Blood Traitor Weasley
Professor McGonagall handed out their schedules at breakfast the next morning. Ginny scanned it: Charms, Potions, Herbology, Muggle Studies.
Beside her, Neville gave a splutter of indignation. "Look at this, Ginny! The sixth and seventh year Gryffindors and Slytherins are together in Potions and Muggle Studies! It'll be a nightmare!"
"I expect they didn't have enough students, since they chucked out all the Muggle borns," replied Ginny. "I'm not worried about it. I could take any one of them down."
Neville laughed uneasily.
Charms went by fairly normally. Professor Flitwick acted as though everything was completely normal. They reviewed Summoning Charms, and went over the syllabus. Ginny noticed that there were no defensive charms on the list this year, unlike the last five years. They probably don't want us to form an army, she though contemptuously.
Neville was right about Potions-it was an absolute nightmare. Professor Slughorn was a pleasant enough teacher, but the Slytherins were terrible. With the sixth and seventh years in together, it had double the Slytherins taunting and mocking.
On the other hand, there was twice the amount of Gryffindors to prod them right back. All in all, it made for a very interesting lesson.
They reviewed the Confusing & Befuddlement Draught. Ginny glared at Malfoy as she added her ingredients: sneezewort, scurvy-grass and lovage. Malfoy glared right back, cutting his caterpillar with a very deliberate movement that clearly demonstrated that he would dearly like to do the same thing to Ginny.
Soon the dungeon was a haze of silver mist. Ginny helped Neville with his potion, since he was inept at potions, and his potion looked like bubbling tar instead of the precise shade of magenta the book called for.
Malfoy waited until Slughorn had his back turned. Then he sauntered over to Ginny and Neville with an insufferable expression on his face.
"Hey there, Longbottom. Weasel Queen," he said. Ginny scowled at him.
"Why do you call me that?" she asked in irritation. Malfoy smirked.
"Because you're the same as your brother. Weasley was born in a bin… you see the similarities," he said, delighted at his own supposed cleverness. Ginny resisted the urge to whip out her want and jinx him until he was nothing but a slug.
"Shut up, Malfoy."
"Oh, careful, Weasley," he sneered. "Wouldn't want to get into trouble. I heard what'll happen to those in detention. It's awful. Harry wouldn't want his dear little Ginny to get hurt, would he?"
"Malfoy. Shut. Up. Now."
"But Potter won't be around to hear what happened, will he? Because he's going to die, Weasley," said Malfoy, ignoring Ginny. He spoke in a loud voice that carried through the dungeons. Ginny dearly wanted to hit him. "He's no match for the Dark Lord. I'd find another half-blood to love, if I were you."
"Leave NOW," said Ginny. "Or else I really will jinx you."
"Ooh, I'm scared now," said Malfoy mockingly.
"You should be," fired Ginny. Malfoy evidently decided that he'd had enough fun. Either that, or he really was a coward. Ginny fancied the latter. Unfortunately, a tall, stringy boy by the name of Theodore Nott slunk up beside Malfoy.
"Is the blood traitor giving you trouble, Draco?" he asked. Most of the students were watching by now. Most of the Gryffindors were D.A. members, and their hands hovered over their wands.
"Yeah, Draco," echoed Ginny. "Are you afraid of the little blood traitor Weasley girl?" she asked in a wicked imitation of Nott.
"Shut up, Weasley," he snapped.
"Or what? You'll go tell your father?"
Ginny watched in satisfaction as Malfoy's face turned very pink. He muttered something under his breath and walked away. At the last second, he whipped around, pulling his wand out of his robes.
"Levicorpus!" he yelled. But Ginny had been expecting it. She was ready.
"Expelliarmus!" said Ginny. Malfoy's wand spun out of his hand.
"Locomotor Mortis!" Ginny shouted triumphantly. Her spell hit Malfoy in the leg, which was all too appropriate, since it was the Leg-Locker Curse. Malfoy was forced to hop around, yelling and swearing.
"Fix this, Weasley!" he commanded. Ginny giggled.
