Apologies for yet another delay. Turns out, the medical condition I had, required a surgery. Unfortunately, there was a bit of a screw up during the surgery and doctors couldn't fix it. So I had to travel to another city and be admitted in another hospital there. Had yet another surgery and this time they managed to fix it. Now I'm officially home for good.

Sirius and Remus' jaws dropped to the floor. Dumbledore's eyebrows raised in surprise, and Harry's brain practically shut down for a few seconds. When it finally rebooted, he incredulously repeated, "Pregnant?!... HOW!? Oh gods! Don't tell me you did it with Luke!"

She waved her hands frantically, "No! No! No! Luke didn't touch me! You know, for a despot bent on destroying the gods, he was actually a heck of a gentleman. I guess it all began when he sent me on a recruitment mission at this place called Goode High School. Turns out, I had to recruit two emp… amp… Ah! Sod this! Vampire girls."

Harry helped her out, "Empousai."

She nodded gratefully, "Yeah, them. All I had to do was observe them for a few months then then approach them at the start of the year. I entered, posing as an assistant professor, or teacher, as they say in the States. Then I happened to meet this bloke called Paul Blofis. He teaches English and we actually kind of hit it off. We hung out a few times after school, and then… we… er… kind of, sort of hooked up. Also, I kind of had to report that your friend Jackson showed up because he had just enrolled. Luke advised not to do anything and said that if they attacked him, that would sort of be their audition. At the end of that mess, only one made it out alive and I recruited her."

Harry cupped his chin, "So that's the mystery solved, but where does that put you now?"

She replied, "Honestly, I thought I did a decent job of hiding it. But now, I'm just starting to show. Luke noticed and confronted me on the Princess Andromeda. He was pretty blunt about it, and said that I was lucky that he was the one who found out. He said, 'You're lucky that I figured it out before anyone else. Had any of the Titans found out, you would have been put to death as a liability.'"

Harry and everyone in the office grew pale at the thought. Tonks quickly continued, "He also said, 'I'm not kidding, Natalia. Lucky for you, I'm more merciful. I'm not a monster. Tell you what, why don't you take some leave of absence and you can come back when you feel up to it. Don't worry about the Titans, I'll cover for you.'"

She glanced at him a little sheepishly, "Sorry Harry… I know you were counting on me to pass on information."

He raised his arms placatingly, "No, no, that's alright. You've been very helpful. We just need to- Di immortales! I've got it! Give me a minute or two, I'll be right back!"

He raced down the stairs and sprinted to Gryffindor Tower. Harry gave the password and entered through the portrait, ignoring the Fat Lady's tutting about being out so late. The Common Room was empty, and his dorm-mates were already asleep. He went to his suitcase and heaved the sphere that still contained Rita Skeeter, who was now looking really bored.

She perked up at the sight of Harry, and he grinned at her, "Today's your lucky day. I'd like to cut a deal with you. First, could you turn back into your Animagus form? I'm going to shrink the sphere."

She dutifully obeyed and he shrunk the sphere with a quick Reducio spell and put it in his pocket. A few minutes later, he sprinted back to the Headmaster's Office. Inside, Tonks tilted her head curiously, "So, what's this big plan of yours?"

Harry triumphantly fished out the sphere and brandished it. Sirius shot him a deadpan look, "Really? A bug? I know you can talk to animals, kiddo, but a bug?"

Harry grinned, "This isn't an ordinary bug, Sirius."

He enlarged the sphere, and before their very eyes, the beetle transformed into Rita Skeeter. Sirius' eyes gleamed, "Well, well, well, Rita Skeeter… I guess we've finally figured out how you get your juicy gossip! I'm guessing that you're unregistered?"

She had a sheepish smile inside the sphere, "Guilty as charged. Now Harry, could you let me out? It's getting stuffy in here. I promise not to run off, mostly because I'm still intrigued about this deal."

