With a flick of her auburn hair and a piercing look in her eyes, Charlotte Malfoy surveyed the scene before her. Never had she seen Platform 9 ¾ more crowded. There were plenty of students, plenty siblings, and plenty families. She sighed and looked down at her trunk. She knew that some of her most prized possessions were tucked away inside of it. Most of all was her broomstick: a Firebolt XI. It had been a gift from Daniel and Liam upon hearing that she had made Head Girl. They had reasoned that every Head Girl needed a good broom. She just laughed at them and thanked them for the generous gift.
Charlotte watched as her brothers conversed with her godparents and her surrogate aunt and uncle. She found herself questioning why her parents had ever hated Harry Potter, Ginny Potter, Hermione Weasley, and Ron Weasley. Now they seemed to be the best of friends. I guess a war will do that to you, she thought. She knew that the group that she surveyed had been instrumental in the defeat of Lord Voldemort. She had never known that that would make her famous by association.
"There goes the Malfoy daughter," she would hear people say as she passed them in the street. She would see the looks of awe that they would give her. It was annoying. It's not like she was the one that defeated the Dark Lord. She was just offspring!
Michael Potter spotted his other half for the year and made his way over to her. After having been named Head Boy, Michael had called up Charlotte to see how she wanted the year to go. She seemed to be quite relaxed when it came to holding an authoritative position and was looking forward to a relaxing year filled with Quidditch and a possible Spring Ball. Having gotten the Ball approved by the headmistress, Michael called up Charlotte again and shared the good news.
"You seem a little out of it," he said to her as they stood on the platform. "Been thinking too hard again? We talked about that, remember? We decided that thinking was a bad idea. We wouldn't want you to get hurt." This was a common joke between them as they both vied for the top spot in each of their classes.
"Very funny," Charlotte said with a smile. "It's going to be quite the year."
"That it is," Michael agreed. He threw an arm around her shoulders. "But we'll make it through together."
"Good. I'm going to need all the help I can get."
Charlotte and Michael walked over to their regular group of friends and joined in on their conversation. Charlotte took the opportunity to look around and think about each of her friends.
First there was Michael Potter. Tall and skinny like his uncles, he made for a speedy Seeker. He had inherited the infamous, and famous, Potter hair, black and untidy. He surveyed the world with blue eyes, just about the same color as his uncles'. Charlotte had known him since she was born. They had been loyal to each other ever since. Even when going into Hogwarts when they knew what houses they would be put into, they still remained friends. They wouldn't allow house rivalry to separate them. Liam often likened their friendship to his own with Mitchell Wood.
Isabella Wood, another Gryffindor, was Charlotte's best friend. Isabella often complained that she was plain. Charlotte often begged to differ. Isabella had brown eyes and brown hair much like her older brother. She was of average height and build, making her an excellent Chaser, following her brother's footsteps. She was a seventh year Prefect, like her boyfriend, Jeremy Weasley. Isabella was Charlotte's partner in crime when they would play Quidditch against their older brothers. Charlotte could never really thank Liam for being friend with Mitchell. If Liam hadn't insisted when he was four years old to be able to play with the son of a Quidditch prodigy, Charlotte would never have met Isabella.
Jeremy Weasley was a good friend of Charlotte's. She likened him to a cousin of sorts. Their families were not related by blood, but that didn't matter. She knew the effects of having an extended family. Jeremy was one that Charlotte could go to when she needed to talk. Michael always meant well and Isabella was wonderful as well, but Jeremy just seemed to get her. They could talk about Quidditch, school work, life, and love. Jeremy would ask about what to do for Isabella and Charlotte would wonder why no guys seemed to be interested in her. Jeremy would only tell her that she didn't have to worry about it. He always seemed to have a knowing smile on his face whenever he told her that. Jeremy seemed to be a carbon copy of his father. The trademark Weasley hair sat upon his head, the blue eyes twinkled with mischief that would make his twin uncles proud. He was tall but sturdy and made for an excellent Keeper for the Ravenclaw team.
