Chapter 9. For the Honor of the House!

Hermione quickly saw the pros and cons of Hogwarts' rewards and punishments points system. For the first time, she had the chance to help win a tournament—not by running around or doing other silly things, but by using her own intellect and knowledge. It was the perfect tournament for her!

From the very beginning, Hermione started earning points for Gryffindor, and her impact was noticeable. Even Nora, her not-so-friendly roommate, acknowledged that Hermione wasn't just wasting her time with books all day. Other Gryffindors often gave her friendly pats on the back whenever she earned more points.

So, right from the start of the school year, a serious rivalry for the House Cup began between Slytherin and Gryffindor. Hermione, being a key player in this rivalry, had no intention of backing down. Unfortunately, not everything depended solely on her or even on the success of other students. Much to her frustration, there were irresponsible students who, instead of earning points, caused them to be lost! She wasn't going to let anyone get away with this, at least not in Gryffindor! Hermione kept a close eye on all the students in her house to make sure no one broke the rules. In this, she might have even outdone their house prefect, Percy Weasley.

What particularly outraged her was that some of the main rule-breakers were the prefect's younger brothers—Fred and George Weasley. They simply brushed off all his warnings and often made fun of him—the house prefect!

One day, as Hermione was passing by them in the common room, she heard Fred and George giggling. Sneaking closer, she saw them preparing another prank, which would undoubtedly result in lost points. Hermione decided to intervene:

"Are you out of your minds?" she said, trying to look as serious as possible. "Every one of your pranks costs us points!"

The twins exchanged glances, and then Fred replied with a rather friendly grin, "Oh, Hermione, it's easy to be good when you don't know how fun it is to be bad."

She wanted to protest, but they quickly retreated to their room, and Hermione couldn't follow them there. Strangely enough, both Weasley brothers treated her quite well, humorously responding to all her reprimands. Though it irritated her at times, their reaction was much better than most others who Hermione dared to speak up to. It seemed their friendliness on one hand and mischief on the other made them everyone's favorites. Sometimes, Hermione even envied them.

In the end, her determination to prevent any rule-breaking led her to break the rules herself...

Sitting at the table in the Great Hall, Hermione witnessed an argument between Harry Potter and Draco Malfoy. She couldn't help but listen in on their spat because the topic immediately caught her interest. When she realized what they were discussing, Hermione felt a surge of anger. They were planning a nighttime duel—a reckless idea with serious consequences. She knew that such a violation of Hogwarts rules would result in lost points for Gryffindor, and likely a lot of them. Hermione was determined to stop this. As soon as Malfoy left, she approached Harry to put an end to this foolishness.

"Excuse me..." she began, clenching her fists and trying to control her emotions.

"Can't a person eat in peace in this place?" Ron Weasley grumbled, not looking up from his plate.

Hermione, used to his criticism, waved him off like an annoying fly.

"I couldn't help overhearing what you and Malfoy were saying..."

"Bet you could," Ron interrupted again.

"...and you mustn't go wandering around the school at night, think of the points you'll lose Gryffindor if you're caught, and you're bound to be." Hermione spoke firmly and confidently, but her voice trembled with restrained anger. "It's really very selfish of you."

"And it's really none of your business," Harry snapped, ignoring everything she just said.

This was absolutely outrageous, and Hermione was about to voice another objection when Ron added:

"Goodbye," and with that, they both stood up from the table and headed out of the Great Hall.

A light growl escaped Hermione's chest as she exhaled, her breathing quickened, and her cheeks burned with indignation. At first, she wanted to chase after them to argue and defend her position. Their brazen voices still echoed in her ears. However, realizing that her words would fall on deaf ears, Hermione stayed standing alone in the noisy Great Hall. A thought flashed through her mind: 'How can they be so stubborn? Let them learn a lesson if they get expelled...' but she quickly cut herself off, 'No, I have to try to stop them. I can't let Gryffindor lose points over such foolishness!'

Deciding she needed to act quickly, Hermione set off to find Percy, the house prefect. She hoped he would find a way to stop Harry and Ron. However, as luck would have it, Percy seemed to have disappeared—he was nowhere to be found. Hermione spent about an hour searching the castle for him, but it was all in vain. Spotting the Weasley twins, she even dared to ask George if he had seen his brother Percy, to which he replied with a smirk:

"What, looking to snitch on someone? It's written all over your face."

Hermione blushed and instinctively raised her hand to her face, as if there really were something written there. Fred and George laughed heartily and, without giving her an answer, went on their way.

In the end, her search for Percy was unsuccessful. Finally, she decided she couldn't waste any more time on this futile task, and if necessary, she would stop her short-sighted classmates herself. 'Besides, there's still plenty of time until midnight,' she reassured herself, putting her worries aside and heading off to do her homework.

***

After several hours of hard studying, Hermione was starting to feel tired. She had spent the whole evening with her textbooks in the Gryffindor common room, occasionally glancing at the exit. She was afraid of missing the moment when Harry and Ron decided to leave. As midnight approached, the common room emptied. The only sound left was the quiet crackling of the embers in the fireplace, which was quite lulling. Hermione's eyes grew heavy, and she unintentionally drifted into a light doze. Suddenly, the sound of footsteps pulled her out of her half-asleep state. Of course, it was Harry and Ron getting ready to leave the common room. Her drowsiness vanished instantly.

