It's All Fun and Games Until Someone Gets Hurt

To the dismay of the third-years and above, but to no one's surprise, Hogsmeade visits were canceled indefinitely. Everyone expected Roger Drocker and Jonathan Madscarf to be expelled, but they both stuck to their story, that goblins had tricked them into drinking adult beverages. Professor Llewellyn didn't believe them, but rather than expelling them, she gave them a month of detention and deducted fifty points each from Gryffindor and Slytherin.

She also introduced a new punishment: wand restriction. Drocker and Madscarf, like the students before them who'd been victims of theft, had to order approximations of their stolen wands as replacements, but no sooner had the boys' new wands arrived than they were confiscated.

Teddy could barely hide his glee when he found out that Drocker's wand would be kept under lock and key by Professor Longbottom, and that he would only be permitted to have it during class. It couldn't have happened to a more deserving person, as far as Teddy was concerned.

Violet was less sanguine, although she felt no particular sympathy for Madscarf.

“You may not be so pleased when we have our wands locked up,” she pointed out to Teddy.

Mercy, however, was more optimistic.

“It might be embarrassing,” she said to Dewey, “but it's not as bad as expulsion.”

Dewey had to agree, and he wondered if this was a good sign. The Zero Toleration Policy remained in effect, but there were fewer expulsions.

Goblins notwithstanding, everyone was talking about Quidditch again. This year's Quidditch season had become exciting because of its unpredictability. Slytherin's confidence had been badly shaken by their loss to Gryffindor, followed by Ravenclaw's upset victory, the Hufflepuffs were feeling more optimistic than they had in years, and Gryffindor was determined not to lose their lead. Gryffindor was favored to win the upcoming match; Hannah Holmes was a better Seeker than Cordelia Wright, and Hufflepuff was still handicapped by having to replace Douglas McFee. But the Hufflepuff team had been training relentlessly, almost every day during the week leading up to the game. No one expected an easy victory.

This made Teddy's plan to perform their next act of protest during the game less than popular with the D.A. Even the Ravenclaws and the Slytherins didn't want to miss the game. In truth, neither did Teddy, but he'd come up with the idea, so he could hardly back out now.

They decided to limit participation this time to a total of twelve members, no more than three from each house. Any more firsties than that disappearing during the game might be noticed, Teddy reasoned.

Kai, Dewey, and Violet joined him, as he knew they would. Nearly all the Slytherins volunteered, and Violet observed rather pointedly to the other D.A. members that Slytherins had been more numerous and consistent in their participation than any of the other houses. No one was able to deny that.

Dewey expected Edgar and Simon to be loathe to miss any part of the game against Gryffindor, but he was rather surprised at how reluctantly Mercy volunteered.

“I wouldn't have figured you for such a diehard Quidditch fan,” Dewey remarked.

“Well, why not?” Mercy demanded. She turned her nose up. “Because I'm a girl?”

“No, of course not!” Dewey said hastily, though that was exactly the reason. He chided himself for being as much of a prat as Kai.

Dewey, for his part, was feeling ambivalent about the game. He wanted to see it, of course, and he did want his house to win — but the Hufflepuff team's attempt to get Hugh Truncher expelled before the Ravenclaw-Slytherin game had left a bad taste in his mouth, and he almost thought it would serve them right to lose. Not that he was ever going to admit that to Teddy, of course.

Aisha was extremely relieved when she was told that they wouldn't need her — Kai was pretty sure that she still wanted to be part of the D.A., but she was obviously terrified of her brother. He drafted Gilbert and Deana instead; Gilbert because he could, and Deana because she obviously had a crush on Teddy and therefore was unlikely to refuse.

Chloe and Colin joined Teddy from Gryffindor, Colin only because it was apparent that none of the other Gryffindors would do it, and he didn't want Gryffindor to look bad.

With most of her fellow first-years in Slytherin willing, if not entirely eager, Violet made her choice based on magical skill. Those who were going to take part in the protest were expected to spend the week practicing their Color Change Charms. Nagaeena demanded to be part of the Slytherin contingent. Violet knew why, and she also knew that Nagaeena was one of the worst in their class at Charms. She chose Stephen and Bernice instead. The Slytherin boys were somewhat disgruntled that Violet had chosen Stephen over the rest of them, but they didn't protest too loudly, as they were happy to be able to see the game.

