Chapter 23

A Long Lost Book

Hermione awoke the next morning with a huge headache and still in the same position she had thrown herself into. She placed her hand on her forehead trying to control the throbbing as she rose out of her bed. She got dressed and stuffed her things into her bag and headed out to the secret passage. She finished getting ready in the Gryffindor girl's bathroom. She assumed that she looked fine because no one could even tell anything was wrong. She however did look a little tired.

She headed down to breakfast with her friends and sat down in their usual spot. She spent the entire time trying to avoid Draco's direction. She was relieved that the rest of them were tired and didn't even notice that she really didn't talk. She spent the rest of the day avoiding and dodging Draco before and after class. After her last class, which was potions, and she started to head towards the door. She got stuck behind the group of fleeing students trying to run for their lives. She started to get a little nervous because she knew Draco was behind her. Then there it was. His hand grabbed her arm and gently pulled her back towards him, She looked into his eyes and they were blood shot and he looked like hell. She then looked over his shoulder to see Professor Snape looking at them. Snape must have seen the look on her face because before Draco had a chance to speak Snape called Draco over to him to help him with something. Draco gave her a frustrated look.

"We're going to have to talk sometime." Draco said shortly, then turned and walked towards Snape. Hermione couldn't help but give a quick smile to Snape. Snape confused her as well. At times he could be this huge jerk but when it came down to it he protected them. "Deep down the man is a good person. A jerk, but a good person. Sort of like Draco… no wait… Draco isn't the same, he proved that last night." She thought to herself. She turned and walked out and headed to her room. She wanted to explore more of that secret passage. She reached her common room portrait, but before she could go in the couple in the painting started to talk to her.

"Miss Granger, is everything alright between you and Mr. Malfoy?" The Woman in the portrait asked her in a very concerning voice.

"Not really Mrs. Albany. Something happened last night and I don't think anything will be alright between us." Hermione replied.

"Well when we were heads we didn't get along either." Mr. Albany said.

"Yes, we had our share of fights and misunderstandings. It was hard being part of the two biggest rivaling houses in the school." Mrs. Albany added.

"You two were from Gryffindor and Slytherin?" Hermione asked. She knew that they were heads in their seventh year and that they later became The head teachers of same houses, only Hermione didn't know which houses they belonged to.

"Yes, I was from Slytherin and she was from Gryffindor so it's not like it's unheard of." Mr. Albany said.

"Just remember dear, things aren't always what they seem." Mrs. Albany added.

"Well I'll keep that in mind, thank you. Peace." Hermione said. She walked into the common room and headed to her room, but not before she almost said the wrong password.

Hermione had a little time before dinner so she decided to go exploring. She walked down the hidden corridor passing by various paintings that were all black and white except with a part that was red indicating where you need to touch it to open it. Of course this was only visible from the inside. Enchanted torches lit her way as she walked on not really knowing where she was going. Then she had a thought. "What if Draco had a passage leading or meeting up with this one. No he couldn't because the bathroom is where it would probably be. No, I am the only one." She walked down some stairs, and then she could see a huge window down the corridor. She walked up to it and was taken aback because it was beautiful. She stood behind a window looking high above the Great Hall. If she looked out straight ahead she could see the enchanted ceiling. She never noticed this window before and she figured that either you couldn't see it because it blended with the sky or that it also had an enchantment on it so it went unnoticeable. She could see students sitting at the tables with their friends talking and doing their homework waiting for dinner. She then noticed Draco walk in and sit by himself at his table. Her heart leaped from her chest at the sight of him, the feelings that she had for him just wouldn't disappear like that over night. Her eyes drifted down the table until they rested on the girl from the night before hanging on a guy Hermione figured either as her boyfriend or some other fling. She couldn't take it anymore so she turned right and headed up some stairs. She reached the top and saw another window and the end of the short hall. She walked up to it and looked inside.

The room was dark and she really couldn't see a thing. She rested her hand on the wall and the framed glass started to move. She guessed that she must have pushed in a brick that triggered it. The room immediately lit up revealing a table and a desk. There was so much dust and cobwebs too. There were colors from every house decorated in the room, but something caught Hermione's eye. It was a huge book that had to be about a foot thick and two feet long by about a foot and a half wide. It was definitely one of the biggest books she had ever seen. She blew off the extremely deep dust off of the book, which made a mushroom cloud of dust in the air. She choked on it a little and gave a little cough as she waved the air. She then dusted off the chair as much as she could and sat down. She opened the book and flipped through it. Her eyes widened when she realized who wrote this book. Actually more like who wrote in this book. It had been written by the founders of Hogwarts. Each having written their own section of potions, lost spells, and magic. She found that it also had prophecies. Next to the book she found a book that looked to be a journal. She picked it up and opened it. It belonged to Godric Gryffindor himself. Hermione was so over come with so many emotions she never knew she could feel. She knew she had to get this to Harry and Dumbledore. From the looks of the place it had looked like no one had been there in over a century.

It was time for dinner, so she shut the book and headed back to where she had come in. It was a mirror and it had closed on her when she wasn't paying attention.