Michael's girlfriend, and loyal Hufflepuff, was Paige MacMillan. She was a beautiful young woman with blonde hair and green eyes. Charlotte had never met someone so sweet and kind. She didn't understand how anyone could be so nice to everyone that they met. It was something that marveled Charlotte, but something that made her enjoy Paige's company. It had been strange when Michael had come up to Charlotte in the library one day and had asked her all about Paige MacMillan. Paige had been Charlotte's partner on a Potions project and the two girls had got to talking during their time in the library. Michael wanted to know if Paige might feel the same way and Charlotte couldn't help but smile when she thought of a previous night where Paige had confessed that she had been looking at Michael more than once during class. The only times that Michael and Paige fought were when they were on the Quidditch pitch. Both were Seekers.
"Charlie!"
Charlotte and her friends turned in the direction of the voice and saw that Daniel and Liam were now accompanied by Mitchell. Isabella shot a look at her brother and then turned to Charlotte.
"I think he's here to see you off," she whispered to her Slytherin friend. "He's not here to see me. I said bye to him at home… in Scotland." Charlotte shook off her best friend and walked toward Mitchell Wood. Liam whispered in Mitchell's ear before walking off with Daniel. Charlotte watched her brothers as she stepped up to Mitchell.
"I thought you'd be in Scotland," she said to him. Mitchell laughed and looked over Charlotte's shoulder at his sister and her friends who were watching them intently.
"Yes, well, London just seems like more fun," he answered. "That and we have practice soon. I was going to drop in and see your father before I went. I was around so I thought I would stop by and see you all off."
Charlotte could distantly hear her friends calling her name as the train's whistle blew, signaling that it was time to board. She turned to see her friends waving her to come on as they boarded the train. She turned back to Mitchell and opened her mouth to speak. She didn't have time as Mitchell leaned down and kissed her on the cheek.
"You should go," he said as he straightened up. "They'll be waiting for you. You can't miss the train."
Charlotte nodded and hurried toward the train. Michael and Jeremy threw open one of the doors and helped balance Charlotte as she jumped on the slowly but surely moving train. She looked back in Mitchell's direction and saw him standing there, watching her as the train moved out of the station.
Michael and Jeremy pulled Charlotte on the train and shut the door. They walked through the corridor toward a compartment. Michael led them to a compartment that Paige and Isabella had found and were keeping occupied while Michael and Jeremy had been looking for Charlotte. When they reached the compartment they saw that Paige and Isabella were not the only ones in there. They had invited Derrick Flint and Aidan Higgs to join them. Charlotte chuckled slightly as she took a seat in between Derrick and Aidan.
"What?" Derrick asked her.
"Twenty years ago there would never have been a compartment so diverse," Charlotte said.
"Come again," Aidan said.
"What she's trying to say is that Slytherins and Gryffindors wouldn't be caught dead together," Michael explained. The group laughed.
"And yet, here we are," Charlotte said. She turned to Michael. "Do you want to go over what we need to talk about at the meeting?"
"Sure," Michael answered. "Want to head over to the compartment?" Charlotte nodded and they stood together.
"We're going to head over to the Head compartment. We'll see some of you later," Charlotte said as Michael kissed Paige on the cheek on their way out. They left the compartment and headed down the corridor, eventually reaching the Head and Prefect compartment near the head of the train.
Upon entering the compartment, Charlotte and Michael could see some of the overzealous new prefects, already in the compartment an hour before the meeting time. Among them were Gryffindor's fifth year prefect Connor Finnegan and Hufflepuff's fifth year prefect Avery MacMillan. Avery was also Paige's younger brother. Michael greeted them, knowing Avery through Paige, and Connor through his house.
"How were your summers?" he asked them, although the question seemed more directed at Connor rather than Avery.
"Pretty good," Avery responded. "It was good to see you for the time that I did."
"It was good," Connor said. "I've been practicing for that Keeper spot on the team. Let me know when tryouts are."
Michael smiled to Connor and nodded. After sharing a look with Avery, Michael led Charlotte into the Head section of the large compartment. Once he shut the door to the section, Charlotte turned to him with a smirk on her face.
"What was that all about?" she asked. Michael sighed. When Charlotte started laughing, Michael couldn't help but join in.
"Let's get started," he said and they went to work.
An hour later the Prefect compartment was filled to the brim with loud, conversing prefects. Charlotte and Michael were seated in the middle of all of them, talking with some and waiting for the last of the prefects to show up. Once Thomas Warrington, sixth year Slytherin Beater, and Ava Cauldwell, seventh year Hufflepuff, showed up at the door, looking slightly flushed, Charlotte decided to quiet everyone down.
