Hi guys! So this chapter is very long... I was originally going to have this be split into two chapters but I figured it's been a while since I wrote a super long one. Anyways, enjoy!
CHAPTER TEN: EXPELLIARMUS
"I'm really glad you've decided to join us, I think you'll be a great asset to the team."
"Yeah, yeah, don't get your wand in a knot, Granger, I'm still not happy you didn't tell me you were planning to ambush me with this. And don't make the mistake of thinking we're friends now just because we're in a little group together, and you still owe me."
Granger simply shook her head at me and I could tell she was trying to hide a smile as if she thought I were joking.
"Don't worry, the thought didn't cross my mind. And I wanted to let you know that I've done more research recently that I think you should know about. It's pretty interesting."
I waited for her to spit it out and sighed in annoyance when she didn't say more. Instead she gave me a superior expression that said she wouldn't tell me until I asked.
"Well? What is it?"
"Not here. We should discuss it in private. Although now with our new alliance I suppose we won't have as much time to meet in private..." She thought aloud and I rolled my eyes at her. She certainly knew how to get on my nerves. I was tempted to change my mind about this club as we spoke just to upset her.
"Well you better tell me, Granger, because the lessons I've been giving you won't compare what I have in store for you if you don't hold up your end of our deal!" I hissed and she rolled her eyes.
"I'll tell you where we can meet after our first DA meeting." I was beginning to think she wasn't afraid of me anymore for the way she spoke to me suggested she was in on some joke with me when really I wanted to wrangle her neck with my bare hands!
"You're impossible." I glared at her and she gave me a small smile. It was infuriating. "When and where are we meeting with this DA, as you're saying, then?"
"I'll let you know by the end of the week."
My mind kept replaying my final conversation with Granger over and over and I couldn't help but wonder if the Gryffindor's took pleasure in the fact that I was being so complicit with them. It made me sick, if I was being honest. And the fact that Granger knew more information about my birth mark was even more infuriating. All I wanted to know was why it kept getting darker and why it had allowed my brother and I to see into the bloody future. Was that too much to ask?
"You alright, Cessy? Seem a bit off lately."
Theodore's sweet voice brought me out of my reverie once again as he caught me staring into nothing, thinking of my exchanged words with Granger that only made me mad. I looked over at him, sitting casually on the sofa with his Charms book laying open in his lap, and gave him a soft smile.
"Sorry. I've got a lot on my mind." I didn't feel like explaining to him that I'd secretly joined in on Potter's dueling club, possibly permanently ruining my reputation as a loyal Slytherin as we knew it, risking the life of my loved ones in the process, all the while trying to figure out how I suddenly could see into the future but possibly only while grabbing onto a crystal ball and making skin to skin contact with my twin.
No, it seemed way too complicated to explain to my friend at the moment.
"You know I'm here to talk if you ever need to get anything off your chest," He said, giving me a look of concern while his blue eyes shined as he looked at me.
Oh, Theo, what am I going to do with you?
"I know. And that's why you're my best friend. You'll listen and you won't judge or blame or hate anything I could ever do. I'm sorry I've been such a horrible friend to you lately. "
And it couldn't have been more true. Over that last few days I have admittedly been avoiding Theodore for the fact that I simply didn't know what to say to him. He had kissed me on my forehead, unexpectedly, and it had put a bit of a shock into my system. I had been thinking about how Theodore would probably be the perfect match for me. He came from a good family, money was no problem, he was already my best friend and besides my brother he was probably the only person who knew me best, and also besides all that, he really did care for me. The problem was I just didn't feel that way about him.
I cared for him of course, and I would do anything for him as he would for me, but I couldn't see him more than simply my greatest friend. And for that reason I didn't want to face him and see his hopeful eyes and have to tell him that I didn't fancy him like that. It would be too dreadful to witness and I personally wanted nothing to do with making Theodore upset.
"You've been fine. I can tell something is on your mind that you haven't told me, though." He tilted his head to the side, observing me while also trying to see every tick I could possibly use to let him know I was trying to avoid something. I tried my hardest to control my expression.
"I'm really fine, Theodore, there's no need to worry over me," I said, letting my voice pitch an octane higher while also letting it seem delicate and innocent at the same time. This was usually a sign I was being honest which he knew full heartedly and part of my chest ached at the thought of keeping things from him while the other part knew I was only doing it to protect us both from the problems my situation would inevitably cause.
"Alright then, you can tell me when you're ready." He shook his head slightly as he looked back towards his book and I tried to hide the look of misery threatening to show on my face. I really did hate lying to him.
With my chest weighed down with my secrets and my mind spinning on overdrive it was safe to say I was done studying. I closed my book and sighed, pressing my fingers to my temples to try and stay the migraine that was starting.
It had only been a couple of days since meeting with Granger and Potter and all the rest of the Gryffindor goonies and I had yet to hear from her about a meeting place for our little group. Ugh, even admitting it was ours was making my head pound anxiously.
"Oi, where've you been Cessy? I've been looking all over for you!"
My head snapped up at the sound of my brother's voice and I looked at the annoyed expression he wore and quickly wondered what I could've possibly done to render it. Oh no, did he find out already that I was sneaking behind his back with his enemy?! Unlikely as he probably would've drawn his wand first and asked questions later.