The day of the game, it wasn't difficult to slip away as everyone else was streaming across the fields to the Quidditch pitch. Teddy worried a little that Professor Longbottom or some other teacher might suspect them, or notice someone in their house missing, but when he and the other eleven D.A. members returned to the castle, there were only a handful of teachers and students left — two Ravenclaws had come down with Magpie Cough and were now isolated in the Hospital Wing, and Madame Pomfrey was there as usual. Professor Sinistra and Professor Slughorn were both sitting out the game and remaining in their offices, and of course, Filch and Peeves were still in the castle, along with the ghosts. Given the size of Hogwarts, that meant it was virtually empty.

“All right,” said Teddy. He nodded, and everyone took out their wands.

“Might be the last time we see these for a while if we get caught,” said Dewey, with an ironic smile. Mercy sighed, but managed to smile back.

“We're just brightening the place up!” said Kai.

Each trio had agreed to paint the doors and corridors nearest their own house common room first, so the Gryffindors went to the seventh floor, the Ravenclaws to the base of their own tower, and the Slytherins and Hufflepuffs to the lower levels.

Colin had misgivings, but soon he was having great fun turning everything in sight pink, even portraits.

“What are you doing, young man?” demanded the Fat Lady, from her seat at the entrance to Gryffindor Tower.

“Making the hallways match your dress,” said Teddy. He pointed his wand, and a tide of pink washed over the corridor at his feet. “It's about time you got some appreciation, don't you think?” He grinned at her.

The Fat Lady squinted at Teddy suspiciously. “I've seen Gryffindors come and go since before Albus Dumbledore was born!” she said. “Do you think I'm a fool?”

“No, ma'am,” Teddy replied seriously.

“Hmph.” She looked down at the corridor, and then at her dress. “The shade's a little too dark. You know, the lighting in winter really doesn't favor me.”

Teddy tried to lighten the pink a bit, and then he and Chloe and Colin continued roaming the seventh floor, with Teddy periodically checking the Marauder's Map. Peeves seemed to be following Filch around in the dungeons, and the Slytherins were several corridors away and safe for the moment, but he noticed the Gray Lady in the same corridor as the Ravenclaws, and hoped she wouldn't give them any trouble.

Chloe was doing her best, but couldn't manage much more than a light wash of pink over stone and brick, so Teddy set her to coloring chairs and lanterns instead. Colin attacked statues. When they reached the entrance to the Headmistress's office, Teddy paused, and stared at the guardian gargoyle thoughtfully.

“Oh no,” Colin said. “You're not thinking —”

Teddy pointed his wand, hesitated for a moment, and when the gargoyle remained as motionless and impassive as always, spoke the incantation to turn it pink. Pink sparks flew from his wand, but nothing happened.

Chloe watched the stone creature fearfully as Teddy tried again, but again, nothing happened. Finally, Colin couldn't resist, and joined Teddy in trying to cast a Color Change Charm on the gargoyle. They wasted several minutes on it, and concluded that the guardian must be protected by strong counter-charms. Disappointed, they moved on.

Behind them, the gargoyle remained frozen in stone — except for its eyes, which rolled ever-so-slightly.

On the sixth floor, Gilbert and Deana were trying to outdo Kai, who had boasted of being able to color more of the castle pink than the two of them could together. Kai had just emerged from the boy's bathroom, which he suspected male students would now be quite loathe to use, with its newly pink sinks and toilets and floor, and found himself confronting the Gray Lady, hovering in the middle of the corridor giving him a ghostly, disapproving stare.

“What, precisely, are you doing, young man?” demanded the Ravenclaw house ghost.

Kai put his hands behind his back, hiding his wand. “Um, what's it look like?” he asked.

She turned around slowly and imperiously, looking at the pink-washed corridor leading up to the entrance to Ravenclaw Tower. “Has pink become the new Ravenclaw house color?”

“I don't reckon so,” he replied. Then Deana and Gilbert came around the corner, and Gilbert yelled “Hey, Kai, I just turned Flitwick's office door p- eep!” He skidded to a halt as he saw the Gray Lady, and Deana almost collided with him from behind, and then tried to hide behind the taller boy.

The ghost scowled at them. “What sort of puerile nonsense is this?” she sneered.

“All in good fun, ma'am,” Kai replied, in a slightly subdued tone.

