Dumbledore looked a little fazed now. "Excuse me?"
"My sister's not doing her job. So I'm here to help. I also have a Calculator to find since Crystal's busy. I gave you that list, by the way. You haven't seen Artemis since she left your office about. . ." the girl checked her watch. "An hour and a half ago."
"I'm afraid I don't understand."
"Nobody ever does." Was the cynical and brisk reply.
"Do you know about the Seven?" Asked Dumbledore, trying to regain his composure. (remember, they are in front of the whole school right now)
"Yes. And, unlike Artemis, I actually know who they are. Now, if you'll excuse me, Headmaster, I need to go greet my sister." Turning on her heel, she jumped of the stage and was halfway across the Hall when a shriek ran out.
"SKELLY! What in bloody Primary are you doing here?!" Artemis stood, livid, in the doorway. Most of the school was taking in the shock of seeing two girls, identical, but different. Artemis, remember, looked exactly like a Weasley, while Skelly (or Nemesis) had the brown-blonde chin-length look that was natural. Still, it was obvious they were sisters. Their faces were identical.
"I'm here to straighten you up, little sister." Skelly was saying.
"I'm not younger than you! I'm far older!"
"Oh yes, by what, four centuries? Just because you're older doesn't mean you're more mature." Skelly, or Nemesis's, voice was calm and steady compared to her sisters near-banshee screech.
"Don't you talk to me like that!"
"My my, Delta, you do have a lot of energy today, don't you?"
"ARG! WHY ARE YOU HERE?"
"I already answered that question, but I'll speak in plain English for you: Crystal is busy. You know we can't spare Sphynx. There is a Calculator here, and therefore your success is linked to the success of this Dimension. Now, you aren't doing your job, according to the Muses, who are still idiots but even idiots are right once in a while. Therefore, I'm here. I actually know who the Seven are, and I have far better control than you do, so I advise you to just SHUT UP, please! I have a headache." Skelly brushed past her sister.
"You come back here! I'm not through with you, young lady! I'll tell Athena about this, trust me!" Artemis's fingers were crackling with blue and silver. When Skelly's only response was "Athena doesn't know what's happening, does she?" Artemis lost it. A beam of blue light shot at Nemesis's back. Nemesis simply raised her hand and the beam stopped like it had hit a wall.
"Tsk tsk, what have I told you about fair play?" Came Nemesis's taunt, before she whipped around and pointed at Artemis. Artemis went flying up to stop, hovering, in the middle of the Great Hall. Just like the Hallowe'en feast.
Below, all the students stared, and the teachers turned to Dumbledore. "Sibling rivalry." He told the teachers, and they dropped their wands.
Nemesis joined her sister in the air. "I have far better control then you do. Not in a million years are you getting down until I want you to."
"Nemesis? What kind of name is that, Skelly?"
"The kind of name I got to chose. They can't control me like they control you."
"You just hate being left behind all the time!"
Nemesis's eternal calm broke. "They just need a safety net for you and your flamboyant antics!" Nemesis's hands glowed red, and light shot out to encompass Artemis in a red-orange sphere. "Get out of THAT, girlie!" Nemesis turned around. "Oh, and by the way, it's Malfoy, NOT Potter." With that, she left the Hall, flying low through the door.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
The whole school stared, shocked, at their savior who was now trapped in a bright, flame-coloured bubble. She banged at the surface, then backed up and began blasting the surface with shots of blue, green, silver, white, yellow, black, and supposedly red, although you couldn't see those shots because the colour of the bubble filtered out the light. She stopped, and continued banging.
Dumbledore signaled to Torquil, who asked Flitwick to put a flying charm on him. Once Flitwick was finished, Torquil flew up and began to shoot different spells at the bubble.
"What is it with bubbles today?" McGonagall whispered to Sprout.
Torquil wasn't succeeding, and Sinistra turned to Dumbledore. "Should I get the Weasley twins, Headmaster?"
"I don't know how to get to them. . ." Dumbledore seemed rather preoccupied. Torquil gave up and drifted down to stand in front of the teachers.
"No luck. That spell, it's been made using something similar to the Lalita Hadono charm. I don't know what kind of magic those two use, but Nemesis - or what did Artemis call her? Skelly? - Anyway, the new one is a lot more powerful than Artemis, that's for sure."