"What do you mean? I've been here, studying. Or trying to study, rather." Draco's pinched expression was exasperated by the time he made it in front of me sitting on the common room sofa.
"I can see that and it's oddly responsible of you to do so but aren't you forgetting something a little more important?" His tone was condescending and a little disappointed. I looked to Theodore for help and by his expression I could tell he knew the answer but knew Draco would bite his head off if I didn't come up with it on my own.
And then it registered.
Draco was wearing his quidditch robes.
"Bloody hell! I'm late!" I scrambled off of the couch and felt as though my head was going to explode. How could I be so irresponsible?! Quidditch was actually something I really wanted to do and I was going to be late for my first practice? Dammit Cecily!
"We both are thanks to you!" My brother sneered after me as I ran to my dorm. I groaned.
"Why didn't you remind me Draco?!"
He didn't have time to answer as I ran into my room and practically dove towards my dresser. Jojo was napping peacefully on my bed and blinked her eyes sleepily at my frantic movements as I quickly scrambled to pull out my robes and put them on properly. If I was being honest I was pretty sure I put on something backwards, possibly my trousers, but we didn't have time to worry about it now. Quick as a flash I was rushing out of the common room with my brother hot on my heels and a 'good luck' call from Theodore. I tried my best to straighten my robes out as we sprinted out of the dungeons and towards the quidditch pitch.
"Just so you know little sister, if Montague wasn't afraid of both of us you'd be kicked off the team for tardiness already," Draco said, rubbing it in further that once again he was the better Malfoy than me.
"Oh, shove off, Draco. I've got a lot on my mind. Montague is the least of my problems."
"Oh yeah? Then what are your most pressing problems as of late, huh?" He asked and I simply chose to ignore him.
There was no need to tell him what I'd been up to a couple of days ago.
I was out of breath by the time we made it down to the quidditch pitch and I felt a sliver of dread as I saw Montague on the field, arms crossed and a snarl on his face. He looked less than pleased to see us Malfoy twins and a small part of me hoped he feared the both of us coming towards him. If he thought my punches were bad he'd have another thing coming to him if Draco ever decided to hit him.
"You're late." His face was mostly healed from our encounter but I could tell there were still some reverbeal scratches from Jojo's razor sharp claws. He saw me looking at them and I had to hide my smirk when his cheeks burned red. Served him right.
"Won't happen again Montague, where do you want us?" Draco spoke in a icy tone before I could let something snarky slip from my mouth and earn me a bench seat for my first official practice which I was honestly grateful for.
"You know where to go Draco, Cessily I'm starting you on the second string for now. Sit tight and I'll see if I can manage to put you in at some point."
Or I guess it seemed I would sit on the bench either way.
I snarled at him and Draco glared daggers. He smirked. I looked to my brother but he said nothing; clearly he wouldn't be able to win this one for me. The bratty little sister in me wanted to throw a fit and whine and complain and make Draco make him let me play but the bigger, better and prouder person in me tipped my chin up at him and sent him my hardest gaze. I swore I saw him flinch from fear.
"Fine." I hissed and made my way over to the others off to the side while my brother gave me a sympathetic look but happily mounted his broom and flew off onto the air. The jealousy I felt was indescribable. For the whole summer my brother and I practiced hard for me to be a part of the team and now because of my foolish and forgetful mind I had to be sidelined while he got to be the star. Typical.
Over at the benches I was surprised to see Blaise there giving me a knowing smirk. I would've thought he would've been in the air by now but by the looks of it he was also being benched. I was glad to have some company at least. Vaguely in the stands I noticed a doting Tracey staring after my brother, with Puginson not too far behind. Greengrass was nowhere in sight.
"Don't take it too harshly Cessy, Montague benches anyone who's late to the first practice of the season."
"Didn't bench my brother," I said, haughtiness dripping from my voice as I watched his bright blonde head zoom through the sky at blinding speed. Blaise chuckled, watching as well.
"He's the seeker. He's the exception."
"Seems he's always the exception," I muttered and Blaise shrugged, not caring too much. "So, you were late then?"
"Mhm, for a good reason too although Monagtue didn't want to hear any of it of course."
"Why were you late?" A cool November breeze blew through the pitch and I tightened my coats around myself for warmth. It was getting colder by the day and part of me knew it wasn't just because of the changing of the seasons. Darkness was seeping into the magical world. My mind briefly thought of Potter and wondered if he was searching for a secret hiding place at this very moment where we could learn defensive spells from him. The very idea made my jaw tick uncomfortably.
"Detention with Umbridge."
At this my attention was caught.
Speaking of darkness...
I had suffered through enough detentions with Umbridge to know they were never pleasant; my hand itched at the memory and my throat felt like closing in on itself like it did when I was forced to drink veritaserum. Also when Potter had first covered for me; a memory I'd never forget. It seemed he was covering for me now as well as our oh so fearless leader of the DA. Or whatever.