"All right everyone!" she said. "Let's get started. I know how much you want to hang out with your friends, so this is going to be short."
"For those of you that don't know," Michael started. "I am Michael Potter, Gryffindor Quidditch Captain."
"And, oh so, modest," Charlotte added. "I'm Charlotte Malfoy, Slytherin."
"We will be ruling over all of you, so get used to it," Michael said.
"If you find that the overzealous Head Boy is being too arrogant and too proud for his job, let me know, and I'll hit him for you," Charlotte countered. "Or you can tell Paige MacMillan and she'll be happy to set him straight for you as well."
The meeting continued in that same vein, with the Heads garnering laughs from their prefects. Charlotte and Michael knew that cutting each other down playfully would help get the prefects that they weren't familiar with to look at them not in authoritative positions but as equals. That was something that they had talked about, trying to figure out how to create a relaxed atmosphere and still maintain a degree of authority.
"Well, we're all done here, so get out, all of you!" Michael said.
"Go hang out with your friends, but remember to do your patrols when you're scheduled to do them," Charlotte reminded the prefects as they left the compartment. "We will know. Trust me, we're seers."
She smiled when she heard laughs from the exiting students. She turned to see that Michael, Isabella and Jeremy had stuck around. Isabella's hand was clasped in Jeremy's and Charlotte had to bite down a sigh.
"Shall we venture back to our compartment?" she asked. "I'd like to find Thomas and berate him for almost showing up late because he was busy snogging Ava."
"Were they really?" Michael asked, shocked as he turned to his counterpart, holding open the compartment door for his friends before he stepped out into the corridor.
"Did you not see their faces when they came into the meeting?" she asked. Isabella and Jeremy chuckled, obviously having seen what Charlotte saw.
"No, I didn't," Michael said with a disappointed note to his voice.
"They were flushed and kept glancing at one another," Charlotte said, slowing as they got to their compartment. She peeked in and turned back to her friends with a devilish grin.
They entered the compartment and saw that Paige, Derrick and Aidan had invited more to sit with them. Thomas was there, without Ava, but sitting next to him was one of the Ravenclaw Chasers and Jeremy's teammate, Andrew Davies. Charlotte put herself between Derrick and Aidan and right across from Thomas and Andrew. She eyed Thomas and he shifted in his seat.
"I know what you were up to before the meeting," Charlotte said to Thomas with a smirk. Derrick and Aidan stopped their conversation to look between Thomas and Charlotte.
"It was nothing," Thomas protested. "Stop looking at me like that!" Charlotte couldn't help but laugh as she continued to smirk at him.
"What does our lovely female Chaser know about you that you have decided to hide from us?" Derrick asked. "As your captain, you should tell me."
"But… I… dammit!" Thomas exclaimed.
"It's okay Thomas," Charlotte said. "You don't have to tell Derrick and Aidan that you were snogging Ava Cauldwell before the Prefect meeting."
"What?!?" Derrick and Aidan asked, almost jumping from their seats. Their outburst caused Michael, Paige, Jeremy and Isabella to turn from their game of Exploding Snap. Andrew continued to watch the conversation with an amused raised eyebrow.
"You little bastard!" Derrick exclaimed. "You and Ava? What I wouldn't give…. Her brother is going to kill you, you know that?"
"That's why it wasn't supposed to be common knowledge," Thomas said with a look to Charlotte.
"Shouldn't have shown up almost late with her," Charlotte said as she pretended to examine her fingernails.
"I can't believe you," Aidan said. "And she's older than him!" Derrick and Aidan shook their heads as they started to laugh.
"Speaking of Quidditch," Charlotte started. "How's the team looking this year, Captain?" Thomas looked at Charlotte thankfully. She smiled and nodded slightly at him.
"The team looks good," Derrick said. "Well, at least from what I've seen so far. You guys seem to be in pretty good shape. I know Charlie is at least. We messed around this summer."
"Messed around?" Thomas asked. "Is that what the kids are calling it these days?"
"Yes," Charlotte said with a deadpan. "Derrick and I shagged all summer and will be expecting twins this spring. You can be the godfather if you want."
