Muggle Year
by Virgi Ca
Chapter 22: Recalling and Repeating History
A/N: Sorry! Sorry! _
The normal version without any weird signs (if any) and pictures drawn:
http://muggleyear.wildimagination.net/
¡@
¡¥DRACO! NO!¡¦ Virginia yelled across the hall.
In shock, everyone turned and looked at Draco, who had the goblet touching his lips. After what seemed like forever, Draco looked down at the orange substance in the silver goblet, narrowing his eyes.
Virginia pushed herself away from the seat and walked towards the Slytherin table behind Draco as he held it up to his nose and sniffed.
¡¥What is it Draco; Weasley?¡¦ Snape came down, demanding an explanation.
¡¥I ¡V I¡¦ Virginia stammered, finally realizing that she had just yelled out inside the Great Hall in front of all the students from Hogwarts, Durmstrang and Beauxsbaton. Some were looking at her in shock while most of the Slytherins were snickering.
¡¥She¡¦s getting all hooked up with Draco!¡¦ she heard Hase; one of the players of the Slytherin Quidditch team whisper.
Without a word, Draco reached for his napkin and dipped it inside the goblet.
¡¥Oh my god¡K¡¦ Virginia whispered.
¡¥Shit!¡¦ Draco cursed, standing up abruptly and throwing the napkin aside. To everyone¡¦s shock and horror, the napkin was corroded, leaving half of it in a jagged end. White gas was diffusing from the goblet.
¡¥What the ¡V ¡¥ Snape grabbed the goblet and held it up to his nose. ¡¥Weasley, take this goblet to the dungeons, along with the napkin.¡¦
¡¥Yes Professor.¡¦ Virginia replied obediently. Taking the goblet carefully, she reached for an empty plate and covered it slowly, not letting anymore gas escape.
¡¥Draco, go with Weasley and prepare the indicators, charts and concoctions.¡¦ Snape ordered, reaching into his robe, taking out a silver key.
¡¥Yes Professor.¡¦ Draco said calmly, taking the key.
¡¥Headmaster.¡¦ Snape turned to face the staff table. ¡¥I need the Slytherin table cleared; I think the announcements have to be postponed.¡¦ He turned to the Slytherin¡¦s, ¡¥No one is to touch anything on this table, not even the house elves.¡¦
¡¥Severus, I guess it will be better if the whole hall was empty.¡¦ Dumbledore sighed. ¡¥The announcements will be done later, the matter can wait.¡¦
Snape nodded in response.
¡¥Let¡¦s go.¡¦ Draco said slowly, grabbing Virginia ¡¦s wrist while Dumbledore gave instructions to the prefects and the staff.
Virginia didn¡¦t say anything, as she let Draco pull her out of the Great Hall.
The Dungeon was in dead silence as the two students started to prepare what Snape had ordered them to. Draco was in Snape¡¦s private office, rummaging through the cupboard for the magical detecting charts and indicators. The goblet of poison was sitting on the desk, as Virginia pulled on her gloves.
¡¥I think we¡¦ll have to do it outside; in the classroom.¡¦ Draco said, dragging the huge charts out of the door.
¡¥Okay.¡¦ Virginia agreed. After putting on a medical use mask, she carefully lifted the plate. To her surprise, the steam had turned black, almost like smoke. Although she had no idea what it was yet, she had a suspicion that it was lethal.
¡¥What is it?¡¦ Draco called out, pulling on his own gloves.
¡¥It¡¦s turned black.¡¦ Virginia said flatly. Reaching for some plastic wrap, she started to seal the goblet with the magical transparent sheet.
¡¥Black?¡¦ Draco wrinkled his nose. ¡¥I was about to drink something that is smoky black?¡¦
¡¥Yes.¡¦ Virginia replied dryly.
Draco rubbed the side of his head tiredly.
¡¥Is everything ready?¡¦ Snape asked as he entered the dungeon, his long black robe swiping the floor.
Draco nodded in response.
¡¥Professor, the steam¡¦s turned black.¡¦ Virginia said, handing over the goblet.
¡¥Black?¡¦ Snape wrinkled his eyebrows and looked down at the goblet. ¡¥This is not good.¡¦ He murmured, shaking his head. Unwrapping the goblet carefully; he dipped in a spatula in; taking a sample of the substance out. Motioning at Draco, he handed him the spatula and instructed him to drop it onto the charts. He then carefully poured some of the dark orange liquid into a small container and told Virginia to seal it before storing it in the cupboard.
¡¥What¡¦s the result Professor?¡¦ Virginia asked nervously. She had never really dealt with poison, never thought she would have to deal with it.
Snape¡¦s eyes didn¡¦t leave the charts as lines started to knit across the board. Some glowed slightly while some were dull, like ink lines. After a few moments, Snape shook his head.
¡¥What is it?¡¦ Draco asked impatiently. ¡¥Is there any diagnosis possible?¡¦
Snape sighed. ¡¥This is something really weird; it seems to be a magical concoction, but not exactly. You see those lines?¡¦ he pointed to some black lines that were still moving at the corner of the chart. ¡¥Normally, if it¡¦s a magical concoction, these lines will not be swimming around, but now¡K¡¦
¡¥Can it be mixed with a muggle poison?¡¦ Virginia suggested. ¡¥From what I know, only muggle poison would be corrosive, wizards never use corrosive poison, never even brew it.¡¦
¡¥If it is such, then there would seem to be a big problem.¡¦ Snape said seriously.
¡¥What¡¦s the problem?¡¦ Draco asked, narrowing his eyes.
¡¥Until now, there has been no diagnosis for muggle and magical concoction mixtures.¡¦ Snape replied, still glaring at the charts. ¡¥I have no idea who is trying to kill you Draco, but I¡¦m telling you, this person is ruddy smart. This is just a recent discovery, and the mixture can be, no, is lethal.¡¦ He turned and looked at Draco with narrow eyes. ¡¥You would have been dead in less than half an hour if no one had stopped you from drinking that. I can tell you that any of these two poison¡¦s mixed together would become odourless and colourless at first, until about one hour, perfect for putting into people¡¦s drinks to kill them.¡¦
¡¥Damn it.¡¦ Draco muttered, racking his blonde hair violently.
¡¥Dead?¡¦ Virginia repeated silently, dropping onto a bench.
¡¥Yes, dead.¡¦ Snape snapped. Shaking his head again, he picked up another readied sample. ¡¥Clean this bloody mess up and make sure that the sample inside my office is properly sealed. I have to go see the Headmaster.¡¦
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¡¥Ginny! Is everything okay?¡¦ Hermione rushed forward, demanding anxiously.
¡¥What, did Malfoy drink it?¡¦ Ron added, smirking.
¡¥Did anyone else touch it?¡¦ Lavender asked, clutching Seamus¡¦ hand tightly, dizzy at the thought of somebody¡¦s hand being corroded away.
¡¥I wonder who it is.¡¦ Parvati said out loud.
¡¥Well, whoever it is, poisoning someone is just ¡V just too radical.¡¦ Dean stammered.
¡¥So?¡¦ Adela asked impatiently, putting her hand on her waist.
Virginia sighed, rubbing at her forehead tiredly. Silently she ignored the questions being fired at her, noting mentally that next time; she should go back after midnight when everyone was sure to be in bed, sleeping. She and Draco had spent at least two hours cleaning up the mess in the Dungeons while their beloved Potions Master went to see the Headmaster.
¡¥Where¡¦s McGonagall? What happened after we left?¡¦ she finally asked after all the questions were over.
¡¥Well, everyone was sent back to their houses.¡¦ Geraldine replied, shrugging, ¡¥I guess the Professors wanted us to be toxic free.¡¦ A few second years laughed at that comment.