"How did that go?" I tried keeping my voice nonchalant, uninterested as I watched Blaise. He didn't look me in the eye as he spoke but he tilted his head slightly and clenched his fist. He was wearing gloves so I couldn't see whether or not he had similar markings as my own on his hand but from his reaction I was guessing he did.
"It was enlightening." Bitterness soaked his tone and I raised an eyebrow at him. He said nothing more.
So, it seemed Umbridge's favor of Slytherin's only went so far. Breaking rules? Punishment. Speaking out of term? Punishment. Bad mouthing the Ministry? Punishment. Being seen with Harry Potter? Punishment. Probably torture.
"What did you do to render a detention with the toad?
"Asked her if The Daily Prophet is going to keep writing those articles on Potter."
Correction, mentioning of Harry Potter equals punishment.
"That's it?" I tried not to show my rage too much. Blaise was like my brother in the sense that Potter was always on his shit list and showing any kind of defense towards Potter would be a red flag.
Well, he was on mine too, of course. I think.
"Yeah, told her I was getting sick of seeing his name and she just told me so see her in her office tonight, and here we are." I couldn't help but notice he flexed his gloved hand once again. His brows were furrowed as he looked down towards his hand and I felt anger boiling in my chest at the memory of those cursed quills.
"She did it to me too, Blaise." My voice was quiet and I wasn't looking at him, afraid of what expression he might pick up on. I didn't want to be seen as someone that needed help but I also wanted him to know that he wasn't alone in knowing what pain she caused. I had the urge to itch the back of my hand, seeing in my mind's eyes the red raised marks.
I must not tell lies
"I'm sorry she did that to you. To us," He said, practically a whisper it was almost hard to hear him over the wind.
"You have no need to be sorry," I said, turning my body towards him and giving him a fierce look. "But she will be."
He returned my look with a devious smirk that seemed to be permanently plastered to his face. Clearly when it came down to it Blaise would support my decision to end that pink ugly toad when the time came.
At least someone would.
I thought of my brother then, of how enraged he'd been when he'd seen my hand after my detention with Umbridge and yet he still did nothing. Not that I had wanted him to, he would've been expelled, but it still hurt knowing that he was just letting that monster roam the halls of our home, our real home, so that she could tear it all apart piece by piece. With all of her new rules posted on the wall of the Great Hall I was surprised she hadn't started sacking teachers yet.
Although I wouldn't be surprised any day now she'd post a new one saying she had authority over all of the faculty to start doing just that.
She better not go anywhere near Professor Snape!
I sighed, annoyed at the thought of Umbridge ruining my Hogwarts experiences, and decided to concentrate on my fellow Slytherin's practicing on the pitch. I watched the other chasers closely as that was the position I most wanted and I was pleased to see that they were swift and agile and held on tightly to the quaffle. Warrington and Derrick were previously beaters but it seemed Montague had seen strength in their ability to fly fast and throw accurately and I was eager to join them and show them my talents. Crabbe and Goyle, though new to the team as beaters, were sloppy fliers on brooms but were good at using their brute strength to beat away the oncoming bludgers and I was grateful to Goyle as he beat one away from my brother before it could smash him in his face. I'd never hear the end of it if it had. Montague was floating in the air, watching everything closely but I could tell he was a bit annoyed with how messy things looked right now. With Blaise and I added it probably would've been fine. Miles Bletchley, now in his seventh year, was doing nicely as keeper, never letting anything get past him. And my brother, of course, was flying the fastest and with the most skill. His flying technique was unmatched of course but it only meant so much if he could catch the snitch before Potter could. It really made me angry how he and his Gryffindor's bested us year after year when we trained harder and longer and deserved the glory more than any of them did. Maybe with me on the team something would change this year.
"Do you hear that?"
I was caught out of my thoughts by Blaise asking me the simple question and at first I heard nothing but the wind and the hollering of the team in the air. But then I heard it, a sound I had heard not two days ago in my dorm. There was a slight buzzing sound coming from in front of me and suddenly there it was. A piece of paper, burning too hot for comfort in front of my nose yet again. My heart raced, wondering if it was time. Had they found a place already? It seemed too quick. My attention now lost on the practice before me I anxiously looked at Blaise as the note appeared in front of me.
"Bloody hell, I'll never get used to those." Blaise shook his head and peaked at the note that I had snatched out of the air as soon as I had been able. I kept it hidden toward my body so his wandering eyes wouldn't catch what it said. If it was from Granger, which it was most likely, I didn't need any of my fellow Slytherin's seeing it.
"Get a lot of notes, do you Blaise?" I asked suggestively, trying to take the spotlight off of me.
"Yeah, at night especially, from lots of lonely girls." He grinned and I scoffed and rolled my eyes. "Who's it from? A secret admirer?" He winked and I laughed.
"No. It's from Greengrass,-" I glanced at it pretending to see who it was from though it was covered even from my own eyes. There was no way Blaise was sneaking peak. "-she needs me to help her with her Divination homework."
"Oh. Well no need to sit here and waste away. I'll cover for you for Montague." He shrugged as if it was no big deal. I raised an eyebrow at him.
"Do you think it's a good idea to not only show up late to my first practice, but also ditch it all together?"