"I can't believe you're going to do this, Harry," she said, switching on the lamp and glaring angrily at both boys.

"You?" Ron whispered furiously at Hermione. "Go back to bed!"

"I almost told your brother." Hermione shot back sharply. "Percy - he's a Prefect; he'd put a stop to this." She decided not to mention that she simply couldn't find him.

Harry just looked at her and said to Ron, "Come on."

Both boys slipped out of the common room. 'Maybe I should shout? Get the attention of other students?' Hermione thought for a moment, but immediately dismissed the idea—Harry and Ron were already outside, and drawing attention to them would only help Gryffindor lose points. 'No way, you're not getting rid of me that easily,' she decided and climbed through the passage after them. They were still standing by the entrance, probably deciding the best way to get to the duel location. Hermione made another attempt to stop them:

"Don't you care about Gryffindor, do you only care about yourselves, I don't want Slytherin to win the House Cap," she explained, reminding them that they could lose the hard-earned points she had gained. But Harry and Ron just ignored her.

"Go away," they whispered in unison.

Hermione's face flushed red. Narrowing her eyes and taking a nervous breath, she said vengefully:

"All right, but I warned you, you must remember what I said when you're on the train home tomorrow, you're so…" She was about to call them fools and self-centered peacocks, but held back, deciding not to stoop to the level of these 'former' Hogwarts students. Turning on her heel, she was about to go back into the common room and go to bed, but instead, she froze...

The portrait covering the entrance to the common room was empty! The Fat Lady had apparently gone to visit someone. "Why does she wander off at night? Can't she just sleep?" thought Hermione, feeling frustrated, but there was nothing she could do. Without the Fat Lady, it was impossible to open the passage. Momentarily flustered, she quickly pulled herself together and called on her best friend—logic—to help. Considering the situation, she realized that waiting by the closed passage was too risky and made what she believed was the only right decision. Hermione caught up with Harry and Ron, who were already walking away, and declared in a voice that brooked no argument:

"I'm coming with you."

Of course, they objected, but who was asking them? If they got caught, she would immediately explain that she was trying to stop them and just got accidentally dragged into this recklessness. 'And they would confirm it,' Hermione decided without a shadow of a doubt. After a brief argument, they moved forward and almost immediately ran into Neville, who had forgotten the password to get into the common room. Since the Fat Lady wasn't there, he trailed along with them.

The duel was set for a room on the third floor, the one where the trophies were kept. As they quietly made their way there, Hermione didn't waste any time. She was mentally preparing a speech for Filch, the grumpy castle caretaker known for his dislike of students and his threats to deal harshly with anyone caught out of bed after hours. Hermione had already learned what he was like, and the nickname "Mrs. Filch," which still sometimes haunted her, was now something she thoroughly disliked.

Filch was a rather unpleasant-looking man: scrawny, with a hunched back and a perpetually displeased expression. His whole demeanor scared the students. They joked (or maybe they weren't joking) that his favorite hobby was finding reasons to punish them. To be honest, Hermione was a little afraid of him. She once overheard two first-years talking about Filch. One of them claimed that Filch had studied dark magic when he was young and wouldn't hesitate to use his old skills on rule-breakers. Whispering even more quietly, the first-year added that 'some of the students caught by Filch were never seen again...'

At the time, Hermione dismissed it all as utter nonsense. Who would allow the caretaker to mistreat students? Dumbledore certainly wouldn't. But now, sneaking through the dark halls and corridors of Hogwarts, full of strange and frightening shadows, she wasn't so sure of her previous convictions.

Because of this, her speech for Filch had to be very convincing. It would be best to include Neville—she felt a bit responsible for the naive boy ever since they met on the train. But the more she thought about it, the less confident she was that Filch would believe any of her explanations. Now, her decision to join Harry and Ron didn't seem like such a good idea. Just then, they arrived at the duel's location.

The room was quite dark. Only a faint moonlight reflected off the various trophies collected in this hall of fame. Malfoy and his second, Crabbe, hadn't appeared yet, and the kids looked around as they waited. Hermione was especially wary, studying the dark corners of the room. It seemed to her that something was glimmering or moving in those gloomy shadows, and she anxiously tried to see what it could be. Her imagination painted grim scenarios, and with every minute of waiting, her anxiety grew. "Why did I have to follow them?" Hermione scolded herself for this impulsive decision.

Suddenly, a noise from the next room made Hermione jump. She barely had time to wonder what it could be when Filch's creaky voice came from the same direction:

"Sniff around, me sweet, they might be lurking in a corner."

Filch was talking to his cat, Mrs. Norris, who always accompanied the caretaker and helped him track down rule-breakers.

