A/n: I'm so sorry I didn't update sooner. I'm barely finding any time to do anything. Well after that updating spree, things had to slow down a little I guess. Heres the new chapter. I put it out in a rush, so I'm not sure whether its upto mark. Anyway read and enjoy:)
Disclaimer: Since this is going to be a lengthy fic, I'm saying this once and for all.
The following story is not intended for profit. Harry Potter and all the other characters therein belong to JK Rowling.
CHAPTER FIVE
Days passed by and Hogwarts was still as busy as ever. This year though, some of the students were given an added bonus. The sixth and seventh years were going to be taken on a field trip to the Ministry of Magic. This was to provide the students with more insight into their government and to better understand all the intricate decisions that went into managing the Wizarding World. Students who were intending to pursue a career in the Ministry were looking forward to the trip the most.
The Weasley's and the Potter's were equally excited as most of their family members were settled in the Ministry and heading some of the main departments. But for some reason, Rose Weasley was looking upset as James and Albus relayed the details of the field trip to her.
The three of them were lounging outside the castle on a Sunday afternoon, with Rose leaning back on a tree and the Potter brothers facing each other and talking excitedly, the miscreants planning their next prank.
"Come on Rose. You're the only one who can manage to pull it off," pleaded James in the middle of an argument.
"James. How many times do I have to tell you. I can't afford to get into trouble anymore. If I get caught, I'll never be allowed to set foot in Hogsmeade again," replied a wearisome Rose.
"Well thats the point, Rosie. You're the only one who will, most definitely, not get caught," added Albus.
Rose contemplated their offer for a while. "Well whats the big plan anyway?" she asked skeptically.
"Okay here's the plan," said James, rubbing his hands together and preparing himself for the formal presentation of his elaborate plan.
"From what I hear, we will be taken to the Department of Mysteries as well. Once we get there, we want you to get under the invisibility cloak. Me and Albus will start a fight with Flint and some of his cronies. During this distraction, we want you to go to the time turner room and snatch one of the time turners. We stop fighting once we see that you've returned safely. We leave the place with a newly acquired time turner with which we plan endless pranks and hex nameless people and never get caught again,"
When James finished speaking, both Rose and Albus had a strange twinkle in their eyes. The glitter in Albus's eyes was clearly out of respect for his brother and his brilliant plan. Rose's expression on the other hand was one of pure shock and the twinkle in her eye was a fear for her cousin's sanity.
"You have to be kidding me right? This is a joke. Tell me this is a joke," she said, disbelieving what she just heard.
"We're not kidding Rose. Think of how valuable this will be. We'll never have to worry about getting caught again. We can be at two places at once. We'll always have an alibi," said James, the excitement peaking in his voice.
"James. Do you realize what we're dealing with here. You're talking about 'stealing'. 'Stealing', outside your delusional world, is a crime. I was worried about not being able to go to Hogsmeade. This might well chuck all three of us into Azkaban," she cried, wondering whether her cousins had gone crazy.
"Rosie. Don't you realize that we won't get caught as long as we have the invisibility cloak. Don't you remember Dad telling us that there are no protections placed around these devices. And we aren't stealing them. Not technically. We'll return them once we leave Hogwarts. I'm applying for an internship at the Department of Mysteries, after school. I'll return it once I start working there. We're just borrowing them for a while," said Albus defending his brother's plan.
Rose was still skeptical of this nonsensical plan. She looked away from the pair towards the lake which strangely looked foreboding and she wondered whether it was trying to warn her of messing with time.
"But James. Don't you think it's going to be a bit dangerous. How are we going to use it, once we get hold of them? We don't know much about this stuff," she reasoned, turning her attention back to her cousins.
"How hard can it be Rose. Dad has given Al and me some pointers on how to use it. He wouldn't have dreamed of us getting our hands on one, though,"
"Think about it Rose. You wouldn't have to worry about your mother again. You can keep playing pranks on all those rotten Slytherins without ever getting caught. You can make Scorpius cry and visit Hogsmeade," Albus tried to convince Rose.
The moment Scorpius's name was mentioned, something inside Rose rose up. She was suddenly reminded of all things he said to her in the hospital wing. In fact, ever since her mother's visit, she had been wondering how she was going to find a means to hex Scorpius. It had started to seem like her life's purpose.
