AN: Warning: Penny punches someone
Do first crushes ever workout? HMMM.
Have a happy and safe New Year!
X
The first couple of days being back at Hogwarts went by in a blur for Penny. Most of it was spent with the drama club who were preparing for their Christmas day show. Penny hadn't intended to return so early, but Fred and George all but dragged her from Gryffindor Common room and forced her into helping them with some logistics in stage managing. They were trying to carve and bewitch some ice sculptors for props and no one had a very steady hand, other than Penny.
The exercise was very therapeutic for Penny, and when she finally finished her two day endeavor, she followed Fred and George around the set, thoroughly enjoying being back in the thick of things. When the sun was setting on Christmas Eve, the three of them were sat on some rickety furniture in a back closet that was used to hold the majority of their props, sipping butterbeer.
"It wasn't the same without you, Pen," George sighed, reclining against the box behind him.
"Yeah, it's lucky you showed up or I would have seriously considered letting Davies carve penis sculptors. It'd be really great if you didn't go and disappear on us next time," Fred added.
"I'll be sure to let the Ministry and MACUSA know I'm booked next term and to try kidnapping me in the summer, lord knows the Dursleys won't miss me," Penny replied, sarcastically.
"I knew you'd understand," George grinned.
"So, Penny, George and I have been talking," said Fred, leaning forward to fix Penny with an unsettling look of intrigue.
"Have you now? Finally tell George you're afraid of the dark?"
"Fred you great prat, so that's why you won't go to the bathroom alone!" said George in an accusatory tone.
Penny laughed, and looked back at Fred who waited patiently for her attention, his mouth forming a lopsided grin.
"As you may already be aware, George and I have decided our numerous talents are best utilized in entrepreneurship,"
"The joke shop? I thought your mother was resolutely opposed to the idea?" Penny said, looking at the both of them, curiously.
Over the summer Mrs. Weasley had discovered Fred and George's plans to open a joke shop, along with with prepared orders and years worth of inventions, which prompted her to rampage through the house and destroy anything resembling Weasleys Wizard's Wheezes. Penny smiled inwardly, recalling Dudley being tricked into eating one of their candies, which caused his tongue grow to some four feet before the Dursleys would allow Mr. Weasley to shrink it.
"A technical difficulty, but every genius has to face some hardship. Once our financial situation, err, improves, all will be fine," Fred said, waving away the concern like it was a fly on his face.
"Right. . ." Penny replied, skeptically, setting her empty butterbeer on the dusty floor.
"What Fred is trying to say is, we are ready to move forward with opening with Weasleys Wizards Wheezes, but we have run into some troubles with our designs."
"I'm sure they're fine," said Penny, encouragingly.
"Fine is not good enough for sales," said Fred.
"A fair point, what will you do then?"
At this both twins got to their feet and seated themselves on either side of Penny, fixing her with their most handsome grins.
"Uhh," Penny spluttered, unsure what was going on.
"You, Penny are brilliant, the kind of brilliant worthy of Weasley's Wizard's Wheezes," said Fred, in a velvety voice that made Penny burst out laughing.
"And you're a ginger," George added, his eyes glinting.
"You're having me on, aren't you," she said, looking back and forth between them.
"Absolutely not, we don't just call anyone brilliant," George replied, appalled.
"We want you to be our graphic designer, what do you say?" they chimed in unison.
"Are you serious?"
"When are we ever not serious," said Fred in indignation, as though he thought Penny were being absurd.
She gave him an arch of her brow, but he did not waver.
"We'll pay you for your services, of course," George finally added.
Penny reached out her hands and ruffled their ginger heads, "You idiots, it's not even a question, of course I'll help, no need to pay me, but if you make it big we can reconvene," she winked, letting them go and getting to her feet.
They both smacked her on the back and raised their empty butter beers to her, before going into a few of the finer details. Then they gave Penny a list of some items and offered some rough sketches of their ideas, which Penny packed into her bag before making her way to her common room, the Yule Ball was to begin at 8pm and Penny needed some time to get herself dressed.
