Amie and The Return (Harry Potter fan-fic) Book 4 COMPLETED

Meeting the elf

They had Divination that afternoon. Harry seemed to enjoy it - he and Ron were laughing over Trelawney - but Amie was a bit on edge. Trelawney was annoyed.
"I would think," she said in a slightly less mysterious tone than she normally used. "that some of us," she gave Harry a meaningful look. "might be a little less frivolous had they seen what I have seen during my crystal gazing last night. As I sat here, absorbed in my needlework, the urge to consult the orb overpowered me. I arose, I settled myself before it, and I gazed into its crystalline depths... and what do you think I saw gazing back at me?"
"An ugly old bat in outsize specs?" Amie heard Ron mutter, and she rolled her eyes.
"Death, my dears," Trelawney said seriously.
Parvati and Lavender both gasped and covered their mouths with their hands. Amie saw Parvati send her a scared look. No one except for the five girls in Amie's dormitory knew of what happened to Amie that Sunday morning. And only Amie knew of the meeting with Death.
"Yes," said Trelawney, nodding impressively. "it comes, ever closer, it circles overhead like a vulture, ever lower... ever lower over the castle...."
Trelawney looked at Harry, who pointedly yawned.

"It'd be a bit more impressive if she hadn't done it about eighty times before." Harry said as the three of them left the classroom. "But if I'd dropped dead every time she's told me I'm going to, I'd be a medical miracle,"
"You'd be a sort of extra-concentrated ghost." Ron chuckled as they walked past the Bloody Baron. "At least we didn't get homework. I hope Hermione got loads off Professor Vector. I love not working when she is..."
"That's mean, you know," Amie reprimanded him.
"Oh, you know I'm right," Ron shook his head. Amie couldn't help but smile.

But Hermione wasn't at dinner, and Amie grew worried.
"Should we check the library?" Harry suggested.
"Yeah, maybe she's doing homework," Ron said.
"I hope she's there," Amie said distractedly.
But she wasn't. The only person in there was Viktor.
"Have you seen Hermione?" Amie asked him, while Harry and Ron stood behind a bookcase, hiding.
"No," Viktor said, frowning. "Is Hermy-own missing?"
"I don't know," Amie said. "She could be in the common room, of course. It's just we haven't seen her since lunch..."
"Oh," said Viktor.
"Yeah, well. I gotta go, see you later,"

Amie, Ron and Harry hurried up to Gryffindor Tower.
"Wonder where she's got to?" Ron said.
"Dunno... Balderdash," said Harry.
But the Fat Lady had barely begun to move when they heard the sound of running feet, and they turned to see Hermione.
"Harry!" she panted. "Harry, you've got to come - you've got to come, the most amazing thing's happened - please -"
She grabbed Harry's arm and started dragging him down the corridor.
"What's the matter?" Harry asked, confused.
"I'll show you when we get there - oh, come on, quick -"
Harry cast Amie and Ron a look, and then turned back to Hermione.
"Okay," he said, taking off with Hermione, leaving Amie and Ron to run after them.

"Oh, don't mind me!" yelled the Fat Lady irritably. "Don't apologize for bothering me! I'll just hang here, wide open, until you get back, shall I?"
"Yeah, thanks!" yelled Ron over his shoulder.
"Sorry!" Amie called, feeling sorry for her.
Hermione led them down to the staircases of Hogwarts, and they came to the one leading to the Entrance Hall.
"Hermione, where are we going?" asked Harry.
"You'll see, you'll see in a minute!" Hermione said excitedly, leading them through a side door Amie knew led to Hufflepuffs common room, and the kitchens. They ran down the familar flight of stone steps, and came into the broad corridor filled with paintings of food.
"Oh, hang on..." Harry said halfway down the corridor. "Wait a minute, Hermione..."
"What?" Hermione spun around to face him.
"I know what this is about," he said.

Harry nudged Ron, and then pointed behind Hermione, where the painting of the silver fruit bowl hung on the wall.
"Hermione!" Ron said, catching on. "You're trying to rope us into that spew stuff again!"
"No, no I'm not," said Hermione quickly. "And it's not spew, Ron -"
"Change the name, have you?" Ron frowned. "What are we now, then, The House-Elf Liberation Front? I'm not barging into that kitchen and trying to make them stop work, I'm not doing it -"
"I'm not asking you to!" Hermione exclaimed. "I came down here just now, to talk to them all, and I found - oh, come on, Harry, I want to show you!"