The Gray Lady really didn't speak much to students, not even Ravenclaw students. She usually drifted past with a haughty expression. She would occasionally lecture students who were skiving off classes or mistreating school property, but she did not socialize with the living, and Kai much preferred her when she was silent and seen at a distance. And why was she interrogating him, anyway? It wasn't as if she were a teacher.

“Fun,” she repeated, her voice dripping with disdain. “Shouldn't you be with the rest of your house at the Quidditch pitch?” Her lip curled, as if she also considered Quidditch to be a waste of time.

“Well, I will be soon, if you let us go,” Kai said.

Her eyes widened. “You impudent boy!” she exclaimed.

“Look,” Kai asked. “Are you going to turn us in?”

If the Gray Lady had been aghast before, she was outraged now. “Turn you in? What do you think I am, a hall monitor? A Prefect? Do I remain here to shepherd errant children?”

“Well then,” Kai said. “Nice talking to you!” He quickly ducked around her and fled with Gilbert and Deana, while the ghost spun about, with her mouth open.

Teddy met nine of the D.A. members in the Entrance Hall, which had proven more resistant to their charms. They'd only succeeded in turning some of the lantern brackets and picture frames there pink. But the dungeons were now a pink maze, stairwell steps were pink stone, and as many doors as the twelve of them had been able to reach were now pink, including most classroom and office doors. The staff and students would be finding pink artifacts about the castle for months.

“About this banner,” Colin said. “I still don't get it.”

It was the final touch. Teddy had enlisted the help of Chloe and Mercy to make a large pink banner to hang in the Great Hall.

Teddy grinned. “You will.” He nodded at everyone else. “Thanks, all of you. Once you get this banner hung, you can take off. I just have one more thing to do.”

“Where are Kai and Violet?” Dewey asked.

“Waiting for me,” Teddy replied. “Don't worry.” He waved, and headed downstairs.

“Whenever Teddy says don't worry, I really start to worry,” Colin muttered.

“Oh, you've noticed?” Dewey replied, as they unfurled the banner and carried it into the Great Hall.

“I still don't see how he means to accomplish this,” Mercy said, looking at the banner.

Downstairs, Kai and Violet were waiting at the painting of a fruit bowl that hung at the entrance to the school's kitchens.

“I think he's nuts,” Kai said. He was practicing turning the remaining uncolored stones in the corridor pink, one by one.

“You wouldn't be alone,” said Violet.

“Well, he said he had a way to get the house-elves to stop working for a day or two. Telling them they're enslaved and they should go on strike isn't going to do it. Really, they like doing what they do!”

Violet nodded. She was reluctant to agree with Kai, and she wanted to believe Teddy actually had something resembling a sane plan, but she was more familiar with house-elves than Teddy. She didn't think you could talk one into willingly giving up its “enslavement.”

“Mr. Chang!” exclaimed a familiar voice, and Kai jumped and almost dropped his wand. Professor Flitwick came hurrying down the corridor towards them.

“Professor Flitwick, sir!” stammered Kai. He hastily stuck his wand back into his pocket.

“Is this how you have been practicing your charms, young man?” demanded the diminutive Charms professor, waving his arms around him at the pink corridors. “I'm afraid you're going to have to be put on wand restriction for this! And you!” He turned on Violet, who was just staring at the one teacher in the school who didn't tower over her. “I'm surprised at you, Miss Parkinson!” He shook his head and tut-tutted. Violet just continued staring at him, saying nothing.

“Pr- Professor,” stammered Kai, flabbergasted. “Why aren't you —?”

“Don't P-P-Professor me, Mr. Chang!” said Flitwick, waving a finger in Kai's face. “Take out your wand!”

“Sir?” Kai said in a faint voice, taking his wand back out of his pocket.

“Now turn yourself pink!”

“What?” Kai's glasses almost fell off his face as his jaw dropped.

“You heard me! You like turning things pink so much, you may as well turn yourself into a big pink prat!”

“I — I — but — what? — You can't be —!” Kai was sputtering incoherently, and then suddenly he froze, and his eyes narrowed suspiciously.

“Wait a minute,” he said slowly, and Professor Flitwick fell on the floor laughing.

Kai turned to look at Violet, whose expression was unchanged — but her eyes were laughing.

“I knew it!” Kai said. “I knew it all the time! I was just playing along!”

“Of course,” replied Violet.

