Power of the Quill

The Power of the Quill.

Chapter 06. Enemies.

Thursday didn't look like it was going to be much better than Wednesday. Hermione's first class of the day was, of course, Potions. As Hermione made her way down to the dungeons, she wondered if Snape would take this opportunity to pay her back for everything she had said in Dumbledore's office or would he simply choose to ignore her? She was really hoping for the silent treatment.

When she reached the Potions classroom the Slytherins were already making their way inside. The Gryffindors always waited for the Slytherins to enter first, so they could take the seats in the back of the class. No one other than a Slytherin wanted to be that close to Snape.

Hermione noticed that Draco, Goyle, and Crabbe hadn't followed the rest of the Slytherins into the classroom. They seemed to be waiting for something. The clamor of footsteps running in the corridor caught Hermione's attention. There, in all her former glory, was Pansy Parkinson.

Pansy slowed to a fast walk as she neared the classroom. She still held her head high as if nothing had changed. Unfortunately, this meant she never saw Crabbe stick his leg out to trip her. She landed facedown in the middle of the corridor with a loud SPLAT. Almost everyone in the corridor began to laugh, though Hermione failed to see the humor in what Crabbe had done.

"Better watch your step next time, Mudblood," Draco said as he placed his right foot in-between Pansy's shoulder blades and stepped down hard on her back. He continued to step over her and headed into the classroom. Both Goyle and Crabbe did the same. Pansy grimaced in pain as each boy used her as a stepping-stone.

Hermione was shocked that no one in the corridor, including herself, did anything but watch as Draco and his cronies physically humiliated a member of their own House. She had no real sympathy for Parkinson, but what Draco did was truly revolting to witness.

Pansy got up and quickly brushed herself off. She then continued on into the classroom as if nothing had happened. As she passed, Hermione noticed Pansy's shirt had gray porridge stains on the front and collar. Hermione didn't have a clue as to why Pansy was still wearing the same clothes from yesterday morning or why she hadn't used a simple cleaning charm on herself.

Hermione entered the classroom and took her usual seat next to Neville. Harry was at the table just to her right with his new Potion partner, Lavender Brown. Both Ron and Parvati had decided against taking Potions as one of their N.E.W.T-level courses. Hermione saw Pansy sitting in the extreme far-right front of the classroom at a table by herself. Millicent Bulstrode, who was normally paired with Parkinson, was now sitting at a table with Vincent Crabbe.

Seconds later, Professor Snape burst through the door in his normal overly dramatic fashion. He headed straight for the front of the class without making eye contact with anyone. Once he reached his desk he turned and gave the entire class an intimidating glare.

"Take out your texts and turn to chapter four," Snape said, with a menacing look on his face. There was a loud rumble in the classroom as everybody pulled their textbooks out their book-bags and dropped them on the tables with a thud. Snape stared at Pansy who continued to sit there without a book in front of her.

"Miss Parkinson, where is your textbook?" Snape asked.

"I don't know Professor," Pansy answered uncomfortably.

"You don't know?" Snape asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Uh...no, Sir. When I returned from the infirmary this morning, all my books were gone. Everything I owned was missing; my clothes, my trunk, even my bed. The only thing I found was this." Pansy pulled two small pieces of wood out of her robe pocket and paced them on the table in front of her. Hermione craned her neck to the side to get a better view of the objects. It became quickly apparent that she was looking at two halves of a broken wand. This seemed to explain why Pansy hadn't changed or cleaned her clothes yet.

Snape scanned the class with a suspicious look on his face. "Miss Bulstrode, you share the six year female dorm with Miss Parkinson. Would you care to enlighten me as to what happened to all Miss Parkinson possessions?" Snape asked.

"I have no idea, Professor," Millicent said, trying to sound innocent, but failing. "Me and the rest of my roommates spent most of last night in the Common Room by the fireplace. We spent the evening studying and watching the fire burrnnn," Millicent said, while looking at Pansy, with an evil smirk on her face, not even trying to look innocent this time. Even with all the Slytherins' backs to her, Hermione was pretty sure most of them had the same shit-eating grin on their faces.

Snape scanned the room with an irritated look. Apparently, he decided, he wasn't going to get anything close to the truth out of this bunch, and he wasn't about to air his house's dirty laundry in front of a group of Gryffindors. Finally he turned back to Pansy and said, "Miss Parkinson you will have to contact your parents and have them re-supply you with books, clothing, a wand, and whatever else you are missing."

From the distraught look on Pansy's face, Hermione guessed that Pansy had received the same letter as Ron from her parents. Hermione still couldn't bring herself to feel sorry for Parkinson. The girl had burnt far to many bridges with Hermione for her to care now.

Suddenly Neville, who had taken forever to dig his book out of his very messy book-bag, dropped it on the table in front of Hermione, sending up enough dust to make her sneeze loudly, (HAATCHEW.)