¡¥I see¡K¡¦ Virginia gave a yawn.
¡¥So?¡¦ Harry asked.
¡¥It¡¦s nothing, just some lethal poison that could kill in less than half an hour.¡¦ Virginia said sarcastically.
¡¥Half an hour? Great!¡¦ Ron clapped his hands together mockingly, ¡¥Then Malfoy should have drunk that.¡¦
Before anyone could make another noise, Ron was frozen by the cold glare sent by Virginia across the common room. The room was deathly silent as Virginia continued to glare at her brother, her lips starting to tremble slightly.
¡¥Be careful of what you say Ron, because you may regret it.¡¦ She finally whispered quietly, turning away from him. Ignoring the stares casted at her, she headed up the spiral staircase and into her room, shutting the door quietly behind her.
Realization finally hit her: Draco could have been dead, gone, and could never have come back if she hadn¡¦t stopped him. Seeing how close he had been to death made Virginia shiver. Her mind was all blurry, she couldn¡¦t think about anything but Draco being just a step away from death.
What would life be like if Draco had really died? She didn¡¦t want to think about it, but the thoughts kept running around in her head. The feeling of Draco not being with her anymore made her heart hurt, really hurt, like it was really going to shrink into nothing. She didn¡¦t know why, but the thought that Draco would die seemed like a pressure, pressing into her, as if; forcing her to accept the fact that one day this would happen.
Curling her body up into a ball, Virginia leaned closer into the fluffy bed sheets, trying to gain some warmth to fill in the coldness that had crept into her body. She was shivering, shivering at all the horrible thoughts of losing Draco. The feeling slowly turned into disbelief and then ¡V to horror.
She didn¡¦t want Draco dead.
She was falling for him¡K
Badly.
_____________________________________________________________________________
Draco paused in front of the infirmary door, looking around for any sign of life. After confirming that the halls were clear, he threw open the door and rushed inside, closing the door with a bang.
¡¥Mr. Malfoy! This is the infirmary, do remember some basic manners or I will ensure you are never seen in this wing again!¡¦ Madame Promfrey scolded, her hands on her hips, glaring at the blonde.
¡¥Sorry Madam Promfrey.¡¦ Draco said quietly, noticing the students who were resting at the infirmary. ¡¥Is it the influenza period? Why are there so many students here?¡¦
¡¥Influenza? Ha!¡¦ Madam Promfrey shook her head. ¡¥Most of them were victims of those five pranksters, but some are here because of the flu.¡¦ She shook her head and continued her work, mumbling under her breath. ¡¥I do not know how Hogwarts will survive through this year. Trouble! Trouble! Trouble!¡¦
Draco shrugged at her complaints and headed for the work room, closing the door behind him. He looked up and saw Virginia sleeping with her head on the table, her arms folded under her face. Draco sighed and shrugged his robe off, draping it across her shoulders. He couldn¡¦t help but touch her red hair, feeling its unusual softness against the sensitive skin of his fingers. Brushing a bit of wavy hair off her shoulder, he turned and sat down on the sofa, opening the huge leather bound book he had brought with him, preparing for his upcoming Ancient Runes test.
To be honest, not many subjects could worry him. Although Hermione would always get stand first in practically every subject in his year, nobody really noticed that he stood second, right after her, and that he would always stand first in Potions. Of course everybody else would think it was because of Snape being the head of Slytherin, but he was truly talented at it. Curses was not one of his favorites, you could have said he hated them, but living in a house with a Death Eater for sixteen years taught you that curses were your life. They never paid attention to anything but curses, because curses were the quickest way to take one¡¦s life.
Carefully turning the page, Draco looked up abruptly at a flash of black in the corner of his eyes. Searching, his dark gray eyes finally settled on a falcon perched at the window seat; its golden eyes boring into his. He could clearly see his reflection inside its magnificent eyes. Its feathers looked soft and shone brightly in the sunlight reflecting from the window frames and the snow.
Draco narrowed his eyes at the sight of the falcon, unexpected annoyance rising through his body. Before he could think any further more, a groan tore his attention away from the window pane.
Virginia yawned, stretching her arms. Feeling something heavy sliding off her shoulder, her hand automatically reached out to catch it before it hit the floor. .
¡¥What¡¦s this?¡¦ she asked no one in particular, reaching out to inspect it.
¡¥Finally awake sleeping beauty.¡¦ Draco said dryly, shutting his book.
Virginia jumped at the voice and whirled around, almost toppling off her stool at the sight of Draco.
Draco raised his eyebrows. ¡¥What? Never seen the big bad evil Malfoy before?¡¦
¡¥What are you doing here?¡¦ Virginia asked in a small voice.
Draco narrowed his eyes. ¡¥Are you forgetting what this room is for?¡¦
¡¥Sorry.¡¦ Virginia whispered, then turned and gave him a small smile. ¡¥Was everything okay at your house last night?¡¦
Draco rolled his eyes. ¡¥Tell me about it, I knew they¡¦d want to ask me questions and ¡§care¡¨ about me, so I walked around school and spent some time in here before I went back to the Slytherin tower, I guess it was about two in the morning when I finally crawled into my bed.¡¦
Virginia pursed her lips. ¡¥Why didn¡¦t you tell me that you weren¡¦t going back? I got fired at right away when I stepped into my common room!¡¦
Draco shrugged and gave her a grin. ¡¥I¡¦ve got a brain.¡¦
Virginia snorted and turned back to the table.
¡¥What are you doing?¡¦ Draco asked, standing up and walking towards her.
¡¥Oh nothing, it¡¦s just this book about poison from Fred, or was it George? Oh whatever, either one of them.¡¦ Virginia replied.
¡¥You call this a book?¡¦ Draco raised his eyebrows. Lying on the wooden table were five sets of parchments which were ragged and dirty. Beside the parchment was a little gray bag, embroidered ¡¥Elementary Poison Mixtures for Pranksters.¡¦
¡¥What?¡¦ Virginia asked.
¡¥How old are these?¡¦ Draco picked up one and unrolled it.
¡¥Well, Fred and George bought it when I was in my first year, but I think it¡¦s older than that because it was bought second hand in Diagon Alley.¡¦ Virginia replied, smiling at the set. Fred and George always threatened the others; and said that they would use the poison mixtures to poison the food and turn them all into rabbits.
Draco looked att her as she gazed at the roll of parchment, thinking back to her childhood days. His eyes trailed down and rested on her palm, noticing a faint patch of scars running diagonally across her white skin. An unknown feeling of pain shot through his spine, seeing the scar which was a souvenir from the Chamber of Secrets; further told him that danger was just a few steps away from her.
¡¥Geez, after last night, I thought you¡¦d read something more professional.¡¦ Draco finally snorted after a few seconds of wondering; pushing the thoughts away from his brain.
Virginia shrugged. ¡¥Hey, I¡¦m not a professional in the field of poison; you can¡¦t blame me for starting from the lowest point.¡¦ She argued, glaring at him, but at the mention of last night, she quickly turned and stared out in space.
¡¥Hey,¡¦ Draco narrowed his eyes mischievously as he unrolled another parchment, a scrap of paper falling from it.
Virginia turned around again and let out a yelp, pouncing on him as he got a solid hold on the piece of paper.
¡¥Give that back!¡¦ she cried, reaching out frantically.
¡¥Ah, what do we have here Miss Weasley?¡¦ Draco asked in mock wonder, putting it out of her reach, using his other arm to block her way.
¡¥Give it back!¡¦ Virginia glared at Draco, the horrible thoughts of last night flying away from her.