Harry, Ron, and Neville quickly headed for the opposite exit of the room. Hermione froze for a moment, first out of fear, and then contemplating whether she should try to explain the situation to Filch, hoping for his understanding. She was tired of sneaking around these dark corridors and didn't want to run away like some criminal, since she hadn't done anything wrong. However, while Hermione was considering her options, the boys had already slipped out the door. At that moment, she realized that Filch would simply catch her alone! She dashed after Harry and, just as she was disappearing through the door, caught a glimpse of Filch entering the room, lighting his way with a lantern. It was probably the lantern's light blinding him that prevented him from noticing Hermione slipping out the opposite door.

"They're in here somewhere," came a voice from behind the door, "probably hiding."

Not wanting to push their luck, Hermione, along with the others, began to cautiously sneak down the corridor, trying to escape Filch. Judging by the footsteps behind them, the caretaker was not far behind. Suddenly, Neville clumsily tripped and knocked over a knight in armor standing on a pedestal. The resulting crash was probably heard in every corner of the castle. The kids, no longer trying to be quiet, ran as fast as they could, away from Filch and his cat. Finally, after managing to shake off the caretaker, they stopped, breathing heavily.

Hermione tried to calm herself after the long run and the nerve-wracking experience. Still catching her breath, she decided it was the perfect time to give Harry a lesson on why he should sometimes use his brain instead of rushing into every challenge:

"Malfoy tricked you. You realize that, don't you? He was never going to meet you," she said, confident that Draco had set a trap for Harry and sent Filch there instead. Having laid out her theory, she expected some reaction from him, but Harry just waved his hand and said, "Let's go."

This dismissive gesture further solidified Hermione's growing opinion: this boy was no hero. He was just a foolish troublemaker who couldn't analyze the simplest things. Following Harry, she felt a wave of disappointment and decided that he wasn't actually suitable as a friend for her.

The kids were about to sneak back to the Gryffindor tower and go to bed, but no such luck! At that very moment, Peeves the poltergeist flew into the room.

Peeves was a notorious troublemaker in the castle. He did whatever he wanted, and almost no one could control him. His favorite pastime was picking on first-years. So, when he saw the kids, he squealed with delight. Harry tried to calm him down, but that only made him more excited. And when Ron, who Hermione considered the most foolish of the Weasley brothers, decided to threaten Peeves, the poltergeist screamed loud enough to alert Filch to the students' location. Hermione was ready to hit Ron for his latest stupidity, but there was no time—they had to run again.

Reaching the end of the corridor, they found themselves facing a closed door. "This is it!" Ron said in despair, "We're done for! This is the end!" If Hermione had been watching this scene from the outside, she might have felt satisfied - criminals, especially the dumbest one, were getting their just deserts! But unfortunately, she was part of this group of losers, and she really didn't want to get caught by Filch. By now, it would be extremely difficult to explain to him why she had been running away with the others.

"Oh, move over," she commanded sharply, pushing Ron away from the door and grabbing Harry's wand from his hand before he could react. She touched the wand to the lock and said, "Alohomora!"

The door opened, and they quickly ran inside, closing it behind them. Pressing against the door, they stayed quiet, trying to catch any sounds from the corridor. Almost immediately, a heated exchange erupted between Filch and Peeves outside. The poltergeist wasn't picky about his prank victims, and even the caretaker wasn't an exception. In the end, Peeves, having had his fun at Filch's expense, vanished, leaving Filch angry and confused, wondering where the students had gone.

Relaxing a bit, Hermione turned away from the door and froze... There was a dog in the room... or rather, a big dog... a very big dog, with very big teeth... It filled the entire corridor up to the ceiling, and it had three heads. Apparently, when they entered, it had been lying in the middle of the room and didn't immediately realize it had visitors. But the dog quickly figured out what was going on, stood up, and was about to snack on the students when they bolted outside and shut the door behind them. Luckily, Filch was already gone, and they sprinted to the Gryffindor Tower without discussing it.

On their way, luck was on their side, and they didn't encounter anyone else. Most importantly, the Fat Lady was back in her portrait and let them into the common room. It took them a while to catch their breath after running and recover from everything they had been through. Finally, Ron broke the silence:

"What do they think they're doing, keeping a thing like that locked up in a school?"

"You don't use your eyes, any of you, do you?" Hermione asked. "Didn't you see what it was standing on?"

"The floor?" said Harry. "I wasn't looking at its feet, I was too busy with its heads."

"No, not the floor. It was standing on a trapdoor. It's obviously guarding something," said Hermione with a temper. Then she added, "I hope you're pleased with yourselves. We could all have been killed - or worse, expelled. Now, if you don't mind, I'm going to bed."

"No, we don't mind," Ron answered, stunned.

With that, Hermione went to her room. She undressed and got into bed but couldn't fall asleep right away. Her thoughts kept returning to the evening's events. 'They are so unbearable and short-sighted!' she thought. 'They can't see the obvious and ignore simple logic. Harry... he's nothing like I imagined. And that Ron!' She fumed at the very thought of that upstart who, in her opinion, had just latched onto Potter and considered himself important.

Hermione was about to close her eyes and try to sleep when she noticed the amulet on her neck emitting a faint light. She immediately sat up in bed and took it in her hands to examine it more closely. This time, although the light was faint even in the dark, it was a steady bluish glow and showed no sign of fading.