"Mr. Longbottom, Miss Granger, that will be ten points apiece from Gryffindor for disturbing the class," Snape said almost joyfully.

"You mean Mrs. Snape," Blaise Zabini said under his breath. A couple of the Slytherins chuckled at hearing his comment.

"MR. ZABINI, YOU ARE EXCUSED!!" Snape roared from the front of the class.

"Excuse me, Sir?" Blaise said with a very mystified look on his face.

"You heard me Mr. Zabini. Get out of my sight before I take away points and add a detention to go along with your zero for the day," Snape said, sounding absolutely livid.

Not wanting to push his luck, Blaise quickly got up and started to put his textbook back in his bag. "Mr. Zabini you will loan Miss Parkinson your text for this class. I will make sure she returns it to you as soon as this period is over," Snape ordered. Blaise dropped his book on the table in front of Pansy and headed out of the room.

As soon as the door closed behind Blaise, Snape gave the class another glare and said, "I want you each to read through chapter four, "Brewing with Sealed Cauldrons". Monday, I will expect three feet of parchment on the proper use of sealed cauldrons." A few groans in the classroom brought Snape's anger back to a boil. "If I hear so much as another peep out of any of you before this period is over, I will have this entire class up in the owlery on your hands and knees scrubbing all of the owl droppings from the floor." After Snape's threat, you could hear a pin drop in the Potions classroom for the next fifty-five minutes.

As soon as the period ended, Hermione wasted little time making for the door. Once she entered the corridor, Hermione saw Blaise standing just outside the classroom, apparently waiting for Pansy to return his textbook. "Go ahead Harry, I'll catch up with you. I want to talk to Zabini for a second," she said. Harry was about to protest, but Hermione just shooed him away with a gesture of her hand as she walked over to Blaise. Harry continued down the corridor looking back with a worried expression.

"What do you want Granger?" Blaise asked, giving her a suspicious look.

"I want to know if you heard anything about Claudia yet?"

"Who?" Blaise said, looking a little confused.

"Your betrothed, stupid!" Hermione said sounding very annoyed.

"Oh her, no, I haven't heard anything from her yet. Why?" he asked.

"She left the country yesterday. Didn't you know that?"

"Really? She's gone?" Blaise asked, sounding very enthused.

"Try not to sound so disappointed, Zabini," Hermione said angrily to the dark-headed teenager.

"Come on Granger. Don't tell me you wouldn't be happy if Professor Snape disappeared off the face of the earth right about now?" Blaise asked.

Hermione couldn't answer that question. While she really didn't want to marry Snape, he was her safest choice at the moment. If he did disappear, she would probably be more worried than relieved. "Listen Blaise, Claudia's father was arrested yesterday after she left. The Ministry is holding him until she comes back and marries you."

"She'll probably be coming back then, won't she?" Blaise asked, sounding disappointed.

"Yes, she will," Hermione said, giving Blaise a very stern look. "And when she does return, I will expect you to act like a true gentleman around her, and not like the Slytherin you are. Just remember, she's a very close friend of mine and I'm a close friend of Professor Dumbledore and McGonagall; not to mention, I'll be married to your Head of House soon. So, if you don't want the next two years of your life to be a living hell, you will treat Claudia right."

Blaise raised one hand in a surrendering gesture and said, "You don't have to worry about me Granger. You know what my motto is to follow the path of least resistance."

"Be sure that it is Blaise. I'll be keeping an eye on you," Hermione said in a threatening tone.

"Hey Granger, there is just one thing I'd like to know?" Blaise asked with a serious look on his face.

"What?"

"Is it true women's boobs get bigger once they're pregnant," Blaise asked, looking almost hopeful.

"Zabini, you're disgusting. You know that?" Hermione said flatly.

"What?" Blaise asked, looking a little confused.

Just then, Pansy emerged as the last student to leave the Potions classroom. She headed straight for Blaise with his book in her hand. "Here," she said coldly, as she thrust the book at him. She didn't even look at Blaise; instead she stared right at Hermione with a murderous glare. As soon as he took the book from her she turned away and muttered "Gryffindor Bitch," under her breath as she headed down the corridor towards the main hall.

"What the hell's wrong with her?" Hermione asked. "She can't possibly blame me for her being a Muggle-born."

"Get a clue Granger. She's not mad at you because she found out she's a Mudblood." Hermione quickly shot Blaise an angry look. "Sorrreee, I meant Muggle-born," Blaise sarcastically corrected. "No, she's mad at you for marrying Snape."

"What?"

"Come on, Granger. Everybody knows Parkinson has had it bad for Professor Snape ever since her third year."

"Really?" she said, sounding surprised.

