Detention!
Previously: What curse Potter?" asked the alarmed blonde.
"The Harry Potter curse, Malfoy!" he said dramatically. "Whoever insults my mother is cursed for a week to live the life of loneliness, all your food will taste bland, you won't be able to concentrate, all your friends will abandon you in the fear of getting infected." said a smirking Harry.
The boy paled and threw the photo as if it were some disgusting thing and ran off to his dormitory. Harry took his photo and put if back safely into the folds of his robes.
He decided that this was the most Slytherinish day of his life, and it was yet to come to an end. Who knew what the evening would bring….
~~~~~~~~~~LILY SNAPE~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~LILY SNAPE~~~~~~~~
Evening was rather late in coming for the Malfoy heir. All the Slytherins were avoiding him as if he was food tasted bland. Even his favorite chocolate tasted like vomit. He did not know what he'd been expecting, but this was not it.
Was this how the mud..muggleborns felt when he sneered at them…
Draco had never been so ashamed of himself. He was just copying his father. Maybe father was wrong for once in his life. Maybe Potter was right. Maybe…Maybe….
Draco shook his head. What was he thinking! Why did he care if the mudbloods feel bad! His father was right. He had always been right. Why should that change now! Potter was bad. He was wrong. He had cursed him, just to increase his fan club. He was Slytherins' enemy. Draco wondered if he should tell his father about this curse business,…. Then he grimaced and dismissed the thought. What would father think of him…..going out and getting cursed, and that too by a filthy half blood?No! he would deal with this himself.
It is said that fools are most determined people in the world. And so, Draco Malfoy, started heading towards the headmaster's office…
~~~~~~~~~~LILY SNAPE~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~LILY SNAPE~~~~~~~~
Harry knew something was up, the moment Mcgonall came to him furious and asked him to follow her to the headmaster's office. What now! Harry was wise enough to obey her at once, than to bear the brunt of her anger. Maybe it wasn't his fault after all…..
And so he entered the headmaster's office and nearly sighed at the sight in front of him, nearly being the key word….One did not sigh in front of four head of houses, a confused headmaster and a pale looking Draco Malfoy, especially not when one of them was white with rage…and that one being Severus Snape.
"Mr. Potter, there has been a serious accusation that you cursed a fellow student in the halls of Hogwarts, apparently unprovoked. What do you have to say?" asked Albus Dumbledore.
"I don't think the accuser has given you a full account sir. I will speak in my defense only once when the whole story is revealed."Harry said respectfully and neatly keeping out of everyone's eyes but Malfoy's.
The boy gulped and looked paler. He had obviously not thought of this. How was he going to keep his victimized image? He gulped again. He was so preoccupied that he did not hear the headmaster ask him multiple times about the hoax. But his head of house gave him one look that stopped all his inner thoughts and the truth came out flowing like a turbulent river.
"I am very sorry about that sir. I was merely joking. I deeply regret my actions. I am sorry Potter" he added at last when all the anger Snape had for Potter vanished and was replaced by plain undiluted rage towards him. "All is forgiven, Malfoy!" said a surprised Harry. At once, there was a slight breeze that flew in between him and Potter and Draco felt relieved.
The curse had been lifted. He looked gratefully towards the headmaster who smiled back at him. As if on cue, Draco's stomach rumbled loudly, causing the headmaster to chuckle and send him to the kitchens for dinner.
A relieved Draco Malfoy went happily to his friends. But the same could not be said for one Harry Potter, who was the current glaring target for four heads, who were demanding an explanation.
"Mr. Potter, though you were provoked, that is no reason for you to curse a student so badly. You better have an answer for this young man!" said Minerva.
"CURSE him! I assure you Professor, I have done nothing of the sort. I did not even lift my wand!"said Harry rather too calmly.
"Oh! Then what is the Harry Potter curse? Hmmm…..maybe there is another Harry Potter I suppose!" sarcasm was dripping from her tone.
"Oh yes. It so happens that my great grandfather Lord Harrison Robinson Potter was also popularly known as Harry Potter. Maybe he invented the curse" sarcasm wasn't meant to be hidden here too.
It enraged Minerva further, but she was cut off by loud howls of laughter, and sudden gasps of "oh Harry" from a blue eyed eccentric clothed old veteran. Harry swore everyone in the school could hear them.
"Pray what Albus" said an exasperated Pomoa "is so funny that you are laughing in front of a student in such an undignified manner?"
Dumbledore finally managed to get himself together and said "Harry! Whoever told you that you take after your father, just ignore them. James may have been a prankster but this is pure Lily.
"Why thank you headmaster" said a grinning Harry, which only served to increase the teachers' confusion. Severus was horrified. How could the headmaster let the boy get away with this? He glared at the man. But Albus, being Albus, continued "Her pranks were so famous, but no one could prove that it was her, and so she never ever got caught in all her years at Hogwarts. Right Severus?"
Severus blinked. His annoyance increased by notches and so did his glare. How dare the man bring Lily into this? Harry sensed this and understood that they would not live much longer if they kept this up.
So he hastened to explain "I did not curse him Professor! I promise I didn't. He was going to tear my Mum's photo and I couldn't lose it. So I merely played a trick on him. I am sure all of you know, there isn't any curse called Harry Potter curse. I merely used some dramatic tones and let loose some of my magic to rattle the windows. I never raised my wand. So I did not curse him."
"The effects he felt were purely coincidental. The other Slytherins have been avoiding him, for some reason I do not know for a long time now. His chocolate tastes like vomit because he ate the vomit flavor of Bertie Bott's every flavor beans. His food tasted bland because he THOUGHT it tasted bland. The breeze that came now was because it is going to rain tonight according to the Daily Prophet's weather prediction. So you see, it was all an illusion. A faux. Malfoy thought it to be true. The curse was just his imagination which made him magnify silly things and ignore the obvious." He finished.
The teachers were looking at him with rather devious grins and the headmaster was chuckling. All but one Severus Snape.
"You have justified yourself quite well, Potter, but that does not mean we can let this slide. I still think you deserve a detention for your actions Mr. Potter. Come to my office at six." He huffed and billowed out of the room.
"Sorry Harry. I can't help you now. Professor Snape is very protective of his Slytherins. He will not take any pranks on them lightly." Harry lost his grin and went out of the room.
This was so unfair.
~~~~~~tbc~~~~~~