The Hidden Half-Blood Prince

Bonus #3: The Day of Pranks

Previously:
Boom!

It was the day of exams, and the twins messed everything up. Per usual.

Not that I was complaining, I was bored out of my mind watching kids write on parchment for hours. I was also tired of reprimanding Malfoy and his friends for disturbing Harry and his friends as they took the test. Waiting for us to get to the practical portion of the DADA exam was proving to be unbearable. Even Penny was dying. She tilted her head so far back in her seat, I half expected her to fall backwards.

She and Medusa had been experimenting on something in the forest earlier that day but Medusa deemed it too dangerous for the experimenting to continue with Penny there so she sent her back.

Therefore, the fireworks exploding in the hall right outside my classroom came as a welcome distraction.

"Quick, everyone, have you finished your exam?" I stood from my chair. I got a general nod around the room. "Good. Those of you who haven't stay and finish up with Miss Clearwater, everyone else, get out."

[...            ...            ...]

A bang on the door made us jump. We shared a look and left the room only to see a few rough housing students and campers trailing after the fire works promoting the twins' new store.

I shrugged and hooked her arm in my elbow. "May I interest you in a picnic this evening under the stars?" I asked as charmingly as I could.

Penny beamed up at me. "Indeed you may."

Why did it have to be on the day of exams? Now I need to pretend to be annoyed. More for the camper's sakes than my family's. And I guess so McGonagall doesn't give me her disappointed look as well. I didn't realize I would have a problem with the day of pranks that was to inevitably happen when Fred and George collaborated with the Stoll brothers.

"Penny, remind me to give the four of them random points throughout the day tomorrow." I said as we walked through the hall from my classroom.

Small, spinning fireworks scattered the air in the hall. Some of them spelling out the name for their shop. They changed colors with every turn. They not only changed colors, but split off into other fireworks so the numbers grew with every passing second.

"Percy, you can't just do that." Penny said, exasperated.

"Why not? Their charm work is amazing." I said. "Besides, how else am I to show them I approve?"

Penny was stopped from answering as we turned the corner. Covering the entire length and width of this corridor, was a swamp. A smelly, and unfortunately messy swamp.

"Well, how are we to get to the Great Hall for lunch now?" I said.

"Don't worry, Professor, I know a short cut." A new voice said.

"Harry?" I turned to see him and his two friends smiling at the swamp. Hermione especially seemed impressed.

"Short cut?" Penny asked confused. "I've gone to this school for seven years. Don't you think I would have heard of a shortcut from here to the Great Hall by now?"

"It's a parselmouth password protected passage." Harry explained. "I've been exploring the castle more since Dobby showed us the Room of Requirement."

"Excellent, lead the way, Mr. Potter." I said.

He led us through a painting of a young girl who was almost too excited to wait for the password.

"Eloise hasn't had anyone use her passage since Salazar Slytherin's great grandson went to school here." Harry explained. "She was almost offended that Tom hadn't bothered to look for her."