Flitwick sat up, and grinned. Even on his wizened face, the grin was obviously Teddy's, not Flitwick's.

“I wasn't fooled for a second!” Kai insisted.

Violet stared at Teddy, and shook her head. “Your nose is too big, your eyes are too far apart, you have too much hair, Professor Flitwick is at least an inch shorter, and why did you give yourself pointed ears, honestly?”

Teddy stood up, still looking, more or less, like the Charms professor, and grimaced. He seemed to wobble unsteadily, and then Kai's eyes widened as he shrunk slightly.

“I've been practicing all week, trying to memorize what he looks like during Charms class,” Teddy said. Kai was unnerved by the fact that he still spoke with Professor Flitwick's voice.

“Why my House Head?” Kai demanded. “Why not Professor Longbottom or Professor Slughorn?”

“It's a lot easier to become someone closer to my size,” Teddy explained. He squeezed his nose, leaving finger indentations until the flesh smoothed over, and then grimaced, wiggled his ears, and tried to make them rounder. He looked at Violet. “Well? Close enough to fool the elves, you think?”

“That depends on whether the elves are more perceptive than Kai,” she replied.

“I could tell right away!” Kai insisted.

“You do realize that when they find out what happened, there's only one possible culprit in the entire school?” Violet pointed out.

“Could've been someone using Polyjuice Potion,” said Teddy.

“Yes, suggest that to Professor Llewellyn,” she replied dryly. “Teddy, this really is likely to get you into serious trouble.”

“Well, that's why I only wanted you two to know about it. And I'll swear you tried to stop me. But I needed someone to try out my disguise on.” He grinned at Kai. “I think it passed.”

“Only because I was pretending,” Kai huffed. “Violet's right, Teddy. This could get you expelled.”

“Metamorphmaging into a member of the staff isn't on the list of Zero Toleration offenses.”

They both shook their heads. “I'm sure it will be,” said Kai.

Teddy reached up to tickle the pear in the painting of the bowl of fruit, and stepped through the door to the kitchens.

“You can't stop Teddy from doing something stupid,” Kai sighed.

“No,” said Violet. “You can't.” And she smiled, but the smile quickly disappeared, replaced by worry.

In the kitchens, Teddy took a deep breath and tried to walk like the Charms professor. He had never been inside the Hogwarts kitchens before, though Mercy had told him how to get in. They were huge, stretching across the entire length and width of the Great Hall directly above. There were enormous preparation tables piled high with plates and cutlery, and cast-iron sinks lining the room. House-elves were standing on step-stools in front of some of them, washing vegetables, and others were full of soapy water. Dirty dishes floated through the air in neat columns, dived into the soapy basins, and emerged a second later bright and shiny, then levitated onto one of several towering stacks of clean dishes. The elves cleaning the vegetables would toss them onto one of the preparation tables, where knives floated magically in the air and immediately sliced and diced anything arriving on the cutting boards. More elves quickly and efficiently swept the diced vegetables off the boards and into soup kettles or baking pans or whatever the vegetables were intended for. Teddy could see an entire row of huge black stoves lining the far side of the room. The elves manning them looked hot and tired, and he could feel the heat from where he stood.

“Professor Flitwick, sir!” piped a reedy voice at his elbow. Teddy turned, and saw a very old, wrinkled female elf looking up at him. She was wearing what appeared to be a crocheted potholder on the top of her head, cradled between two ridiculously long, pointed ears.

“Hello, um, er, I'm sorry...” Teddy said, and then felt horrible as the elf's ears drooped and her rheumy old eyes looked hurt.

“Doesn't Professor Flitwick remember Freega, sir?” she asked. The elf had a strong German accent.

“Of course, of course!” Teddy assured her. “But as you can see, I've neglected to put on my spectacles. Terribly sorry, Freega.” He blinked in what he hoped was a convincing manner. The elf did look slightly mollified, but confused.

“Ve don't usually see Professor Flitwick in der kitchens, sir,” said Freega. “Does der Professor vant some spiced pumpkin ale brought up?”

“No —” Teddy started to say, and then another elf appeared out of thin air with a crack.

“Professor Flitwick! If our esteemed Professor was telling us he wanted something, Golly would be bringing it immediately, sir!” exclaimed the new elf, also female. “Golly is very, very sorry to make dear Professor Flitwick come here! Does Professor want a snack? Golly will make his favorite cucumber and squid sandwich right away!”

