Chapter VI

Meet the Fuckers

"Who are you?" Pansy Parkinson demands immediately, her nose permanently upturned and her greasy dark hair pulled back into a scraggly pony tail. The whole of Slytherin, a quarter of the school body- not to mention the nastiest quarter- are all in this room, equipped with wands and bad-tempers, and I'm Harry Potter.

No, you're Lottie Charm! Something inside me shouts, and immediately my hand moves to my hip, which juts out right in the stroppy cow's face. I toss my hair back and scan around the room for Malfoy, stretched out over a sofa in the corner with a crowd of fans. His eyes are on me. Perfect. I hold them in mine for a while before looking back to Pansy as if I had never seen him.

"Lottie Charm." I tell her, as archly as possible. I hear my name hang in the air, ringing off the walls, chiming in people's heads over and over. I can hardly stop myself smiling.

Pansy is taken aback. Did she expect me to fucking stutter over her question? I've got a few more surprises up my sleeve, darling, just you wait…

God, already I'm thinking like a bitch.

But it's already working as well. Just saying my name has stunned them into silence. People are looking up from their homework, other's from card games and books. People's conversations have come to a hold and it's all because of me.
"I'm a new student." I tell Pansy, I tell everyone, "I was just sorted, and apparently I'm in Slytherin, so here I am."

"…Right…well…good." Pansy stammers. I smile at her, fake sweetness oozing from my face. I can see all the girls sizing me up, huddled in their tight little groups.

"What year are you?" She asks.

"Sixth."

"Right." She watches me closely, before her expression breaks into a smile as false as mine. But instead of making me uneasy, I fight the urge to laugh. She already hates me, because I walk in and I'm hotter than her, more confident and already talking down to her. Plus I'm inher year so she's got competition, "Come with me then, I'll introduce to the rest of the Sixths."

I follow her through the vast room, adorned with serpent sculptures with silver columns and leather sofas. Everyone's eyes are on me. The guys are checking me out, the girls are awed.

Two minutes and I've already got them hooked. Bloody hell!

We come up to the crowd surrounding Malfoy. Pansy quickly takes the seat next to him, before I can even blink and announces:

"This is Lottie Charm." As if my name isn't already etched into their minds, "Lottie, this is Zabini, Crabbe, Goyle, Daphne, Hillary and Esme."

They all incline their heads, some giving verbal greetings. I already know the names of the blokes- the bastards…but it's nice to be formally introduced to the girls. Daphne has hair so red that she must have used potion to get it that colour. Her stormy grey eyes lock onto mine and she manages to raise her cheeks slightly in a kind of grimace.

Hillary has short hair, a brown so deep that it could be black, in a severe bob that barely touches her chin. She looks a bit like an over trimmed hedge. She's wiry and long, her legs stupidly thin and her wrists looking unable to support her hands. Her snooty expression tells me that I won't ever see her smile, unless it's at the expense of others and even then it will be a sight to behold.

Esme is a disappointment compared to her other girl friends, who have a kind of interesting air about them. Her mousy hair is so thin it looks almost plastered to her forehead and although she's the only one who smiles properly at me in greeting, I wish she didn't. Her mouth is so wide I thought she would swallow me and her teeth stick out at odd angles. Her plump fingers are clasped together as if she is permanently uncomfortable. I avoid her gaze and turn to Pansy, ignoring Malfoy altogether. I know what I'm doing.

"I like the common room. It's different from what I expected."

Pansy smiles sluggishly, "It's cool. What subjects are you good at?"

"Don't laugh, but Charms are my strong point."

She laughs anyway, long and hard, "That's rich. Not any good at potions then?"

"I have my moments." I say uncertainly. She smiles smugly again.

"I see…well you're lucky. If you're any good and you're a girl then it's an excuse for Snape to flirt with you. Daphne gets it all the time."

Daphne shudders and shoots her a dark look, her eyes stormier than before.

"I'll try to dumb down a bit." I flash a smile and see it dazzle everyone for a moment. I decide to get a bit more comfortable, get down onto their level, for some saucy eye contact.

I take a seat in a solitary armchair. The leather is so soft from the backs and bums of so many evil people that have inhabited Slytherin over the centuries that I want to jump right out of it again.

"So…what would you say Slytherin contributed to the school?" I ask sweetly, to show that I'm not just an awesome face. They exchange looks of surprise at such a weird question.

"I'd say we're known as the leaders, we rule to school." Pansy tells me with attitude, "We put people in their place, especially mudbloods." There's a collective sneer of digust.

"Mudbloods?" I ask in interest. They can't contain their dislike.

"People with dirtyblood." Esme spits, her nose wrinkling to make her even less attractive.