"She came over with Liam and Daniel and we played Keep Away," Derrick said. "Even Dad and James flew. Dad said that Charlotte was the best he's seen in years. Better than her brothers."
"He was obviously delusional," Charlotte said. "He's getting delusional in his old age, Derrick. You should have him get that checked out."
"Will do," Derrick said.
"You all visited each other over the summer?" Andrew asked. "I don't think anyone in Ravenclaw did that."
"We are close to each other," Charlotte said. "I don't know why but we are."
"But it's not just Slytherins," Derrick said. "We hang out with Ravenclaws, Hufflepuffs, even Gryffindors. How's that for weird?"
"We're mostly family too," Charlotte explained. "Michael's my god brother and Jeremy's close enough to be a cousin. I've known Isabella for years. Her older brother is Liam's best friend."
Charlotte barely heard Derrick explain about the large extended families as Isabella leaned over to whisper in her ear for the second time that day.
"Speaking of Mitchell, I saw that on the platform earlier," Isabella said. "He's been talking about you all summer. It's been Charlie this and Charlie that. He hasn't dated anyone since his fifth year at Hogwarts."
Charlotte nodded. She knew that. Mitchell had been dating a fifth year Hufflepuff when he suddenly broke it off. Liam and Charlotte had been confused as to the sudden break up. Liam had talked to his best friend and had come back with a knowing smile and no words for his sister. Only that everything was okay. Charlotte hadn't asked but had subtly noted that Mitchell wasn't quick to starting a new relationship. She had also noticed that he was spending a lot more time with her and Liam. Not that she was complaining by any means. Mitchell meant a lot to her.
"Welcome to a new year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry," Headmistress Minerva McGonagall announced to the Great Hall once every one had been seated and the first years were waiting outside in the hallway. "Welcome to a new year. Let's get started with the Sorting. Professor Snape!"
Potions Master Professor Snape entered the Great Hall with a gusto that he had never lost. He led the first years in between the tables and lined them up in front of the Staff table. As Deputy Headmaster, he unrolled the parchment stating all of their names and began to read down the alphabetical list. When he got to 'Davies, Alexander' Charlotte looked up from her place at the Slytherin table.
She watched as the hat was placed on Alex's head and she waited with baited breath.
"Slytherin!" Charlotte raised her eyebrows at the Sorting hat's decision but clapped and cheered along with her house anyway. She watched as Alex timidly made his way over to the Slytherin table, occasionally glancing at his older brother at the Ravenclaw table. She waved at him from up the table and was delighted to see that he waved back with a smile on his face. Charlotte didn't pay too much attention to the rest of the sorting, occasionally applauding when Slytherin gained a new member.
"Now that the Sorting is done, it is time to introduce this year's Heads," McGonagall started as Snape took the Sorting hat and stool into the chamber located off the Staff table. "From Gryffindor house, this year's Head Boy is Michael Potter."
There was cheering, mostly from the Gryffindor table. There was a slight buzz from the first years upon hearing Michael's famous last name.
"Settle down," McGonagall calmed the hall. "Our Head Girl is Slytherin Charlotte Malfoy." Charlotte stood up and watched as the members of the Quidditch team, reserve players included, stood up from their spots at the table, got on their knees, and bowed to her. Charlotte laughed and tried to get them to stand and sit back down at the table. She could hear the cheering from around the hall. She knew that she knew a lot of people but she hadn't known that she was that popular. More buzzing was heard from the first years once they had heard her last name as well.
Charlotte and her teammates finally sat down and McGonagall announced the usual start of term announcements before the feast finally got underway.
Once the food was gone, Charlotte met up with the Head Boy before going down to the Slytherin common rooms. Her journey down to the dungeons was pretty uneventful. As she made her way to the blank stretch of wall that was the entrance to the Slytherin common room, she decided that she would pay her seventh year male counterparts a visit before heading to bed.
"Caput Draconis," Charlotte said with a smile. The piece of wall opened to reveal the Slytherin common room and she entered. The room was empty. Everyone had gone up to their dormitories to spend time with their roommates if they were new, and to catch up if they were returning students. As Head Girl, Charlotte was allowed to have her own dormitory. While she got along with the other Slytherin girls, she was happy to get her own room. Instead of going toward the door to the left off of the common room, Charlotte headed toward the door to the right. She walked through the dormitory corridor and could hear the familiar voices of the Slytherin seventh year boys. She entered the room without knocking, as she was apt to do.