“Cucumber and squid sandwich?” thought Teddy. That was really more than he wanted to know about Professor Flitwick's eating habits.

“No, no, that's quite all right, Golly,” he replied. He took a breath, drew himself up to Professor Flitwick's full height (which was not that much greater than that of the elves), and announced in a tone that he hoped sounded like Professor Flitwick when he was addressing a classroom, “I came to tell you that the Hogwarts staff has decided to give all of the house-elves the weekend off!”

Freega and Golly blinked at him uncomprehendingly.

“You've never been thanked properly for all the hard work you do,” Teddy continued, trying to sound chipper.

“That's very kind,” said Freega, “but ve is very happy, Professor Flitwick, sir. Busy elves is happy elves.”

Golly nodded enthusiastically. “What would all our dear professors do without us elves to be taking care of them?” she squeaked. More elves were now gathering around them, and even the elves busily floating dishes into the sinks or preparing food were looking over their shoulders and listening with wide eyes to the conversation.

“And vat vill happen to die student houses if ve stops cleaning?” asked Freega. “Those dirty, disgusting children vill make a horrible mess!”

Teddy blinked, started to open his mouth to protest, and then stammered, “Well, er, we think it's time they learned to clean up after themselves.”

The elves were all staring at Teddy, or rather, they were staring at Professor Flitwick. They looked as if they didn't quite recognize him. Teddy was trying not to sweat, and not just because of the heat radiating from all those stoves.

“Students... clean up after themselves?” repeated one elf, and Teddy was surprised (and a little indignant) when the assembled elves begin giggling and tittering, as if he had just made a very funny joke.

He cleared his throat. “Now, surely you like to rest and relax sometimes?” He clasped his hands together. “Wouldn't you fancy a bit of vacation?”

“Vacation?” repeated Freega faintly, as if it were a foreign word.

Teddy tried again. “We're quite resolved on this matter!” he said firmly. “The students and staff are going to be responsible for feeding and cleaning up after themselves this weekend! In fact it was Headmistress Llewellyn's idea. You are absolutely not to lift a finger to do any work until Monday!”

Several dozen pairs of large, bulbous eyes blinked back at him in shock. Some of the elves looked as if they might cry. Mentioning Llewellyn's name seemed to have silenced them, though.

“It's for the students' own good,” Teddy insisted. “Not all of them are lucky enough to have house-elves at home, and we don't want them to get spoiled.”

“That's true,” murmured one elf. “Most students is very unlucky.”

“No elves to take care of them,” nodded another.

“But ve have always spoiled them here!” protested Freega.

Teddy coughed, and then said, “Well, consider this an experiment. They'll appreciate you much more after they have to do without you.” He looked around. The elves were quiet now; dishes had settled onto countertops and into sinks, and the magical knives had stopped their chopping. He could hear large kettles bubbling and simmering, now unattended as more elves gathered around Teddy.

“Now, no more arguments,” he went on. “Put out the stoves, put away the dishes and the food, and take the rest of the weekend off. You might actually like it!”

The elves didn't move.

“But... they vill be expecting a big meal after der Quidditch game! They vill be so hungry!” said Freega.

“I know!” Teddy said gleefully, and then coughed again, and forced himself to look more serious. “I promise you, no students will starve this weekend.”

“After all, it takes more than two days to starve to death,” he thought.

He clapped his hands. “You're not going to disobey an order from the Headmistress, are you?”

Even Freega gulped at that. “No sir, Professor Flitwick, sir,” she said meekly. She looked around at her fellow elves.

“If dat is really vat you vant...” she said querulously.

“It is,” Teddy replied, and he held his breath.

Freega nodded to the kitchen elves, who whispered amongst themselves, and then began shuffling back to their sinks and stoves and cutting boards. Teddy saw dishes begin to fly into cupboards, and the fires in the great stoves started going out.

“Remember,” he called out loudly. “We want you to relax! In fact, throw yourselves a party! Help yourself to anything you like! It's long past time you rewarded yourselves for being such good house-elves!” He looked at Freega, who was still staring at him. “There's plenty of butterbeer, isn't there, Freega?” he asked with a wink.

“Yes, Professor,” she replied. Her expression was disapproving, and she sounded as if she were slightly in shock.

