Chapter 20: Busted

After a while, Phoenix headed to the common room, Hermione bickering before leaving to go to the library. When Phoenix walked through the portrait hole, she headed towards the girls' dormitory, closing the door quietly behind her. The common room still had some Gryffindors, but some girls turned in early.

Phoenix laid on her bed, staring at the ceiling. She never has been in a wizard's duel, but has dueled in Magic School. 'I wonder if it is the same concept. Maybe the BOS has some advice.'

Phoenix slowly lifted her head. She didn't hear anyone come in, but she wasn't paying attention either. She didn't see any lights on and from the snoring, Phoenix knew everyone was asleep.

She went to her trunk and pulled out the huge leather-bound book. Walking back to her bed, Phoenix pulled the curtains closed. She opened the book, but it was too dark for her to make out anything.

'Oops I need light!'

Phoenix opened her hand and formed a few small energy balls and threw it above her head. The lights were dim enough not to wake the others, but enough for her to read.

'I love my little nightlight! It always comes in handy!'

After a while, Phoenix looked at her clock, "It's eleven! I need to head down." Phoenix waved her hand, blowing out the orbs, slipped out of bed, while closing the BOS, and placed it back in her trunk. She grabbed her wand from her stand, looked around to make sure everyone was still asleep, and headed downstairs. She looked around, noticing the boys were not around.

Phoenix waited by the stairs. It was half-past eleven before Ron and Harry finally came down.

"Ready Harry?" Phoenix whispered heading towards the portrait hole.

"Yeah, how about you?"

"Absolutely!" she looked around, feeling eyes on them coming from one of the chairs.

They almost reached the portrait hole, when a voice spoke from the chair nearest them. It was the same chair Phoenix felt the eyes.

"I can't believe you're going to do this, Harry, Phoenix."

They all three stopped and turned around as a lamp flicked on. It was Hermione, wearing a pink bathrobe and a frown.

"You!" said Ron furiously. "Go back to bed!"

"I almost told your brother," Hermione snapped, "Percy- he's a prefect, he'd put a stop to this."

"Come on," Harry said to Ron and Phoenix. He pushed opened the portrait of the Fat Lady and climbed through the hole.

"Harry, just to warn you, Hermione doesn't give up on things easily." said Phoenix, as she noticed Hermione following Ron through the portrait hole, while hissing at them like an angry goose.

"Don't you care about Gryffindor, do you only care about yourselves, I don't want Slytherin to win the house cup, and you'll lose all the points I got from Professor McGonagall for knowing about Switching Spells."

"Go away!"

"Ron!" yelled Phoenix.

"All right, but I warned you, you just remember what I said when you're on the train home tomorrow, you're so-"

"So, what?" Phoenix asked, "Hermione?"

Phoenix turned around seeing Hermione starring at an empty painting. The Fat Lady had gone on a nighttime visit, and Hermione was locked out of Gryffindor Tower.

"Now, what am I going to do?" she asked shrilly

"That's your problem," said Ron. "We've got to go; we're going to be late."

"Come on, Mione. You can come with us." Phoenix suggested.

"No, she is not."

"Do you think we should just let her stand out here and let Filch find her?"

"And if he finds all three of us, I'll tell him the truth, that I was trying to stop you, and you can back me up."

"You've got some nerve," Ron loudly shouted.

"Shut up, all three of you!" Harry said sharply. "I heard something."

"Is it Mrs. Norris?" breathed Ron

Phoenix walked over sensing something. 'I don't sense Mrs. Norris. I sense that it is more like…'

It was Neville. He was curled up on the floor, fast asleep, but jerked suddenly awake as they crept nearer.

"Thank goodness you found me! I've been out here for hours, I couldn't remember the new password to get into bed."

"Keep your voice down Neville. The password's 'Pig Snout' but it won't help you now; the Fat Lady's gone off somewhere."

"How's your arm?" asked Phoenix and Harry.

