A/N: There was some out of sequence paragraphs that were put in their proper place. I'm sorry about the confusion. Enjoy!
Chapter 9 – Unexpected Events
Snape had just sat down in a chair that was in front of Headmaster Dumbledore's desk, waiting for Dumbledore to finish reading some papers that were in front of him. When Dumbledore was finished, he looked straight at Snape and asked, "Are the arrangements taken care of, Severus? Our guest will be arriving late tonight."
"Yes, Headmaster, the arrangements are all taken care of. If you don't mind me asking, but just how are we suppose to keep our guest from being discovered by any of the students?" Snape asked warily.
"Our guest will reveal herself to those that she deems worthy until the day comes for her to be needed. It is our job to keep her safe until that day." Dumbledore replied as he returned to looking at the papers on his desk.
"Headmaster, what if a certain student tries to look for her?" Snape asked.
"If you are referring to Mr. Potter, I think that he will have his hands busy with our new students." Dumbledore replied still looking down at his papers.
Snape was about to ask what he meant by that when Professor McGonagall knocked lightly on the office door and walked in when the Headmaster told her to enter.
"Oh, Minvera." Dumbledore stated in a mildly surprised tone. "Is something the matter?"
"No, it just seems that our guest has arrived early and she has arrived with her three companions. But I think that we will have to find more 'appropriate' lodgings for her companions." McGonagall said as she slightly smirked at Snape's and Dumbledore's confused expressions. "It seems that her companions are three gentlemen who seem to not to want to leave her side."
Snape's face went blank as he said, "Three gentlemen? I was told that they would be female." He then looked at Dumbledore curiously.
Dumbledore regain his composure and raised his eyebrow at both Snape and McGonagall's statements. "What do you mean that they will not leave her side?" Dumbledore asked.
"Just that. They refuse to leave her side until they know that she is safe. They also told me that they 'will' not be separated from her for long. At least one of them will be with her at all times." McGonagall said with a little annoyance in her voice.
"Well, then we will just have to accommodate them won't we," Dumbledore replied.
"But Headmaster...that just would not be proper!" McGonagall exclaimed.
"But it is all we can do for now. Until arrangements can be made for them." Dumbledore said as he turned to look at Snape. "Is that all Minvera? Severus and I have a few things to talk about."
McGonagall was slightly taken aback by Dumbledore's rude dismissal. "Yes, that is all, Headmaster." She then turned and walked out of the office without looking back.
'The nerve of that man! I do him a favor and look at how he treats me!' McGonagall thought as she shut the door loudly as she left. 'And what could he be talking to Severus about?'
"What is it that you want to talk to me about?" Snape said with a hint of suspicion in his voice.
"I need to make the arrangements for this unavoidable misunderstanding." Dumbledore told Snape with an exhausted look in his eyes, that Snape missed.
"What do you want me to do? Move them to a bigger room or to put them in separate rooms near her?" Snape asked a little bit angrily. "You know that it took me over two weeks to make the arrangements that we have now. How am I suppose to fix this in just a few days? At least without anybody finding out!"
"You will just have to try and if a student or any other faculty member finds out just send them to me. I will deal with the matter myself." Dumbledore said in a slightly annoyed tone to Snape's little tantrum. "Now, if you please Severus, I have other business to attend to now."
Snape could not believe how brash Dumbledore was being towards him. 'I wonder what is the matter. What would make him be rude to me and Minvera?' he thought as he slowly got up to leave, then he stopped. "What is the matter, Headmaster? You have never acted this way before?" Snape questioned as he turned around and looked to see Dumbledore's reaction. He was surprised to the reaction that he got out of Dumbledore.
Dumbledore stopped what he was doing and looked up at Snape with a shocked and sad expression on his face. "It is nothing, Severus." Dumbledore sighed.
"What do you mean that it is nothing? You seem to have been on edge all evening. So what is wrong?" Snape replied as he walked back to the chair to sit down.
"Severus, it is none of your concern..." Dumbledore hesitated to say more until he saw the angry and confused look on Snape's face. "...at least for now. Why don't you go and get some rest before you start those arrangements."
