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Chapter 9

Pay Attention!

Professor Shura Kirigakure was anything but happy. Being summoned to treat a temptaint so soon after the beginning of the term was not her idea of a good day. To make things worse, it was Draco Malfoy, aka the Ferret, who was the one who got said temptaint right after his first Care for Magical Creatures class that was being taught by Shura's drinking buddy, Rubeus Hagrid. She remembered last night how Hagrid kept going on about how excited and nervous he was about teaching for the first time. Now the Ferret ruined Hagrid's teaching career before it even started.

Shura entered the Hospital Wing with her exorcism gear in hand. The Ferret messed with her drinking buddy. She was going to make sure the Ferret knew that he made a huge mistake.

"Hey Poppy," Shura greeted. "Where is he?"

Madam Pomfrey let out a huff and gestured towards Malfoy. "I've treated his arm but he keeps complaining that he's in pain," she explained. "I figured he hasn't had a temptaint yet, so that's why I've summoned you. I heard untreated temptaints can sometimes be painful."

"Sometimes, yes," Shura confirmed.

Malfoy moaned in faux pain and swiped some coal tars away from him with his good arm. The minute he laid eyes on Shura, his already pale face became paler. She gave him a look that promised suffering.

"Well, well, well, you've really done it this time, Ferret, and it's only the first day of the new term," Shura told the Slytherin. She opened up her kit. "Don't think this will excuse you from my classes."

"You can't excuse me from your torturous classes so I can recover from my brush with death?" Malfoy asked with a hint of sarcasm.

Shura rolled her eyes. "I fought a basilisk last spring. That's far deadlier than a single hippogriff, you drama queen." She put her gear down and opened her bag. She pulled out a rather sharp scalpel.

"Wh-What are you going to do with that?" Malfoy asked nervously.

Shura gave the Slytherin a sinister grin. "Oh, Madam Pomfrey told me you're still in pain even though she patched you up. So she asked me to see if your new temptaint was giving you any problems. I decided to go old school and brought some exorcist tools from the days of the witch hunts to see what the problem is."

Malfoy still eyed the scalpel warily. "And the scalpel?" he asked nervously.

Shura's grin widened. "My personal touch," she replied. "As soon as I find the source of the pain, I might have to cut it out. Now hold still; this might sting a bit."

Malfoy quickly scrambled out of bed. "No need! Look, I feel much better now!" he exclaimed.

Madam Pomfrey let out a small huff from where she was standing. "Well isn't that convenient?" she asked sarcastically.

Shura put the scalpel away and got out her holy water and washcloth. "I knew you were exaggerating, Ferret." She parted the bandages and started wiping where the hippogriff scratched the boy. "Next time something dangerous is brought to class, you pay attention to how to handle it best, not tone out the teacher." She put her equipment away and stood up to leave. "And I still expect you in my class this Wednesday. I don't care if your arm falls off between now and then, no excuses."

She then left the Hospital Wing, leaving Malfoy dumbfounded. As soon as the day was over, she was going to take Hagrid to the Hog's Head for drinks. After the day he had, she had a feeling he was going to need it.

~0~0~0~

"You think Malfoy is going to show up today?" Harry asked his friends on Wednesday as they walked to Demonology.

"If he does, he'll probably find a way to get Professor Shura fired," Ron answered. "She and Hagrid are drinking buddies so naturally Malfoy's gonna go after her next."

Rin disagreed. "I doubt it. Malfoy's scared of Professor Shura. Everytime he says or does something she doesn't like, she stabs his desk with that sword of hers."

"I wouldn't be surprised if he drops this class after this year," said Hermione. "He's never taken it seriously."

"Buckbeak's scratch should've given him a temptaint. Maybe his opinion will change this year," Harry pointed out.

"Yeah, right," Rin and Ron said at the same time.

They entered the classroom and took their seats. Malfoy and his goons hadn't shown up yet. Renzo Shima, however, was already there.

"Hey Shima! How's Malfoy doing?" Rin asked.

Shima looked up from a (possibly dirty) Muggle magazine he was reading and quickly stashed it into his bag before answering. "Hey, Okumura! Potter, Weasley, Granger. Malfoy left the Hospital Wing this morning. He showed up shortly after you guys left the Great Hall for breakfast."

"And his arm?" Harry inquired.

"Still bandaged up," Shima answered. "He's really milking it. He was telling the first year Slytherins a very exaggerated version of what happened. He made it seem like he fought in the Vietnam War."

"Vietnam was in a war?" Ron asked Rin.

"Ask Yukio. He explains it better than me," Rin answered.

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Unbelievable. You know he's exaggerating, right?" she asked Shima.

"Of course, I do," he immediately answered. "I thought the hippogriffs were really cool."

"Since when did you talk to Potter and his friends, Shima?" Malfoy asked as he, Crabbe, and Goyle entered the classroom. Malfoy's arm was wrapped in bandages and hanging in a sling.

Shima froze. "Uh, well… I was just telling them the story you were telling the first years last night," he stammered.

Malfoy scoffed. "Those first years will believe anything."

Pansy Parkinson entered and made a beeline for Malfoy. "Oh, Draco! Does it still hurt?" she simpered. Harry and Ron rolled their eyes while Rin pointed his finger towards his open mouth with his tongue sticking out in disgust at the display.

"Sometimes," Malfoy said, like he was a survivor of a horrible battle. "Occasionally I've had nightmares of the whole incident. I wonder how long it will last before I sleep soundly again?"

"Ugh, I'm throwing up!" Rin exclaimed sarcastically.

Before Malfoy, Pansy, or anyone can make a comeback, the door slammed shut. Professor Shura's appearance was completely disheveled. Her ponytail was falling out, bags were under her eyes, and her clothes were rumpled, like she slept in them. It was clear she was suffering from a hangover. The quartet assumed that she spent all of last night comforting Hagrid over drinks.

"Sit down, sit down," she drawled. Everyone did so and Shura did roll call.

"Okay, then, this is Beginners Demonology II," Shura started as soon as she finished. "After this year, this class will be an elective. Whether you want to continue to learn how to defend yourself from demons or not is up to you. This year I will be teaching you some defensive techniques against low-level demons. While you may or may not continue this practice, Professor Dumbledore believes you should at least know how to defend yourself from the small fry." She then looked directly at Malfoy. "So that means I'll occasionally be bringing in low-level demons to class for you guys to practice on. I expect you to pay attention when I do."

The Gryffindors either snickered at Malfoy or gave him hateful glares and stinkeyes. Malfoy glared at Shura for singling him out.

"It's now been three years since you started this class," Shura continued. "Obviously, some of you now have temptaints. Show of hands, who still doesn't have one?" Dean Thomas, Parvati Patil, Crabbe, Goyle, Pansy, Shima, and Millicent Bulstrode raised their hands. "Alright, you guys need to stay after class so you can get one. This class requires you to have a temptaint."

Rin turned towards Seamus Finnigan. "When did you get yours, man?" he inquired.

Seamus shrugged. "Not sure. I think I got it some time in our first year though I don't know how."

Rin shrugged back. He looked at Neville, knowing how he got his temptaint (he fell into a chuchi nest in his first year). Ron had gotten his from the bite of a baby dragon, Harry got his from the basilisk that terrified the school last year, and Hermione got hers from being Petrified by said basilisk. Rin had no idea how he got his. One day he couldn't see demons, the next day he saw green monkey-like creatures called hobgoblins jumping through the trees. He never thought much about it until now. How did he get his?

Guess how Seamus Finnigan got his temptaint! Go ahead!

I am aware of how short this is. It's pretty much filler. A small chapter is better than no chapter, am I right?

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