Secrets- A Severus Snape Story

Chapter 4- The Maurauders Map and The Great Tale of Sirius Black (part 1)

After the Sirius Black incident had died down, the teachers saw it best to allow the students to venture to Hogmeade on the last weekend of term before Christmas. As a result of his aunt and uncle not signing his consent form that meant that Harry wouldn't get to attend the Hogsmeade trips the school were offering for years three and above. 

On the Saturday Morning of the Hogsmeade trip, Harry bid Ron and Hermione goodbye, who were wrapped in cloaks and scarves, then turned up the marble staircase alone and headed back towards the Gryffindor Tower. Snow had started to fall outside the windows and the castle was very still and quiet. 

"Psst - Harry!"

He turned, halfway along the third-floor corridor, to see Fred and George peering out at him from behind a statue of a humpbacked, one-eyed witch. 

"What are you doing?" said Harry curiously. "How come you're not going to Hogsmeade?"

"We've come to give you a bit of festive cheer before we go," said Fred, with a mysterious wink. "Come in here..."

He nodded towards an empty classroom to the left of the one-eyed statue. Harry followed Fred and George inside. George closed the door quietly and then turned, beaming, to look at Harry. 

"Early Christmas present for you, Harry." he said.

Fred pulled something from inside his cloak with a flourish and laid it on one of the desks. It was a large, square, very worn piece of parchment with nothing written on it. 

"What's that supposed to be?"

"This, Harry, is the secret of our success," said George, patting the parchment fondly. 

"It's a wrench, giving it to you," said Fred, "but we decided last night, your need's greater than ours."

"Anyway, we know it off by heart," said George. "We bequeath it to you. We don't really need it anymore."

"And what do I need to be with a bit of old parchment?" said Harry.

"A bit of old parchment!" said Fred closing his eyes with a grimace, as though Harry had mortally offended him. "Explain George."

"Well... when we were in our first year, Harry - you, carefree and innocent -"

Harry snorted. 

"- well more innocent than we are now - we got into a spot of bother with Filch."

"We let off a Dungbomb in the corridor and it upset him for some reason -"

"So he hauled us off to his office and started threatening us with the usual -"

"detention-"

"disembowelment-"

"- and we couldn't help noticing a drawer in one of his filing cabinets marked Confiscated and Highly Dangerous." 

"Don't tell me -" said Harry striating to grin. 

"Well, what you have done?" said Fred. "George caused a diversion by dropping another Dungbomb, I whipped the drawer and grabbed - this."

"It's not as bad as it sounds, you know," said George. "We don't reckon Filch ever found out how to work it. He probably suspected what it was, though, or he wouldn't have confiscated it."

"And you know how to work it?"

"Oh yes," said Fred smirking. "This little beauty's taught us more than all the teachers in this school."

"You're winding me up." said Harry, looking at the ragged piece of parchment.

"Oh, are we?" said George, taking out of his wand, touching the parchment lightly and said, "I solemnly swear that I am up to no good."