"How can we get her down?"
"And should we go after Nemesis?"
"I think that there is no harm in Nemesis. She brought back Mr. Weasley and Ms. Granger without harming them, she has given me what I assume is accurate information on the Seven, and if she wanted to harm us she would have already done that. I believe she is simply teaching her sister a lesson. Sibling rivalry."
"They were saying some odd stuff, 'Eadmaster. Abou' Athena, somebody or other, and Calculators and all. . ."
"Well, Hagrid, they are certainly not from here. However, the immediate concern is the students. Artemis can deal with the unfortunate situation of being locked inside an orange bubble until her sister desires her to come out."
The students, who had been fascinated by the grand scale of the fight, had gaped at the trapped Artemis for a little while before turning to Draco and Harry, asking what the bloody heck had happened and why it was Draco and not Harry. The two boys were very much so surprised, and could only shrug and say they had no idea.
As Dumbledore revolved to talk to his students once more, the true shocker came. Nemesis zoomed back through the door, flew up to her sister, removed her from the bubble, and proceeded to hug her fiercely. For most of the students, this was all just too much to comprehend. And so the two girls left most of the Great Hall staring as they left the room on the wing.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
It all went by fast after that. All were accounted for, Hermione and Ron told their story about being trapped under the desk, the Ministry of Magic did a formal inquiry, and it was found that Mr. Malfoy and Mr. Crabbe were guilty. They were sentenced and sent to the prison Askaban, which the Dementors no longer guarded. The new Minister of Magic had taken Dumbledore's advice, and turned them away. Highly trained teams of retrieval warlocks guarded all entrances and exits now.
Not one word was said about a certain vial of Veritaserum.
No-one saw Artemis or Nemesis for a week. The Weasley twins turned up in the Great Hall for breakfast two days after the attack. When asked about the two girls, they said they'd woken up from a beautiful sleep only to find themselves in the Room of Requirement.
"It's insane, we can't get to our room!" George moaned that first morning they'd appeared.
"Where is it?" questioned Hermione. "You never did tell us."
"Well, we can't tell you. But it doesn't matter. They've locked us out, magically. The password doesn't work."
"So no one knows what's happening?" Harry joined in.
"Nope." Fred answered dejectedly.
Classes went on regularly, and on Saturday November 23rd the two girls entered the Great Hall for breakfast. Artemis was her usual smiley, ostentatious self. Nemesis looked at everyone with a cool, appraising eye. She sought out Draco Malfoy, sitting despondently at the other side of the hall.
~|flashback|~
"No way. I am SURE it is Harry Potter." Artemis whined.
"Nope. 105 percent sure, it's Draco." Nemesis replied.
"But you can SENSE it in Harry!"
"He's a carrier. He can't actually access his power. Why do you think he survived? He pulled it from Draco!"
"I don't believe you."
"Believe it, sis, or I'll lock you in a bubble again."
Artemis laughed, and Nemesis even gave a small smile.
~|flash-forward|~
Artemis took her seat at Gryffindor table, but Nemesis just kept walking. Fred and George immediately hugged the sitting girl, and the rest of the school stared at Nemesis as she walked up to the High Table.
"Why, hello, Nemesis." Dumbledore greeted her.
"Nice to meet you again, Headmaster."
"I assume you will be staying?"
"You assume correctly."
"When would you like to be sorted?"
"Never."
"Excuse me?"
"You say that a lot, Headmaster. The point is, that poor Hat of yours is already psychologically scarred, and that's only from my obtuse sister. He would not survive reading my mind."
"HEY! I HEARD THAT!" Artemis yelled up from her seat. Nemesis casually ignored her.
"And besides, Headmaster, there is nothing you can teach me that I do not already know infinitely better than your staff. However. . . May I talk to you in private?"
Dumbledore nodded, and the pair walked through the door at the side.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"As I understand, you lose Torquil in January, correct?"
"Yes, he has. . . urgent business."
Nemesis's trademark smirk flitted across her features. "I'm sure. As I was saying, I also understand you will be teaching the Lalita Hadono Charm. For defense purposes, of course."
"Yes, we will be."
"However, at the rate you're going, you won't get to it properly before Torquil has to leave. Therefore, I propose that I take over your class after Torquil's departure."
