Chapter Five

Draco and Ariana worked on the cabinet for weeks, taking it in shifts. Every night they switched off working until near dawn. On the weekends, both would spend all day cooped up in the junk-filled room, barely even bothering to eat. Their grades reflected the new arrangement: Ariana's falling from Outstanding to Acceptable and even the occasional Poor, while Draco's steadily rose from Dreadful to Acceptable. Both were tired nearly all the time, but managed not to fall asleep in the middle of class.

About a month and a half after Ariana began helping Draco, the two friends were in the Room of Requirement again. Ariana blew dust off a chair and sat down with a thump.

"I don't understand," she cried out exasperatedly. "I've tried everything I know. It should be working right now!"

Draco pulled a chair next to Ariana and sat down, staring moodily at the dark wood of the Cabinet. Suddenly, Ariana jumped up. "I've got it!"

"Wait here!" she called as she ran out of the room. "I'll be right back."

Ariana ran down the halls, finally slowing near Professor Flitwick's office. She gave herself a minute to catch her breath and compose herself, and then she knocked on the door to the tiny professor's office.

"Enter!" his voice called from within the room.

Ariana opened the door and walked up to the Charms professor's desk.

"Ah, Miss Rivers," he greeted her. "What can I do for you?"

Ariana pulled a slip of parchment she had prepared from her pocket. "Er, Professor, I was thinking about what you were saying the other day about fixing magical objects and how tricky it can be. I wanted to look up some more on the subject, but the book I want to get is in the Restricted section. I was wondering if you'd be willing to sign a permission slip for me to take it out?"

The unsuspecting wizard nodded cheerfully and replied, "Of course," taking the slip from her hand and signing it with a flourish. "Hmm…" he said as he returned the slip and read the title out loud. "Magical Objects from A to Z: When Reparo! Just Isn't Enough."

Ariana took the slip from his hand as he continued, "An excellent choice, Miss Rivers, but do be careful," he warned her. "Some of the magical objects in this book are better left alone." Ariana nodded, trying to keep guilt from her face , and left the office.

She then ran down to the library and was immediately accosted by Madam Pince for running in the halls. She took a breath, apologized profusely, and meekly requested her book. Madam Pince took the slip of paper from Ariana's outstretched hand and looked at it closely. Finally, she grunted approval and walked away to the Restricted section. A minute later, she was back, blowing dust off a heavy book. She handed it to Ariana and reminded her to be gentle with it and to return it on time.

Ariana then ran back to the seventh floor, searching the walls until she found the tapestry of Barnabas the Barmy teaching ballet to trolls. She always giggled at that tapestry, but moved to the stretch of wall just beyond it and walked back and forth three times. I need to get to Draco and the Cabinet, I need to get to Draco and the Cabinet, I need to get to Draco and the Cabinet, she thought as she walked back and forth. On her final pass, a door appeared in the wall and she yanked it open and went in.

As she entered the quiet room, Draco stood up. "All right, now what were you doing?" he asked quickly.

Ariana sighed. "I was about to explain, you know."

Draco's lips twitched and he rolled his eyes, but gestured for her to go on.

"First, I went to Professor Flitwick to get permission to take a book from the Restricted section." She dropped the heavy volume on a highly convenient table. "Then I went to the library to get it." She flipped it open and turned to the Table of Contents. Draco stood next to her and leaned over the book.

"Why was this restricted?" he asked, running a finger down a list of objects covered in the book.

Ariana gestured to the bottom of the list. "Not all magical objects are benevolent."

Draco looked uncomfortable, but was silent as Ariana flipped through the pages to the section on Vanishing Cabinets. Ariana glanced down at the opening page and groaned. "I don't believe this! There are 17 pages of spells just to figure out what's wrong with it!"

Draco grabbed his wand and smiled. "Well, I guess we'd better get started then, shouldn't we?"

Ariana smiled and said sarcastically, "Whoopee." She took her wand from her pocket, and both looked down at the first page of spells.


A week later, Ariana burst into the Room of Requirement, startling Draco who was bending over the book again. Seeing her, Draco smiled. "Where's the fire?" he joked. Ariana merely looked determined.

"Ha, ha," she replied flatly. She slammed the book shut, put it in her bag, and pulled Draco towards the door. Draco pulled his arm away and said, "Ariana, what's going on? Are you all right?"

Ariana folded her arms. "I am," she replied shortly. "But you're not. Ever since I got that book from the library, you've been working too hard." When he opened his mouth to interrupt, Ariana held up a finger to stop him. "No. You will come with me, and you will relax. If you don't, I'll spell the door so you can't get in here!"

"But…" Draco began, but Ariana stepped forward and put a finger on his lips. "No." she repeated. "No more excuses. God forbid you get a decent night's sleep or a good meal! You've been skipping classes again, Draco! You promised you wouldn't do that anymore. The teachers will notice – hell, they already have! – and they will expel you."

Her expression softened. "Draco, I just found you. I can't lose you again." She blinked and ducked her head. When she looked back up she said, "Draco, I'm worried about you. You haven't been eating and you get barely enough sleep to live. You're going to make yourself sick!" She took his hand again, but didn't move. "Come on, Draco. One hour of something other than this, and at least three full hours of sleep."

Ariana smiled softly. "I'm going easy on you, you know," she said quietly. "I could force you to sleep ten hours. Please."

Draco heard the genuine worry in her voice, and the pleading in her eyes made him give in. "Fine," he muttered.

Ariana hugged him and whispered, "Thank you." She took his hand and led him out of the junk-filled room. He didn't look back.