Chapter #3 Inconceivable!

Part I – Simply Stalking

When Hermione came to, she was lying, trussed up like a turkey, on a flying carpet. The redhead sat at the front end, steering. The fencer sat facing the other way at the opposite end, keeping watch for followers. The giant sat beside Hermione, keeping watch over her.

"Who are you and what are you doing?" Hermione demanded. "Return me to Prince Viktor at once!"

The redhead chuckled. "I am Percy," he told her. "The oaf beside you is Hagrid. The moron at the back is Potter. As to what we are doing, why, surely such a clever girl as yourself can understand the merits of Guilder keeping you hostage. Your Prince Viktor will stop at nothing to get you back, especially if it means entering into war!" He cackled maniacally. "Only, we will not give you to Guilder. The war will drain both countries! Mwahahahaha!" he cackled again, then began to cough as he choked on his own spit; having been so caught up in laughing, he had forgotten to swallow.

Hermione pouted, for in her current state of immobility she could do little else to show her annoyance.

After a while, Percy became annoyed as well, just not for the same reason as Hermione. "Face the front, Potter!" he barked. "If you look for too long into the sun, even if it's setting, you will go blind. And then how will you fence?"

"I'm just making sure no one is following us," Potter explained.

"That idea is inconceivable," Percy snapped. "Face the front."

"Yes, Percy," Potter muttered. But he didn't turn around.

"What are you waiting for?" Percy demanded.

"I think someone is following usm" Potter announced.

"Inconceivable!" Percy exclaimed, turning around all the same. "It's probably just some local merchant on a test-fly," he said dismissively.

"So why has he been following us for at least half an hour?" Potter asked.

They had been flying for half an hour? Hermione felt dizzy.

"Inconceivable," Percy muttered again, and urged the carpet to fly faster. Hermione felt her hair fan out behind her.

"I do not think that word means what you think it means," Potter remarked. "He is gaining on us."

"Inconceivable!" roared Percy, and he swerved the carpet hazardously to one side. "We'll lose him in the mountains!"

This, as it turned out, was not such as good idea. While their carpet was the size of a bed spread, their stalker's carpet was more the size of a bath mat, which meant that the stalker had greater agility.

Percy was now severely ticked off. He ordered Hagrid to untie the bonds holding Hermione's feet together and to blindfold her instead.

The carpet swooped down. Hermione was glad for the blindfold; it kept her unruly hair in order. Next thing she knew, the carpet was rolled up with her inside it, a la Cleopatra. And from the bouncing movements she guessed Hagrid was carrying her up a mountain. Percy was certainly screaming at him to go faster.

A.N: As this is a pre-DH story, Percy had not sufficiently redeemed himself enough to merit my writing him in a more complimentary manner. His insults to Harry and Hagrid do not in any way reflect my own opinions of those two wonderful character! Reviews are always appreciated.