Chapter 20: - Jedidiah and Ludo

With the Map in the gangs possession Alice, Amy and Dymphna could now fulfil their main role of finding the safest and quickest route to the infirmary, but pretty soon they encountered another problem. The night of the robbery the Girls sat in their dormitory surveying the map as they spread it out on the floor,

"That's the best route" Alice said tracing a line with her finger leading directly from Gryffindor tower down two flights of stairs and then directly to the infirmary,

"Then what's the problem?" Amy asked

"Filch" Lily reminded them all "how are we supposed to find out where he'll be?"

"Someone's going to have to trail him" Amy said "You know like in the movies"

"The what?" Alice and Dymphna both asked looking a little confused but Lily being Muggle born like Amy knew exactly what she had meant. And so it was that Frank and Lily's job was to find out the beat which Filch and Mrs Norris took on their night time check of the castle, it was impossible for them to stay out past curfew to observe Filch themselves, especially with Prefect Amanda Hugh-Genghis still breathing down the first years necks, so the only other why they could find out the information that they needed was to ask around. Lily and Frank soon discovered that Miriam's older brother Jedidiah and his best friend Ludo bagman was very knowledgeable on that part. They even plotted some of Filch's main paths on the stolen map,

"The blue path is what he usually takes on Mondays" Jedidiah said as he penned it onto the map,

"The Yellow and red one he alternates each Tuesday and Wednesday" Ludo said finishing his friends sentence

"And the purple, green, mauve and orange is what he uses on the weekends and Thursdays" Jedidiah said pointing to each in turn with his quill

"Now as for Fridays!" Ludo said taking Jedidiah's quill and enchanting it so it wrote in a shocking shade of pink "This is what we're pretty sure is his main path-"

"But he pretty much makes that up as he goes along" Jedidiah said finishing his friend's sentence "or at least we think so"

"You think?" Frank asked eyeing the map suspiciously

"It's bloody well hard to track the man without that infernal cat seeing you!" Jedidiah said heatedly

"Besides if you don't what our help!" Ludo said acting hurt as he rolled the map up and thrust it into his robes pocket,

"We appreciate your help!" Lily said quickly grabbing the map back "don't we Frank!" Lily added as she elbowed Frank in the ribs,

"Ouch! Y-Yeah we appreciate it a lot, Thanks" mumbled Frank rubbing his ribs with a look on his face that completely contradicted his words,

"That's what we like to see!" Chimed Ludo "The young un's enjoying themselves!"

"Just don't enjoy yourselves to much and remember if you are going to be strolling around at night-" At this lily tried to protest, she and Frank had told Jedidiah and Ludo that they were doing a class project on the school and staff, "-I know, I know you said the map is purely for research purposes-" at this Ludo scoffed but Jedidiah continued "But remember if you do go strolling tonight stay clear of the fourth floor because-"

"Jed look at the time" Ludo cut in as he looked at his watch "We're gonna miss the sixth year girl fight in the quad if we don't hurry"

"See ya!" Jedidiah called as he and Ludo took off down the corridor,

"Wait!" lily called but it was no use the two fourth years where hurtling down the corridor like bats out of hell, knocking over a couple of second years as they skidded around the corner "What do you think Jedidiah was going to warn us about?" Lily asked Frank as the two friends turned bewildered faces to each other.

"I bet it was just some stupid made up rubbish that he was going to say just to try and scare us" Frank said nonchalantly

"You think so?"

"Yeah, just forget about it" Frank said rolling the map up and storing it safely in his bag. "So are we all set now?"