"Montague's not going to put us in today. Might as well do something useful with your time. Hell, I planned on leaving in about five minutes for a little rendezvous with Miss Braxton."
"Ew Blaise! Georgia Braxton? She's been through half the boys in the school, you can do so much better."
"I'm not looking for better, I'm looking for easy." Once again he gave me a serpentine smile and I groaned at him.
"Repulsive. All of you."
"All of who?" He sounded offended.
"The male population." He laughed and I rolled my eyes. "You don't mind covering for me?"
"Not at all. Go, help Greengrass, she needs it after what I saw in her cup in class today." He smiled and I sighed at him. Always full of jokes, that one.
"Thank you. Tell my brother I'll meet him for dinner, no need to check on me after practice."
"I'll relay the message."
And with that I gave Blaise another thank you and discreetly made my way out of the quidditch pitch through the dressing rooms, the note practically burning a hole in my hand for me to read. I squeezed it tight and told myself I'd look at it once I made it to the castle. There were too many people around for me to just stop and read it out in the open.
The trek back to the castle seemed to take forever. It was bitter cold now with a haze of dark clouds making their way over the grounds and my nose was frozen by the time I made it back. I shivered as I headed towards the dungeons, hoping that Theodore wasn't still there waiting for me so I could slip into the dorm and read my note in private. Another factor I hadn't really thought out was the fact that Daphne was now part of my little white lie. I prayed she didn't make her way down to the pitch and let everyone know I was a liar. That wouldn't exactly be a good start to my secret club life.
Making my way down the hallways I noticed most of my peers were keeping a good distance apart and I couldn't help the bitter feeling that crept into my chest. Another one of Umbridge's ridiculous rules. How was anyone supposed to start a relationship if they couldn't be allowed to even hold hands? My mind went to poor Tracey and I wondered if she thought of Umbridge as evil as well; she was in fact intentionally keeping her from my brother whether she knew it or not. Perhaps the entire student body hated the toad? Slytherin's were just good at hiding it I supposed.
Well, except for me.
When I cautiously made my way into the common room I was relieved to see that Theodore was no longer on the couch. There were a few other students scattered around in the glowing green common room but I didn't need to worry about them stopping me from going to my room. Once there I found Jojo in the exact same spot I'd left her and she mewed at me softly for pushing her over gently while sitting on my bed.
"Sorry sweetheart," I muttered. She blinked softly and laid her head back down, ready to get back to sleeping. Honestly I was feeling the same way and it wasn't even five o'clock yet. Taking the paper out of my pocket and unfolding it I tried my best to get the wrinkles out of it before I finally read it. Hiding it from Blaise had made it so I practically squished it into a ball. On it I was surprised to not see Granger's neat scrawl but a messier, heavier penmanship that I didn't recognize right away.
Seventh floor on the left corridor. Meet tonight after dinner.
-H.P.
Potter's handwriting was messy and it looked as though he pressed down too hard on the paper and it oddly made me laugh that even after years he still had shit penmanship. Draco's was impeccable, mine was delicate, Granger's was neat and Potter's was shit and the only reason I remembered was because of our first year Potions class when we'd been partnered up, much to my chagrin at the time, and had made fun of his messy notes. It seemed time had not changed much and at the same time it had changed everything.
"What's that?"
I jumped and shrieked slightly at the new voice that had entered the dorm, waking Jojo and feeling my heart hammer in my chest. I sighed in relief as Greengrass with her light blonde hair looked at me with wide eyes; Jojo was also looking at me like she'd been disrespected and I pet her softly to ask forgiveness. I looked over at Greengrass again, she seemed just as spooked as I was and she was the one that had snuck up on me.
"Nothing. None of your business." I tucked the note under my pillow and hoped I remembered to burn it later so that no one went snooping.
"Oh, sorry," She said, looking down as her cheeks burned a bright red. She made her way slowly to her bed and I felt bad for snapping at her so quickly. Truth be told Greengrass had been helpful lately and she didn't deserve my usual snarkiness. I noticed her eyeing my quidditch robes that I had yet to change out of.
"First practice today? How did it go with Montague?" She tucked her feet under her and looked genuinely curious to hear my answer but I could tell she was nervous as if she didn't know if this was a safe topic to be on. I didn't blame her, the topic of Montague usually made me pissed off. I sighed in slight annoyance.
"It was awful. I didn't get to play at all because I was three minutes late," I said, petting Jojo on her belly while also plucking some more of those white feathers out of her fur.
Damn cat, why can't you just leave the owls alone?
"Oh, I'm sorry. I know you were looking forward to it." Daphne sounded almost as disappointed as I was. "D-did everything go okay though, overall?"
I knew what she was getting at immediately and I felt a tug at my chest slightly, wondering just how badly Montague had treated her and also wondering if maybe I should beat him again depending on what her answer was.
"You mean did Montague try to molest me with his eyes again? No. Seems he's more angry with me than obsessed now," I said, eyeing her and seeing her relief. Still, even saying his name made her flinch a bit. "Greengrass I'm the last person you have to tell, believe me, but...what happened with you and him?"
Her face paled at the question and I felt bad asking. She didn't need to tell me and just as I was about to tell her she decided to speak.
