The morning after the 2nd meeting, Katie woke up with an uneasy feeling. She had a weird dream that seemed too real, just the thought of what happen made her shiver. She pushed the dream out of her mind and got ready for the day. She was stopped in the hallway by many students, asking about the fight. More rumors went around about the fight between the Daphne and Hermione. People asked Katie why she defended the Slytherins, knowing she had been the witness that testified on behalf of Daphne. Not getting an answer from her, they went after Parvati, hoping she would explain why they defended Slytherins over Gryffindors. Parvati explained what had happened; Hermione and her friends had threatened the Slytherins and got what she deserved. This shocked most of the students, as Parvati was known to be kind and polite.
"I noticed that Blaise Zabini is paying more attention to Luna since the 2nd meeting" Parvati said. "I caught him staring at her throughout breakfast and lunch"
"Really?" Katie asked. She looked over at the Slytherin table and saw Blaise get up and head towards Luna. He whispered something to her then left the Hall. Luna drank the rest of her juice and followed him.
"Do you think he likes her?" Parvati asked. "At the 2nd meeting, he was sitting next to her and talking to her"
"Maybe" Katie replied. She shrugged and went back to eating. "What did Professor McGonagall want with you earlier?"
"She just wanted my explanation for the fight again" Parvati said. "Apparently, someone else claims to have seen the Slytherins threaten Lavender first"
"Did she say who told her that?" She asked.
"No, but I did see Cho Chang leave McGonagall's office when I was on my way to another class. I think she is close friends with Lavender" Parvati replied. Katie's mind brought up the dream she had, making her shiver. They finished eating and went to the Gryffindor tower.
"Katie! Parvati! Wait up" They turned around and saw Harry running after them.
"Hi Harry" Parvati greeted.
"Hey" He stopped beside them and took a deep breath. "I have a question I want to ask"
"We might have an answer to give" Katie replied.
"The fight between the Slytherins and the Gryffindors, did it really happen like that?" He asked.
"Yeah" Katie replied.
"Exactly like that?" He said.
"Exactly like that" Parvati repeated.
"Why are you asking us this? Do you think we lied to Professor McGonagall?" Katie asked. "Or did Granger put you up to this?"
"I was just wondering" He said. "Hermione doesn't threaten people, nor does Ginny"
"Aren't you going to defend Lavender and Romilda?" Parvati asked.
"Lavender always has a temper and Romilda follows Lavender's lead all the time" He replied. "I'll see you guys later"
"Bye" They said. He took off in a different direction while they continued on to the Gryffindor Tower.
Harry went to the library and checked out some books. Madam Pince was finishing his last book when a loud bang echoed throughout the library. Harry turned around to see a shelf tipping over, the books falling off. Madam Pince took out her wand quickly and stopped the shelf from completely falling over. Students were running away from the shelf and to the entrance.
"Did anybody get hurt?" Madam Pince asked worriedly.
"I'm not sure" Padma Patil replied. Madam Pince waved her wand again, sending the books back up onto the shelf. As the last of the books cleared from the floor, they all could see a person lying still on the floor. Madam Pince ran over and checked the students pulse. Faint but there, she then proceeded to turn the student over. Harry peeked over her shoulder and saw that the student was Blaise Zabini.
"Madam Pince! I brought Madam Pomfrey here!" Cedric Diggory said. Madam Pomfrey hurried over to the student's side and started checking him for injuries. Harry looked around to see what caused the bookshelf to fall. Seeing nothing out of place, he then focused on to the conversation between Madam Pince and Madam Pomfrey.
"He seems to have a couple broken ribs and a large bump on his head. Help me get him to the hospital wing" Madam Pomfrey said. They both levitated him up into the air and quickly headed to the hospital wing. Harry left the library and went to find Luna. He had seen them at the meeting last night and they seemed to be close. He had nothing against Blaise and decided to tell Luna that her friend was hurt. He looked everywhere for her, asking people if they saw her. After an hour of searching, he gave up and headed to the Gryffindor Tower. He was entering the common room when Ron grabbed his arm and pulled him over to the couches in front of the fireplace.
"Harry! Where have you been!?" He asked frantically.
"I was at the library Ron" Harry replied. He looked at his friend, a confused expression on his face. "I told you that during dinner"
"I must've not heard you then" Ron said. "Anyway, I just heard from Dean and Seamus that Ginny, Hermione, Lavender and Romilda are all being expelled from school!"
"What!?" Harry exclaimed. "What did they do?"
"That fight between the Slytherins and Gryffindors are part of the reason" Ron replied. "The other reason is alarming. Apparently, someone informed Dumbledore about the attack on Looney was done by them too"
"Really?" Harry frowned and shook his head. "That's impossible. They wouldn't have done that"
"I know! But Professor McGonagall came in here and escorted them to the Headmaster's office" Ron ran a hand through his hair, worried. "What will mom think when she hears that Ginny got expelled"
"Let's go to the Headmaster's office and try to keep them from getting expelled" harry suggested.
"Okay" They took off to the Headmaster's office. They met Professor Flitwick on the staircase leading to the office.
"Hello Mr. Potter, Mr. Weasley" He greeted. "What brings you here this evening?"
"We came to see if we could convince Headmaster Dumbledore to give Ginny, Hermione, Lavender and Romilda another chance" Harry explained.
"Ah yes" Professor Flitwick said. "They are up there right now"
"Can we go up there?" Ron asked.
"I'm not sure" He replied. "Miss Lovegood just went up there now"
"Luna is up there?" Harry asked. "Why is she up there?"
"She said she had some things to tell the Headmaster" Professor Flitwick replied. "You two should head back to your common room. Headmaster Dumbledore will sort out this situation"
"Okay" Both boys left, feeling down.
"Miss Lovegood, can you please tell me what happened on Friday, September 6th?" Dumbledore asked.
"I was on my way to the Ravenclaw common room after a meeting when I was hit in the back of the head" Luna explained. "I was hit repeatedly in the sides and head until I blacked out. I woke up a little later and felt intense pain. I cried as the pain flared up when I tried to sit up. I don't remember clearly what happened after that, but I do remember Astoria Greengrass talking to me while Madam Pomfrey was taking me to the hospital wing"
"I see" He placed his fingers together and leaned forward. "Did you see your attackers?"
"No. They got me from behind and I couldn't look up long enough to see their faces" She replied. "Astoria, Daphne and Pansy came by in the morning and told me that Lavender and Ginny attacked me and that Romilda and Hermione joined in for a little while"
"How did they know who attacked you?" He asked.
"They said that they overheard them talking about the attack during class" She replied. She shifted nervously in her seat. "I didn't want to believe it until they threatened to hurt me when they were fighting with the Slytherins"
"Thank you for telling your side of the story" He said. "Why did you decide to visit me this evening?"
"I wanted to tell you not to expel them. They did a horrible thing to me but they don't deserve to be expelled. Not over some stupid reason" Luna said. "Whatever punishment you give them is enough"
"As always Miss Lovegood, you have a gentle heart" He said, smiling at her fondly. "I will assign more detention and ban them from extra activities outside of school"
"Okay" Luna got up and smiled at Dumbledore. "I will leave you be now"
"Goodbye Miss Lovegood" Dumbledore said. Luna skipped back to the Ravenclaw common room, happy to have done something nice. Dumbledore sat at his desk, feeling troubled. Just moments before Luna left, he felt this weird sensation in his head. A numbing feeling had entered his brain before leaving a millisecond later. He shook his head at the thought and pushed it aside. He didn't notice the dark shadow that lurked in the corner of the office, turning into a human form before disappearing completely.