"Yes, sir." Snape said as he turned back towards the door and as he was walking out he heard Dumbledore say, "Thank you, Severus for taking care of the arrangements."
Snape stopped, nodded his head, and then proceeded to walk to his room to think about where and how to place the 'guests' of Hogwarts. 'Where I'm going to put them without anybody getting nosy and suspicious? And how do I keep them from showing themselves to the student body? And what could Dumbledore be worried about?'
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It had been a week since the first day of their classes. So the weekend was upon them again and they were all busy doing homework that was assigned to each of them. The first one done with their homework was of course Hermione, who in turned helped the others when they needed it. Liliana and Leon were the next ones to finish, followed by Ginny. Harry and Ron were trying to finish but they both seemed to try to find ways in not doing it right then, so they could go and enjoy the day.
"It is such a beautiful day." Liliana commented as she looked out of the window in the Gryffindor tower. "How about we go outside and enjoy the scenery?" she asked as she turned to Harry.
Harry looked up from just finishing his homework for his Charms class and trying to finish working on his Potions essay. He thought about it and then said, "I don't see why we shouldn't. It would be good to get out of the common room for a little while." He grinned at her with amusement in his eyes as she smiled huge and hugged him. 'Wow! Maybe I should agree with her more often if she will hug me like that,' he thought.
Ginny just smiled at how happy Liliana looked when Harry said that it was okay for them to go outside. They had all been following whatever Harry said lately. He just seemed to be happier with them all around. Except for maybe Ron and Leon. Ron still seemed to be angry with Leon for having the audacity to be in a position like that with Ginny under the tree by the pond. Ginny was able to forget about that as was Leon, but they both could not forget what Leon had said when they had talked about how she felt about the incident at the train station.
Ginny looked over at Leon and just remembered that he had in a way said that he loved her. 'Does he really love me?' she thought as he was gladly distracting Ron from his homework. That was until Harry glared at him to stop and then he put his homework away into his bag so that he could do it outside under the tree by the pond. It seemed like they were always under that tree enjoying each others company.
Leon felt like a little kid who just got caught doing something bad, when Harry had glared at him. Leon just wanted to hide behind something and say that he didn't do it, for some reason until he noticed that Harry was going to do his homework outside. 'Haha. He still is doing that potion essay. Wonder why the Professor, gave him so much homework but not us?' he thought as he recalled that Professor Snape had given only Harry twice as much homework than everybody else in the class.
It seemed like Harry knew what Leon was thinking at that moment because he said, "Snape seems to hate me more and more each year. Considering that he has saved my life before and I his." Loud enough to where only Leon was able to hear.
'So, Snape hates Harry then maybe I can try to fix that.' Leon thought mischievously.
Liliana waited until Harry was ready to go before she got up from the window to go outside. She totally forgot about Ron who was still packing some of his things when she latched onto Harry's arm for no apparent reason and dragged him outside before he could do anything and for that matter anybody else. Leon just walked over to Ginny and held out his arm for her to take so that they could walk together. Ron gave the back of Leon's head a piercing stare that Leon just seemed to ignore. Hermione was waiting for Ron until she just finally decided to leave him there.
"Hey!" Ron yelled as he realized that nobody had waited for him. He hurriedly crammed the rest of his stuff into his bag and ran after them. "Wait for me!"
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Harry and Liliana were walking through the doorway to the courtyard that they had to pass in order to get to 'their' tree. Leon and Ginny were a few feet behind them talking quietly with their heads close together. They were forced to stop when Draco and his cronies, Crabbe and Goyle, stepped in front of them. "Where are you off to Potter?" Draco sneered while eyeing Leon who had stepped up next to Harry. Harry had stepped in front of Liliana while Ginny walked up beside her behind both Harry and Leon.
"That is none of your business, Malfoy. Why don't you go crawl under a rock." Harry said in a rather angry tone.
"Or go drown in the lake." Leon said, just as angry. Remembering the confrontation that Draco and his cronies had with him and Harry just a few days ago.