“Professor Flitwick,” wheedled a thin voice at his side again, and he turned to see Golly looking up at him anxiously, wringing her hands. “Are you sure you wouldn't like a cucumber and squid sandwich?”

“I'm absolutely certain, Golly,” he replied.

She nodded, so sadly that Teddy actually felt guilty.

“But I'll be thinking about your... delicious sandwiches all weekend,” he assured her.

She brightened slightly at that. “Yes, Professor,” she squeaked.

Violet and Kai stood quietly outside the kitchen for a few minutes, then Kai said, “It was totally obvious that he wasn't really Professor Flitwick, you know. He didn't walk like Flitwick or talk like Flitwick, and those ears...”

Violet smirked.

“You think you're smarter than me, don't you?” he grumbled.

She looked at him expressionlessly. “Surely not,” she drawled. “How could a girl be smarter than you?”

Kai frowned, and folded his arms and leaned back against the wall. After several seconds of silence, he muttered, “Girls can be smart.”

Violet arched an eyebrow. “Really?” she said slowly, her voice dripping with sarcasm. “Fancy that.”

He frowned. Why did Violet always seem to take what he said in the worst possible way?

“All right,” he admitted. “Maybe you caught on before I did.”

Violet glanced at him, and smiled slightly.

“It's not because I'm smarter than you,” she said quietly. “It's because I'm more observant than you.”

“Because you're a girl, I suppose,” Kai snorted.

“No, because you're a Ravenclaw.”

Kai blinked, and looked at her.

“Ravenclaws don't try to trick each other,” Violet said matter-of-factly. “You boast about what you know. Slytherins don't share unless it's to their benefit, and they'll take advantage of each other. If you're not observant, you'll be had, over and over.”

Kai frowned, mulling that over a bit.

“You keep saying 'they,'” he said at last.

She shrugged. “You know what I meant.”

He hesitated, and then said, carefully, “I do think you're smart, Violet.”

She raised an eyebrow again and looked at him a little suspiciously. Kai looked and sounded serious.

“Thank you,” she said quietly, unable to hide her surprise.

Kai mumbled something.

“What?” she demanded.

“I just said, I think you'd do well in Ravenclaw,” he mumbled, a little more loudly, casually wiping the lenses of his glasses against his shirt.

She stared at him. Kai put his glasses back on, and tried not to meet her eyes.

“Teddy wants me to become a Gryffindor,” she said. “Now you want me to become a Ravenclaw?”

Kai shrugged. “It's an option, I'm just saying.” Violet was being inscrutable again; he couldn't tell at all whether she was touched, amused, or angry.

She shook her head. “Next Dewey will be suggesting I should become a Hufflepuff,” she muttered.

“Can't see that, myself,” Kai replied.

“What makes any of you think I'm not where I belong?”

Kai opened his mouth, but was spared answering when Teddy, still looking like Professor Flitwick, reemerged from the kitchens.

He grinned and grew several inches and lost several score years, becoming himself again. “I did it! I actually did it!”

“Hold onto that enthusiasm,” said Kai. “You're probably going to need it.”

As they all headed back upstairs, Teddy quickly explained how he'd given the house-elves a “vacation.”

“And they believed you?” Kai whispered. He sounded awed.

“Reckon they did.” Teddy was feeling smug.

“I don't suppose house-elves are used to being tricked either,” Violet murmured.

“So, just out of curiosity, what are we going to do about food for the rest of the weekend?” asked Kai.

“I'm sure the staff will figure something out,” Teddy said.

“Oh yes,” Violet said darkly. “I'm sure they will.”

They reached the Entrance Hall, and found Dewey and Mercy waiting for them.

“You were supposed to get out of here once you hung the banner!” said Teddy.

“Well, we decided to wait for you,” said Mercy.

All of them looked in the Great Hall, where a large pink banner was hanging at the front of the hall. It said, “In Thanks for Their Loyal Service, the House-Elves Have Been Given the Weekend Off, Courtesy of the D.A.”

“We're going to be in so much trouble,” Mercy sighed.

“Not if we get out of here,” Teddy said, and he pulled out the Marauder's Map. He didn't even bother hiding it from Mercy anymore. “I solemnly swear that I am up to no good.”

