A/N: Hey everybody! How's your summer going? :) Sorry I took a day late of upload, our flight ws moved to next Friday! To make it up to you guys, I'm bringing you a longer-than-usual chappie. ;))
Thank you once again for all the lovely reviews, I've always kind of liked CoS so, yeah~ Enjoy! ^-^
Disclaimer: I own it. ;) Ouch! Darn Umbridge, I must not tell lies. -.-"
"Rambling"
by SJRegina
Hermione always found herself rambling whenever in the presence of the one and only Fred Weasley, but that's just how Fred liked it.
Chapter 12: How Ironic
Things had gone off pretty good for Hermione and the twins after their hug of hapiness in front of the Fat Lady's portrait.
Well, at least for 5 minutes.
How ironic it was, Hermione thought, that exactly after the point that she had said that everything was going to be alright, Fred & George eventually had to go back to Quidditch practice and had arrived to see a very bad scene.
There in the middle of the Quidditch pitch, they saw the Gryffindor Quidditch team land in front of the Slytherin Quidditch team, with Wood landing hard in the ground in front of them. And from what they could see, it looked like Oliver was really angry.
They immediately ran behind Harry who had just landed a little behind Oliver.
"What's going on?" George nudged Harry. Harry tilted his head to point on Oliver and Marcus who were in front of them.
"Flint!" Wood bellowed at the Slytherin Captain. "This is our practice time! We got up specially! You can clear off now!"
Marcus Flint was even larger than Wood. He had a look of trollish cunning on his face as he replied, "Plenty of room for all of us, Wood."
Angelina, Alicia, and Katie had come over, too. There were no girls on the Slytherin team, who stood shoulder to shoulder, facing the Gryffindors, leering to a man.
"But I booked the field!" said Wood, positively spitting with rage. "I booked it!"
"Ah," said Flint. "But I've got a specially signed note here from Professor Snape." He then held up a note pompously and read it in front of Oliver as if he was rubbing it on his face.
"I, Professor S. Snape, give the Slytherin team permission to practice today on the Quidditch field owing to the need to train their new Seeker."
"You've got a new Seeker?" said Wood, distracted. "Where?"
And from behind the six large figures before them came a seventh, smaller boy, smirking all over his pale, pointed face. It was Draco Malfoy.
"Aren't you Lucius Malfoy's son?" said Fred, looking at Malfoy with dislike. He had never really gotten over their encounter in Flourish & Bott's where his father was very underestimated by that rich pompous Lucuis Malfoy.
"Funny you should mention Draco's father," said Flint as the whole Slytherin team smiled still more broadly. "Let me show you the generous gift he's made to the Slytherin team."
All seven of them held out their broomsticks. Seven highly polished, brand-new handles and seven sets of fine gold lettering spelling the words Nimbus Two Thousand and One gleamed under the Gryffindors' noses in the early morning sun.
"Very latest model. Only came out last month," said Flint carelessly, flicking a speck of dust from the end of his own.
"I believe it outstrips the old Two Thousand series by a considerable amount. As for the old Cleansweeps," he smiled nastily at Fred and George, who were both clutching Cleansweep Fives, "sweeps the board with them."
Fred felt like he couldn't be even more mad. He was always embaressed with his broom, but that insult was like insulting his family as well. It was never really an issue to him that they were poor, but now that he thought about it, he pitied himself.
Always secondhand things, always secondhand clothes. He didn't really care about that. What he now pitied was his mother and father. They were like insulting his parents! It took him all of his self-control to not pounce on the Slytherin Quidditch team and just snap off their brooms.
He looked over to the side and saw George thinking about the same thing, he was clenching his fists so tightly as to control his anger that her knuckles had already gone white.
None of the Gryffindor team could think of anything to say for a moment. Malfoy was smirking so broadly his cold eyes were reduced to slits.
"Oh, look," said Flint. "A field invasion."
Ron and Hermione were crossing the grass to see what was going on.
"What's happening?" Ron asked Harry. "Why aren't you playing? And what's he doing here?"
He was looking at Malfoy, taking in his Slytherin Quidditch robes.
"I'm the new Slytherin Seeker, Weasley," said Malfoy, smugly.
"Everyone's just been admiring the brooms my father's bought our team." Ron gaped, open-mouthed, at the seven superb broomsticks in front of him.
"Good, aren't they?" said Malfoy smoothly. "But perhaps the Gryffindor team will be able to raise some gold and get new brooms, too. You could raffle off those Cleansweep Fives; I expect a museum would bid for them."
