150 Things Not to do at Hogwarts

Year 1 - Climbing the Anger Walls

K. Mead

Rule 96: I will not follow potions instruction in reverse order just to see what happens.

A/N: So here we are, the next bit, we get to see Cedric's plan backfire horribly and we get to see what Zoё does in detention with Snape every time she blows up her potion. Please enjoy :)

To her surprised Cedric met Zoё outside the dungeons just like he said she would and Zoё didn't trust it. This wasn't normal behaviour. I mean, no one had wanted to be friends with her, why would he? He smiled warmly at her and walked together with her to her station, the one she was usually alone at. Everyone was staring at them, probably wondering why Cedric had chosen to sit with her.

Cedric ignored the whispering for their classmates and began to unpack his satchel. "You know, I'm really curious to see how your potions process work."

Zoё half scoffed at him. She could see it in his eyes, the same sort of scheming look that she saw in Marissa's eyes. He was up to something and she knew she wouldn't be able to break him, but she could torture him. She smiled mischievously. "Well, if you wanna see the magic, you should let me take the reins on the potion for today."

Cedric looked dubious. "Uh... I guess that could be a good experience to witness."

Zoё's grin broke onto her face and it made Cedric wince. "Oh, good, because today, since I find Potion's Class so boring, I was thinking of trying to make this potion backwards."

Cedric narrowed his eyes at her. "And how would that help in any way?"

"Aw come on Cedric!" Zoё cried. "It could be fun! Where's your sense of adventure?"

"I'm starting to see why your potions always explode," he muttered, his eyes crinkling with concern.

"What's the worst that could happen?" she asked with a casual shrug.

"Fine, but if at any time it looks like the potion might explode, we're stopping," he said pinning her with a stern finger. She nodded happily, liking how she had gotten her way. "And for the record, this is a horrible idea and you're taking the blame for anything bad that happens!"

He offered her a hand to shake to seal the deal and Zoё took it. "This is going to be so much fun. I promise."

Snape had been surprised. Firstly, someone, the idiot Hufflepuff Cedric Diggory, had decided to sit with Zoё for the first time and secondly, her potion hadn't exploded today. It was a day of firsts as it seemed. Snape had been sitting back and relaxing as the day was winding down when suddenly he heard the tell-tale sound of a hissing potion. Snape glanced up wildly and saw that Cedric was whirling around and Zoё was nowhere to be seen.

Snape got to his feet and shouted: "Down!" but his warning was too late. Their potion exploded covering the whole room with pink goo. Snape bore down on Zoё's station and found that she was goo free as she climbed out from under it.

He glared down at her and she squirmed under his gaze. She then pointed at Cedric. "He wanted to try to the potion directions in reverse!" she cried.

Cedric turned his wide-eyes of surprise to her and for some reason Snape didn't believe her. "Zoё, I think we both know that it was you who convinced him to follow the instructions in reverse," he said placidly. "You and Mr. Diggory will have detention tonight! And twenty points from both Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff."

"What? But she set me up!" Cedric cried.

"And you shouldn't have let her," Snape snarled. He turned to Zoё. "You know the drill, start cleaning."

Snape pulled Cedric away from her and put him with the rest of the class, he ordered them to go get clean and then Cedric was to return to the dungeons. When everyone was gone he turned back to Zoё. "Do you want to tell me what that was all about?"

Zoё sighed. "Well I was curious to see what would happen," she said.

"Are you sufficiently aware of the consequences now?" he asked dryly.

"Yes, all curiosity on that matter is completely dead and buried," she said.

Snape shook his head. "I'll get the tea ready, you finish cleaning," and then he left her to do just that.

Cedric stomped his way down the dungeon steps and found that Zoё had finished cleaning her mess rather quickly. Of course he was furious with her, she had this planned from the very beginning and he was going to give her hell for it. Being free from Marissa's torment was not worth putting up with that monster that was Zoё Mead. Zoё was throwing her pink stained sponge into the wash basin when he stormed over to her.

"What is your problem?" he growled, glaring at her.

Zoё turned to him a coy smile on her face. "My problem? You just, out of nowhere, decide you're going to sit with me after ignoring me this entire on me? Like I would suspect that something was up?" she shot back.

Cedric huffed at her. "Well sorry for wanting to give you more than a psychopath as your friend! Maybe I thought all three of us could be friends together!"

Zoё's eyes narrowed at him. "Do you mean Marissa?" she asked. Cedric nodded and a sudden realization dawned on her face. "Wait a second, you did all of this because you thought I was friends with Marissa?"

"Fine, yes, yes, I did. I thought maybe, since she's nice to you, that having you as a friend would keep her from killing me if she ever felt like it," Cedric said. "I know it was a horrible thing to do, but you didn't have to explode a potion to teach me a lesson."

Zoё laughed at him. "Well, the jokes on you. Marissa and I aren't friends. She hates me."

Cedric blinked his eyes. "But, she was worried about you today. She could have hexed you, but she chose to just threaten you! Everyone knows that Marissa Fenix is not nice to people."

"She was just worried that I'd blame that broom thing on her, that's all. She was protecting herself not me," Zoё explained. "Trust me, Marissa can't stand me!"

Cedric stared at her, almost surprised and then he broke out in loud laughter. "God, well I read that situation wrong."

"Yes you did," Zoё said laughing along with him. "Well at least you figured it out early on. Now you can stop pretending to like me things can go back to normal."

Cedric paused, he was staring down an option. He could walk away from her and never deal with her craziness again, or he could start a friendship with her. She was pretty unique and there was just something special about the way she smiled, like she expected nothing from him. Which was a strange feeling, all his life he was expected to be the nice guy, the good guy, the handsome man who'd grow up to be just like his father. He sort of like the charm of being anything he could be with her.

"You know what, screw normal," he said with a smile. "Despite what everyone says you're pretty cool, and minus the explosion our backwards potion was pretty fun."

Zoё's eyes crinkled in surprise. "What are you getting at?"

"I think you and I should be friends," he replied. "I think we'd make good friends you and I."

Zoё's smile was warm and glowing and he returned that smile with a new found warmth. Suddenly Snape appeared a tray of tea in his hands and three packages of sugarless cookies. "Come on, time for our weekly card game," he said giddily. "I'm going to school you this week Miss. Mead. Or at least figure out how you're cheating!"

"You guys play poker for detention?" Cedric cried.

Snape looked up from the table he was setting up to him and his eyes found Cedric and then he straightened. "Oh, I didn't realize you would be here so soon."

Zoё came to stand beside him she had a big smile on her face. "Sometimes we play go fish, or crazy eights. We bet on cookies! Just not sugar cookies because I can't eat sugar." She sat down at the table and picked up the cards. "So am I dealing? Or do you want to go straight to after-cards tea time?"

Cedric sat down. "I can go for some cards," he said.

Snape sat down and snatched the cards from Zoё. "You're lucky streak is over Mead!" he cried and with that he began to deal.