Harry Potter belongs to J.K. Rowling, only the Archard family and other OCs belong to me. The French words/phrases will be italicized, as well as the spells. Reviews are appreciated!

Chapter 14: Worry, Fear, and Mayhem

Esme POV

~Dream~

Dark. Darkness all around me. Almost nothing could be seen through the blackness, with no way to discern where I was; a room, a corridor, even outside, I couldn't tell. Shutting my eyes made little difference, yet it awoke my other senses. The air felt cold and damp, and in the distance I heard the drip drop of water. I shivered, both from the cold and from fear. Something was out there.

A girl's voice called out to me:

Do not fear the darkened pit, but only that which wanders it.

Hearing a noise behind me, my eyes snapped open and I turned, startled. Still I could not make anything out in the darkness. The same noise rang from my left. I shifted as my eyes frantically searched, yet I saw nothing, not even a hint of movement. Again I heard a noise. As my heart beat loudly in my chest, I turned.

The voice rang out once more:

Only its master it will obey, never to hesitate or betray.

I saw a shimmer through the dark. A creature stood before me, but nothing revealed what kind. I only knew that whatever it was, was gigantic. I was completely frozen, fear keeping me in place as I knew it was pointless to run. A deep hiss rumbled from the creature before me, drawing my eyes up, and up.

Suddenly the voice shouted:

Shut your eyes, shut them tight, for the gaze is as deadly as the bite!

But it was too late. There was a flash of fangs before the creature lunged; I screamed.

~End of Dream~

I awoke with a gasp, feeling my heart racing in my chest and my head pounding with an intense migraine. Despite not being able to recall what I dreamed about, I knew without a doubt that it was the nightmare once more. It was probably due to the Sleeping Draught potion as to why I couldn't recall. I had yet to remember what seemed to be haunting me this term, but from the amount of terror – which was so much worse than last year – I knew I didn't want to remember. I just wanted it to go away, to have one less thing to weigh heavily on my shoulders.

The day of the match, as I made my way to the hospital wing, Blaire had found me in the corridors and reassured me that Alaric would be alright. I could tell that she was just as shaken from the experience as I was with how she leaned into George's arm that was wrapped around her shoulders. I had wanted to see Alaric myself but Blaire dissuaded the notion, as she was quite confident that Alaric would've snuck back to the Gryffindor common room by the time I'd reached the hospital wing. Blaire knew her twin the best, so I heeded her words and returned to my own common room despite my emotions still being a swirling mess.

I had barely settled down in a seat in our common room when Blaise quickly filled me in on what everyone was murmuring about. Apparently the Bludger had broken Potter's arm but such a simple injury was made worse by Lockhart when he managed to vanish Potter's bones instead of mending them. It was disgustingly impressive how badly he managed to screw up. Now Potter was stuck in the hospital wing overnight to have his bones painstakingly grown back. Even Draco, who never had positive thoughts on Potter, winced at the news.

I had thought things would improve after such a rough day, but things had only turned for the worst. The night after the match a student was found petrified in the corridors by patrolling professors. It was a First-Year Gryffindor, who Blaise was able to confirm was a Muggleborn. This attack, for it could only be an attack and not a prank, had made the danger very real. I hardly knew Colin Creevy, only that he was particularly attached to his Muggle photography and tended to annoy the Upper-Years with his earnest energy. Yet he, nor anyone else, didn't deserve to be petrified.

In the days following what happened to Creevy, many students began buying themselves talismans, amulets, and other protective charms in fear of becoming the Heir of Slytherin's next victim - if whoever was doing this wasn't found and stopped, there was little doubt now that there would be another attack.

Many thought we in Slytherin House had nothing to worry about. We all managed to keep a calm exterior (some even took it a bit too far and looked far too blasé and cheerful about the topic), but strife was being sowed within the safety of our common room. Blood status had taken the forefront of many conversations, with anyone being less than what the British considered Pureblood now being socially excluded and held at a distance.

I hadn't been aware (because I didn't care one bit) that Tracey Davis was a Halfblood until Parkinson and Bulstrode began to completely ignore the poor girl. Parkinson even had the nerve to imply that Davis could be a target for the monster and didn't want to be targeted through association. Cara and Garrett had outright said those considered 'enemies' of Salazar Slytherin were Magicals who came from Muggle households, which Davis most certainly was not.

Daphne and I could only stand a day of seeing Davis wilt after her so-called friends abandoned her before we approached her. We simply offered for her to study with us, yet she completely lit up like Janette did when she was particularly happy. Since then, Tracey had slowly begun to levitate towards Daphne and I. She still remained quite shy, with mostly Daphne and I dominating the conversations, but she was cautiously opening up to us. I think she half-expected us to suddenly shun her like Parkinson and Bulstrode did.

While the Halfbloods could at least band together in some instances, poor Lucian Bole (heartlessly outed as a Muggleborn by his once friends), was completely cut off from everyone. When it first became common knowledge, Blaise had said the other Fifth-Year boys had kicked Lucian from their dormitory, with some other Upper-Years even trying to bar him from the common room. However, Professor Snape quickly put an end to such behaviors and made it clear that during an impromptu House meeting that no Slytherin, regardless of blood status, would be blocked from the common room or their bed. Anyone caught doing so would be granted the separation they desired and be expelled from Hogwarts.