“You can say that again,” Kai grinned, as a few dots appeared on the Map — Slughorn still in his office, Pomfrey and her two patients still in the Hospital Wing, Peeves in the sixth floor washroom that Kai had turned pink, and no one else remotely nearby except —

“Slipfang!” Teddy gasped.

The other four stared at him, and then crowded around to look at the map. There in the dungeons, only one level below them, was a green dot labeled “Slipfang,” moving away from the entrance to the Slytherin common room... and towards the stairs that led directly up to the Entrance Hall where they were standing.

For a moment, they all just watched, in shock, and then Kai said, “Let's get him!”

“We should get a teacher!” Mercy said.

“The only teachers in the castle are Slughorn and Sinistra!” said Teddy. “Sinistra's not going to be any help, and Slipfang is between us and Slughorn's office!”

They all turned and looked at the stairs, and Teddy and Kai drew their wands. Dewey reluctantly followed suit, then looked at Mercy.

“Run, Mercy,” he said. “Run to the Quidditch pitch, and tell the first teacher you see!”

She hesitated. “Dewey —”

“Go!” he yelled, and she turned and ran.

“Merlin!” Teddy exclaimed, looking at the map. The dot labeled Slipfang had stopped, halfway up the stairs.

“He heard us!” Kai whispered, staring at the shadowy stairwell leading down to the dungeons.

“There's another set of stairs going down at the end of that corridor,” Teddy said, pointing down the hall towards the classrooms on the ground floor. “Dewey and I will take them and cut him off!”

“We will?” Dewey asked, but Teddy was already off and running. Dewey looked at Kai and Violet uncertainly.

“Don't let him go alone,” said Violet, and Dewey turned and ran after Teddy.

Kai still had his wand out, and was advancing towards the stairs.

“No, Kai!” Violet whispered.

“You run for help too, Violet!” said Kai.

“Get out of danger because I'm a girl, you mean,” she said.

“Well, yes. And call me a prat later.” And he began going down the stairs, with his wand still held out before him.

Instead, Violet followed him down the stairs.

Teddy and Dewey were breathless when they descended down the steep, narrow, flight of stone steps to a darkened corner of the dungeons. Both of them had to light their wands to see, and Teddy barely glanced at the Marauder's Map before plunging forward, towards the dim light he could see ahead, where corridors were better illuminated near the Slytherin area.

“Teddy,” said Dewey quietly, following after him. “This isn't a good idea.”

“If we can stop him from getting away again...” said Teddy. And he came to an abrupt halt, as he stared at the map, and then stared at the corridor ahead of him.

According to the Marauder's Map, Slipfang was directly in their path, not ten yards away. They stared into the shadows, and saw nothing. Dewey felt a shiver go through him, realizing that Slipfang was undoubtedly standing right there, watching them invisibly.

Teddy pointed his wand. And on the map, Slipfang began moving away from them.

Teddy and Dewey began running blindly down the corridor, with their invisible quarry ahead of them. They passed Filch's office, and were almost to the secret entrance to the Slytherin common room when they saw Kai and Violet, coming from the opposite direction. The other two had descended into the dungeons from the Entrance Hall. Teddy held the Marauder's Map up in front of his face, one-handed, and cried out, “He's right there! Slipfang is between us!”

Kai pointed his wand, and yelled, “Aparecium!”

There was a flash of light, and then a shadow solidified, almost exactly halfway between the two pairs of children. It took the form of a short, ugly-looking humanoid wearing a hooded cloak. They caught a glimpse of a hooked nose, glittering yellow eyes, and one crooked tooth jutting out from the goblin's lower jaw towards his cheek.

“Hahaha!” Kai laughed exultantly. “It worked! Did you see that, Violet? It worked!”

And then Slipfang moved, and Violet saw that the goblin was holding a wand.

He growled a guttural, nonsense word. The air rippled, and there was a loud noise, like the crack of an enormous whip. Kai screamed in pain and went flying. His shattered glasses went tumbling away, and he landed hard on his belly. Violet could only stand there, horror-stricken, as the goblin raised his wand again and pointed it at her. There was nowhere to run. She couldn't think of any spells that would save her.

Then a bloodcurdling howl made Slipfang spin around. Teddy was charging at him, and yelling at the top of his lungs. He tackled the goblin, knocking his wand out of his hand, and the two of them fell to the ground.

Dewey's own paralysis broke and he dashed forward.

