Discovery

82.

Term began the following day. Despite going to bed rather early, I had a dreadful night with very little sleep. Nightmares plagued my subconscious and toyed with my emotions.

When I headed downstairs on my way to breakfast, I saw a large group of students surrounding the common room notice boards. I pushed through the crowd and saw a large sign, reading:

APPARITION LESSONS
If you are seventeen years of age, or will turn seventeen on or before the 31st August next, you are eligible for a twelve-week course of Apparition Lessons from a Ministry of Magic Apparition instructor. Please sign below if you would like to participate. Cost: 12 Galleons.

I quickly scrawled my name at the bottom before heading down to the Great Hall. I spotted Ron and Harry in the corridor, so I hurried to catch up with them.

"Did you guys see the notice?" I asked.

"Oh yeah, already put my name down." Ron nodded. "I'd better pass my test first time, though...Fred and George did."

"Charlie failed, though." I mentioned.

"Yeah, but Charlie's bigger than me" — Ron held his arms out from his body as though he was a gorilla — "so Fred and George didn't go on about it much . . . not to his face anyway . . ."

"When can we take the actual test?" Harry asked.

"Soon as we're seventeen. That's only March for me!"

"We get it Ron, you're so old." I teased. He frowned at me in return.

***

That night, Harry had his meeting with Dumbledore. Over breakfast the next day he discussed his task with Ron and I: he needed to retrieve a hidden memory from Slughorn.

"He loves you," Ron said over breakfast, waving an airy forkful of fried egg. "Won't refuse you anything, will he? Not his little Potions Prince. Just hang back after class this afternoon and ask him."

"I doubt it," I cut in, taking a bite of my toast. "If Dumbledore couldn't get it out of him, I don't think anyone can."

"Thanks, Ella." Harry said grumpily. "That's really reassuring."

The topic of Harry's task remained on everyone's brain throughout the day. As we walked through the courtyard, Hermione pondered on the information.

"Horcruxes . . . Horcruxes . . . I've never even heard of them. . . ." she thought aloud.

"You haven't?" Harry asked.

"They must be really advanced Dark Magic, or why would Voldemort have wanted to know about them? I think it's going to be difficult to get the information, Harry, you'll have to be very careful about how you approach Slughorn, think out a strategy. . . ."

"Ron reckons I should just hang back after Potions this afternoon. . . ."

"Oh, well, if Won-Won thinks that, you'd better do it," she said angrily. "After all, when has Won-Won's judgment ever been faulty?"

Before Harry could object, Hermione stormed off.

"I just can't win here, can I?" he asked.