A/N - looking for more shoddy writing and iffy character portrayal? Well look no further, here you go.

I still own nothing.

Astrid held her head high as she walked into Potions class the next morning, biting the inside of her cheek as she ignored the whispers surrounding her, pushing the embarrassment attached to her collapse to the back of her mind. Slipping into the seat beside Angelina, she glared at the snide Slytherin's that were jeering at her from across the room, striking fear into them for they looked away a second later, their cheeks flushed.

Not so tough now, are they?

Astrid smiled to herself in satisfaction, smoothing her parchment as she tried to ignore the throbbing of her head duelling with the rumbling of her stomach. She'd missed breakfast that morning, having been trapped in a lengthy discussion with Madam Pomfrey where she vehemently insisted that she was fit to attend classes today, and now she was deeply regretting not detouring to the kitchens on her way to class. As if she could read her mind, Angelina suddenly produced a flattened and squashed muffin from her bag, tossing it to Astrid with a grin.

"Thought you'd be needing this," She winked, chucking her bag back onto the floor with a thud.

Astrid smiled gratefully, tearing the wrapper from the muffin excitedly as her stomach churned with hunger. Crumbs spilling onto the table, she took a wolfish bite as Professor Snape strode into the dim classroom, his robes billowing around his ankles with every step. His hollow, emotionless gaze scanned the classroom, his blank eyes settling on Astrid as she obliviously chewed her muffin, staring into space. His mouth twisted into a sneer, his gaze remaining unwavering as he looked at the student with disdain.

"Miss Black," He said in a dull, monotone voice, as the startled girl whipped her head around to face him, wiping her mouth somewhat apologetically as he continued, "I was under the impression that this was a classroom, not a food establishment."

"Sorry sir," She swallowed her mouthful, tucking the muffin away as Angelina stifled a giggle beside her, "Won't happen again."

"Perhaps a detention tonight would be a fitting way to drum the message into you," Snape replied, looking down his long, hooked nose at the girl.

"I'm afraid I can't make it, sir," Astrid grinned impishly, trying to charm the sullen teacher out of punishing her, "I already have prior commitments with Professor Umbridge, you see."

Astrid could have sworn that she saw surprise flicker across his face at her thinly veiled rudeness but she couldn't be certain, for he hid it well.

Frowning, he simply responded, "Ten points from Gryffindor," before turning sharply on his heel, stomping to the front of the classroom to begin the lesson. As Snape droned on and on, pacing the classroom as he read from the textbook, Astrid felt herself zoning out, drifting in and out of reality, her eyes fluttering closed as her brain remained focused on the strange occurrences of the day prior. She was eating herself up from the inside out; driving herself crazy as she grew hellbent on finding out exactly what had triggered such a powerful memory to attack, taking her hostage in her own mind. Her mind whizzed, darting from thought to thought as every unfinished idea blended into the next, flashing by in a jumbled blur. Suddenly, the call of her name echoed through her mind, pulling her out of the daze. Snapping her eyes open, she saw the whole class staring at her expectantly, the Slytherin students from earlier sniggering as she faltered, her cheeks flushing pink. Professor Snape stood looming over her, his oily hair hanging in limp curtains framing his face as he leaned closer.

"Well, Miss Black?" He sneered, "Are you going to enlighten us with an answer?"

Gulping, Astrid looked helplessly towards Angelina, who in return shot her a pointed look, discreetly nudging the textbook closer to her.

Nodding gratefully, Astrid quickly cast her eyes down toward the creased page, uttering the first word her eyes fell upon, the title at the top of the page, "I believe the answer is wolfsbane, Professor."

Snape frowned, obvious disappointment in her answer etched across his haggard face as he drew back from the desk, "Very good."

Astrid sighed a breath of relief, relaxing as she slumped back in her chair.

Angelina shot her a sly grin, nudging her arm as Snape trudged over to the desk of a quiet and introverted Gryffindor girl, reeling off questions with every step. The girl squeaked, hiding her scarlet face behind her parchment and shook her head in defeat.

"Not even a guess?" Snape raised a brow, standing over the girl, oozing superiority. The girl shook her head once more, and Astrid wondered how such a meek girl had been sorted into the house of the brave and courageous.

"Pity," Snape said, lacking an ounce of emotion, whirling around to face a snickering Slytherin girl, her face contorted into an ugly sneer, "Miss Calloway, do you happen to know the answer?"

"The answer, of course, would be boomslang skin." The girl shot a smirk at the blushing Gryffindor.

"Correct. 10 points to Slytherin." Snape nodded curtly, retreating back to his desk.

Astrid opened her mouth to protest this and question why she wasn't rewarded for the correct answer she gave when Angelina grabbed her arm, shooting her a warning look. Pouting, Astrid settled back in her seat, deciding that maybe it would be best to keep her lips sealed for the rest of the lesson.

The rest of the school day was uneventful, with Astrid closing in on herself as she racked her brain for memory of the day before, teetering on the edge of conversation as she followed her friends, not quite joining in. Her uncharacteristic behaviour didn't go unnoticed amongst the girls, and every so often she would catch them exchanging worried glances, baffled by the atmosphere surrounding their newly acquired friend. Astrid had kept an eye out for the Weasley twins throughout the day, but they'd been noticeably absent from their lessons, their presence lacking at lunch.

"They're probably off making new products – they sell their own joke merchandise to students, you see." Katie had explained helpfully, catching Astrid scanning the hall for the pair, absently twirling her food around with her fork. Astrid felt her lips tugging upwards at this, unsurprised by this fact, but hearing that still didn't stop her from feeling a twinge of disappoint at not seeing the grinning pair.