The castle was buzzing with excitement for the ball, and Penny had heard talk of nothing else since she'd been back. All those old enough to attend the ball,(fourth years and up,) were mulling over who to take and gossiping about who was going who. Of the utmost interest was who the champions were taking, and Penny found herself unusually interested to discover Cedric was going with Cho Chang, a fifth year Ravenclaw girl, who was very pretty and played for the Ravenclaw Quidditch team.
After he'd accosted her in the Entrance Hall, Cedric and Penny had snuck away from the crowd and made their way to the astronomy tower to catch up properly without the nosey onlookers that swarmed to wherever Cedric was present. They sat side by side, laughing at his recounting of the first task. After some time, he asked her the dreaded question, about whether the rumors were true, and fixed her with his pretty eyes, which were unusually solemn. Penny merely nodded. Cedric looked disturbed, but he didn't push the topic further, although Penny could have sworn he inched nearer to her.
When they finally arrived at the topic of the Yule Ball, Cedric admitted he was going with Cho Chang, but offered no details, which left a strange feeling in the pit of Penny's stomach. She tried to smirk at him, but found herself thrown off kilter when their eyes met, an awkward silence ensuing as they searched each others' face. Penny finally broke the silence by announcing she should get going, but Cedric held her back a moment,
"Save me a dance," he'd said, to which Penny nodded her agreement without realizing.
Returning to his normal grin, they'd parted ways and she tried to shrug off the encounter, but found herself mulling over it more often than she'd like. Unlike everyone else, Penny did not have a date to the ball, though she preferred it this way. Having returned to Hogwarts a few days before, there just wasn't anyone else left to take. Yet, Penny did not feel all that insecure going alone, but she found everyone's muttering on the topic to be quite irritating. Even Harry teased her mercilessly for being that person. It made her even more determined to make a statement with her look. She would make everyone else wish they'd gone to the ball with her, and anyway, she was her own date, so why not dress to impress herself?
It would take some time, but Penny secured several brews for taming hair and a dress through an owl order service. Funny enough, she was also happened to be pretty skilled when it came to her makeup having a natural inclination for drawing, though she rarely wore it. Often, the other girls would ask for her help and they'd spend an afternoon with Penny transforming them all into whatever they felt like. She enjoyed the experience, having grown up with a brother and never had any females her age around as a kid. The change of pace in conversation always entertained Penny, girls were so much happier and funnier than the surly boys and man she spent time with.
At round 5 o'clock, Penny found Hermione and Lavender Brown in the dormitory and the three of them went to work. After some chatting, Hermione confessed to being asked by Viktor Krum to the ball, though she looked thoroughly apologetic. Penny put on her best smile, and helped Hermione with her eyeshadow, assuring her she was no the least bit upset, and Hermione should not worry about it. Hermione looked relieved and then gushed to Lavender about how Krum had gone to the library every day to see her, but never had the courage to speak to her.
Penny smiled at Hermione's obvious glee, returning to finishing her own look for the evening. She'd decided to go in the very opposite direction of the other girls, most of whom were wearing sparkly pinks and brightly colored makeup. Instead, Penny opted for a full length, velvety emerald dress that had long sleeves and hugged her body very closely, paired with delicate silver dress robes. She realized too late she looked like the emblem of Slytherin house, but she liked the dress for several reasons that far outweighed what people would say about her 'loyalty' to Gryffindor. At the end of the day, Penny was a redhead and green was one of the few colors that looked good on her fair complexion. Secretly, Penny also looked forward to the look that would appear of Professor Snape's face when he imagined her as a Slytherin student, perhaps he'd be nicer to her for it.
To offset her fair features, she chose a dark berry lip and a skinny wing, and paired it with a sleek pony. It was so strange for Penny to see her hair up, being a person who religiously wore her long locks down and in her face. Tonight, Penny desired to be someone else and she felt like the look accomplished this splendidly. When she was finished, Hermione gasped.
"Is it that bad?" Penny asked, worried.
"No! You look beautiful," Hermione said, warmly, "and like you're 25," Lavender added, giving her an approving grin.
"Pity I don't have a date," said Penny, pulling on her dress robes.
"Something tells me you might find them lining up when you get downstairs," Hermione said, making Penny do a twirl for her.