"Fine," said Neville, showing them. "Madam Pomfrey mended it in about a minute."

"Good- well, look, Neville, we've got to be somewhere, we'll see you later-"

"We can't just leave him, Ron. Come with us, Neville."

"If either of them gets us caught, I'll never rest until I've learned that Curse of the Bogies Quirrell told us about, and use it on you."

They silently walked through the corridors. The only light was the moonlight. At every turn, Phoenix was hoping they wouldn't run into Filch or Mrs. Norris.

'But how fun would it be, if we ran into them?'

They sped up a staircase to the third floor and tiptoed toward the trophy room. Malfoy and Crabbe weren't there yet.

'I smell a trap!'

"He's late, maybe he's chickened out," Ron whispered.

Then a noise in the next room made them jump. Harry drew his wand, and Phoenix raised her hands when they heard someone speak- and it wasn't Malfoy.

"Sniff around, my sweet, they might be lurking in a corner."

'Oh, Malfoy is good! Snitching on us to Filch. Who does he think he is playing?'

Busy in thought, Harry grabbed Phoenix and waved to the others to follow. They ran to a door, away from Filch's voice quietly and quickly.

"They're in here somewhere," they all heard him mutter, "probably hiding."

"This way!" Harry mouthed, still holding onto Phoenix. They crept down a long galley full of suits of armor, hearing Filch getting nearer.

'I can totally see an accident waiting to happen!'

Right after Phoenix thought of this, Neville suddenly let out a frightened squeak and broke into a run- he tripped, grabbed Ron around the waist, and the pair of them toppled right into a suit of armor. Phoenix froze the armor before it hit the ground, but the damage was done.

"RUN!" Harry yelled. The five of them sprinted down the gallery. Harry did not know where they were going or where they were.

"I think we've lost them." Phoenix panted out.

"I-told-you," Hermione gasped, clutching at the stitch in her chest, "I-told-you."

"We've got to get back to Gryffindor tower," said Ron, "quickly as possible."

"Well, Duh Ron!" Phoenix panted.

"Hey, Phoenix, did you freeze that armor back there?"

"Yeah, it almost looked like you did with Malfoy." said Ron.

"Is this really the time to be asking this?"

"Let's go." Commented Harry lost in the conversation.

As much as they wanted to leave, it would not be that simple. It wasn't more than a dozen paces when a doorknob rattled and something came shooting out of a classroom in front of them.

'Oh great, It's Peeves!' Phoenix thought. Peeves saw them and squealed with delight.

"Shut up, Peeves- please- you'll get us thrown out."

Peeves cackled. "Wandering around at midnight, Ickle Firsties? Tut, tut, tut. Naughty, naughty, you'll get caughty."

'Right like saying please was going to help!'

"Not if you don't give us away, Peeves, please."

"Should tell Filch, I should," said Peeves in a saintly voice, but his eyes glittered wickedly. "It's for your own good, you know."

Phoenix, still being held by Harry, leaned over and whispered. "Harry, we need to split. You and the others head for the end of the corridor. I will try to distract Peeves and Filch."

"But Phoenix,"

"Don't worry Harry, I know what I'm doing."

"Get out of the way," snapped Ron, taking a swipe at Peeves- this was a big mistake.

"STUDENTS OUT OF BED!" Peeves bellowed, "STUDENTS OUT OF BED DOWN THE CHARMS CORRIDOR!"

"Thanks Ron!" screamed Phoenix as she separated from them.

"Harry, where is Phoenix going?" asked Neville as they ran down the corridor.

"She said she had a plan."

Peeves continued shouting as everyone, but Phoenix, left.

"Peeves shut up or I will Vanquish You!" Peeves quieted down, giving Phoenix a questioning look. "Yes, I know of a way to get rid of you! Now, I need you to be qui..."

Phoenix heard footsteps. Filch was running as fast as he could toward Peeves's shout. She looked around and found a pocket in the wall. She leaned up against it, hands ready to freeze.