He let her out and then launched into an explanation about the demigod world. As he talked, her eyes grew wider and wider. He talked about the Gods, the existence of demigods, the Titans, the First Titan war, and more. Finally, he revealed that the demigod world is on the brink of a second war.

There were times when she was a bit disbelieving, but he dropped the bombshell about the Founders being demigods. That was enough to pique her interest. Finally she said, "So, why are you telling me all this?"

He explained slowly, "I would like you to become our spy. Of course, I'm not asking you to do it now. I think everyone would find it odd that one of the Prophet's top journalists suddenly skipped out in the middle of the Tournament. Preferably, after it is over, you could tell your bosses that you are on a long-term assignment."

She cupped her chin and peered at him through her horn-rimmed glasses, "Sounds very tempting, but what are the consequences if the Titans win?"

Harry said darkly, "If they win, they will destroy the entire world and rebuild it in their image. They wouldn't care about the Wizarding World at all. So could you please help us in our cause? In return, we will be quiet about your unregistered status, though I'm sure Sirius expects you to register in the near future."

She thought about it for a long time, and then she nodded firmly. Skeeter said, "Okay… I will do it. So where do you want me to go?"

Tonks spoke up, "There's a large white cruise ship called the Princess Andromeda. One of the main leaders of the enemy faction is a demigod called Luke Castellan."

Rita nodded, "Excellent! Once the Tri-Wizard Tournament concludes, I can make up something for my bosses."

With that successful negotiation done, Sirius escorted Harry back to his dorm for a well-earned rest.

The next morning, all the students were still coming down from the high that was last night's Yule Ball. Harry gathered his friends and told them about Skeeter being an Animagus and the deal he struck with her. Ron gave a low whistle, "Blimey! So that's how she was able to get all of her gossip. Mum isn't too fond of her, but for some reason, still reads her columns."

Then he noticed something in the background, "Uhh… What the bloody hell is happening?"

Harry turned and saw strange activity at the Slytherin table. Normally, the Slytherins kept to themselves and never strayed away from their table. However, many of them were breaking away in clumps and slotting into seats at other houses or inviting them to join them at the Slytherin table. This even included a fair number of students at the Gryffindor table. Other than strange looks, no one really said a thing. The only ones staying at the Slytherin table were a few older students. A sulky Malfoy stayed where he was, as did Merula Snyde, Vincent Crabbe and Gregory Goyle.

Then, Harry felt movement next to him and turned to see Pansy and her friends nonchalantly helping themselves to some porridge. He nudged her gently and she raised an eyebrow at him after taking a spoonful in her mouth. Harry asked, "Am I missing something? Normally, you lot don't mingle with other houses, and when you do, it's in secret."

Across from her, Cassandra Vole primly said, "Well… Let's just say, there was a massive shift in power in Slytherin. Ever since he entered Hogwarts in First-Year, Malfoy had a lot of power. Especially since his father was on the Board of Governors, so he could get away scot free with a lot of shite."

Hermione tilted her head curiously, "But we don't have that kind of system in Gryffindor."

Daphne answered her, "I don't know when it started, but has been like that in Slytherin for years. Anyway, to back up Cassandra's point, Malfoy had a lot of power simply because of who his father was. However, ever since Lucius Malfoy was found dead during the World Cup fiasco, it began shifting. Sure, Malfoy still held a lot of power and imposed a set of rules where we could not interact with anyone outside Slytherin. Then the incident with Rowan Khanna happened. At that moment, whatever power Draco had, vanished. He didn't raise the wand himself, but he did tell Snyde and Murk to do something to Potter. Obviously, no one wanted a such a person in power, especially one who had his hand in a murder."

Blaise continued, "Naturally, there was a power vacuum in our House. Now Daphne's the one who's in control, and she changed the rules."

Daphne turned to Harry, "Ever since you told us about demigods, I've been doing a lot of thinking. Even did a fair amount of research in my family library. Turns out, my ancestors used to worship the Gods, especially Apollo, God of Medicine. I guess that explains why most of my family members are Healers."