Penny smiled, thankful for Hermione. She wasn't exactly used to compliments having grown up with Harry and Dudley and spending most of her time with Severus Snape, who was allergic to giving compliments. She wondered momentarily what Lupin would say, and decided to gather the three of them into a photo to send to him later. Returning her things to her trunk, her stomach gave a sudden lurch as her thoughts returned to Cedric and Cho. Trying to shake the feeling, Penny said she'd wait downstairs for the two of them.
"What're you wearing!" Ron demanded, eyes bulging when Penny stepped up beside Harry.
"A dress, which looks to be what you also decided on," Penny said, looking Ron up and down.
Harry suppressed a snort as Ron turned scarlet.
"Mum. . ." he muttered, still eyeing her like she were an actual Slytherin.
Feeling somewhat sorry for Ron, Penny reached out with her magic and changed the robes from their maroon color to a deep blue, making them look a little less like a dress.
"Where'd you learn that," asked Harry, admiring her handiwork.
"I alter all the costumes for our shows," said Penny, fixing the lacing next.
Ron seemed to finally catch onto what they were talking about, looked down at his robes and nearly cried. He grabbed Penny's hand and shook it vigorously, after seeming to decide that a hug would be indecent in her current attire.
"Penny, you are a miracle worker, I am sorry I ever cheated off of you."
"When did you cheat off me!" Penny demanded, but before Ron could answer Parvati showed up, giving Penny a surprised look and smile before heading for the portrait hole.
"Good luck, try not to trip," Penny teased, kissing Harry on his cheek.
He scowled at her and made his way from the common room with Ron in tow. Hermione appeared beside Penny seconds later, Lavender rushing off to Seamus, looking prettier than Penny had ever seen her. Looking back at Hermione, she noted how lovely she also looked in her pink dress robes and sleek hair.
"You look fabulous, Hermione!" said Penny, walking around Hermione to admirer her from every angle.
"Where's Harry and Ron?" asked Hermione, who was slightly pink in the cheeks.
"You just missed them. They'll be in the Entrance Hall. I managed to fix Ron's robes so maybe he'll be in a better mood today."
Hermione didn't look convinced but she followed Penny out the portrait hole. They found the Entrance Hall packed, teeming with excitement as students searched for their dates and waited for the doors to the Great Hall to be opened.
"I better find Krum," said Hermione, slightly breathlessly, and walked off, many eyes turning towards her and murmuring as she passed.
Out of the corner of her eye, Penny saw Cho standing with her usual entourage of friends, looking lovely in silver dress robes, her hair down and sleek. Her eyes caught Penny's, widening in shock. Penny gave her a tentative smile, but Cho turned away quickly, which Penny found rather rude. Feeling annoyed, Penny spotted Malfoy coming from the stairs of the Dungeons, Crabb, Goyle and Pansy Parkinson in tow. Ignoring all the turning heads that followed her, Penny made straight for Draco.
"Glad to see you've embraced your true colors," Draco smirked.
Pansy looked at Penny with the utmost loathing.
"Who's your date?" Penny asked, smiling prettily at Pansy, just to irritate her further.
"You," he said smoothly, interlacing his arm into hers.
"Since your robes match my dress, I suppose I can't protest," Penny said, appraising the well dressed Slytherin.
"C'mon, they're about to open the doors and I'd love to irritate your brother before he opens the ball," said Draco, eyeing Harry with disgust.
"Leave Harry be, I need to talk to you since Snape interrupted us the other day," said Penny, physically turning Draco's head away from Harry to force him to listen to her.
"If it's to thank me, you-"
"Your father came to see me while I was at the Ministry," Penny cut in.
Malfoy's face became suddenly serious and his cool grey eyes, that were so much like his father's, searched Penny's face.
"He didn't mention that," he said, slowly.
"Yeah, can't imagine why," Penny scowled.
