Another Potter

thirteen

chapter thirteen
the philosophers stone

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Things couldn't have been worse.

Filch took them down to Professor McGonagall's study on the first floor, where they sat and waited without saying a word to each other. Hermione was trembling. Amelia had an emotionless expression. She couldn't see how they were going to get out of trouble this time. They were cornered. How could they have been so stupid as to forget the cloak? There was no reason on earth that Professor McGonagall would accept for their being out of bed and creeping around the school in the dead of night, let alone being up the tallest astronomy tower, which was out-of-bounds except for classes. Add Norbert and the invisibility cloak, and they might as well be packing their bags already. When Professor McGonagall appeared, she was leading Neville.

"Hermione!" Neville burst out, the moment he saw the other two. "I was trying to find you to warn you, I heard Malfoy saying he was going to catch you, he said you had a drag. . . ."

Hermione shook her head violently to shut Neville up, but Professor McGonagall had seen. She looked more likely to breathe fire than Norbert as she towered over the three of them.

"I would never have believed it of any of you. Mr. Filch says you were up in the astronomy tower. It's one o'clock in the morning. Explain yourselves."

It was the first time Hermione had ever failed to answer a teacher's question. She was staring at her slippers, as still as a statue.

"I think I've got a good idea of what's been going on," said Professor McGonagall. "It doesn't take a genius to work it out. You fed Draco Malfoy some cock-and-bull story about a dragon, trying to get him out of bed and into trouble. I've already caught him. I suppose you think it's funny that Longbottom here heard the story and believed it, too?"

"With all due respect," Amelia said, "Draco's one of my best friends, if I wanted to get him into trouble I wouldn't do it this way." Just by the look on her face, McGonagall was reminded strongly of James Potter. "That boy can get on my nerves," she said chuckling, "but I wouldn't want him to be in this much trouble."

"I'm disgusted," said Professor McGonagall, silencing Amelia. "Four students out of bed in one night! I've never heard of such a thing before! You, Miss. Granger, I thought you had more sense. As for you, Miss. Potter, I thought you'd be more like your mother." Amelia stared at McGonagall with a cold look. 

"I'm not my mother," Amelia said, "and I'd appreciate you and all the other teachers stop comparing me to her."

"All three of you will receive detentions. Yes, you too, Mr. Longbottom, nothing gives you the right to walk around school at night, especially these days, it's very dangerous. And fifty points will be taken from your houses."

"I beg your pardon?" Amelia asked, staring at McGonagall.

"Fifty points each," said Professor McGonagall, breathing heavily through her long, pointed nose.

"Professor, please. . . ."

"You can't. . . ."

"Don't tell me what I can and can't do, Granger. Now get back to bed, all of you. I've never been more ashamed of any students." Amelia didn't hesitate as she stormed out of the office and made her way to the Slytherin common room. One problem of Amelia being more like her father was that she had James Potter's temper and that could get nasty pretty quickly.

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While Amelia had only lost Slytherin fifty points, Gryffindor had lost one hundred, putting them in last place. About a week before the exams were due to start, Amelia was walking towards the library on her own one afternoon to meet Harry, Ron and Hermione. She heard somebody whimpering from a classroom up ahead. As she drew closer, she heard Quirrell's voice.