Pansy asked softly, "Potter, when you saved me from that Chimaera monster, what were you doing at the St. Louis Arch. I doubt it was for sight-seeing, like my folks and I."

He answered in a low voice, "You remember the three who were with me? The four of us were on an important quest. Apparently, Lord Zeus' Lightning Bolt, his symbol of power, was stolen. Naturally, he was infuriated, and that also explained the wonky weather we had back in the middle of our First-Year."

Tracey leaned forward, "So who stole it?"

"Initially, Poseidon was accused, because it could have been a power move. Now, the Gods are forbidden from stealing each other's symbols of power. Then, it transpired that Poseidon had a demigod son, Percy Jackson. So Lord Zeus thought that Poseidon's son stole it. Now, I know Jackson well, he's a good friend, so he didn't steal it. So the quest was about finding the real culprit and clearing Jackson's name."

Ron continued, "Trust me, it was not a bloody easy quest. Harry and his demigod friends faced many monsters along the way."

Harry nodded, "Yeah, but that's a story for another time. We've got class in about 10 minutes."

With that, they all finished their breakfast and went about their day.

Sometime during lunch, Harry felt a gentle tap on his shoulder and turned to see Cho Chang behind him. She smiled, "Hey Harry! First off, I loved that little number you did with Delacour. Any chance you could teach me and Cedric? Oh, and speaking of Cedric, he wants a word with you in the Library."

After she left, Ron leaned over, "What do you reckon that's about?"

Harry shrugged, "Don't know. He hasn't given me any reason not to trust him. I'll go see what he wants."

Later on, Harry made his way to the Library and spotted Cedric. The Hufflepuff senior grinned and waved him over to join him. As Harry took a seat, Cedric whispered, "Listen mate, I owe you one for telling me about the dragons. Does your egg wail when you open it?"

Harry nodded, "Yep! Did it twice and it created an awful din every time. Both times were in the Common Room, and the second time summoned McGonagall. She threatened to deduct points if she heard the racket again."

Cedric winced, "Oof! She is a hard taskmaster, eh? Sprout wasn't any better when I opened it in my Common Room. But that's all past history, I figured out a way. Just… take a bath and take the egg with you. I don't mean a shower, though. Tell you what, you can use the Prefect's Bathroom. Fourth door to the left of that statue of Boris the Bewildered on the fifth Floor. Since I'm a prefect, I know the password, its 'Pine Fresh'. Just trust me on this."

The two of them casually chatted for a while longer and then Harry got up to leave. Soon afterwards, he re-joined his friends and relayed the piece of advice that Cedric imparted. That put them all in deep thought for a long time. Ron mused, "If it was anyone else but a Hufflepuff, I would be a bit cautious. But the Puffs usually believe in fair play, so I say you listen to him."

Then he glanced at his watch, "Oi Harry, I don't mean to rush you, mate, but we've got Care of Magical Creatures in 10 minutes."

That was enough for the four of them to scramble away and get ready for their classes. Soon, Ron and Harry joined their classmates and followed Hagrid, who bore an odd expression briefly. He called out, "Alright you lot! Follow me! I thought you all could use a break from the Skrewts. So I've got something special for you!"

They trotted after him around the paddock where the Beauxbatons Abraxan horses were shivering. Just then, they spotted a small fenced enclosure on the edge of the forest. Inside it was a large and beautiful unicorn.

Many of the girls 'ooooohed!' at the sight of the unicorn.

"Oh it's so beautiful!" whispered Lavender Brown. "How did he find one!? I heard that they're supposed to be really hard to catch!"

The unicorn was so brightly white it made the snow all around look gray. It was pawing the ground nervously with its golden hooves and throwing back its horned head. Hagrid called out, "Now normally, unicorns prefer the touch of a woman. Its largely assumed that women are more pure of heart than men. However, the younger ones have no problems letting males approach. Now, girls, why don't you all line up one by one and see him."

Harry heard the unicorn neigh indignantly, "I am female! Thank you very much you big oaf!"