¡¥A secret is it? A love letter for Potter?¡¦ Draco asked an evil grin pasted on his lips. ¡¥If that¡¦s the case, then you should let Professor Malfoy read through it, he might be able to give you some suggestions.¡¦
¡¥Please?¡¦ Virginia changed her strategy and gave him a puppy dog look, widening her eyes with pity.
¡¥Nu-uh.¡¦ Draco shook his head and patted her head, ¡¥Be a good girl and let Uncle Draco look at your piece of work.¡¦ Without another word, he quickly turned it around.
¡¥Draco Malfoy!¡¦ Virginia screeched, ¡¥You give that back right now!¡¦
Draco raised his eyebrows at the piece of paper. The paper was starting to yellow, indicating its old age. On the paper was a drawing of a gown, obviously drawn by a very little child because of its coarse pastel and crayon lines. The dress was sleeveless and in black, its skirt cascading down the sides. It was worn on a girl with fiery red hair and big brown eyes, white gloves and heels were drawn unproportionally with the gown, it really looked funny. A big navy blue ribbon was settled on top of her head, nesting on the unruly red hair. It was so old that most of the facial features were smudged together.
¡¥Don¡¦t tell me this is you?¡¦ Draco asked seriously, trying hard to contain the laughter that wanted to burst at the sight of the drawing.
¡¥What? Is it a sin to draw something like that at the age of five?¡¦ Virginia challenged, crossing her arms.
¡¥No, it¡¦s just¡K¡¦ Draco¡¦s lips started to tremble, ¡¥just¡K very¡K very¡K artistic¡K¡¦
Virginia pursed her lips as Draco finally burst in laughter. ¡¥Laugh all you want Malfoy, at least I have childhood imaginations!¡¦ she snatched the drawing from him and glared, fire in her eyes.
¡¥You - you call that imagination?¡¦ Draco asked through tears, dropping onto the sofa.
¡¥Yes, I call that imagination.¡¦ Virginia snapped.
¡¥Oww¡K¡¦ Draco cried in pain as Virginia twisted both his ears in punishment, ¡¥What was that for?¡¦
¡¥Your stupid mouth!¡¦ Virginia shot back. She leaned forward and looked at the picture, unconscious of the smile on her lips.
Draco looked over her shoulder and stared at the piece of yellowing paper. ¡¥Don¡¦t tell me that¡¦s you.¡¦
¡¥What if it is?¡¦ Virginia snapped again.
Draco shrugged, ¡¥Well, I just can¡¦t imagine you in something like that. A sleeveless gown? With white gloves and heels?¡¦
Virginia nudged him in the ribs, earning a satisfying groan. ¡¥I¡¦m a girl. A normal girl okay? Of course I fancied these gowns and dresses, woman stuff, you could say.¡¦
¡¥Where in the bloody hell did you get an idea like that?¡¦ Draco asked, scratching his head, ¡¥Its not like you¡¦re a muggle, this is obviously something noble, you know, those muggle call it evening gowns
Virginia shrugged, ¡¥Did you forget that I¡¦m a Weasley, from the muggle loving family?¡¦ she said warily. ¡¥I found this cutting in my Father¡¦s study once and stole it. I don¡¦t know why but I kept imagining myself in the dress and starting drawing.¡¦
¡¥This really looks like you.¡¦ Draco commented in mock seriousness. ¡¥But it is kind of unrealistic you know, your breasts aren¡¦t that ¡V OW!¡¦
¡¥Serves you right!¡¦ Virginia muttered after stepping hard on his foot.
¡¥You¡K¡¦
The two were too busy bickering to even notice the pair of golden eyes staring at them through the window.
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¡¥Another one of those bright snowy afternoons, perfect for a fine game of Quidditch at Hogwarts!¡¦ Dean shouted into the magical microphone, earning screams and shouts from the audience.
¡¥An exciting day again, with Hufflepuff versus Ravenclaw. And here comes the Hufflepuffs in golden yellow, Finch-Fletchley the new elected captain and chaser, Friedel the seeker, Abbott and Bones the beaters, Nott and Perks chasers, and finally Sally-Anne the keeper!¡¦
The Hufflepuff stands roared with cheers as their house players zoomed into the snowy white pitch. It was still February and the snow was still beautiful and powdery. Although Hufflepuff was considered quite weak, compared to the other three houses, they had been improving on their chasers. Although they usually lost, the score difference wasn¡¦t that big now, and was closing by every game.
¡¥I can¡¦t believe there are so many people!¡¦ Yvette exclaimed, jumping up and down at the railing of the stands. ¡¥I just don¡¦t know what¡¦s in your brain Ginny, you should come here more often!¡¦
Virginia rolled her eyes and leaned her back against the railings, cursing herself. She couldn¡¦t believe that she had let Yvette drag her out just to watch a Quidditch match, a match that didn¡¦t even have Gryffindor in it for God¡¦s sake! Despite that, almost the whole school had attended the Quidditch matches, reflecting how popular the sport was.
¡¥WOAH!¡¦ Yvette hooted over the railing, waving her scarf as the Ravenclaw¡¦s followed, coming out from the other side of the pitch.
¡¥Ginny! What a surprise.¡¦ A familiar voice said warmly.
Virginia opened her eyes and looked up, finding herself staring into the icy blue eyes of Adrian . ¡¥Hi, you here for Quidditch too?¡¦
Adrian smiled and stood beside her, leaning his arms on the railing. ¡¥Exciting game isn¡¦t it,¡¦ he narrowed his eyes slightly, ¡¥dangerous too.¡¦
¡¥You¡¦re right.¡¦ Virginia sighed, turning around, ¡¥You don¡¦t know how many times Madame Promfrey has almost convinced Dumbledore to cancel the sport. No one even wanted to find her the year before when the Triwizard Tournament was on, always in her famous grumpy mood.¡¦ She laughed; remembering the times when the Matron would get so furious she didn¡¦t even know which Potion she had given out.
¡¥Really? If so, then it would be a pity.¡¦ Adrian said, looking out the pitch.
¡¥Pomfrey¡¦s crazy, really insane.¡¦ Ron said, ¡¥I don¡¦t even know why she¡¦s been the Hogwarts Matron for so long, sometimes she¡¦s really rough, trust me.¡¦ He shook his head at the memory two years ago when Harry had saved him from the merpeople, after that, Madame Promfrey had bundled him in the towel so tightly he could barely breathe.
¡¥But Madame Promfrey is nice sometimes, and really cares about her patients!¡¦ Hermione argued, ¡¥I remember hearing some people say that she was worried sick about the people being petrified five years ago. I mean, come on, she has a lot of burden to shoulder as well.¡¦
Adrian raised his eyebrows, ¡¥Really?¡¦
Harry shrugged, ¡¥I don¡¦t know about her Potions though, reckon they¡¦re all from Snape. That time when Lockhart wanted to heal me after the Quidditch match and took away my bones, I tell you, that Skelo-Gro was just a step away from foul, and that night when the bones started to grow, it was unbearable.¡¦
¡¥Only an idiot would let Lockhart heal.¡¦ A voice sneered behind them.
Harry gritted his teeth and turned around, expecting to see Draco¡¦s hateful face. But to his surprise, it was Crabbe¡¦s voice. The Slytherin¡¦s were gathered at the exit, all smirking at them. Draco was behind Montague and Hase and snickered at the sight of Harry, then turned away.
¡¥What, you have your sidekicks to represent you now?¡¦ Ron muttered.
Back facing them, Draco shrugged. ¡¥I have to say that you were quite like an idiot back then.¡¦
¡¥You ¡V ¡¥
¡¥The Quaffle is released, and the game begins!¡¦ Dean¡¦s voice suddenly roared through the microphone, interrupting Harry.