The excitement around them jumped two octaves as the doors to the Great Hall swung open. The four champions led the procession of students into the beautifully decorated hall, where Penny spotted the ice sculptor she'd finished carving earlier that day. Curiously, she wondered how it'd made it into the decorations for the evening, which were the most magnificent Penny had ever seen. Tree's filled with glimmering fae and owls lined the wall, and tables adorned with the most beautiful china were spaced across the hall, the four house tables having been removed. At the center was a high table where the guests, champions and staff took their seats. Admiring it all, Penny's eyes fell on Cedric, who was taking his seat next to Cho, looking very handsome in his robes. She forced herself to look away when her stomach lurched at the pretty smile Cho gave him.
Draco held her tightly, guiding her to a table near the high table, the end of which sat Snape. His dark eyes fell on Draco, and then slid to Pennys' a look of confusion and shock mingling behind them. In a rather juvenile move, Penny stuck her tongue out at the potions master, who seemed to realize she was indeed Penny after all, and returned to his severe look of displeasure. Draco pulled a chair for Penny, who was now facing Snape, leaving her feeling slightly awkward under the scrutiny of her potions master, who very clearly did not approve of what he was looking at.
Draco leaned in close to Penny so as not to be overheard by the others joining the table, "He told you I wrote to them, I suppose?"
"Yes, and of your claim that we are dating," Penny whispered.
"As tolerable as you are for a Gryffindor, my dad wouldn't stick his neck out without good reason," Draco shrugged.
"A chivalrous move that I am forever indebted to you for," Penny said, inclining her head in thanks.
Draco glanced at her, and smiled slightly, still looking uncertain.
"But your father knew it was a lie," Penny went on.
"What made him think that," Draco said, in a level tone, his cool eyes trying to look casual.
"Glancing around at their suddenly full table, Penny said, simply "He assumed I was blackmailing you," before turning to her plate and asking it for the vegetarian option on the menu.
Since returning from the Department of Mysteries, Penny found herself unable to stomach any form of meat. Any time she'd tried to eat, the face of the rabbit would appear before her, causing Penny to not help but imagine the face of the creature she was eating. Several times she was sent into a fit of spewing, which resulted in Madam Pomfrey finally resigning to letting Penny eat what she could stomach.
Draco picked up on Penny's hint, returned his air of boredom to his face, and ordered his own meal.
"You're not in Slytherin?" said Blaise Zabini from the other side of her, staring at Penny as though he'd never seen her before in his life.
"How astute of you, Blaise. I'm in Gryffindor," said Penny, cooly.
"Is she the Potter girl?" Blaise said to Malfoy, annoying Penny by looking over her.
"The name is Penny," she said in an irritated voice.
"I thought you were coming alone?" Blaise continued, ignoring Penny.
"I had a last minute change of heart after seeing how good emerald looks on her," Draco lazily, not bothering to look at Blaise.
"I thought we agreed-and a half-blood," Blaise spat, trembling with anger.
" We, you decided!" Draco hissed, finally looking irritated.
"I'm gonna hit the ladies room," Penny said, thinking it would be better to give the two some privacy. She really did not want to be caught between their lovers quarrel.
She glanced up and found Snape tracking her with an amused expression on his face. Spotting Ron, Penny made a b-line for him and plopped down, uncertain who looked more irritated Ron or Padma.
"You look nice," Padma smiled.
"You too, Padma, I love that necklace," said Penny.
"Did you see Davies ended up with Fleur," said Padma, eyeing him at the high table.
"No way!," said Penny, glancing at the dazed looking Davies, who was merely gazing at Fleur and missing his mouth every time he went to eat.
"Did you see who Hermione is with," interjected Ron in a furious tone, staring daggers at Hermione and Krum, who were deep in conversation.
Padma rolled her eyes, the irritated expression returning to her features.
"They look cute together, good for Krum," Penny smiled, ignoring Ron's anger.
"Of course you'd say that, sitting with a table full of Slytherins, looking like the heir of Slytherin. You're both traitors!" Ron accused, taking a large swig of butterbeer, but splashing most of it onto his robes.
"Alright, cool. I'll be going now, enjoy your night, Padma," said Penny, giving the pretty girl an apologetic smile.
Penny rejoined Malfoy, who was rather pink in the face, Blaise looking decidedly in the other direction. She squeezed Draco's shoulder and he gave her a small nod to acknowledge his appreciation, and then they both turned to watch the champions move out to the dance floor. Penny's eyes lingering on Harry only to migrate their way to Cho and Cedric.