Suppressing the urge to snicker Harry whispered to Ron, "Actually, this unicorn's a female."

After the girls oohed and aahed over the unicorn, Harry raised a hand. He asked, "Professor Hagrid? Can I try and approach?"

Hagrid beamed, "Of course you can, Harry!"

Harry slowly approached the unicorn and she spotted him. The horned equine slowly trotted over to him and began nuzzling him. He gently stroked her silvery-white mane and she leaned further into his touch. Hagrid's smile was so wide that one would have half-expected his face to split into two. He cheered, "Brilliant Harry! You're a natural!"

After dismissing the class, Harry and Ron stayed back to talk to Hagrid. Harry asked, "Hey Hagrid, are you okay? I thought I was imagining things but you seem a little down in the dumps."

Hagrid let out a deep sigh, "Harry… I like you a lot. You're a great friend. I was just a little put out that you interrupted during the Yule Ball."

Harry blinked, "Oh… oh! Sorry! Were you and Madame Maxime having a moment? Sorry if I interrupted that. I know you like her and I hope that didn't blow any chances."

Hagrid waved him off, "Nonsense! I was actually talking to her because I was convinced that she was a half giant, like I am. Was actually asking which side of the family she got it from."

Ron's eyes widened, "Hagrid! You can't just suddenly ask her that! Look, most purebloods don't look too kindly on people who have creature heritage! I'm pretty sure Maxime would have been trying to hide it! You can't just go around in Wizarding Britain, saying that you're a half giant! You're lucky that Harry interrupted!"

Harry also chipped in, "Yeah about that… Rita Skeeter was eavesdropping on your conversation. She's an unregistered Animagus, a beetle. I managed to catch her before you confessed, so you pretty much dodged a bullet."

Ron grimaced, "Too right, mate. Knowing Skeeter, she would have exposed you and the Board of Governors would have forced Dumbledore to fire you."

Then it was Hagrid's turn to blink. Then he mused, "Golly! I hadn't thought of it that way. I should apologise to Maxime."

With that, he shuffled away and the boys went for their next class. After classes, Ron was dragged away by the twins for Quidditch practice. The Slytherin match-up was in one week and the Gryffindor team were working hard.

Finally, the day dawned and it would be a big day for Gryffindor. It would be the first time since his debut that the team were playing without him. Harry and Hermione made their way to the stands and he settled down between her and Ginny. Neville, Bianca and Mackenzie were sitting right behind them.

In just a few minutes, Madam Hooch's whistle blew and the game was underway. Harry noted that Robyn was adopting his own strategy of 'wait and watch'. The Chasers were doing their own thing, and the Weasley Twins were assisting the Chasers or interrupting Slytherin's play. However, he noticed that Malfoy had parked himself near Ron, who was keeping.

Next to Harry, Ginny grimaced. She moaned, "Oh no! I was afraid of this happening. Look, Ron's an excellent Keeper, but he tends to get rattled easily. I have a horrible feeling that Malfoy's going to annoy him and get in his head. Ron doesn't respond well to sledging."

Sure enough, Ginny's prediction was coming true. From a total of 15 attempts from the Slytherin Chasers, eight went in, three were saved by Ron and four missed the target. Angelina, Alicia and Katie were trying their best to mitigate the damage but could only score one each.

Bianca asked Ginny, "Surely Ron can just ignore Malfoy and block him out?"

Ginny smiled wryly, "That's all good in theory, but back home in the Burrow, Ron always fell victim to Fred or George's taunts."

Harry was in deep thought when he suddenly latched onto one word. He gasped, "Block… block… block! Bianca you're a genius!"

He whipped his head around and turned to Mackenzie, "Kenzie! I've got an idea! Can you head to my dorm and open my suitcase! Operation Siren! Meet me in the Changing Room!"

The puzzle pieces arranged themselves in her brain and she sprang to her feet. She saluted, "Yes Alpha!", and scampered away.

