-VOTING RESULTS-

And the winner is...*insert drum roll*... SEVERUS/SIRIUS/REMUS!

But don't worry all you Sam voters, he will be coming back veryyy shortly.

So I hope that this is good enough news for you all to not hate me for this chapter!

Rachel :)

Chapter 36

Harry smiled as he left Tom's office.

It was half way through his weeks' worth of detention, and so far, he technically hadn't served any detention.

Tom fully believed that he was innocent, and so, they spent the time talking.

That was it.

Just talking.

Talking about their lives, their upbringing, their aims and goals; anything and everything.

And so far, it had been pretty good.

So far.

"Oi! Potter!"

Harry frowned and turned at the voice, only to be met with a solid punch to the jaw.

Stumbling back, he shook off the dizziness and looked around.

Ron Weasley.

Hermione Granger.

Dean Thomas.

And Seamus Finnegan.

Fuck.

"Not so tough now, are you Potter?" Weasley taunted, stepping forwards and punching him again.

Harry staggered away.

Four against one.

It wasn't looking good.

"Thanks to you we have detention every night for the next week!" He hissed, grabbing the younger wizard's right arm while Thomas grabbed his left and Finnegan delivered a solid hit to Harry's stomach.

He doubled over in pain when he heard a rib crack.

They laughed.

"Where's your precious professor now, Potter? Riddle ain't here to save you? What a shame".

Hermione grinned viciously and stepped forwards, a knife flashing in the dim light of the corridor.

"You know, Potter, I've been doing some research recently, and I found out something very interesting indeed" She started, gently, almost lovingly, trailing the knife along his cheek, leaving an angry red mark in its wake.

"And it turns out, that only violent magic is registered with Dumbledore" She continued, applying more force with the knife, "Not physical beatings, or muggle weapons... So I felt like testing that theory".

"And what a better way to test it, than by getting revenge on you!" Finnegan snarled, and Harry glared at him, "I didn't touch you! You have no right to do this!"

He gave a cruel laugh, "Oh but I think you'll find, Potter, that by attacking one lion you attack all of us. Dean and I are here to simply... ease the way".

He struggled against their grip, but they didn't budge.

"So, Golden-Boy" Ron spat, "How do you feel like being the test subject?"

"Go to hell!" Harry hissed, kicking him in the shin.

Weasley howled and stumbled back, and Hermione gave his attacker a quick slash across the chest.

Harry snarled at her, blood now flowing freely behind his ripped shirt.

"Now now, that's not the way guinea pigs should act" She reprimanded, cleaning the blade of the knife off his robes, "All we want is a little bit of fun... And I plan on having a lot of fun".

"You won't kill me. You can't. It'll be too obvious" He shot back, and she smiled sweetly, "Oh but Harry, who said anything about killing you?"

Lashing out, Harry tried to escape Finnegan and Thomas's grip. Spinning around, he kicked at both of them, and finally, finally, was granted a bit of leeway, which he used fully to his advantage.

Swinging around his arm, he elbowed Dean in the face while simultaneously jerking up his knee and hitting Seamus in the groin. Both boys stumbled back, and he turned to face Ron and Hermione, the latter of which was after paling dramatically.

"Nice show, Potter" Weasley said, grinning, "But you forgot one very important thing".

"Which was?" Harry snarled, sick of his mind games.

"Location" He replied simply, before suddenly delivering a powerful kick to his chest.

Harry felt two more ribs crack and he went flying backwards...

To the top of the stairs.

Desperately reaching out to grab something, he was too late, and he had just enough time to see three faces dawn with horror, and one shine with glee, before his balance failed him and he toppled backwards.

Laughing, Ron half ran down the stairs to where the boy laid unmoving on the cold marble floor, "Well that taught him".

Dean slowly shook his head, "No... No, Ron, that was too far".

"Too far? Too far?! Look what he did to us!"

"He humiliated you, I get it" Seamus replied, following the due down the stairs, "But still... Is Potter even breathing?"

"Of course he is!" Weasley snapped, "Why wouldn't he be? It was just a little tumble!"

Hermione appeared next to him, face as white as Nearly-Headless-Nick.

"Ron... A girl fell down these very same stairs nearly 50 years ago... and it snapped her neck".

He shifted uncomfortably from foot to foot, "Yes, well, this is Harry Potter! Surely a set of stairs wouldn't off him!"

"I don't know man, he looks pretty bad" Dean said, building up enough courage to walk over and inspect the body.

He nudged Harry.

The boy didn't move.

Ron came over next to him, "Potter! Get up! You've had your fun".

Nothing.

Swallowing thickly, he crouched down next to the younger wizard, "Hey, Potter, I'm serious! You worried us for a minute, very funny, now get up!"

Not even a twitch.

Licking his lips, he hesitantly reached out and rolled over the body.

Blood trickled from the corner of his mouth.

His nose was twisted at an awkward shape.

And two glassy green eyes stared unseeingly back at him.