Denlin continued to struggle in both Charms and Transfiguration throughout the week. By the weekend, he was no better than when he'd last spoken to his father, though maybe a bit more tired. That was why he found himself assisting his father in cataloging ingredients currently in the storeroom, as well as potions currently stored in there.
It was more like he was being made to do all the work, while his father stood in the doorway, watching him. "What's this?" He asked, holding the small green bottle so Snape could see it, but also firmly enough he wouldn't drop it.
"Veritaserum. A very advanced potion. Three drops and anyone will spill their darkest secrets."
"Putting that back." Denlin said, putting it back almost like it had bit him. He logged it down on the sheet of parchment Snape had given him, and rubbed his eyes, they'd been working at this since just after breakfast.
"Can I please take a break? There's got to be hundreds of different items in here and we're only done with 40. And you took my wand so I can't just summon things to look at them."
Snape checked the time, and after a few moments, nodded. "Come down from the ladder, you may take a short break, but we're not done."
As he climbed down from the ladder, Denlin spotted Harry walking by, to where was unknown, but he waved, yet Harry didn't wave back, for unknown reasons. As Denlin was about to say something, another student came down the hall, none other than Malfoy.
"Oh look, serving detention for daddy are you? What's you do this time, make a prediction about Mrs. Norris?"
"I'd suggest for your sake, Mr. Malfoy, you move along. Tormenting other students is not a productive way to spend your weekend." Snape said, intercepting the conversation.
"I'm not tormenting anyone, Professor. It's not torment if it's true, now is it?"
Something In the back of Denlin's mind snapped, and he lunged at Malfoy before he could even think, throwing a punch at the other boy's left eye, and while he didn't fully connect, due to Snape grabbing the back of his shirt collar and pulling him back, he connected just enough to knock Malfoy onto his back on the floor.
Seizing the opportunity, Malfoy jumped to his feet, and grabbed Denlin by the front of his shirt, pulling his hand back to punch him. At this point, Snape physically separated the two boys, pointing his wand at Malfoy to get the boy to let go, at the same time, never letting go of Denlin. "Enough. Both of you."
Turning his gaze on Malfoy, Snape frowned. "Twenty points from Slytherin for each of you. Mr Malfoy, an additional ten points will be taken because you intentionally riled up another student."
Letting go of Denlin, after he could feel the boy physically calm down, Snape continued. "Saturday detention for both of you for the next three weeks. I'm sure I could get a few of the other professors to throw in menial tasks for the two of you to complete. Now, since Denlin spent his morning basically serving his detention this week, Mr. Malfoy, you will spend your evening here, helping me finish cataloging the storeroom. Without magic."
Due to his fight with Malfoy, Denlin was thankfully let off the hook for his Sunday tasks with Snape, giving him a chance to finish his homework that he wasn't able to finish the day before. It also gave him time to start brewing more of his suppressor potion. As he was bottling the potion after brewing it, he looked up as the loud-mouth trio of Malfoy and his lackeys entered the room.
Malfoy crossed the room, intending to torment Denlin again, but as he reached the small table at which Denlin was working, the other boy's head snapped back, and his voice echoed, as he spoke.
"Tonight, an unwilling servant of the one which everyone fears, will make an attempt on that which is guarded. To that end, he will set loose that which distracts within the castle, and while he will be stopped tonight, his quest will not end."
Instead of releasing a burst of magic, instead, Denlin passed out immediately after delivering the prophecy, not realizing he'd done so, nor did anyone make the connection later that night, at the Hallowe'en feast.
Denlin was unconscious for most of it, only waking late Monday morning, and then spending over an hour arguing with Madam Pomfrey that he was fine, but she wouldn't relent, so when Snape came to check on him later in the day, that's where he was, frustrated.
The moment Snape showed up, Madam Pomfrey was fine with letting him go, and that was when Denlin realized that with his father around, he was only going to be released from the Hospital Wing if he was present.
As they went back to his office, Snape began talking, "don't say anything here, I have a feeling I know what happened, but I will be expecting the truth that you know, and do not lie to me."
And that's why Denlin found himself recounting everything he remembered from that night, which wasn't much, before Snape filled him in on the rest of the events since he passed out. Draco was apparently spooked enough that he ran off screaming, altering Rowan and the other Prefect, who ran to get Snape himself.
Snape then brought him up to the Hospital Wing, before going to find Draco to ask him for more on what Denlin might have said. It was then that the feast began, so it was temporarily pushed out of his mind. By the time the whole fiasco with the Troll was over—apparently three Gryffindor first-years took it out somehow—he had completely forgotten about asking about the prophecy.
Fortunately—or maybe unfortunately for Denlin—while he couldn't recall the memory of his prophecy making, it was still there, and his father could always find it in his mind.
"When you get older, I'm teaching you Occlumency. You read worse than an open book, not a good thing for a Doomsayer, or a Soothsayer for that matter." Snape said, having effortlessly invaded his son's mind with Legilimency.
"Yeah, you're one of the most powerful Legilimens to ever live, and one of a few also to be a master Occlumens. You're one to talk."
"Five points from Slytherin. You know I don't like taking points from my own house, Denlin. But anymore cheek and it'll be ten." Snape's words shut Denlin up, who instead nodded.
"Now, you only missed my class, which I'm not too concerned about. Have some lunch." Snape twirled his wand in the air and summoned a plate of sandwiches for Denlin. "Then I believe you have charms next."
As he ate, Denlin shook his head, "History of Magic. The most boring class in the entire school."
"But a valuable one nonetheless. As with Charms and Transfiguration, I don't expect top marks, but I expect you to do your best, and I will be keeping tabs on your progress. Now finish eating and go!"
Denlin realized he'd seen his father limping as they walked back from the Hospital Wing. "Wiggenweld potion should help your leg. You've said it yourself it can heal a variety of injuries." The comment was made over his shoulder as he left the office, and made his way to History of Magic. Thankfully, with as boring as the class was, it was mostly all writing, little actual spellcasting, so he could thankfully keep himself awake during it.
Later that night, after dinner, he had been reading a certain charm that wrote a desired message on a person's forehead. It was non-permanent, but it could last for a full month, and he knew it would be the perfect revenge on Malfoy. That was why he waited for Malfoy to go to bed first, and one he was certain the other boy was in the dead of sleep, he went up the dormitory.
After making sure no one was watching, he whispered "Capupingo!" and the pre-thought word 'Gryffindor' appeared on his head. Without the counter charm, or the appropriate time expiring, Denlin was confident Malfoy would get a lot of fun out of sporting the word around the castle for a month. Maybe he would take to covering it entirely, maybe his entire face, so no one would have to look at him.
With that done, Denlin took off his robes and climbed into bed, a smile on his face. He couldn't wait till morning when Draco would likely look in a mirror and see the word scrawled on his head.
Everyone was harshly wakened the next morning as Draco shouted, having seen his reflection in the mirror. It took every ounce of willpower Denlin had to not smirk, as he got up and got dressed for classes that day. After breakfast was Charms, and he had to start doing better, if he ever wanted his weekends back.
At breakfast, everyone, even members of Gryffindor were coming over to laugh at Malfoy's head, and several times the other boy muttered about finding who did it, and Denlin was confident in his ability to keep it secret. Though if Malfoy did find out who did it, Snape wouldn't be happy when word reached him, and word inevitably would should Malfoy find out.
As he made his way up to Charms, his mind wandered to later in the month. There'd be a Saturday Quidditch game, and he was damn sure he was going to do better, as his and Malfoy's Saturday detentions would be over the week before, and if he wanted to be able to attend the game, he had to improve in Charms.