It only clicked a couple of seconds after she was out of sight, "Wait… what did she call me?"

Next to him, Hermione stroked her chin, "She called you Alpha. But why?... Wait! Harry, your Animagus form is a dire wolf right? And you're the leader of the Hunters? It makes sense! I remember you telling me that you were still thinking of a name for your Animagus form. 'Alpha' is perfect!"

Then, Harry tried to get Katie's attention. After a few tries, she flew over and he yelled out, "Tell Angelina to call for a time-out! Ron's getting massacred out there! I have an idea!"

Harry wormed his way through the crowd and sprinted for the Gryffindor Changing Room. He made it to his destination and got the package from Mackenzie. He was just in time to hear Angelina's angry voice and his reflexes caught a Quidditch helmet being flung out the door.

The dark-skinned Chaser was screaming, "Okay… WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT, RONALD? THE TWINS ASSURED ME THAT YOU WERE GOOD AND YOU WERE ACTUALLY DECENT IN PRACTICE! SO WHY THE FUCK DID YOU SUDDENLY JUST CRUMBLE!"

Ron argued back, "Hey! It's not so easy when Malfoy is constantly hovering over my shoulder and annoying me! The wanker can't keep his trap shut and was constantly heckling me!"

Alicia's calmer voice then sounded out, "Look Ron, we all know Malfoy is an ass. But heckling and sledging is part of the game. You've got to learn how to handle it."

That was when Harry decided to make his presence known. He moved in from his position, leaning by the doorway. Harry said, "That may be, but he can't exactly fix that in the next 15 minutes. Don't worry, I have an idea though."

Everyone grinned and Angelina placed her hands on her hips. She said, "Okay Harry, let's hear it."

Harry walked up to Ron, "Mate, this is going to be a very risky plan because it relies on you not hearing anything at all."

He handed the redhead two earplug-sized lumps of candle wax. Ron stuffed them in his ears, waited and then took them off. He gasped, "Blimey! It actually works! Now I can finally block out that ponce's annoying voice."

Harry turned to Katie, "Hey Katie, how quickly can you teach everyone sign language? Ron won't be able to hear anyone at all, so you will have to rely on hand gestures. Ron, you'll also have to be extra careful about the Bludgers, since you won't be able to hear them. Also, this is just a temporary solution. Alicia's right that taunting is part of the game. You just have to have thicker skin, but you guys will work on that in practices, right?"

Ron stuffed his ears again and saluted, "You got it, mate! I won't let anyone down!"

With that sorted, Harry and Mackenzie went back to their seats. Ginny leaned over and asked Hermione, "So what's a Siren?"

Hermione shot her a look, "Why are you asking me? Harry's the expert."

Ginny rolled her eyes, "Surely you would have read about it?"

The reply came, "Actually, I never really read any mythology books."

Harry's head snapped towards her in shock. Then he sniggered, "And here I thought that you were a bookworm and inhaled every book in the world! I am so holding this over your head!"

She scowled, "Yes, yes, laugh it up. Get it out of your system. Ron also couldn't believe it either. Now are you going to answer her question or not?"

He controlled himself and then explained, "After my Second Year, I was on a quest to venture into the Sea of Monsters. One major obstacle was the island of the Sirens. They were basically sea nymphs who used to lured sailors to their deaths with bewitching songs and voices. Think of them as more powerful and more dangerous versions of Veela. We stuffed our ears with candle wax to block out the sound of their voices."

Ginny mused, "That's useful. At least Ron won't have to suffer from hearing Malfoy."

Sure enough, once the players flew out, there was a marked difference out there. Lee Jordan excitedly yelled, "Blimey! Keeper Weasley is on fire! Bet he must have been kicking himself after that shambolic first half and is determined to make up for it."

Murphy McNully babbled next to him, "Captain Angelina Johnson must have cooked up one hell of a half-time speech! The Chasers are in fine form as usual, the Weasley Beaters are wreaking havoc on the Slytherin lines, and Seeker Thistlethwaite is keeping out of trouble on her hunt for the Snitch! Malfoy is still hovering over Ron Weasley but it looks like his sledging tactics aren't working!"