"You boys better not be talking about me," Charlotte said as she entered, leaning against the doorframe. The five boys looked toward the door and grinned. They were in various states of dress and undress, but it was nothing new to Charlotte. She played Quidditch with them and they shared a locker room. It was no big deal to her.
"We're not," Derrick told her as he pulled on a pair of pajama pants, leaving his chest bare. "We could if you like though."
"I'd rather you not," Charlotte replied. "Unless, of course, it's all good."
"Why wouldn't it be good?" Aidan asked. He moved clothes off his bed and motioned for Charlotte to sit down. She shut the door and walked over to Aidan's bed. She sat down next to him after taking off her robes and loosening her tie.
"We are Slytherins," Charlotte argued. Aidan and Derrick laughed. Aidan and Derrick's beds were on one side of the room while Graham, Ryan, and Skyler occupied the opposite side.
There was a sense of comfort that Charlotte found with the seventh year boys. She had known most of them since before they came to Hogwarts. Some she had known since they were in diapers. Derrick Flint had always been around the house. His father, Marcus, had helped Draco out during the war. Charlotte was surprised to see how many Slytherins had redeemed themselves during the war. There was still some prejudice against Muggle-borns but a surprising amount of Death Eaters and suspected Death Eaters who had completely changed their feelings toward Muggles and Muggle-borns.
"When are we starting practice?" Skyler asked Derrick as he climbed into bed. Derrick looked from his dresser and thought for a moment.
"First game is when?" Derrick asked Charlotte.
"October fifteenth," she answered. Derrick nodded.
"Around September fifteenth then," Derrick said. "We don't need too much time to practice. We don't need any new players and we've all kept ourselves in pretty good shape. It won't take long to get back in the swing of things."
Charlotte and the boys talked for what seemed like hours. She checked her watch when she had found herself nodding off against Aidan's shoulder for the fifth time in about fifteen minutes. Upon looking at her watch, she stood up and gathered her robes before turning to the boys.
"It's late," she told them. She walked to the door. "You lot should have been in bed an hour ago," she said with a smile. She could hear them mock-protesting as she shut the door behind her on her way out. On her way to her dormitory she could hear the sounds of rustling as the boys from Slytherin were getting into bed for the night. She smiled to herself as she crossed the common room and headed in the direction of the girls' dormitories. She had a feeling that this was going to be a very good year.
The next couple of days consisted of teachers reminding the seventh year students that they were studying for their NEWTs that they would be taking at the end of the year. The advanced classes were designed to emphasize extra research in more advanced magic. The advanced classes were always had after the regular class. Those who took the advanced classes usually had twice as many classes as those who did not go for the advanced topics. Charlotte was one that had twice as many classes. For every regular class she took, she had the advanced compliment to it as well. This was true for her elective classes as well. Arithmancy, Ancient Runes, Muggle Studies were her extra classes.
When she got her timetable at breakfast, Charlotte sighed. She was comforted by the fact that she would be going through this busy schedule with her friends. She knew that her Hogwarts generation was one of the most ambitious the school had seen. It was also one of the smartest. Her friends were quite smart for their age. She didn't know that a majority of their class was some of the brightest minds available. It wasn't until her sixth year when she entered her NEWT classes and her advanced classes that she saw just how many very smart students there were at Hogwarts.
After breakfast Charlotte headed to her first class, Transfiguration, with the seventh year boys. All of them were in NEWT Transfiguration together. They even headed to the library to study after some grueling Quidditch practices. Now that Charlotte thought about it, she and the seventh year boys all had the same academic schedule. She felt more comforted as she entered the Transfiguration classroom on the sixth floor of the castle with her friends. She smiled at Jeremy, Isabella, Michael and Paige as she entered and sat between Derrick and Aidan.
"That was interesting," Derrick commented as they exited the Transfiguration classroom, making their way to the third floor for Charms.
"Quite," Charlotte said. "I just hope that Vector doesn't give that much homework on the first day back. You know how she is. One day she absolutely despises homework and the next day it's Merlin's gift to the world."