Dumbledore looked shocked for a few moments, then reclaimed his serenity and thought about what he'd seen of the girl. She obviously had better control than her sister, and she had also obviously mastered the Lalita Hadono Charm, because she couldn't be an Elemental Controller.
Could she?
Dumbledore shook this thought away. It had been bothering him since he'd seen the two girls interact. He'd assumed it was the Lalita Hadono Charm at work, but how could Nemesis take away her sister's control? And Then there was the fact that neither used a wand.
Turning his attention back to the problem at hand, he realized that it was his only choice. If the weaker one could help stop an attack by Voldemort, then the stronger one could help immensely.
"Granted."
Nemesis smiled, stood up, and gestured for the elder to leave first. He nodded his thanks and the two swept from the room.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"I am pleased to announce that, although Professor Torquil will be leaving after the Christmas holidays, we have found a replacement. Please give a proper welcome to Nemesis, who will be your teacher after the holidays!" Dumbledore beamed at everyone.
No one clapped.
Artemis stared. "What?! I'm not being taught by HER!" she gaped. "How'd you swing that?!"
"Don't embarrass yourself, Delta."
"Well sor-ry if I think it's a bad idea!"
Nemesis sighed. "Please. Calm yourself."
Artemis sat back down, seething with rage.
Nemesis swept that same cold eye over the student body. She didn't say anything else, just stood there. Then she walked down, through the tables, to sit beside her sister.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Draco was amazingly confused. It was him, not Potter? He didn't understand. No one talked to him anymore, except Crabbe and Goyle, not since his father had been exposed as a Death Eater. That was why he was staying at Hogwarts, probably; no place else to go. He would be the only Slytherine staying.
How utterly morbid.
Crabbe looked over. "Cheer up, Dra- Malfoy! It'll all be fine!"
Draco's temper was easily flared, under the circumstances, and he stared at Crabbe with the utmost contempt. "You sound like Artemis, all perky, Crabbe! Shut UP, will you?"
Draco wanted to be alone, and he left the Hall, leaving his half-finished breakfast for Crabbe and Goyle to devour.
He meandered down towards the Slytherine Common Room, then changed direction. He strolled around the dungeon halls, in no direction in particular, brooding about his situation. It was not very desirable. His thoughts turned to Artemis and his soon-to-be teacher, Nemesis. He liked that name. It sounded like someone you didn't want to cross, and she looked it, too.
"Funny," he said out loud, "Two girls, exactly the same, yet so different. You've got Artemis there looking like the third Weasley and then you've got Nemesis, looking-" Draco cut off. What did she look like? It was such an odd combination. Her short, straight, blonde-brown hair was nothing out of the ordinary, her face was on the pale side, freckle less, and she looked rather- well, plain. But then her eyes. . .
He'd made eye contact as she strode up to the high table. They were an indescribable colour, blue-green, grey-hazel, amazing. She had a way about her that made you think you were standing in the presence of someone infinitely wise, powerful, and mysterious, like she was teetering on the edge between good and evil. Kind of like himself. . .
His mind flashed back to his childhood. When he was really young, a toddler, he remembered crying to be held, and being picked up and cradled momentarily by his mother, just enough to quiet him, before being dropped like a rag. His father barely glanced at him, it seemed; all through his upbringing, his father wasn't there. And come to think of it, that suited Draco fine.
Did it? Oh, he was so confused. Leaning against a cold stone wall, he sank to the floor. He wanted to be like his father, so much, but he'd been shunned. It had gotten to the point where he couldn't stand his father, the way he made him feel like he wasn't worthy. But was he? Was he just not cut out for what his father wanted of him? Did he want to be like his father? Could he stand his father, knowing that he'd put him in danger? Because he'd been on the grounds when that attack happened. Had the castle collapsed, he would have been killed along with the students. It made Draco hang his head. Did his father think him that shameful? That worthless? So disgraceful that his father would cause his death?
"I am NOT worthless!" He said forcefully, before collapsing his head on his arms and sobbing. He never cried. But here he was, sniveling like a baby, and he couldn't stop. Between the hiccups, he moaned to himself: "Not worthless! NOT worthless! NOT WORTHLESS!"
"I can assure you you are not worthless, my dear Draco. Quite the contrary, in fact."
Draco's head shot up to stare Nemesis right in the eye.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Review Please.
