Dumbledore circled everyone present with a look.
- Now, as I understand it, the house cup here needs awarding, and the points stand thus: In fourth place, Gryffindor, with three hundred and twelve points; in third, Hufflepuff, with three hundred and fifty-two; Ravenclaw has four hundred and twenty-six and Slytherin, four hundred and seventy-two.
A storm of cheering and stamping broke out from the Slytherin table.
- Yes, yes, well done, Slytherin, - said Dumbledore. - However, recent events must be taken into account.
The room went very still. The Slytherins' smiles faded a little.
- Ahem, - said Dumbledore. - I have a few last-minute points to dish out. Let me see. Yes... First - to Mr. Ronald Weasley...
Ron went purple in the face, he looked like a radish with a bad sunburn.
- ...for the best-played game of chess Hogwarts has seen in many years, I award Gryffindor house fifty points.
Gryffindor cheers nearly raised the bewitched ceiling, the stars overhead seemed to quiver.
At last there was silence again.
- Second - to Miss Hermione Granger... for the use of cool logic in the face of fire, I award Gryffindor house fifty points.
Gryffindors up and down the table were beside themselves - they were a hundred points up.
- Third - to Mr. Harry Potter... - said Dumbledore. The room went deadly quiet - ...for pure nerve and outstanding courage, I award Gryffindor house sixty points.
The din was deafening. Those who could add up while yelling themselves hoarse knew that Gryffindor now had four hundred and seventy-two points - exactly the same as Slytherin. They had tied for the house cup - if only Dumbledore had given Harry just one more point.
Dumbledore raised his hand. The room gradually fell silent.
- There are all kinds of courage, - said Dumbledore, smiling. - It takes a great deal of bravery to stand up to our enemies, but just as much to stand up to our friends. I therefore award ten points to Mr. Neville Longbottom.
Someone standing outside the Great Hall might well have thought some sort of explosion had taken place, so loud was the noise that erupted from the Gryffindor table. Neville, white with shock, disappeared under a pile of people hugging him. He had never won so much as a point for Gryffindor before. Potter, still cheering, nudged Weasley in the ribs and pointed at Malfoy, who couldn't have looked more stunned and horrified if he'd just had the Body-Bind Curse put on him.
- Which means, - Dumbledore called over the storm of applause, for even Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff were celebrating the downfall of Slytherin, - we need a little change of decoration.
He clapped his hands. In an instant, the green hangings became scarlet and the silver became gold; the huge Slytherin serpent vanished and a towering Gryffindor lion took its place. Snape was shaking Professor McGonagall's hand, with a horrible, forced smile.
Slytherin's table had fallen silent.
Catherine Adderley sat still.
- Aren't you glad, are you?! - Patil and Brown lashed out at her and started to bother her.
- No, - she said briefly. By this point, the noise in the hall had calmed down and her words were well heard. - I cannot rejoice at a dishonest victory.
With these words she got up, quietly approached the Slytherin table, put her hand on the shoulder of petrified Malfoy and said something quietly in his ear. He stopped squeezing the fork by his hand; paints returned to his white due to indignation and humiliation face. He turned his head to Adderley, smiled, got up and followed her. Looking over, Nott and Zabini moved after them, followed by Crabbe and Goyle.
- Wait for us! - Finnigan and Thomas were in a hurry. - Crap, they didn't want us go, freaks... You guys are... pretty upset, huh?
- What do you think? - Nott asked grimly. - Because of these three, we lost...
- Guys, I have an offer to go to the kitchen, pick up everything delicious and climb into our Den, - said Adderley.
- I think today we have to bail on everything and call the elves, - Malfoy answered. - I don't want to go anywhere.
- Do you want the power over the world and to be picked up? - Catherine immediately said, opening the door to the hall. - I don't promise the second, but the first... Come on, count how much I will hold him!
- Adderley!
- Don't budge!...
- Almost half a minute! - with respect said Finnigan. - And this is despite the fact that he fought back! You are cool, Adderley!
- Well, then... Malfoy, don't cry. Do not cry, I say! Boys, go get some provisions for now, please.
- Yes, ma'am...
- Do you have to humiliate me?!
- Malfoy, stop crying, put your head up and sit like this. Otherwise I will call Tilly and ask for ice! Here, you stopped squelching at once...
The door to the hall opened.
- May I? - Finnigan asked in a terrible whisper.
- Come in. Their Highness seems to stopped...
- Idiot, - Malfoy said. - Ouch, it hurts!
- Don't call me idiot. What have you got there? Mm-hmm... Dibs, a salad for me, and this sick man won't be given anything!
- Why?! - Draco woke up. - I didn't eat during dinner!
A friendly laughter of seven people didn't confuse him in any way.
- Tilly, I am embarrassed to bother you, but we would like some tea, - Adderley asked after a busy dinner.
- With thyme, - Nott inserted.
- And with mint, - Crabbe added shyly.
- Thank you, - everyone said, receiving a large kettle.
- Let's light the candles, - Finnigan suggested, and without any resistance, he did it quickly. - Everything is better than Lumos.
So they sat looking at the fire of candles, not knowing what to say, and whether it was worth saying at all...
Someone bravely knocked on the door.
- Finnigan, open, you are the nearest one, - yawned Nott.
- Okay...
He reached the door, asked who was there, rounded his eyes and removed the bolt.
Neville Longbottom stood on the doorstep.
- May I... may I come in? - he asked whispering.
There was something to be afraid of: two large sofas were moved together; in the corner was Adderley, on whose shoulder Malfoy's head lay. On the one side - Thomas, on the other, on a bigger sofa, Crabbe, Goyle and Nott, Zabini.
- Well, come in already, since you are here! - Finnigan dragged him into the hall and closed the door. - What happened?
