Disclaimer: I bet if I could look into the Mirror of Erised, it would show me owning the rights to Harry Potter and correcting the absolute clusterfuck of errors JK Rowling made with it. I'm sure mirror-bonded4life would also have less untidy hair and would be friends with Emma Watson. Not dating Emma Watson, because I literally just turned eighteen and that's a bit sus, but friends, because she seems like a really cool person to be friends with.

Chapter 61

In the days following the Yule Ball, Harry shared with Hermione what Cedric had mentioned to him during the Christmas night dinner at the champions' table. After much deliberation and an unbelievable about of stubbornness on Hermione's part, the two teenagers agreed to heed the Hufflepuff's advice and try to decipher the egg in the Prefects' bathroom.

They decided on the penultimate night of the winter holidays, before those who went home for break would return. Thus, once his four roommates had fallen asleep on the night of January second, he hopped out of bed and changed out of his pajamas and into a bathing suit and the first T -shirt he could find. Once he had donned his slippers and was ready to go, he grabbed his Invisibility Cloak, the golden egg, and the Marauder's Map from his trunk and tiptoed out of his dormitory. He quietly descended the marble staircase to the common room and breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that Hermione was alone in the common room. She was clad in a thick pink jumper and a pair of baggy gray joggers and was reading Hogwarts: A History by the light of her wand until she heard his footsteps.

"Ready?" She asked, standing up from her armchair and gesturing to the Invisibility Cloak tucked under his arm. He nodded, handing her the golden egg so that he could unfurl the cloak and drape it over both of them.

Taking one last look around to ensure that they were alone, the pair crept out of the common room and through the portrait hole, ignoring the Fat Lady's complaints about her beauty sleep being disturbed. Every few meters, Harry would check the Marauder's Map by the light of his wand, but hardly anybody was roaming the corridors other than Filch, and he was a few floors below them.

"Anyone coming?" Hermione whispered as they reached the fifth-floor corridor that housed the Prefects' bathroom. Harry shook his head and they continued down until they found the statue of Boris the Bewildered. "Pine Fresh," Hermione muttered to the nearest door, and much to Harry's relief it creaked open, allowing them to slip inside.

"This…is…wicked," Harry's jaw dropped as he gazed at the bathroom around him. "I definitely want to be a Prefect now."

"Are you saying you didn't before?" Hermione asked, but she was too distracted by the opulence around her to be upset. She ran her hand along the flawless white marble wall, gawking at the candle-lit chandelier above them before walking slowly towards an empty swimming pool in the middle of the room.

"Is that the bath?" Harry asked incredulously as he followed her over, glancing around to realize that there were no other bathtubs nearby. "Dear Merlin, that's the bath…"

"Bigger than my neighbor's pool…" Hermione mumbled under her breath, absent-mindedly fiddling with the hem of her jumper. "Nicer diving board, too," She pointed to a long white diving board that Harry had not noticed earlier.

"I'm starting to regret all those rules I've broken," Harry mused with a wry smile as he walked over to a nearby table loaded with fluffy white towels. "Because I could get used to permanent access to this bathroom."

"Harry, don't be ridiculous," Hermione waved him off as she walked over in awe to a stained-glass window depicting a mermaid. "You're going to be a Prefect next year. You're the second-best student in our year, and you have a Special Award for Services to the School to your credit as well. Who else is McGonagall going to give the position to?"

"Someone who doesn't sneak out at midnight to go to the Prefects' bathroom?" Harry chuckled as he walked back towards the bath, carefully folding his and Hermione's towels and placing them by the edge of the swimming pool.

"Well, in that case, I suppose I won't make Prefect either," Hermione fired back, turning away from the mermaid window to cross her arms at Harry. "Which is too bad, I've only wanted it since I was eleven."

"You'll be Prefect," Harry said earnestly. "McGonagall might even save everyone the trouble of waiting and give you Head Girl next year. You've earned it more than anybody."

Hermione blushed, her lips curving into a bashful smile. "You'll get it too, Harry. You deserve it; anyone who says otherwise doesn't know how brilliant you are and how much you care about this school."

"We'll see," Harry shrugged, but his heart swelled at her words of praise. "It would be nice to be Prefect with you."

"Oh?" Hermione asked, fluttering her eyelashes coquettishly as she walked back towards him. "What do you mean by that?"

"Well, we already do almost everything together," Harry explained, his face growing hot as Hermione flashed him a coy smile. "And I would be lying if I said I didn't find the concept of doing night patrols with you…appealing."

"Appealing?" Hermione giggled. "Harry, you know how I feel about enforcing the rules. I hope you aren't thinking any impure thoughts, because right now I'm only thinking about the many responsibilities of being a Prefect."