"Why didn't you go with Diggory?" Draco inquired, following her gaze.
"Why would I go with him? He asked Cho, anyway," said Penny, pretending the question didn't phase her.
"He wasn't going to go with anyone, as far as I know. Cho asked him the day before you showed up."
Penny turned to face Draco, she wanted to be sure he wasn't jesting, and she found no lie in his features. A moment later he took her by the hand and led her to the dance floor, twirling her very elegantly. Several heads swiveling to watch them.
"Why are you doing this? If you're mad at Blaise don't you think-"
"Blaise was the one who suggested we not come together," Draco said, anticipating what she going to say.
"Oh, Draco, I'm sorry. Why would he do that?" Penny said, earnestly.
"If you met my father, then you should know, it's different for pure-blood families. Naturally, he's nervous," Draco said, dipping her low, his grey eyes looking suddenly fierce.
"Well you've both got it wrong, your father came to see me to ensure that coming out remained your choice. You're lucky to have a dad who supports your happiness, even if he was a giant dick to me," said Penny, feeling slightly light headed as Draco held her in place, the blood pooling to her head.
He brought her up slowly, the two of them stopping their movement, unaware of the room full of eyes on them.
"It doesn't matter, I am an only child, I'll be expected to pass on the family name. And Blaise, I've tried to tell him, but his mother, you know, isn't the most open of witches," Draco said, glancing miserably at Blaise.
"Oh come on Draco, even the muggles have worked that technology out. You hardly need to live a miserable life for that. Hell, I'd be your surrogate if you needed it. But we both know, this, is not what either of you want," said Penny pointedly, alluding to the the ridiculous triangle going on. "You're a Malfoy, if Blaise won't listen, persuade him."
"For a Potter, you're not bad," Draco smirked.
"What a charming thing for you to say, now go fix things," said Penny, rolling her eyes and pushing Draco back towards the table where Blaise was doing his best not to look at the two of them.
She watched Draco lean in and whisper something into Blaise's ear, who looked up before the two disappeared in the crowd. Penny made her way across the dance floor, retrieved a warm beverage and went outside for some air, George wolf-whistling after her as she passed. She merely grinned at him and continued on her way.
Many students were in search of spaces to continue private liaisons, which Penny tried to avoid, finding a quiet place on a garden wall, hidden behind some hedges. She sat and looked at the sky for a while, thankful she'd selected such a warm dress to wear. Snow was falling around her, giving the garden an ethereal feel. It reminded her of the forest where her and Snape's tent remained. So much had happened since then, it was hard to imagine it. Even still, Penny found herself glad, she was uncertain how she'd landed a friend like Malfoy, but she would be forever thankful for him, and hoped he worked things out with Blaise.
Several loud footsteps interrupted Penny's thoughts and she turned to find three large Durmstrang students stopping just a few feet from her, watching her curiously. Penny recognized one as the thick-browed boy who'd called her an apostate on the dungeons to the stairs leading to her potions classroom. She got to her feet quickly and went to pass them before he recognized her, but another boy stepped into her path, blocking her.
"Vhy leave, it's so pretty here," he said, giving her a lopsided grin which she assumed he must have believed to be charming, but she found mildly alarming under the circumstances.
"Get out of the way," Penny said sternly, trying to avoid the thick-brow boy's eyes, but too late, he muttered something in Bulgarian, a word that sounded suspiciously like "Potter" reaching Penny's ears.
Penny tried to escape in the space between them, but the thick-brow boy grabbed her left arm. She turned to face him to find vehemence in his features. She met it with equal loathing.
"I see the Ministry failed to rid Hogwarts of such filth," he spat, in an accent so thick, Penny could barely understand him.
"The only filth here is you, now let go of me," Penny said in a dangerous voice, her fist shaking slightly.
"I do not have to, you are alone vile ve are three," he said, with an unsettling grin.
Penny glanced at his friends who were shifting uneasily where they stood.