-- -- -- --
"What is the matter, Potter? Not getting the 'proper attention' from your girls?" Draco had taunted Harry who was hanging out with Leon by the tree after Ginny and Liliana had left them to go have some 'girl time' after lunch.
"What are you trying to insinuate, Malfoy?" Leon asked angrily as Draco was trying to slander Ginny, Liliana, and Harry's names.
"You know exactly what I mean, twig." Draco replied sneering at Leon.
"Twig?" Leon looks around behind him to see whom Draco was talking to. "Draco you must not have a brain...don't you know that you can't talk to a tree that way?" Leon insulted Draco with a knowing look in his eye while his face betrayed nothing but his dislike of the Slytherin prince.
"Don't forget Leon he is considered a ferret after all, they are know to have very tiny brains." Harry said in a bored, causal tone with his eyes closed and leaning his back against the trunk of the tree.
"I think that would be an insult to ferrets everywhere, he is much more stupider than that, Harry." Leon said looking directly at Harry and ignoring Malfoy and his cronies.
Harry chuckled and opened his eyes when he heard the shift of feet coming towards them and just barely sidestepped out of the way of a huge hairy fist before it became in contact with his face. He was able to maneuver out of the way of Goyle's knee before it came into contact with his stomach. Harry then was able hit Goyle in his lower back with his fist causing him to hit his forehead on the tree and fall unconsciously onto his back. Once Goyle fell to the ground Crabbe had fallen on top of him.
Leon was able to lean back in time to just feel the wind rush by his face by a mere inch from Crabbe's fist. He then ducked underneath Crabbe's massive arm and elbowed him in the gut. Then he moved around him and pushed him on top of Goyle.
Harry looked at Leon, who nodded his head to tell him that he was okay. "Well, that seem to go well, huh, Malfoy?" Harry asked with a small smirk when he saw Malfoy draw his wand.
Draco noticed that Harry was smirking at him when he pulled out his wand, "What's so funny, Potter?" he asked in slightly cautious tone.
"I just think that it is funny that you have to use a wand to win your battles, Malfoy." Harry replied and then looked at Leon nodding his head to look at who was coming in their direction, silently telling him to follow his lead. "Malfoy, why are you pointing your wand at us, we did nothing to you?"
Leon then caught on to what Harry was doing and said, "Yes, Malfoy, we were just standing here when Goyle and Crabbe tripped and landed on each other. Oh, hello there, Professor Snape."
Malfoy visibly stiffen when he heard this and felt Snape's hand on his shoulder. "Mister Malfoy, would you put your wand away and explain to me why you were pointing it at Mister Potter and Wood?" Snape's voice said with annoyance of having to deal with another incident between Malfoy and Potter.
"Professor, Potter and Wood, attacked Crabbe and Goyle for no reason. So I thought that I should at least try to stop them from hurting any other students until you found us." Draco lied through his teeth looking straight at Harry.
"That is not what I heard as I was walking up Malfoy. It seems that Crabbe and Goyle tripped and you were going to attack Potter and Wood here for no reason." Snape sneered at his lying Slytherin. "That is also what I am sure the other students around have heard as they walked by as I did." He gestured for Draco to see the small crowd that had started to gather around them.
"Professor, I assure you that is not true. Potter and Wood attacked Crabbe and Goyle, sir. You can just ask them yourself." Draco said in an even, cool tone as he turned to look from the crowd to his head of house.
"Well, I can't right now, can I, Mister Malfoy. They seem to be a little unconscious." Snape declared in an impatience voice as he gestured to his cronies that were still lying on top of each other. "I will just have to give you, Mister Malfoy, a detention for pulling your wand on two unarmed students. Would have expected more from you, being a prefect."
As Snape casted a levitation spell on Crabbe and Goyle so he could drop them off at the infirmary, as he dealt with Draco's punishment personally. Draco decided to show Harry and Leon his 'so-called' death glare. It didn't faze either one of them, it actually caused Leon to smirk and Harry's face was void of any emotion returning the gaze.
Leon made a promise right then and there that he would never trust or like Malfoy. All he did was give Harry and the others a hard time and he had an evil streak in him, that caused Leon to shudder whenever Draco had his wand out with that look in his eye. He would also have to be careful around him when around Liliana and the others.
