Confusion?

Chapter Six

"Melanie's mother used to be one of my mother's close friends at Beauxbaxtons. When we were younger Melanie and I loved to play together. We were also good friends. Our parents were from er, umm... very different backgrounds. My father didn't want my mother or me to have close relationships with people with such different standards. Melanie and I continued to exchange owls she told me to tell everything to you but, I wasn't exactly sure what she meant by that do you think you could help me out? I'm drawing a blank." Draco explained.

Catharine pulled out the letter Melanie had written her at the beginning of summer. She kept it close by forever to remind her that some people did care about her.

Catharine,

Voldemort is back! Do you know what this means? I am in trouble! BIG TROUBLE. My family is on the run. I am sorry I can't reply to any of your owls (let alone read them!) Please don't send anymore to me for the time being, I just can't risk them getting caught!

I miss you very much! I can't believe you are going to Hogwarts! When it's okay for us to owl each other you have to tell me everything! Oh shit! I think someone or something is coming! I gotta go! I can't explain anything now just, when you get to Hogwarts, find DRACO MALFOY! He can explain everything!

XXXXX,

Yours,

Melanie Mac Neil

He read the letter. A grin crossed his face.

"You probably know more than I thought. Do you know about her parents past?" Draco inquired.

"Do you mean their past secret kinky sex life?" she asked with a slight sarcastic tone in her voice.

"Oh my god no! Seriously, do you know?" said Draco felling shocked and embarrassed he thought he might even be blushing! This girl had guts.

"How they fiddled in the Dark Arts for a while. In Candsburry most people have. They don't have any ties to He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named anymore though."

"Well the Dark Lord is pissed at them because the turned in a solid amount of Death Eaters for some Galleons!" Draco exclaimed.

"Oh wow, I had no idea!" said Catharine shocked.

"Well know you do. You know Catharine, you're not too bad, Pansy and Millicent made you out to be all Dumbledore."

"All Dumbledore?" asked Catharine feeling confused.

"You know a pure-blood who loves Muggles so much."

Catharine laughed.

"I wish I made that up." she said.

"It's been fun but, I have a prefect meeting in fifteen minutes. She you at breakfast tomorrow morning!"

"Uh, see you!"

***

Catharine passed the evening in the Common Room, thinking about Hermione. How could it be possible that she was a Mud-blood? She was really smart, relatively pretty and friendly. This would never happen in Candsburry. Mud-bloods weren't even allowed in the town. If a Muggle or Mud-blood were to be found in the town, they would surely be killed. Maybe not killed, but they certainly weren't welcomed.

She needed to clear her mind, so walked into her dorm and fetched her Weird Sisters CD. One of the girls who had taunted her earlier was there, fixing her hair. "Er, hi, I guess my friends and I could of been a little nicer to you. You probably had no idea Granger was a Mud-blood. We'll give you one more chance if you want."

Catharine thought about this for a minute; she didn't want to be friendless at Hogwarts. She certainly didn't want to be friends with this girl, but some friends were better than none.

"Okay, I guess," said Catharine.

"First, you'll have to prove to us that you don't like that Mud-blood Granger!" said the girl.

"What?!?"

"I knew you couldn't do it. Get out of here, you Mud-blood lover. Face it, you're not gonna fit in Slytherin. You should put in for a transfer to Hufflepuff - it was done two years ago," said the girl smugly.

"What do you want me to do to Hermione?" asked Catharine.

"Well..."

***

The second day of school was finally over for Kenneth. He loved Hogwarts and couldn't wait for flying lessons tomorrow. Hogwarts was such an amazing place and it was ten times bigger than Constance! Besides, the people were much nicer here than in Candsburry. He was making tons of new friends. Kenneth spent the whole evening talking to John in the Common Room complaining about the homework Snape, the Potions Master, had given them. They were just about to get down to doing their homework when a Prefect came in and said, "Lights out."

"All those stupid Prefects, always bossing us first years around. What crawled up their ars-" John was cut off by a girl who, sure enough, had a shiny silver "P" badge on her robes. John gulped.

"Is that what you think about us Prefects? This is a warning - if I or any other Prefect or Professor catch you speaking in that manner again, there will be trouble. I expected better from Seamus' little brother! Now off to your dorms," said the girl.

The girl went to her dorm and was greeted by Parvati and Lavender who were getting ready to sneak out and meet Ron and Seamus.

"Honestly, Hermione, you don't have to be so hard on the first years. It's only their second day here - they don't know all of the rules," said Lavender.

"They were not respecting higher authority. Are you two sneaking out again?"

"Yeah, so what? When are we supposed to get quality time with Ron and Seamus?" asked Parvati.

"What if you get caught? You could get expelled! You aren't going to use the passage way I showed you?"

"Do you know what you need, Hermione? A boyfriend!" exclaimed Lavender.

"Yeah, we could go on triple dates. Dean is available and he is a Prefect!" said Parvati.

"I DON'T CARE! I DO NOT NEED A BOYFRIEND. Just go on and meet your stupid boyfriends. Don't be too long. You know it is my duty as a Prefect to tell McGonagall about this! I could be in more trouble than you," Hermione turned her back to pick out her nightgown. "When you are expelled, don't come crying to me. I was almost expelled once. You shouldn't be more that five minutes and ..." she turned around, and the two girls were gone.

***

Catharine had a hard time sleeping that night. She didn't want to do that to Hermione. It was so mean.

"She is a mud-blood," she reasoned with herself.

It was really hard to believe that, but it was true - there was nothing she could do about it. Catharine really didn't want to spend the next three years without any friends in her own House. She decided to do it.