"I think so?" Lily said trying to think of anything that she could have missed

"Good then we'll did tonight" Frank said

That evening when Lily was sure that every other Gryffindor was safely in their dormitories, she, Alice, Dymphna and Amy crept down the spiralled staircase, towards the common room, the girls moved as silently as they could down the stairs and even though it was well passed midnight some of the older girls dorms still had lights shining through the gap beneath the doors, Lily could even hear the conversations of the sixth years talking about the different boys that they fancied

"He's so dreamy" one of the girls said,

"No way Jedidiah's more athletic he's got the body as well as the looks" the girl's friend said

"Your both so sad, Tad, Jed's brother is very dashing and his got brains I love a man with brains" Lily nearly lost her footing when she heard this because the voice belonged to prefect Amanda Hugh-Genghis, Lily wasn't the only one who was shocked by what Amanda had said Alice was struggling to stop herself from laughing as where Dymphna and Amy. Lily made a mental note that she would have to tell Miriam about what they had heard and the girls quickly hurried down the remaining stairs and into the common room where they all burst out laughing.

"Who'd have guessed it?" Dymphna said clutching her side

"What's so funny?" Frank asked as he stood next to the common room fire

"We'll tell you later" Lily said as she ushered them over to the portrait hole, The fat lady complained as her portrait was opened and yelled at the first years to get back into bed,

"Keep your dress on!" Frank said as he closed the portrait behind him "we'll be back soon"

"Back soon! You're not even supposed to be out!" the fat lady called after them as they headed down the corridor, Lily was glad that she had reminded everyone how cold the castle could get outside the comfort of the common room and they were all dressed appropriately wearing thick scarves and gloves and all five of them where dressed in jumpers and jeans.

"Didn't Remus want to come?" Lily heard Alice ask Frank as they continued down the corridor,

"Of cause he did!" Frank said sounding a little hurt "but he's not feeling too well so he said he'd cover for me if James and Si ask where I've gone"

"Did they like their little present?" Dymphna said trying to hide her smirk with the stolen map

"Oh Yes" Frank said nodding his head vigorously "MGon is one naughty teacher!"

"Eeeew" Lily heard Amy groan from behind the group, they moved along the corridor and down two flights of stares in quiet.

"That reminds me" Dymphna said as she followed the route they had penned out on the map and turned another corner "What does Sirius keep in his trunk?"

"I couldn't possibly tell you guys that" Frank said innocently "if you knew then I wouldn't have anything to blackmail him with"

"Don't tell us then" Alice said "We'll guess it instead"

"Yeah and if we guess right you have to tell us!" Amy said excitedly from the rear of the group but Frank didn't answer,

"I bet it's a severed head!" Amy said, Frank still didn't say anything,

"Don't be silly it's probably something really mundane" Alice said "like underwear"

"Dirty undies" Amy said "I bet Si's really disgusting and doesn't take his stuff to the laundry"

"Dirty girlie undies!" Dymphna said as she led them down another flight of stairs "I bet he's a fetish queen!"

"No!" Frank said trying to stop himself from laughing "you're all way off, but Merlin knows I love a girl who tries"

"I bet Mi would have guessed what it was right away" Amy said a little down hearted,

"Yeah, but knowing Miriam she wouldn't bother about guessing she'd just find out first hand" Lily said ginning

"Too right" Dymphna said happily

"That'll be our first task when we get her back" Amy said joyfully

"What? To find Si's underwear?" Frank said "I couldn't possibly let you do that, Sorry but a mans underwear is his personally domain"

"Eeeew" Lily heard Amy say again and Dymphna giggled,

"Spoil sport" all the girls said together

"So what shall we do when Mi -" Amy said but Dymphna cut across her

"Shush" Dymphna said as she stopped near the end of the corridor "I think I hear something?"

"Filch?" Alice asked as she moved closer

"No I don't think so? It's coming for there!" Dymphna said pointing to the classroom door opposite them,

"Do you think it's one of the ghosts?" Lily asked nervously as she moved closer to Alice straining her ears to listen.

"Probably?" Alice said in a dead whisper as Frank edge closer to the girls

"Please don't let it be Peeves" Lily heard Frank mumble next to her, But Frank didn't get his wish, no sooner had her uttered the words then the poltergeist shot out of the classroom door and came to an abrupt stop in front of the First years.

