We slipped into Potions class early, smiled sweetly at Professor Snape, and sat at the very back of the classroom. He looked at us suspiciously, and I pretended to be really busy getting my parchment and quills out. Actually, I was very nervous. I am not as adept at playing tricks as my brothers, what if I failed? I'd be the laughing stock of my family. I couldn't return home, of course. I'd have to live in exile, far, far away from everyone. Mum would be simply distraught, her only daughter, failing at a prank. And a simple one at that, I'd probably have to turn myself invisible too, just to escape the shame, maybe… a ball of paper landed at my feet, and I picked it up, realizing that everyone was in the class room. The ball had Colin's untidy scrawl on it, and it read:
Ginny
Where did you and Harvey go to? Ron came back, and said that he couldn't find Pig, and he's going to kill Harry if he ate Pig. Why didn't you guys take me with you when you went? What are you planning to do?
-Colin
I looked at the letter with puzzlement. Ron was going to kill Harry, but that was his best- oh, yeah. My cat was called Harry. I grinned. Poor Colin, he always felt so left out when he was with me and Harvey. I'd have to remember to include him next time. I picked up my quill and wrote:
Colin,
Sorry for leaving, Harvey had an idea. Next time, you can help, I promise. Ron won't kill Harry, because then I'd kill him. Don't worry.
Ginny.
I sent it flying across the room, where it landed neatly in Colin's lap. Luckily, Professor Snape's back was turned, so he did not see the note flying through the air. Unfortunately, a certain Slytherin boy who I've fought with numerous times did. He sent me a glare so icy it could have frozen a fireball, and turned away. I frowned. Why was he acting so nasty right away? Usually, it took us at least a day to get into the being very mean stage of the year. The first day, I usually just ignored him, and vice versa. Harvey elbowed me.
"Now, while Snape's not looking!" she hissed. I yanked out my wand, pointed it right at that certain Slytherin boy's head, and said "Poematis Slytherins!" in a hoarse whisper. A silvery cloud appeared over the Slytherin's heads, and soon disintegrated upon them. I grinned.
"Listen up my scholars bright and young. The Potions lesson has begun. Take out your books, look sharp, it's time- wait a minute, am I speaking in rhyme?" Snape stopped, and almost put a hand to his mouth. Most of the Gryffindors were holding in laughter, and the Slytherins were gaping.
"Professor Snape, I do believe, the punishment by Gryffindor should be received. It's not our fault, Great Potions master, it must have been those Gryffindor bastar-" a particular nasty Slytherin cut him self off as he realized what he was going to say, and his pale skin turned slightly pink.
Snape glared at us "I do not know which of you thought you were so brave and true that you were going to charm us to use sentences that rhyme. This is just a waste of time!" I couldn't help it, a large guffaw escaped from my lips, and I had to clamp my hands around my face to stop the rest from pouring out.
"Ahh Miss. Weasley, I think I see, who the culprit just might be. Please, if any of you know, tell me, or from Gryffindor 30 points will go!"
I met Colin's gaze, and he looked at me pleadingly. I looked at Harvey, then raised my hand. It had been worth it to see them talk in rhyme, and with no counter curse, they would be doing it for the rest of the day. Besides that, I couldn't loose 30 points on my first day back. That was insane.
"Professor Snape, it was me." I said, realizing that my voice sounded rather high pitched.
"So, Miss Weasley you must have thought, that you could make us what we are not. Slytherins have never rhymed. Reverse the curse, and do it right the first time." Snape said, glaring at me. Somehow, he seemed much more frightening when he was rhyming. Maybe it's the oddity of seeing a Slytherin actually being poetic.
"Ummm, Professor, I can't reverse it. It's a 24 hour curse." I said, and felt like ducking as all of the Slytherins and Professor Snape glared at me like I was a piece of chewing gum stuck to the bottom of their rather large and smelly shoes. Pink chewing gum, to be precise.