¡¥Ignore them.¡¦ Parvati urged, shaking her head, tugging at Harry¡¦s sleeve, ¡¥They¡¦re not worth it.¡¦
¡¥I guess.¡¦ Harry glared at their leaving backs, and then turned his attention back to the Quidditch field.
¡¥Immediately Ravenclaw takes possession, the Quaffle taken by Mandy Brocklhurst, a player that had had a magnificent performance last year during the final to Gryffindor. She dodges one of the bludgers sent by Hannah Abbot, WOSH!, Another bludger from Susan Bones. Both of the girls are new players, a good find from the previous captain, Daniel Sheringham. Brocklhurst closes the hoop, goes up and SCORES! Ten to Zero!¡¦
High-fiving the other chaser Robert Sanchez, Mandy held a ¡¥V¡¦ sign to the Ravenclaw crowd.
¡¥Yes, a very supportive team -Ravenclaw!¡¦ Dean commented, clutching the microphone tightly. ¡¥The Hufflepuffs in possession with Chloe Nott holding the Quaffle. She passes it to Audrey Perks and she passes back¡K WHAM! Perks is knocked out by a bludger sent by Ridley Balaban, but still has the Quaffle¡K¡¦
Suddenly out of the crowd of players at the back, Justin came diving down and snatched the Quaffle away from Audrey and headed for the goalpost. Knocking down one of the Ravenclaw beaters, he raised the Quaffle and aimed for the hoop, scoring cleanly.
¡¥Yes, ten to ten !¡¦ Dean shouted.
¡¥I must say, Hufflepuff has improved on their chasers.¡¦ George rubbed his chin.
¡¥Isn¡¦t a bad thing you know!.¡¦ Charlie¡¦s voice rang from behind, startling some Gryffindor¡¦s.
¡¥Why?¡¦ Seamus asked, ¡¥I mean, shouldn¡¦t they have a good seeker instead?¡¦
¡¥Remember the Quidditch World Cup?¡¦ Charlie asked, ¡¥Well, Ireland had such good chasers that Bulgaria couldn¡¦t even defend themselves. In a way, the Chasers could tear apart the score difference and secure their points so that even though the seeker catches the snitch, they would still have a chance.¡¦ pausing, he shrugged, ¡¥But of course the best thing is to have a the best in all positions. But I¡¦d never reckon a team should emphasizing on the beaters.¡¦
¡¥Hey, what do you mean! We have our important parts too!¡¦ George and Fred protested at the same time.
Charlie shrugged again, ¡¥You do, I¡¦m not denying that, but emphasizing on the beaters will only turn the game into a violent one, don¡¦t you think?¡¦
¡¥But we¡¦re still important!¡¦ Fred argued.
¡¥Yes, yes¡K¡¦ Charlie nodded, making a silly face. The others laughed.
Virginia smiled and looked out the field. Her eyebrows suddenly twitched as an echo rang inside her head.
¡¥Mudbloods¡K you can never be us magical people.¡¦
¡¥You are a disgrace to the name of the wizards.¡¦
¡¥Die¡K¡¦
¡¥What¡¦s happening?¡¦ Dean asked, his voice booming from the megaphone.
¡¥Wha ¡V ¡¥ Harry looked stunned at the sight before him. Justin¡¦s broom started to jerk sideways violently, bouncing up and down at the same time, like strings attached to it, being pulled in all four directions.
¡¥Oh god, his broom is out of control!¡¦ Ron shouted, ¡¥Just like Harry¡¦s broom before!¡¦
¡¥Is it jinxed?¡¦ Hermione asked frantically.
The crowd screamed as the force was so huge that Justin was thrown over the broom and was now hanging in mid-air, clutching the wooden handle tightly, trying not to be thrown out.
¡¥Justin!¡¦ Mandy screamed, trying to get near him, but failed because she was thrown backwards by the bouncing broom.
¡¥Watch out!¡¦ Terry Boot zoomed forward just in time to catch her before she hit the post.
¡¥It¡¦s getting out of control Madame Hooch!¡¦ Cho Chang shouted, ¡¥I think they need a time out!¡¦
At the word ¡¥time out¡¦, the broom jerked even more vigorously and finally with one huge swing, Justin finally let go and was thrown across the pitch. The crowd screamed as Justin was thrown against one of the soft boards. His gloved hand clawed at the big hanging banner and with it, he slid down the wall and after a few silent moments, he fell onto the thick pile of snow with a thud, blood pooling around his head.
¡¥Justin!¡¦ the Hufflepuffs screamed. The other Hufflepuff players flew down and rushed to him, even the Ravenclaw¡¦s ignored the bludgers and the snitch flying around them, obviously shocked by the scene before them.
After a few moments of shocked shouts from the stands, Madame Hooch finally made a decision that had not been made in Hogwarts before. ¡¥Mid-way game cancelled!¡¦
¡¥Glad it¡¦s not Gryffindor versus Hufflepuff, right Ginny?¡¦ Ron turned and blinked, ¡¥Ginny?¡¦
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¡¥Is Justin fine Poppy?¡¦ Dumbledore asked, looking down at the blonde boy in bed, who was wrapped in bandages all over his body.
Madam Promfrey shook her head. ¡¥All I can say is he¡¦s lucky, very lucky.¡¦ She sighed and gave the Hufflepuff a sympathetic gaze. ¡¥He¡¦s broken his left shoulder bone, two ribs and his left thigh bone when he hit the floor. He has a minor concussion but there shouldn¡¦t be any major damage to the brain.¡¦
¡¥Headmaster.¡¦ Virginia acknowledged Dumbledore, pushing aside the white curtains that separated the cubical Justin was in from the outside. ¡¥I¡¦ve brewed the anti-infection potion Madam Promfrey.¡¦ She said, setting it down on the bed-side table.
¡¥Good, spread it on for him, on the wound of his head.¡¦ Madam Promfrey instructed.
¡¥Yes, Madam Promfrey.¡¦ Virginia said, taking out a sponge.
¡¥Maybe we should retreat into my office Headmaster.¡¦ Madam Promfrey said, pushing the curtain aside again.
¡¥I must say Poppy, she¡¦s very talented , Ginny Weasley.¡¦ Dumbledore commented.
¡¥Yes, really talented, and very hardworking too.¡¦ The Matron replied, smiling at the mention of her favorite student and helper. ¡¥She helps with practically everything, from brewing Potions, dealing with small cuts to prank curses. She spends most of her time in the infirmary and does a lot of research work for Potions as well. She¡¦s been excelling Medical Studies, it was a very wise decision for her to skip fifth year Potions and take Medical Studies Professor.¡¦
¡¥Yes¡Kyes¡K¡¦ Dumbledore murmured.
¡¥Professor Dumbledore?¡¦ Harry asked, blinking at the Headmaster.
¡¥Ah¡K yes Harry, Ron, Oh, and the Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw players.¡¦ Dumbledore greeted, his eyes twinkling.
¡¥Professor, is Justin okay?¡¦ Hannah Abbot asked nervously, clutching her broomstick tight.
¡¥Good heavens, melting snow everywhere!¡¦ Madam Promfrey screeched, staring at the dripping snow from their cloaks and boots. ¡¥This is a place for patients, if you can¡¦t keep yourselves clean inside the hospital wing, then please do so before you come in here again! Out! Now!¡¦
¡¥Madam Promfrey, we just want to see if Justin¡¦s okay!¡¦ Hermione explained.
Madam Promfrey sighed, ¡¥Five minutes only, then out with you students!¡¦
¡¥Thank you Madam Promfrey!¡¦ Hannah cried, and then rushed to the cubical, along with the crowd behind.