Violet stared at Teddy and Slipfang, rolling around on the floor of the dungeon, and Kai, curled up in a fetal position and making whimpering noises as he tried to breathe, and then she turned and ran.

Dewey approached the scuffle on the ground, meaning to help Teddy, and then a booted foot lashed out and swept his feet out from under him. He landed painfully on the stone floor, and the back of his head cracked against the stone wall behind him, making him see stars.

Teddy was on top of Slipfang, flailing at his opponent with a flurry of punches. They rolled around on the floor, over and over, and Teddy suddenly understood the meaning of the phrase “catch a tiger by the tail.” This wasn't a schoolboys' brawl. It wasn't like fighting Geoffrey Montague at all. The goblin might be only the size of a child, but he was much stronger.

Teddy didn't think his fists were doing much except annoying the goblin. He tried to secure a grip on his opponent, and then the goblin's fist, hard and bony, struck him in the face. Slipfang's fingers were adorned with gold and brass rings, and the blow snapped Teddy's head back. He felt the rings scrape painfully across his jaw, and then he was being shaken off.

Teddy was dizzied by the blow. Blinking away tears, he grabbed for the goblin's throat. Slipfang snarled and tried to knee him, but Teddy flattened himself against his opponent, dug his fingers into the goblin's neck, and squeezed with all his might.

Then he felt a sharp pain in his side. He gasped, and his grip loosened. Slipfang pushed him off, and Teddy tried to grab for the goblin again, but it was as if all the strength were draining out of him. He saw the glitter of a metal blade, and held his arm up in front of his face, just before the goblin slashed viciously at him. The knife sliced Teddy's arm from his wrist to his elbow.

Dewey lurched to his feet and staggered forward, only to jump back as the goblin slashed at him with that long, wicked knife.

They stood there, both of them frozen for a moment, Dewey eying the goblin's knife, and Slipfang eying the boy's wand. Then a noise from down the corridor caused them both to turn.

“Oh... goodness... gracious!” It was Professor Slughorn, running as fast as his short, plump legs could carry him, breathing heavily and looking as if he were about to pass out. He stumbled to a halt and stared at the goblin. Slipfang dived for where his wand had fallen.

“Look out!” Violet cried. She was right behind Slughorn.

The Potions professor flicked his wand, but he was still gasping for breath, and the spell bounced off the wall above the goblin's head. Slipfang seized his wand and growled something again.

“Protego!” gasped Slughorn, and there were sparks and crackling sounds as something struck the magical shield he'd hastily put up to protect himself and Violet.

Dewey stood there, positioning himself between Teddy and the goblin, but not sure whether he should try tackling Slipfang himself, or whether he would only get in the way if Slughorn were trying to take him down with magic. Then Slipfang gave Dewey an evil glare, and shook his cloak and drew it around himself. He faded into invisibility once more.

Dewey held his wand out in front of him, for all the good it would do him. Slughorn had his hands on his knees and was making dry heaving noises, trying to catch his breath.

“He's getting away, Professor!” Violet exclaimed.

“I know that, child,” Slughorn panted, gasping for air between almost every word. “But I'm an old man.” With a pained expression, he stood up again. “I triggered an alarm. The others will be here soon.” He took in another lungful of air, gulping. “Your friends... Need to tend to them...”

Violet ran to where Kai was still curled up in a ball.

“Kai!” she said, falling to her knees next to him.

“God.... that hurt, Vi!” he groaned. “It really hurts!”

“Professor Slughorn!” Dewey shouted. He was kneeling next to Teddy, clenching Teddy's forearm in both hands, and it wasn't enough to stop the blood that was flowing out around his fingers and soaking them both. There was a dark stain spreading from another wound in Teddy's side, and pooling on the floor underneath him, where Slipfang had stabbed him.

Dewey felt sick. He was terrified. There was so much blood. “Teddy!” he cried. Teddy's face was even paler than his.

Teddy had felt a sharp, throbbing pain in his side at first, and the long cut down his arm hurt too, a lot, but now he was becoming light-headed, and numbness and nausea was replacing pain. He stared up at the ceiling, blinking, and thought it was odd how all the light and noise seemed to be blurring together.

“Sorry, Dewey,” he mumbled. “Guess this didn't quite go according to plan.”

He heard Dewey screaming at him, and then other voices, but it all just made his head hurt. He closed his eyes, and the darkness was a relief.