Jane Fizzle and the Philosophers Stone

Chapter 14

    Harrington has convinced Jane not to go looking for the Mirror of Erised again, and for the rest of the Christmas holidays, the invisibility cloak stays folded at the bottom of her trunk. Jane wishes she can forget what she's seen in the mirror as easily, but she can't. She starts to have nightmares. Over and over again, she dreams about her parents disappearing in a flash of green light, while a high voice cackles with laughter.

    "You see, Harrington was right, that mirror could drive you mad," Scarlett tells Jane when she shares what kind of dreams she's having.

    Gavin, who came back the day before term started, took a different view of things. He's torn between horror at the idea of Jane being out of bed, roaming the school three nights in a row ("If Flint had caught you!"), and disappointmented that they haven't at least found out who Nicolas Flamel is.

    They have almost given up hope of ever finding Flamel in a library book, even though Jane is still sure that she's read the name somewhere. Once term starts up again, they are back to skimming through books for ten minutes during their breaks. Jane has even less time than the other two, because Quidditch practice has started again.

    Mason is working the team harder than ever, Issac telling Jane all about how Mason wouldn't stop making team strategies over break. Even the endless rain that has replaced the snow couldn't dampen his spirits. The MMMM's complain that Mason is becoming a fanatic, but Jane was on Mason's side. If they won their next match against Hufflepuff, they would overtake Gryffindor in the House Championship for the first time in seven years. Quite apart from wanting to win, Jane finds that she has fewer nightmares when she's tired out after training.

    Then, during one particularly wet and muddy practice session, Mason gives the team a bit of bad news. He'd just gotten very angry with his cousins, who kept dive-bombing each other and pretending to fall off their brooms. "Will you stop messing around!" he yells. "That's exactly the sort of thing that'll lose us the match! Randolph's refereeing this time, and he'll be looking for any excuse to knock points off of our team for doing our goddamn best!"

    Flynn Marrow really does fall off his broom at those words and Issac laughs at him, but looks worried as well. "Randolph's refereeing?" he splutters through a mouthful of mud. "When's he ever refereed a Quidditch match? He's not going to be fair for us because he has high expectations!"

    The rest of the team land next to Flynn and start to complain too.

    "It's not my fault," Mason says, holding his hands out defensively. "We've just got to make sure we play a clean game, so Randolph doesn't have an excuse to pick on us."

    'Which is all very well,' Jane thinks bitterly, but she has another reason for not wanting Randolph near her while she plays Quidditch...

    The rest of the team hangs back to talk to one another as usual at the end of practice, but Jane heads straight back to the Slytherin common room, where Scarlett and William are playing chess. William is kicking Scarlett's ass, beating her in every move he makes. Scarlett starts to get a little frustrated.

    "Don't talk to me for a moment," Scarlett says when Jane sits down next to her. "I need to concen—" She catches sight of Jane's face. "What's the matter with you? You look terrible."

    Speaking quietly so that no one else would hear, Jane tells the two about Randolph's sudden, sinister desire to be a Quidditch referee, William listening with great interest.

    "Don't play," Scarlett says at once, slamming her hand down on the table.

    "Woah, what's going on?" Asher asks, walking over, holding a chocolate frog.