Virginia jumped in surprise when the curtains were pushed aside violently, almost dropping the goblet in her hands.
¡¥Ginny? What are you doing here?¡¦ Eddie Friedel, a fifth year in Virginia ¡¦s Muggle Year class asked.
¡¥I¡¦m a helper in the infirmary.¡¦ Virginia explained.
¡¥Oh.¡¦
¡¥Is he okay Ginny?¡¦ Hannah asked.
¡¥He¡¦s okay, not dead yet at least.¡¦ Virginia replied, giving them a small smile. ¡¥He¡¦s broken a few bones and has a minor concussion, but nothing lethal. The snow was a good shock absorber and the huge banner reduced much of the friction when he was sliding down the wall, so there shouldn¡¦t be any serious damage with the brain.¡¦
¡¥Thank Gods!¡¦ Audrey Perks sighed, ¡¥Can¡¦t do without the captain can we?¡¦ the crowd let out a laugh.
¡¥Well, I¡¦ll leave you guys here.¡¦ Virginia announced, picking up the tray with the empty goblet.
¡¥We¡¦ll walk you back to the Gryffindor tower.¡¦ Ron said quickly, eyeing Hermione and Harry. Virginia let out a small sigh and turned to the curtains. ¡¥Fine.¡¦
¡¥Let¡¦s go Ginny!¡¦ Hermione said as they left the cubical and were standing at the deserted hallway in front of the infirmary¡¦s sound-proof door..
¡¥I¡¦m sorry, but I have something else to do, I¡¦ll be back at the tower later.¡¦ Virginia said tiredly, giving a yawn.
¡¥Ginny, I¡¦m sorry about the comment about the poison that night.¡¦ Ron apologized sincerely.
Virginia eyed her brother.
¡¥Ginny, we¡¦ve been arguing with us for the past half year, this isn¡¦t what a family should be like. I thought this year would be the best since Fred, George, Charlie and Lesley are here, but why is our relationship getting worse?¡¦ Ron asked in frustration, ¡¥Mum and Dad would not like this.¡¦
¡¥Oh, so this is all to please Mum and Dad?¡¦ Virginia glared at Ron.
Ron blinked, startled. ¡¥Well, its not ¡V ¡¥
¡¥Sod it Ron.¡¦ Virginia seethed in a dangerously low voice, ¡¥You three have never treated me like one of your real friends, and don¡¦t tell me what to do when I don¡¦t even think you three care about me. All these years, I¡¦ve been trying to be one of you, but what do I get in return? Rejection, Mock Sympathy, and Annoyance.¡¦
Hermione wrinkled her eyebrow in concern. ¡¥Ginny, how could you say that, we really ¡V ¡¥
¡¥You will always think of me as the smallest Weasley that would follow you forever. Everyone thinks so.¡¦ Virginia interrupted. ¡¥I have my own way of living, I¡¦m growing up according to my own liking, whether you like it or not. I have my own interests, I have my own thoughts, I have my own real friends! I don¡¦t need someone that doesn¡¦t care about me enough to think of everything I should do, every step I should take.¡¦
Ron narrowed his eyes, ¡¥What do you mean your own real friends? Aren¡¦t Harry and Hermione your friends?¡¦
¡¥No.¡¦ Virginia said evenly, ¡¥It is your enemy, Draco Malfoy.¡¦
¡¥Fine.¡¦ Ron nodded his head bitterly. ¡¥Fine. Do whatever you like Ginny, but I¡¦m warning you, Malfoy is nowhere to being good, simply put, he¡¦s evil. If you don¡¦t want to take my advice then fine, I have nothing to say anymore.¡¦
_____________________________________________________________________________
Virginia stared at the empty hallway, her eyes unfocused. She closed her eyes and slid to the floor, pulling her knees to her chest.
¡¥ Virginia .¡¦ A soft but firm voice called from above her. She looked up and saw Draco looking down at her, his stormy gray eyes almost black.
¡¥Draco.¡¦ Virginia whispered. Looking at his outstretched hand, she paused for a second before accepting it. Draco pulled her to her feet, settling her before him.
¡¥I¡¦m your friend, right?¡¦ Draco asked quietly.
Virginia looked at him in the eye, she was about to open her mouth when a blood curling scream suddenly pierced through the whole school.
_____________________________________________________________________________
¡¥Ginny! You¡¦re early!¡¦ Professor Sprout exclaimed, setting down some pots.
¡¥Good evening Professor Sprout.¡¦ Virginia smiled, pushing open the door to Greenhouse Three. Plants were set in rows down the long Greenhouse width, most of them green and appeared to be sleeping. The umbrella-sized flowers dangling from the ceiling were all stooped down like a half closed umbrella.
¡¥Thank you for your help, Neville¡¦s just getting some pots from the storage room in Greenhouse One.¡¦
¡¥Professor!¡¦ Neville panted as he pushed open the glass doors, juggling oversized pots with his slightly chubby arms.
¡¥Brilliant!¡¦ Professor Sprout clapped her hands. ¡¥Please take those forceps and knives and prepare for the cutting, Ginny, after the Mandrakes are cut, do take them directly to Madam Promfrey, you will need some other ingredients from Professor Snape, I trust you and Malfoy would do good with them.¡¦
¡¥Yes Professor Sprout.¡¦ Virginia responded, and then proceeded to take the necessary utensils. One by one she and Neville put the pots of mature Mandrakes on the working bench and started to cut the leaves for the concoction they were about to make.
¡¥Here you go Ginny.¡¦ Neville handed her a pair of forceps.
¡¥Thanks.¡¦ She murmured.
Strange it had been, only two weeks and Hogwarts seemed to have turned upside down, strange things happening now and then. It seemed like yesterday when her nightmare had gone by, but now it seemed like it was repeating itself, history was repeating itself. No one would imagine that those horrible things would happen again, especially for her.
Two weeks ago, a Troll had entered the Hogwarts ground and into one of the big lecture halls. Most of the desk and walls were destroyed and two girls were seriously injured, one had a concussion and a broken leg while the other had a broken neck and two cracks on her ribs, along with a broken knee as well.
One of the other frightening things was that two students were petrified right in the hallway near Moaning Myrtles toilet. Both were from Hogwarts, one a second year and the other a third year. Luckily the Mandrakes were planted way before hand so they could be revived as soon as possible.
It was just like history repeating itself before her eyes. The people being petrified with their eyes staring back at her, lying on the bed. She didn¡¦t know why, but she would feel a pang of guilt whenever she saw them, which was often because she worked in the infirmary. Thoughts of her horrible past with Tom Riddle and the Chamber of Secrets would dominate her thoughts, it made her shiver.
It scared her.
It scared the hell out of her.
¡¥Really devastating isn¡¦t it Ginny.¡¦ Neville¡¦s voice suddenly pierced through her head like a knife, startling her.
¡¥Uh, yes¡K wouldn¡¦t imagine this would happen again.¡¦ Virginia said quietly, staring at the Mandrake before her. It wasn¡¦t just devastating, it was simply horrid. She had told herself over and over again that it wouldn¡¦t be because of the Chamber of Secrets, it couldn¡¦t be because of the dead Basilisk down there, it couldn¡¦t be.
Surprisingly, none of the Professors mentioned the Chamber of Secrets, not even Dumbledore. The first thought that came to her was that they would go down into the Chamber of Secrets, but none of this happened. Of course many of the senior years still talked about the Chamber of Secrets and told the junior years the horrible tale. Luckily, her being controlled by Tom Riddle¡¦s diary had been a secret between her family, Harry, Hermione, Dumbledore and the Professors only. She wouldn¡¦t dare think of what the students would think of her if they knew it was actually her that controlled the Basilisk, it was her who petrified all those innocent muggle-born¡¦s.
