Torn Between Three Me's

29 - A Late Night Adventure

Fred, George and I stood at the edge of the common room by the portrait hole. The room was dark, our eyelids heavy. We weren't even supposed to be up, seeing as it was past curfew. But we needed our mandrake leaves for the animagus potions. With one last peek behind my shoulder, I pulled out the map from my back pocket and held it out in my hands so we could all see it, a twin on either side of me.

'I solemnly swear that I am up to no good,' George whispered, tapping his wand to the parchment. Animated names and footsteps came to life as the map appeared on the empty page. I opened up the map until I found the section for Gryffindor tower, where we stood, and found our names.

'We good to go, Ads?' Fred asked, approaching the portrait, preparing to whisper the password. 'Ads?'

My eyes were fixated curiously on the part of the map that showed the boys' dorms upstairs. I pointed to it. 'It's there! Again! Are you sure you two can't see it?' I asked.

'Is it that weird name you're seeing again?' George asked, Fred coming back over as they both looked on.

'Yes! Right there! Peter Pettigrew. You're telling me you can't see it? It's right next to Ron,' I whispered harshly. The twins gave each other pointed looks.

'You see a lot of things we can't,' Fred shrugged.

'Maybe it's there,' George considered.

'Maybe it's not.'

'Maybe you're losing it.'

'Maybe he's like a poltergeist or owt.'

'Or maybe I just have superpowers,' I huffed, sticking my nose in the air. 'It's there. I know it is.' I grumbled, and then went back to the map. 'Percy's near the greenhouses. There's another prefect across the castle and Filch is by the Great Hall. Percy should be our only concern.'

They nodded in understanding as I stepped in front of George, burying my nose in the map, him placing his hands on my shoulders. 'Pig snout,' Fred whispered, and the portrait swung open. We stepped out of the common room and into the corridor as George guided me through the halls and down the changing staircases, as I kept my eye out for any potential threats.

We were able to make it all the way through the stone bridge and passed the practice rooms, up to the portrait room. We were almost to the greenhouses. I folded back the map to get the new section of the castle in view and immediately gasped. 'Red alert, red alert!' I whispered. Percy was in the next hall over on the opposite side of the divination tower, coming this way!

'In here,' Fred said, gesturing over to the room beside us. I kept my eyes on the map, starting to panic as Fred fiddled with the door. 'Come on! Alohomora!'

The door opened and we hurried inside, closing it gently behind us. I watched Percy's name and footsteps on the map approach us as I heard him behind us. We leaned against the wall as low as we could, holding our breaths. His footsteps slowed, coming to a stop by the door as my heart pounded. 'Go!' I whispered. A couple seconds later, his name began to move on the map again along with the sounds of his footsteps gradually softening as he continued on down the hallway. We all let out the breaths we were stressfully holding in.

'That was close,' Fred said.

'Too close,' George agreed.

'We should be good to go,' I told them, as we quietly exited the room and tiptoed down the rest of the hall, outside to the greenhouses. 'Which one did you say had the mandrakes?'

'Greenhouse three,' Fred said. I pointed my finger around the corner as we made our way over to the other row of greenhouses. We were in the clear, away from the hall monitors as long as we kept quiet, but I'd check the map every now and again just to make sure. Once we got there, George opened the door with the alohomora spell and in we went. The boys snuck further into the room, searching for the pots with the screaming plants whose leaves we needed for our potions while I kept a look out by the inner doorway.