- I wanted to say... - Longbottom suddenly straightened and sparkled with his eyes. - I also consider this victory dishonest!
- Why didn't you say so in the Big Hall? - Malfoy asked indifferently.
- I was afraid, - Neville answered honestly. - But... if I could, I would get my points back. This is not right! They just immobilized me when I tried to stop them and they gave me points for lying down... - He almost cried. - But there, in the Hall, I didn't have enough strength to stand up and refuse... So I came to you, I wanted to apologize...
- Tell the headmaster what is not fair there, - Malfoy raised his head to take a sip of tea.
- I brought an apples. - Neville began to put them out of bottomless pockets.
- You did the right thing, - said Adderley. - Just sit down now.
Neville attached himself to the edge of the sofa that Simus and Dean occupied.
- Do you guys agree that Slytherin won? - Adderley quietly asked. - Did they honestly win?
- Yes, - everyone answered, even Finnigan and Thomas.
- Well, paint the pennant in their colors.
- Adderley, it would be great to paint everything in the Great Hall!
- We don't have enough power.
- Just for fun?
This time there was no knocking on the door, the professor opened it without much effort. He expected to see an anything, but not a peaceful dinner.
The hall was decorated with silver-green banners.
In the corner on two sofas there was a very motley society: Draco Malfoy stuck to Catherine Adderley and wasn't going to change his disposition. On the one side from this couple - Crabbe, Goyle, Nott and Zabini, on the other - Finnigan, Thomas and for some reason Longbottom, frightened to shiver.
Five of silver-green and four of red-gold. And on the table there were candles burning.
- Sir? - Draco jumped up. - What happened?
- What happened is that you're not in the bedrooms, lights out already is, - he replied.
- Well, let it be, - Malfoy answered and hid his face on Adderley's shoulder again. - Penalize us. It doesn't matter.
- No, it's better to penalize us, sir, - said Longbottom unexpectedly. - We have points to burn!
Gryffs laughed. Everyone's eyes, except Adderley, were angry.
"Merlin, even I was pissed off by the headmaster's arrogance!" - thought Snape.
- What are you doing here? - he asked the stupidest question.
- Celebrating the victory and at the same time drowning sorrow of defeat, - smiled crookedly at Nott. - Tea, sir.
- Do you remember about train in the morning?
- Adderley has an alarm clock, sir.
- All right, then. Sit down, - he said tired.
- Would you like some tea, sir? - Adderley asked, carefully shoving sleepy Malfoy off her. - Would you like some mint? Neville, scoot over!
- Don't be so afraid of me, Longbottom, - Snape said for some reason, feeling that the boy is really afraid. - You are a terrible with potions, but personally I am not't interested in you. I knew Alice and Frank, - he added. - You don't look like them on the outside, but...
- But...? - Neville had the courage to look into his eyes.
- You are just as stubborn, - the professor answered honestly and added in a whisper, - Stay with these. They will harden you.
Only then Longbottom smiled uncertainly.
- I have to go, - Snape said in half an hour. - It's good tea. Do not be late for the train.
- Okay, sir! - they replied.
- Professor, - called Adderley, - could you cast some kind of spell so that no one can find us? I mean the entrance to this hall? Well, only if we say or conduct it ourselves...
- There are such spells, - he said thoughtfully. - But for you they are too complicated.
- It's a pity.
- Do you mean this company? - He circled the company with his hand.
- Well, yes, but maybe someone else will join. I don't think so, though, sir.
- Okay. I'll enchant entrance for the first time, - Snape took a hard sigh. - Then you can do it yourself. With such talents!
- Thank you, sir! - they said...
- He fell asleep, - said Adderley, trying to wake Malfoy. - Well, it's not possible to carry him on hands, he will not forgive me. Bring a blanket or a plaid; I will sit here. I don't want to go to my place either.
- Sec! - Finnigan ran away and came back in a few minutes. - Is it okay?
- Thank you, - she smiled as she pulled the blanket over Malfoy and herself at the same time. - Just do not forget us here!
- We cannot forget you... - Nott said, looking back, smiled and disappeared. The door closed.
- Sleep, sleep, sleep... - Adderley exhaled. - How soft you seem to be, Malfoy!
- Adderley, where have you been all night?!
- What's your business, Granger? - yawned she.
- Professor McGonagall has been looking all over for you!
- If she don't find us, she's a bad magician...
Adderley thought that Snape found them instantly. It seems he really enchanted the entrance to their den, and so that even McGonagall couldn't find.
"We should have learned this spell! But next year"
- You haven't packed your bags!
- Granger... - Adderley exhaled. - Leave me alone. While I still try to be nice, leave me alone.
At home she was trained to pack for half her life way at the most twenty minutes. As she didn't even take most of her things out of her suitcase, it took her nothing to pack.
- I am ready, - yawned Adderley again. - Girls, why do you carry so much stuff? Okay, Granger with books, but you? Why do you need these clothes, you can't see them under your robes!
Having listened to the indignant squeak of Brown and Patil, she shacked her head and stood up.
- I will wait by the carriage.
- You're gonna sit with us, - Draco said, clutching into her hand. - We can't fit in, but if anything, you can sit on my lap.
- Okay, Malfoy. Where is our car? Wow, what beasts!
- Do you see them?
- Can't you see them?
- Only those can see them, who saw death himself.
- Oh, - said Adderley indifferently, scratching the neck of the thestral. - When I was three years old, man was hit by a car in front of my eyes.
- There it is... Okay, let's go. You and me, Crabbe and Goyle in one, Finnigan, Thomas, Nott and Zabini in the other. We'll fit Longbottom in if he wants... Is it okay?
- Why are you asking me, since you have already decided everything?
- Well, you may be against...
- Malfoy... By the way, have a nice summer, I may forget to wish you!