"People with muggle relatives." Daphne explains, an aloof look on her face.

"People with dirty relatives." Zabini sums up. So the guy talks…?
"Ok, ok, I get it." I mumble.

"Of course, you've got nothing to worry about. If you're not pure blood- only wizard relatives- then you've got no chance of getting in Slytherin. We're an exclusive organization." Pansy assures me.

I feel like cursing, hexing, jinxing, punching the lot of them. They're sicker than I realized.

"Right, yes." I agree shortly, "So how do you…'put…mudbloods in their place?'"

"Oh just minor things," Hillary smiles almost wildly, "Threats, maybe a little hex here and there. Just frightening them a little bit, which isn't hard, because their spineless little beasts, aren't they? It helps them to keep their head down and not try any funny business. Salazar forbid that there'd be any mudbloods acting out against the purebloods- they wouldn't get very far; less magical power, you see."

I can't help it…Don't say it, for the love of DOBBY don't say it!

Oh for fucks sake just SAY it!

"I hear there's a really clever witch in Gryffindor…uhhh Professor McGonagall mentioned it when I was giving her my records just now…she's one of the best in the year and she's got muggle parents." I blurt out, before blinking innocently, hands folded neatly in my lap, praying that it won't catch me out. There's silence in the group. I notice Malfoy raising an eyebrow but not moving from his relaxed position, head in his hand as he was slung across the leather sofa. His rumpled blonde hair and shirt that was open at the top, revealing his swan-like skin made it hard to look away.

Pansy has a look on her face that made me sure she thought I was insane. Everyone else just resumes their lifeless poses. So this is what it's like being a Slytherin- bitching and threats?

"We've even been known to curse some unfortunates."

And lo behold, Malfoy speaks for the first time that night, and it's as if the lights are turned on. Everyone immediately sits up, alert. Pansy can hardly contain her excitement. I just watch him with interest, containing my own jitters, playing it cool as if I couldn't care less.

"Really? Got any examples you'd like to share?" I ask, eyeing him mischievously. He stares back, his expression unreadable, which throws me off guard a bit.

"You know Harry Potter?" He drawls, obviously hoping that I don't. The bastard is so desperate that someone won't know who I am, but he'll just have to put up with it.

On the other hand…he's bound to like me more if I'm the ideal person for him, someone who's never heard of…well, myself. Maybe I should give it a try?

"Not really." I shrug, and then realize that I seem a total recluse to the wizarding world not knowing someone like me. I immediately raise an eyebrow and say: "Of course I have."

He continues without a blink. So it didn't really matter what I said…? Damn, he's going to be very confusing to work with!

"Well, he's pretty well known, yeah. But he hasn't been around lately."

"Really?" I say, maybe hamming up my surprise a little too much, "I was hoping to get a look of him," I pause, wondering whether I should really say what I'm about to, "I heard he's pretty tasty."

Had to be done. But the only reaction I received was hoots of laughter. Malfoy didn't even smirk.

"If you like scrawny, speccy nobodies whose only claim to fame is a complete fluke then yes," Malfoy says in a quiet, almost furious voice, "Yes, I suppose he is tasty."

I'd never expected to hear Malfoy say I was tasty. I don't think it's something I can get used to.

"So why hasn't he been around lately?" I say, leaning forward to rest an elbow on my knee and then rest my chin on my dainty hand, staring intently at him, "What happened to him?"

"I cursed him." He hissed softly, as the others giggle churlishly, like strange sidekicks in a weird children's movie, "Into a woman."

I have to laugh. In context, it's pretty damn hilarious. I realize now that my laugh is strangely alluring, and even Zabini stares dumbly at me. The girls aren't as comfortable as the boys with my presence though.

"I'm going to have to watch my back with you around, aren't I…?"

"Malfoy." As if I didn't know, "Draco Malfoy."

I choke back the sarcastic James Bond comment- he'd never get it anyway. And nod as if I'm intrigued just by his name.

"Well you already know mine." I smile seductively, and it's like we're the only two people in the room, even though I'm painfully aware that everyone's eyes are on us, especially Pansy's.
"I'm sure the whole school will know it by the end of tomorrow." Malfoy smirks at me, and I feel an electric current spark through me. God he's better than I thought he would be. What the hell is he doing with Pansy? He could get any girl he wanted. Although Pansy and Malfoy are more of a casual couple, I suppose. Not sure that's what Pansy wants though.

"Come on, girls; let's show Lottie to her room." She says, her voice cold and her face like stone. She rises and the others follow with her. They look at me expectantly. Fighting the urge to sigh I glide upwards and follow them down a hallway, with one last look at Malfoy, whose gaze is following me as I leave the room.