The Gathering: The New Order of Merlin Book 1

68. The mayhem deal

       Today was the day they would get their answers, but first, they had to sneak past this teacher.

Elsa hid behind a corner while her brother stood so close by, she felt his breath on her neck. Professor Flitwick was strolling down the corridor, holding a giant toad in both hands. As it was Sunday, it would be suspicious for students to wander around classroom corridors, and all Hogwarts staff was on edge due to what happened to Colin Creevey.

As soon as their professor disappeared around the bend, Elsa took her brother's hand, and they sprinted down the corridor and up the stairs. Their synced footsteps brought back memories of sneaking around dark tunnels in what felt like a lifetime ago. If they failed to find their father, they might end up right back in Mother's mountain.

Elsa was over the Moon happy when Jack had told her that The Mirror of Erised was right here in this school! Ah, if only they had asked around earlier... But there was no use for regrets. Today was the day.

"Third floor. Lead the way," she said.

Jack grinned wickedly and pulled her along down the long corridor. "I spoke to Hermione today, and she filled me in on the whole story. Apparently, the three of them had quite an adventure down there last year. She said the entrance is in a room with a trapdoor. From there, we go through a few chambers, and the last one is where the mirror is."

"I just hope it's still there."

"Let's find out."

The corridor seemed to stretch for eons. With each step, the anticipation grew. Elsa needed this to work. She was ready for her own happy ending. When they arrived at the door, she pulled on the handle, but it didn't budge.

Elsa pulled out her wand, said, "Alohomora," and the lock clicked open.

"Hey, that's the same spell Merlin used."

She tried the handle again. This time it moved, but she hesitated. Her heart hammered, ticking away the seconds. This was it. Everything she wanted was behind this door. She would see her father today. Was he a winter spirit like Mother? What did he look like? Was he a Ravenclaw type of person, or Gryffindor, or Slytherin?

Jack put a hand on hers, and they pushed the door open together. It swung with a loud creak, revealing an empty room. The only light streamed through the door they stood in. There was a wooden trapdoor in the center of the room, as promised. Jack grabbed the round handle and lifted it with some effort.

"SURPRISE!!!"

A flash of colors flew out of the hole, and they both jumped back. The trapdoor snapped shut with a deafening bang which could be heard for miles, announcing their location to whoever was patrolling the area.

"Naughty students! I got you! I got you!" Peeves the poltergeist flew around the room and cackled in a high pitch.

Jack grabbed her hand, and they ran out of the room before someone heard it. They rounded the corner and saw Professor Flitwick dancing with his toad, so they turned into another corridor and ran like the wind until Peeves appeared in front of them, forcing them to stop.

He sat in the air cross-legged, like a floating promise of trouble if they ignored him. "What were you two doing?"

"We're just exploring," Jack lied quickly.

Peeves rubbed his hands together and grinned very widely. "Exploring? Peeves is exploring too. I want to explore what you are."

Jack shrugged. "We're students."