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What's Going On?

Chapter 5

Down and down the steps of the secret staircase, in which Fred and George had discovered with the help of Snape and the Marauders map in their third year, they carried the passage down until they appeared at the back of Sir Ulrick on the ground floor. Their mission: to find Madam Hooch and interrogate her about the surprise birthday bash. Running down the steps and over to the Quidditch pitch, they came to a halt because of a striding figure heading in the same direction.

"Damn, Snape would have to ruin our heroic ten minutes wouldn't he?" muttered George as both of them dived and tumbled into the nearest bush. Fred sighed in annoyance.

"What do you think? Shall we sit and wait or creep up and hide?" he suggested to his twin.

"Where shall we hide? I suppose we could always hide under the bridge and use the extendable ears?" muttered George thoughtfully.

"Yeah, that sounds ok. Once Snape's gone we can confront her,"

"Bribe her-"

"Flatter her,"

"Shh, hang on Snapes in, let's go!" whispered George as the black figure disappeared from the corner of his eye and the twins crept forward, then ran straight down to the entrance of the pitch, down the ramp and under the bridge.

"Ok, go!" whispered Fred and gave his twin the thumbs up.

Severus realised that his potion had simmered a little quicker than he thought it might so, he decided to measure it out and take the dose down to the Quidditch pitch himself. Hoping that Poppy would be still out preparing a few things, he hoped he could see Rolanda in private. Unfortunately when he knocked on the door of the Flight instructors changing rooms, that were not the case, not only was Poppy there but also Georgia Sprout the mad Head of Hufflepuff was too.

"Hello ladies," Severus greeted them all in his usual drawl. "The potion brewed faster than I expected so I bought it down here myself"

Poppy looked up from her preparation notes and raised an eyebrow.

"How are we going to get her to take it?" Georgia clapped her hands together and bounced up and down on the small poof near the shower. "I know, why don't I go and see her? Maybe we can figure something out from there?" she suggested excitedly.

"Hmm, won't she suspect something? Your not supposed to be here after all..." asked Severus skeptically.

"She's really upset, perhaps she won't. Albus never told us how to administer it to her so I suppose it's worth a try?" said Rolanda with a shrug. Only a few metres away, Fred and George wondered what on earth this mysterious potion was.

"Love potion?" breathed Fred.

"Could be…" shrugged George.

"Well I've done my piece, this is up to you ladies," Severus drawled in a bored way and started to walk back out the door when-

"Oh Severus!" said Rolanda quickly. Severus turned around as she shut the door. "Thank you for coming to visit me!" she whispered and winked. Severus smirked in return.

"See you in a few hours…" he raised his eyebrows mysteriously and walked off his cloak billowing behind him. With big, smug grins on their faces, Fred and George rolled up the extendable ears and crawled out from under the bridge. Rolanda was still watching the dark figure gradually making his way up to the school, when the twins decided to ambush her.

"Ooh I detect a love affair don't you George?" Fred winked knowingly to his twin. The smile of happiness on Rolanda's face soon turned to one of horror as she turned to face her would-have-been-favourite beaters who looked like Santa had bought the two of them an extra special presents early.

"Oh yes, imagine, the school would go positively wild at this juicy piece of gossip ay Fred?" George grinned like a cat that had just eaten a particularly fat mouse and pretended if he could see the student body in front of him now.

"And so would Professor McGonagall if she knew all about your secret meetings with the staff" Fred waggled his finger at her mockingly.

"What do you want?" she snapped at them.

"Now, now, Madam. Speak nicely or we will talk!" said Fred solemnly as he imitated professor Dumbledore, lifting up one hand.

"We want to know what this is all about because as a result of this 'secret bash', we got a four-hour-each-day detention," explained George. Knowing that she would not get out of this, Rolanda just decided to tell them. She explained the reason to the twins the secrecy of the operation and their mouths began to open in surprise and shock. It took them a whole ten minutes to recover from what she had told them.

"So, are you going to be of some use or am I going to wipe your memory?" Rolanda smiled slyly. After a good deal of bantering, In the end the twins agreed, and she told them the idea that had just accumulated as they told her how they found out about the surprise bash.