"My sister's not doing her job. So I'm here to help. I also have a Calculator to find since Crystal's busy. I gave you that list, by the way. You haven't seen Artemis since she left your office about. . ." the girl checked her watch. "An hour and a half ago."
"I'm afraid I don't understand."
"Nobody ever does." Was the cynical and brisk reply.
"Do you know about the Seven?" Asked Dumbledore, trying to regain his composure. (remember, they are in front of the whole school right now)
"Yes. And, unlike Artemis, I actually know who they are. Now, if you'll excuse me, Headmaster, I need to go greet my sister." Turning on her heel, she jumped of the stage and was halfway across the Hall when a shriek ran out.
"SKELLY! What in bloody Primary are you doing here?!" Artemis stood, livid, in the doorway. Most of the school was taking in the shock of seeing two girls, identical, but different. Artemis, remember, looked exactly like a Weasley, while Skelly (or Nemesis) had the brown-blonde chin-length look that was natural. Still, it was obvious they were sisters. Their faces were identical.
"I'm here to straighten you up, little sister." Skelly was saying.
"I'm not younger than you! I'm far older!"
"Oh yes, by what, four centuries? Just because you're older doesn't mean you're more mature." Skelly, or Nemesis's, voice was calm and steady compared to her sisters near-banshee screech.
"Don't you talk to me like that!"
"My my, Delta, you do have a lot of energy today, don't you?"
"ARG! WHY ARE YOU HERE?"
"I already answered that question, but I'll speak in plain English for you: Crystal is busy. You know we can't spare Sphynx. There is a Calculator here, and therefore your success is linked to the success of this Dimension. Now, you aren't doing your job, according to the Muses, who are still idiots but even idiots are right once in a while. Therefore, I'm here. I actually know who the Seven are, and I have far better control than you do, so I advise you to just SHUT UP, please! I have a headache." Skelly brushed past her sister.
"You come back here! I'm not through with you, young lady! I'll tell Athena about this, trust me!" Artemis's fingers were crackling with blue and silver. When Skelly's only response was "Athena doesn't know what's happening, does she?" Artemis lost it. A beam of blue light shot at Nemesis's back. Nemesis simply raised her hand and the beam stopped like it had hit a wall.
"Tsk tsk, what have I told you about fair play?" Came Nemesis's taunt, before she whipped around and pointed at Artemis. Artemis went flying up to stop, hovering, in the middle of the Great Hall. Just like the Hallowe'en feast.
Below, all the students stared, and the teachers turned to Dumbledore. "Sibling rivalry." He told the teachers, and they dropped their wands.
Nemesis joined her sister in the air. "I have far better control then you do. Not in a million years are you getting down until I want you to."
"Nemesis? What kind of name is that, Skelly?"
"The kind of name I got to chose. They can't control me like they control you."
"You just hate being left behind all the time!"
Nemesis's eternal calm broke. "They just need a safety net for you and your flamboyant antics!" Nemesis's hands glowed red, and light shot out to encompass Artemis in a red-orange sphere. "Get out of THAT, girlie!" Nemesis turned around. "Oh, and by the way, it's Malfoy, NOT Potter." With that, she left the Hall, flying low through the door.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
The whole school stared, shocked, at their savior who was now trapped in a bright, flame-coloured bubble. She banged at the surface, then backed up and began blasting the surface with shots of blue, green, silver, white, yellow, black, and supposedly red, although you couldn't see those shots because the colour of the bubble filtered out the light. She stopped, and continued banging.
Dumbledore signaled to Torquil, who asked Flitwick to put a flying charm on him. Once Flitwick was finished, Torquil flew up and began to shoot different spells at the bubble.
"What is it with bubbles today?" McGonagall whispered to Sprout.
Torquil wasn't succeeding, and Sinistra turned to Dumbledore. "Should I get the Weasley twins, Headmaster?"
"I don't know how to get to them. . ." Dumbledore seemed rather preoccupied. Torquil gave up and drifted down to stand in front of the teachers.
"No luck. That spell, it's been made using something similar to the Lalita Hadono charm. I don't know what kind of magic those two use, but Nemesis - or what did Artemis call her? Skelly? - Anyway, the new one is a lot more powerful than Artemis, that's for sure."