"I think I heard one of the Gryffindor Prefects mention their responsibility of investigating Hogwarts's many broom cupboards and empty classrooms. Is that what you're thinking about?"

"Harry!" Hermione blushed, the corner of her mouth lifting into a cheeky smile. "We don't even use broom cupboards…" She mumbled sheepishly, darting her eyes to the ground.

"Care to start soon?" He teased. Hermione's cheeks flushed even more and she simply squeaked in response. He leaned forward and pressed a quick kiss to her cheek, eliciting another squeak.

With that, Harry turned back to the pool began toying with as many of the bath's glittering golden taps as he could, watching in wonder as different faucets spewed different jets of colored water, bubbles of varying size and scent, and all sorts of foams. Once it was full, he stopped the faucets and discarded his slippers, hesitantly dipping a toe into the pool. "Water's nice…" He observed quietly as he returned his foot to solid ground, his hands instinctively finding the hem of his shirt and pulling it off. With diligence ingrained into his soul from ten years with the Dursleys, he folded the garment up and placed it on the tiled floor at the edge of the bath.

He turned around to face Hermione, who had also shed her clothes, leaving her in a white one-piece bathing suit that clung to her like a second skin. He gulped audibly enough for the sound to echo off of the marble walls.

"Honestly, Harry, you've seen me at the beach," She winked, looking pleased to use the same words he had said to her in the medical tent following the First Task.

"Sorry," He blushed. "It's just…you look nice," He winced at his words, but Hermione simply smiled and walked past him, standing on the very edge of the pool so that her toes hung over the side. Harry felt compelled to add that he had last seen her at the beach in France over a year earlier, and that her figure had developed quite a bit since then, but he decided against it.

"So, the logical assumption is that we are to open the egg underwater," She said matter-of-factly. Harry nodded, trying hard to keep his eyes focused on anything except Hermione's surprisingly nice posterior. "So, do you mind grabbing the egg?" She turned her head to face him, and Harry snapped his head upwards in a very unsubtle manner.

"Uh…yeah. Will do," He said awkwardly, grabbing the golden egg from off the floor nearby. He stood up straight and glanced back at Hermione, who blushed as they made eye contact before promptly pencil-diving into the water. She bobbed back up to the surface and shook the water out of her hair, sending droplets flying all across the bathroom.

"Any day now, Harry," She waggled her eyebrows as she trod water. Harry fished out the contents of his pockets and placed them next to the rest of his belongings before tucking the egg under one arm and jumping in. He felt his feet brush the bottom and pushed himself back to the surface, still clutching the egg. He opened his eyes and realized that even though his glasses had managed to stay on his head, he could scarcely see through the soaked lenses.

Without warning, Hermione paddled over and snatched the glasses of his face. He let out a small sound of surprise, but right after his eyewear was removed he heard her mutter a familiar incantation.

"Impervius!" She tapped her wand against his lenses before returning her wand to the pile of clothes she had retrieved it from. Hermione swam back towards him and tentatively slid the glasses back onto his nose. "Did I ever tell you why I learned this spell?" She asked bashfully.

"I'm assuming it has something to do with a boy that you fancied."

"As a matter of fact, it does," She giggled, swimming backwards until she could rest an elbow on the top of the wall instead of treading water. Harry followed her over, mimicking her position and allowing the egg to float in between them. "It was during our second year. During the match against Slytherin, with the rogue Bludger, it was so rainy and miserable; I was worried sick that the boy I fancied might not see the Bludger coming with his glasses on. So, I swore to myself during the match that I would find a proper spell to protect him in case he ever had to play another match in the rain."

"I think the boy in question was very appreciative of your dedication," Harry grinned. "And I think he's just as appreciative right now."

"Oh?" Was all Hermione said before Harry leaned forward and captured her lips with his. After a few blissful seconds, he pulled away with a smug smile as Hermione gazed at him with a dreamy expression.

"Shall we?" He grabbed the egg and motioned to the water.

"Mm-hmm," Hermione hummed absent-mindedly, dragging her fingers over her lips, which were curved up into a giddy smile. Harry shook his head in amusement before taking a deep breath and submerging himself. Hermione followed suit and he immediately undid the hinges of the egg. For the first time, the sounds that emanated were not ear-piercing shrieks. Instead, Harry heard a chorus of eerie voices, and after exchanging glances with Hermione he learned that she was hearing the same thing.

After listening to the song several times through, and Hermione dashing above and below the water so that she could copy the words onto a piece of parchment for reference, Harry pushed himself out of the water so that he was sitting on the edge of the bath, his shins still submerged. Hermione moved to sit next to him, holding the parchment in her hands.