¡¥Ginny, I think we¡¦re almost done, you can take these back to Madame Promfrey first.¡¦ Neville¡¦s voice rang again.
As if just awoken, Virginia looked at Neville blankly, and then blinked. ¡¥Oh, yes, I¡¦ll make sure their in Madam Pomfrey¡¦s hands safely.¡¦
_____________________________________________________________________________
¡¥Anything you want, Professor Weasley?¡¦ Montague sneered, plopping himself onto the chair. A few other Slytherin¡¦s who were lazing on the green couches, glaring up at Charlie who was obviously not welcomed at all.
Ignoring the rude greeting, Charlie stepped into the Slytherin common room; letting the stone doors close behind him. ¡¥I need to see Draco Malfoy immediately.¡¦
¡¥You know Montague, Draco seems really popular in Gryffindor now don¡¦t you think?¡¦ Hase smirked, turning his head sideways.
¡¥Yeah, I¡¦m starting to think maybe he¡¦s a Gryffind ¡V ¡¥Montague yelped as something sharp flew past the side of his head, crossing the tip of his ears. He quickly turned and saw Draco glaring at him; he turned again and saw a dart centered right in the middle of the board. ¡¥What was that for?¡¦ he demanded.
¡¥For your bloody mouth and your stupid brain.¡¦ Draco said dryly. Montague was about to protest but stopped when Draco narrowed his eyes, man did those eyes kill, and he meant really kill.
¡¥Violent¡K¡¦ Hase shook his head and eyed Montague warily, who was rewarded with a sharp glare.
¡¥Shut up.¡¦
Draco ignored the two and approached Charlie. ¡¥What do you want?¡¦
Charlie raised his eyebrows as the stone doors opened again. ¡¥Is this an attitude Slytherin¡¦s have towards Gryffindor professors?¡¦
Draco shrugged as the door closed behind him. ¡¥I have a reputation to keep you know, I¡¦m not planning to ruin it.¡¦
Charlie snorted, ¡¥Right.¡¦
¡¥So?¡¦ Draco crossed his arms impatiently.
Charlie shook his head. ¡¥I will never understand how my little sister copes with you.¡¦
Draco shrugged again. ¡¥She can; end of story. What do you want?¡¦
¡¥I need a few helpers for the detention.¡¦ Charlie explained. ¡¥I have to go into the forbidden forest.¡¦
¡¥You need helpers for detention or you want to give me detention?¡¦ Draco asked dryly.
Charlie laughed. ¡¥No, I¡¦m giving detention to a few third years that Filch caught wandering around the castle last night. I¡¦ve already called a Ravenclaw, Harry and Ron, if you don¡¦t mind.¡¦
Draco narrowed his eyes and looked away, feeling something familiar about this combination. ¡¥What do we have to do?¡¦
Charlie grinned, ¡¥Oh you¡¦ll see.¡¦
¡¥Fine, I don¡¦t have much to do anyway.¡¦ Draco said, ¡¥Just let me get my cloak.¡¦
Silently they walked across the field towards Hagrid¡¦s hut where four third years were standing there nervously with Filch beside them bombarding them with insults.
¡¥Humph, you try to run away from my dear Mrs. Norris¡¦ eyes and see, bloody chaps don¡¦t know anything about punishment. If it were for me I¡¦d give you people some pain to warn you, best teachers I¡¦d say. Hang em up with the chains in my office, still oiled in case¡K¡¦
Draco rolled his eyes. He¡¦d heard that warning every time McGonagall gave him detention, it was a never ending story that Filch never got bored of,repeating it over and over again. No one in the school liked the man, stinky piece of shit in Draco¡¦s opinion.
¡¥What are you doing here Malfoy?¡¦ Ron growled as he caught sight of his enemy while stepping out of the hut.
Draco shrugged. ¡¥Same as you I suppose?¡¦ Nothing but insults were thrown at him whenever he passed the Dream Team, not that he didn¡¦t welcome them but he was not in the mood to throw them back and he was kind of thinking that they were starting to get a bit ridiculous.
¡¥Come on chaps!¡¦ Charlie called, and then turned to Filch. ¡¥Leave them to me Mr. Filch¡¦
Filch snorted, ¡¥Hope you do well Mr. Weasley.¡¦
Charlie sighed. ¡¥That bloody man never treated me like a teacher, not to mention the Slytherin¡¦s.¡¦
¡¥Yeah, you know how the Slytherin¡¦s are; if Filch weren¡¦t a Squib I¡¦m sure he would be a a Slytherin.¡¦ Harry snorted.
Charlie stole a glance at Draco but was surprised that he looked perfectly calm and wasn¡¦t even bothering to say something back.
¡¥What, the mightly Serpent King at a loss for words?¡¦ Ron challenged.
¡¥I¡¦d be careful with my words of I were you Weasley.¡¦ Draco smirked, ¡¥You never know what would happen to yourself.¡¦
Ron was about to lunge forward when Charlie stepped between them. ¡¥Now chaps I don¡¦t want a bloody scene, I¡¦m here to give detention to them, not to you three. I wouldn¡¦t want to report this to Professor McGonagall so behave, okay?¡¦
¡¥Yeah right.¡¦ Ron growled, shooting Draco a death glare. Draco just shrugged and picked up a huge lamp with his left hand.
They walked across the field again and approached the edge of the Forbidden forest. Wild owls hooted and a few bats were hanging from a thin branch near by, making the scene even scarier. The four third years were obviously trembling, holding onto one another. The only girl with curly brown hair had collapsed onto the muddy floor, shaking vigorously her head buried in her in her arms.
Draco rolled his eyes and held out his arm. ¡¥Get up! We haven¡¦t got all night!¡¦
The girl looked up with light blue eyes, tears forming around the corner of her eyes. ¡¥I ¡V ¡¥
¡¥Come on, there¡¦s nothing to be afraid, It¡¦s just a bloody forest.¡¦ Draco said impatiently, grabbing her forearm and pulling her roughly up to his feet.
¡¥Do you have to be that bloody rude?¡¦ Ron sneered, ¡¥No wonder you have such a bad reputation.¡¦
Draco snorted. ¡¥Since when did my reputation mattered to you Weasley?¡¦
Ron¡¦s eyebrows were twitching vigorously in anger.
¡¥Okay guys.¡¦ Charlie held up his lamp, ¡¥We have to go if we aim to get out of here before twelve. Ron you go with me, Elijah and Hubert. Draco and Harry you go with Jeremy and Dennette.¡¦ The girl named Dennette eyed Draco shyly, her cheeks rosy red. Charlie held out his wand and gave it a tap, summoning two bows and two sets of arrows. ¡¥Take this with you in case of any attack.¡¦
They nodded as Draco and Ron each took one set of bow and arrows.
¡¥I¡¦ve recently discovered some footprints of unicorns, I have a reason to believe that two unicorns are breeding somewhere in the forest which is extremely dangerous because of its dangerous environment. Your job is to find these two unicorns and then inform me with your wands. Fire green if you have found them and fire red if anything goes wrong. If by eleven thirty there¡¦s still nothing, then fire yellow and we¡¦ll head back to the hut. Everything clear?¡¦
¡¥Yes.¡¦ The four squeaked.
Charlie gave them a grin. ¡¥Good, now off you go.¡¦
_____________________________________________________________________________
¡¥Okay this place is terrifying! Bloody terrifying!¡¦ Jeremy squeaked as their feet made crunching sounds with the leaves on the muddy floor.
¡¥Shut up and continue to walk before you trip and fall.¡¦ Draco scoffed.
