooms when I've left Hogwarts and gotten a house… I've decided to get some books out and try and figure out how to create one of these rooms – it would be quite useful and helpful!

Well, I had planned to brew the Revelar Potion today after dinner, but, my plans didn't really work out. I completely forgot about detention with Snape until Ron started ranting about it during dinner. I'm just happy that I managed to finish the bit of homework we had before the DA meeting.

So, everyone who's in my Potions class went down to the dungeon. No one said a word since they didn't want to get into anymore trouble. Snape looked quite pleased about how dejected we all looked. A whole evening – wasted! He told us to have a seat, so, we all sat down where we normally sat; not knowing whether he meant there or anywhere we wanted. I'm betting on the first option.

For about an hour, we sat in complete silence. No one made a noise; and no one moved. We just sat there, watching Snape, wondering whether or not we would just be sitting there for the entire detention. But once the hour was up, Snape stood up from his desk, smirked at us, and told us to stand him. Then, he said that we would be working with our partners, and he assigned us rooms to clean – by hand – with only a rag, a bucket of water, and a toothbrush. He said we were welcome to use our hands, but, no magic.

Since I was with Draco, I wondered whether he would give us an easy room to clean, or a difficult room – I could tell that that's what Draco was wondering too. Snape, however, had no problem assigning us the Hospital Wing. I didn't think that it would take that long, but, I forgot that recently many people had been getting sick and the entire Hospital Wing was a mess.

At least nobody was in the Hospital Wing to make out work even harder – even Madam Pomfrey wasn't there. So, Draco and I set to work. For about an hour, we worked in silence, cleaning what we thought needed cleaning. But, after that hour, I got tired of the silence, and not knowing what else had to be done. I suppose that Draco felt the same way since he said it first.

So, we decided to work from the left side of the room to the right. And since the room is quite large, we decided to split the room in half so that we could clean more and be sure that it was done. Even though it was easier cleaning now that I knew what I had to do, I still didn't like the silence. I remembered the time when Draco had found me in the washroom after taking the Memorium Potion, and how he skipped classes and spent the rest of the day with me in that room just chatting. I kept wishing that maybe we could have that comfortable atmosphere here while we cleaned…

After about an hour of thinking and cleaning in silence, I got sick of it – so I tried to start a conversation. I figured that it would be fairly easy, but, Draco decided to be difficult. I tried several times, but, each time, he found a way to end the conversation rudely. Finally, I just got mad and yelled at him that if he didn't want to talk, then he didn't have to be rude and difficult about it.

He didn't say anything in his defense; in fact, he didn't say anything at all – he just ignored me! That just made me even madder. So, I turned back to my side of the room, fuming, trying to finish as fast as I could. I didn't bother to attempt to start a conversation again – if he wanted to work in silence, fine! But as soon as I had finished, I had a plan. I really don't know what possessed me to think of that, or to actually carry it out, but, whatever it was... I did have some satisfaction in it, though.

You see, I had finished cleaning, and I noticed that I had quite a bit of water left in my bucket – it was very dirty and soapy, but, I didn't care. I was angry with him, and I didn't think that it would be a big deal… So, carefully, I picked up the bucket – I don't think that he noticed that I was done. And then, ever so quietly, I crept up behind him, and… And… And I poured the water on his head! Ooh, it was quite satisfying to see him turn around in shock… The look on his face was priceless! He looked so angry and shocked, and… Ooh!

But then, there was an evil glint in his eyes, and he smirked. Before I knew what was happening, he took HIS bucket of water, and dumped it on MY head. Well, I just had to retaliate! So, I took my sponge, and throw it at him – and he did the same! We kept throwing sponges and water at each other until we were completely drenched, and the sponges were dry, and the buckets were empty.

