Disclaimer - see part 1.
Author's note - as promised here is the extended version of Chapter 26.
---------------
Wizards Honour
Part 26
---------------
"If ye'll just wait here, Professor Dumbledore will be along soon." Hagrid bowed slightly before he left the three wedding guests standing at the bottom of the staircase which led to the Great Hall.
"Most improper," muttered Medusa Snape darkly while she watched Hagrid trudge up the staircase. "In my day we would have been individually escorted by House Elves, not left in the foyer like yesterday's news-scroll."
Edgar Greenwood had been about to comment on Medusa's rudeness when the other wedding guest spoke.
"Perhaps, Madam Snape, Professor Dumbledore wants to save you the trouble of climbing staircases unnecessarily." The younger wizard smiled, "A most gentlemanly thing to do."
Medusa sniffed melodramatically, "Only right for a lady of my station." She flicked her wand at the skirts of her long, formal robes. The evidence of the horseless-carriage ride from the gate, a few creases and small spots of dust, fell away.
"Exactly, Madam Snape." Edgar said hurriedly, quickly following the Thadeus's lead. "You have travelled a long way in a short time. It wouldn't be polite to make you climb staircases you didn't need to climb. Criminal, in fact." He started to add some more fears for Medusa's health but stopped when Medusa tapped sharply on the floor with her cane and peered quellingly at him from under her heavy eyebrows.
"Thank you, Mr Greenwood." She commanded, a glint of amusement in her gaze. "I believe my injured feminine pride has been adequately assuaged. You do not need to inflict any phantom illnesses upon my person. At my age I do not need any additional maladies."
Again Edgar's reply was interrupted; this time by a seeming hoard of students which errupted out of the dungeons and headed towards the stairs to the Great Hall.
Thadeus Assentor quickly stepped out of the way. Edgar chose to stand his ground and let the sea of students wash past him as though he was a large rock. Meanwhile, Medusa was busy firing stinging rebukes at any student who stepped on the train of her robes or brushed the long drooping feathers of her hat.
The hoard had reduced to a few clumps when the outer door opened and admitted a gust of cold January air and a teenage boy. The boy wore slightly muddy school robes and carried a pair of dragon-hide gloves.
"Been earning extra Herbology points again, Longbottom?" a boy's voice echoed out of a group of four older Slytherin students. "You'll need it after all the points you lost for Gryffindor in Potions."
The Longbottom boy lowered his head and tried to walk across the foyer. Two larger boys left the tormentor's group and stood in Longbottom's path. The two remaining students laughed at boy's struggles to evade the young thugs.
"Don't run away, Neville," cackled a pudgy-faced girl. "You'll miss speaking to your Boggart. See there she is." The girl pointed at Medusa.
"This should be interesting," murmured Thadeus under his breath.
The Slytherin students who had been harassing the Longbottom boy and the blond boy all turned to stare at the pudgy-faced girl.
"I'm telling Professor Snape on you, Pansy," sneered the blond boy. "You called his granny a Boggart!"
"I am not Professor Snape's Granny, young man, I am his Great-Granny," said a cold, commanding voice. "Who are you? And kindly explain why you and your friends are insulting me."
"It was his Boggart," replied Draco, he looked at Neville but Signora Snape did not look away.
Draco trembled under the gaze of the old Slytherin Matriarch and said quietly, "I am Draco Malfoy." He pointed to the other students and one-by-one introduced Victor Crabbe, Gregory Goyle and Pansy Parkinson. Then, as though the Slytherin students were psychically linked, they all turned and fled up the stairs.
~~~~~
Neville Longbottom squared his shoulders and looked up at Signora Snape. He knew as soon as he saw her that she wasn't his Boggart. She had better clothes than his granny did, she didn't smell of mothballs and she was a lot wrinklier than Professor Snape was.
The old lady was a little scary but nowhere near as frightening as his own Granny had been the time he had accidentally dropped a glass of pumpkin juice onto her antique carpet; that had been a very frightening day.
Neville jumped as the old lady rapped the floor with the end of her cane.
"Young man," Medusa's waspish tones echoed around the foyer and jangled Neville's nerves. "I do not appreciate people daydreaming in my presence."
"Sorry." Neville smiled encouragingly then thought better of it and tried to put on a serious expression.
"When you've quite finished pulling faces at me I would like an explanation." Medusa continued, "Why were those children rude to me?"
"They're Slytherins," said Neville, his fingers nervously tugging at the dragonhide gloves he held in his hands.
"Well, that explains a lot." Edgar Greenwood muttered.