Despite the newfound tension simmering through the air, life and classes continued on as normal. Now a few weeks later, lunch was filled with the normal chatter of school life. Amongst my fellow Slytherin Second-Years the main topic of discussion was the upcoming double Potions class with Gryffindor this afternoon.

While most of the others loathe Potions for various reasons, I quite enjoyed the subject overall. Yes, Granger continued to be a Know-It-All, but Professor Snape didn't indulge her like most of the other professors did. Each lesson, Professor Snape demonstrated his immense knowledge of the art of potion making. I always felt both challenged and like I was learning things at the same time – and my efforts always seemed to be rewarded with various Exceeds Expectations and Outstandings left on my coursework.

Today was a brewing day, so Daphne and I once again grouped together to work on our latest assignment. Thankfully, Goyle continued to partner with Tracey without issue, though that may have more to do with the fact he would be failing the class if it weren't for Tracey's own brewing skills. Each of the twenty different pairs were hard at work brewing the Swelling Solution with Professor Snape floating between the various wooden stations, remarking here and there on students' work.

As usual he had more waspish things to say about the Gryffindors' efforts than the Slytherins', but such a thing had become almost normal at this point. Daphne and I had managed to finish brewing our Swelling Solution, so Professor Snape was inspecting our potion as he stood behind us for the required criteria. While to my eyes the potion looked right, I couldn't help but wring my hands a little as I waited for his verdict. Going by the slight upward curl of his lips, I believe he was pleased with our efforts.

Suddenly, there was an explosion from behind us. Daphne and I both screamed as we huddled together in fear. I half-expected to be hit by something, but the only thing I felt was Professor Snape's large frame looming over us.

Screams of panic and cries of pain chorused around us. Professor Snape moved away, allowing Daphne and I (still clinging to each other) to see the aftereffects of whatever had happened. Crabbe's and Draco's cauldron had been the cause of the explosion, raining their brewed potion down upon nearly half of the students in the classroom, leaving various parts of their bodies to rapidly swell up like balloons.

Everyone was panicking as the classroom descended into chaos. Daphne shrieked when Crabbe bumped into her as he ran past with his hands over his eyes, which had swelled to the size of dinner plates. Poor Draco also must've gotten a face full of the potion, as half of his face and nose were equally as large.

"Silence! SILENCE!" roared Professor Snape over the yelling and screaming. His commanding voice got everyone's attention as the blind panic receded, leaving only a few sniffles of tears and the whimpers of pain from those most affected by the Swelling Solution. "Anyone who has been splashed, come here for a Deflating Draft."

Everyone who was affected made their way as quickly as they could up to Professor Snape's desk - many were weighed down by limbs as large as clubs, or even were drooping at various angles from puffed up body parts. As Daphne and I remained huddled against our brewing station, I was grateful Professor Snape was near and protected us from sharing the fate of our classmates. Poor Tracey's head was completely ducked against her chest from the weight of her swollen up nose and lips which were the size of small melons.

When everyone had taken a sip of the antidote and the various swellings had subsided, Professor Snape quickly swept over to Crabbe's and Draco's cauldron to inspect it. Crabbe had likely taken a turn at brewing and added the wrong ingredient because Draco was far too skilled of a brewer to make a mistake like this.

However, my thought was quickly disproved when we all saw Professor Snape scooped the twisted black remains of a firework out of what remained of the ruined cauldron. A sudden hush fell over the classroom as everyone realized the explosion was no accident. I was horrified - who was cruel enough to do this?

"If I ever find out who threw this," Professor Snape whispered in a deadly serious voice as his eyes barely roamed over everyone before settling on Potter and Weasley. "I shall make sure that person or persons are expelled."

My own eyes settled on the two Gryffindors. While it was obvious that Professor Snape had a particular dislike for Potter, Potter appeared suspicious to my eyes. Of all things Potter appeared puzzled, but it was clearly fake as his eyes did not match - there was guilt shining in his eyes. Adding in Weasley looking disgustingly pleased with himself left no doubt in my mind that they were behind this.

Part of me wanted to believe that Weasley was once again physically lashing out at Draco for his insulting quips, but there was this nagging feeling in my chest that it was not Weasley who was the one to actually throw the firework into the cauldron. That feeling caused my heart to clench painfully; Potter was now taking a more active role in the animosity fuelled rivalry between him and Draco. He couldn't have done anything more boldly to declare it so than by taking such a risk in the classroom of the professor who would punish him most severely if he had any proof of Potter's actions.

The silent stand-off ended when the bell rang, causing both Daphne and I to jump at the sudden noise. "I expect everyone to submit two feet of parchment explaining the intricate brewing process of the Deflating Draft by next class. Class dismissed," declared Professor Snape before he turned on his heel and stalked away into his office in the front of the classroom.

Daphne and I quickly gathered our things, leaving behind our potion filled cauldron for the house-elves to clean up, before hurrying out of the classroom with everyone else. We paused and waited against the wall for Tracey to exit, and when she did I saw she was still shaken from the incident. She appeared wound tight and her eyes remained firmly fixated on the floor.

