"Leave me alone!"

-Leanne

Chapter 17: The Better Smith

"Ouch!" I yelped when Susan Bones mistakenly stepped on my finger. At least, I would have thought it was a mistake before.

Now I knew better.

"Watch where you're going, your highness," Zach sneered from above me. It was his fault I'd been knocked over. He bumped into me on purpose. Luckily, I hadn't caused too much of a mess. Ernie and Hannah had continued on reluctantly, not wanting to get involved I guess. Leanne stayed back, but refused to make eye contact with me.

"Mary!" Dean shouted catching up to where I was sprawled on the floor. I quickly shuffled to my knees to gather my things, embarrassed to have my friend see me like this. What if Dean saw and didn't want to be friends with me anymore? "Mary are you okay?" He asked, helping me to my feet.

I faked a big smile for him. "I'm fine! Just an accident."

"Yeah right," he frowned, glaring at Zach. "I saw what happened, Smith."

Zacharias just held up open palms. "It was an accident, mate. Honest."

"Accident my foot!" Dean shoved his books into my already full arms. Don't worry, I'm fine over here. Not overloaded at all. He yanked the strap of Zach's bag forcibly off of him and dumped the contents out of the bag. "Try having any more of your accidents with Mary again, yeah?"

"Dean," I gasped, completely shocked. Zacharias stood at almost a head taller than him but Dean didn't seem intimidated at all. Those brave, foolish Gryffindor traits were showing again.

"Go on, Mary. Before we're late to class." He hadn't taken his eyes off Zach who just stood there staring back with a sneer of his own. I waddled past the small group, and Dean followed after me, kicking Zacharias' Divintations text book further out of the taller boy's reach.

"Is he an advisor or a boyfriend?" I heard Meagan giggle, sparking a similar reaction from the rest of the group.

When we arrived at our Friday Defense Against the Dark Arts class, Dean and Daphne settled in beside me. On Fridays, all the houses took DADA together. I remember thinking, when first attending this class, how weird it was for their to be a certain kind of magic more evil when it was all pretty evil. After all, I'm pretty sure PETA wouldn't approve of us turning poor defenseless mice into tea cups. Could the mouse still feel it when you poured hot tea into it? It's all evil magic or a dark art really. We're all going to the same part of hell as the guys that worked for the Dark Lord or He-Who-You-Can't-Say-His-Name. Which in my opinion, just sounds a lot like Satan's favorite children.

"Good afternoon," Professor Quirrell greeted in a distracted tone while he tightened his turban. "Today, we're going to learn the incantation for the 'knock back jinx' we studied last week."

Class went as it usually did. We silently, in groups of three or four, practiced our inflexions of the word Flipendo.

"Something happen between you and your housemates?" Daphne inquired.

Curious, I followed her gaze to the Hufflepuff first years. Hannah had rejoined the group, and they were shooting us looks and giggles. "Not really," I shrugged. It was obvious I was lying. I was going to have to have to get a little better at that.

Dean scowled at me but didn't call me out on it. "I think your housemates aren't too thrilled to see you sitting with us," he mentioned instead. He was right. I'd noticed on several occasions, Pansy glaring right at me. She was always looking at me instead of Daphne and I never even talk to her.

I even caught Draco stealing a glance from time to time at our oddball match-up.

"Are they upset that following me around hasn't made them start their you-know-what's yet?"

Dean gagged. "If you start this, I'm going to sit somewhere else."

"I hear a lot of chatting, but not a lot if encant'ing." Professor Quirrell sidled up to our table. "Would anyone like to demonstrate?"

Dean grabbed his wand but Quirrell waved him off and looked me dead in the eyes. "You," he said with a sharp tap to my shoulder. "Genetically, the most talented person in the room. Let's see what your proud lineage has lent you. Up!" I grabbed my wand and rubbed my bruised shoulder. With a flick of his wrist, the tables and students were pushed to the side. I stood in the middle of the room clutching my wand to my chest. "Well go on. Aim right at that chair."

I took a deep breath in and out. You can do this Mary. Sure, your spells take lots of practice, but you were ranked number one for a reason. I extended my arm and, "FlipenDO!" Nothing happened. "FLIPenDO!" The chair wobbled a bit but ultimately nothing.

