It was really unlike her to be slipping out of bed at this time of night. She wasn't about to wait in the long line after the feast though and she had promised herself that she would enter. It was nearly eleven when she slipped out of the girl's dorms and into the common room.
"Night," one of Sander's friends said to him as he sluggishly got up and forced himself to walk across the common room. He only gave Autumn a small glance as he dragged himself past her. He was one of the boys that hung out with Sander that Autumn didn't like.
Sander rose from one of the black arm chairs by the fire. He had to do a double take at Autumn, as if she had scared him. "Oh—Autumn."
"Expecting a ghost?" she replied, trying to stifle a grin.
"No. I think all the ghosts are asleep by now." He looked down to Autumn's attire. "Going out?" he asked, his mouth pressed into a tight line suddenly. "Do I have to alert one of the prefects?"
Autumn couldn't tell if he was joking or not. "I'm just going up to the Great Hall real quick." When his expression still didn't falter, she added, "The line earlier was so long and you know me...all hell bent."
"Stupid determination," he said, but took a step forward. "Goodnight, Autumn."
As he rushed by to the dormitories, she whispered a goodnight that she hoped he caught.
Autumn crept carefully out of the dungeon's entrance, making sure that no teachers were guarding the Great Hall. Tonight wasn't her night though.
"Hunter!" she heard a voice call from her right.
Her whole body froze up as Professor Potter walked up to her from the Great Hall. "Pro-Professor, what are you doing here?"
"I think I'm the one that should be asking that exact question, Hunter," Professor Potter said, both hands behind his back.
"I was worried about my Transfiguration homework you see—so I was going to go seek Professor McGongall-"
He raised a hand to stop her. "Autumn, Transfiguration homework is either very hard for the entire school tonight or you students have all plotted to use the same excuse."
Autumn tried to speak but no words seem to make it past her tongue. She lowered her head in defeat; she knew she had been caught. It was just her luck that the first time she had ever left the common room this late at night without an excuse, she would get caught.
"Now I suggest you just try entering in the morning. The Headmaster told us not to allow anymore entries past ten o'clock."
Autumn would have protested but since Professor Potter wasn't giving her detention—yet-she figured that she could just wait out the night. She would just have to accept defeat and crawl back into her bed. Before she could agree and turn around, Professor Guyiley came strolling over to investigate.
"Do you have a Potions question for Professor Raventon,
Hunter? Or perhaps Herbology homework was too hard this early in the year?"
"N-no, Professor," Autumn managed to say. "I was just on my way back to the dorm-"
Professor Potter cut her off again. "Now, now, Margery, I have the situation under control."
"Ten points from Hufflepuff? And a detention? I do hope that was the punishment, Harry."
Autumn awkwardly sunk back until she bumped brick. She knew that this would not end well—especially since they were speaking on first name basis.
"I know how to hand out punishments," Professor Potter fought back. Autumn had never seen him so irked. "Twenty points from Hufflepuff will be taken—Headmaster's orders—and Miss Hunter will have detention with me."
Autumn felt like the air had been knocked out of her. She would be the first Hufflepuff this year to get points deducted. She wanted to suddenly evaporate from the spot. She was suddenly disappointed with her stupid stubbornness to enter the tournament. She would rip up her name when she got back to her dormitory.
She also wanted to voice her opinion on having detention but she really didn't want to test her luck and have the punishment doubled—or tripled.
"You may go back to your dormitory, Autumn," Professor Potter said. He still looked hostile towards Professor Guyiley but he gave Autumn a reassuring smile.
Autumn bowed out at that and all but ran back to the dorms. She was deeply disappointed in herself. Detention and points deducted. If her mother found out...
Before she could do anymore damage, she mumbled the password to the Hufflepuff common room angrily and slipped inside. Someone in the far corner got up from a chair.
"That was fast," he commented.
Autumn looked over to Sander and decided not even to bother, no matter how curious she was as to why he was back in the common room. Was he...waiting for her?
"I didn't enter," Autumn said. She wished she had corrected her tone first, she sounded a bit like she would rip out his throat if he said something else.
"Did Professor Potter catch you?" Sander asked her, an amused look on his face.
She suddenly did feel like lunging at him. "You—you knew?"
"I'm sorry I didn't warn you. I managed to slip all the way up to the entrance of the Great Hall without being caught. Ten points from Hufflepuff." He suddenly looked very ashamed. "I decided just to throw my name into a different fire."
Autumn could barely believe her ears. "You tried to enter?"
"That's why Justin and I were sitting in here so late. Stupid split-second decision," he said, looking down at the fire in front of him. "Fueled by influence from the gits I hang out with."
She didn't really know how to answer to that. He had promised his father...he had seemed so sincere when trying to talk her out of entering. "I have Transfiguration in the morning," she said finally. "And I just can't wait to find out the details of my detention."
"Detention?" Sander perked up. "Did you try to jinx Professor Potter on your way to the Goblet?"
"Goodnight Sander." She then turned on her heel and walked off to her dorm. Sander's sudden bravery to enter the tournament made her not rip up the piece of paper in her robe, however.
The Great Hall was packed as early as six o'clock. Autumn sat at her usual spot, watching students toss their names into the Goblet of Fire. She had a free period this year, however, and she planned to enter then. She had to finish Transfiguration homework while eating breakfast, since she really was having a hard time with it.
Someone nudged her left side. Sander took a seat. "I'm not interrupting anything am I? Oh no—we learned about turning animals into silverware third year."
Autumn didn't say anything as she quickly filed in the correct answer. She looked over at Sander and then looked down the table where Sander's friends were barely starting to form their usual clique at the Hufflepuff table. "Why aren't you with your friends?"
"I am with a friend," Sander answered quickly. "A friend who obviously didn't pay attention to third year Transfiguration."
She was going to jab him in the side when June walked up. "If you two sit together one more time—I'd say you were a couple."
Autumn felt her blood go cold and her cheeks burned. "I forgot a quill I need for Charms—gotta get back to the dorms—I knew if forgot something," she mumbled feverishly as she packed up her belongings into her bag. "Good day, guys," she said as her goodbye and zoomed off.
She would just have to take her homework up the the library. She passed students all dressed in powder blue on her way, they were speaking French and seemed to be having a good time. She realized that she was alone, and for once, she wished that June or Sander had pursued after her and made her stay.