Chapter twenty-one: Mione's Discovery

Mione woke up with a start, she wasn't sure what had woken her, but she realised it was late.The girls dorm was empty and silent, she must have slept late. Last night her and Lemo had been up late talking Andy trying to stop from being angry so she could sleep, but halfway through Lemo fell asleep leaving Mione to do the rest. By time Mione had finished calming Andy down, Andy was more upset rather than pissed, and it was well past midnight. Mione looked at her watch,

"Holy shit! I'm so late for class!" The time was one o'clock, "I've missed classes!"

Mione was about to jump out of bed and get changed when she noticed a note on her bedside table. Written in Andy's hand writing it said:

'Don't worry Mione, I didn't want to wake since you helped me out last night. So I decided to tell all the teachers that someone drugger you up with a sleeping draught and your sleeping it off. And since it's a sleeping draughtyou'd still be to dreary to do any work today! So sleep until your heart's content, see it as a way of thanks from me! Thanks to you Andrew and I are back together and it's great!

Well catch you later!

Andy.'

Moine shook her head, Andy didn't seem to understand the concept that Mione liked school and it would have been a lot better if she had woken her. But then again, she did sleep till one so she wouldn't have been able to focus today anyway...So it was a blessing in disguise. Mione quickly dressed and showered and grabbed a quick lunch before heading off to the library. The other day she had convinced Knockharp to give her permission for the book she needed - the one with the Polyscotch, which meant they could take on the appearance of Slytherins and talk to Malfoy. She needed Knockharps permission because the book was in the restriction section, but since he didn't look at the title he signed it immediately. It was lucky really, that he didn't read the title...after all who would let a second year read a book titled 'Barely Legal Curses, Hexes and Other Terrible Things'? Apparently Knockharp. Mione knew exactly where the book was placed and walked dirrectly for it's shelf - only it wasn't there...

"Madam Mince?"

The beefy woman frog marched over to Mione,

"Yes, Miss. Ranger?"

"Is 'Barely Legal Curses, Hexes and Other Terrible Things' unavalible?"

Madam Mince looked at Mione suspiously,

"And what would you be needing that book for?"

Mione shrugged and tried to look casual,

"Professor Knockharp suggested I take I look at it..." Mione held up her permission slip with Knockharps curvey signature.

Madam Mince's face didn't change at all and muttered darkly,

"Somehow that doesn't surprise me at all..." She began looking in the place where Mione thought she had seen the book, still muttering to herself, "Stupid git...Wouldn't know if his ass was on fire...Shouldn't be teaching...Belongs in a St Mangos...I'm sorry Miss. Ranger it seems to not be here, which is odd because I most certainly didn't issue it out to anyone."

"Oh, that's okay..." Mione said trying not to look put out, now how were they going to get Malfoy to talk? Mione sat glumly on the floor.

"I'm sorry dear," Madam Mince said before walking quickly away to go tell some people off for bewitching pass-bys underwear.

Mione leaned against looked around her usually second favourite place moodily.

"Ow, Jesus crist!" Mione whispered loudly, as she bumped her head on a book jutting out too far. Mione pulled it out of it spot in the shelf, being more heavy than it appeared Mione dropped the book on her lap, it falling open on a page somewhere near the middle.

"Fucking hell! This is not my fucking morning!" she moaned, "and the book's been put in the wrong pla-hello! My morning it about to change!" At the top of the page it said:

'Hogwarts: The Chamber of Secrets, The Lost Chamber or The Chamber of Smells'

Mione grinned to herself and read the title on the cover, 'Myths and Other Bullshit.'

"Well, well...Guess all wasn't lost..."

After hours of readin through the chapter on the Chamber of Smells, Mione had learned lots. The last time the chamber had been opened, muggle-borns and half-bloods were targeted, resulting in the end to a muggle-born dying in a ladies bathroom. They expelled the suspect (a third year) after the muggle-born died and the attacks stopped. They hadn't learned what the beast was that had killed her, but they knew only a true heir could control the monster. Mione looked at the dates closely,

"Wait a second..." she murmored, "If the suspect had been expelled then..." Mione jumped up and grabbed the school records that weren't overly confident - nor cared for.

She began flicking through them, until she found what she was looking for, the children expelled in third year - there was only one and it wasn't hard...'Hagrid' was the only one.

"No...Not the groundsmen!" Mione whispered to herself, she turned around to look at Hagrid sitting reading a picture book, 'Green Pumpkin Pasties and Ham', "Here goes nothing..." Armed with the school records and 'Myths and Other Bullshit' Mione walked over to Hagrid and sat next to him. She noticed now that she was beside him, that he wasn't really reading the book, it was upside down and his eyes had glazed over.

"Err...Hagrid, sir?"

Hagrid jolted back to reality,

"Herm, yea?" he asked, still looking preoccupied.

"Excuse me sir...I was wondering if you could tell me what you know about the Chamber of Smells?"

"The Chamb'r?"

"Yes."

"I don' kno' nuttin 'bout tha' chamb'r..."

"You sure? Because according to these...You do."

Hagrid paled,

"Don' kno' wha' yer talkin' 'bou..." he began to sweat nervously.

"Oh, I think you do."

"Oka', oka' I'll tell thee truth," Hagrid's voice dropped to a hoarse whisper, "I wa' expell'd from tha' schoo' for supposedly opening the chamb'r. But I swea' I didn't. Bubbles didn't hur' nuttin!"

"Bubbles? Is that the monster?"

"Nah, he didn't leave his bo'. It wuz summat else..."

"Really! Do you know anything else what did it?"

"Nah, haff no ide'."

"Oh okay, if you do remember anything can you owl me?"

Hagrid suddenly went even more pale and didn't seem to have heard Mione.

"Hagrid?" Mione said waving her hands in front of his face.

"Yer? Miss. er..."

"Ranger."

"Miss. Ranger, I won' be 'ere..."

Mione looked and finally spotted a rather plump man making his way over to Hagrid.

"Well-"

"Jus' listen, to me. Follo' the spide's they'll tell yer..."

"The spiders?"

"Mr. Hagrid, I bet you've expecting us...If you come quietly it'll be less embarressing." The man said.

Hagrid mubled something before following the man, leaving Mione stunned. Quickly she grabbbed her paper she ahd made notes on and wrote in bold, neat letters:

"Follow the spiders"

Advised by Hagrid - Groundkeeper

She then ran out of the library, hoping to find the others as the came out of the last period class...