Professor Quirrell hummed in…pleased? disapproval. "Close but no cigar, I'm afraid. Maybe perchance it would help if you had an opponent?" He, for one moment, looked as if he would make himself that target. After a scratch to the back of his head, he must have rethought the idea. "You," he said, pointing out Zacharias. "So-called heir of Hufflepuff." Zach looked both surprised and offended. "Yes I can hear your bragging through these thin and hollow walls. If you are apart of Helga's lineage at all, then this should be no trouble for you." He approached our teacher confidently, as if he already knew he had it.

And he likely already did. Apparently secret lessons hadn't let up while I'd been in the hospital wing.

"Wands ready!"

My hand was shaking. I couldn't do this. I needed more time. It wasn't enough time.

"Fire-"

My eyes clenched closed and I braced myself for impact as Zach yelled out, "FliPENDO!"

I felt a gust of air slap my hair against my face. Otherwise, I was unmoved. "Daphne!" I heard Dean shout. I looked behind me to see Daphne Greengrass laying limp against the far classroom wall, eyes half open and drowsy. Draco ran over, practically shoving Dean's hands away. Pansy and crew followed immediately after, looking worried but nervous as to what they should do. Professor Quirrell's class was much a class on theoretical defense against dark magic. Kids laughed at him and called him all kinds of names. It was almost the equivalent to Sybill's Divination course. A joke.

I whipped around to see Zacharias again, holding up his hands in an innocent manner. "Sorry. My hand must have slipped."

I could feel the anger boiling to the surface and my cheeks suddenly felt hot. I tucked my wand away and extended a finger at him. "You did that on purpose!" I shouted in front of everyone, not caring if anyone questioned the context behind why he would do so. Hufflepuff may have had a strained relationship with Slithering, but it was nothing compared to Gryffindor who held opposing values, or Ravenclaw's grudge that a green boy many years ago stole a relic belonging to their house.

"Why would I-"

"Don't deny it you- you- phony!" I could feel something singing to me, calling me to commit an act of violence. A sin. I couldn't deny it as my feet took slow steps in his direction.

That last insult seemed to do it. Zacharias had had it with people questioning his heritage. I knew nothing of it, truly. But Cedric said I was a true heir of Hufflepuff and that I was the last of both prominent McGowen and Smith families. Cedric told me that Zacharias' rich, hideous, social climbing sod of a relation Hepatitis Smith's mother changed the names of her and her children to Smith and began a scandal about a secret marriage shortly after she was banished from the Cete. She went so far as to steal the sacred Hufflepuff cup and claim it as her family heirloom. Cedric says there was no wedding, that they were liars and thieves, and that I was the only living Heir of Hufflepuff and the Smith family fortune. I don't know what a sod is, but I know liar and thief, and I knew Zach was a bully.

Zach's hand lifted, ready to fire off another jinx. My feet moved as fast as they could. I felt my fist heat the closer to him I got. "FliPE-!"

And I punched him square in the face. "FliPENDO!"

"OOF!" He flew back with a loud clatter into the tables students have evacuated just moments before. Harry Pot, ever the hero, rushed to Zach's side. I wonder why he felt no need to help up Daphne? If he only knew the nasty things Zacharias says about him when Zach, Hannah, and Justin get together. A small bit of hate just then, festered for Harry, my mind immediately comparing him to a spoiled Jubilee. I was feeling rather hateful in general right now.

I looked down at my fist, the white-hot glow subsiding and disappearing along with all my anger. What did I just do?

"Zach! Zacharias!" Hannah cried, throwing herself onto the floor beside him. Harry's calmer voice could be heard asking the injured boy to try breathing slowly. He was grasping wildly and making the ugliest sound. Like…like a car engine trying to start?

Professor Quirrell I noticed hadn't gotten involved at first. When I looked to him he seemed to be looking out the window and muttering to himself. His turban seemed shuffle. Maybe it was coming loose? I felt like he was looking at me. Right at me. The place that he'd tapped me earlier began to itch and I felt a vision coming on. Wild alarm bells went off in my head. It wasn't safe to have a vision right now. I didn't sense any threat, but I knew if wasn't safe. The hairs on my arms raised when I noticed his reflection in the window glass was fixated on me. Somehow, with all my effort, I reigned in the impulse. It was the first time I had ever done that, too. It looked like I was gathering some bit of control of myself since coming here.

This moment seemed to stretch minutes but it only lasted seconds before Quirrell was ordering us all out of the room.

I hesitated as everyone scurried around me. "Professor?" I asked, hoping he would know why I stayed behind. 'Am I in any trouble?' I wanted to say. Not was Zach okay.

"I said out!" He hissed at me.

I looked back and saw that Daphne was already missing and that we were alone.

I darted out of the room.