"Ok, well there has to be another switch or something around here… somewhere." She said as she looked around the mirror. Then she saw what looked like a button that was part of the gold design on the trim of the frame. "Ah, here it is." She pushed it and the mirror slid open.

She ran down the hall and down the stairs and paused at the window peering over the Great Hall. She saw Ron and Kiara come in and then thought it was only a matter of time when Harry and Ginny would come in. Before Hermione turned to run back to her room she couldn't help but to look down to Draco still sitting there glancing up to the doors every time someone came in. Hermione sighed and ran back to her room to change and what not.

She quickly showered, used a hair-drying spell and finished getting ready. She threw on a pair of cute pink track pants a white t-shirt that left just a little of her lower tummy exposed, but not too much. Then topped it with the matching hoody and zipped it.

She walked as fast as she could down to the Great Hall. She walked in with her hands in the hoody pockets and for some unknown reason the first place she looked was over at Draco whose face seemed to lighten up when she entered. He slowly eyed her up and down, liking the small amount of skin then how her bum looked in her pants.

Before Hermione got up to the table Ginny ran up to her and whispered in her ear making Hermione stop and lean in to listen.

"Hermione there is something I've got to tell you later." Ginny whispered in her ear. Hermione gave her a smile and nodded her head. Hermione wondered what it could be. They then joined Ron and Harry.

"So is Kiara eating with her house this evening?" Hermione asked filling her plate.

"Yeah, she is spending the evening with her friends." Ron answered.

"Well you guys aren't going to believe what I found earlier." Hermione said.

"What is it, Hermione?" Harry asked.

"I really don't want to say it here, but I do think that we need to get Dumbledore." Hermione explained.

"Is it bad?" Ginny asked.

"No it is the opposite, it's something even greater than you can even imagine." Hermione said excitedly. "In fact I'm going to tell Professor Dumbledore that we need him, be right back." Hermione got up and walked over to the teachers' table were Dumbledore was sitting and chatting with Professor McGonagall.

Hermione explained that she needed him to come with her and the gang after dinner and she told McGonagall that she would also find it quite interesting.

As Hermione walked back to her spot, she couldn't help but glace over to the Slytherin table and met a pair of silvery blue eyes. She looked away and sat back down.

"We will meet them after dinner." Hermione said and couldn't help but beam.

After dinner they met up with the two Professors. Hermione then lead them to the portrait by the Gryffindor common room, when no one else was around Hermione touched a part of the painting and opened it up and signaled for everyone to go in. When everyone was in she shut the painting behind her. She turned to the group and Dumbledore and McGonagall both had the same look on their face, they obviously knew nothing of this place.

"Well I am sure you all are wondering where we are. Well I found this last night by accident. It leads off from my bedroom and today I decided to follow it all the way down and I found something, well just follow me if you will." Hermione explained then started to walk in the direction of the hidden room.

They reached the window over looking the Great Hall and they all were amazed. She then led them up some stairs and up to the mirror. Hermione pushed on the brick that opened the mirror. When the torches lit everyone, including the Professors gasped.

"Yeah I know. Well here is what I wanted you guys to see." Hermione said and went over to the desk that the enormous book was on. "This book was written by the four founders, and this is Godric Gryffindor's journal."

"That is the biggest book I have ever seen." Ron said still in amazement.

"Miss Granger do you have any idea what this book is? What this means?" Dumbledore said as his eyes twinkled like they never had before as he and the other professor looked through it. McGonagall eyes started to tear up with happiness and she walked over to Hermione and put her hands on her face.

"Miss Granger, you have found something that could help Harry and win us the war. 100 points to Gryffindor." McGonagall said happily.

"Very well deserved." Dumbledore added. "I will need to study this book of course so I can better inform you later of what it is and what this means."

McGonagall transfigured the book into a smaller version of it's self. And handed it back to Dumbledore, and then he grabbed the journal as well. They all headed back to where they had come in. They said their goodbyes and when it was all clear, everyone except for Hermione climbed out.

Hermione felt pretty good when she climbed back into her closet and entered her room, then reality hit her. She hated it. Why did he go and do that? Did she not mean a thing to him? Was she just there for sex? There seemed to be more to their relationship than that especially with his obsession with her and what he had told her about his life and how he felt. There had to be more. She was so confused. She needed to get her mind off of him so she decided to do some homework.

Hermione finished her written work and all she needed to do was some reading. She decided to go on her rounds since it was about that time. She threw on her cloak and headed out of her room. To her relief Draco wasn't in the common room. She headed out and started her rounds.

Hermione returned and again no Draco. She went into her room. "I guess he has given up." She thought to herself. She took of her cloak, shoes and socks and threw her hair up in a loose bun, with a few strands of hair still dangling. She grabbed the book she needed and curled up into her overstuffed chair and started to read.

She seemed to have fallen asleep because she awoke to a bang…

A/N: Sorry so sorry! I have been so busy this week and I know I said that I'd answer questions in this chapter but it will have to wait and I promise I will lol. I just wanted to get this out to you! Thanks sooooooo much for reviewing keep it up and I'll review sooner! Keep r/r and enjoying!