Peeves must have recognised Lily, Frank and Alice from their last encounter because he took several seconds to look at each of the friends in turn, finally satisfied that Miriam wasn't with the group he smiled malevolently and sucked in a mighty breath and yelled,

"STUDENTS OUT OF BED, STUDENTS OUT OF BED!!!" Lily had a strong urge to pull out her wand and to curse the annoying poltergeist on the spot but she didn't know any curses and even if she had she was pretty sure none would have worked on him. Frank remembering the nasty cut that he had received from the Black and white photograph of the Hufflepuff Quidditch team of 1901 which had collided with his face the last time they had encountered Peeves yelled for the girls to run and he grabbed Alice's hand and started pulling her down the corridor, quickly followed by Lily, Dymphna and Amy.

The friends made a sharp right and headed down another set of steps and through an opening near a large statue,

"Great!" Lily said exasperatedly as they emerging from the statue as she looked around and then down at the map that Dymphna still carried "This is the fourth floor!",

"So?" Frank said making his way down the corridor

"So Jedidiah and Ludo was trying to tell us to keep away from here" Lily reminded him,

"So?" Frank said again as he still continued his path down the corridor holding

"So they didn't want us around here!" Lily protested

"They where just trying to scare us" Frank said casually

"Oh now you act like mister cool" Alice said pulling her hand free of Franks grasp and making him jump,

"Look if we go to the end of this corridor then we'll almost be at the infirmary" Dymphna said gazing at the map and cutting off any further protests from both Frank and Lily.

"Fine" Lily said sighing but still not convinced. The friends had only just started down the corridor when they heard a distant noise of a crash and a yell, Frank, followed by the girls quickly headed to the adjoining corridor where the noise was heard and was immediately sent crashing to the floor as two dark, large figures collided with him, The girls screamed and rushed to help Frank,

"What the hell are you half pints doing here?" Roared an angry voice that Lily recognised, pulling himself off Frank one of the dark clad figures removed his balaclava to reveal a cascade of silky black hair and startling blue eyes that where looking at the girls in vengeance, it was Jedidiah Artemis.

"I told you lot to stay away for here!" Jedidiah said furiously as he hauled the other dark figure to their feet, that, Lily assumed must be Ludo Bagman, Frank moaned miserably, as he clutched his ankle and Alice rushed to see if he was ok.

"Don't hang around here you twits!" said Ludo's muffled voice from behind his balaclava,

"Yeah if you hadn't guessed it we're in a bit of a hurry -" Jedidiah said quickly picking up his dropped bag which Lily was alarmed to see was wriggling and squeaking

"Fly then you fools fly!" Ludo yelled pushing Frank out of his way as he and Jed pelted down the corridor,

"Er – what just happened?" Frank said rubbing his ankle and grimacing in pain,

"I don't know" Lily confessed "but I don't think we should hang around to find out!"

"Too right!" yelled the voice of Jedidiah as he and Ludo raced back up the corridor towards them,

"That ways kind of – well occupied if you know what we mean?" Ludo called at them,

"Run for Merlin's sake run!" Jedidiah yelled at the utterly bewildered first years as he grabbed hold of Lily and Dymphna's hands and pulled them down the corridor as Ludo did the same with Alice and Amy,

"Fine!" Frank yelled still on the floor holding his injured ankle "I'll make my own way shall I?"

"Just keep running" Jedidiah told Lily and Dymphna as he pushed them down the corridor and ran back to Frank, Lily looked over her shoulder to see Jedidiah pulling Frank effortlessly into a Muggle fire mans lift before he followed the others down the corridor and despite the weight of Frank and the still squeaking and squirming bag Jedidiah managed to catch them up. Ludo led the group down the corridor and made a sharp left down an adjuring corridor and down a flight of stairs and along another side corridor which Lily recognised as the charms corridor.

"Do you think we could stop now, please?" Frank demanded from Jedidiah's shoulders "As much as I appreciate your help I'm beginning to wish you left me"

"Shut up!" Lily heard Jedidiah hiss darkly,

"Fine but I feel it's my responsibility to tell you I'm gonna be sick and I won't be held accountable for what happens – Ouch!" Lily turned to see that Jedidiah had immediately dropped Frank to the floor.

