The Dark Lord's Daughter Book 2: Secrets

Mione

Notte got up groggily- her eyes swollen from crying into Rons shoulder last night. Notte looked up to see Hermione's bed was untouched, and the other two girls were excitedly getting ready for the Quidditch match today.
"Your eyes are really red- did you and Potter get in a tiff!?" Lavender asked excitedly.
"No- just didn't sleep well. D'you have anything to hide the puffy?" Notte said and immediately regretted it as she was forced into the bathroom to be fussed over. When she emerged she had on thankfully light makeup, for the exception of bright red lips and a small sparkling red heart  and a golden seven with drawn on wings, like a snitches adorning her cheek right under her eye. She had been forced into a too tight Gryffindor jumper, and her hair was curled beneath a gold and red beanie. She also wore her black skinny jeans and combat boots, her necklace tucked away beneath her jumper.
"Er- thank you girls, I appreciate it." The girls squealed as Notte gave them praise for their work.  However well done their makeup was, she felt much too young for it.
Notte left to get breakfast and hoped she would see Hermione sleep-deprived at the table.
"You- you look great Weasley!" Neville squeaked and Notte smiled in response, feeling a bit more confident in her new and bold lip color. She had nearly made it to the portrait hole before Percy pulled her to a stop.
"Notte Merope Weasley- what is that on your face?!" Percy scolded her and she scowled.
"Percy- its just for the game! Don't get your knickers in a twist!" Notte was somewhere between grouchy and in a good mood. But she felt confident in her self and moved around Percy.
Notte was impatient getting to the Great Hall, wanting to show Hermione what the two girls had done to her. But Hermione was not half asleep at the table like she had hoped. Rather what she saw made her stomach twist uncomfortably. Harry- the boy who yelled at her for no good reason last night. And the boy who may very well hate her soon. According to the teachers.
"Notte! Whats that on your face!" Ron said looking at her wide eyed as she sat down next to him. Harry was looking down looking ashamed, not noticing Notte's face.
"Lavender and Patil did it for me- quite nice don't you think?" Notte said plainly and waited for Harry to say anything or even glance her way.
"Er- I s'pose..." Ron looked away from his sister, who was obviously going mental like she said she would. Harry still didn't look up from pushing his food around. The cocoa sat next to him.
"Harry- would you mind passing the coccoa." Notte said politely. Wondering if she should apologize first- for keeping from him everything the teachers had told her. Or maybe for getting upset when he had looked at it anyways- like she should have known he would.
"Er- of course." And then he looked up and flushed as he saw her. "You still wrote my number on your face-" Harry still held the pitcher in his hands not passing it to her.
"Well yeah- I am your lucky charm after all..." Notte looked away and bit her lip. Harry sucked in his breath.
"Harry I'm so-" Notte started but Harry put the pitcher down suddenly.
"No- I'm the one thats sorry-" Harry started to apologize further- but Ron groaned in disgust.
"You two are ridiculous! Wheres Hermione she would love this-" Ron looked around.
"Er- I think she's either still in the library or she snuck past me on my way here- I haven't seen her this morning." Notte said quickly looking away from Harry. Harry looked away from Notte slightly pink. The Twins made their way to the three of them.
"Oi Notte-"
"You haven't kissed Harry yet."
"If Wood sees he'll be upset-" The twins said together sitting next to Harry.
"They were just about to kiss and make up from their little tiff last night-" Ron said half-disgustedly.
"Looks like it-"
"You did get all gussied up for him-"
"Didn't you Naughty Nottie." The twins teased Notte who turned red.
"The other girls in my dorm did the makeup- I just wanted Harry's number-" Notte started, and the twins smiled. Wood came into the Great Hall.
"Twins, Harry, Lucky Charm-" Wood greeted his teammates and Notte.
"I do have a name Wood." Notte said hotly.
"Er- Sorry, Notte. You look nice-" Wood said quickly.
