"I knew it! I knew it, I knew it, I KNEW IT!"

Two days later, West was still going on about her innate knowledge about part of the third task. She had rubbed it in Alana and Jade's faces at every opportunity, and whenever Jade tried to bring up the next challenge and how she would get through it.

At that very moment, the girls were gathered in the Hufflepuff Basement, sitting by the fire. West was alternatively taunting the others, being a sore winner, and munching on an oatmeal cookie. Alana was slung across a chair, with her feet over the arm, and she was sipping a blue speckled mug of hot cocoa with whipped cream. Jade was perched on a stool and pressing her own cocoa mug to her forehead, trying to suppress the headache that West was giving her.

"I was ri-ight, I was ri-"

"WEST!" Jade's snap startled them all into silence. "You're giving me the hugest headache. Please, stop." She ran her fingers through her hair and sighed, wishing she could sleep.

Alana wiped off her whipped-cream mustache. "I thought we were trying to strategize for Jade. Quit gloating and pass me a cookie."

The house-elves who worked in the kitchens had left plates of assorted cookies (biscuits according to their new British friends) and carafes of hot chocolate on every table. Everyone in the common room was in a good mood, chattering and laughing, and the noise level in the room was through the roof.

Jade might have been the only person not enjoying herself. Sure, the cocoa was warm and the cookies (peanut butter-chocolate chip) were delicious, but the stress and nerves from the upcoming Task and the way she hadn't been sleeping were combining to form a small explosion of pain in the front of her skull.

"Guys, I need help." She took a cookie and bit into it, unfortunately taking the one single cookie with walnuts in it- gross. "I'm so nervous about the task that's coming up. What am I going to do?"

West plopped onto the carpet, cookie in hand. "You could always just use your weirdo compass thingy," she offered, spraying crumbs.

Jade swung her feet down from her stool. "I was thinking of that, but it's missing. I haven't seen it in weeks."

Alana jumped from her seat. "Maybe it was stolen!"

Jade rolled her eyes outwardly, but on the inside, she considered it as an honest possibility. She'd been carrying the thing everywhere, and she'd taken it out and rubbed it when studying many times before. It would be so easy for someone to run a hand along her desk or library study table casually and just palm it away.

"Yeah! You carry that thing everywhere!" West was quick to interject, scooting closer to Jade's stool and Alana's armchair. "It would be so easy for someone to swipe it from you. I mean, not that I've ever tried it or anything..." She looked carefully to the left and added cream to her cocoa mug.