Chapter Four: Hello Again
"So what does the schedule hold for us this morning?" I asked Draco as we sat down for breakfast on Friday morning. I loved how, at Hogwarts, classes didn't start until nine. Another plus over Herlujium, who started their days at seven.
"Looks like Double Potions with Gryffindor," he said, looking at his paper. Me, being me, had already lost mine and had to rely on Draco, Crabbe and Goyle to get me where I needed to go. Most of the time that meant getting lost, but we were getting better at it.
"Awesome," I said, taking a sip of tea. Nothing woke you up in the morning like liquefied plant leaves, milk, and sugar.
"So, we have the afternoon off," Draco mentioned nonchalantly.
"Whatever shall we do?" I asked, smiling.
"We could swim at the lake," Crabbe suggested.
"In September?" Goyle snapped.
"Why not?" I said, gaining the three's attention. "It's always fun to do something a bit mental. Besides, I bet it won't be crowded."
"Sure, sounds great," Draco agreed.
"Just one rule, though," I said, interrupting Crabbe's miniature celebration.
"Yeah?" Goyle said.
"I really don't wanna see either of you in your underwear," I told them. Goyle smirked and I instantly knew I'd given him some sort of opportunity.
"So you'd be okay if Draco was in his underwear?" he said. Yeah, I screwed up.
"Shut up, Goyle!" Draco said, turning slightly pink.
"Well, I don't wanna see that either, but I just figured he'd have the sense to know that already," I retaliated. The expressions on their faces were priceless; it was like they were deciding whether or not to take offense. Draco and I broke into fits of laughter. Just then, a swarm of owls streamed into the room. We calmed ourselves down and looked toward the ceiling for our owls, but only Draco's had something for him.
"Uhg, Mum needs to bugger off a while. Every day it's /oh, Draco darling, I hope you're having yourself a splendid time at Hogwarts,"/ he mocked in a high pitch voice. Crabbe and Goyle burst into laughter (making a lot of people look at us), but I just smiled. What was it about Draco that made me like him so much? Not in a /"like-like"/ way, but I started off hating him, and now it was as if he'd been there my entire life.
"What're you laughing at?" asked Pansy as she took an empty seat beside me. She was a first year like us. We shared a dorm, actually. It was Pansy, Millicent Bulstrode, Tracey Davis, Daphne Greengrass, and me, the girl with the glasses. The big, brown, ugly glasses...
"Oh, hi Pansy," I smiled.
"Get any mail?" she asked us.
"Just another note from Mother, asking about school," Draco replied, tossing the letter off to the side.
"Tell me about it! Mother hasn't even given me time to reply before she's sent me another," Pansy agreed. Draco smiled at her. We started chatting about our parents, but I tried to stay out of it.
"We'd better be off. Maybe we won't get lost for once," Draco said eventually.
"I'd hope not. It's almost right next to the common room," I said, getting out of my seat and grabbing my books.
"Mind if I tag along?" asked Pansy, already on her feet.
"Sure," Draco shrugged. We began walking down the corridors, laughing about how that Hermione Granger had most likely eaten every one of her textbooks, when Snape passed us. When we realized he was looking, we all stopped and stood before him.
"I see you all have made friends with the other Slytherins," he pointed out.
"Yes, sir," everyone muttered. Everyone... except me.
"Of course we have," I said. He gave me a strange look, which melted into a seemingly forced smile.
"Why is that, Miss Glass?" he asked.
"Well, the way I figure, the Sorting Hat /did/ put us with people we were similar to," I said, and I was aware for the first time that my companions were staring at me in astonishment.
"But sometimes it would seem that opposites... attract," Snape said. I blinked. /Alright...?/
"Come on, Glass!" Draco called. I simply /refused/ to swim to the /middle/ of the lake. "Bet you can't swim," he taunted.
"Can too!" I retaliated. I was a brilliant swimmer!
"Doesn't look it," he smirked.
"I'll prove it!" I yelled. I kicked off the rock ledge and swam as fast as I could out to where Draco was. I could too swim! My mum took me to swim classes when I was two! To hell I couldn't swi-
"Wait," I paused as I reached him. He burst into laughter. I smiled a little bit to myself, realizing I /liked/ his attention. It was almost strange, but... Well, I wanted it I guess. We stayed there, treading water for a little while in silence.
"We should go back soon. I'm freezing," I said, noticing the blueness on Draco's lips. He nodded.
"Crabbe, Goyle," he called, and we made for the shore.
"D-Did we bring towels?" Goyle asked.
"No, but I picked up a spell. Here, um, what was it..." I started.
"Impervius," Draco said. I looked at him funny.
"You've been muttering it all morning," he smiled. I returned it.
"Thanks. /Impervius!"/
Even through the spell had dried us off completely, I'd come down with a rather nasty cold by the time we reached the castle.
"We'll meet you there," Crabbe said as the three boys left to get supper. I nodded and split off to go to Madame Pomfrey, who had been treating a fair number of colds recently.
"Thank you," I said.
"Not at all. Now go get something to eat, you'll need it," she said. I thanked her again before heading for the Great Hall. /I wonder if they'll have roast chicken today,/ I thought, really in the mood for chicken and mashed potatoes.
"Hey! Give it back!" I heard someone shout. I looked up from my thoughts and saw a boy, probably a first year, reaching for a book hovering feet over his head. Two girls stood before him, at least in their fourth year, laughing and teasing him.
"What's the matter, can't reach?" one of them chuckled as I drew closer.
