Fourth Act

It seems that quite a few people have heard of Bill Shakespeare. Must have been a bit of a celebrity in his heyday... I'm a bit surprised as now that I've had a closer look at his other material there's a lot of boring history stuff about long-dead kings.

Another person who a lot of people have heard of is J.K. Rowling. She, unlike me, happens to own the rights to Harry Potter and his fantasy universe.

"Fred?"

"Yes, George?"

"The polyjuice potion we took from Snape's cupboard… Do you think it would also work for an animal transfiguration?"

"Hm… I don't know, seems a bit risky…"

"So you're saying we should test it on someone else first?"

"Definitely! And I'd suggest we pick a Slytherin – better safe than sorry."

"Malfoy's been quite smug lately…"

"Do we still have some of the ferret whiskers we bought last summer?"

"I believe we do…"

"Let's get the potion ready then. We can slip it in his drink at dinner."

Cho Chang was happier than she had been all week. After a quick dinner at the Hufflepuff table, she and Cedric had slipped out of the Great Hall without anybody noticing. The rose garden was already prepared for the Yule ball and a warming charm kept temperatures nice and cosy. Arm in arm, the young couple idly walked through the dark gardens, exchanging the occasional quick peck and talking about plans for the next year.

"You know, I hadn't realised quite how far these gardens stretch. Professor Sprout must have a hell of a time keeping them in such good shape" Cedric said.

"It's a good thing though – I think I just heard Draco Malfoy's voice from over there. Let's look for a slightly more private spot" Cho suggested.

Neither of them noticed that they were followed. To be fair, only Mad-Eye Moody or perhaps Albus Dumbledore would have had the necessary skills to detect their pursuer. Harry Potter had once again put his father's invisibility cloak to good use. Of course, he himself was equally unaware that he was being followed. Ginny Weasley did not own an invisibility cloak, nor did she move particularly stealthily. But with Harry's attention focussed completely on the couple ahead of him even a horde of trolls could have sneaked up on him successfully.

Two more people were creeping through the rose garden, their identical orange crops of hair a colourless grey in the darkness. To begin with they had followed Draco Malfoy when he abruptly left the Great Hall before they had had a chance to spike his pumpkin juice. But they were swiftly side-tracked when they almost stumbled over Cho and Cedric, who had settled down in a secluded corner of the garden.

"Seems we're on a roll tonight" Fred whispered.

George nodded. He had already drawn a small pouch from a pocket in his robes.

"Time to test our Peruvian Instant Darkness Powder in the field, you reckon?"

"No time like now. Go for it!"

But just as George reached into the pouch a tawny owl swept past the twins and straight towards the distracted couple.

"A letter? It's for you, Ced!"

The Hufflepuff carefully opened the letter to find a single sheet of parchment. He quickly scanned the lines.

"It's from Ludo Bagman. He wants to meet the Champions at the entrance to the Great Hall. Right now. They are to come on their own. Under no circumstances should they bring dates or girlfriends along."

"That sounds highly irregular, if not outright irresponsible!"

"I agree, it does sound like something Bagman would write. Still, I have an odd feeling about this… Do you think I should go?"

Cho sighed. "I guess you should. I'll wait here for you. So you better hurry up, or I might get lonely and start looking for another boyfriend" she added with a wink before kissing him goodbye.

Cedric Diggory was no slouch, Fred and George had to admit as they hastened after him. They were certainly relieved when the flickering torchlights of the entrance to the Great Hall came into sight. George had nearly slipped twice and Fred was convinced he had lost half of his robes to various thorny rose bushes that he had brushed in order to keep up with the Hufflepuff seeker.

Ludo Bagman was notably absent when they reached the entrance. This was not altogether surprising as Ludo Bagman was currently enjoying a bubble bath in his private quarters and whistling the Hogwarts school song, blissfully unaware of the meeting he had supposedly arranged. On an unrelated note, Harry Potter had learned that tawny owls do not appreciate being liberated from the school owlery and being dragged about under an invisibility cloak for prolonged amounts of time.

Fred and George were missing this information, but they never hesitated when an opportunity presented itself.

"Cedric Diggory!"

"Our favourite seeker!"

"Weasley? And Weasley? What are you doing here? And how come I'm your favourite seeker? I thought you were friends with Potter?"

"Potter… No, doesn't ring any bells. George?"

"No, never heard of him."

Cedric laughed. "Seriously, you two – what are you doing in the rose garden at this time of the evening?"

"Well, promise you won't tell? We just got back from a little trip to Hogsmeade. Got a few bottles of butterbeer for the afterparty in the Gryffindor common room tomorrow night. What about you?"

"Got stood up by Bagman by the looks of it. I really should head back to Cho, she's waiting for me in the garden."

"Let's not keep you then. Fancy a butterbeer for the way?" George asked as Fred offered a bottle to Cedric, raising a second bottle to his lips.

"You know what – I might. Thanks! But I'd rather take the one you've just opened."

Fred laughed. "Our reputation precedes us, it seems! There you go then. Cheers!"

