"How was Christmas?" I asked Dora immediately, pulling out of our hug. The two of us had just arrived back at Hogwarts by Floo.
"Awful," she said flatly, as we joined the flow of students heading towards the Great Hall for the start-of-term feast. "Absolutely awful. Yours?"
"The same," I said. "What happened?"
She pulled a face as we sat down at the Slytherin table. "You don't want to know. I'd rather you told me about yours."
"Tough. I asked first."
She took a deep breath. "We went to visit Father in Azkaban. Honestly, Meda, you wouldn't believe how horrible it is…" She shuddered. "It's just- grim. Inhuman."
"How was your father?"
"Awful. He barely said a word- he hardly seemed to recognise us. He just kept- staring into space, and then he told us-" She broke off sharply. "Tell me about yours. How was the Malfoy's castle?"
This time, I didn't press her further. She looked closer to tears than I'd seen her in years- since the time she'd broken her arm falling off Evan's broomstick aged six. "The castle itself was wonderful," I said. "I just wish I could say the same for the company."
Dora met my explanation with more questions, seemingly desperate to avoid thinking about her own Christmas. I was more than happy to answer, enjoying the chance to moan about Malfoy and my family. I was just recounting to her Bella's seeming inability to hold any kind of normal conversation when Dumbledore stood up at the teachers table. I had never seen him looking so grim: his blue eyes held none of their usual twinkle.
The buzz of chatter quickly faded, as though every student in the Great Hall sensed his mood. As one, every head turned to look up at him. "I am afraid that I must begin the term with terrible news," he began. He paused briefly, and his eyes swept over the students in the hall. No-one spoke- the hall was quiet enough to hear a Lethifold's footsteps. "One of our number, a Miss Felicity Privet, was brutally murdered during the course of the holidays. To those who did not know her, Miss Privet might not have appeared particularly special. She kept herself to herself, not one to stir up trouble. However, to those lucky enough to know more of her she was a good friend, a brilliant Potioneer and a wonderful essay writer.
"To every single one of us, however, she represents a truly tragic loss. The Wizarding World has long been accepting of everyone with a talent for magic: Hogwarts is an outstanding example of this. Miss Privet belonged to our world, but because her parents were muggles her killers did not believe that she deserved her place in it. It was for this reason she, and her family, were murdered.
His eyes scanned the room again, and the silence seemed even deeper than before, if that were possible. The entire school seemed to hold it's breath. "Once again, I beg all of you to resist this way of thinking. I beg you to stick together, and stand united against those who call themselves the Death Eaters. I beg you to remember Miss Privet, both as a wonderful girl and a terrible warning of what will come if we allow prejudices to cloud our judgement. I ask that you remain silent for a moment as a mark of respect." He bowed his head, and I followed suit- along with many a minute had passed, he once again raised his head. "Thank you," he said simply. "And now, let us eat before we perish ourselves of starvation." He sat down, and slowly the hall began to fill with talk once again. The table was suddenly covered in platters and bowls of delicious food, and both Dora and I began to reach towards for our favourite dishes.
A loud burst of laughter from the end of the Slytherin table drew my eyes: a group of Slytherin boys were laughing uproariously. I was sure I caught the words "mudblood bitch". I froze with my hand halfway to a tureen of sage-and-onion stuffing, horrified. At the edge of the group, I noticed my cousin Regulus. He wasn't laughing: in fact, he looked as though he might be sick. He'd always been pale, but now his colour rivalled that of the Bloody Baron hovering a few seats away from him.
Suddenly, I felt as sick as Regulus looked.
"Are you alright?" Dora asked.
"Oh- yes. Of course." Slowly, I began to spoon stuffing onto my plate.
"You were telling me about your sister," she reminded me.
"Oh, yeah," I said, relieved for the distraction. I spent most of the rest of the feast recounting my family's antics. "I think she must have finally found herself a beau or something, but she doesn't want to give mother satisfaction by admitting it. Or something."
"Maybe there's something wrong with him. He could be really poor. Or work in the Misuse of Muggle Artifacts office."
I snickered at the thought of Bella with one of the stooped, eccentric old men who worked in the Ministry's least glamorous department. "I'm not sure I can see it, somehow," I said.
"He might breed Pygmy Puffs, then," she suggested. We passed the rest of the feast discussing the many ways in which Bella's lover could be so flawed she'd be embarrassed to bring him home.
I enjoyed myself hugely- but still, I found my gaze slipping to the Ravenclaw table more than once. I knew it was wrong, but I couldn't help but wonder whether I'd get the chance to speak to Ted Tonks again this term. Not that I wanted to obviously- except I did, more than anything.
As it happened, I got my chance even sooner than I expected: the two of us were both on Prefect duty the very next night. I couldn't help but smile when I turned the corner and saw him coming towards me. He didn't look happy at all, however- and the smile faded from my face.
"Uh- hi," I said, suddenly slightly tongue-tied. I hadn't expected to end up so close to him- not when he'd been a major feature of my fantasies over the last two weeks. "I- uh- I wanted to thank you for the book you leant me. Sense and Sensibility. It's brilliant."
"Good," he said coldly.
"And- um- I'm sorry about what happened in Hogsmeade. I shouldn't have been as rude as I was," I said, stumbling over the words. I've never been good at apologies- it's a Black family trait, I suppose: none of us likes to admit that we could ever possibly be in the wrong. "I just- wasn't expecting to see you there."
"Yes, I gathered that," he said again, his tone still cold. "I suppose with the kind of company you keep, you were probably protecting me as much as anything."
"What?" I said, startled by his assertion. "What- what do you mean?"
"Oh, come on, Black- it's common knowledge that they're all as bad as each other. Your friend's father was just unlucky enough to be the one who got caught. And on that subject, does your fiancé know you don't wear a ring when you're at school? It would help you avoid giving the wrong impression to people like me."
"What- how do you know?" I gasped.
He didn't answer. "I'm supposed to be patrolling. See you around." He walked straight past me without another look, and continued down the corridor. I stood still for a few moments, staring after him, then started walking numbly. Tears stung the back of my eyes. Even so, I knew that I deserved everything I got. I couldn't believe I'd so much as considered any kind of relationship with a mudblood. I should have been thanking Tonks for saving me from my own stupidity.
I dragged my sleeve across my eyes roughly to wipe away the tears, and resolved to throw Sense and Sensibility into the fire the next chance I got. And with that, I got on with my patrol- praying that I would bump into some hapless first year so I could put him in detention for the rest of his Hogwarts life.
A/N: Please let me know what you think- I love reviews!