"I forgot Durmstrang is full of cowards, but here at Hogwarts, we prize courage, so I happen to like my odds," Penny said with a cocky grin.
"A puny girl like you, vat can you hope to do," he laughed, pulling her closer to him.
Instinct from years of being chased by Dudley kicked in. Penny had always been more inclined to hit Dudley back than Harry. Mostly because he was never willing to admit to being hit by a girl, so she'd learned early on what an effective and well placed punch could accomplish. She pulled her right arm back, straightened her wrist, and smashed the Durmstrang boy in the nose, which immediately began to spurt blood. He stumbled, yelling as he grasped his nose. For good measure, Penny kneed him in his groin, toppling him to the ground. She rounded on the other two who backed away, shaking their heads, indicating they wanted no part of it.
Penny pushed past them and weaved her way back to the busier areas of the garden, her hand throbbing horribly. She was afraid she may have broken a bone in it, but she wasn't certain. As she raged inwardly, someone called out to her, and she turned to see Cedric making his way toward her.
"There you are," he said, his grin faltering when he reached her. "What happened," he said, wiping blood from her cheek.
"I got into a fight, but don't worry it's not mine," Penny sighed, trying to examine her hand.
"How do you always manage these things, Penny. And in a dress. Who'd you hit?" he said, looking thoroughly impressed.
"I ran into three Durmstrangs, pretty sure I broke one's nose," Penny said, wincing as Cedric felt for any breaks in her hand.
"Three!"
"Two of them bailed as soon as I dropped the first," Penny shrugged.
Cedric shook his head, his pretty eyes looking her over with amusement.
"Of course you are brawling while still looking like the most beautiful girl in the school. Do any of us have a chance against you," he said, tilting his head to get a better look at her.
Penny felt the blush rise to her cheeks, realizing how close Cedric was and how handsome he looked against the blue moon that was reflected by the blanket of snow.
"You owe me a dance," he said when she didn't reply.
"Do you really want to be seen dancing with me when I look like this?" she said, eyebrow arched skeptically.
"I don't think you've ever looked prettier, but right here will do," he said with a handsome smile, offering her his hand.
Pretending to roll her eyes because it seemed like the thing she would normally do, Penny accepted his hand, a jolt of excitement rushing through her when he pulled her elegantly to him.
Ever so distantly they could hear the music from the Great Hall, rotating slowly in a circle to the beat, Penny's heart thumping erratically in her chest. It was impossible, her and Diggory had been friends for so long, and never before had she felt this way. But she couldn't deny, the way his hand rested on her hip was pleasant, and the look in his eyes, it made her heart skip.
"Are you using your powers of seduction against me, Mr. Diggory," said Penny in an accusatory tone.
"Depends on if they're working," he said, smoothly.
"I do believe you came with someone else. It's bad manners to make two girls swoon for you in a single night," Penny scolded.
"There's only one girl I wanted to spend tonight with," Cedric said, quietly.
They came to a stand still, a snowflake landing on Cedrics nose, which was getting steadily nearer Penny's face. His beautiful blue eyes glanced down at her lips, his own full lips parting slightly.
"Cedric," Penny breathed, conflicted.
"If you don't feel the same way, say so now and I'll never bring it up again," Cedric said, looking back to her eyes to search for her response.
He stood little more than a head above her, his blonde hair styled perfectly to the side, allowing the fluttering of his long lashes to be visible. He smiled at her hopefully, his dimples making lovely crevices in his angular face. Penny merely stared at him, dazed almost in the same way Davies had been with Fleur. She couldn't say it, even though she felt she should, for Cho's sake, she could not bring herself to lie. The fluttering in her stomach refused to let her. It had surprised her and Penny did not expect it, but she wouldn't lie, she wanted Cedric to kiss her.
He smiled at her apparent loss for words, and moved his hand to her cheek and continued his descent to her lips, his warm breath hitting them, inches separating them.
"Ten points from Hufflepuff, Diggory, and-" Snape snapped, pulling Cedric away to get a better look at who was with him.
His dark eyes narrowed on Penny, who's insides went crashing to the cold ground.
