The first week of Hogwarts flew by faster than the latest racing broomstick the Firebolt Supreme. Finally by the end of the week she worked up the nerve to send the letter to her parents explaining that she was a Gryffindor now. The halls quieted down from the new year excitement and started to fill with stressful moans as first year students prepared for their first tests. On the first Friday of the term Grace sat in the comfy armchair  by the fire in the Gryffindor common room, the one that covered the scorched patch on the carpet. She watched the potion she brewed on the coffee table gurgle and pop. She remained a good distance in order to not sniff any fumes. It grew late into the night and she knew only two people would come out of the dormitory at this hour. Right on cue they did.

Fred and George's voices echoed down the spiral staircase, and the noisy banter didn't stop until they reached the bottom and saw Grace poised in her seat, nose in a muggle book about crystals.  Grace peered over the book, the boys couldn't see her mouth but by her eyes they could tell she was smirking.

"What you got there?" Grace placed the book next to her.

"Snatched it from Filch's office, I dunno what it is, but it was in a drawer labelled Confiscated and Highly Dangerous." Fred remarked.

"But we can't figure out why." George added. The two showed off the blank parchment paper. As they tried various  tactics to get it to do something. Occasionally a phrase would appear scribbled in red ink communicating something along the lines of Moony is not impressed by your efforts and Do you really think you're worthy of such great magic? Grace tried to suggest it was just a joke shop item but the boys refused to listen. And yelled silly phrases at it.

After a long 5 minutes of them trying to get this paper to do something Grace decided to switch topics. "Can you smell this? I don't think it came out right." Grace motioned towards the cauldron.

"Sure thing Flourish." Fred strode over to the liquid, "What's it supposed to be"

Grace crafted a clever response, "You'll know when you smell it."

Fred and Gorge took a hefty whiff and George asked, "What is it supposed to smell like?"

"Just give it a good smell." Grace gave them a sweet smile.

The boys took another whiff, turned to each other and asked in unison as if talking to mirror with an echo, "How did we get here?".

George shook his head but continued, "Oh we've gotta show Grace the paper." George smiled devilishly. Grace knew her potion was working.

"Can you just smell my potion? I think I may have messed it up." Grace tried everything to hold it together but a little chortle escaped her.

"Alright Flourish." George replied.

"What's it supposed to be?" Fred asked still gripping the enchanted paper.

The two took a long sniff and looked up much more confused than the previous times. The forgetfulness potion was almost in full swing just by inhalation. If Grace had them take a sip they'd forget who the other was, maybe even start a brawl.

But before Grace could ask if they could try out her potion Fred knelt to the floor, "Look at this!" He pointed to the carpet the three of them shifted when they rearranged the room on the first night. "This carpet wasn't always like this."

"Neither was the furniture!" George chimed in, "You think someone was trying to cover something up?"

Grace burst out laughing, they couldn't remember that they were the ones that gave the room a makeover trying to cover up their mess. But the twins just smiled like dopes and Fred suggested They check under the rug for loose floorboards. They moved as if they were about to strike gold.

Grace sat back enjoying the entertainment, of the wild goose chase.

That's when Fred stopped, "What was I looking for?"

George sat up on his knees no longer on all fours, "Where's the dungbombs we brought I don't have any more?" George dug in his pockets.

"That's exactly what you were looking for, keep going." Grace egged them on relaxing calmly in her seat.

"Wait, I think I've found something." George knocked on a floor board and it sound hallow, all three were anticipating something, he began to pry but stopped after he cracked open the floorboard. "What am I doing down here?"

Grace jumped up when she saw George had actually found something, "George! Does that floorboard come off?!"

Fred looked at Grace puzzled, "Why would he know? George are you hiding something from me?"

"What? No!"

"Then why are you opening a floorboard I don't know about?"

The brothers argued through confusion and tackled one another to the floor, rolling over the secret hiding place of who knows what. Grace tried to break them up because she wanted to see what was hidden beneath the floorboards. Finally, once again their short term memory was wiped and they lay down on the ground breathless. As they panted on the floor Grace shoved the antidote down their throats and rolled Fred over off the loose floorboards allowing Grace to access it. The boys were finally remembering everything that went down and laughed heartily at it until the remember the floorboard. By this point Grace had already unwedged the wood and revealed what looked like a time capsule. The dust filled her lungs on her gasp causing her to cough and choke. The spot hid many random objects, dungbombs, nose biting teacups, every flavored beans, scraps of parchment, a shoebox, and wands. Unlike Grace who surveyed the objects and didn't touch anything. Fred and George immediately reached for the wands. a thick layer of dust was finally disturbed after what looks like decades of neglect.

"You probably shouldn't be using those." Grace warned Fred and George who picked up 2 of the 3 wands. The twins din't head this warning and began swishing around the wand.

