Bon Appetite! - Chapter Five

"Lavender, have you seen Hermione? We can't find her anywhere!"

"No, I haven't seen her since yesterday after class. Let me know when you find her," Lavender Brown replied to the two very confused boys.

Nobody had seen Hermione, nor (not to mention), Malfoy, since the day before.

"Maybe we should tell Dumbledore, it's been a long time, maybe something happened to her," suggested Ron, who was running out of ideas.

"Sure, yeah, lets do that," Harry replied, and the two friends started towards the Headmaster's office.

"Come in."

Harry and Ron made their way into Dumbledore's circular office. He beckoned them to sit down.

"So, what is it boys?" Dumbledore asked, his eyes twinkling.

"Well, nobody has seen Hermione since yesterday after class. We're just a bit worried about her, and we wondered if you know anything."

"Gone missing?" Dumbledore asked, perfectly calm, "That is strange."

There was a long pause in which the Headmaster motioned towards a dish of lemon drops, and Harry and Ron shook their heads. Dumbledore's eyes twinkled all the while.

"Well, I was informed by Misters Crabbe and Goyle that Mr. Malfoy has also not been seen for quite a while," The Headmaster said, amazingly calmly, "I was told by Professor Snape that a few of his personal potions ingredients, needed to makeTheDraught of Time, have gone missing. Lastly, Madame Alexander said something about Mr. Malfoy and Ms. Granger being cooking partners. She also mentioned that shesaw Ms. Granger with a small vile, the contents of which ended up on Mr. Malfoy's crepe. After putting all of this information together, I have come to a final conclusion, that of which I shall present to you now."

Harry and Ron looked clueless. They waited for the old wizard to continue.

"From what I can see, after being paired together as cooking partners and having been working on The Draught of Time in class, both students got an idea. The same idea. They each made their own batch of the potion. On the day of their French project, while the other wasn't looking, the potions were poured onto the crepes. If I am correct, your friend, along with your enemy, are both somewhere (or should I say sometime?) in the past."

Harry and Ron stared at the Headmaster with eyes as big as baseballs.

"What are we going to do?" They both asked at the same time.

Dumbledore stared back at them, his eyes twinkling more than ever.

"I don't have a single, bloody clue."

Rays of light seeped through the cracks around the door as morning dawned. Hermione opened her eyes, but did not get up. So much had happened in so little time. She was stuck in the past with her worst enemy. The amount of potion that had been used meant that they had no chance but to, as far as she knew, be stuck there forever. This was not happening the way she had planed it.

Hermione stood up and walked over to the door. She wrenched it open. Sunlight poured through the opening, illuminating the small room.

Draco's eyes flew open when the light hit his face. He groaned, remembering their predicament.

The two looked around the room, taking in its features. The floor was dirt. The whole building was made of wood. There was a straw bed in the middle of the room with a single, wool blanket on it. There was a wooden stool in the corner, under which sat a batch of candles. A wooden cupboard stood against the left wall.

Hermione sighed and walked outside. The wood around her was lit with glowing sun. The green grass was long, dewy, and rustled as she walked through it towards the stream. Hermione cupped her hands and splashed water over her face. It was freezing cold, and she was immediately awake. She dried her face on her robes and made her way back to the cabin.

The second she walked through the door, her stomach rumbled and she realized she hadn't eaten since lunch the day before. She groaned.

"Hungry Granger?" Malfoy smirked.

"As a matter of fact, yes, I am." She replied.

"Join the club."

"What should we do? Do you have any food?"

"No Granger, I don't, and if I did, it sure as hell would not last as long as we're going to be here."

Hermione ignored his comment.

"Do you think we could find something in the woods?" Hermione asked hopefully.

"Find? Yes. Catch? Unlikely."

They walked outside anyway and made their way over to the trees. After half an hour (and a load of, "Oh, look, there it is, hurry, catch it." :BOOM:CRASH: "Damn bunny!") the two had come up with a load of berries and four fish. They went back to the hut and made a circle of rocks from the stream. They collected a few large braches, and, after a while, had started a nice fire. As the fish cooked, they ate the berries.

The whole situation had begun to sink in on Hermione. She was stuck with her worst enemy forever. She would never see Ron or Harry again. The only person she knew at the moment was Malfoy, and that wasn't saying much. She looked over at the blond.

Hermione remembered the first time they met. He had been so self-centered, so prudish. He tormented her, Harry, and Ron less now, although by no means had he stopped. She knew he had more responsibility now. He had grown up a lot, and he had developed a sort of...guideline. He was no longer a clone of his father. At least not completely.

When the fish were done cooking, they ate them and were finally satisfied.

Hermione looked towards the giant sun above their heads.

"Where do you think we are?" Asked Hermione.

"You mean when?" Malfoy replied.

"Well," Hermione thought outloud,"I wonder how far we would have to go to find other people. By the way they talk and dress we could probably figure out where we are, maybe even what time we're in!"

"If anybody sees us dressed like this, they'd probably curse us." Draco reminded her. "We have to find, or make some different clothes."

Hermione looked down at her Hogwarts uniform.

"Good point..."