"I just can't believe that Professor Schmidt gave us that much work," Aidan said. Derrick and Charlotte nodded in agreement. "Did you see the look on Henry's face when his dad assigned that?" Charlotte chuckled as Derrick nodded again, a large smile on his face.
"Here's to hoping that Flitwick is in a generous mood," Charlotte said. The two boys responded with a "Hear, hear!" They continued down the corridor and staircases among the throng of students going to and from class. Charlotte could hear laughter all around her and was reminded of when Mitchell would stop her and Derrick on their way to class last year with some joke or physical comedy that would send the two sixth years into stitches on the way to their class. As they passed the stairway to the fourth floor, Charlotte chuckled. Derrick turned to her.
"What are you laughing at?" he asked.
"Remember that time we were late to Advanced Arithmancy last year?" she asked him.
"Which time? We were always late," he said.
"February," she said. "I think. Anyway, we ran into Mitchell and Liam who were on their way up from a cancelled Herbology class. And they were goofing around on the stairs." Derrick smiled. "And they almost fell. But they kept wrestling each other, all the while having tentacles sprouting from their heads."
"Yeah, I remember that," Derrick said. "Vector was so mad that we were late but then let us off the hook when we reenacted what happened for the class."
"Only after transfiguring my skirt into a pair of pants," Charlotte said. "There was no way that I was going to wrestle you in a skirt." Derrick laughed.
"Yeah," he said. "What color were the tentacles again?"
"Blue and orange," Charlotte remembered.
"Yeah," Derrick said as he sighed wistfully. He unconsciously grabbed Charlotte's arm as the staircase shifted, keeping her balanced. "I miss them." Charlotte nodded in agreement.
The end of the first week back found Charlotte in the library. She was at a table by herself in the back of the library with books spread all around her. Most were on the table, covering every inch that wasn't covered by parchment. Some were stacked on chairs that were positioned within reaching distance of the Head Girl. That was the state that Aidan Higgs found Charlotte in. She had her reading glasses pushed up the bridge of her nose as she buried her nose in an ancient looking textbook.
"She's been like that all day," Aidan heard from his right. He turned and saw a table of Ravenclaw Quidditch players. It had been Andrew Davies who had spoken. Aidan noticed that Jeremy Weasley was absent from their table.
"It's Saturday," Aidan said. Andrew nodded.
"It makes sense for us, but seeing her in here was odd," he said. Aidan nodded and cautiously approached the Head Girl.
"Charlie?" he asked as he pulled out the only empty chair at the table and sat down. Charlotte looked up from her book and furrowed her brow. Taking this as the sign to speak, Aidan continued. "Is there a reason that you've decided to bury yourself in… books?"
"We have a lot of homework due next week," she said. "I just want to get it all done."
"Well, you need to take a break," Aidan said. "Have you eaten?"
"Yes," Charlotte answered. Aidan turned to the Ravenclaws.
"Has she eaten?" he asked. The table shook their heads to answer in the negative. Charlotte glared at them before turning back to Aidan. She sighed.
"All right," she conceded. "I haven't eaten. I promise that I'll eat a lot at dinner and a lot at supper."
"You need to leave the library anyway," Aidan said. "Derrick wants to practice."
"What?" Charlotte protested. "He can't do that. We're not scheduled for another two weeks."
"Charlie, he's the captain," Aidan reasoned. "He can do whatever he wants." Charlotte gave a defeated sigh and took off her reading glasses.
"I have to eat something before we go practice. I won't practice on an empty stomach," she told him. Aidan nodded and helped her pack up her things. As they exited the library Charlotte said, "At least it's a good thing all those books can't be checked out."
Charlotte and Aidan made it down to the Quidditch pitch by five in the evening after having fed a much happier Charlotte. They stood on the field in their Quidditch uniform and gear, sans robes. Derrick always liked to practice without the robes. It was easier to maneuver through new plays before adding the excess of the robes. Charlotte and Aidan couldn't agree more, seeing as they were the ones that had the more complex plays and flying to do.
Holding her Firebolt XI in her hand Charlotte breathed in the smell of grass and closed her eyes. She smiled as she opened her eyes and saw that she and Aidan were no longer the only ones on the pitch. The rest of the team had joined them.