"Were all the big-headed loudmouths in Slytherin in your time too?" Thadeus Assentor asked Edgar.
The two wizards were leaning against the wall, near the bottom of the stairs. It looked to Neville like they were watching Mrs Snape and him as though they were watching a Quidditch match.
Edgar nodded to Thadeus. "Terrible they were. All of them so busy saying how 'wicked and naughty' they were that they had all the teachers believing them. My fellow Ravenclaws and I used to have a wonderful time playing pranks and getting them in trouble for it."
"You did that too?" Thadeus laughed. "I remember when I was in Hufflepuff we had a book that everyone put ideas in of how to get Lucius Mal-"
Signora Snape glared icily at Mr Assentor. The Ministry wizard fell silent and Medusa turned back to face Neville.
"Explain, boy, why they were calling me a Boggart!"
Neville took a deep breath and almost choked as he saw Edgar stick his tongue out at Medusa. Edgar winked at Neville who managed to say, "They shouldn't have said that, Mrs Snape, it was rude of them. Besides, it wasn't you really."
"What do you mean 'wasn't I'?"
Neville took a deep breath and said, "I-had-to-fight-a-Boggart-in-class-and-it-looked-like-Professor-Snape-and-Professor-Lupin-said-I-should-put-my-granny's-clothes-on-it-so-it-ended-up-looking-like-Professor-Snape-in-my-granny's-dress-and-vulture-hat-and-everyone-in-the-school-heard-about-it-and-that's-why-Pansy-said-what-she-said." Neville stopped talking, gasping for air.
"I believe, Mr Longbottom, that you will be late for the Feast if you do not leave now." Albus Dumbledore said quietly as he walked down the stairs. The Headmaster smiled kindly at Neville and cast a cleaning charm on the boy's robes. "Hurry along now."
~~~~~~
The Bloody Baron glided out of Neville Longbottom's way as the teenager clattered up the staircase. The Baron directed his gaze towards the small group of people at the bottom of the stairs. The Headmaster had calmed the situation and was skillfully guiding the little party towards an ornate door that had appeared in the panelling.
The Baron smirked as the old lady grumpily stomped her way to the door. Tonight he - the Bloody Baron, Official Ghost of Slytherin House, in life a Baron in the Court of Prince John, and the Spectre that brought terror to Peeves
- was going to enjoy the party.
To-be-continued
Author's note - as promised here is the extended version of Chapter 26.
---------------
Wizards Honour
Part 26
---------------
"If ye'll just wait here, Professor Dumbledore will be along soon." Hagrid bowed slightly before he left the three wedding guests standing at the bottom of the staircase which led to the Great Hall.
"Most improper," muttered Medusa Snape darkly while she watched Hagrid trudge up the staircase. "In my day we would have been individually escorted by House Elves, not left in the foyer like yesterday's news-scroll."
Edgar Greenwood had been about to comment on Medusa's rudeness when the other wedding guest spoke.
"Perhaps, Madam Snape, Professor Dumbledore wants to save you the trouble of climbing staircases unnecessarily." The younger wizard smiled, "A most gentlemanly thing to do."
Medusa sniffed melodramatically, "Only right for a lady of my station." She flicked her wand at the skirts of her long, formal robes. The evidence of the horseless-carriage ride from the gate, a few creases and small spots of dust, fell away.
"Exactly, Madam Snape." Edgar said hurriedly, quickly following the Thadeus's lead. "You have travelled a long way in a short time. It wouldn't be polite to make you climb staircases you didn't need to climb. Criminal, in fact." He started to add some more fears for Medusa's health but stopped when Medusa tapped sharply on the floor with her cane and peered quellingly at him from under her heavy eyebrows.
"Thank you, Mr Greenwood." She commanded, a glint of amusement in her gaze. "I believe my injured feminine pride has been adequately assuaged. You do not need to inflict any phantom illnesses upon my person. At my age I do not need any additional maladies."
Again Edgar's reply was interrupted; this time by a seeming hoard of students which errupted out of the dungeons and headed towards the stairs to the Great Hall.
Thadeus Assentor quickly stepped out of the way. Edgar chose to stand his ground and let the sea of students wash past him as though he was a large rock. Meanwhile, Medusa was busy firing stinging rebukes at any student who stepped on the train of her robes or brushed the long drooping feathers of her hat.
The hoard had reduced to a few clumps when the outer door opened and admitted a gust of cold January air and a teenage boy. The boy wore slightly muddy school robes and carried a pair of dragon-hide gloves.
"Been earning extra Herbology points again, Longbottom?" a boy's voice echoed out of a group of four older Slytherin students. "You'll need it after all the points you lost for Gryffindor in Potions."