Grace took the lid off of the shoe box and grabbed a couple of photos, one of the Womping Willow which slashed around when a spell was cast at it. Another was a candid of the Gryffindor common room  looking much different; filled with faces Grace didn't recognize. None seemed to be paying attention to the camera, unaware of the picture being taken. The final photo was of animal prints in the snow, Grace didn't know animal prints they were but it looked like 2 dog type prints, some sort of hoof, and tiny ones she couldn't make out. The soft snow fell onto the freshly laid tracks, it looked truly beautiful.

As Grace examined the photos the boys quickly realized the wands did nothing but shoot out a small stream of water from the tip. They boys rummaged through the objects pocketing the contraband. 

Grace stared at the pages blank parchment that looked frayed and worn. Grace tapped her wand against the yellowing paper of the largest piece and immediately dropped it when she saw a message being revealed in blood.

I SOLEMNLY SWEAR THAT I AM UP TO NO GOOD

Below that message the same prints from the picture were stamped in mud and signed blood Moony Wormtail Padfoot and Prongs. 

And in small letters were the words Mischief Managed at the bottom right hand corner of the page.

"Hey, look at this! Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs..." Grace picked up the parchment she dropped and passed it over.

"That's not creepy at all." Fred said but when the realization struck him his eyes went wide, "I solemnly swear that I am up to no good!" He recited

George snatched the map from Fred's hands and pointed his wand at it "I solemnly swear that I am up to no good!" 

At once the parchment came to life and writing came to life swirling on the page, Moony Wormtail Padfoot and Prongs are proud to present, The Marauders Map. The three were astounded by their discovery. The map was alive, it showed everyone in the castle and on the grounds, and to their amazement passageways they had no idea existed as well. 

 "Can we test it out?"

The three decided to take .  The boys stared at her eagerly, "Okay. Yes I'll go." Gracen said pretending to be reluctant but the truth is she hadn't snuck out, but what better people to do it with?

The three stuffed the items back in the floorboards and Grace casted the locking charm, "Colloportus!" She moved the rug back over the floorboards and she left her potion brewing on the table.

The corridors were dark and the castle was silent. Grace could hear every footstep echo down the corridor, one wrong turn and they could be caught by Filch or Mrs. Norris. Grace walked past sleeping portraits of supposedly important witches and wizards. The gang made their way over to the west well, using the map to track and avoid Filch.

"Now what?" Grace looked down the dry well.

Without hesitation the boys jumped in. Grace watched them disappear into the darkness below and after a few seconds of stress she heard two thuds at the bottom, her heart was able to beat again and her lungs started to push air once more.

"Phew good thing they put a cushioning charm down her." Laughter echoed up the well. Grace exhaled with relief and jumped down.

There was a long dark tunnel ahead. The three of them drew their wands and casted light down the tunnel. What seemed like it would be a long hike took maybe 30 seconds. Soon enough they reached the end of the tunnel, it was blocked by a wall of water flowing down. The gang stepped through and to their amazement were standing in the middle of a fountain, wet and giggling. 

From a scan of the quaint village Grace recognized the cozy town from one of her family excursions, "Hogsmeade." she whispered. Even though it was deserted they still felt obligated to be quiet. The boys ran, ran straight to Zonkos trailing wet footprints with squishing noises. Grace stood a minute alone in the dark and breathed in the crisp air of early fall. Thoughts ran rampant in her head, she could just picture her mother's disappointed face, but this feeling of freedom was stronger. Grace, laid down in the fountain and floated on her back, her hair swam wildly disturbed by the water that splashed right by her face. The wind nipped her nose, cheeks, and hands which crept out of the water which acting like a blanket from the outside. 

Grace mapped out the stars in her head drawing invisible lines to form constellations. If she were a muggle she would have believed that the stars were aligned tonight in just the right way that it causes mischief amongst the masses. At least that's what her muggle book on astronomy claimed, star alignment persuades people's actions unknowingly. Similar to werewolves.

Grace heard a muffled noise trying to pierce through the water to enter her ears. She sat up startled.

"GO GO GO!" Grace saw the redheaded duo sprinting towards the fountain armfuls of junk looking terrified but enjoying it.

Grace rose to her feet as her bootcut jeans clung heavy to her body sopping wet, and the cold wind froze her body as she stood. She clambered back into the fountains tunnel and shortly after the twins appeared out of breath. She tried to ring out her clothes to no avail. The boys counted up their goodies.

On their trek back to the common room the boys filled in Grace on all of the details, breaking in, the old witch that lived across the street, her crazy spells, and thankfully her bad aim due to partial blindness. They stored the goodies in the floorboard beneath the rug and looked at the map that still was alive. Grace remembered the words at the bottom of the enchanted parchment signed by the creators of the map, "Mischief Managed." The ink melted away.

After the long eventful night Grace couldn't wait to sleep in the next morning.

But she was awakened at her usual hour as the sun rose from an owl swooping in the window, her family's owl. The dreaded response had finally come.