The Darkwood Wand

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A soft little hand slipped into Draco's, and he jerked his own back. "Don't pity me, Granger," he snapped.

She sniffed. "I don't. We've all done things we have to live with."

"Really? I suppose you dabbled in torture and betrayal during the war?"

"Certainly not torture," Granger said.

A heavy silence fell as Draco eyed her thoughtfully. Who had the Golden Girl betrayed?

"Well, then," Granger said briskly. She pointed her little white stick at him like it was a wand. "Do you know Tennant's class schedule?"

"No."

"Yes, you do." She shoved the parchment and stick at him. "This is a pen. Fill out the schedule ... no, that's the wrong end, the pointed end ... there's no inkpot, just start writing, not there, there."

"Perhaps you would rather do this," Draco grumbled.

"Nose Hair Care and Maintenance? Slobbering After Women 101?"

"Parts of the Durmstrang curriculum."

"They are not!"

Draco turned his back to her, but Granger butted her head against his like one of his inkpot kittens, resting her chin on his shoulder. Her hair tickled his neck and jaw as she read aloud.

"Seminar on Show ... Me ... Your—Malfoy!"

He twisted slightly so his face was inches from hers. "I'd be happy to," he purred.

"Malfoy! Give me that!"

"Again, happy to."

"Grow up!"

"Already there."

"AAAAGH!" Granger bounced backward, shaking the bed and making the carved snakes wiggle. "You need to take this seriously, Malfoy!"

"I am taking this seriously," Draco snapped back, suddenly unamused. "You're the one who thinks she can track a wolf-bitten predator with just a schedule and a bad attitude. I won't allow it."

He expected a fresh bout of outrage, but Granger's eyes lit up in a way he didn't like at all.

"I don't need your schedule," she said. "I have something better." She poked her wand into the pink bag, muttering under her breath. A beat-up piece of parchment appeared in her hand and she handed it to Draco.

Draco couldn't believe what he was looking at. A detailed map of Hogwarts, with every occupant's location identified by a dot. Secret passages and staircases snaked through the castle and most areas were clearly marked, with clouds of dots still moving through the Ravenclaw library. The Slytherin dungeons were mostly unmapped, except for the common room and Draco's bedroom and bath. He could see Tennant's dot, and nearby, so close that they formed a misshapen circle, were two more dots labeled Draco Malfoy and Hermione Granger.

His mouth was dry. "How long have you lot had this?" he asked hoarsely.

"Years. It's called "The Marauders' Map."

Draco looked at her smug face, his mind whirling with the implications: That was how Potter ... and ... and ... He shook his head, forcibly dragging his thoughts to the present. "That's how you knew where Finch-Fletchley was tonight."

She nodded. "Polyjuice has no effect on the map. If I'd looked at it earlier, I'd have known Tennant was at the party."

Draco continued to stare at the map in wonder. "Why doesn't it show more of the dungeons?"