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"And Snape- Snape was coughing too…" Harry said slowly. He was beginning to put two and two together.

Hermione wasn't convinced. "So? It's just a coincidence. That's nothing to get excited over."

Harry frowned. "You don't find it odd that Snape and Malfoy start coughing at the same time?"

Hermione shook her head. "No. I don't," she said frankly.

Ron looked confused. "I'm not taking sides until Harry explains what he's talking about."

Harry groaned in exasperation. "Were you listening to Dumbledore?"

"No," said Ron and Hermione in unison.

"He made a comment on the eggs!"

"So…"

"C'mon! What did we find in the Potions room?"

Ron continued to stare at Harry with a dumbfounded look on his face.

"An egg." said Hermione. "Oh, for heavens sake, you aren't suggesting that the two incidents are related, are you?"

Harry rolled his eyes. "Why yes, as a matter of fact, I am."

At this point, a look of understanding washed over Ron's face. "OH!" he said, "You're saying that Malfoy and Snape…?"

"… are in on the egg mystery together, yes!"

Hermione frowned at the pair of them. "Don't be foolish! I'm sure it's just some person playing a dumb trick!" she said. Harry noticed, to his surprise, that Hermione was looking a bit confused. Then suddenly, she picked up her books, and ran out of the Great Hall—looking almost as though she were on the verge of tears.

"Girls… barking mad…"

"Yeah.…" said Harry, wondering how on earth he had managed to upset her.

"So, mate, what do you suggest we do? Spy? Distract and deploy… mate?"

Harry was still staring at the place where Hermione had rounded the corner. "Huh? What? Oh yeah… Malfoy."

"I say we sneak up to his dormitory, break in, and force some information out of his ferret mouth!" cried Ron, standing up, brandishing his fist at a very weirded-out Seamus.

"Ron… were you with someone with feathers last night?"

"What? Oh… sorry…" said Ron, going redder than his hair and sitting down again, "Got a little carried away…"

"Well… I dunno what we ought to do… see Hagrid?"

Ron looked doubtful. "Hmm… well… we could do that…it just seemed like more fun to do all that Auror sort of stuff. Y'know… break down the door and start an inquiry…"

At break, Harry and Ron went to see Hagrid in an attempt to get answers.

Hagrid opened the door, and right away pulled the two of them into a bone-breaking hug. "Been too long… been too long!"

"Hagrid! Let us go! We saw you last week!" choked out Ron.

"Hang on… where's Hermione?"

"Um…"

"Ron?"

"I didn't do anything! I swear! If you'd let me go, I'd tell you that was why we were here!"

"Huh?" Hagrid let go of them, and they all went inside.

Inside, Hagrid offered them some treats, which they declined as nicely as possible. "So… wa's this all about? What's wrong wi' Hermione?"

Ron shrugged. "She was all funny this morning, completely bonkers… looked like she'd been… I dunno… Imperiused or something."

Hagrid laughed. "Hermione? Imperiused? Now tha's just crazy. Hermione could get herself outta a spot like tha'"

Harry shrugged. "Also, we keep finding… these." He rummaged around in his robe pocket and produced the yellow egg with pink polka dots. "Any ideas?"

Hagrid laughed. "C'mon you two, you solve mysteries way darker than this. Isn't this one a lil' trivial for yeh? Yer losin' yer touch!"

"We are not!" said Ron indignantly.

It had started to rain, crystal droplets trickling down the windowpanes. It was relatively dark in the girls' dormitory, dark enough that one would hardly notice the solitary girl, sitting on her bed and crying. She stood suddenly in a burst of agitation, and ran to the window, which reflected her pale face and thick brown hair. She wrung her hands, utterly confused. "What's wrong with me?" she choked. "I'm never like this! I don't remember where I was for the last hour… what's going on!"

A/N: Now, as we have so politely asked each chapter, we ask every reader who strays across our story, to please REVIEW!