Feeling slightly more reckless and foolhardy, she agreed to join in on the mission. The three of them moved closer and started discussing the details of their master plan with an irrepressible excitement, disregarding the dangers posed by their devious plan.
The day of the trip arrived and Rose took particular care in staying out of trouble in the preceding few weeks.
The plan was to start the riot as soon as they entered the Veil room. According to Proffessor Mcgonagall, they would be visiting the time turner room right before it.
Amidst all the commotion, Rose was to get under the invisibility cloak and head for the time turner room. After getting hold of two time turners - one for her and one for Al and James, she was supposed to use the duplicating spell on one of them, and place the two similar looking decoys onto the shelf.
Rose could still not believe she was being a part of this unbelievably stupid plan, but the perks were too attractive to let go. Al and James were right. With a time turner in hand she would never get accused of anything again. She would always have an alibi of being somewhere else at the same time.
The students and the teachers were to travel to the Ministry by the Knight Bus. Stan Shunpike, the lank pimply driver, was looking ecstatic. "Loads of fares for us, innit?" he had said to the driver Ern.
Once they landed in London, the students got into the telephone booth in groups. Most students had never been to the Ministry of Magic before and thus were in awe of the gigantic structures built underground. They were marveled by everything from the golden symbols that were moving around the ceiling, to the polished marble floors which reflected the greenish flames, every time an employee floo'ed in through the fireplace.
They visited each of the departments one by one- with Harry, Ron and Hermione taking particular care in ensuring that their children didn't get up to any tom foolery inside the place. While Harry was skeptical about James and Al, Hermione was nervous as to whether enough distance was maintained between Rose and Scorpius.
Soon they reached the final stop of their little trip, the Department of Mysteries. The teachers could tell that this was the Department that the students were most eager to see. After all, there were countless rumors flying around regarding the mysterious rooms locked in there. "They have underground chambers in which they tickle torture previous Ministers of Magic" cried one student. "Its all part of the Rotfang Conspiracy," said a young Miss Scamander.
The precautions around the room were lifted so that the kids would have no clue as to how to enter the Department, the next time they visited. The only room which they were not going to be taken to, was the love room which was said to be out of bounds for visitors.
Before soon, they reached the much anticipated time turner room. James, Al and Rose looked at the shiny objects laid out on the shelves with a parsimonious gleam, not being able to wait to get their hands on them.
When they entered the Veil room, there was a pervasive silence throughout. The creepiness of the room spread an intense fear among the students, which was intensified once Professor Mcgonagall told them that this was where they studied death.
As Mcgonagall went on with her lecture, James slyly crept up behind Flint while Al snuggled among the students to position himself behind another Slytherin.
"Now if you all move this way we can..."
A bunch of swear words, followed by sounds of fists crashing. The students, stunned, turned around to see from where the disturbance originated. Prof Mcgonagall, who was interrupted, having jumped at hearing the ruckus, went over to where the pandemonium was occurring.
James and Albus were separately tackling two giant Slytherins, without any wands. And even though they weren't winning the bout and being rewarded with plenty of blows on their faces, they kept searching the crowd to see where Rose was.
Rose, gulping, realized that it was time. She looked around to see whether any one was watching and pulled the invisibility cloak on herself. She slunk outside the room, amidst all the noise which was being overridden by cries of Prof Mcgonagall.
Rose, once reaching the time turner room saw the wizard in charge running over to the veil room to see what the disturbance was and she took this opportunity to accio two time turners from the top most ceiling, so that no one would suspect any was missing.
She used the duplicating spell, which gave the two identical time turners, and placed them on the top most shelf. Mean while, she noticed that the voices from the next room piped down.
Smiling widely, with the invisibility cloak still on top of her, she headed for the Veil room. The students, it seemed, had been taken to the next room and Rose was about to make her way through to the door when she heard a loud voice booming from the center of the room.
"Accio time turners!"
Rose wasn't quick enough as the tiny objects went flying from her hands to the other side into another pair of hands, the owner of which was standing on the raised dias, smiling avariciously.
Rose stood panicking and felt her heart drop into her stomach as she heard the following words hurtling across the room into her ears.
"Come out Come out Weasley. I know you're under that thing," spoke out a blond haired Slytherin from the other end, his eyes gleaming maliciously.
A/N: So what did you think? Things will definitely get interesting from the next chapter onwards as we move onto the main story arc. So review and encourage me to write more :D