AN: Please forgive me, when I write authors notes, it appears twice for some reason. Thank you to my good friend XxBanditQueenxX for the review. I loved A Trip to America by your former self, thesongremainsthesame.
Once again, I probably shouldn't have rated this M, and am changing it to T after this chapter. IT MIGHT GET CHANGED BACK LATER!
Disclaimer: Annoyingly enough, I DON'T OWN HP!
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
"And it's 80-50, Gryffindor!"
The loud voice of Seamus echoed around the grounds.
"This is weird, I should be out there," Harry said, thinking of his Firebolt waiting for him back in his dormitory.
"I know Harry, but you're obviously preoccupied. Speaking of which, where do you go at night?" Hermione asked awkwardly.
"It's none of your business," Harry said desperately wanting to tell her.
"Harry if you don't tell me I am going to McGonagall," she said sternly.
"I know you Hermione, you wouldn't do that," Harry said reassuring himself.
"I'm worried about you though," she said, "you seem more withdrawn now than ever. You aren't even enjoying Quidditch anymore."
"I do enjoy Quidditch, but I'm not in the right mindset to play," Harry said thinking of last nights excursion.
"Harry you--,"
But Harry didn't hear what he was, Ginny had just caught the snitch and won them the game 230-160.
There were loud cheers, and Seamus was announcing the final score to the crowd, making it impossible to talk to one another.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Hermione would steal back the map and the cloak. That was it.
'It was a mistake giving it back to him,' Hermione thought to herself, kicking herself mentally.
Harry, Ron, and Hermione were sitting alone around the fire. For some reason, the fire made them feel gloomy.
There was a party going on behind them, but they refused to join in, even after Ginny begged them to have a butterbeer.
Harry was finally doing his work, he was writing a footlong extra credit essay for Slughorn, about the potion he encountered with Dumbledore in the cave last year.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
'The Essence of Marklar"(AN: I had problems thinking of a name, was it named in the book at all? Marklar is from South Park so I decided to refer to that. Bear with me.)
Ingredients:
6 oz. Unicorn Blood
1 lb Powdered Bicorn Horn
1 Bezoar
14 oz. Water
5 oz. Pixie Fecal Matter
Uses:
In the early years, Essence of Marklar was used a torturing method for anybody who used an Unforgivable Curse. This was banned in 1478, when Azkaban was built, and the dementors were first employed to guard the prison. Azkaban was deemed more humane that Marklar.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Harry was stuck, he had a horrible case of writer's block, and he needed to get away for a while.
"I'm going to bed," Harry announced.
"Okay, see you tomorrow," Hermione said with a smile that made Harry's insides drop.
"G'night, mate," Ron said looking up from his Defense Against the Dark Arts essay.
Harry went upstairs to retrieve his cloak and map.
He was going to his hideout again tonight.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Hermione looked at Ron with a smug smile, and showed him the cloak and the map.
"He's not going anywhere without me, I'm going to follow him," she said cozily, the fire making her feel better.
"Are you going to follow him tonight?" Ron asked.
"Yep, and I'm wearing the invisibility cloak, so he won't know I'm there," she said, feeling smarter than usual.
"You better think fast, Harry just went out the portrait hole," Ron said trying not to laugh.
Hermione jumped up, and raced towards the portrait hole.
She stepped out, threw the cloak over her, and closed the portrait.
She looked at the map and Harry was already at the stairway.
After checking that the coast was clear, she raced to the stairway, gaining on Harry the entire way.
When she got to the first floor, she caught Harry, peering around a corner cautiously.
She walked up behind him and watched silently.
Harry proceeded up the corridor, ready to hide behind anything he possibly could.
Eventually they reached the entrance hall, and Harry raced through the door leading to the dungeons,
He was too fast for Hermione, so she stopped and looked at the map to see where he had gone.
He had already disappeared from the map.
'Maybe there is another Room of Requirement down here that nobody knows about," she thought to herself, feeling sulky again.
She headed back upstairs, pondering what had just happened.
At the fourth floor, when the secret staircase came into view, so did Peeves. He was dumping paint on all of the walls.
Hermione was trying to inch past him along the walls without making a noise, but it was no use. Peeves had thrown paint on her, which covered the cloak, meaning she was no longer invisible.
Peeves looked at the spot for a moment before yelling, "STUDENTS OUT OF BED, STUDENTS OUT OF BED NEAR THE STAIRCASE ON THE FOURTH FLOOR!"
Hermione raced up the staircase, and got to the top on the seventh floor.
She rounded the corner, seeing the portrait, and feeling like she was in the clear, raced towards it.
As she neared it, a figure came around the corner, saw the dark figure, and muttered, "Petrificus Totalus"
Hermione was completely paralyzed and toppled backward.
The cloak flew off of her and she looked up to see the caster.
It was Professor McGonagall.
She muttered the counter-curse and pulled Hermione up by the arm.
"What are you doing out this late Granger?" McGonagall asked sternly.
"I was patrolling the corridors, I am a prefect, right?" Hermione asked, hoping this would get her out of it.
"That doesn't give you the right to wander the halls at night, that is the teachers job," McGonagall said with a disappointed tone in her voice, "you knew this rule, meaning you must be punished for your actions. I feel that a weeks detention will be in order. Every night, starting tomorrow, in my office Granger. Do you hear me?"
"Yes, Professor McGonagall," Hermione said, losing all hope.
"Now get back to your dormitory, and no detours!" McGonagall said with her usual stern voice.
Hermione walked to the portrait feeling McGonagall's eyes watching her every move.
"Wait, Granger you forgot your cloak," McGonagall said, "it has paint on it, let me clean it for you, Scourgify, here you are Ms. Granger."
Hermione retrieved the cloak, and went through the portrait hole and into the common room.
Ron was waiting for her asleep, on the chair nearest the fire. It was just getting into December, and there was snow falling out the window, making the common room feel colder than usual.
When Hermione sat down next to him he sat up.
"Did you find where he was going?" Ron asked groggily.
"Sort of, he's going down to the dungeons, there must be a secret room down there or something, because when he gets there, he disappears on the map." Hermione said disappointed while warming her hand by the fire.
"Is that all?" he asked, Hermione nodded, "I'm going to bed then, g'night."
"G'night," Hermione replied.
And Ron went upstairs, leaving Hermione alone with her thoughts, and some sixth years getting drunk off of firewhiskey.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
AN: Another chapter done, all in less than 24 hours! I might have time for a fourth and maybe a fifth tonight but I am taking a break. Please review, IDEAS ARE WELCOME!