We caused quite a mess, but, since it was all water and soap, it wasn't really that difficult to clean it up. I can't believe that I had that much fun in detention with him!! I mean, it was really dirty and quite disgusting, but, it didn't really matter to either of us! Oh, but if someone had walked in, we would have been in the biggest of trouble! But, we didn't; and we got the job done right. So, no one but Draco and I will know what happened… It's quite strange… Having a secret with Draco I mean; about us having fun in detention…

It was well past 1 in the morning by the time we cleaned up the mess we made, but, it didn't really matter. I wasn't tired in the least, so, at least it gave me something to do. And the strange thing is that we didn't say a word to each other… Except for my attempts at conversation and when I yelled at him – but those hardly count!

So, I hurried back to the Common Room – even though I had permission to be out after hours because of detention, the professors would still be curious as to why I was covered in soap and water. Luckily, no one was in the Common Room or in the showers, so, I didn't have to avoid answering awkward questions.

After I finished my shower, some people were already in the Common Room – and there I was, thinking that I was the last one there! It turned out that I was the first one back! There weren't many of us, so, we just sat down in front of the fire and kept sharing stories of our detentions. We didn't stay up late though – the detention must have worn out everyone else since they were practically falling asleep in the couches.

Well, I just went upstairs after a while. I didn't really say much – after all, what could I say? That I had fun with Draco in detention? Not likely. And, I was getting a bit tired, so, it wasn't that bad being one of the first to turn in.

~*~

October 4th,

-

Late evening

-

Friday night – the perfect time to start brewing the potion! Harry decided to hold a Quidditch practice, and quite a few people wanted to watch since they had nothing better to do. So, the Common Room was fairly empty. But, it's not like I could brew my potion there. I couldn't move it anywhere, so, I needed to find a place that no one would find it…

All through the day, I was thinking of different places that I could hide my potion, but, I couldn't think of any place good enough. I was considering the Room of Requirement, but, lots of people knew of it now, so, I didn't want to risk it being found. I finally decided to use Moaning Myrtle's washroom. Nobody ever used it, and, I'm sure that I could convince Myrtle to keep an eye out for my potion…

So, after dinner while everyone was getting bundled up to watch the Quidditch practice, I hid in the dormitory. After I was sure that everyone was gone, I took a cauldron with the supplies that I would need for today… I really wasn't sure what to expect from Myrtle, but, I'm really happy that she agreed. See, being nice DOES pay off!

I try to visit her at least once a week so that she knows that even though she's a ghost, she's not forgotten. She really is quite nice once you get past the moaning and sulking… And she's a big help too – like for this. It's quite sad though; her life that is. I mean, when she was alive, her life was no better than now. People avoided her, and when they didn't, they just teased her. And she was so happy whenever Harry, Ron, and I would go to her washroom to work on our Polyjuice Potion. She got quite upset when we stopped visiting her… I promised her then that I would visit her whenever I could. And that promise was made back in Second Year!

I've still kept that promise; just like all of my other promises. I never break a promise… I mean, if you tell someone that you'll do something, then you should do it! What's there to be gained in breaking that promise? I hate it when people break their word… It bothers me so much, and it makes it harder to trust or believe them. So, I always make promises that I know that I can keep – and I keep them!

Well, at least the problem of finding a place to keep the potion was solved. I sat in one of the cubicles for quite some time; wondering when to put it the first ingredient – star dust grinded up to liquid form. I checked my watch, and the second that it turned to 7:20PM, I put the star dust in. 7:20 is an easy time to remember – and hopefully it won't be too hard to keep at it for 6 more days… I just have to make sure that I don't get detention or have a DA meeting then…

Then, the potion requires to be stirred five times counterclockwise, and then four times clockwise. After that, I had no idea what to do. It had only taken me a half hour to get everything done – now I had to whole night ahead of me!