"I knew this would make you feel better," Derrick said from her left. "Davies ran into me earlier and said that you'd holed yourself up in the library since the early morning and hadn't moved since."
"Can we fly now?" Charlotte asked her captain eagerly.
"Sure," Derrick said with a smile.
"Boundaries?"
"None." And with that Charlotte was off. She had mounted her broom and took off into the air so fast that her teammates could barely register that she had left her spot on the ground. They all took off after her. After doing a few laps around the pitch, Charlotte led the team toward the castle.
"We can't go inside!" Derrick shouted toward his female Chaser.
"I know!" she said. "But that doesn't mean that we can't show off a little around the castle and in the courtyards!" The team grinned to each other and shot off in formation around the castle. They headed toward Gryffindor Tower, garnering attention from their crowded common room. Charlotte barely saw Michael and Isabella stick their heads out of the window as the team passed. They continued to circle the castle, dipping and rising when they felt like it. They passed the long stretch of tall windows of the library and saw that they had a large audience. Derrick and Charlotte flipped and flew backwards over the team. They showed off in front of the library for a few minutes, allowing the rest of the team to become obstacles. Only when they saw Madam Pince ushering students away from the windows, did they fly off.
Cutting around the Great Hall, they entered one of the courtyards of the castle. There were a couple groups of students sitting outside on benches and on the ground around the benches and under the trees. Conversation was stopped as the team flew through the courtyard and an outdoor corridor. They made their way to the center courtyard that was occupied by more students and a couple of faculty members.
"Charlotte Malfoy!" a voice was heard ringing throughout the courtyard. The team came to a halt right in front of Professor Vector and Professor Snape. Vector looked livid. Snape looked amused.
"You know that flying through the castle is against the rules," Vector said. "As Head Girl I would assume that you would be aware of that." Charlotte smiled.
"I am Professor Vector," Charlotte said. "But I am also aware of the fact that we are not, technically, inside the castle. This is an outdoor courtyard. At no time did we enter the castle." Professor Vector was speechless. Then suddenly she smiled.
"I always knew you were smart," she said. "Mister Flint, take your team back to the Quidditch pitch where you will resume practice." Derrick nodded with a grin present on his face.
"Miss Malfoy," Professor Snape said, drawing back the Quidditch team as they turned to leave to go back to the pitch. "See me after dinner." Charlotte nodded and the team was led by Derrick back to the pitch.
"Nice show," Michael said to Charlotte as he sat down next to her at the Slytherin table. Dinner had started and Michael had come over to talk about the upcoming Prefect meeting.
"Glad you enjoyed it," Charlotte said. "We do what we can."
"What I think I enjoyed most was the confrontation with Vector and Snape in the courtyard," Michael said as he spooned various bits of food onto his plate.
"Saw that, did you?"
"Half of Gryffindor Tower went running down the stairs as soon as you lot passed by," Michael explained. "The other half Apparated or took brooms out the window."
Charlotte grinned and they continued to have dinner. They talked about the upcoming Prefect meeting and about Quidditch. Some members of the Slytherin house talked with them at varying intervals. Halfway through their dinner, Professor Snape made his way down the Slytherin table.
"Remember that you need to speak with me when you're finished, Miss Malfoy," Snape said. Charlotte nodded.
"In your office?" she asked.
"That's where I'll be," Snape replied.
When she was finished with her dinner, Charlotte made her way to the dungeons and down to Snape's office. She knocked and entered at the grunt that was the response. She entered and saw the Potions Master sitting at his desk grading papers. He put the papers down and motioned for her to sit down in the chair across the desk from him. She sat and waited.
"How's school going?" Snape asked after a moment. Charlotte gave him a look before answering.
"Pretty well," she said. "I have a lot of advanced classes this year and will be pretty busy with the team and the Headship and all."
"Understandable," Snape replied. "How are you coming along with the team?"
"We're as good as ever," she said. "I foresee a Cup in our future. Everyone kept in shape over the summer and we're more connected than we have been."
"Sounds good," Snape said with a smile. "I like having the Quidditch Cup in my office."
"I like seeing it in here," Charlotte stated as she looked to her right and saw the Quidditch Cup sitting on a shelf with a picture of the team leaning against it. Snape took a deep breath before continuing with the conversation.
"Do you know what you're going to do after school?" he asked. Charlotte shifted in her chair for a moment.