The Longbottom boy lowered his head and tried to walk across the foyer. Two larger boys left the tormentor's group and stood in Longbottom's path. The two remaining students laughed at boy's struggles to evade the young thugs.
"Don't run away, Neville," cackled a pudgy-faced girl. "You'll miss speaking to your Boggart. See there she is." The girl pointed at Medusa.
"This should be interesting," murmured Thadeus under his breath.
The Slytherin students who had been harassing the Longbottom boy and the blond boy all turned to stare at the pudgy-faced girl.
"I'm telling Professor Snape on you, Pansy," sneered the blond boy. "You called his granny a Boggart!"
"I am not Professor Snape's Granny, young man, I am his Great-Granny," said a cold, commanding voice. "Who are you? And kindly explain why you and your friends are insulting me."
"It was his Boggart," replied Draco, he looked at Neville but Signora Snape did not look away.
Draco trembled under the gaze of the old Slytherin Matriarch and said quietly, "I am Draco Malfoy." He pointed to the other students and one-by-one introduced Victor Crabbe, Gregory Goyle and Pansy Parkinson. Then, as though the Slytherin students were psychically linked, they all turned and fled up the stairs.
~~~~~
Neville Longbottom squared his shoulders and looked up at Signora Snape. He knew as soon as he saw her that she wasn't his Boggart. She had better clothes than his granny did, she didn't smell of mothballs and she was a lot wrinklier than Professor Snape was.
The old lady was a little scary but nowhere near as frightening as his own Granny had been the time he had accidentally dropped a glass of pumpkin juice onto her antique carpet; that had been a very frightening day.
Neville jumped as the old lady rapped the floor with the end of her cane.
"Young man," Medusa's waspish tones echoed around the foyer and jangled Neville's nerves. "I do not appreciate people daydreaming in my presence."
"Sorry." Neville smiled encouragingly then thought better of it and tried to put on a serious expression.
"When you've quite finished pulling faces at me I would like an explanation." Medusa continued, "Why were those children rude to me?"
"They're Slytherins," said Neville, his fingers nervously tugging at the dragonhide gloves he held in his hands.
"Well, that explains a lot." Edgar Greenwood muttered.
"Were all the big-headed loudmouths in Slytherin in your time too?" Thadeus Assentor asked Edgar.
The two wizards were leaning against the wall, near the bottom of the stairs. It looked to Neville like they were watching Mrs Snape and him as though they were watching a Quidditch match.
Edgar nodded to Thadeus. "Terrible they were. All of them so busy saying how 'wicked and naughty' they were that they had all the teachers believing them. My fellow Ravenclaws and I used to have a wonderful time playing pranks and getting them in trouble for it."
"You did that too?" Thadeus laughed. "I remember when I was in Hufflepuff we had a book that everyone put ideas in of how to get Lucius Mal-"
Signora Snape glared icily at Mr Assentor. The Ministry wizard fell silent and Medusa turned back to face Neville.
"Explain, boy, why they were calling me a Boggart!"
Neville took a deep breath and almost choked as he saw Edgar stick his tongue out at Medusa. Edgar winked at Neville who managed to say, "They shouldn't have said that, Mrs Snape, it was rude of them. Besides, it wasn't you really."
"What do you mean 'wasn't I'?"
Neville took a deep breath and said, "I-had-to-fight-a-Boggart-in-class-and-it-looked-like-Professor-Snape-and-Professor-Lupin-said-I-should-put-my-granny's-clothes-on-it-so-it-ended-up-looking-like-Professor-Snape-in-my-granny's-dress-and-vulture-hat-and-everyone-in-the-school-heard-about-it-and-that's-why-Pansy-said-what-she-said." Neville stopped talking, gasping for air.
"I believe, Mr Longbottom, that you will be late for the Feast if you do not leave now." Albus Dumbledore said quietly as he walked down the stairs. The Headmaster smiled kindly at Neville and cast a cleaning charm on the boy's robes. "Hurry along now."
~~~~~~
The Bloody Baron glided out of Neville Longbottom's way as the teenager clattered up the staircase. The Baron directed his gaze towards the small group of people at the bottom of the stairs. The Headmaster had calmed the situation and was skillfully guiding the little party towards an ornate door that had appeared in the panelling.
The Baron smirked as the old lady grumpily stomped her way to the door. Tonight he - the Bloody Baron, Official Ghost of Slytherin House, in life a Baron in the Court of Prince John, and the Spectre that brought terror to Peeves
- was going to enjoy the party.
To-be-continued