-- -- -- --
"Oh my! Is that the best you two can come up with?" Draco chuckled until Harry said, "No, but there are ladies present. Apparently you were not taught manners, Malfoy."
"Whatever made you believe that he ever had manners to begin with, Harry?" Leon asked with a gratifying smirk when Draco scowled at them. Crabbe and Goyle started to ball their fists when they noticed Draco's expression. They seemed to be clueless of what was going on except for the fact that Draco was getting angry and that wasn't good.
Harry just chuckled slightly at Leon's question, before he leaned back and narrowly avoided Draco's fist. The next thing that he knew was the sound of the bone in Draco's jaw crunch when his hand made contact with his face. Draco had hit the ground hard as he spit out the blood that was starting to fill his mouth. Harry hit Draco out of pure reflex, his hand did not sting one bit, but he knew that he broke Draco's jaw.
"That was a rather stupid thing to do, Malfoy." Harry said in a rather cautious voice, he was barely holding on to his anger. "Now, why don't you go see Madam Pompfrey, before I make you."
Leon, Crabbe, and Goyle stood there in complete shock to what had just happened. While Ginny and Liliana were just staring at Harry like he was a knight on a white horse. Leon was able to overcome his shock as he noticed that Harry was about to snap. And he didn't know exactly what would happen if Harry did.
"Why don't you boyos get Malfoy to the infirmary." Leon said in a clear, cool tone to Crabbe and Goyle. "Before Harry makes him worse than he already is."
Crabbe and Goyle broke out of dazes and helped Draco to his feet as he continued to spit out blood. "I will...get...you...for this...Potter!" Draco threatened Harry through his spitting.
"Whatever you say, Malfoy." Harry said in an even cold tone that caused all of them to shiver. Malfoy's face changed from his scowl to an expression of shock from Harry's response and the calculating look in his eyes.
"Alright! Off with you boyos!" Leon said as he tried to get Crabbe, Goyle and Draco out of the line of fire as soon as possible. As soon as Leon said that Crabbe and Goyle lifted Draco by his arms a good two inches off the ground and headed straight for the infirmary before anything else happened.
The entire time that this was going on, Ron had finally caught up with Hermione. They were talking as he had his arm around her waist about what they should do on their visit to Hogsmeade in a few weeks when they passed Crabbe and Goyle carrying a half-dazed and blood stained Draco in the direction of the infirmary.
"I wonder what happened." Hermione contemplated as she turned to look Ron in the eye.
"Me too! I want to know who gave the bloody git a lesson in manners." Ron chuckled with glee. "OW! What was that for?" Ron asked as he rubbed his stomach lightly where Hermione had hit him.
"Ron, that was very mean, even if it was Malfoy. But the question is who would have done that to begin with?" Hermione said as she tried to think of a person who could do that to Draco without having to go to the infirmary as well.
"I don't really care. I mean it Hermione. It is about time that Malfoy knew his place." Ron said in a rather solemn tone, and then he smiled at her to get her to remember that it was a beautiful day outside. "We are suppose to be hanging out with our friends today."
"Your right...WHAT?" Hermione said a little annoyed at Ron.
"Did you just say that I 'was right'? Wow! That is bloody amazing!" Ron said in a mock surprised voice.
"Hahaha! VERY funny, Mr. Weasley. Now, let's get going." And with that Hermione walked right out the door and into Ginny and Liliana who were standing slightly behind Harry and Leon.
"Hermione..." Ron trailed off as he saw Harry looking like he was about to bloody murder someone who got in his way right now. "Whoa, what did we miss?"
Harry turned around to Ron's question and said in the cold voice, "Nothing!" And he just walked away towards the tree to sit under it with the others as they normally did, until Leon decided to grab his arm and say, "Harry, boyo, what is the matter?"
Harry was still angry with what Draco had the balls to do and snapped, bringing his right hand up to meet Leon's jaw. Harry realized what he was doing and stopped, frozen in that position. Until Liliana came over and with both her hands grabbed his face to look her in the eye.
