Awww the reviews are so sweet. Honestly, you guys are what keep me going. My exams are coming soon so I haven't been writing much. I have about 3 more chapts that I havent posted and hopefully that can keep u occupied till april 16 (that's the start ofmy summer break). I'm sorry if they are any spelling/grammar error because I really don't have the time to check. I promise everything will be better after the magic date and I'll post more. This story is ending soon but there'll be a sequel to it in the 7th year. I've already written it and I see myself finishing bothbefore JKR's halfblood prince.
Banjo: Sorry about the mixed up. I could not find a choice of OC in the 2nd character so I thought I'll just put the next major character in this (Hermione). I've removed it though, to prevent future mix up.
On with the story...
Chapter 25: Quidditch with Ravenclaw
Harry hardly touched his food at breakfast. The Quidditch trophy was so close by, yet it seemed as though any mistake on his part would reduce his chances to none. His team had trained hard. They would be playing against Ravenclaw, the house known for their fairness, so there was no risk of foul play, unlike if they had played against Slytherin. He knew that Professor McGonagall would be more than glad to have the trophy back in her office.
Harry was not the only quiet one. The boys seemed to have lapsed into silence as they felt the pressure on them. Ginny and Janieve appeared to be the only ones who didn't seem nervous. They were helping each other to braid an identical hairstyle.
"I'll break your neck if you decide to act gentlemen and let Cho catch the snitch, Harry," Ginny said.
"You don't have to worry about that, Ginny," replied Harry hastily while casting worried glances at Janieve. Janieve smirked. "I want the trophy as bad as you do," he said.
They reached the lockers and dumped their gym bags and stuff around the Gryffindor area. Janieve unclasped her broom case that Ginny and the twins had given her for her birthday and found it empty. The Nimbus 2005 was gone.
"My broom is gone!" Janieve announced.
"Did you forget to put them in the case?" Harry queried.
"No, I'm sure I put them in before I went to sleep last night," said Janieve impatiently, "Someone must have taken it!"
"Calm down," Ginny said, "We'll just have to summon it."
"Anyone has a wand?" asked Seamus. Everyone looked around and finally Hermione spoke up.
"I do," she said. She took out her wand and summoned the broom.
Seconds passed. Then a minute. But there was no sign of the broom.
"Do you think anyone might have stolen it?" suggested Dean. "A Nimbus 2005 is not exactly cheap."
Before anyone could answer, the object in question came hurtling through the air towards Hermione's waiting arms. When they crashed into her, they disappeared along with Hermione.
"What the…" Ron said.
"Where did she go?" asked Dean. No one answered him.
"We have to find Professor Dumbledore," said Harry finally.
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"What do you mean she just disappeared?" asked Professor McGonagall.
"That she just vanished from thin air, become nothing, null, nil, void, whatever," said Ron rudely. It was unlike Ron to speak to a teacher in that manner. But it was unusual for Hermione to disappear just like that.
Harry himself was getting impatient with his house head. She kept asking them what they meant by Hermione disappearing. If they had an answer, they wouldn't be looking for Professor Dumbledore.
And what was taking their headmaster so long. Someone had been instructed to inform him since what felt like hours ago. Harry had a really bad feeling about Hermione's disappearance. People are not supposed to be transported out of Hogwarts just like that. She could be in danger and they ought to stop wasting time talking about it, but rather act on it.
"Nobody can just disappear out of thin air on Hogwarts ground, Mr. Weasley. There is an ancient charm placed upon the castle which disallows any teleporting or apparition," said McGonagall calmly.
"I don't care about what ancient charm there is. The fact is we SAW Hermione disappear before our eyes when she came into contact with the broom," said Ron exasperatedly.
"Professor Dumbledore!" shouted Janieve, who had been awfully quiet the whole time.
Harry looked up and saw Professor Dumbledore striding painfully slowly up to them.
"Minerva," he said.
"Albus, they are saying that Miss Granger disappeared on the grounds of Hogwarts," said Professor McGonagall. Dumbledore put up a hand to stop her.
"Miss Chang had told me about it," he said.
"Whose broom was it?" he asked.
"Mine," came a soft timid voice which Harry recognised without even having to look at its source.
If Dumbledore was surprised by this, he was hiding it well. On the contrary, he appeared to have expected that.
"Minerva, could you please inform the school that the Quidditch match had been called off and make sure that everyone stays in their common room until further notice," he said seriously. He then turned to Janieve and said, "Jan, would you please come with me to my office?"
Janieve nodded meekly.
Harry watched as the two disappeared behind the castle while Professor McGonagall gave orders for them to head back to their respective common room. Among the commotion, Harry managed to catch a glimpse of Janieve before she left and he did not like what he saw. Was it guilt on her face?
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Janieve felt a sense of déjà vu as she sat across her headmaster and waited for what he was about to unleash on her, like the time he did when she found the Mirror of Erised.
"Janieve," he began.
Janieve raised her eyes tentatively to meet his wise blue ones. She was surprised to see sympathy rather than accusation in them.
"It was my fault," she cut in before her headmaster could say anything. "It was supposed to be me."
"You do know where she was taken?" Dumbledore asked.
Janieve made not the slightest of movement or noise.
"You know where she is, don't you?" he repeated.
"I don't know. But Voldermort had taken her, hadn't he? It was Voldermort, wasn't it?" she asked.
"And you think he had wanted to take you?" Professor Dumbledore questioned.
"Why don't you tell me? You know the answer already don't you?" Janieve snapped.
"Perhaps. But it is more important for you to realise the seriousness of this matter. If it was indeed Voldermort who is behind all of this, then you and your friends are in greater danger than you might realise," he replied.
"What does he want from me?" Janieve asked perturbed.
Professor Dumbledore surveyed her, as if deciding if she was worthy of knowing the truth. "We don't know," he said.
Janieve stood up abruptly. Obviously Professor Dumbledore was hiding something from her. She had learnt over the years that her instincts hardly fail her even if she might not believe in them most of the time.
"Will Hermione be okay?" Janieve asked.
"We'll find her," assured Professor Dumbledore.
Janieve was halfway out the door when her headmaster's voice called after her. Janieve paused.
"Promise me, Janieve, that you'll not take matters into your own hand," he said. Without replying or a look over her shoulder, Janieve left the office.
