Fate of a Fifth Marauder

Chapter 1. Professor Hayley Devonshire.

I was in a dark, old fashioned hallway. Torches cast flickering light on elaborately carved oak doors in front of me. Even from where I was standing I could hear hushed voices from inside. I walked over, staying near the wall.

"Where is she?!" A whispery voice, similar to how you'd imagine a snake would sound, demanded.

"I..I don't know sir." The second voice was shaky, nervous even."Well find her then!!!"

"Y..yes sir. Just give me until the end of summer."

"Alright. Just remember the last time you failed me..."

I woke up in a cold sweat. I had been having these dreams since I was about seven, and we had always dismissed them as nightmares. This one, though, had been ultra-realistic, and kinda scary. Looking at my alarm clock, I groaned and went to sleep.

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"Maddie! Breakfast!" "Coming Mum!" I called back. I rolled out of bed groggily and ran down the stairs. My mum stood at the cooker making rashers, and my dad had already gone to work. As per usual, I collected the post. Of course, if I had looked I would have seen the strange letter addressed in green ink, but I was still tired.

A half an hour later, I was ready to go. I cycled to the park in record time and got to work. The boys would be there in about fifteen minutes and I needed revenge for that detention.

Starting with their "secret" hideout, I hid whoopee cushions and stink bombs in their chairs. After putting a bucket of flour over the exit, I crouched in the bushes outside and waited.

They approached as usual, with Jack in the lead and all his adoring followers behind him. He snapped his finger and someone ran out to open the door for him. They went in and not five minutes later they ran out again, holding their noses and coughing. The bucket fell and doused them in flour, so I got a quick picture with my camera and ran off home.

By the time I reached home the picture had developed and it was pretty good. I tucked it inside my maths book and lay down on my bed with "The Hobbit".

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A while later, I woke up to the smell of dinner wafting up the stairs. I must have drifted off when I was reading. I ran downstairs to the kitchen and told my mam I was going out.

I went for a walk in the woods at the back of the park. They were my favourite place in the entire village because you could find just about anything in there. I also kept supplies there so that I could practically live there. Me and Elizabeth had made this place ages ago. I squashed the thought down as soon as it appeared. I couldn't think about that now.

Our hideout, (which was actually secret), was made of a few sheets of wood stood against the trees, so from the outside it looked quite ramshackle.

Inside, we had tacked up blankets and pictures to make it look nicer, and we stored food in containers by one wall.

There were books over one side, in a press that definitely didn't leak, and torches and batteries as well. I still couldn't bring myself to take out Elizabeth's two torches, so they'd been sitting there for two months now.

It was nightfall by this time, so I grabbed a torch for the way home.

I had seen badgers and the like in this place before, and the boys probably weren't happy about the prank.

Before long I was home, and I could already hear my dad's familiar voice.

I crept towards the kitchen, hoping to give them both a fright. The word "Elizabeth" caught my ear and I completely forgot about the fright and knelt outside to hear what they were saying.