"How can we get her down?"
"And should we go after Nemesis?"
"I think that there is no harm in Nemesis. She brought back Mr. Weasley and Ms. Granger without harming them, she has given me what I assume is accurate information on the Seven, and if she wanted to harm us she would have already done that. I believe she is simply teaching her sister a lesson. Sibling rivalry."
"They were saying some odd stuff, 'Eadmaster. Abou' Athena, somebody or other, and Calculators and all. . ."
"Well, Hagrid, they are certainly not from here. However, the immediate concern is the students. Artemis can deal with the unfortunate situation of being locked inside an orange bubble until her sister desires her to come out."
The students, who had been fascinated by the grand scale of the fight, had gaped at the trapped Artemis for a little while before turning to Draco and Harry, asking what the bloody heck had happened and why it was Draco and not Harry. The two boys were very much so surprised, and could only shrug and say they had no idea.
As Dumbledore revolved to talk to his students once more, the true shocker came. Nemesis zoomed back through the door, flew up to her sister, removed her from the bubble, and proceeded to hug her fiercely. For most of the students, this was all just too much to comprehend. And so the two girls left most of the Great Hall staring as they left the room on the wing.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
It all went by fast after that. All were accounted for, Hermione and Ron told their story about being trapped under the desk, the Ministry of Magic did a formal inquiry, and it was found that Mr. Malfoy and Mr. Crabbe were guilty. They were sentenced and sent to the prison Askaban, which the Dementors no longer guarded. The new Minister of Magic had taken Dumbledore's advice, and turned them away. Highly trained teams of retrieval warlocks guarded all entrances and exits now.
Not one word was said about a certain vial of Veritaserum.
No-one saw Artemis or Nemesis for a week. The Weasley twins turned up in the Great Hall for breakfast two days after the attack. When asked about the two girls, they said they'd woken up from a beautiful sleep only to find themselves in the Room of Requirement.
"It's insane, we can't get to our room!" George moaned that first morning they'd appeared.
"Where is it?" questioned Hermione. "You never did tell us."
"Well, we can't tell you. But it doesn't matter. They've locked us out, magically. The password doesn't work."
"So no one knows what's happening?" Harry joined in.
"Nope." Fred answered dejectedly.
Classes went on regularly, and on Saturday November 23rd the two girls entered the Great Hall for breakfast. Artemis was her usual smiley, ostentatious self. Nemesis looked at everyone with a cool, appraising eye. She sought out Draco Malfoy, sitting despondently at the other side of the hall.
~|flashback|~
"No way. I am SURE it is Harry Potter." Artemis whined.
"Nope. 105 percent sure, it's Draco." Nemesis replied.
"But you can SENSE it in Harry!"
"He's a carrier. He can't actually access his power. Why do you think he survived? He pulled it from Draco!"
"I don't believe you."
"Believe it, sis, or I'll lock you in a bubble again."
Artemis laughed, and Nemesis even gave a small smile.
~|flash-forward|~
Artemis took her seat at Gryffindor table, but Nemesis just kept walking. Fred and George immediately hugged the sitting girl, and the rest of the school stared at Nemesis as she walked up to the High Table.
"Why, hello, Nemesis." Dumbledore greeted her.
"Nice to meet you again, Headmaster."
"I assume you will be staying?"
"You assume correctly."
"When would you like to be sorted?"
"Never."
"Excuse me?"
"You say that a lot, Headmaster. The point is, that poor Hat of yours is already psychologically scarred, and that's only from my obtuse sister. He would not survive reading my mind."
"HEY! I HEARD THAT!" Artemis yelled up from her seat. Nemesis casually ignored her.
"And besides, Headmaster, there is nothing you can teach me that I do not already know infinitely better than your staff. However. . . May I talk to you in private?"
Dumbledore nodded, and the pair walked through the door at the side.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"As I understand, you lose Torquil in January, correct?"
"Yes, he has. . . urgent business."
Nemesis's trademark smirk flitted across her features. "I'm sure. As I was saying, I also understand you will be teaching the Lalita Hadono Charm. For defense purposes, of course."
"Yes, we will be."
"However, at the rate you're going, you won't get to it properly before Torquil has to leave. Therefore, I propose that I take over your class after Torquil's departure."
