I May have helped an Evil Wizard. (rewrite)

Funny how you overhear everything important.

November arrived and brought the cold rainy weather with it. Pansy was disappointed that she could no longer chatter with everyone out in the courtyard anymore. She used the great hall instead.

The Quidditch season had begun.

The first match was on Saturday: Gryffindor versus Slytherin.

If Slytherin won, they would move up into second place in the house Championship.

Harriet, by pure coincidence, learned that there were seven hundred ways of committing a Quidditch foul and that all of them had happened during a World Cup match in 1473. Courtesy of Blaise who wouldn't stop talking about quidditch and had Harriet looking Forward to the day she learnt silencing charms. Seriously, couldn't he just let her read her books and do her studying?

Harriet and Theo had conjured up a bright blue fire that could be carried around in a jam jar as a way to combat the cold outside. They were standing with them out in the courtyard, getting some fresh air and chatting about potion preperations, when Snape crossed the yard.

Harriet noticed that Snape was limping. He had tried to get past the dog. She filed away the information and turned back to her conversation with Theo. They were becoming pretty good friends.

The Slytherin common room was very noisy that evening. Pansy, Blaise, Draco  and Harriet sat together next to a window. Crabbe and Goyle soon joined them.

Blaise was rambling on about Pride of Portree and their best player, Andre Egwu. Draco was playing chess with Pansy. Crabbe and Goyle were binging on snacks. Harriet was studying ahead. She wanted straight A's.

The Great Hall the next morning was full of the delicious smell of a full english with side dishes and the cheerful chatter of everyone looking forward to a good Quidditch match. Blaise was wrapping Slytherin scarves around everyone and giving out fans.

By eleven o'clock the whole school seemed to be out in the stands around the Quidditch pitch. Many students had binoculars. The seats might be raised high in the air, but it was still difficult to see what was going on sometimes.

Blaise had managed to get everyone top row seats.

Madam Hooch was refereeing. She stood in the middle of the field waiting for the two teams, her broom in her hand and whistle at the ready. Harriet thought she looked a bit intimidating.

"Now, I want a nice fair game, all of you," she said, once they were all gathered around her. She blew the whistle.

Then they were off.

"And the Quaffle is taken immediately by Angelina Johnson of Gryffindor - what an excellent Chaser that girl is, and rather attractive, too -"

"JORDAN!"

Lee Jordan was the sports commentator. He was a friend of the twins and had met Harriet on several occasions. He seemed rather nice and loved a good joke.

"Sorry, Professor."

"And she's really belting along up there, a neat pass to Alicia Spinnet, a good find of Oliver Wood's, last year only a reserve - back to Johnson and the Slytherins have taken the Quaffle, Slytherin Captain Marcus Flint gains the Quaffle and off he goes - Flint flying like an eagle up there - he's going to sc- no, stopped by an excellent move by Gryffindor Keeper Wood and the Gryffindors take the Quaffle -"

A collective groan ran through the Slytherins. Blaise shouted his disagreement pertaining the events. 

"- that's Chaser Katie Bell of Gryffindor there, nice dive around Flint, off up the field and - OUCH! That must have hurt, hit in the back of the head by a Bludger - Quaffle taken by the Slytherins - that's Adrian Pucey speeding off toward the goal posts, but he's blocked by a second Bludger - sent his way by Fred or George Weasley, can't tell which -"

"It was George." Harriet commented to the others. She was met with shocked looks.

"You can tell them apart!" Blaise practically shrieked.

"What? Like it's hard!" She turned back to the game and Lee's commentation.

"Nice play by the Gryffindor Beater, anyway, and Johnson back in possession of the Quaffle, a clear field ahead and off she goes - she's really flying! Dodges a speeding Bludger - the goal posts are ahead - come on, now, Angelina - Keeper Bletchley dives - misses - GRYFFINDORS SCORE!"

Gryffindor cheers filled the stadium. Harriet clapped politely along with Draco and Pansy. Crabbe and Goyle restrained Blaise who was yelling wildly.

"NO BLOODY WAY! MERLIN'S PANTS! THIS IS RIGGED I TELL YOU. RIGGED! I CAN'T BELIEVE -" He continued with increasingly colourful language until Pansy shoved a scarf into his mouth.

"Slytherin in possession," Lee Jordan was saying, "Chaser Pucey ducks two Bludgers, two Weasleys, and Chaser Bell, and speeds toward the - wait a moment - was that the Snitch?"

"Yes." Harriet muttered calmly. "It was."

A murmur ran through the crowd as Adrian Pucey dropped the Quaffle, too busy looking over his shoulder at the flash of gold that had passed his left ear.

Slytherin Seeker and their prefects younger brother Terence Higgs had seen it. All the Chasers stopped in mid air to watch. Higgs jr. and the other seeker hurtled downwards neck to neck. Higgs pulled out of the dive just in time whilst the other seeker crashed into the ground. The Gryffindors groaned. Harriet saw Fred facepalm. Flint scored a few times. Higgs jr. grabbed the Snitch and the game ended. The Gryffindors howled in displeasure.  The Slytherins were cheering as loudly as possible. 

"Bloody brilliant.  I'm telling you, guys.  Brilliant. " Blaise was bellowing.

A few hours later, Draco was walking down the corridor past the staff room. 

"That blasted dog. I don't understand why Dumbledore insists on keeping that mutt in the school. There are much more intelligent ways of protecting you-know -what." 

Wait! What? Didn't Harriet and Pansy mention a dog?

Draco's interest spiked. He snook towards the staffroom door, made sure no one was looking and pressed his ear to it. He could make out his godfather's voice and that of filch.

"I highly doubt that Nicholas Flamel even knows what he cooked up. Dumbledore though.  That's a different matter."

"I am aware. I have a job for you filch..."

Draco had stopped listening and had run off to find Harriet and Pansy. They were with their usual group.

A few minutes later they were all hiding in a broom closet. Blaise, Crabbe and Goyle had gotten dragged along.

"You eves dropped on a teacher!?" Pansy squeaked. 

"He's my Godfather." Draco shrugged.

"That doesn't make it much better, you know!"

"Yes, anyway, the dog you two told me about is guarding something made by Nicholas Flamel. If we find out who he is we can narrow down the list of possible objects, artifacts, potions and so on."Draco said.

"No need. They're hiding the philosophers stone." Harriet stated dryly. She had better things to do. "Flamel created it for immortality. No idea how he links to Hogwarts though."

"Oh, he's a friend of Dumbledore's.  It's on the chocolate frog card." Said Blaise. Then,"what? " when he realized everybody was looking at him.

"Anything else? " Harriet asked. 

"No, that's pretty much it."

There was a collective groan.