So, I packed up everything, thanked Myrtle several times, and then left to just wander around Hogwarts until I found something to do. I wasn't in the mood to go out in the cold and watch a Quidditch practice, and I didn't quite feel like reading either. So, I set out to explore the castle. I learned my mistake from last time, and I remembered every turn I took and every direction I went in. I already knew quite a bit of the castle, so, it wouldn't be too hard to find my way back if I did get lost…

Well, I didn't discover anything, really. Except for one small room… I was walking around the moving staircases, and when one of the staircases moved, I noticed a door. I was quite curious to see what was on the other side of the door, but, I didn't want to risk getting stuck there if the staircase moved back. But, I decided to risk it – after all, the stair case would move eventually.

The room wasn't anything special – it was just an old room; clearly no one had been in it for a while since it was all dusty. The room was fairly empty, there was only a small table, and several chairs around it, but, on one of the chairs I found a piece of parchment. I couldn't make out what it said on it form the dim light coming from my wand, so, I decided that I may as well leave now to see what it said.

Getting out of the room was quite easy, but, I found that I was stuck in front of the door until the staircase moved – it had conveniently moved in my way. So, I sat down on the floor and leaned against the door, trying to make out what the piece of parchment said from the rays of light coming from between the staircase.

Well, I got tired of waiting, so, I decided that perhaps using a little spell to move the staircase over just enough for me to get through would be fine. I don't know how long I would have been stuck there if I hadn't moved the staircase, but, I'm glad I remembered that I was a witch… I tend to forget at times and think of muggle solutions. Well, you can't blame me – I've only known muggle ways until the age of 11; that's most of my life!

So, I ran up the staircases to get to the Gryffindor Common Room so that I could read the parchment. As I was about to sit down and read, though, I remembered back to when Eva and I were in the Forbidden Forest. And I remembered the book that I found – and took back. If I was reading this, then, I may as well read that. So, I ran up to my dormitory, found the book, enlarged it back to its original size, and went back down to the Common Room.

It was easy to read the piece of parchment since the writing was English, but, I didn't really understand what it said. It was just a bunch of random words written down. I didn't throw it out though – perhaps it would serve of some importance later on. After all, it was probably a code for something… Ooh, I really want to figure out its secret… I tried to make sense of it for a while, but, I just couldn't. So, I decided to look at the book.

The writing in the book was faded, and the pages were yellowed with age – it was quite difficult to make out anything. There were also several stains over some places, so, it was next to impossible to read any of it. I think that it was in English, and I managed to make out a few words – not enough to understand it though.

I must say, it was quite a disappointment to be so close to discovering those secrets, but being unable to… Perhaps I'll try again some other time. I have a feeling that they're quite important, and that they'll be useful somehow… I just wish I knew how… If I knew what they said, then I would be able to figure out how they might be of use in the future…

I know that this is a silly idea, but, I was thinking that maybe the piece of parchment had something to do with the Order of the Phoenix. I mean, I found it in Hogwarts in a secret room that could have easily been used for meetings back when Voldemort was first coming to power. And it obviously hasn't been used in a while since – perhaps because they didn't have need of it? And they wouldn't be writing things so that anyone who found them could read them – they would write it in a code that only they would know… I don't know – I'm probably wrong, but…

By the time I hid the book and parchment in my trunk, everyone was coming back from the Quidditch practice. It's just as well I suppose – it gave me something to get my mind off of the book and parchment… It's been nagging me since I went upstairs though. They're right there in my trunk; taunting me to keep looking at them… I would stay up all night if I could try to unlock their secret… In fact, who says I can't? It's the weekend; tomorrow is Saturday…

-

Late night/ Early morning

-

It's nearly 5 in the morning, and I'm STILL looking at that parchment. I decided to take a break and record what I've found out so far so that I don't forget. Merlin, I'm tired. The parchment is about a foot long, and it's covered in writing – at least the writing isn't tiny; or else I would NEVER make any of it out… I can't believe that I've only figured out two sentences of it all! I'm so disappointed… But then again, it's not like it was easy to figure out what those two sentences were!

