The Perfect Plan

Chapter three

The Perfect Plan

The Letters Home

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"Well there must be some reason that they needed to have a duel so urgently at this time of night," McGonagall said tiredly. She hadn't had much rest this month and these two in particular were the cause of it.

"Minerva, if not this time of night when nobody is around then when?" Snape turned with crossed arms on his chair looking at her.

"When we can stop them of course. This is ludicrous! I shall not sit here whilst my top student is lying on the stone ground downstairs!"

"You're not going on about that again are you? They're fine. If you ask me they asked for it. You don't see me complaining about it do you?"

"Well I wouldn't expect you to, Severus," she said indignantly as she looked away.

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"Enough!" Dumbledore scolded. "We have more pressing issues to deal with than this." There was a silence before both parties just sat there avoiding each other's gaze.

"I apologize to you, Severus. I was out of line."

"I too am sorry, Minerva. It shall not happen again."

There was a snickering coming from behind them on the wall. They all turned to watch one of the past headmasters going through all lengths to keep him from splitting his sides.

"Is there something you find funny?" Dumbledore asked. "Do you care to share?" he said sounding like a true professor. Good, he hadn't lost his touch.

Then the professor erupted in a truckload of laughter. "I am sorry Albus but you understand why this is so funny. You all have no idea what is going on when it's staring you right in the face."

"Oh? Care to enlighten us?" Snape's cool voice said.

"No, not really. I am having too much fun." Then he erupted again.

"Oh forget it," McGonagall snapped. "All I need to know is will she be alright. Is her mother really coming here for her, to take her home?"

"With the potency of the spell, no I don't think that will be necessary. However, if you feel it best the girl go home then she will." McGonagall nodded with understanding.

"Well I'm not sending mine home." She turned to face Snape, shocked.

"Why not?" she asked harshly. "He's been hit by a breed of stunning spell and will probably not wake up until next week the rate they were going at. How could you not want to send him home?" she snapped in a harsh tone.

"As much as I enjoy harassing my students in class if they don't have an answer, I cannot have two of my best students gone, one is bad enough. I'd suffer beyond belief."

"Don't be selfish with this..."

There they go again, Dumbledore thought. He sat and listened to them bickering like children casting glances to the portrait on the wall that was trying to hide his laughter. Then something hit him. That was the same portrait that hung outside his office. It must know what was going on, that was probably why he was laughing. So it's right under my nose.

He was missing something.

Two of the smartest students they had here since Hermione Granger were picking fights with each other more than usual. They broke school rules regularly, at the same time and always with each other. Something wasn't right.

The portrait had come to tell him that there were students fighting outside. That was how he had known they were there in the first place. That's how he knew most things in this castle. Why he didn't think of asking for more information was beyond him. But there must have been a reason they were doing this.

When he drifted out of his thoughts he realised the latter had stopped fighting and were looking at him as if waiting for a response.

"Sir, are you alright?" Snape asked.

"Yes, yes I am fine. I was just thinking that's all." He got up and began to pace, voicing his thoughts. "We are missing something." He turned to them.

"Like what, Dumbledore?" McGonagall asked.

"These are two bright students we have here. In the past month they have been involved in fights that have happened. I hope it is not just I who has realised that they are the only fights we have had here in the past month. Every other house has stayed away from each other, without exception of the rest of the Slytherins and Gryffindors. Unlike other students who are at constant rivalry and only think of their opponent, these two have not let it affect their studies. Their marks stay high and have not dropped. The same goes for the rest of the school. It's as if they care for nothing else, like they just ignore each other."

"Isn't that a good thing, what does that prove? The only thing it has won them is detention." Snape sat back in his chair.

"Yes it has, but it does not seem to deter as it should," Dumbledore replied.

"Well that is true. Each time their punishment is dealt something else turns up that's even worse than before. Poppy has said that she will refuse to heal them anymore," McGonagall inserted.