Sure enough, Ron kept ignoring Malfoy's insults and did not let a single goal in. Deftly saving one shot, he pulled of a short burst of speed and lobbed it as hard as he could. The Quaffle took off like a rocket and almost sailed to the other side of the pitch. Alicia quickly caught it and scored a goal, eliciting cheers from Harry and the Gryffindors. She flew back and high-fived Ron before resuming the attack.

The girls were relentless and the scoreboard quickly saw Slytherin's lead shrink. By his position near the goalposts, Draco Malfoy was absolutely baffled. In the first half of the game, Weasley was absolute putty. Now, he was not responding at all to his taunts. He drifted closer and yelled out, "Oi Weasley! Have you gone deaf? I'm surprised Potter didn't give you his Firebolt! I guess you aren't his best mate after all!"

Still no response as Ron was focusing on Miles Bletchley heading his way. He braced himself and got ready to pull off another save as Bletchley flung the Quaffle. Suddenly, Ron's field of vision was filled by Draco Malfoy hovering in front of him and he was yelling something.

Malfoy yelled, "Oi Weasley! Do you hear me? Weasley?! Are you so poor that you can't afford a Healer for your ears? Weasley! Weas-" *BONK* "Ow! Watch where you're throwing that, you plonker!"

Bletchley's throw had smacked the back of an unsuspecting Malfoy's head. The two of them began arguing fiercely, and all the while, Ron calmly collected the loose Quaffle and lobbed it at Katie to trigger the counter-attack.

Gryffindor slowly took the lead and the game continued raging. Finally, Robyn's relaxed flying ceased and she took off like a bat out of hell. Malfoy reacted as well, but he was too far away. He tailed after her and the chase began in earnest.

In the end, Robyn pulled off a death-defying dive and levelled off, a few meters from the ground. She brandished her arm and the struggling Snitch fluttered in her hands. On cue, Lee Jordan went ballistic, "She's done it! Robyn Thistlethwaite has got the Snitch! Gryffindor are proving that even without Harry Potter, they are a force to be reckoned with! No offence, Harry!"

The celebrating team dismounted and the rest of the house swarmed them. Ron definitely enjoyed the outraged look on Malfoy's face when he removed his helmet and pulled out the make-shift earplugs.

Before long, the red tsunami disappeared inside the castle and burst into the Gryffindor Common Room. In no time at all, Fred and George had the whole room decked out and ready for a party.

Lee Jordan seized Ron's arm and raised it high, "There he is! The man of the hour! Bloody hell, mate! In the second half of the game you were an absolute beast!"

The crowd roared its approval and chanted Ron's name over and over. Then Ron hollered above the sound, "Oi! Oi! Listen!"

The crowd quietened down and Ron grabbed Harry's arm and dragged him up next to him. He announced, "I can't take full credit! I owe this to Harry! He came up with the idea to block up my ears so that I can ignore Malfoy!"

Harry replied, "Yeah that's true, but your skills were all yours, mate."

Everyone cheered and the party was in full swing and continued well into the evening. After night fell, Harry sneaked up the stairs to his dorm room and retrieved the Egg as well as the Marauder's Map. He managed to sneak out and headed to the Prefects' Bathroom. When he reached the statue of Boris the Bewildered, a lost-looking wizard with his gloves on the wrong hands, he located the right door, leaned close to it, and muttered the password, "Pine fresh," just as Cedric had told him.

The room was softly lit by a splendid candle-filled chandelier, and everything was made of white marble, including what looked like an empty, rectangular swimming pool sunk into the middle of the floor. About a hundred golden taps stood all around the pool's edges, each with a differently coloured jewel set into its handle.

There was also a diving board. Long white linen curtains hung at the windows; a large pile of fluffy white towels sat in a corner, and there was a single golden-framed painting on the wall. It featured a blonde mermaid who was fast asleep on a rock, her long hair over her face. It fluttered every time she snored.