"So, who is the 'we' that can't sing above the ground?" Hermione asked as she glanced at the first line of the clue. "Since the egg had to be opened underwater, it would make sense that it was some sort of aquatic entity. What could it be?" Harry pondered that question for a moment before his eyes landed on the stained-glass window of the mermaid.

"Merpeople?" He asked, turning to Hermione. "Not many sea creatures could have anything that resembles a human voice, I reckon." She brightened immediately and beamed at him.

"I think you're right!" She turned back to the parchment. "So, you have to seek merpeople. Where could they be?" She glanced at Harry before they both spoke in unison. "The lake."

"Because Hogwarts is going through all of the trouble of hosting the Triwizard Tournament –"

"And they wouldn't bother putting forth all that effort just to hold one of the tasks at a different venue –"

"And there isn't anywhere else at Hogwarts large enough to house merpeople –"

"So, it has to be the lake," Harry confirmed with a triumphant smile.

"Have I ever told you that I'm in love with you?" Hermione asked with a smile of her own. "Alright, so you have to seek out the merpeople in the lake. That's the first two lines. After that, it seems that you'll be searching for something. Something that will be taken from you, something that you'll sorely miss. And if you don't find it after an hour, the clue makes it sound like it will never come back"

"They're going to steal something that means a lot to me, and if I don't get it, it's gone forever. I officially hate this tournament," Harry sighed dejectedly, his shoulders slumping. "Seriously, this thing sucks. When you graduate and become the Minister of Magic, will you get rid of this stupid tournament for good?"

"Y-you think I could be Minister of Magic?" Hermione blushed, averting her eyes.

"Are you seriously asking that? Of course I do," Harry said as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. "I know you can do it. Obviously, only if you want to. I'm not trying to pressure you into it, but I do think you would make a brilliant Minister. But then again, you'll be brilliant at whatever you decide to be."

"Thanks," She whispered shyly, leaning into his side. "I…thanks, Harry. That means a lot to me." They sat in content silence for a bit before Hermione suddenly cleared her throat and sat up straight. "Er…the clue. So, what do you think they can take from you that you'll miss quite a bit?"

"Well, there's my Firebolt," Harry pursed his lips. "Everyone knows I own it, since I used it for the First Task. I used it to battle a dragon and to win the Quidditch Cup, plus it's the first gift that I ever got from my godfather, so it definitely means a lot to me." He paused, scrunching his eyebrows together in thought. "They could also take the cloak or the map. They're some of the only physical reminders I have of my parents, and they definitely mean a lot to me. Dumbledore is the one who gave me the cloak, and he knows about the Marauder's Map since we had to mention it in our testimony for Sirius's hearing and he was there for that." Hermione nodded slowly. "Dumbledore is also a judge for the tournament, so I suppose it's safe to assume that he'll be involved with the taking of whatever it is I'll need to find, so the map and cloak are fair game.

"There's one more thing that they might take," Harry pressed on. He turned and reached for his wand, which was lying by his towel, shirt, and slippers. "Accio quill!" He enunciated, pointing it at the bundle of clothing. A familiar writing instrument zipped out of the pile and into his waiting hand. It was a quill designed to mirror the Sword of Gryffindor, a quill that had been in Harry's possession since Hermione had given it to him for his thirteenth birthday.

"This is something you'll miss?" Hermione whispered, her eyes widening to the size of saucers.

"Yeah," Harry blushed, tapping the quill on the ground distractedly. "It meant a lot when you gave it to me, when you told me how much you admired my courage." He paused again before continuing. "It was that reminder, that you think I'm brave, that sort of helped me work up the nerve to tell you how I felt about you. On that beach, in Cannes."

"Oh, Harry…"

"That's why I use this quill for just about everything now," He continued. "Without this quill, I don't know if I would have been brave enough to tell you that I fancied you. And eventually, that I loved you. Without this quill, I don't know if I'd be as happy as I am right now."

Hermione flung her arms around him, resting her cheek on his shoulder and barely choking back sobs. He nearly dropped the quill into the water in surprise but managed to pat Hermione's arms in reassurance, safely stowing the quill behind him.

"Harry, I had no idea," She whispered. She lifted her head and gave him a watery smile, which he returned.

"Now I really hope they don't take that quill," He laughed. Hermione gave a light chuckle and finally removed her arms from around his torso. "So, not to kill the mood, but how am I supposed to last underwater for an hour?"

"That is the tricky part…" Hermione sighed, her brow furrowing in concentration. "There's the Bubble-Head Charm, but that's tremendously difficult. It's a N.E.W.T. level spell, and you haven't even taken O.W.L.s yet."