'Please don't let him see me!'

"Which way did they go, Peeves?" Filch was saying "Quick, tell me."

"Say 'please."

"Don't mess with me, Peeves, now where did they go?"

"Shan't say nothing if you don't say please," said Peeves in his annoying singsong voice.

Phoenix tried hard to be quiet but let out a small sigh. Mrs. Norris was in front of her in a second.

"Meow," said Mrs. Norris, who was looking at Phoenix.

'I need to sic Cali on Mrs. Norris! She would teach her a lesson!'

Phoenix closed her eyes, keeping her hands up for when Filch came closer.

"What is it, my sweet? Is one of them here?"

Mrs. Norris looked at him and back at Phoenix. "Meow." She let out answering his question.

Filch came closer, chuckling. As he came by the pocket, he jumped in front of Phoenix and lifted his lantern. He looked into Phoenix's eyes, now opened, giving a slight glare. Phoenix shivered a little and dropped her hands. He caught her. After a few seconds, Filch looked right and left, seeing if anyone was coming to Phoenix's rescue.

"My sweet, are you sure you saw someone here? No one is here my pet."

'What is Filch talking about? He is looking right at me?'

Filch reached out, grasping for anything or anyone. Phoenix moved away from his grasping hand, unsure why he was acting as if she wasn't there. Giving up after a while, Filch turned around and faced Peeves.

"Peeves, which way did they go?"

Peeves crossed his arms and kept his mouth shut.

"All right- please."

"NOTHING! Ha haaaa! Told you I wouldn't say nothing if you didn't say please! Ha ha! Haaaaaaaa!"

Then Peeves whooshed away with Filch, cursing with rage as he too left, leaving Phoenix alone.

'What just happened? Why did Filch leave? Didn't he see me?'

Hoping Filch was completely gone, Phoenix was about to run in the direction she saw the others run towards, instead she found Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Neville running towards her. Harry grabbed Phoenix's arm and pulled her to run with them.

"What is going on!" yelled Phoenix.

"Just keep running!" yelled Harry.

They didn't stop running until they reached the portrait of the Fat Lady on the seventh floor.

"Where on earth have you all been?" she asked, looking at their bathrobes hanging off their shoulders and their flushed, sweaty faces.

"Never mind that- pig snout, pig snout," panted Harry, and the portrait swung forward. They scrambled into the common room and collapsed into the armchairs. It was a while before any of them said anything. Neville looked as if he'd never speak again.

"Okay….what…. is with…. all the…running?" panted Phoenix.

"A three…headed….dog!" answered Neville.

"What do they think they're doing, keeping a thing like that locked up in a school?" said Ron. "If any dog needs exercise, that one does."

Hermione had got both her breath and her bad temper back again.

"You don't use your eyes, any of you, do you?" she snapped. "Didn't you see what it was standing on?"

"Hermione, I wasn't there. Maybe the floor? That would be my first guess." Remarked Phoenix.

"I wasn't looking at its feet, I was too busy with its heads." came Harry.

"No, not the floor. It was standing on a trap door. It's obviously guarding something."

"Guarding something? Trap door? Sounds like fun. Hey! Let's ask the three-headed dog what it is guarding. Maybe it would tell us." exclaimed a sarcastic Phoenix.

Hermione stood up, glaring at them.

"I hope you're pleased with yourselves. We could of all have been killed- or worse, expelled. Now if you don't mind, I'm going to bed."

Ron stared after her, his mouth opened.

"No, we don't mind," he said. "You'd think we dragged her along, wouldn't you?"

"We sorta did Ron. Or at least Phoenix insisted." Harry pointed out.

"Hey, she is still my friend! I couldn't leave her outside and let her get caught because of us!"

"Well being her friend, you might need to let her know what is more important. She really needs to sort out her priorities!" Stated Ron as they all parted for bed.