The Slytherin team howled with laughter.
"At least no one on the Gryffindor team had to buy their way in," said Hermione sharply. "They got in on pure talent."
Fred smiled at this, that was her Hermione. Her?
The smug look on Malfoy's face flickered.
"No one asked your opinion, you fiIthy little Mudblood," he spat.
"You bloody little bastard!"
That was it! He came beyond the limits! He couldn't take it anymore, there was an uproar and he pounced on Malfoy. If only Flint hadn't dived in front of Malfoy to stop him and George jumping on him, he would've given Malfoy a piece of his mind, and maybe a kiss from his fists.
Alicia shrieked, "How dare you!" That was exactly what he felt, how dare he! How dare he insult his Hermione and call her mudblood! He was the dirty one! That foul beast! He just wanted to take all of the Dragon hide there was in the world and shove it inside his mouth.
Ron plunged his hand into his robes, pulled out his wand, yelling, "You'll pay for that one, Malfoy!" and pointed it furiously under Flint's arm at Malfoys face.
A loud bang echoed around the stadium and a jet of green light shot sending him reeling backward onto the grass.
"Ron! Ron! Are you all right?" squealed Hermione.
Ron opened his mouth to speak, but no words came out. Instead he gave an almighty belch and several slugs dribbled out of his mouth onto his lap.
The Slytherin team were paralyzed with laughter. Flint was doubled up, hanging onto his new broomstick for support. Malfoy was on all fours, banging the ground with his fist. The Gryffindors were gathered around Ron, who kept belching large, glistening slugs.
Nobody seemed to want to touch him.
"We'd better get him to Hagrid's, it's nearest," said Harry to Hermione, who nodded bravely, and the pair of them pulled Ron up by the arms.
~.~
Just when Hermione thought things couldn't possibly get worst, after Harry & Ron had their detentions, Harry's been telling her that he was hearing things. And Ron was overacting by the outstanding number of spiders roaming around the castle.
Whenever Ron became hysterical about the spiders, Hermione had to hold her laughter. Fred once told her that he changed Ron's teddy bear to a spider when he broke his toy broom. But she had to be serious in order to keep Harry and Ron in order.
The next day, things had gotten more peculiar. Chickens were dying in an odd rate. But the usual Gryffindor night was going on quite well.
Rain was still lashing the windows, which were now inky black, but inside all looked bright and cheerful. The firelight glowed over the countless squashy armchairs where people sat reading, talking, doing homework or, in the case of Fred and George Weasley, trying to find out what would happen if you fed a Filibuster firework to a salamander.
Fred had "rescued" the brilliant orange, fire-dwelling lizard from a Care of Magical Creatures class and it was now smouldering gently on a table surrounded by a knot of curious people.
Harry, Ron, and Hermione were in their usual place in the common room, on the smallest sofa in front of the fire place. Harry talked to them about Old Nick's deathday party and how they were invited. Hermione was surprised while Ron just found it depressing. But Harry had promised to the old ghost and thought it would lighten up all of the disputes that have happened.
Harry looked like he was going to say something else to them but as he opened his mouth, the salamander suddenly whizzed into the air, emitting loud sparks and bangs as it whirled wildly round the room.
The sight of Percy bellowing himself hoarse at Fred and George, the spectacular display of tangerine stars showering from the salamander's mouth, and its escape into the fire, with accompanying explosions, made Hermione feel that it was all better. All of the troubles and the fears that occupied her, now gone.
Hermione went to bed feeling happy and contented. But something did bother her, Ginny her girl best friend, and possibly only girl friend was acting peculiar. That's why Hermione couldn't talk about Fred and help her with Harry because she was sort of odd.
Hermione's thoughts all faded away when sleep took over her.
~.~
It was Halloween and her, Ron, and Harry were the only people who were actually still 'living' in Nick's deathday party. The mood was gloomy and the food was horrible. Every ghost in Hogwarts were there, even Peeves, who Hermione was quite fond of secretly courtesy to the twins, and Moaning Mrytle.
They were very cold by now, not to mention hungry.
Things had gone bad since then and Ron finally convinced the both of them to leave.
"I can't stand much more of this," Ron muttered, his teeth chattering, as the orchestra ground back into action and the ghosts swept back onto the dance floor.
"Let's go," Harry agreed.
