It was the next morning, and all of the group, including Malfoy were in the hilltop clubhouse. Ron was the only one standing while Harry, Draco, Hermione, Ginny and Luna were sitting around the table, looking at him as he paced.
"I just don't get it!" He said, looking at the ceiling. "Where could Voldemort be?"
The riddle that they had written down the previous day was in the middle of the table. No one was looking directly at it, mostly because they were disgusted that none of them had solved it. It was just a jumbled mess, so they decided to try and discuss where Voldemort could be.
Harry suggested that he could be in Greece.
"Why is that?" Hermione asked skeptically.
"Because," Harry tried to say matter of factly, "I- uh, sense him. Yeah… and he's uh, enjoying a Greek play?" Somehow he had ended his information in question form, and he did not bother to fix it.
Draco smirked, "Good one, Potter." He looked over at Ginny and added, "But please don't feel obligated to inform us when he's using the toilet."
Ginny and Ron laughed at this. Hermione eyed Draco for the slightest of seconds, but no one noticed. She wasn't too sure about his sudden friendliness.
Ron started to laugh loudest, so that everyone looked at him. He started making his way to open the invisible door in the wall in order impress Malfoy. He grabbed at the handle as Draco was watching him, wondering why he was standing in front of a blank wall.
Luna had picked up the riddle and was staring at it. "Ron, go near that door and I will rip it off and make you eat it."
Everyone looked at her. She seemed tranquil as she looked at the parchment in her hand.
Ron sat down and Draco looked at Luna as if she were a lunatic. Ron sighed and then looked at Draco, "Malfoy, do you know where Voldemort could be?"
Everyone (even Luna) looked at him. Draco felt his cheeks turn a bit cold, and he said a little too fiercely, "No!"
Ron bit his lip and looked at Harry, wondering if he should have asked. Harry looked at Draco, speculating why Draco reacted like that. Did he know?
Draco could sense the tension and he added, "Sorry, I don't know! I can't help your little Dumbledore, okay?" He could sense he was being unnecessarily boorish but for some reason he couldn't apologize, it seemed this was the only way he knew how to react.
Hermione looked at Malfoy and asked him straight out, "Malfoy, where do your loyalties lie?"
Draco did not have time to answer, as a barn owl had started pecking at the window, a Daily Prophet in its beak. Ginny got up and opened the window, allowing the bird to land swiftly on the table in front of Hermione. It dropped the paper and lifted its leg which had a small brown sack on it.
"Oh, dear." Hermione proclaimed. "I don't have any knuts on me."
Draco pulled three out of his side pocket and tossed them in her direction. She mumbled "Thanks," but he didn't reply.
The owl left and Hermione unraveled the paper. As soon as she eyed the front page she gasped. "A break out from Azkaban!"
Everyone jumped up from their seats and stood over her shoulder to see the paper. Draco had moved Luna over as he took his place next to Hermione, reading in as quick a pace as she.
Harry and Ron didn't bother reading it, so they waited for Hermione to finish and then they would get their full report.
"Well," she said, folding up the paper. "It doesn't mention who escaped or even how many! It supposedly happened yesterday."
Draco had returned to his seat, silent. Ginny said, "Do you think maybe it was…" her words trailed off and she turned bright pink, glancing at Draco.
Draco didn't look up, but he said, "My father."
Again, everyone looked at him. He seemed to be focusing on the riddle, yet still, his voice made them wonder if this wasn't new or happy news for Draco.
Luna sat down beside him. "Can I see this?" she asked as she pulled the riddle in front of her. "Oh, and that's a nice ring," she added, noticing his silver ring. Draco looked at it, his face emotionless.
"Oh!" Luna said, and everyone jumped.
"What?" Hermione asked.
"The first clue!" She said, smiling. " 'O!' One of One. The first letter is 'O!' "
Hermione shouted, "Of course!" She grabbed the parchment. "And two of two is 'W!' "
Harry snatched it from her. "Yeah but three before…" he stopped mid sentence as he watched Ginny writing down, 'O.' "Oh!" He shouted! " 'L' is three before 'O!' "
Ron took his queue from Harry and snatched the riddle from him. "Lord!" He shouted, and he looked surprised. "The next letter is, 'E!' As it's the stinger, or end of the word, 'Bee!' "
Hermione grabbed the parchment, checking to see if Ron had gotten it right, and she nodded, looking at Ron with amazement. "Yes, of course! And the next one, the head of a Raven. It must mean, 'R!' "
Draco pulled the riddle from her, "And a question, it says."
Ginny was asking Hermione what the previous letters were and Ron suggested, "What?"
Draco shook his head, "No, but... WHY!" That's a question! But it's a letter too!"
Ginny smiled at him. "It's right! The hidden word is 'Owlery!' "
Harry grabbed the parchment (which was getting wrinkled from being snatched so often) and asked, "What about this last bit about, 'You'll awaken the mayhem. He will lie waiting, for he has just flown, To harbor the dragon egg, of goodness be prone?' "
Hermione shook her head, "I don't know, but that part isn't a riddle, it's like a-- a warning."
"Well," Ron said, "We can't worry about it if it isn't a riddle! Let's go tell Mum and dad about it!"