"I would, but I haven't learned the counter curse," said Ginny coolly. The room was completely silent. Ginny turned to the Gryffindors and raised her arms in the air in victory.
"And that's what happens when you mess with a WEASLEY!" shouted Ginny. The Gryffindors broke into peals of laughter and cheering.
"Weasley, Weasley…"
"WEASLEY, WEASLEY!"
"Miss Weasley!" thundered a voice. Ginny turned around guiltily. Slughorn stood behind her with a shocked expression on his face. Malfoy smirked, and Nott chuckled unpleasantly.
"Er, I can explain, sir…"
"Miss Weasley, that was an excellent Leg Locker Curse! You are a very talented witch. Although in the future," he added, "you may want to learn the counter curse."
Ginny watched in amusement as Malfoy's face turned from smug to dumbfounded, then to horrified. The Gryffindors watched Malfoy hop out of the dungeon, laughing so hard they thought they might cry.
Word spread fast through Hogwarts, and soon even the Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws knew about the confrontation between Ginny and Malfoy. She was congratulated all through lunch and Herbology, with many cheers and pats on the back.
But she dreaded Muggle studies, and rightly so. There was a definite feeling of fear and hostility, emanating from the students and Professor Carrow, respectively. Alecto watched the students as they sat at the desks and pulled out their books: Secrets of the Darkest Arts. It was a huge black book, and Ginny was apprehensive enough just to touch it, let alone actually read it.
Alecto was a very unattractive woman, short and stout with greasy hair sprouting from her head. She had beady little eyes and a strangely shaped head. She bore a very strong resemblance to a mountain troll.
"Welcome to Muggle Studies," she said in a low voice that sounded as if it should come from a toad instead of a woman.
"Muggles," she began, "are stupid, ignorant creatures. They're stupid and dirty and the whole lot of them should be exterminated- something that is in progression now. You-"
"Excuse me," said Ginny loudly. "I disagree."
The classroom went silent. Alecto blinked once. "I didn't ask for your opinion, did I? Now, back to what I was saying-"
Alecto stopped and stared at Ginny, who had stood up. "What now?" she asked in a disgruntled tone.
"Muggles have just as much right to be here as we do," said Ginny. "Yeah, they don't have magic, but look at what they've done without it!"
"Weasley's only saying that because her father's a Muggle-lover," said Malfoy in a carrying whisper. Ginny looked at him contemptuously.
"Yeah," she shot back. "My family does like Muggles. You and your family, you just think you're above them, but you're not. In fact, I think most Muggles are better than you. So shut it, Malfoy. Unless you'd like a repeat of Potions. In that case, I only have one thing to say: bring it."
"That's enough," snapped Alecto. "Come here, Miss Weasley."
Ginny walked up to Alecto and looked her in the eye, trying to convey her hate and defiance with her eyes.
"Miss Weasley is about to demonstrate what happens to those who are disruptive in my class," said Alecto in a deadly tone. She pointed her wand at Ginny. "Crucio."
Ginny gasped. She was being burned alive, cut with white hot knives. She was on fire and freezing to death at the same time. Her entire body felt as though it would shatter. She couldn't breathe. It took a moment for Ginny realize that she was screaming.
The pain ceased. Ginny took a deep breath and picked herself up off the floor. The Slytherins looked at her with glee on their faces, and Alecto looked highly entertained. Ginny spit in Alecto's face.
Alecto made a slashing movement with her wand, and pain shot across Ginny's face. She clapped a hand to her cheek. When it came away it was marked with blood.
"Sit down now and don't disrupt my class again," said Alecto. Ginny sat down and pressed the edge of her robes against her face.
"Are you alright?" whispered Neville. Ginny nodded. Her anger simmered just underneath, just out of reach. She took several deep breaths to regain control. She ignored Alecto's remarks about Muggles being stupid and lazy. It seemed to drag on forever. Finally, the bell rang for dinner.
"Class dismissed," said Alecto. And as Ginny left, Alecto shot her a look of deepest loathing. So Ginny did something very immature. She stuck her tongue out at Alecto, and the door swung shut behind her.