They backed toward the door, nodding and beaming at anyone who looked at them, and a minute later were hurrying back up the passageway full of black candles.
"Pudding might not be finished yet," said Ron hopefully, leading the way toward the steps to the entrance hall.
And then Harry acted peculiar. It was as if he heard something. He stumbled to a halt, clutching at the stone wall, listening with all his might, looking around, squinting up and down the dimly lit passageway.
"Harry, what're you -?"
"It's that voice again - shut up a minute -"
"Listen!" said Harry urgently, and Ron and Hermione froze, watching him.
Harry was moving his head which was laying by the wall, moving away and moving upward. A mixture of fear and excitement gripped them as he stared at the dark ceiling.
"This way," he shouted, and he began to run, up the stairs, into the entrance hall. It was no good hoping to hear anything here, the babble of talk from the Halloween feast was echoing out of the Great Hall.
Harry sprinted up the marble staircase to the first floor, Ron and Hermione clattering behind him.
"Harry, what're we -"
"SHH!"
"It's going to kill someone!" he shouted, and ignoring Ron's and Hermione's bewildered faces, he ran up the next flight of steps three at a time, trying to listen over his own pounding footsteps.
Harry hurtled around the whole of the second floor, Ron and Hermione panting behind him, not stopping until they turned a corner into the last, deserted passage.
"Harry, what was that all about?" said Ron, wiping sweat off his face. "I couldn't hear anything..."
But Hermione gave a sudden gasp, pointing down the corridor.
"Look!"
Something was shining on the wall ahead. They approached slowly, squinting through the darkness. Foot-high words had been daubed on the wall between two windows, shimmering in the light cast by the flaming torches.
The Chamber of Secrets has been opened. Enemies of the heir, Beware.
"What's that thing - hanging underneath?" said Ron, a slight quiver in his voice.
As they edged nearer, Hermione almost slipped - there was a large puddle of water on the floor; Ron and Harry grabbed her, and they inched toward the message, eyes fixed on a dark shadow beneath it. All three of them realized what it was at once, and leapt backward with a splash.
Mrs. Norris, the caretaker's cat, was hanging by her tail from the torch bracket. She was stiff as a board, her eyes wide and staring.
For a few seconds, they didn't move. Then Ron said, "Let's get out of here."
"Shouldn't we try and help -" Harry began awkwardly.
"Trust me," said Ron. "We don't want to be found here."
But it was too late. A rumble, as though of distant thunder, told them that the feast had just ended. From either end of the corridor where they stood came the sound of hundreds of feet climbing the stairs, and the loud, happy talk of well-fed people; next moment, students were crashing into the passage from both ends.
The chatter, the bustle, the noise died suddenly as the people in front spotted the hanging cat. Harry, Ron, and Hermione stood alone, in the middle of the corridor, as silence fell among the mass of students pressing forward to see the grisly sight.
Then someone shouted through the quiet.
"Enemies of the Heir, beware! You'll be next, Mudbloods!"
It was Draco Malfoy. He had pushed to the front of the crowd, his cold eyes alive, his usually bloodless face flushed, as he grinned at the sight of the hanging, immobile cat.
~.~
They had once again gone in deep trouble, Filch accused Harry of 'killing' Mrs. Norris, but it was confirmed by Madam Pomfrey herself that Mrs. Norris was not killed but was in fact 'petrified'.
It was then that she realized why Argus Filch was such a grumpy man who seemed to hate wizard children. It was because he was a squib. An individual born of wizard parents but does not have the ability of magic. She kind of pitied the man with the death of his only companion and his state, but she was still fond of Peeves' antics.
She'd even be glad of motivating the potergoist because of Filch's grudge against them. It was Hermione's secret guilty pleasure.
Why is it that whenever things go well, something bad always happens. Will their lives ever be normal? Hermione thought sternly before going to bed when in fact she couldn't sleep. How ironic. That was the perfect theme of her life.
Then before she finally got to sleep, she decided to talk to Ginny the next day, it was a Saturday anyway and little homework was given to them. She missed her girl friend a lot. But now it was time for sleep.
A/N: Sorry for the late upload guys, I hope I wrote it pretty well. If you spot mistakes or what nots, please don't hestitate to review and tell me about it. ^-^ If you want to suggest something, I'd be more than glad to take them! :D
I wish I could just thank every single one of you, you never fail to make my day. But I'm pretty busy right now so I'll catch up later and upload another one. :D
Lots of Love, Mie. :)
