--the following morning--
"You look like hell, Ginny," her brother greeted her when she came downstairs the next morning. "Fight with 'Mione?"
"Where is she, anyway?" said Harry, walking downstairs. "She's normally the first one here."
"No, I didn't sleep well. Hermione....Oh, damn," said Ginny helplessly. "I'm only going to tell you guys once, and only you guys, and only because you're her very best friends. But I want you to promise that you will not DO anything about what I tell you, and you won't tell anyone."
"I take it we're not going to like it." Ron's statement fell flat and hard.
"Okay," said Harry patiently. "Who are we going to restrain the urge to kill?"
Ginny bit her lip, and looked at them both. "It'll be restraint, too."
Ron worked it out quickly. "Malfoy, I'll bet."
"What did he....Oh, Merlin, did he...I will kill him," said Harry, going white, scar livid purple against his forehead. Ginny put up a hand to wave him down, and Ron grabbed his shoulder to settle him.
"No, he didn't get that far, according to Professor McGonagall. Snape came along."
"Snape?"
"Look, Ron, even if he doesn't like you guys, he can't very well ignore a member of his own house trying to rape someone, okay?" At that blunt phrasing, they both shut up. "She said he is being punished. A hundred points from Slytherin, and Snape was going to owl his father, probably has by now."
Harry laughed. "I've seen Lucius Malfoy in action." His mouth twisted, and then he said, "You know, I can almost find it in me to feel sorry for that stupid git." "WHAT?" said Ron. "But he..."
"Lucius Malfoy is going to fucking KILL Draco for that stupidity, Ron. I wouldn't want to be Draco when his father finds out."
"I personally think we should use his balls for Quidditch practice, " said Ginny, face hard.
"Well, yeah," said Harry. "No question." He sighed. "So she's up in the hospital wing, huh?"
"Yeah," said Ginny. "I'm going to skip Divination and go see her after breakfast."
"Okay, " said Ron. "Um..."
"Yeah, I know. You guys can't skip Potions. I'll tell her you're thinking of her."
"And trying not to kill Malfoy."
"You promised!"
"Yeah. I'll just content myself with thinking of what I'll do to him on the Quidditch pitch," commented Harry. "Let's go get breakfast. I can't plot revenge without fuel."
"Harry, you can't plot revenge without food. That's my job."
"Neither of you plot well without Hermione to think out the details."
"Will you stand in?"
"No, when she asks me what you're up to, I want to be able to say honestly I don't know."
--the dungeons, eight am, Friday morning--
Severus Snape was NOT looking forward to the Advanced Potions class he was teaching that morning. Of course, he never looked forward to a session of teaching, and with the rivalries and tensions between Gryffindor and Slytherin, the section that contained the seventh-years from both houses was generally tense at best, if not an incipient riot. And, he realized, suddenly, today it would contain Draco Malfoy, who had tried to rape a Gryffindor last night, the victim, and the victim's two best friends, who had undoubtably been informed of the previous night's happenings. He turned to his personal potions cupboard, and took a headache potion in advance. He also made very sure his wand was up his sleeve.
But Granger wasn't there. Malfoy was, but he seemed curiously subdued, and Goyle and Crabbe's whispers to him earned only a hissed command to shut the hell up before he relapsed into brooding.
There was a curious tension between Potter and Weasley, and with the way they were very carefully not looking over at the Slytherin side, he decided they knew. But the others...they knew something was wrong, and there were glances at Granger's empty place, but they weren't exhibiting the kind of barely leashed anger that would have come from knowing what happened. He stepped to the front and began.
"Since your NEWTS are coming up and I have the dubious privilege of preparing you to leave this school and inflict your minimal skills on the wizarding world, we are going to discuss the potions commonly catalogued as...."
"Severus, if you don't mind?" The cool voice was a familiar one, and one he hadn't expected to hear either. Certainly the letter delivered by a smug raven early that morning had said nothing of the kind. He looked up to see Lucius Malfoy standing in the doorway, still caped from the light rain outside, and looking as dangerous as he had ever seen him.
"I'm afraid I'm going to have to borrow one of your students for a day or two," he said. "Draco."
Draco had gone pale the second he'd heard his father's voice. Severus glanced at him, and could find it in him to pity him as he walked, with the fragile dignity of the condemned, up towards his father.
"If you have him out more than three days, he won't be able to make up the time, Lucius, no matter what he does," Snape found himself saying. Their eyes locked, light to dark. Then Lucius turned, and walked out, Draco following. The door slammed.
Snape exhaled, and saw, of all people, Potter glance back toward the door with a look of quickly veiled sympathy. (Then again, he's seen a little more of Lucius Malfoy than his classmates. There may be a brain under that skull, if he's figured out what's probably awaiting Draco.) And much to his surprise, Potter locked eyes with him, and his mouth shaped silent words, followed by a glance at Granger's empty place. (Thank you. )
Fortunately, he was disciplined enough to deal with surprises.
He raised his voice again. "As I was saying before the interruption, we are going to discuss the potions commonly catalogued as miscellaneous. This categorization leads some idiots to consider them of only minimal usefulness; however, this category contains.... Miss Patil, if you wish to fail your examinations it is no concern of mine; however, it would be exceptionally rude to condemn your classmates to the same fate by your whispers. Let them fail by their -own- stupidity. Five points from Gryffindor....This category contains some of the most commonly used and abused potions in the wizarding world...."