"Last year we went to the ball together."
I had already known this but I didn't know what had happened. I had been enjoying my time with Theodore, dancing and eating and singing and trying to ignore my brother's commands that I behave myself.
"I thought we were just having fun, you know? We had been dancing and he'd been kind and it was a wonderful night."
From the tone in her voice and the anxious pit in my stomach I had a feeling her story was about to turn dark and it made me clench my jaw, picturing it in my mind.
"And then after he continued to spend time with me but he turned forceful and angry when I wouldn't give him what he wanted. I don't know if you know this but we ended up dating for a little after the ball...but only because he didn't want me with anyone else. I-...I don't really like talking about it." Her voice was choked up and she was staring at her bed post, not looking at me but also looking like she didn't want to be alone.
"Then don't," I said. "I'm sorry for what he did. He'll rot in hell, Greengrass, I promise." I hoped some of what I was saying was a comfort to her but considering I could see her eyes shining I highly doubted it. "If you..." I didn't really know how to comfort someone I didn't know so I gave it my best shot. "If you ever need someone to talk to..." I trailed off, not knowing how she'd respond.
She looked up at me, mascara a little runny and a red sniffly nose and she gave me the softest of nods. It seemed Greengrass and I had become acquaintances.
Fifth year really was changing me and I wasn't sure if it was for the better or not; Only time would tell.
"Thanks," She whispered. And then in the blink of an eye she wiped away her tears and shook her head, as if she didn't want to show any kind of weakness. I could relate. "Was it important? The note?" She asked.
Oh yeah...that.
"Oh um-," I slid my hand under my pillow feeling the paper and bit my lip slightly. What exactly was I supposed to say? Yes? Can you help cover for me since I already unintentionally got you involved? No? Please don't tell anyone I'm getting notes, especially my brother? "Kind of." I said finally, lamely.
"You don't have to tell me. You just looked anxious is all," She said, shrugging. I noticed Jojo had rolled over and started looking at Daphne with a curious expression. I could only imagine my was mirroring it.
"Well it's a bit complicated to explain..." I said and she looked at me and nodded slightly. How far could I push this acquaintanceship? Would she actually cover for me and not tell my brother? "Daphne?"
"Yes, Cecily?" She seemed just as anxious to answer as I was to ask.
"If I asked you to do something for me, would you promise not to tell my brother?" I knew it was an odd request and by the widening of her eyes and the slight nervous look on her face I knew it was also a difficult thing to say yes to. No one really ever denied the Slytherin Prince information if he wanted to know something.
But it seemed Daphne wanted friendship more than she wanted my brother's approval and for that I would be eternally surprised, grateful, and little impressed.
"Sure, what do you need?"
The seventh floor corridor always made me a little anxious. It was the obvious spot for Prefects to come roaming to catch wrong doers and give detention freely so the fact that Potter had decided to meet up here was throwing me for a loop. The halls were relatively quiet as most people were either heading back to their common rooms after dinner or still at dinner so I felt alright for the time being but I knew as soon as my brother and Tracey decided to come roaming the halls for their rounds this was the first floor they'd come to and also the last floor I wanted to be on.
My life just kept getting more and more complicated.
Thankfully due to my conversation with Greengrass earlier I had a bit of an alibi if Draco did come asking for my whereabouts but knowing he'd been on the same floor as me still didn't make me feel very good about this supposed hiding spot. Daphne and I had agreed that she would tell people she and I were studying in our dorm and didn't want to be disturbed all night in order to really be able to study hard and get as much work done as we could. She had promised me that the other girls in our dorm wouldn't be back until late as they liked to stay in the common room and gossip until it was time for lights out and I was grateful to her for covering for me so easily when I had been less than nice to her in the past. I had told her only what she needed to know; that I had something very important to do after dinner and there was absolutely no way my brother, Theodore or any other Slytherin could know what I was up to or where I was. She had agreed no questions asked.
"Psst."
I stopped in my tracks as I rounded the corner to the left corridor and heard the quiet whisper of a beckoning. I looked around me, seeing no one and nothing that could've made the sound and felt my face scrunch up in confusion.
"Malfoy!" Another whisper came from my immediate right side, loud and clear and I whipped around at the voice. I paused in shock as I saw a magnificently huge door I had never seen in this castle in my entire Hogwarts career appear before my eyes with none other than Potter's head sticking out of it.
"What the-!"
"Shh!" Before I could even finish my sentence Potter had shushed me and immediately reached out from behind the door and grabbed me by the front of my sweater, heaving me into the mysterious room behind the strange door.
"Potter, what the hell! Get your hands off me!" I stumbled into the room with annoyance written all over my face and he quickly let go of me and closed the door. He turned to me with an amused smirk on his face.
"Couldn't risk you being seen just standing around. My apologies," He said, his voice seemed anything but apologetic though and I glared at him but was momentarily caught off guard by the motions behind him.