Finally, Harry snapped himself out of his admiring state. He reminded himself that he had a job to do. He filled the large Olympic-sized pool and shucked off his robes. Taking the egg, he dunked it underwater, took a deep breath and submerged himself as well. He opened the egg and a chorus of eerie voices sang to him. It sang,

"Come seek us where our voices sound,

We cannot sing above the ground,

And while you're searching, ponder this:

We've taken what you'll sorely miss,

An hour long you'll have to look,

And to recover what we took,

But past an hour — the prospect's black,

Too late, it's gone, it won't come back."

The song repeated on loop a couple of times until he had it memorized. As he surfaced, a familiar voice sounded, "You figured it out a lot faster than the Hufflepuff Hottie. And that was despite the mermaid flashing him her tits several times. Also, I wish we had more demigod wizards! You could break rocks with that six pack."

Harry jumped and turned to see Moaning Myrtle floating above him. He promptly used the frothy bubbles in the water to preserve his modesty. The boy exclaimed, "Myrtle! Do you mind!? You usually spy on everyone in the toilets?"

She shrugged, "A girl has needs. Even if we're ghosts."

He retorted, "Sorry Myrtle! I'm not going to give you a show! Can you give me some privacy please? I promise I'll ask Bianca and Nico to put in a word for you with their dad."

The ghost girl pouted and then phased through the wall to goodness knows where. Meanwhile, Harry got changed, closed the egg and sneaked back towards the Gryffindor Common Room. Along the way, he consulted the map and noted that for some odd reason, Barty Crouch was in Snape's office.

Snape himself was not there, so Harry assumed that Crouch was waiting for the Potions master. He recalled from his interaction with Percy that Crouch was ill, so maybe he went to Snape for some potion remedies. With that, he forged ahead.

After a while, he neared a staircase and heard angry voices. He crept closer and spotted Filch complaining about Peeves as usual. However, he was joined by Professor Snape. Harry just about caught the last part of the conversation, "-and when I passed my office, I saw that the torches were lit and a cupboard door was ajar! Somebody has been searching it!"

Filch snarled, "Has to be Peeves! That damn Poltergeist will be the death of me someday."

Snape snapped, "It wasn't! I seal my office with a spell none but a wizard could break. I want you to come and help me search for the intruder, Filch."

Just then, there was a familiar clunking sound. Harry slipped further into the shadows and watched as Moody limped over. Moody was wearing his old traveling cloak over his nightshirt and leaning on his staff as usual.

"Pyjama party, is it?" he growled up the stairs.

"Professor Snape and I heard noises, Professor," said Filch at once. "Peeves the Poltergeist, throwing things around as usual — and then Professor Snape discovered that someone had broken into his off —"

"Shut up!" Snape hissed to Filch.

"Did I hear that correctly, Snape?" Moody asked slowly. "Someone broke into your office?"

"It is unimportant," said Snape coldly.

"On the contrary," growled Moody, "it is very important. Who'd want to break into your office?"

"A student, I daresay," said Snape crisply. "It has happened before. Potion ingredients have gone missing from my private store cupboard... students attempting illicit mixtures, no doubt..."

"Reckon they were after potion ingredients, eh?" said Moody. "Not hiding anything else in your office, are you?"

It anything, that question appeared to irk Snape. He spoke in a soft and dangerous voice, "You know I'm hiding nothing, Moody. You've searched my office pretty thoroughly yourself."

Moody shrugged, "Auror privileges. Dumbledore's asked me to keep an eye on you. Especially after that tragic incident with the Khanna boy, and the culprit was one of your own. Maybe you don't have enough control over your House as you think."

Snape grit his teeth, "Dumbledore happens to trust me. I refuse to believe that he gave you orders to search my office!"

Harry figured that this was all very interesting, but he had no intention of getting caught. He quietly snuck off to re-join his House mates. The party was still going on, so no one really noticed his absence.