"Well, I learned the Patronus Charm, and that is above N.E.W.T.s," Harry shrugged. "It's possible. But maybe we should try and find some other strategies too?"

Hermione nodded slowly before suddenly stiffening. "The Patronus Charm!" She exclaimed, whipping her head around to face Harry.

"Er…what about it?" He asked warily.

"You promised you would teach me!" She jabbed a finger into his arm. "You promised you would teach me ages ago and you haven't done it!"

"Hermione, I've been a little busy."

"Will you teach me this week?" She asked, her voice softening. "I really want to learn it, and it could save my life one day. Please?" She added, pouting her lips in a manner that melted Harry's heart. "Please Harry?"

"Alright, I'll start teaching you," Harry threw up his hands in surrender. "We can start Monday, how does that sound?"

"Oh, thank you, Harry!" Hermione threw her arms around him once again and planted a lingering kiss on his cheek. Harry felt his face grow warm, which was quickly followed by the rest of his body. After a beat, she pulled away and pushed herself to her feet. "Well, I think we should head back to Gryffindor Tower. We can sleep on the idea of the Bubble-Head Charm and then discuss it tomorrow."

"Good idea," Harry nodded, standing up as well. He quickly dried himself off with his towel and Hermione followed suit, and they both used Hot-Air Charms on their hair. "I think we should tell the others about the clue," He said as he pulled his shirt back on.

"I think so too," Hermione nodded. "They knew about the last task, and I suppose I would feel a bit guilty hiding this."

Harry nodded in agreement, and when they were ready to depart he threw the Invisibility Cloak back over himself and Hermione once again. She held the golden egg while he focused his attention on the Marauder's Map. They crept out of the room and tiptoed down the various hallways and up the various staircases, straining their ears for footsteps. When they were halfway to their destination, Harry suddenly froze in his tracks.

"Filch is coming!" He hissed under his breath, wrapping an arm around Hermione's waist and guiding her through the nearest door. He ushered her in and quickly closed the door behind him, muttering a Locking Charm and a Silencing Spell. He glanced at the map in his hand and grinned. "Mischief managed," He whispered, folding the parchment and placing it in his pocket.

"Is he close?" Hermione asked, her breath hot on Harry's cheek.

"Is who close?" Harry deadpanned, his eyes twinkling mischievously.

"Filch, you git!" Hermione swatted him on the shoulder.

"Oh," Harry shrugged with feigned innocence. "Last I saw he was right next to the entrance to the Hufflepuff common room."

"What?" Hermione's jaw dropped. "That's six floors below us! Why did you…" She trailed off, her eyes flickering to their surroundings. Cleaning supplies were piled into a corner near the door. An old mop hung precariously from a hook that was next to a small window that only let in a sliver of moonlight to illuminate the room, a room that was barely wide enough to fit the two teenagers without them being pressed up against one another.

"I asked you earlier," Harry began, taking both of Hermione's hands in his, "if you wanted to start using broom cupboards. You never actually answered me." He grinned, his eyes darting to Hermione's lips.

"Why don't you kiss me and find out," Hermione murmured, her eyes already fluttering closed.

It took precisely three seconds for Harry to determine that the answer was a resounding yes.

The following morning, all eight members of the Gryffindor Gang found themselves in a corner of the common room, having snagged several chairs and couches to seat themselves close together and far away from prying eyes.

"Well, that's fucked up," Dean finally spoke, pursing his lips. Hermione glowered at him for his vulgarity, but he just shrugged. "Sorry, but it is. They're going to swipe something that Harry clearly cares about a lot, and if he doesn't find it in less than an hour it's gone forever? Tell me that's not fucked up."

"It's fucked up," Seamus agreed, and it was his turn to be on the receiving end of Hermione Granger's patented death glare.

"What do you think they'll take?" Neville asked nervously. "Your Firebolt?"

"Could be," Harry sighed, drumming his fingers on his thighs. "But if they don't take that, there are plenty of other things that mean a lot to me. They could take my Invisibility Cloak or the Marauder's Map, which are the only tangible things that I have of my parents, or they could take this," He reached into the pocket of his jeans and fished out the Sword of Gryffindor quill. He twirled it in his fingers a few times, the corner of his mouth twitching upwards as Hermione pressed a quick kiss to his cheek.

"Is that the quill that Hermione gave you?" Parvati giggled. "I remember seeing her work on it in our dormitory at the end of second year. I think she put more effort into that quill than she did into any essay she's ever written."

"She had it bad for you," Lavender added, smirking as Hermione huffed indignantly and pulled her knees up to her chest, resting her head on Harry's shoulder.