They both took a healthy gulp from their bottle and Cedric fell over, fast asleep even before he hit the ground.

"Amateur" George snorted.

"Now how do we get Ginny to wake him?" Fred asked as they were pulling Cedric behind a rose bush and out of sight.

"Leave that one to me" George replied, and with a whoosh of his wand said "Accio tawny owl!"

In the castle, another troublemaker was on a mission of his own.

"Filius Flitwick! Have you not read the note at the entrance? No food and no drinks are allowed in the library. No exceptions, not even for professors!"

The professor looked up from a thick leather-bound folio feigning bewilderment.

"Really? A note? I had not realised. Since when?"

Madam Pince narrowed her eyes. "That note has been stuck to that door since before your own student days, as you know perfectly well, Filius! Now, why would you happen to forget about this basic rule just one day after I had to eject you from the library by force, I wonder…? Is this some childish rebellion because of the Compendium?"

"Oh, no, nothing like that, my dear Irma. Merely a 'little helper' to get me through this doorstopper here." He gestured towards the book on the desk in front of him. "You would not happen to have finished with the Compendium though…?"

"I have not. You will have to practice a bit more patience, Filius. Now what kind of little helper is that – you've never before brought any drinks to the library…?"

"Well, you see, I need to do a series of unusual enchantments for the Great Hall in preparation for the Yule Ball tomorrow evening, and 'The Colossal Christmas Charms Compendium' does contain the lot of them, but sadly it is rather… comprehensive… This little friend is supposedly a potion of speed-reading – allowing the drinker to read at thrice their normal speed without loss of detail."

"I see… Well, while I sympathise with your dilemma, the rules are clear: no drinks in the library. And that does include potions. I am afraid I will have to confiscate your concoction."

With these words, Madam Pince picked up the flask and headed back to her desk, not waiting for a reply from the professor.

Professor Flitwick smiled to himself. He would eat a broomstick if Irma Pince could resist the temptation to try the potion herself for longer than a few minutes. He hastily picked up the book he had been reading – he had needed to look up these Yule charms, that much had been true – and left the library. After all, it would not do at all for him to become the target of her affections once the potion took effect…

Ginny meanwhile had observed a series of events, not all of which made sense to her. Tracking Harry had not been too difficult, even with the invisibility cloak he left a trail of footprints in the soft grass. Not that tracking him directly was strictly necessary – he would be wherever Cho's and Cedric's voices carried.

The first puzzling event had been a short altercation from where she believed Harry to sit hidden, followed by a dishevelled owl appearing from underneath the cloak and making its way towards the couple. This was followed by the hasty departure of Cedric, no doubt on some bogus errant Harry had devised for him. So far, so logical.

What she had not expected was for her twin brothers to suddenly appear out of the blue and run after the Hufflepuff champion, leaving behind them a trail of pitch-black clouds. When she turned her attention back to Harry, she saw that he had taken off his invisibility cloak and walked over to Cho.

"My beloved angel, it would seem that chance has brought us together yet again on this fine evening!" said Harry.

"What on earth are you doing here, Potter?" asked Cho.

"Why, I was just strolling through the garden, admiring the roses, when I happened upon the prettiest of them all."

"Were you now…? How about you stroll on before you meet a thorny end?" Cho snapped. "Don't you have a meeting with Bagman right now?"

"Meeting with Bagman? No, ah… erm…, yes, the meeting! Well, you see, I ran into Bagman earlier and he already told me all he wanted to tell the champions. So, fancy a stroll together under the moonlight?"

"What a coincidence… And what exactly did Bagman need to tell everyone so urgently that it could not wait until tomorrow?"

"Ah, I'm afraid I cannot tell you. He made me swear not to tell anyone other than a fellow contestant."

"Well, I've got a theory, Potter" Cho said, pointing her finger at Harry's chest. "I believe that a certain message did not come from Ludo Bagman at all. I believe that it was written by the only person in the castle with less brain mass than Bagman. Before you start guessing – yes, I mean you. And believe that this was your hare-brained idea for luring Cedric away."

"Now, these are serious allegations indeed, my love. Why don't we discuss it over a glass of gigglewater as we explore the rose garden together?"

Cho's reply to this was loud, lengthy, and involved several insults which Ginny had never heard before. Given Ginny had six older brothers, that said quite a lot.

Just as she was pondering whether she should wait for the argument to end and comfort Harry afterwards or intervene and defend her true love from the insults thrown at him, a tawny owl landed on the ground in front of her.

Annoyed at the distraction, she took the parchment the owl proffered and unfolded it.

Miss Weasley,

Your latest potions homework was frankly a disgrace. It was so utterly substandard even by the dismal levels I am usually faced with at this school that I will have no more of it. I expect to see you in my office this instant to discuss your detention schedule.

S. Snape

PS: If you encounter Mr Diggory on your way, bring him along. He seems to be just as much of a dim-witted dunderhead and could do with extra classes, too.

Ginny cursed under her breath. She knew her latest potions homework had not been stellar. But she had not expected even Snape to work that late. Resigned to her fate, she slowly trotted back to the castle.