"Potter. . ." he said delicately, taking her in. "Ten points from Gryffindor as well. Get inside Mr. Diggory, I believe your date is looking for you," he said in a silky voice, not taking his eyes off Penny, who was trying to bury her humiliation.
"Yes, Professor," Cedric said, giving Penny one last look.
Penny, too, tried to leave, wanting very much not to endure what she knew was coming.
"You'll stay, Ms. Potter, and explain what is going on here," he pressed, cruelly.
"I was just chatting to Cedric," Penny lied, not meeting Snape's eyes.
"I did not know one could speak with their tongue down another's throat," he drawled.
"He hardly had his tongue down my throat, he didn't even get to kiss me, impeccable timing you have," Penny said sourly, shooting an irritated glance at Snape.
What horrible luck she had. Snape and his dad sensors ruining her first kiss, and he would likely force her to re-live her shame for eternity.
"Count yourself lucky, he came with a date and I imagine he will leave with yet another girl. The great feminist Penny, duped by a play boy," Snape said, contemptuously.
"Duped? Hardly, you clearly know nothing about Cedric" Penny replied, irritated.
"Don't I?" hissed Snape, his eyes flashing angrily. "Let me guess, he said you were the one he really wanted to be with. Made some remark about how special you are and said you were the most beautiful girl here tonight, hmm? If he didn't say any of those things, I'll happily concede," he said, a horrible grin spreading across his face.
Penny stared at the cruel man, her heart aching painfully. Cedric had said things along those lines, but Snape was twisting them, she knew Cedric, or so she thought. A part of her was afraid what Snape was saying were true, but she refused to admit it to the vindictive man. She glared at him in her fury, watching the satisfaction of being privy to her turmoil flit through his eyes.
"What's the matter, Ms. Potter, do you dislike losing?"
"I'll be going," she said quietly, refusing to answer him and trying again to leave.
He caught her wrist and stopped her, "I believe I told you to explain yourself."
"I just did! Haven't you tormented me enough for one day!"
"As entertaining as your incapability at romance is, I was referring to the blood. Why are you covered in blood, Ms. Potter," he said with a smirk.
Penny raged inwardly, realizing it was Snape who'd duped her into embarrassing herself, and it gave him great pleasure to see the anger flash across her face.
"I hit a Durmstrang student, the blood is his, I think I broke his nose," said Penny through gritted teeth.
"You did what," said Snape, slowly.
"He deserved it, boasting about how it was three on one and how he looked forward to cleaning up the filth, so I hit him and left."
"Was Diggory with you?" Snape asked, his voice suddenly cold.
"No, I was alone and ran into Cedric on my way back inside."
"Have I not warned you about being alone! Must you insist on being such a thick-headed idiot!" Snape said, suddenly furious.
"Sorry Master, I forgot to ask for your permission to live my life, but as it turns out, I am actually quite capable so you'll excuse me if I don't have time your bullshit," Penny said, scathingly, throwing caution to the wind.
"You listen to me, Ms. Potter-" Snape began, his nails digging through her dress and marring the delicate skin beneath.
"MY NAME IS PENNY," she roared, causing several students hiding in nearby a rose bush to squeal and topple backwards onto the path before making a dash for the castle.
Her breathing was labored, chest rising and falling heavily as her fist shook, stuck in the clutches of Snape, who considered her with his cold eyes.
"Detention, tomorrow, my office, 5pm. One of these days you will learn that I will not tolerate your insolence," said Snape in a low, measured tone.
"And maybe one of these days you'll realize ridicule isn't an effective way to teach anyone anything," Penny hissed, yanking her hand from his grasp, which she suspected he allowed, and stormed away.
Sometimes Penny just wanted to be a normal girl, and tonight, for a moment, when Cedric went to kiss her, she had been. But it was cruelly snatched from her, though in the back of her mind Penny was thankful Snape stopped her. If Cedric truly liked Penny, let him tell Cho the truth and come find her later.
As for Snape, he'd actually given her detention on Christmas. Perhaps he truly was as vindictive and miserable as everyone said. Thankfully, her anger at Snape distracted her from the doubt about Cedric's intentions he'd infected her with. Making her way to bed, Penny was thoroughly glad to be done with the Yule Ball.