The door that he had closed started to shift into something different. Mirrors started to cover the walls of the room and just as I was about to ask what the hell was going on I turned and saw just how big the room actually was and that we weren't the only ones in there. Marvelous grand arches were raised high above us, peaking together at points on the ceiling and the walls were all covered in old mirrors that reflected the low fire lights hanging from the walls. The ground below us was soft, as if padded and there was a fireplace and several areas with practice dummies with targets on their chests. I gazed around in confusion and wonder until finally I looked back at Potter, at a loss for words.
"How in the world did you manage to find the Room of Requirement?"
Because clearly that's what this was. I had heard rumors of it in my younger years at Hogwarts but never had I met anyone that had managed to find it. It changed over and over again to fit the seekers needs and if you were someone that desperately needed something and were worthy of achieving such an outcome it would appear to you. As far as I knew it hadn't shown up for many years. Clearly Potter's cause was something it wanted us to go through with.
"Neville found it, actually. And he just happened to be thinking of that fact that we needed a place to practice spells."
"Longbottom found this? Incredible," I said, looking around once more. Potter looked like he was showing off a new toy to me and I shook my head, although I couldn't find it in me to be annoyed with him at the moment. I was standing in the Room of Requirement and that was much bigger than being annoyed with Potter for bragging that he'd found it first.
"Do you like it?" He asked.
"Like it?" I looked at him incredulously, "It's brilliant, if I'm being honest. Well done, Potter."
He smiled at me and got that superior look on his face again. I was still too in awe at the fact that I was standing in a vastly historical room to care about it at the moment.
"Wow Malfoy, was that an actual compliment?" His tone was playful and for a moment I was brought back to reality.
Potter and I were not friends.
"Don't get used to it. And don't think because I'm here I'm going to comply with everything you say and fawn over you like I'm sure most of these people will. I'm here to learn, that's it." I sneered at him and he simply rolled his eyes and hid his smile.
It was infuriating. Why did none of the Gryffindor's take me seriously anymore?
"Malfoy, you made it!" Granger's perky voice broke the tension between Potter and I and I sighed, looking over to her as she bounced towards me.
"Yes, here in the flesh. Don't get too excited."
"How did you manage to get away from your skeezy brother?" Weasley followed behind Granger as he usually did and I glared at him.
"Watch it Weasel, just because Potter's teaching us something new doesn't mean I don't know how to hex somebody already."
"C'mon guys, this is supposed to be a place where we can learn to protect ourselves and others and put aside our prejudices. Can we not fight when we're in here?" Granger sounded hopeful after giving Weasley a harsh glare. Something told me this wasn't the first time they'd had this conversation. Potter himself looked equally annoyed with his redheaded friend. Weasley sighed and offered me his hand; a peace offering.
My first instinct was to slap it away but with Granger's big doe eyes looking ready to cry if I didn't take his hand I grudgingly put mine in his and shook it once firmly and quickly let go.
"Fine. Temporary truce. But only in here."
"Fine." Weasley agreed.
"Isn't this nice, us all getting along?" Potter said, sarcasm dripping from his tone. I rolled my eyes at his antics. Bloody Gryffindors.
"Really though, how did you get away from your brother?" Granger asked as we moved further into the room which I was more and more in awe of the further I went.
"Told a little white lie. Although his patrol starts soon so I'm hoping this little meeting of ours will end before he figures out I'm not actually studying with Greengrass in my dorm."
"You told Greengrass about the DA?" Weasley's tone was untrusting of me and I glared, insulted that he'd assumed I'd betray this group so easily. Didn't he know that Slytherin's were loyal?
At that thought my guilt started to eat away at me. Some loyal Slytherin I was, huh? At least I was loyal to my beliefs and my brother.
Mostly.
"Ron, c'mon now. We just talked about this." Granger's tone was annoyed with Weasley and I was beginning to wonder if I'd actually have to hex him or not. I wouldn't have a problem with it but I'm sure Potter and Granger would put a stop to it quickly.
"I told her only that I needed her to cover for me. That's it." He glared at me but took my word for it.
It took only about ten more minutes for everyone else to show up. None had to be dragged in by Potter like myself which led me to believe most of them had been informed on the exact location whereas I had been privy to only the general location. Had Potter sent me a different note on purpose? Did they really think I'd betray them and risk the lives of my loved ones for this cause? If that was the case they were all bloody gits.
Once Potter had gathered everyone around, me being the only one that was slightly off to the side as no one seemed to want to interact with me bsides Granger and Potter himself, he cleared his throat and I could tell he was a bit nervous. I almost felt bad for him; he was no teacher, and putting all of this pressure on him must've been a little nerve wracking.
"Uh hello everyone," He began and I rolled my eyes. Even nervous he still sounded smug. "Welcome to the first official meeting of Dumbledore's Army."
People began clapping, as odd as that sounded, and I could help looking around the room like they were all nuts again. Oh what have I got myself into? Potter's introduction speech was short and sweet and to the point, he told us that he'd be teaching us spells that could protect us, attack others, and potentially save lives. It was all very dramatic to me and part of me was annoyed by how very Gryffindor like everything was but of course deep down I also knew how serious it was and knew I'd just have to suck it up if I wanted to protect my family. After this summer with all of the things I'd seen and heard I knew what could be done to every person in this room, including myself. My brother too.
I couldn't let it happen.