Daphne seemed to notice as well as she tentatively asked, "Would you like to go see Madam Pomfrey for a Calming Draught, Tracey?"

"If it's not a bother," Tracey whispered, sagging as some of the tension left her shoulders.

"Not at all," reassured Daphne. "I'd gladly go with you."

"Me too," I agreed, "You're our friend."

My simple declaration made Tracey's eyes snap up. "R-really?" she questioned.

"Oui, ma amie," I agreed with a gentle, genuine smile.

"Truly," Daphne also agreed. However, her smile then turned a little impish. "Actually Esme, why don't you go ahead to your study session, I can go escort our dear Tracey myself."

"Hein? Non, this is more important, and I doubt my study partner will even show up today."

"Trust me, Esme. He'll be there and likely need you. Don't worry, we'll be fine and will see you later."

It still didn't feel right to abandon Tracey at this moment, but now I was concerned with how Neville was handling what happened - he had been among the students affected by the potion.

Tracey spoke up. "If someone needs you, you should go."

Seeing the earnestness shining in her eyes, I felt my hesitation vanish. "Alright then."

"Be sure to give him a hug, I'm sure he'd love that," Daphne teased.

"Le taire!" I sputtered before walking away to escape Daphne's teasing. I didn't know if she was doing it to take Tracey's mind off things or simply to tease me, but either way I did not want to endure any more of it.

I sped walked all the way to the library, only slowing down once I reached its double doors. Madame Pince was situated at her desk like normal. She was quick to remind me to keep quiet as this was a library and not a common room. I softly acknowledged her before making my way to Neville and mine's chosen table.

True to Daphne's words, Neville was already there waiting for me. Like Tracey when she exited the classroom, Neville appeared rattled from the incident. I was glad I listened to Daphne and came here - he also needed a friend right now.

"Bonjour, Neville," I greeted as I settled into the chair next to him, as he hadn't appeared to notice my approach.

He was startled a bit and blinked a few times before focusing on me. "Oh, hey, Esme."

I placed my hand on his own that was resting on the arm of his wooden chair. "Are you alright after…"

"Y-yeah, I'm okay," he replied unconvincingly before forcing a chuckle. "At least it w-wasn't me this time, r-right?"

I winced at his attempted humour and decided that perhaps I should just change the subject. "If it's okay, I was hoping we could review the Herbology assignment for this week," I proposed as I removed my hand from his to take out the materials I needed. "I'm still confused over how to make this taxonomic tree Professor Sprout asked for."

"Oh yeah, no problem," he agreed, perking up from his hunched position. Neville quickly dug through his own bag and took out a blank piece of parchment and his writing equipment. Without stuttering once, Neville proceeded to explain the assignment to me before helping guide me through doing it, giving leading examples yet still making me come up with my own answers.

Now I actually understood this assignment for once, but like I planned, the more Neville talked about Herbology, the quicker the tension left him. However, halfway through, I realized there was a nasty smell in the air and it wasn't until I saw Neville fiddling with something around his neck did I realize the smell was coming from him, or more precisely, what he was wearing around his neck.

We were nearly done when I finally asked about his strange necklace. "Neville, what in Hecate's name are you wearing around your neck?"

Neville glanced down, letting go of the pointed purple crystal he had been fidgeting with. It fell against his chest next to the rotting green onion and newt tail as his cheeks burned scarlet all the way to his ears. "O-oh, they're p-protection t-talismans…"

"Neville…you know you probably don't need those. You're not the preferred target for whoever the Heir of Slytherin is." I didn't bother saying he wasn't in danger because I felt we were all in danger. But the so-called 'enemies of the heir' were in the most immediate danger and Neville was far from who Garrett and Cara said were Slytherin's described 'enemies'.

"I k-know that…I just…I just thought they w-wouldn't hurt. Everyone knows I'm not the b-best at magic, and…they make me f-feel less scared to roam the corridors…"

"I can understand the feeling, but I'd maybe try a protective charm because the onion and newt tail are starting to stink."

He appeared surprised to hear that and reached down to sniff. His nose curled instantly and quickly scrambled to remove the two cords from around his neck. "M-Merlin's pants! I h-hadn't noticed that! How c-could I not notice?"

"I guess you just got used to it."

"Thanks for telling me."

"De rien." After a pause, I then offered, "If you'd like, I could make you a protective charm?"

"R-really?"

"Oui."

"Then y-yeah, I'd l-like that, E-Esme," he stuttered as his cheeks managed to burn even redder than before. "Thank you."

I felt the warm glow of happiness that always bubbled up when I spent time with Neville, or any of my other friends. It felt nice after all the stressful things that happened lately. I knew I would need to find more of these moments, and when I did to savour them, because I felt it in my very magic that things were going to get worse before they got better.

Oui = yes

Ma amie = my friend (female)

Hein = what?

Non = no

Le taire = shut it!

Madame = Mrs.

Bonjour = hello

De rien = you're welcome

Special thanks to my Beta-Readers: Anonymous and TheSparkler!