"Thanks" Frank said bitterly now rubbing his backside as well as clutching his ankle,

"W- W- What w- was that a-all ab-about" Alice panted clutching a stitch in her side as Dymphna and Amy collapsed against the wall breathing heavily. Lily knew how they felt she was exhausted and very shaken, her legs felt like jelly and she would have voiced her own thoughts if she wasn't gasping for breath. Lily was amazed however to see that neither Jedidiah nor Ludo was the least bit out of breath.

"Look we never asked you why you wanted Filch's regular inspection routes" Jedidiah said dusting off his black trousers

"Yeah so don't ask us what we we're up to and we'll not ask you" Ludo said folding his arms and looking at the first years critically,

"Fine!" Frank said struggling to his feet "I've just got one question"

"What?" both Jedidiah and Ludo demanded in unison,

"What's with the get up?" Frank said indicating the clothes that both boys where wearing. Both Jedidiah and Ludo where wearing identical black shoes, black trousers and black turtleneck jumpers and Ludo unlike Jedidiah was still wearing his balaclava,

"It our - our" Ludo said before he shot a look at Jedidiah

"It's got nothing to do with you" Jedidiah said folding his arm and staring grimly at Frank

"Whatever, I only asked" Frank answered nonchalantly as he struggled to hide a smirk and to hold his balance,

"Shut it Longbottom" Ludo said as Jedidiah's bag squeaked and wriggled violently and both fourth year boys looked at it in horror,

"Keep your mouths shut about this" Jedidiah said leaning into Frank "And we'll forget that we ever saw you guys hobbling around here after curfew" and to enhance his point he jabbed a finger into Frank's shoulder making Frank stagger backwards,

"It works both ways" Lily said surprising herself with her own daring, "How do you think Miriam will react when she finds out your trying to intimidate her friends"

"We're not scared of Miriam" Ludo retaliated his tone indicating his amusement at Lily's words, Jedidiah obviously thought differently,

"Speak for yourself" Jedidiah said "All Artemis women scare me!"

Lily suppressed her sudden urge to laugh at Jedidiah's comment it was hard to believe that anything scared the burly fourth year let alone his own sister who was just over half his height.

"Look" Jedidiah said holding his hands up in a sign of truce "We know that your trying to see Miriam but quiet frankly she doesn't want to see you"

"What do you mean?" Frank asked

"Who do you think insisted that they didn't want any visitor?" Jedidiah said plainly

"No!" Lily said in shock

"I'm sorry to be the bearer of bad news" Jedidiah said

"He's not really" Ludo said shaking his head

"The point is Mi was the one who said she didn't what you lot in there"

"Your lying" Alice said "Miriam wouldn't, she's our friend"

"Look you brats can believe what the damn well like and you can stand around here all night and get caught by filch-" Jedidiah said angrily

"We don't care either way" Ludo said cutting across Jedidiah

"Too right!" Jedidiah continued "But my sister doesn't want to see you. None of you!" at this Jedidiah and Ludo pushed passed Frank making him over balance and fall to the ground as they headed back down the corridor and disappeared into the dark,

"Thanks!" Frank called after them in a mock cheery voice "Thanks for nothing,"

"Miriam wouldn't do anything like that" Alice said sounding a little bewildered

"Now what do we do?" Amy asked

"Your all acting as thought the worlds over" Lily said looking at the Alice, Dymphna's and Amy's depressed faces "as far as I see the plans not change we came to see Mi and we're going to see her!"

"I whole heartily agree" Frank said struggling to get to his feet "I was thinking of going to the infirmary anyway so I'm so glad the boys could oblige us with a real excuse"

"Come here and quit whining" Alice said as she moved over to help support Frank

"Lead the way then Dymph" Lily told Dymphna who was still holding the map Dymphna nodded and headed back down the corridor followed by Amy and Lily, Frank and Alice took the rear as he hopped on one foot with Alice still supporting him.

"Why was it me they decided to threaten and intimidate" Lily heard Frank moan from the behind her,

"Because their good boys really and they don't want the reputation of scaring little girlies" Lily heard Alice say "but obviously with you they made an exception"

"Oh right.... HAY!"