Seven Years - One Story

by RemusKetchum

A series of snapshots following the Hogwarts career of some of Harry's lesser known classmates in Ravenclaw House. Each story explores a different year at Hogwarts. The narrator is unnamed and open to interpretation, and he befriends the two Ravenclaw boys who never made it into the books: Stephen Cornfoot and Kevin Entwhistle.

2. Year Two

'Stephen, come on! There won't be any seats left for the match –' I complained after my friend's retreating back.

Stephen Cornfoot flashed me a confident grin over his shoulder, his blue eyes twinkling.

'Stop moaning – there's always seats left over. This is the best time of day to get a book out of the library. There'll be no queue.'

I let out a small sigh of exasperation and hastened down the empty corridor after him. The sun was rising up into the sky, and its brilliant rays splashed bars of crimson and gold light through the windows, while leaving the rest of the corridor deep in shadow. We descended two flights of stairs and walked quickly down another corridor. The sound of crowds of students moving towards the Quidditch Pitch could be heard from the Marble Staircase. Gryffindor would be playing against Hufflepuff in what was considered the most important match of the year. The outcome of this clash would pretty much decide the winner of the Quidditch Cup.

'You're so stubborn,' I shot at him as we neared the library. 'It's a miracle you weren't sorted into Gryffindor.'

Stephen snorted.

'Please, I'm way too good for Gryffindor. I'd be wasted there.'

I rolled my eyes.

'This could have at least waited until tomorrow when we had nothing else to do …'

We turned the last corner and spotted the library doors standing open halfway down the passage.

'I wouldn't have had time. We have two other essays due the day after that, so I wanted to get this one do –' Stephen abruptly fell silent and froze in his tracks.

I bumped into him and opened my mouth to tell him off again before I saw what had halted him. Two figures were lying immobile just outside the doors to the library. The morning sunlight illuminated their faces like models in a waxwork museum. My heart began to beat painfully fast.

'Oh no …' said Stephen in a small voice.

They were both students. The one nearer to us was a Ravenclaw Prefect – a memory stirred at the back of my mind and I hesitantly identified her as Penelope Clearwater. The other girl was in our own year, but a Gryffindor. I recognised her from Charms class as Hermione Granger, one of the smartest students in the year. They had both been Petrified.