Fifteen Years

Part Sixteen

Freddie looked around the Great Hall in wonder. It was like a blazing explosion of neon lights had occurred. Everyone had gotten into position before the teachers arrived at the hall. The firecrackers had been set up in certain places, so that once the first cracker was lit, the whole room would go off. All the students had played their role perfectly, and now everyone was staring in rapt amazement as the world around them turned into a kaleidoscope of magical colours.

The teachers leapt up from their seats and began shouting and waving their arms uselessly. The entire student body erupted, laughing at the shocked expressions of their teachers. One of the teachers actually fell off her seat, and landed with a thump which went unheard amongst the cacophony. Freddie grinned at Kieran who had been sitting beside him. They both stole a glance around the hall and noted the changes in the Hogwarts students. Many of the kids who had been paired together earlier were now seated together. Their excitement at the thought of the prank had forced them to forget their differences, and within minutes they had been talking amongst themselves. There was some sense of community as they all watched and laughed as the teachers tried in vain to extinguish the fabulous display.

“It looks like you got your revolution Kieran.”

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“Alohomora,” George hissed. The latch on the library door clicked and the door sprung open. Sticking his head inside, he glanced around the dark room. Concluding that it was empty, he stepped inside. The sound of his footsteps echoed around the large room, bouncing off shelves upon shelves of books. The Hogwarts library was considered to be one of the best, and contained tens of thousands of books and old newspapers. Godelots’ Magick Moste Evile had to be in here somewhere.

Fingers resting on the chicken-wire gate that divided the rest of the library from the restricted section, George could see his breath rising in a cloud before him. The wire was cold beneath his skin and sent an uncomfortable feeling up his spine. Shivering, he pushed the gate forwards with a loud screech, all the while surprised that it was unlocked. He remembered all the times he’d broken into this section with Fred, just to see what the books were like. The door had always been locked. The restricted section was even darker than the rest of the room. “Lumos,” he whispered, holding his wand out before him. The dingy area was instantly lit with a weak glow. Stepping forwards, he gazed up at the dust-coated books. Many of them were black, or dark blue, and some had suspicious red stains on them. A strange smell, like a musty mixture of old parchment and evil, penetrated his nostrils and left him with a queasy stomach. He wasn’t sure what his problem was. This section was nothing new to him.

Perhaps it was his purpose.

Holding up his wand, he discovered a series of small letters painted on the shelves. They had once been golden but were now flaking and peeling off. Stepping as quietly as he could, he squinted at the letters and made his way to the g’s. His heart began to pound loudly as he scanned the shelf. Gabel, Genter, Gobin, Godert, Goldbein… but where was Godelot? His heart began to sink as he realised that Magick Moste Evile was nowhere to be found.

Glancing at his wristwatch, he noted that time was evaporating. The fireworks wouldn’t last forever, and he needed to be back in the passageway and heading out of Hogwarts before it ended. This ruined everything! He’d never find the stone without the book. Heart plummeting, he felt almost lightheaded as he realised he’d never see Fred again. A tear rolled down his face. It felt like he was losing Fred all over again.