Potter lined us all up in a row after that and began his very first lesson. Granger and Weasley were the first two up of course, followed by the rest of the Gryffindor's, the Ravenclaw's next and Hufflepuff's after that. I was last in line.
It was going to be a very long lesson if no one decided to acknowledge my existence.
"The first spell I want to teach all of you is the disarming spell." He spoke loudly so that everyone could hear and I saw him face the first dummy that was placed on the far right of the room, holding something that could resemble a wand, and wearing paint on its face in the shape of a Death Eater mask. The sight made a shiver run down my spine as it was not the first of those masks that I had seen. The Room of Requirement seemed to know it was time as the dummy suddenly awoke and moved towards Potter at a stunning speed making everyone, including me, gasp in surprise.
"Expelliarmus!"
Potter's spell was quick and efficient, he flicked his wand gracefully and spoke the spell as if he'd done it a hundred times. The dummy's wand flew from its wooden hand and as a result it stopped dead in its tracks, only a foot or so away from Potter, with a loud tapping sound as the fake wand landed on the ground. There were murmurs among my fellow students and I felt myself wide eyed as I looked at the Golden Boy. I was, once again, in awe.
He'd done it so quickly and so well I never would've guessed it was Potter that had done it. I had heard rumors of what he'd done over the years, using magic way beyond our year, excelling in defensive magic and using quick thinking to get out of situations; I had chose to ignore some of the more bragging stories, and there was no doubt in my mind that he was a good wizard, but seeing it in person was a whole other experience. He had made practically no effort. Almost everyone clapped after he turned around and I saw the smallest hint of a blush rise on his cheeks. Odd, I'd always thought he adored attention like that. Was Potter being bashful?
"It's one of the most useful spells to be able to use, I think and I think all of you should learn it first. If you ever find yourself in trouble it's smart to disarm your opponent before they can try anything on you." He spoke gently now, although his cheeks were still read, and I could see he was a bit stuck in his head as if reliving his own memories from his words and I wondered what exactly was going on in his mind. Did he see the same evils I did?
"Who would like to try first?" He had reached over to the side and picked up the wooden wand, placing it back into the dummy's hand which had started at the same spot it was before Potter had disarmed it. Weasley was first in line so he was obviously the first choice.
I watched and watched as each student took their turn, feeling a little nervous myself as my turn got closer. I noticed Potter had shifted toward the back of the line more and I wondered if he felt bad that I was being left out of the chatter and the excited whispers of what we were trying to accomplish. By Granger's constant looks of checking up on me I knew she felt bad. Potter had no reason to be though and it made me confused. As expected, Weasley had a bit of trouble disarming, Granger was quick to learn and eager to practice more, and the rest of the Weasley clan was fine, particularly their youngest sister, Ginny. Longbottom seemed very nervous to try and even gave up his turn and went to the back of the line behind me to work on his nerves. Potter told him he could take as long as he wanted to get ready. I rolled my eyes. Typical Longbottom.
I admit a flare of annoyance sprang up when Cho Chang asked for assistance from Potter on how to flick her wand as if she hadn't just seen it done a dozen times over and as if he hadn't been telling us all over and over exactly how to do it. It was rude of her to hold up the line and delay my turn as it was getting closer and my nerves were fluttering in my stomach but of course she needed to get help. Ugh. Just hurry up already! It made me even more annoyed when I noticed she was trying to flirt with him. He was already helping her there was no need to flirt with him either but by the redness of his cheeks returning I could tell he wasn't minding it.
Ugh, get a room already!
Finally she shouted the spell and missed the target but at least she got the movement of her wrist perfect thanks to Potter. He had assured her it would go better next time and I found myself trying not to gag as she giggled at what he said. After that Loony Lovegood gave it a shot and surprisingly she nailed it on the first try.
Zachariah Smith was next and he wasn't that good at it either but he did manage to disarm his own wand from his own hand and the chorus of laughter even had me cracking a grin.
But next up was me and it suddenly dawned on me that besides Neville, everyone had already gone and I knew there would be no shortage of sneers headed my way as the untrustworthy Slytherin made her way up to the dummy. I bet they were all hoping I did the same as Zachariah.
Well I'll just have to prove to them that I'm better than that.
I looked to Potter first and he gestured toward the dummy and gave me an encouraging smile. Granger also gave me a thumbs up. I didn't take it to heart, he was probably also secretly hoping I failed. Granger was probably the only one that wanted me to succeed.
I raised my wand, the wood smooth under my palm and buzzing in my hand to be used. I cleared my mind. The second the dummy made its move I waited for the perfect position before moving my wrist slightly to the right and speaking the spell loud and clear.
"Expelliarmus!"
The dummy's wand flew from its hand and landed on the far side of the room, right in front of the fireplace. I felt a triumphant smile make its way to my face and dared to look at Potter. He looked impressed which was honestly a first in our strange new camaraderie and I wasn't sure how it made me feel but I knew that performing that spell correctly made me feel on top of the world. It felt very good to use my wand again and my nerves were buzzing with energy. I wanted to try again.
"Harry what's she even doing here? She's a Slytherin, she can't be trusted."
Until the annoying voice of Cho Chang spoke up, that is.
