Chapter 9: XJ Strikes Again
"Her Ladyship wishes to remain in hiding for a little while longer. Plans will be postponed."
"Yes, we shall postpone the plans. We can't have anything going wrong, it is wise of her Ladyship to wait."
"Our Lady is not worried, nor afraid. You must not let any believers think that."
"No, that cannot be allowed. We shall not permit it."
"Wait on her Ladyship's word before action."
"Yes, we shall wait patiently."
.:X:.
"Notch put him down!" I demanded as Logan Malfoy was dangled in the air, "He's not worth the effort!"
"Do you really want me to drop him Potter?" Notch replied grinning.
"No, I want you to lower him gently and leave him alone, you are so immature!" I replied automatically reaching for my own wand.
"Fine, I'll drop him if you want me to," Notch waved his wand almost lazily and dropped Logan Malfoy onto the ground. I could almost hear the crack as he hit the ground.
"You frocking, son of a, you must be the worst person I've ever met!" I turned away from the sad site of Malfoy struggling to his feet and righting his robes.
Notch and his friends were laughing loudly. I felt like smacking him until… BANG!
Logan Malfoy had dove for his wand lying on the ground. He picked it up and, pointing it straight at Notch, cast a curse. Notch was shot backwards and into the nearby lake. Then Malfoy held him under the water.
"Malfoy," I warned, pulling out my wand and pointing it at him.
"Stay out of this Potter!" Malfoy shot back, "Or I'll drown your boyfriend."
With a simple wave of my wand Malfoy lay on the ground tied in a bundle and Notch lay coughing on the shore of the lake. "He's not my boyfriend, thank God," I commented and walked away from the scene.
"I heard about your little adventure by the lake this afternoon, Miss Potter," Professor Delacour had called me into her office right after dinner.
I didn't say anything, just awaited judgment, and possibly punishment. I looked at the floor and tried to appear nonchalant. I think I looked somewhat nervous.
"Don't worry; I did not call you here to chastise you. In fact, I want to do quite the opposite. Your quick thinking may have saved the life of Andrew Notch this afternoon. That boy owes you his life. You did not use any violence to restrain Mr. Malfoy either. Mr. Malfoy has been expelled for attempted murder of a fellow student; I expect you won't see much of him anymore."
"No, Professor is he already gone?" I asked suddenly interrupting her lengthy speech.
"Yes, why do you ask? Is there something I should know?" Professor Delacour asked curiously.
"No, nothing," I muttered to myself.
I ignored the rest of her speech and walked out the door. Malfoy had been expelled, which almost certainly meant that he would join up with Lily now. Logan and I needed to hurry up and finish this training, before it was too late.
"Potter!" a voice called from behind me. I turned around.
"Notch," I nodded politely, well sort of.
"I, uh, I, thanks," Notch stammered.
"Uh, you're welcome." I replied confusedly.
"Thanks for saving me, I owe you one."
"Oh, it wasn't like I was going to let Malfoy kill anyone. And you don't owe me Notch. I was repaying your family."
"For what?" it was Notch's turn to be confused.
"Let's just say that Kaitlin did me a favor." I replied before walking away.
.:X:.
"So you return to her Ladyship's service."
"Yes, I never did leave her service; it was all part of the plan."
"You are lucky she is not angry with you for failing to stay her spy at the school."
"Her Ladyship was disappointed, but nothing is happening there at the moment, besides her Ladyship controls many Eyes."
"That is true, carry on with your work; you are doing an excellent job for her Ladyship."
"Everything shall go according to her Ladyship's plan."
.:X:.
I sat straight up in my bed, sweating like a student in marching band after the final run-through of the practice. My heart was beating a thousand beats faster than should be normal. Why had I woken up? I struggled to remember when a tapping noise came from the window again. I glanced out the window. Zandra, my snowy owl, was rapping on the glass. Figuring that must have been what woke me up I crossed to the window and opened it to the cool night air. Zandra flew in and dropped a letter on my four-poster and then swooped out to do her nightly hunting. I walked over to my bed and sat down to read my letter.
Potter and Walters,
Watch your backs because you never know who's on which side. Be careful talking in the halls or you may find things end up in the wrong hands. Don't do anything stupid and keep training like your lives depend on it because your lives and the lives of countless others depend on you.
Good Luck,
XJ
I stood up and ignored Lauran's strange sleep-talk. I sprinted out of the dormitory and into the Common Room. I was about halfway up the boys' dormitory's steps when I realized that it was three o'clock in the morning. Logan was not going to be happy if I dashed in and woke him up at three o'clock in the morning to show him another note from 'XJ'. So I slowed to a quick walk instead.
"Whadaya want?" Logan murmured sleepily as I half shook him to death.
"We got another note from our little friend," I replied shaking him again despite his attempts to shake me loose.
He sat straight up, wide awake, "Well, where is it? We can't look at it here, come on!"
Logan practically skipped down the stairs. He sat in one of the most comfortable chairs next to the dying fire and I sat down beside him. He held out his hand expectantly. Warning him not to read it out loud, I handed him the crumpled note. He read it and reread it. Then he threw it into the fireplace.
"This 'XJ' is right. We have to be careful. There's not to be any talking about you-know-which-person around the school between us. Now, I'm tired and am going back to bed. Next time, wake me up more gently please."
Logan staggered up the stairs to his dormitory. I made sure that the note was burnt into a crisp; I knew all too well what could happen if you didn't make sure your notes were sufficiently disposed of.
AN/ Okie dokie guys, I'm posting this today and I'll hopefully post the next chapter soon. Please review and all that jazz. Oh, that last statement is a reference to something from earlier in Riley's life, if you don't remember, it's not that important that you do so don't worry about it.
Any guesses who is speaking in the italic writing that will begin most chapters from now on? Put that in your reviews if you care to wager an opinion!
Love From,
MotherCrumpet