"And now they're rendering each other unconscious, using magic in the corridors after curfew in front of my office. These are not your run of the mill delinquents. They are too smart for that."

"Don't you think you're giving them just a little too much credit? This kind of thinking is done by the Ravenclaws. No offense to Gryffindor, but this is not exactly their field of action. They much prefer to either ask or fight for it first," Snape said.

"No, I do not. They have goals Severus, and detention is obviously not one of them."

"So what are they after then?"

"I have no idea, but we shall have to wait for their parents to show up if we intend to find out."

***

There was that tapping again.

What the hell is that? Ginny said in her dream. She had searched everywhere but couldn't find it. She was in Hogwarts again, on her way out of her dormitory and getting ready to sneak outside. She knew how late it was, but no Gryffindor is a true Gryffindor unless they've snuck out after curfew, right?

She climbed down the stairs towards the common room and noticed that Ron was still there with Hermione... was he reading?

Now I know I'm dreaming, she thought.

Thankfully she had reached the exit before Ron had a moment of awareness and turned toward the stairs leading to the dormitories to see who was there.

Then she crept quietly out of the portrait hole.

The corridors seemed a lot larger at night. It must have been because in the daylight the corridors were filled with students filing to their classrooms or on their way to dinner.

Hmm, dinner sounds good. She turned left at the next corner after running down the moving staircases and entered the Great Hall. Every table was filled with food. It was everywhere. The Gryffindors table was littered with roast chicken and potatoes among others. Hufflepuff had the entrée whilst Ravenclaws occupied the appetizers. On Slytherins table stood dessert.

Figures, even my dreams are screwed up.

Tap, Tap, Tap.

Then there was an almighty crash.

"Son of a bitch!" Ginny yelled as she woke up. She noted the darkness and felt for her wand. "Lumos." The ground was scattered with glass pieces of her ex-window pane. "Urgh!" she yelled as she threw her pillow at the cursed bird.

***

The pillow deftly avoided the bird, as it flew out the window, leaving the owl sitting happily and unfazed on the windowsill.

Draco turned over, vowing to clean up the mess in the morning. Oh wait, it is morning, he thought to himself. He looked at the clock, it said twelve thirty. Oh you are kidding me, he thought angrily.

The owl started to hoot at him. "Bloody school birds always getting into my damn sleep! What? What! What do you want from me now! What?" he yelled at the owl as it sat on his head, which rested under his other pillow.

He let out an infuriated whimper. "Go away, please, I want to get some sleep!" he implored. The owl didn't move. He shoved it off of his pillow and sat up. "Alright, I'm up, what do you want?" The owl stretched out its leg displaying the letter with the Hogwarts seal. He thought back to before he had given up his blissful sleep. He had actually noticed it was a school bird.

"Astie..." There must have been only one reason they would contact him this late at night. Quickly he undid the note and opened it, scanning it for any upsetting news, ignoring the bird as it flew off through the broken window. He paused at one word and read it properly this time from the beginning.

Dear Mr. Malfoy,

We regret to inform you that your son has been involved in a duel of sorts with a young girl. He is now unconscious, as is she. In the space of one month he has been reprimanded a number of times on his incessant need to break almost all of our school rules to his liking. He has received a number of detentions and has been involved in more than one fight; he has even thrown hexes during class with no regard of respect to his teachers. In light of recent events we shall be awaiting your arrival tomorrow morning to discuss his punishment.

Yours Sincerely,

Professor Albus Dumbledore

Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry

Draco tore up the letter in a fit of his own rage.

***

Ginny watched the torn pieces float messily to the ground as she gritted her teeth in anger.

"I'll kill her." She turned back to her bed and went back to sleep vowing to clean up the mess in the morning. Oh wait it is morning, she thought bitterly, and closed her eyes trying to get back to sleep. Tomorrow she would have to get up early again to catch the Hogwarts train, despite it being a Friday.