¡¥Do you always have to be so rude to others Malfoy?¡¦ Harry asked, glaring at him.
¡¥Yes.¡¦
¡¥Bloody prat.¡¦ Harry muttered.
Draco didn¡¦t even bother to argue back but just focused ahead of him. The Forbidden Forest wasn¡¦t exactly the most safe place you¡¦d call from the general definition of ¡¥safe¡¦ and it was definitely the last place he¡¦d want to be apart from the Malfoy Mansion and the Chamber of Secrets.
He couldn¡¦t help but think of the detention he¡¦d had with Potter five years ago. He remembered he was sneaking up on the dream team to tattle tale on them and it was so lucky that he saw them at Hagrid¡¦s hut, discussing about the stupid Norwegian Ridgeback. He had practically skipped down the halls and burst into McGonagall¡¦s office, happily telling her that the Muggle Lover, the Boy Who Llived and the Bookworm were out of the castle after time. He had been so happy when a total of three hundred point were taken from Gryffindor but he had almost fallen down onto the floor when McGonagall announced that he too had to serve detention.
Who was I with? Ah yes, that stupid Fang dog. Draco thought, smirking to himself. He had screamed so loudly that even Hagrid could hear him from the other side of the forest. He too had been complaining before when they were walking through the thick woods. He still shivered at the thought of that hooded figure hovering over the poor dead unicorn but till now he still didn¡¦t know what that thing was. The Centaur that had burst out of nowhere was the most magnificent thing he had ever seen, that was the only thing he could have praised for that stupid detention.
¡¥Mr. Malfoy¡K¡¦ Draco felt someone tug at his sleeve.
¡¥What?¡¦ Draco turned impatiently and glared at the brunette. Dennette pointed past him with an awed expression.
¡¥Malfoy.¡¦ Harry said from before him. ¡¥Will you look at that¡K¡¦ he breathed.
Draco turned and stared, before him was a female unicorn resting on a patch of green leaeves, its silver mane shining in the moonlight. Before it was a very small golden unicorn, its eyes half closed and leaning against its mother.
¡¥Isn¡¦t it beautiful?¡¦ Dennette cried, clutching her fingers together.
¡¥Bloody brilliant!¡¦ Jeremy agreed.
¡¥Yes¡K bloody brilliant¡K¡¦ a low voice rang inside Draco¡¦s head again. ¡¥Blood¡K¡K brilliant¡K¡¦
Draco widened his eyes when suddenly a violet fire lit before his eyes, right behind the female unicorn. It was jumping up and down, licking the air. A very dark figured slowly revealed itself, its hand right under the flame.
¡¥Bloody hell!¡¦ Draco cursed, raising his bow and arrow. The lamp he was holding dropped to the floor and shattered into piece, at that very same moment the flames suddenly burst around him, surrounding and trapping him.
¡¥What are you doing?¡¦ he could hear a faint voice scream but none compared to the vision before him.
It was smiling slyly, Draco could feel it. He looked around frantically and could see clearly that a unicorn was in front of the figure with a wound on its back. Its gray eyes were staring into his; they were so big that it seemed that Draco could see his whole reflection inside.
The strangest thing was¡K the unicorn was black.
¡¥You will die¡K and she will be mine forever. Everything you own, everything you care about, will be mine¡K if I can¡¦t get what I want from you, I will destroy it¡K¡¦ The figure¡¦s voice echoed, the flame shooting higher. That was when Draco discovered some silver liquid floating in mid air above his palm.
Draco¡¦s eyes widened when the violet flames suddenly flew from his palm and rushed towards him, roaring hideously as it knitted into a familiar shape.
The shape of the Dark Mark.
¡¥NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!¡¦ Draco yelled and without another thought he released the arrow and it pierced through the flame and into the middle of the dark figure.
Galloping hooves suddenly dominated Draco¡¦s hearing, pounding so loudly that his head hurt and the next second he knew, the sound of something breaking into half rang through the forest.
¡¥What do you think you were doing?¡¦ an unfamiliar voice roared in above Draco.
¡¥Malfoy!¡¦ another irritating voice shouted beside him.
Draco just stared blankly before him, his gray eyes unfocused, still in the position of releasing the arrow. He was taking deep breaths to calm his heartbeat which was beating furiously.
¡¥What happened? Wha ¡V Draco?¡¦
Draco blinked at Charlie¡¦s voice and finally looked up from his stunned state. He stared into the furious eyes of a centaur that seemed to be breathing fire, totally livid.
¡¥What happened Bane?¡¦ Charlie asked, Ron and the other two students behind him.
¡¥This bloody boy almost committed the most terrible sin , almost killing the mother unicorn that had just had a baby unicorn.¡¦ Bane said gruffly, glaring down at Draco, the broken arrow at the side of his hooves.
¡¥What?¡¦ Charlie exclaimed, then turned and saw the two unicorns staring at them in fright. ¡¥Oh my god¡K.¡¦
Draco looked up at the Centaur evenly, and then narrowed his eyes. ¡¥What the hell was that?¡¦
¡¥A UNICORN!¡¦ Bane roared again, clutching his fists. ¡¥Do you not have any respect for such a sacred creature?¡¦
¡¥Come come Bane, calm down!¡¦ Charlie exclaimed, waving his hands before the centaur. ¡¥He¡¦s just a kid! Forgive him. None of this will happen again, I guarantee.¡¦
¡¥Humph.¡¦ Bane huffed, and then turned around. ¡¥Better watch where you¡¦re going kid, this place is full of secrets that you wouldn¡¦t want to reveal.¡¦ And off he went.
¡¥Phew¡K¡¦ Charlie exhaled loudly. ¡¥That Bane is one grumpy fellow I tell you. Well, better call the ministry to fix this up.¡¦ He turned and cocked his head. ¡¥Draco?¡¦
Draco was still glaring at the path where Bane had galloped away, then without another word he grabbed the lamp from Harry and headed down the path where it lead back to the edge of the forest.
¡¥Hey Draco! It¡¦s dangerous going out alone!¡¦ Charlie¡¦s voiced shouted behind him but he didn¡¦t care. He had to find something out.
Fast.
_____________________________________________________________________________
¡¥Mr. Malfoy, to my understanding you need only books concerning potions, what in the world do you need this book for?¡¦ Madame Pince asked shrilly, eyeing Draco behind her little round glasses.
Draco glared at the librarian impatiently. ¡¥Look, I¡¦ve got permission to use the restricted area, my permission did not state anything about only Potion books so will you just shut up and give me the GOD DAMNED BOOK?¡¦ he practically shouted, gaining attention from the whole library, where students all stared at him in shock.
Madame Pince looked at him stunned. ¡¥Dear Gods! I will not accept this behavior! Permission or not I will not ¡V ¡¥
¡¥Sorry Madame Pince, he¡¦s just in a bad mood, aren¡¦t you Draco?¡¦ a voice said from Draco¡¦s back.
¡¥Don¡¦t help him Ginny, this boy doesn¡¦t deserve it.¡¦ Madam Pince scowled, glaring at Draco again.
¡¥Just let me in and give me the book.¡¦ Draco snapped, crossing his arms. ¡¥I haven¡¦t all day!¡¦
¡¥You ¡V ¡¥ steam was rising from Madam Pince¡¦s ears.
¡¥I¡¦ll get it for you Draco!¡¦ Virginia said quickly, shooting him a glance. ¡¥I¡¦ll give it to you; you go back to the back of the library.¡¦
Draco gave Madam Pince a disgusted look and turned around, walking down the wide aisle again.
He really didn¡¦t mean to be that rude but he was getting more and more impatient. The bad feeling was eating him alive! He had to check it over fast before the suspense killed him. Throwing himself onto the couch he crossed his arms again and stared out into the blue sky.