All too quickly, Astrid's detention with Umbridge rolled around and she felt herself huffing and sighing as she trudged to Umbridge's office with Alicia and Katie in tow, the pair having kindly offered to walk her there.

"Should we wait for you?" Katie asked the girl in front.

"No, I could be in there ages for all you know." Astrid replied over her shoulder, slowing her pace as they grew nearer their destination, "You could end up late for dinner."

"I doubt she'll keep you that long. She'll probably make you write lines for half an hour before she gets fed up with your snarkiness and kicks you out," Alicia quipped, falling into step beside Astrid.

"What if my snarkiness ends me up in double detention?" Astrid shot back, raising a brow.

"You're already in a double detention." Angelina pointed out, smirking.

"Fine, what if it gets me a triple detention?" Astrid amended.

"Fair point." Alicia grinned, nudging Astrid in the ribs.

"Just promise to save me a seat at dinner, okay?" Astrid said as they reached the door to Umbridge's office.

"Of course we will," Katie smiled, giving Astrid an encouraging pat on the back as she rapped her knuckles against the worn, wooden door.

"Come in," Umbridge hollered from the over side, her voice sickly sweet.

Astrid's fingers clasped around the door handle, twisting the knob slowly as she nudged the door open. Katie and Alicia waited until she slipped through the doorway, casting a grin over her shoulder as she disappeared into the office before they left.

Sucking in the heavy, floral scented air, Astrid felt her lungs swell as her gaze roamed the room, drinking in her surroundings. Vibrant colour danced through her gaze, every shade of pink under the sun adorning each and every surface, the striking colour vividly scorching Astrid's irises. Blooming bouquets, bursting with colour, were dotted around the room in vases of varying shapes and sizes, the common factor being the colour; pink. The strong and sweet musk of the flowers lingered in a cloud over the compact room, stinging Astrid's eyes and assaulting her nostrils as it seeped into her brain. Garish china plates adorned the wall, each one embellished with a meowing kitten prancing around, the shrill sounds of each meow mashing together was almost deafening. Umbridge sat primly behind her desk, a strained smile plastered on her face as she neatly folded her hands in her lap.

"Ah, Miss Black, I'm glad to see you managed to keep track of time today." She cooed in a voice that was sweet enough to induce diabetes.

Astrid bit her lip, her teeth clamping down hard, to stop herself from firing a scathing remark at the teacher. Biting it back, she smiled thinly, her eyes alive with venom.

Umbridge returned the smile, her muscles twitching at the strain of the charade, and rose to her feet. She circled her desk, gesturing to a lone desk in the corner, the thin layer of pink paint coating it peeling away, flakes of the dried paint drifting lazily to the floor, lacing the plush coral fuzz of the carpet. A rickety, wooden chair stood beside it.

"Please, take a seat," Her tone was sugary sweet, and Astrid had no choice but to obey. Scraping back the chair, she flopped down on the seat, kicking her legs out in front of her as she huffed a sigh, before meeting Umbridge's stony glare and straightening up, smoothing her crumpled robes.

"Today, you will be writing lines." Umbridge smiled once more, her hard, beady eyes betraying her pleasant expression. Wordlessly, she slipped a pristine sheet of parchment across the desk to Astrid, followed by a quill.

"I don't need that, I have my own quill." Astrid explained, reaching out for her bag to get out her own stationary.

"I think today you should try using my quill, dear." Umbridge chirped cheerfully, "I keep it specially for misbehaving students."

Astrid nodded; confusion etched across her face, and picked up the quill, rolling it over in her palm as the feathery plumes tickled her fingertips.

"What should I write?" She asked, straining to sound civil and polite.

"I believe 'I must learn my manners' would be quite fitting, wouldn't you agree?" Umbridge giggled, a nasty grin spreading across her bloated face.

Astrid nodded, before piping up once more, "What about ink?"

"You won't be needing any ink," Umbridge's eyes twinkled as she said this, a smile still playing on her thin, chapped lips, "It's a special quill."

Without another word, Umbridge turned on her heel, another girlish giggle escaping her lips, and returned to her desk. Astrid sighed heavily, looking down at the blank parchment and dropped the quill into position between her fingers, the tip grazing the page. Soundlessly, she began to scrawl the instructed words in the elegant, practised script that only a pureblood child could be taught. A burning sensation tingled in the back of her left hand as the quill scratched the paper, piercing through her flesh and scraping the bone as it set her skin on fire, scorching her hand as she winced in pain. Warmth spread across her hand, a wet and slimy plague smothering the surface. A droplet of scarlet trickled between her fingers, splashing onto the writing below, smearing the ink as it stained the parchment, soaking it through. Astrid looked down in horror to see smudges of red blotting her skin, the words 'I must learn my manners' deeply engraved into her skin. Suppressing a gasp, she jolted her head upwards to look at the professor across the room. As wide, puzzled eyes collided with beady, amused ones, Astrid knew everything that she needed to. A smug smirk contorted Umbridge's features, dominating her face.

"Is there a problem, dear?" She asked innocently, thoroughly enjoying watching Astrid squirm as realisation dawned on her.

Swallowing hard, Astrid shook her head, "No, Professor."

Umbridge grinned, satisfied, her eyes flickering with a sick kind of joy as she watched Astrid go back to work, chewing her lower lip to hold back strangled noises as she winced, the searing cuts slicing deeper with every letter.