I turned immediately towards her, my rage clear on my face and she glared at me, as well as most of the rest of them aside from the red heads and Granger and Loony but I was pretty sure Loony Lovegood didn't care much about anything let alone me. I couldn't see Potter's face so I didn't know where he stood.
"Listen you pompous-!" I started but Granger immediately came over to me, gripping my arm and I glared at her for keeping me from releasing my fury on the stupid little bint.
"Cho whether you like it or not Cecily is a part of our team now. She won't betray us and we've agreed to put prejudices aside while in this room. If you don't like it then feel free to leave."
Shock replaced rage on my face as I looked at Granger as she defended me. I felt my eyes wide and my heart beating fast as Granger glared at Cho who had crossed her arms in annoyance and who had decided to look to Potter for aid. I glanced over at him and saw a serious look of disappointment spread across his features, his green eyes looking at her dispirited. She looked crushed by it.
Good.
"I want to make this clear right now. If any of you have a problem with Malfoy being here you bring it to me, not her," Potter spoke loudly and again, I was shocked.
How was it that these two Gryffindor's were defending me when not even two months ago I would've hexed them just for looking at me the wrong way? What was it with their incessant need to protect and help people? It was maddening! "She did wonderfully with that spell and I don't want any of you to have any more commentary on why she's here. We're all here for the same thing. End of story." Potter was mad, I could tell, his voice had gone deep and aggravated and he looked directly at Cho as he spoke the end of his sentence.
I looked back and forth between Granger and him and felt my pulse racing and my mind spinning. I just didn't understand. I didn't deserve to be defended by them and I certainly didn't want it. I could defend myself very well and Granger especially knew it, so why did they insist on doing it still? How could they think so highly of me? Or was it the opposite? Did they think lowly of me?
After the tension was broken by Longbottom trying and failing to disarm the dummy, and no one else had had any more comments on my being there, Potter had told us to keep practicing but in pairs to ensure that we could all get the hang of it. I dreaded it as clearly no one wanted to be my partner even before Granger and Potter defended me, but especially not now. I was practically a teacher's pet and no one liked those kinds of people.
"Practice with me."
Potter had come up behind me and spoke gently, I raised an eyebrow at him and looked around seeing everyone else already paired up. I was hoping Granger would've at least ditched Weasley for this part seeing as I clearly had no allies here besides her.
And Potter, I guess.
"Fine, but only since you've turned me into a pariah. Thanks for that, by the way. Now they'll never accept me." I followed him over to the one of the corners of the room and he spun around to face me, standing about three feet apart.
"They're just not used to you. It's the first lesson, it'll get better soon," He said, raising his wand and gesturing for me to try the spell on him. "And I didn't turn you into a pariah, I was defending you." He countered.
"Well don't," I said and raised my wand. "Expelliarmus!" His wand flew from his hand but he easily caught it and disarmed me in turn. I huffed in annoyance and bent to pick up my wand.
"Don't defend you? Why? Most people just say thank you." He said and I couldn't help noticing the playfully curious tone he was giving me. It seemed he thought me being frustrated was hilarious.
"Because I don't need you to, I can take care of myself."
"Clearly, I saw you look like you were about to hex Cho. But I already know you can defend yourself. The point is you shouldn't always have to." He disarmed me again before I could even get the spell out and I groaned, picking up my wand again but more aggressively than necessary.
"You sound like my bloody brother," I grumbled and he sneered at the thought.
"Please don't compare me to your brother."
"Then stop acting like him. Let me fight my own battles. Expelliarmus!" I smirked as his wand flew twice as far this time and he ran to get it and get back to me.
"Can't really help it, you make it to easy to defend you." He was smiling now and I frowned at his words, lowering my wand, distracted.
"What does that mean?" I asked and he paused as well, lowering his wand and looking at me like he was seeing through me.
"I know what you're risking being here-," He said and shrugged. "Makes you one of the bravest people I know and honestly,-" He raised his wand and disarmed me. I didn't even bother retrieving my wand, too intent on hearing his words. "-it's easy to defend someone who's brave enough to risk everything they are for the people they care about."
I didn't respond to him, simply picked up my wand and continued dueling with him while trying to ignore the ache in my chest as I replayed his words in my head. He was wrong, of course. I wasn't brave, I was just trying to do what I thought was right to protect my own, but because of how he described me I was left confused and angry. Because who he described was exactly who I was and I didn't like how he associated that with bravery. Bravery lead to stupidity and I wasn't stupid. I wouldn't jump into trouble like all of them. I wasn't a bloody Gryffindor, which is what I think he was implying I was like. Like earlier tonight, I was left speechless by Potter.
Author's Note:
Soooo...what do you think? Is Cessy way in over her head? Is Harry pushing her too hard? Probably, but she also probably needs it.
and special thanks to those of you who reviewed!
EM1624: Thank you! I'm glad you enjoyed it!
Guest: Don't you worry, they'll kiss. But I gotta let it build first. She still finds herself more frustrated with Harry than enamored with him, ya know? Plus it'll be so worth the wait!
Anyways, thank you all I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Let me know what you think!
~Alyssa~