Over the next few days the people of the quidditch team didn't talk to each other much. Those who remembered what had happened refused to talk about it, and those who didn't were worried it had something to do with them. Lee Jordan wasn't talking to Emile again, and Oliver Wood didn't remember anything.
News of the first year Colin Creevey being petrified had spread through the castle. Nasty rumors were popping up everywhere, so no one was particularly concerned that the team wasn't talking to each other.
Ginny Weasley was distraught, apparently she sat next to Colin in Charms. Fred and George were going the wrong way about cheering her up. They were taking turns covering themselves with fur or boils and jumping out at her from behind statues. Emile tried to comfort Ginny, but the first year had a habit of disappearing that Emile was insanely jealous of. The twins only stopped when Percy, apoplectic with rage, told them he was going to write to Mrs. Weasley and tell her Ginny was having nightmares.
Meanwhile, hidden from the teachers, a roaring trade in talismans, amulets, and other protective devices was sweeping the school. Neville Longbottom bought a large, evil-smelling green onion, a pointed purple crystal, and a rotting newt tail before the other Gryffindor boys pointed out that he was in no danger; he was a pure-blood, and therefore unlikely to be attacked.
"They went for Filch first," Neville said, his round face fearful. "And everyone knows I'm almost a Squib."
Emile put a hand on his shoulder comfortingly. The past week she had seen Neville in the library a lot and had grown a bit closer with him as they discussed herbology. He had an amazing aptitude for it.
Two weeks before christmas holidays Professor McGonagall came around to see who was staying for the holidays. Emile didn't sign her name. She didn't care if that meant she had to go to the Minister's dinner. Heck, she might even enjoy it for once.
A few days later, Emile was lying on her bed watching Carrot run across a rope net she had hung up on the wall.
"Hey Emile," Angelina pulled back her curtains and entered Emile's section of the room, no doubt shocked at what was in front of her. It had been a while since Emile had pulled back the curtain surrounding her section, and for good reason too. The floor was littered with clothes and empty dishes. Half filled cups of tea sat on the wardrobe. A small pile of unopened letters sat in the corner.
"Oh, hello Angelina." Emile didn't look down, just picked up Carrot and placed her on her shoulder. "How may I help you today?"
"This is creepy," Alicia stuck her head in behind Angelina, her nose wrinkling in disgust.
"Emile, I wanted to know if you would join us in the new Dueling Club that Lockheart's starting." Angelina walked over to Emile's bed and climbed up next to her.
"Only if you tell me what happened that night." Emile sat up, crossing her legs and staring at Angelina.
"Emile, we aren't telling you because we care about you." Alicia said from where she was still at the curtains, refusing to come in.
Emile stared at Angelina pleadingly. After a few minutes her friend sighed and looked over at Alicia.
"I can't say no to her puppydog eyes." Alicia rolled her eyes as Angelina turned back to Emile. "Ok well from what I remember we were playing truth or dare, and it was Fred's turn to choose someone and he chose Oliver. Being the rebel he was, he chose dare. Fred was very tipsy, Emile, he wouldn't do anything to hurt you on purpose. He dared Oliver to kiss the last girl he would consider the worst date, and I think you know what happened next."
"What the fuck guys, that's not so bad." Emile stared at Angelina. "What, did you think I would get offended? I wouldn't date me either."
"Don't you have a thing for Oliver though?" Angelina stared at her incredulously.
"No!" Emile laughed for the first time in days. "Oh my god you guys, I need to go find Fred and George."
"Will you come to the club after?!" Angelina called after her as Emile ran down to the common room in her socks.
"Fred!" Emile ran into the common room, panting. "George!"
The common room was empty. Emile ran up the stairs to their dormitory, sliding to a stop in front of their door. She burst into the room, looking around anxiously. Lee was sleeping in the corner, or at least he was until she came in.
"What do you want?" Lee frowned at Emile.
"I need to find Fred and George," Emile panted. "I need to tell them I forgive them."
"Don't you think you ought to apologize to me?"
Emile stared at her friend. "Why would I need to apologize, Lee? Because someone kissed me? Because you're jealous? No, I don't think I need to apologize to you one bit."
A battered piece of parchment under George's pillow caught her attention. As Lee attempted to figure out a comeback Emile grabbed the parchment and left the room.
"I solemnly swear I am up to no good," Emile whispered, tapping the parchment with her wand. A detailed map of the school appeared in front of her, and Emile unfolded the parchment and searched for her targets. They weren't in the great hall with the rest of the dueling club, but Angelina and Alicia were. Finally, Emile spotted the duo exiting the kitchen and entering the hidden passage. Emile folded the parchment and stuck it into her pocket, running out of the common room and into the secret passageways.