"Anyway," Harry sent Lavender and Parvati exaggerated glares, "the problem is that I have to search underwater for whatever they took and find it within the hour. The only problem is…"

"Humans can't breathe underwater," Dean pursed his lips.

"Precisely," Harry sighed, fiddling with the zipper of his hoodie. "So, Hermione and I are going to the library later to try and find some sort of spell that will help me breathe underwater. We just wanted to let you guys know what we found out because you all knew about the last task and were really good about supporting me. Plus, we figured it was the right thing to do to tell you all, since you're our friends."

"Gryffindor Gang," Ron smirked.

"Gryffindor Gang," Harry repeated, grinning.

After a few seconds of silence, the last person Harry expected to speak up cleared his throat.

"Well…" Neville began nervously. All eyes turned to him and he paled a bit before speaking again. "If you need to breathe underwater for a while, and if you can't find a spell, you can always use gillyweed."

"Gilly-what?" Harry blinked.

"Gillyweed," Neville continued. "I read about it in a book that Professor Moody gave me. It was discovered by a Herbologist named Beaumont Majoribanks in the nineteenth century near the Mediterranean Sea, but its properties weren't discovered until years later when a woman named Elladora –"

"Neville, skip to the important part of the lecture please?" Lavender asked.

"Right," The clumsy Gryffindor blushed. "Well, if you consume it raw, it gives you the properties of certain fish. Your hands get all webbed, your feet sort of resemble flippers, you can handle cold temperatures in water, and most importantly, you can breathe underwater because it gives you gills."

"Gills?" Seamus repeated incredulously.

"Gills," Neville nodded.

"Neville, I could kiss you right now," Harry said sincerely, earning a displeased huff from Hermione. Neville's blush deepened and he ducked his head. "Seriously, mate, you're a life-saver. Is there a place where we can get this gillyweed stuff?"

"Well, it only grows in Mediterranean climates," Neville explained, looking uncharacteristically confident in himself now that he was talking about his field of expertise. "It's used in certain potions, so Snape would probably have some in his private stores."

"Easy enough to steal," Harry nodded.

"But, if you would rather avoid breaking rules –"

"Lame," Harry and Ron huffed in unison.

"You were saying, Neville?" Hermione sat up straight and elbowed Harry in the ribs for his remark.

"They sell it at Dogweed and Deathcap. It's the Herbology shop in Hogsmeade, and I've seen it stocked there before. They'll definitely have it. You'll have to pay for it, but it's better than risking detention or worse from Snape."

Harry nodded slowly, once again drumming his fingers on his legs. "Alright. You're certain they sell it there?"

"They have it," Ron answered before Neville could even open his mouth.

"How do you know that?" Seamus asked, tilting his head quizzically. The rest of the Gryffindor Gang looked equally surprised.

"Well," Ron began with a shrug, "during the last Hogsmeade visit, after you two went back to the castle to train for the First Task," he pointed to Harry and Hermione, "and you two went off to Gladrags to get girly clothes," he pointed to Lavender and Parvati, "and after you two went off to Zonko's to replenish our anti-Malfoy fireworks supply," he pointed to Dean and Seamus, "Neville and I were the only two left. We went to Honeydukes first and then he insisted on dragging me to the Herbology shop, Dogcrap and Deathweed or whatever it's called."

"Dogweed and Deathcap…" Neville mumbled.

"Whatever," Ron waved him off. "Anyway, future Herbologist Neville Longbottom spent the whole time rambling about just about every plant we saw. To his credit, he actually made most of them sound interesting, which is more than I can say for our textbook and for Professor Sprout. Anyway, I remember gillyweed being one of those plants. It's there."

"So, we just have to get it at Dogweed and Deathcap," Neville concluded, looking more flattered than Harry could ever recall. "They have lots of it. More than enough to last an hour, so I reckon you could even practice in between now and the task, when nobody's around on the grounds."

"And there just happens to be a Hogsmeade visit next Saturday," Lavender pointed out triumphantly. "Harry, I think you've got your strategy for the Second Task."

"Even better," Harry grinned, feeling a surge of confidence rush through him. "I think I'm going to win the Second Task."

A/N: So, over the last week and a half I've had to juggle a lot of stuff. Getting ready for university (I'm writing this note at one in the morning, about ten hours ahead of my scheduled move-in date), traveling to said university, spending time with my family and friends before I depart for three and a half months, etc. So that's why this chapter took a minute. I also had to scrap my original version because it was boring and I sucked and it felt like an injustice to my readers, whom I love so much. So, yeah. I hope you enjoyed this.