Potter&Holmes

Chapter 3

Next morning, Sherlock got dressed and went downstairs. He walked up to the bar and smacked his hand on the work top. A bar maid came rushing from the kitchen. 

"One coffee, 3 sugars please." Sherlock ordered as soon as he saw her. She stared at him blankly. 

"One what?" she asked, sounding a bit rude in her confusion. Sherlock sighed. 

"Never mind. What do you serve?" he asked bluntly. 

"Butter beer... Pumpkin juice..." she replied shortly. Sherlock frowned then left the pub. 

"Honestly, I come all the way here to help a school with disappearing pupils, and all I get is butter beer and pumpkin juice." he muttered as he made his way to the castle. "It's not even morning! And who ever thought to juice a pumpkin?!" 

30 minutes later he was once again stood in the headmistress' office. She had set out a plate of biscuits, but neither of them were eating. 

"Now. Can you give me anything similar about the pupils that have disappeared?" he asked, breaking the silence. Professor McGonagall stared at him. 

"Well... all of them have been members of Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw and Gryffindor." She said slowly. "No Slytherins have gone yet." She gasped as she saw Sherlock staring at her, frowning. "The students are divided into four houses. The bravest and boldest are sorted into Gryffindor, the kindest and most loyal are sorted into Hufflepuff, the smartest and wittiest are sorted into Ravenclaw and the most cunning and ambitious are sorted into Slytherin." She explained. Sherlock nodded. 

"So do you think it's safe to say that Slytherin house may contain the people involved with the disappearances?" he asked. The headmistress looked at him. 

"Well, I suppose it's possible." she said slowly. "But surely no pupil is capable of doing this?" she said. Sherlock looked at her. 

"Only you can decide that." he said, then turned to the door. "I'm going to have a look around the castle. I'll return here for lunch." He heard her starting to object as he closed the door behind him. Smiling at his success of finding himself a free lunch, he made his way down the stone steps and into the corridor. Only a few students were awake, all walking zombie-like towards the main hall. Are they up earlier than usual? he wondered. One boy, seemingly older than the other students as he was much taller than them, gasped when he saw Sherlock. He pulled out his wand. Sherlock stared at it. 

"Why are you here?" the boy asked, not diverting his eyes from him. Sherlock couldn't even answer before he opened his mouth again. 

"What are you? I don't see a wand." the boy's eyes widened. "Are you a MUGGLE?!"

"Well I'm not a psychopath, so don't look so frightened. I'm a high-functioning sociopath." Sherlock said boldly. The boy stared at him. Sherlock laughed and shook his head. 

"That's not a bad thing. What do they teach you here?!" he cried. "I'm here to help find out why students are going missing. I have no intention of harming anyone. Oh and yes, I am what you call 'a muggle'." The boy lowered his wand slowly. 

"I'm Sherlock." Sherlock held out his hand. "Sherlock Holmes."

"I'm John. John Watson." he said, shaking his hand. Sherlock stepped back. 

"John?" he cried in disbelief. John smiled and pulled his mask off. 

"When did you get here?" Sherlock questioned. 

"Early this morning. I had a student help me make a mask and then I just borrowed a spare robe." Sherlock looked at his clothes. How could wizards wear them? 

"Anyway, " John continued, "I thought that if I were a student myself, then if anyone decided they wanted to take me, I'd catch them red-handed, but nobody has done anything yet." 

"Well I doubt they happen so often that we'd have one on the first day. Besides, nobody would have taken you anyway." Sherlock said. John turned to look at him. 

"What?"

"Well, the crest on your robe is green with a snake right?" John looked down. 

"Right...?" 

"Well that means it's a Slytherin robe. That's the only house so far that hasn't had anyone disappear from. John moaned. 

"A whole morning, wasted!" he pulled off the robe angrily, and was left wearing black trousers and a grey jumper. 

"Oh, Sherlock? What did you mean by houses?" John asked as they started walking around. Sherlock jumped. 

"I forgot to tell you! Come back up to the office and I'll tell you everything." He cried, running back. John had no choice but to run after him.