Chapter 8: The Forest Detention
The following morning, notes were delivered to Harry, Hermione and Neville at the breakfast table. They were all the same: "Your detention will take place at eleven o'clock tonight. Meet Mr Filch in the Entrance Hall. Prof. M. McGonagall." Harry had forgotten they still had detentions to do in the furore over the points they'd lost, but something didn't seem right about it. Their punishment for being out of bed was to be done when they should be in bed?
After Transfiguration, he nervously stayed behind to ask Professor McGonagall about it. "Er.. Professor? I got the note at breakfast, but something's not right about it to me…" He trailed off as Professor McGonagall fixed him with a hard stare. "Your punishment will stand, Mr Potter. Do not force me to have to assign you another detention." "So if you decided what our detention is Professor, why is it at a time when we should be in bed?"
Professor McGonagall blinked in surprise. "And another thing, why didn't the note say what the detention actually is? Unless it's something that nobody else must find out, so they don't try to get a detention and get the same punishment." Harry stopped talking, as Professor McGonagall had gone quite pale. "Mr Potter, never in all my years of teaching, has such a logical argument against a detention been presented to me. I will speak with Miss Granger, Mr Longbottom and Mr Malfoy. Your detention will stand – however, you will now be serving it at eight o'clock, with me."
Later, Harry was met by a relieved looking Neville. "I don't know what you said to McGonagall, Harry, but she cancelled my detention and gave the fifty points back." "Really?" "Yeah! She asked why I'd been with you, and when I said it was only because I couldn't remember the password and nobody let me in to the common room all evening, she said it wasn't right for me to be punished for something that's not my fault."
At dinner, Hermione told Harry much the same. "I told Professor McGonagall that I'd been trying to stop you, and she cancelled my detention, gave fifty points back, and then gave another twenty for trying to do the right thing." Ron then slid down onto the seats beside them, wearing an enormous grin. "Guess what I've just seen." "What?" "McGonagall shouting at Malfoy. I guess she got it out of him why he was out of bed, trying to get us in trouble." At that moment, the clattering sound of the house point hourglasses drew their attention. Harry brightened up at seeing the Gryffindor glass fill back up to where it had been, but felt even better at seeing the Slytherin one drain. "She must have given the last of our points back, and then taken the hundred and fifty from Malfoy," laughed Ron. "Serves him right."
A minute later, Malfoy slunk into the Hall and sat at the Slytherin table. It was hard to ignore the dark looks the rest of the Slytherins were giving him. Professor McGonagall followed him in, and came up to Harry. "Mr Potter, you no longer have to serve your detention. Mr Malfoy will be taking it in your place."