"Honestly, I don't know," she answered. "I'd like to go into Quidditch, but Healing would be good for me as well. Quidditch is something I'm good at and love, but Healing is something that I would want to figure out whether or not I can do it."
"Here's my advice," Snape said, leaning forward on his elbows. "Do what you love to do. Do what you could never live without. Do something that you look forward to going to every day of your life. Be happy, Charlie." Charlotte nodded.
"Is that it?" she asked. Snape sighed.
"Yes, that's it."
At nine in the evening on Monday night the prefects and Heads met in the Prefect Office on the fifth floor. The room was decorated with the colors of all four houses in Hogwarts. Tapestries and pennants covered the walls. Couches, loveseats, overstuffed chairs, ottomans, and beanbag chairs filled the floor space. A large bulletin board hung from the wall by the door. A large coffee table sat in front of one of the couches and was usually cluttered with bits of parchment notes.
"We have the Quidditch schedules for every house team but we still need extra help lessons that you lot might be tutoring and any other meetings that might affect where you can be put in the patrol schedule," Charlotte said to the group from her place on the couch behind the coffee table.
"We'll have the November and December schedules up soon," Michael said. "If not up tomorrow, they should be up by Wednesday. Onto other business; the first Hogsmeade weekend will be October sixteenth. That is the day after a Quidditch game but it was the only weekend in October that the village was up for students. That is also why the game is on a Friday afternoon. The teachers have agreed that classes will end early that day and the seventh year Advanced Astronomy class will be cancelled for that day. McGonagall was up for it as well. Something tells me that she wants to see Gryffindor play."
"Well, she'll see Slytherin win, so either way someone will be happy," Charlotte said. "We were able to approve of a Spring Ball to go up in April. We'll have to start planning for it soon, probably not until January though." Murmurs broke out through the room.
"All right, settle down," Michael said. "I think that's it for tonight. We'll have another meeting Wednesday, like normal."
"Have a good night," Charlotte said as the prefects left the room, leaving Michael and Charlotte to themselves.
The following night, Charlotte and Ryan Crabbe were patrolling the halls up on the seventh floor when Ryan brought up an interesting topic.
"You know, a lot of us were surprised when Mitchell didn't ask you out while he was still here," he said causing Charlotte to stop.
"What?" she asked before they continued walking.
"Yeah," Ryan said. "There was a night where all of the Quidditch guys were crashing together and we got on the topic of girls. Mitchell said, in front of anyone, that you were the only girl he ever thought about. He said this in front of Liam and Daniel. They were okay with it. He was always a big fan of yours."
"I don't get it," Charlotte said. "I don't understand why."
"Look, don't take this the wrong way and it shouldn't be awkward after I tell you this, but a lot of guys would like to be with you, Charlie," Ryan told her. "Myself included." Charlotte looked away from Ryan but they kept walking together. She sighed.
"I don't know what to do Ryan," Charlotte said. "I just don't know what to do."
"About what?" Ryan asked, glad that it wasn't awkward between them.
"Life."
A couple of days later, Charlotte found herself in the library again, surrounded by books. Wearing her reading glasses again, she was going through a lot of different books of varying subjects. She was in the back of the library again. That's how Aidan and Derrick were able to find her. When she was missing she was either at the pitch or in the library. Seeing as how it was dark outside, they headed toward the library.
"Charlie," Derrick said as they approached her. "We have Astronomy in about an hour." She nodded, barely glancing up from her book.
"We were going to sneak down to the kitchens for some food before we headed up," Aidan said. "You should come with us." Charlotte sighed and shut the book, taking off her glasses.
"I don't have a choice, do I?" she asked. Derrick and Aidan shook their heads. She pushed herself up and joined them. Together they walked out of the library, Derrick throwing an arm around her shoulders on the way out.
From a table near to Charlotte's, Andrew Davies watched the three Slytherin seventh years as they exited the library. He watched, with a jealous eye, as Derrick flung an arm around the young woman's shoulders. Andrew wasn't a bad guy. He was just a little shy when it came to girls. Now that Mitchell Wood had left school, he thought that he would have a shot at his longtime crush, Charlotte Malfoy. Hopefully Derrick Flint and Aidan Higgs didn't get in the way.