As she turned in the darkness along the narrow path, Emile heard voices up ahead.
"Do you hear something, Fred?"
George barely had enough time to say the words before Emile crashed into the twins. She felt her glasses fly off of her nose as she fell backwards, bruising her tailbone as she fell onto the floor. She felt the map slip out of her pocket and onto the floor.
"Lumos," the three of them said after a great deal of scrambling. The light from their wans lit up the darkness, Illuminating the blurry faces of the redheads in front of Emile.
"Merlin's beard, Em." Fred helped her up and stood there awkwardly as George picked up the map and looked it over.
"I just wanted to tell you that you, Fred Weasley, are an idiot and I forgive you." Emile leaned forward and hugged the redhead as George laughed beside them.
"See Fred? Told ya Emile wouldn't get offended by Oliver." George rolled his eyes as Emile before tapping the map with his wand. "Mischief Managed."
"Now where are my glasses?" Emile squinted as she looked down the dark tunnel blindly.
"Are you a witch or what?" Fred punched her in the arm as he raised his wand. "Accio Emile's glasses!"
The glasses flew out of the darkness and into his hand. "I think they're a bit broken," He said as he handed her the glasses. One of the lenses had cracked.
Emile rolled her eyes. "Again? Oculus Reparo." She put the glasses back on her nose, relieved to be able to see clearly again.
As they headed back towards the Gryffindor common room Emile attempted to strike up a conversation.
"So what were you guys doing in the kitchen?"
"Actually, George had an idea to bait you into forgiveness by ordering your favorite foods and smuggling you into our room." Fred elbowed his brother, who blushed, oddly enough.
"George, that's really nice," Emile smiled at the twin. "I had no idea I was that important to you guys."
"Oh don't worry, you aren't." Fred winked at Emile as she shoved him in the side.
"Hey, has Lee apologized to you yet?" George looked over at Emile as they entered the common room.
"No, in fact he thinks Ii ought to apologize to him." Emile shrugged, trying not to show that it actually really hurt to have Lee ignoring her. Fred put his arm around her comfortingly for a moment as they headed up the stairs to their dorm.
Once inside they three of them sat on the George's bed, balancing the trays of food in between them. Lee wasn't in the room anymore so they left the curtains open as they wolfed down a feast of roast duck, candied yams, and baked beans. Emile tore into a warm dinner roll as dipped it in the beans, receiving odd looks from the twins.
"My dad and I used to do this," she muttered, smiling down at the food. Out of the corner of her eye she saw the twins exchanged a look and instantly felt like hitting herself. Why would she say that she used to do this in front of the twins? That was very stupid, she didn't want them to worry about her.
After dinner, they sat around telling jokes as they ate through a box of treacle fudge and sipped on pumpkin juice. As the clock approached ten pm Lee returned along with their other dorm mate, so Emile left the group of boys to sleep.
When Emile got back to her dorm, Alicia and Angelina were talking in hushed voices on Alicia's bed.
"What happened?" Emile walked over, unsure whether or not she should sit with them.
"Emile. Oh thank goodness it's you." Angelina grabbed her arm and pulled her onto the bed with them. "Ok, so we were at the dueling club, right?"
"Yes?" EmMile leaned forward slightly, intrigued.
"And so Harry was dueling that git Draco Malfoy."
"Angelina continue don't keep her in suspense." Alicia snapped as her friend paused again. Emile frowned slightly, it was very unlike Alicia to snap at her friends.
"Ok so Malfoy conjured a snake that was trying to attack everyone, and Harry was totally egging the snake on." Angelina nodded sadly and looked at Emile.
"Sorry? I don't quite understand?" Emile looked over at Alicia for an explanation.
"In parseltongue. Harry Potter talked to the snake in parseltongue and it almost attacked some Hufflepuff named Justin."
"Parseltongue? I thought that was a dead language."
"No, it isn't. Salazar Slytherin was a parseltongue, you know." Alicia put her hand on Emile's shoulder. "Now everyone thinks Harry is the heir of Slytherin."
Emile frowned and looked off into the distance. She wasn't sure if Harry was the heir, as unlikely as it seemed the facts all pointed to him. Harry was the obvious choice, a bit too obvious.
The next day the news spread like an infection throughout the school; Justin and Nearly Headless Nick were now paralyzed and in the hospital wing along with Colin and Mrs. Norris. There was only one question on everyone's minds, what could be powerful enough to paralyze the dead?