Girls Night
By Deirdre
"Would it still be there?" asked Georgina as they walked towards the Room of Requirement.
"I think so. It's been there for a while though, it's probably gone. I wouldn't put it past some of those Gryffindors." said Rolanda.
"We'll never know until we check!"
After walking up and back the corridor three times a door appeared. Rolanda opened it but the Room was now the size of a broom cupboard. Picking up the dusty old chest inside she smiled at the others.
"Remind me how this got to be here in the first place?" asked Poppy.
"Remember when we were in sixth year and Minerva and I, well mainly Minerva, had just snuck back from searching the staffroom?" said Hooch.
"Yes?"
"Well on the way back we saw Albus and Armando coming towards us. We didn't want the chest to get confiscated again so thinking quickly; we hid it in a cupboard. It actually turned out to be the Room of Requirement! Only we didn't know it then, we just thought it was an ordinary cupboard. And after all these years it's still there!"
She patted the chest affectionately.
"Give it to me!" said Minerva quickly, looking around. "What if someone see us? They'll think we've gone mad!"
"No I'll hold it." said Hooch firmly, clutching the chest possessively.
Giggling madly, the four women turned around and headed back to Minerva's rooms, where Georgina had insisted that they use for the night.
Poppy let out breath she hadn't even realised that she had been holding.
"This is it. We haven't opened this box for over...what is it now, fifty years?"
"I think so," said Minerva. "The last Girl's Night was a decade ago and we didn't even remember the box then."
"Ready girls?" said Poppy. She blew the dust of the box and traced the letters on it with a smile on her face. Her hands shaking slightly, she said an incantation then lifted the lid of the box.
They all leaned forward expectantly and looked inside the box. It was exactly as they had left it, all those years ago.
"Amazing..." said Georgina softly, "Everything's still there!"
Minerva reached inside the box and pulled out the top two photos they all crowded around to look.
They smiled instantly when they saw the first faded photo. The first was of four very young girls, in brand new Hogwarts robes. It was taken just after the Sorting, before they had returned to their dormitories. They had all become friends straight away.
"We all looked so different!" remarked Hooch.
"Look at your face Minerva! I think that was just after Rolanda had done her first prank!"
Minerva sudden looked at the second photo with shock and attempted to hide it behind her back. Rolanda intercepted it easily and she held it above Minerva's head.
"What's this?" she smirked. "A photo of...our old transfiguration professor? Now why would such a thing be in the Box?"
Minerva blushed and her face turned a brilliant shade of red. She stood up and desperately tried to snatch the photo out of Rolanda's hands.
"Rolanda! Give it back or else!" she cried.
"Gosh!" exclaimed Rolanda as she peered at the photo again. "It looks like our now esteemed Headmaster was wearing hardly anything! Arrraghhh!" She dropped the photo and covered her eyes.
Poppy burst out into laughter when she saw Rolanda's scandalized expression. Poor Minerva, she should've known better than to put a photo of Albus in the box!