Dumbledore looked shocked for a few moments, then reclaimed his serenity and thought about what he'd seen of the girl. She obviously had better control than her sister, and she had also obviously mastered the Lalita Hadono Charm, because she couldn't be an Elemental Controller.
Could she?
Dumbledore shook this thought away. It had been bothering him since he'd seen the two girls interact. He'd assumed it was the Lalita Hadono Charm at work, but how could Nemesis take away her sister's control? And Then there was the fact that neither used a wand.
Turning his attention back to the problem at hand, he realized that it was his only choice. If the weaker one could help stop an attack by Voldemort, then the stronger one could help immensely.
"Granted."
Nemesis smiled, stood up, and gestured for the elder to leave first. He nodded his thanks and the two swept from the room.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"I am pleased to announce that, although Professor Torquil will be leaving after the Christmas holidays, we have found a replacement. Please give a proper welcome to Nemesis, who will be your teacher after the holidays!" Dumbledore beamed at everyone.
No one clapped.
Artemis stared. "What?! I'm not being taught by HER!" she gaped. "How'd you swing that?!"
"Don't embarrass yourself, Delta."
"Well sor-ry if I think it's a bad idea!"
Nemesis sighed. "Please. Calm yourself."
Artemis sat back down, seething with rage.
Nemesis swept that same cold eye over the student body. She didn't say anything else, just stood there. Then she walked down, through the tables, to sit beside her sister.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Draco was amazingly confused. It was him, not Potter? He didn't understand. No one talked to him anymore, except Crabbe and Goyle, not since his father had been exposed as a Death Eater. That was why he was staying at Hogwarts, probably; no place else to go. He would be the only Slytherine staying.
How utterly morbid.
Crabbe looked over. "Cheer up, Dra- Malfoy! It'll all be fine!"
Draco's temper was easily flared, under the circumstances, and he stared at Crabbe with the utmost contempt. "You sound like Artemis, all perky, Crabbe! Shut UP, will you?"
Draco wanted to be alone, and he left the Hall, leaving his half-finished breakfast for Crabbe and Goyle to devour.
He meandered down towards the Slytherine Common Room, then changed direction. He strolled around the dungeon halls, in no direction in particular, brooding about his situation. It was not very desirable. His thoughts turned to Artemis and his soon-to-be teacher, Nemesis. He liked that name. It sounded like someone you didn't want to cross, and she looked it, too.
"Funny," he said out loud, "Two girls, exactly the same, yet so different. You've got Artemis there looking like the third Weasley and then you've got Nemesis, looking-" Draco cut off. What did she look like? It was such an odd combination. Her short, straight, blonde-brown hair was nothing out of the ordinary, her face was on the pale side, freckle less, and she looked rather- well, plain. But then her eyes. . .
He'd made eye contact as she strode up to the high table. They were an indescribable colour, blue-green, grey-hazel, amazing. She had a way about her that made you think you were standing in the presence of someone infinitely wise, powerful, and mysterious, like she was teetering on the edge between good and evil. Kind of like himself. . .
His mind flashed back to his childhood. When he was really young, a toddler, he remembered crying to be held, and being picked up and cradled momentarily by his mother, just enough to quiet him, before being dropped like a rag. His father barely glanced at him, it seemed; all through his upbringing, his father wasn't there. And come to think of it, that suited Draco fine.
Did it? Oh, he was so confused. Leaning against a cold stone wall, he sank to the floor. He wanted to be like his father, so much, but he'd been shunned. It had gotten to the point where he couldn't stand his father, the way he made him feel like he wasn't worthy. But was he? Was he just not cut out for what his father wanted of him? Did he want to be like his father? Could he stand his father, knowing that he'd put him in danger? Because he'd been on the grounds when that attack happened. Had the castle collapsed, he would have been killed along with the students. It made Draco hang his head. Did his father think him that shameful? That worthless? So disgraceful that his father would cause his death?
"I am NOT worthless!" He said forcefully, before collapsing his head on his arms and sobbing. He never cried. But here he was, sniveling like a baby, and he couldn't stop. Between the hiccups, he moaned to himself: "Not worthless! NOT worthless! NOT WORTHLESS!"
"I can assure you you are not worthless, my dear Draco. Quite the contrary, in fact."
Draco's head shot up to stare Nemesis right in the eye.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Review Please.