"Harry, calm down. It is okay, whatever it is, it will be okay." Liliana said in a soft gentle tone that seemed to soothe Harry. "Why don't you let him go now?"
"Huh?" Harry said confused and then looked at his left hand still holding on to Leon's collar. "Oh! Sorry, about that Leon. I think that I got a little carried away there."
"Got carried away?" Leon said with a huge grin. "Okay boyo, but you should take it easy for awhile, I think."
'I can't believe that he just snapped like that. It's good to see that he's passionate in what he believes in, especially about the ones he loves. It makes me wonder what he would have done if Malfoy had stuck around.' Leon thought.
All Harry could do with that said was smile and laugh nervously, especially with Liliana holding his hand to keep himself from blowing up again. 'She seems to be the only one who can make me feel so at peace with myself. I hope that she never goes away.' Harry thought with all that anger that he had bottled up inside of him.
Harry took a deep breathe before he said or did anything else. "Okay, now what do you say that we go and relax under the tree?" Liliana just smiled at Harry.
"About time someone said something about relaxing!" Ginny said to help ease the tension that had developed when Draco showed up. "I'll race all of you there," with that she was off running to be the first one under the tree, "last one is a rotten git."
"Hey! I don't think so!" Liliana yelled out to her as she started running after her dragging Harry with her.
"I don't think that I will be the rotten git," Leon said as he turned to Ron, "maybe you will." After saying this Leon took off towards the others.
Ron and Hermione just stood there still in shock of what just happened between the others. They turned to look at each other, wondering just what they had missed. Until Leon had snapped at them about being a rotten git.
Ron just grinned and looked at Hermione, "I don't think that I will be, but you will be, sweetie." He took off running making sure that Hermione wasn't that far behind him. "What's wrong going to fast for you?" He mocked her as he turned around to run backwards.
"I don't think so!" Hermione said, freezing Ron in place with a spell as she continued to run the rest of the way to the tree. Once she reached the tree she unfroze him. He came running up to them giving Hermione a glare until she said, "I didn't think that you could be that slow, honey. But it's so nice of you to let me win." She kissed him quickly on the lips before he could react. He just stood there in front of everyone in a daze from the kiss as the others sat around the tree.
"Why don't you have a seat, boyo, before you're stuck like that." Leon said as Liliana and Ginny slapped his arms at the same time. "Oww! What I say?" he said in an all too innocence voice. This caused the others to burst out laughing except Ron who just shot him a glare for making fun of him and how comfortable he was with getting with Ginny.
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While the others were enjoying the day, Madam Pompfrey was walking down the halls accompanied by Professor Snape. "Where will our new guests be saying from now on?" she asked.
"I think that I will put them in the dungeons near my quarters, as to help provide more security for the girl." Snape said as he began to walk faster around a corner to the a large maple door that stood two feet taller than him. He knocked on the door and waited for a reply. When there was none he turned to look at Pompfrey, who looked worried herself.
"I wonder if they are alright?" Pompfrey said.
"Of course they are! I picked an excellent location to place them." Snape said a bit annoyed.
As soon as he finished speaking the door opened slightly to reveal a young man wearing a deep forest green cloak and pinned with a hawk shaped pin. He had dark brown eyes that bore into Snape, giving him a glare. "You would do so kind as to keep your voices down." The young man said as he then looked into Madam Pompfrey's eyes, "Milady is meditating. She is not to be disturbed at this time." With that said he shut the door quietly.
"What just happened?" Pompfrey asked a little bit bewildered.
"Did. He. Just. Dismiss. Me!" Snape said flabbergasted. "The nerve of that b-boy!"
"Madam Pompfrey!" a nearby painting called out. "Madam Pompfrey!"
"Yes?" Pompfrey turned to the painting. A small girl with a white sundress was slightly panting. "What is it child?"
"Draco...Malfoy...is in...the infirmary...with a bloody nose, Madam." The little girl said as she caught her breath.
"Oh, dear! I better be off then," Pompfrey said as she turned back to Snape. "I will leave you until later, Professor." Then she walked off in a hurry toward the infirmary.