Hermione Granger and the Chamber of Secrets

The Howler

It was over.

It was truly over.

Hermione would have to start all over; find herself new friends, but of course she'd keep in touch with the both of them. But still, she would have to make new friends and probably suffer for a month ot two while trying to do so. She was at square on yet again.

Ginny went off with the prefects to Gryffindor tower and Hermione had to come back there alone.

She couldn't believe this was happening but her spirits rose as soon as she saw them!

Harry and Ron were standing puzzlingly by the fat lady's need for a password.

Hermione rushed forward and couldn't stop herself from bombarding them with questions.

"There you are! Where have you been? The most ridiculous rumors - someone said you'd been expelled for crashing a flying car - "

"Well, we haven't been expelled," said Harry.

"You're not telling me you did fly here?" asked Hermione seriously.

"Skip the lecture," said Ron impatiently, "and tell us the new password."

"It's 'wattlebird', but that's not the point -"

The fat lady's portrait swung open and the three of them scrambled through the hole as everyone in Gryffindor House started a storm of clapping and cheers.There were hands of celebration pulling them in. It seemed like everyone was awake and packed themselves into the common room to get a load of Harry and Ron. The thought made Hermione's blood boil.

Everyone thought this was somehow brilliant?

"Brilliant!" Lee Jordon yelled as if he had read Hermione's mind. "Inspired! What an entrance! Flying a car right into the Whomping Willow, people'll be talking about that one for years -"

"Good for you," said a fifth year as another person patted Harry on the back.

Fred and George pushed their way over to the front and said, "Why couldn't we've come in the car, eh?" Hermione looked at Ron and saw that not only was he scarlett in the face but smiling embarrassedly.

Percy was amongst the crowd of excited first years and looked as if he were trying to get near enough to start telling some people off.

Finally, someone with sense! Hermione thought.

Hermione saw Harry nudge Ron in the ribs and nod at Percy! They were honestly going to get out of this?!

"Got to get upstairs - bit tired." And the pair of them rushed away just before Percy could reach the front.

"If they think this is over," he growled, "they've got another thing coming."

.       .        .

The next morning Hermione got out of bed and decided it would be a good idea to start reading Voyages with Vampires more so took it down to breakfast with her. Harry and Ron came down from breakfast and sat by her.

"Morning," she said promptly. It was her way of letting them know she was very disapproving.

"Mail's due any minute," Neville said, enlightening the breakfast, " - I think Gran's sending a few things I forgot."

A few moments later there was a rushing sound and about a hundred owls came rushing over the heads of everyone, carrying mail. Suddenly a large and lumpy package bounced off Neville's head and into Hermione's jug, spraying them all with milk and feathers.

"Errol!" Ron called. He pulled the owl out by his feet. Errol fell unconscious onto the table with a damp red envelope in his beak.

"Oh no -" Ron gasped.

"It's all right," Hermione said, poking Errol with the ip of her finger, "he's alive."

"It's not that - it's that."

Ron was pointing at the red envelope. Hermione thought it looked normal to her and could tell Harry felt the same way but Neville and Ron were looking at it as if it might explode at any given moment.

"What's the matter?" Harry asked.

"She's - she's sent me a Howler," Ron said, sounding faint.

"You'd better open it, Ron," said Neville in a timid whisper. "It'll be worse if you don't. My gran sent me one once, and I ignored it and" - he gulped - "it was horrible."

"What's a Howler?" Harry asked.

The envelope had now begun to smoke at its corners.

"Open it," Neville said. "It'll all be over in a few minutes -"

Ron stretched out a shaking hand and eased the envelope out of Errol's beak ever so slowly then lit it open. Neville stuffed his fingers in his ears then a second later there was a magnified explosion! Or at least that was what it sounded like. A roar filled the hall and shook the dust from the ceiling.

Mrs. Weasley's voice echoed a hundred times louder than usual.

" - STEALING THE CAR, I WOULDN'T HAVE BEEN SURPRISED IF THEY'D EXPELLED YOU, YOU WAIT TILL I GET HOLD OF YOU, I DON'T SUPPOSE YOU STOPPED TO THINK WHAT YOUR FATHER AND I WENT THROUGH WHEN WE SAW IT GONE - LETTER FROM DUMBLEDORE LAST NIGHT, I THOUGHT YOUR FATHER WOULD DIE OF SHAME, WE DIDN'T BRING YOU UP TO BEHAVE LIKE THIS, YOU AND HARRY COULD HAVE BOTH DIED - ABSOLUTELY DISGUSTED - YOUR FATHER'S FACING AN INQUIRY AT WORK, IT'S ENTIRELY YOUR FAULT AND IF YOU PUT ANOTHER TOE OUT OF LINE WE'LL BRING YOU STRAIGHT BACK HOME!"

A ringing silence fell and Hermione looked over at Ron and Harry.

Ron was so low in his seat that you could barely see the top of his crimson head and Harry looked rather embarrassed from the mention of his name too.

The red envelope dropped from Ron's hand and burst into flames then curled into ashes.

A few people laughed and people slowly began to talk again.

That was when Hermione had felt they had learned their lesson. They had suffered extreme embarrassment, intense and deafening screams, and a lecture. They were completely and utterly humiliated and she thought that was a good enough punishment and the whole hall knew it. Hermione closed her book and looked down at Ron's head once again.

"Well, I don't know what you expected, Ron, but you -"

"Don't tell me I deserved it," growled Ron dangerously.

Harry pushed away his porridge with a sick expression on his face. 

Luckily, breakfast didn't last long after that and they all went down to Herbology together.