They're the first two sentences on the parchment and this is what I've translated: 'Bumblebee, the time is coming – we must push the plan of action forwards. If we don't get everything done soon, then we'll fail – we'll be doomed!' Now, I'm sure that it's for the Order of the Phoenix! I wonder who Bumblebee is though… I figured out who the letter was from though – Fox. I wonder who Fox is…

I'm guessing that what's in the parchment is about the plan and the time that is coming… I've figured out a few letters since everything follows the same code, but, not enough to make out if it's about Voldemort or not… At least now I know what it's about – now I can finally rest easy… Although, now that I've solved a bit of the parchment, I really want to try and understand the book…

No, I can't. I really do need to get some sleep…

~*~

October 5th,

I'm so surprised! I mean, I got to sleep a bit past 5 in the morning, but I still managed to wake up at 8:00AM – and I feel fine! I don't feel any tiredness or anything – in fact, I feel quite refreshed. It's quite odd, really.

What a day though…

It started out normal – I ate breakfast, chatted with a few people afterwards, read a bit of a book, and then got ready for lunch. Lunch came and went, and I found myself wandering around Hogwarts again. I wasn't really thinking about where I was going or what I was doing – I didn't really care, actually. Well, I found myself heading in the direction of the Kitchens; even though I'd already eaten lunch, I felt like eating something sweet.

So, there I am, walking to the Kitchens, when suddenly, I have the feeling that I'm being followed. So, I turn around to see if someone's there, and no one is. I walk a bit further, and I get that feeling again. I'd already checked if someone was there, and, chances were that it was just my imagination. So I just kept going to the Kitchens. I'm about to turn into the hallway to get there when I feel someone come up behind me. I turn around – and no one's there!

I was getting a bit scared because the last time that I was alone, someone had tried to attack me. So, I quickened my pace, and nearly ran all the way to the portrait of the bowl of fruit. My hands out to tickle the pair, when I feel something on my hand. I try to ignore it – after all, if I get into the Kitchens, I'll be safe since there'll be plenty of house-elves. But a centimeter away from the portrait, the… Thing, pulled my arm back.

Now I was scared – completely and utterly scared. It was one thing if someone was attacking me and I could see them; but it was completely different if I couldn't see them and they were invisible. I had no idea where they were, and it's difficult to protect yourself from things you can't see. Trying to look calm, I went back to the portrait to tickle the pair. But then, I felt arms wrap around me – not in a nice way; but in a way to hold me back!

I'm scared out of my mind, being held back by something invisible, and I have no idea what to do. I was about to scream when I felt someone's lips against mine – they were trying to kiss me to keep me quiet! I kept trying to push them back – something impossible seeing as how they were clearly stronger than me, AND had the advantage of being invisible. I felt like crying on the spot – they had complete control.

I didn't give up though – I kept trying to break free even though there was no point… Soon enough, I found myself against a wall – their body was pressing against mine, making sure that I couldn't move at all. It seemed like they were looking for something, and, hoping to use that as a distraction, I tried to push away. Unfortunately, it didn't work, and they must have found what they were looking for, because the bricks that were holding me up disappeared to show the entrance to a room.

As the person pushed me in, the bricks reappeared; sealing us in the room. I tried to remember everything I could so that I would be able to get out, but my eyes were brimming with tears, and I couldn't see straight. The person suddenly started to become visible again. They looked faded, but, soon enough, they looked solid. They must have anticipated that that would happen because they were clad in all black and I couldn't see anything of them. At least I could tell where they were though…

I really didn't know what to expect… I mean, what would they do to me? I think that all they wanted to do was scare me, because they quickly tied me up, and left the room without a word. So, I was sitting on the floor in the middle of some hidden room, all tied up, with no idea of how to get out. I tried to reach for my wand, but, they somehow tied me so that it was just out of my reach.

I don't know how I managed to get out of the roped that were holding me, but I did. With that obstacle out of the way, I went straight for my wand and clutched it in my hands. The next problem to overcome was getting out. I tried to picture what the person had done to get out, but, I just couldn't seem to remember. It was up to me to figure out a way to get out.