¡¥Grumpy you are, what¡¦s eating you?¡¦ Virginia ¡¦s voice suddenly rang from above. Draco looked away and stared up at Virginia ¡¦s confused face. ¡¥What happened last night?¡¦
¡¥Nothing.¡¦ Draco grumbled, grabbing the huge black leather bound book from her hands.
Virginia raised her eyebrows and sat beside him. ¡¥Nothing?¡¦
¡¥Nothing.¡¦ Draco said firmly, opening the book.
¡¥If there¡¦s really nothing, then why are you borrowing this book?¡¦ Virginia pursed her lips and leaned forward, forcing Draco to shut the book again, sandwiching his hand between the yellowing pages and the heavy cover.
Draco turned and glared at her. ¡¥What in the hell are you doing Weasley?¡¦
Virginia blinked for a second, and then smirked to cover up. ¡¥¡¨Cursed Magical Beasts Associated with Dark Magic¡¨, Hmm¡K. I never knew that Snape became a Care for Magical Creatures teacher, mind filling me in with the details Malfoy?¡¦
¡¥No.¡¦ Draco said curtly, yanking the book from her grip. Virginia widened her eyes in surprised and, not balancing well, fell onto his shoulder. ¡¥Get off me.¡¦ Draco commanded gruffly, shrugging her off and standing up. He eyed her briefly and sat himself at the wooden table.
Virginia blinked and stared at Draco¡¦s back, feeling the distance growing. What has gotten into him? Virginia thought frantically, he had never been that impatient about her before. Before she could open her mouth and demand an explanation, another student interrupted her.
¡¥Ginny, Madame Promfrey wants you now.¡¦ The girl said.
Take in a sharp breath. ¡¥Fine, I¡¦ll go with you.¡¦
And with that, she flounced down the library her nose in the air¡K without Draco noticing at all.
_____________________________________________________________________________
¡¥Centaurs¡K Spiders¡K Scorpions¡K Basilisks¡K..¡¦ Draco murmured to himself as he thumbed the context, wrinkling his brows. Finally near the middle, he found the word ¡¥Cursed Unicorns.¡¦ He quickly flipped through the yellow pages and scanned down the dense paragraphs.
¡¥Unicorns, one of the most sacred creatures of the magical world, with golden hooves, silver manes and horns that are of a costly price. They are to signify purity but when invaded, they can be the most deadly creatures in the world. No one has tried but one, which is Lord Voldemort. It is rumored that Lord Voldemort has slayed numerous unicorns and drunk much of their blood just to continueliving. He had tried to put curses on unicorns to force them to obey him. It is known that when burning the silver blood of a unicorn, the flame would turn cursed and violet, cursing those who see it. It can only be seen by those who are cursed by the one who lights up the flame. Although not proved yet, it is also suspected that when a Unicorn is driven under the Imperial Curse, it will turn black and their eyes will turn a sharp gray.¡¦
Draco looked up from the paragraph in shock. The description matched the situation yesterday exactly. If what it said was true, then that meant the figure wanted to curse him¡K but who can it be?
The question kept swimming in his mind as he walked out of the library and down the stairs, not even bothering to return the book.
Could it be Father? Draco suddenly thought, feeling a shiver run down his spine. Can he really know what I¡¦m doing in Hogwarts? He wouldn¡¦t be surprised, his father was one of the most ambitious men known to the wizarding world and it wouldn¡¦t be a shock at all to find him ¡¥watching¡¦ over his son at school.
¡¥I don¡¦t know¡K I really don¡¦t know!¡¦ a muffled voice suddenly pulled Draco back to the real life. He eyed the wall and touched it slightly. To his surprise the wall sprang open slightly.
It was a secret door to the Gryffindor tower. Draco had heard that every tower had a secret trap door or something but Draco never really paid attention to those silly rumors. He leaned against the wall and identified to voice to be Harry¡¦s.
¡¥Did the scar hurt you?¡¦ the voice belonged to Hermione.
Draco could hear Harry sigh. ¡¥No, that was the weird part but believe me, it almost looked exactly like five years ago when we had detention at the Forbidden Forest . I didn¡¦t know but Malfoy just froze like a statue as if he saw something we couldn¡¦t see.¡¦
Draco raised his eyebrows, thinking back at the book. So they really couldn¡¦t see anything, he was the only one who could hear the voice, see the visions and feel the fire.
¡¥Harry don¡¦t be so worried, Voldemort hasn¡¦t really come to Hogwarts before, don¡¦t be so sensitive.¡¦ Ron¡¦s voice rang through the thick wall.
¡¥You¡¦re wrong Ron.¡¦ Harry said quietly. There was silence and Draco could just picture Harry looking around for eavesdroppers, too bad he didn¡¦t know that there was one right behind them, separated by a wall.
¡¥Voldemort had been in Hogwarts when we were in first year.¡¦ Harry confessed. Draco could hear Hermione gasp and he could just see Ron with his jaw dropped to the carpet.
¡¥Wh ¡V what do you mean ¡V he¡¦s been in Hogwarts?¡¦ Hermione stammered.
¡¥You mean, you ¡V you know who has been in Hogwarts, in this very school?¡¦ Ron continued shuddering. ¡¥It can¡¦t be!¡¦
¡¥Dumbledore told me to keep it as a secret. That dark figure me and Malfoy had encountered five years ago at that very same place was Voldemort living on unicorn blood. He¡¦d been alive and had lived in Professor Quirrel all along that year.¡¦
¡¥Really? But¡K¡¦
Draco didn¡¦t bother to eavesdrop anymore because he was already shaken by his new discovery. Voldemort was actually back and had stepped in Hogwarts before¡K no wonder his father had been so eager for him to join the Death Eaters because he knew that Voldemort would be back anytime.
¡¥She will be mine forever¡K¡¦
The voice again! Draco thought frantically, looking around. Sounds of metal clanging started to invade his ears.
¡¥Everything you care¡K¡¦
Who is this? Draco¡¦s mind practically screamed.
¡¥I will destroy it¡K¡¦
A vision of something descending down on him and lightening speed flashed before his eyes. He suddenly turned and saw Myra standing ten feet away from him at the corner of the corridor, staring at him curiously.
¡¥Draco? What are you doing ¡V ¡¥
¡¥ Myra look OUT!¡¦ Draco shouted, springing forward. Before anyone could react, Myra and Draco were thrown on the stone floor, the axe of the armour making a clear cut onto the floor. The loud sound attracted almost everyone including all the Gryffindor¡¦s from their tower.
Screams suddenly echoed through the whole school.
¡¥What happened?¡¦ Dumbledore demanded, reaching the front of the crowd.
Draco ignored everyone and looked down at Myra , who was staring past him. She held out a trembling finger and pointed at something and at the same time, a clang could be heard. Draco turned and looked up.
Standing before him was Virginia looking at him with her wide brown eyes, a wand emitting dark smoke beside her feet.
Behind her was the Dark Mark burnt on the wall.
End of Chapter 22
A/N: Be kind and review! Email me at virginialo@wildimagination.net if you got any questions! You can also leave any messages on my site's message board: http://pub92.ezboard.com/bwildimaginationworkshop
Here's the url for the pic Ginny drew when she was little: http://muggleyear.wildimagination.net/Scene22.jpg
School work's getting intense and I don't think I'll have time writing and posting until probably the end of September or early October. Please be patient with me.
Oh, and please make a visit to my doman, the Wild Imagination Workshop: http://www.wildimagination.net. My full profile is there along with some of my other old works. There's also a blog which you can see my constantly freaking out at.
Bye!