"You look like hell, Ginny," her brother greeted her when she came downstairs the next morning. "Fight with 'Mione?"
"Where is she, anyway?" said Harry, walking downstairs. "She's normally the first one here."
"No, I didn't sleep well. Hermione....Oh, damn," said Ginny helplessly. "I'm only going to tell you guys once, and only you guys, and only because you're her very best friends. But I want you to promise that you will not DO anything about what I tell you, and you won't tell anyone."
"I take it we're not going to like it." Ron's statement fell flat and hard.
"Okay," said Harry patiently. "Who are we going to restrain the urge to kill?"
Ginny bit her lip, and looked at them both. "It'll be restraint, too."
Ron worked it out quickly. "Malfoy, I'll bet."
"What did he....Oh, Merlin, did he...I will kill him," said Harry, going white, scar livid purple against his forehead. Ginny put up a hand to wave him down, and Ron grabbed his shoulder to settle him.
"No, he didn't get that far, according to Professor McGonagall. Snape came along."
"Snape?"
"Look, Ron, even if he doesn't like you guys, he can't very well ignore a member of his own house trying to rape someone, okay?" At that blunt phrasing, they both shut up. "She said he is being punished. A hundred points from Slytherin, and Snape was going to owl his father, probably has by now."
Harry laughed. "I've seen Lucius Malfoy in action." His mouth twisted, and then he said, "You know, I can almost find it in me to feel sorry for that stupid git." "WHAT?" said Ron. "But he..."
"Lucius Malfoy is going to fucking KILL Draco for that stupidity, Ron. I wouldn't want to be Draco when his father finds out."
"I personally think we should use his balls for Quidditch practice, " said Ginny, face hard.
"Well, yeah," said Harry. "No question." He sighed. "So she's up in the hospital wing, huh?"
"Yeah," said Ginny. "I'm going to skip Divination and go see her after breakfast."
"Okay, " said Ron. "Um..."
"Yeah, I know. You guys can't skip Potions. I'll tell her you're thinking of her."
"And trying not to kill Malfoy."
"You promised!"
"Yeah. I'll just content myself with thinking of what I'll do to him on the Quidditch pitch," commented Harry. "Let's go get breakfast. I can't plot revenge without fuel."
"Harry, you can't plot revenge without food. That's my job."
"Neither of you plot well without Hermione to think out the details."
"Will you stand in?"
"No, when she asks me what you're up to, I want to be able to say honestly I don't know."
--the dungeons, eight am, Friday morning--
Severus Snape was NOT looking forward to the Advanced Potions class he was teaching that morning. Of course, he never looked forward to a session of teaching, and with the rivalries and tensions between Gryffindor and Slytherin, the section that contained the seventh-years from both houses was generally tense at best, if not an incipient riot. And, he realized, suddenly, today it would contain Draco Malfoy, who had tried to rape a Gryffindor last night, the victim, and the victim's two best friends, who had undoubtably been informed of the previous night's happenings. He turned to his personal potions cupboard, and took a headache potion in advance. He also made very sure his wand was up his sleeve.
But Granger wasn't there. Malfoy was, but he seemed curiously subdued, and Goyle and Crabbe's whispers to him earned only a hissed command to shut the hell up before he relapsed into brooding.
There was a curious tension between Potter and Weasley, and with the way they were very carefully not looking over at the Slytherin side, he decided they knew. But the others...they knew something was wrong, and there were glances at Granger's empty place, but they weren't exhibiting the kind of barely leashed anger that would have come from knowing what happened. He stepped to the front and began.
"Since your NEWTS are coming up and I have the dubious privilege of preparing you to leave this school and inflict your minimal skills on the wizarding world, we are going to discuss the potions commonly catalogued as...."
"Severus, if you don't mind?" The cool voice was a familiar one, and one he hadn't expected to hear either. Certainly the letter delivered by a smug raven early that morning had said nothing of the kind. He looked up to see Lucius Malfoy standing in the doorway, still caped from the light rain outside, and looking as dangerous as he had ever seen him.
"I'm afraid I'm going to have to borrow one of your students for a day or two," he said. "Draco."
Draco had gone pale the second he'd heard his father's voice. Severus glanced at him, and could find it in him to pity him as he walked, with the fragile dignity of the condemned, up towards his father.
"If you have him out more than three days, he won't be able to make up the time, Lucius, no matter what he does," Snape found himself saying. Their eyes locked, light to dark. Then Lucius turned, and walked out, Draco following. The door slammed.
Snape exhaled, and saw, of all people, Potter glance back toward the door with a look of quickly veiled sympathy. (Then again, he's seen a little more of Lucius Malfoy than his classmates. There may be a brain under that skull, if he's figured out what's probably awaiting Draco.) And much to his surprise, Potter locked eyes with him, and his mouth shaped silent words, followed by a glance at Granger's empty place. (Thank you. )
Fortunately, he was disciplined enough to deal with surprises.
He raised his voice again. "As I was saying before the interruption, we are going to discuss the potions commonly catalogued as miscellaneous. This categorization leads some idiots to consider them of only minimal usefulness; however, this category contains.... Miss Patil, if you wish to fail your examinations it is no concern of mine; however, it would be exceptionally rude to condemn your classmates to the same fate by your whispers. Let them fail by their -own- stupidity. Five points from Gryffindor....This category contains some of the most commonly used and abused potions in the wizarding world...."