"Maybe you should grow more," the other suggested, and both of them giggled.
"Please! Give it back!" the boy whined, still jumping up for the book he knew he'd never get to. As I got close I figured out who everyone was; Kimberly Bates, Valerie Mark, and, of course, Neville Longbottom.
"Fine, have it," Kimberly sneered, dropping her wand and releasing the book from her /Leviosa/ charm. It fell with a thud right onto Neville's head. The two girls walked away, jeering at how pathetic Neville was, passing me on the way to the Great Hall.
"Oi, Glass, good one, eh?" asked Mark as she saw me.
"Uh, yeah, brilliant," I said, high-fiving her. And it was, it was a brilliant idea (if it had been used on anyone else), but I was distracted by Neville, who was lying on the ground and flipping through the pages of his book.
"There has to be a jinx I could use somewhere in here," he said as I kneeled next to him.
"You wouldn't, though," I said gently. He stopped looking and put his DADA book in its pile.
"I know. I don't think I like Slytherin so much, Millie," Neville said, looking over his shoulder at Bates and Mark as they disappeared through the doors.
"Understandable," I murmured, but there wasn't anything I could do about it, either. "Come on, let's go."
Neville and I walked together until we had to split to our tables. He sat near the none-other-than Harry Potter, so I sat across from him at the Slytherin table. Neville turned in his seat so we could talk.
"Have you any friends? In your House?" Neville asked.
"Of course. Why?" I asked. His ears went pink.
"They just don't seem that friendly is all," he said. I smiled.
"They aren't too bad. I still wish we were in the same House, though," I grinned. He nodded in agreement.
"Glass!" Draco called. I turned my head and saw him waving me over from down on the other end of the table, a good few seats away.
"Who's he?" Nev asked.
"Draco Malfoy. He's a friend," I said.
"Glass, over here!" he called again. I smiled at Neville and got up to go sit with Draco, but someone intercepted my path.
"Miss Glass," Snape said, and I had to stop myself from running into him.
"Y-Yes?" I stammered, grabbing my /History of Magic/ book just as it was slipping from my pile.
"Meet me in my classroom, if you would," he said.
"Uh, yeah. Won't I see you in the common room, though?" I asked curiously. He glared.
"My classroom, Miss Glass," he repeated, then walked off. I sighed and continued to sit down.
"What was that about?" Draco asked.
"Oh, Snape?" I said dumbly.
"Yeah, what did he say?" Goyle inquired.
"He was... He asked me to meet him in his classroom for an extra Potion's lesson," I lied, grabbing for a roll.
"A lesson? What for?" Draco questioned.
"I asked him to. I want to beat out that Hermione Granger," I spat. While I would love to beat Granger in some class, I wanted to know what Snape had in store. I took a huge bite of bread so no one would ask any more questions and they'd leave me to my thoughts. What could he want of me?
"I see you've made it," came Snape's monotone greeting.
"Yeah. Did you need something?" I asked, closing the door. He flicked his wand at the door and it locked. Another swish and the window was blacked out.
"I assume you received my earlier message?" he asked, gesturing at a stool towards the front of the class. I took a seat and thought. It suddenly struck me.
"Meet me after hours, and don't get caught," I recited, nodding slowly.
"Yes, that one. But, of course, you'll be up talking all night with Pansy Parkinson," he said with a knowing shimmer in his eye. My face grew hot. Pansy and I were /always/ talking.
"I suppose that's why you have me here now instead?" I suggested. He gave a slight nod.
"As it seems, you don't remember me," he said, standing at the head of the room. I frowned a little.
"How should I? We've only just met this week," I said.
"No, we have met before. You were all but a year old," he said.
"Oh?" I asked cautiously.
"November 1st if I recall," he went on, "The night after the murder of Lily and James Potter."
"I wouldn't know, sir," I said, "I'm not much a fan of Potter."
He went on without notice of my comment. "It was on that very day, at midnight, that you were volunteered to assist me in my... /tasks."/
"Volunteered?" I asked, gawking. /What the devil is he on about?/ I thought.
"Yes. Your mother agreed with an Unbreakable Vow to let me train you in my field of working," Snape said, toying with a brewing potion on his desk.
"So you want me to become a Potion's Master?" I smarted. He whipped his head around and stormed over to my table, making me almost fall back in surprise.
"The missions of which I'm speaking could very well lead to your immediate death if you don't follow my directions /exactly,/ so I suggest you take this as a serious matter," he hissed, backing away at the end. My eyes were big.
"I'm /eleven./ What would we be doing that could lead to my /death?"/ I said in exasperation.
"A number of things," he said bitterly, adding a pinch of finely crushed ingredients to his cauldron. All was silent for a number of moments.
"Where do we start?" I asked after a while. He turned around and gave a mocking smile.
"I want to know where your loyalties lie- with Potter or the Dark Lord?" he asked. I fumbled for an answer.
"Well not with Voldemort if that's what you're asking!" I exclaimed.
"Do /not/ speak his name," he snapped.
"Why? I'm not afraid," I stated boldly.
"You should be," Snape said darkly, staring at me in a way that made me know I'd best remember this for a later time. I gave a slight dip of my head to show I understood.
"Very well," I whispered.
"I will let you know when there is time for us to begin training," he said, pouring his now finished mixture into a phial. /Training...?/
"Out of curiosity, why are you telling me all this so early in the year?" I asked.
"Better sooner than later," he said simply, showing me to the door.
"Well, uh, hello again," I said as I exited his classroom.
"Hello again."