"So my brave little Gryffindor, now I remember why it's you I abhor. Three weeks detention for this crime. Watching you suffer will be sublime." Snape snarled at me, before turning to the class.
"Now that we've ended this foul transgression, shall we continue with the lesson?" he said, and began talking (in rhyme) about the potion.
"Ginny!" Harvey yelled as soon as we'd gotten out of the classroom "That was great! You didn't loose us any points, and you already have three weeks detention…on the first day!" she grinned, although somewhat enviously. Harvey is very serious about getting detentions. She wants to break the record, held by someone called Padfoot who attended several years ago and, by graduation, had served over 900 detentions.
"I know. Three weeks. He said he'd tell me when I had to go." I said, making a tragic face as we hurried to Divination. After that class (where Professor Trelawney told us all about how my brother and Harry Potter and Hermione would die, and encouraged us to do a special project on what the stars had to do with predicting one's death) we went to lunch. Then we had Herbology (where we fed raw liver to Snapping Pipers) and Transfiguration (we learnt how to change a raven into a writing desk) and finally the day was over, and we hurried to dinner. While I sat munching on some pork chops, an owl flew over to me, and dropped a letter in my lap. Opening it, I expected my detention notice, but instead, the writing was strange and foreign, drawn in red ink, and there was no signature. It read
Poetry is good and fun
But be watchful what you do
When the cleansing has begun
The first to die will be you
Watch out when you go around bends
For what is lurking there
Might help you meat your end
And Ginny Weasley beware
Of darkened rooms and corridors
For they hide your fate
To stop you heart with they're horrors
Remember before it's too late
Living in fear is not to be out-ruled
But living without fear makes you the fool
I glared down at the paper and hoped that this was a stupid prank from one of the Slytherins and not a real death threat. But who would be sending me a death threat? Suddenly, I heard someone mention my name, and when I looked up, I saw the grinning face of Ron.
"Ginny! How did you manage to make all of the Slytherins talk in rhyme? It's brilliant!" he exclaimed, grinning hugely.
I gulped "All of the Slytherins. No, Ron, just the ones in 5th year."
"Oh no, they're all talking in rhyme. I don't think you specified the spell, Ginny." Hermione said.
"Crap." I hissed, slapping my forehead. "Crap Crap Crap Crap-"
"Ginny!" Hermione exclaimed, interrupting my swearing session.
"What? Oh, the swearing. Sorry. But if you think about it, I've got a long peroid of curses and hexes ahead of me. And I think they're already trying to scare me." I said, indicating the letter I had received. Ron picked it up, and read it aloud. When he had finished, he looked pale, and Hermione shuddered.
"Ginny, perhaps you should show this to Professor Dumbledore." She said. I snorted.
"It's just some Slytherin idiot trying to scare me, Hermione. Really, they wouldn't try to hurt me that much."
"I don't know, Ginny. Maybe you should take that letter a little more seriously." Harry said. I frowned. Couldn't they see that it was just some Slytherin with is head shoved up his rear end?
"Well, thank you oh great Harry Potter, I am so glad you were willing to give humble Ginny Weasley your profound advice." I said, finding my voice after a rather long pause "However, I don't think that this is anything else but a insipid prank from an dull Slytherin who's angry that I played a joke on them. So piss off!" I got up from the table to march upstairs to my dorm. Getting there, I realized that I'd forgotten the letter. Well, sod it. I thought angrily Let Ron take care of it.
A/N Oooooh…a mysterious letter! Sorry this is so cliché, but my other idea went down the toilet once I realized it wouldn't work. But maybe the letter is just a trick, eh?
Could someone other than two people answer my question in chapter 3? Please? Because both people picked different answers, and that leaves it tied. Thanks you
Disclaimer: I own Harvey and Harry. Harry the cat, that is. Oh, and the letter, and the Poetry spell, and possibly the lambchops although I suppose they belong to the house elves, who made them, and, in any case, I don't want them. Everything else is ©JK Rowling