dear draco,

twenty-three

"He's late."

"Shhh." Ginny's brown eyes lock onto mine, her cheek flat against the wall beside me. Her every move urges me to stop worrying, even though I know she has uncertainties of her own.

We had been closely observing Snape's mealtime patterns for the last few days so that we could know when to sneak into his office to steal the sword. Luna was right: he seemed to show up for the start of every meal, then leave unnoticed once everyone had settled in. The first few minutes of dinner is our gap, our go-time. But we're outside his office now, and he is late, and I have an unsettling feeling that we'll be caught.

We wait a couple minutes longer in the silence before I whisper, "This is ridiculous. He's never going to come out, and someone's going to walk past and see us-"

And then, the gargoyle we are standing beside begins to move, drowning out my words with the loud sound of grinding stone. The rotating spiral staircase that leads to the office is revealed behind it, and before we can even hesitate, Ginny has darted into the side of it, and we have no choice but to follow. On the other side of the staircase, I can just make out the swish of Snape's jet black robes.

When the gargoyle is back in place, the silence that surrounds us on the spiral staircase is overwhelming. "We made it," I breathe, my heart beating with exhilaration.

Ginny grins triumphantly at the oak door that leads to Snape's office. "All that's left is the sword," she says. "Easy."

"I don't know," I say. "It still feels like something's wrong."

"It does feel off," admits Neville. "He hasn't been late this entire week."

"Maybe he isn't going to dinner," says Luna.

"Should we still-"

"Yes," says Ginny. Her eyes are still on the door. "Yes, we're doing it. We're in now, we may as well try. And if we get expelled, well, we all hate the school anyway."

"And when Snape sees it's gone-"

"As long as Snape can't prove we took the sword, we'll be okay. We just need to get out before he's back. It's fine."

"Okay," I say, shaking my head all the while. "This is ridiculous. But okay, let's do it."

Ginny pushes open the heavy door. "I'll keep watch," she says. "You guys go in."

We trudge past Ginny into the circular room that makes the headmaster's office. She's the only one of us that's ever been in here, and I stand still for a moment, amazed by the novelty and remarkability of it all. Hundreds of curious, intricate artefacts and instruments line the curved walls, no doubt collections of Dumbledore. Surrounding them are dozens of portraits, undoubtedly of previous headmasters, who stare curiously at us from their frames. The room seems old but cosy, and much more so than you would expect from someone like Snape.

"There it is," says Neville, so suddenly that I jump. He is standing awestruck, facing an alcove in the wall at the top of the room. Behind glossy glass is the Gryffindor sword, even shinier than it should be in the sunlight that hits it.

"Not that impressive, is it?" says Luna mildly.

I grab a chair from the desk and climb up on it, so that I'm face to face with the glass. I can see my reflection in the sword, which sparkles tauntingly in front of my eyes.

"Uh, what next?" I ask, turning around to the other three.

"Smash it," replies Neville at once.

"No way. We only have a few minutes, and if people hear the glass..."

I trail off. Neville shrugs. "I can't think of another way, Iz."

I sigh. "Is there a spell to smash glass quietly?"

"Are you joking?" Ginny hisses, jumping forward from the doorway. "Stay away," she says as she points her wand at the glass. "Reducto."

The glass shatters and as if in slow motion, falls in one disintegrating piece, creating an almighty crash as it hits the ground.

"That was loud," says Neville cheerily. "Well, grab it, won't you, before Snape gets back."

Ignoring the horrified protests of the paintings around us, I close my fingers around the glistening handle and hoist it out. "Careful," says Luna, as I stagger under the weight of it. She puts her hand in mine and helps me off the chair.

I stare at the sword. It's sparkling, shining and unquestionably magnificent... But I can't help feeling that something about it doesn't quite seem right. "Take this," I mumble, shoving it towards Ginny and Luna. I grab the chair and drag it back to the desk. Then I point my wand at the glass and whisper, "Reparo".

"What are you doing that for?" asks Neville, furrowing his eyebrows. "I say we trash the place!"

"Can we go?" I ask. "I feel like someone's going to walk in at any moment."

"Yeah, come on," says Ginny nervously. The sword is, by now, hidden underneath her cloak, and it creates an unnatural bulge on her chest.

I pull open the oak door, so that the other three can pass through, and am about to walk around it myself when-

"What do you think you're doing?"

My stomach drops and I fall back onto the wall behind the door. I hear loud, quick footsteps, and Snape's livid voice-

"Would one of you fools like to explain why you're here? And why you have – is that the-"

"It's the sword of Gryffindor," I hear Ginny say shakily. I remain hidden behind the door. "We're taking it back."

I peer through a crack in the wood, my heart thudding in my chest. Snape stands right on the other side, his pale face unnaturally flushed with rage. Ginny, Neville and Luna look petrified, and I am about to turn the corner to expose myself when Ginny looks straight at the crack through which I am watching, and widens her eyes at me, shaking her head ever so slightly. I hold my breath.

"You absolute fools," says Snape, his voice quavering with rage. "Are you unaware of the dangers of being here, of the grave values of your actions? You could have ruined-"

"The sword belongs to Harry," interrupts Neville bravely. "We were taking it to give it back to him, because you obviously would never."

"How very valiant," sneers Snape. In his anger, his eyes are even narrower than usual, and keep appearing to pass over my oak shield. My lungs feel like they are about to burst if I hold my breath any longer.

Ginny, Neville and Luna have fallen silent, and I hope desperately that they will stay that way. Saying anything else will only make Snape angrier, and I shudder to think what is going on in his mind right now. Once again, Ginny catches my eye through the crack in the door. "Stay there," she mouths.

For several long moments, no one says anything. Then Snape whips around to head back down the stairs, his robes hitting Neville in the face. "Come with me," he shouts, and grudgingly, the three follow.

Once I can't see them anymore, I slowly count to ten. Then I step reluctantly out of my hiding place, sprint down the stairs and edge back into the corridor, brushing the dust off my robes. I step forwards into the sunlight, thinking only of getting back to the common room, and out of suspicion-

"What are you doing here?"