At first, I tried feeling around on the walls to see if there was a brick you had to press that would make the doorway appear, but, that didn't seem right – it was as if the person had just walked towards the doorway, and the entrance had appeared. So, I tried that – several times. I tried several patterns of walking that looked like what the person had done, but, none worked.

After quite some time, I just tried to walk through the bricks – all that happened was that I got a massive headache. So, I leaned against the bricks for a moment so that I could try and soothe my headache. And what luck! The bricks disappeared and the entrance appeared! Unfortunately, since I was leaning on those bricks, I fell back onto the floor – it only added on to my headache.

So, wand in my hand, I ran out of there and ran to the Hospital Wing so that Madam Pomfrey could get rid of that headache. I didn't know whether or not I should tell anyone about what happened. I mean, if I told, then I might get some protection, but, if someone wanted to harm me, that would only make them want to hurt me more. In the end, I decided against telling anyone. For all I knew, whomever I told cold be the person that wanted to harm me… 

Madam Pomfrey quickly got rid of my headache and let me go as soon as she saw that I was fine. I was careful about going to the Common Room – I didn't want to risk that happening again. I needed to be alert if I wanted to stay safe. Just a few moments of daydreaming was all that they needed, and they could easily attack me; leaving me helpless.

I had never been so happy to reach the Common Room in my life. I sank into an armchair by the fire for a moment; lost in my thoughts. I was really wondering who it was that was out to get me, but, I had no idea as to who it was. Not knowing what else to do, I decided to try and make out something of the book.

I read for quite some time, and managed to make out a few more words that before. If I kept up like this, then I wouldn't be able to read the book for several years! Although, a few words WAS better than nothing… I still wish that I could have understood a bit more.

I wasn't aware of how late it was until everyone started to come back into the Common Room. It turns out that I'd missed dinner because I was so caught up in the book. When people asked me where I was, I told them that – they just shook their heads and laughed; typical Hermione.

Everyone wanted to do something different with me… Lavender and Parvati wanted to gossip; Ginny wanted to go down to the Kitchens – somewhere that I don't think I'll be going alone for quite some time! Neville wanted me to look at his Charms essay; Seamus, Dean, Harry, and Ron wanted me to play Exploding Snap… I finally settled on helping Neville. I wasn't in the mood to play a game after everything that had happened today, and Neville needed my help.

He didn't really need my help with the essay - it was really well written! He only mixed up a few incantations, but, other than that, I'd defiantly say that he deserved an O for that! Well, after that, there was no point in going off to join anyone else since they were all already in the middle of something, so, I just stayed with Neville for the rest of the night.

We played a few games of chess – he's a much better chess player than I am; I wonder if he's as good as, if not better than, Ron? After that, we just sat by the fire and chatted about, well, everything. We talked about things from classes to his dreams of being an Auror. It was quite a nice chat, really.

But, I was quite tired, so, I was one of the first people to go up to bed. Perhaps staying up so late reading that piece of parchment wasn't a good idea. Ah well – at least I could easily get some more sleep tonight.

As I was putting away my skirt, I noticed that there was a hair on it. At first, I didn't think anything of it, but, as I thought about it, I realized that it might hold a clue to who ever it was that was attacking me. After all, a hair could have easily fallen out of their head and fallen onto my skirt. It took me a bit to see what colour it was, but, I finally concluded that it was ginger. So much for that idea – it was probably just Crookshanks' hair; he probably shed it on me earlier today when I was holding him in my lap.

Well, I ought to get to bed now, even though it's quite early, I'm really quite tired.

~*~

A/N: Separado = Spanish. Meaning – to separate.

        Revelar = Spanish. Meaning – to reveal.

        Dezdrokton = It's just a name I made up. I changed around a word in a different language for it to be that. If you can figure out which word and language it comes from, then you get a whole chapter dedicated to you, lolz. =P