"Thanks Wood-" Notte said and grabbed a bunch of grapes from the table.
"Alright- lads...And er- Notte of course. Time to head to the pitch, get warmed up." Wood waited and watched as the boys got up hurriedly and Notte stole a muffin along with the grapes to take with her. Harry gave her a pleading look- Notte grabbed him a lemon poppyseed muffin, his favorite.
"Lets go Lucky Charm!" Wood shouted at Notte walking away and the students around them sniggered at her as she yelped and ran after the boys. Notte cradled the oversized muffins to her chest as they hurried to the Quidditch pitch.
"Waiting till the last minute eh Notte?" Wood asked her slyly over his shoulder.
"Don't want to waste any extra luck he might need do ya?" Notte said back to him, struggling to keep up with the taller of the boys.
"Harry, you're as short as me- how do you keep up with them?!" Notte asked Harry stumbling over a dip in the ground.
"I'm taller than you!" Harry said quickly.
"Barely!" The boys laughed before they saw McGonagall coming from the Quidditch Pitch.
"Professor McGonagall!" Wood called to the Professor hurrying towards them.
"This match has been cancelled." McGonagall said and Notte noticed she was rather pale. Her stomach churned.
"We can't cancel Quidditch!" Wood said upsetly.
"Silence, Wood. You and your teammates will go to Gryffindor Tower, now. Potter, Miss Notte, you two and I will find Mr. Weasley. There's something the both of you have to see." McGonagall said and they followed after her in a hurry. Nottes stomach kept churning menacingly. They found Ron on his way towards the Quidditch Pitch- probably to find out why the match had been cancelled.
"Mr. Weasley come with us please." McGonagall grabbed him by the collar as he stopped to watch Notte and Harry being led towards the castle.
"Did we do something?" Ron asked and Notte grimmaced.
"I'm starting to hope we did- I have a bad feeling." Notte said as they turned towards the Hospital Wing.
"Oh dear- Ron have you seen Hermione-?" Notte asked and McGonagall looked back at Notte with a curious expression. At the hospital wing Notte paled when she saw her best friend staring blankly into nothing.
"Oh-!" Notte froze in place spotting Hermione, one hand frozen above her.
"Hermione!" Ron and Harry said together rushing towards her.
"She was found near the Library, along with this." McGonagall held up a silver hand mirror that Notte had given her to match the ornate hairbrush she had gotten her for Christmas. "Does it mean anything to any of you?" Notte's eyes brimmed with tears as she approached Hermiones bedside.
"I gave that to her- for Christmas, to match the hairbrush... I- I made it." Notte said slowly barely looking at it.
"Did she make a habit of carrying it with her?" McGonagall asked and Notte shook her head.
"Normally she keeps it in her dresser drawer, with the brush-" A sob betrayed Notte. McGonagall nodded solemnly.
"Has this been charmed Miss Weasley?" McGonagall asked and Notte nodded. She wiped her face and chuckled quietly remembering how her best friend had suddenly started worrying about her front teeth being too large.
"Its- supposed to... here-" Notte took the mirror and pointed it at herself.
"Its from a muggle fairy tale- er, 'Mirror Mirror in my hand, Who's the fairest in the land?'" The mirror swirled and Nottes face and voice replied-
"Why you are." The mirror replied and McGonagall sighed.
"Its- its just a joke between us..." Notte said handing the mirror back to McGonagall who placed it on Hermione's bedside.
"I see...I'll give you all, a moment." McGonagall left and Notte sat in the chair beside Hermione.
"We need to find out who's opening the Chamber." Notte said suddenly, and she touched Hermione's outstretched hand lightly.
"And I'm going to make them sorry- sorry they were ever born." Tears flowed down Nottes cheek, the paint smearing across and down her face. When she looked at Harry, it looked as if she was crying gold and red down one side of her face. When Notte got up to storm out, to go investigate where Hermione had been found, Harry looked at her seat to see several fallen feathers.