"I need you to talk to Miss Granger and get her to feed this to Minerva some how. Understand?" she commanded.

"Abserloutly." agreed Fred.

"We'll do it now," suggested George.

"See you a bit then," Rolanda said with a grin on her face as she told almost the entire story to Poppy and Georgia when she walked back into her changing rooms. After all, she did not need them teasing her about Severus as well.

Hermione was still with her poor professor by the time Fred and George appeared at the door at half past one. In a few hours time, Minerva would have forgotten her woes and started to cry with tears of joy when she saw what Albus had in store for her. A knock at the door startled both women out of their wits and Hermione insisted that she would answer it while Minerva pulled herself together.

"Hello Miss Hermione, could we have a word a minute?" asked Fred pompously, trying to sound like Percy. Suspicious of the pair of them, Hermione excused herself for a moment and slipped out the door.

"What have you done?" Hermione questioned them and folded her arms as soon as they were out of earshot.

"Don't worry your pretty little head, nothing serious." Fred grinned at her and patted the top of her head.

"We need you to get McGonagall to drink some of this. It's the reverse of an ageing potion," explained George.

"Are you insane? I'm not going to do that, it's against the rules!" Hermione whispered frantically.

"Were not, but professor Dumbledore is, this is his idea. Trust me, we know everything." said Fred and George nodded in ascent. Hermione sighed. She was torn between helping her best professor or the Headmaster. Hermione hoped that whatever it was that Dumbledore had cooked up that it had better be good.

"How?"

"Just make her a cup of tea and get her to rest. The potion will make her sleepy so you don't have to worry about that. Once she's asleep, come down to the Quidditch pitch and you shall know all." said George imitating Trelawney by pretending to gaze in awe at the ceiling.

"Fine. See you there," she replied stiffly and took the potion from them then stalked back into Minerva's office. Hermione put on a brave face and walked back into her professor's office pretending to look disgusted. "Don't worry, just Fred and George up to their usual tricks." she lied to Minerva when she looked questioningly back at her. Minerva rolled their eyes.

"Do those two never quit?" she replied feeling quite annoyed with them.

"Apparently not. They wanted to 'try their Weasleys Extra Soaking Water Bombs' on someone." she huffed while feeling very guilty at the same time.Why had she agreed to do this? Because you care for your professor that's why, her subconscience told her in the back of her mind.

"Would you like a cup of herbal tea?" asked Minerva as she watched her young charge thinking.

"Sorry?" Hermione shook her head and focused on her professor.

"Tea?"

"Oh yes please, I'll make it" she suggested a little too quickly as Minerva's eyebrows shot up in surprise. She hadn't been expecting that…I wonder what they really talked to her about outside? She thought as she watched Hermione who now had her back to her make and pour the tea in the corner. Once Hermione had poured the potion into her tea and was satisfied with the colour it, she put two cups on the tray and a plate of biscuits the house elves had left earlier. Carefully she carried the tea over to the table and gave Minerva hers.

"So before the interruption, are you serious on becoming an animagus?" Minerva eyed her student as she drank her tea.

"Oh yes, I've read all about them, I find it fascinating. It would be really useful as well." said Hermione enthusiastically so that her professor did not suspect anything.

"This is not something you can read out of a book. It requires an awful lot of hard work on your part and if you are truly interested, I shall get an application form from the ministry for you." Minerva yawned. I had only just dawned on her that she was beginning to feel very light headed and sleepy…

"I shall not do it today, I am really quite tired."

"Well maybe you should go and lay down? It will make you feel better…" suggested Hermione. Minerva yawned again.

"Yes I-I…Think I might. I'm so sorry," she apologised.

"That's ok. I need to finish my Potions essay. I'll see you later professor," said Hermione as she took the half-empty cups to the sink, grabbed her bag and walked out the door. Minerva waved her out the door, muttered the password to the mirror and an entrance appeared. She rarely used her own quarters except when Albus had been sent to the ministry or when he was evicted around the Chamber of Secrets time. Undressing as she went, Minerva grabbed her husbands' spare dressing gown and curled up in a cat-like position on the bed. Once asleep, the potion began to take affect as she was transformed into a beautiful young woman for the next 24 hours.

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