"Yeah, you know a couple years ago, she actually asked Professor Snape to the Yule Ball. When he turned her down you would have thought both her parents had just died. She was sulking around the Slytherin Common Room for a week. I think Draco only asked her to go with him to shut up all the crying."

This was all news to Hermione. She didn't think anyone was nuts enough to fall for Snape. She knew Pansy was thick, but to actually have a crush on Snape. The man wouldn't give a clock the time of day. Hermione just let out a sigh, knowing Pansy was just going to be another headache added onto this whole stupid Marriage Law confusion. Of course, with Pansy's whole world crumbling to pieces around her, Hermione would be the perfect person to blame now.

"You know, Blaise, you could try to be nice to Pansy. You're both in the same situation now," Hermione said.

"No way, Granger. That girl is trouble with a capital "T". There's a big difference between being forced to marry a Muggle-born and actually being a Muggle-born in Slytherin. Anyone getting too close to her is going to get burned," Blaise said very seriously.

"You Slytherins are all despicable, you know that? I bet you enjoyed it when they burned everything she owned last night," Hermione said accusingly.

"Of course I didn't enjoy it. They had that damn fire roaring away half the night. It had to be 90 degrees in Slytherin last night," Blaise answered. Hermione just couldn't believe how shallow this guy was.

"And you call yourself her friend. This is pretty sad even for a Slytherin," Hermione said in a condemning tone.

"I've never been her friend. She has always hung around with Millicent, Draco, and his two goons. Before this happened to her she wouldn't give me the time of day."

"Well, they're obviously not her friends anymore. If you won't be her friend then who will?" Hermione asked.

"I don't know, Granger, and I really don't care. I plan to stay on the sidelines where it's safe and avoid this whole mess," Blaise answered.

"No wonder your parents gave you a girl's name, Blaise. You have no BALLS!" Hermione shouted, as she turned away from the Slytherin and stormed down the dungeon corridor.

"It's not a girl's name. It's like Terry, both can use it," Blaise shouted after her.

     ...............................................................

Harry entered the Main Hall with pretty much nothing to do. He had decided against taking Divination as a N.E.W.T-level class this year. This gave him a whole two extra hours a week to kill. He could use this time to start on Snape's essay or some other schoolwork he hadn't done yet. But, Harry felt it was unnatural to be doing schoolwork in the middle of the day. He just wished that Ron or Hermione had this period free as well. Harry feared he wasn't going to be seeing much of his friends this year, not with their different schedules and this new Marriage Law.

Harry considered going up to Dumbledore's office to see if the Headmaster was in. He still hadn't told Dumbledore that he, Ron and Hermione planned to go to Black Manor on Saturday evening. Harry really didn't need the Headmaster's permission to go. All sixth and seventh years were allowed to leave Hogwarts on the weekends as long as they were back by curfew. The Marriage Law also gave him permission to leave overnight to meet with his betrothed. Harry thought it was a good idea to tell Dumbledore, just in case it was a trap.

As Harry neared the main entrance to Hogwarts, he saw a large wizard in gold and black robes enter the school. He wondered if this could be the new Defense Against the Dark Arts, which Professor Dumbledore had mentioned. It only took Harry a moment to recognize the man; it was Marcus Flint. The last time he had seen Flint was just before the final task of the Triwizard Tournament. Back then Flint was a five-foot eleven, gangly eighteen-year-old teenager with very crooked teeth.

Now he was a six-foot-three man with very broad shoulders and lots of muscles. Gone was his trademark alligator grin and crew cut hair. Now he sported a prefect set of choppers and a long black mane tied in a ponytail. Harry wondered if a person could grow that big in only two years. He didn't know if there was a magical equivalent to steroids but if there were, Flint was definitely using.

"Is that you Potter?" Flint asked looking at Harry.

"Yes," Harry answered. "What are you doing here Flint?"

"Came to see the little woman, Potter. Mary Edgecam I think," Flint said while giving Harry a smile that he didn't really trust.

"It's Marietta Edgecombe," Harry corrected.

"You know her then?" Flint asked.

"A little. She's actually Cho Chang's best friend," he answered.

"That's good news. I don't remember Chang running around with any Ugo's. Just what does Edgecombe look like Potter?"

"She's five-five with light brown curly hair."

"Good looking?" Flint asked optimistically.

"She's all right," Harry answered. The truth was he never considered whether Marietta was good-looking or not, she was simply Cho's friend to him.

"Kind of a Plain-Jane is she?" Flint said. "That's all right. The really good-looking ones are usually more trouble than they're worth." Harry had to admit there was some truth in what Flint had said. His short romance with Cho had been a complete disaster.

"So Potter, what's been happening at the school since I left? I heard Dumbledore tried to stage some kind of uprising against the Ministry here last year."

"That's not true," Harry snapped back at Flint.

"I never said it was true, Potter. It's just what I heard," Flint said.

"Well it's a lie. Minister Fudge tried to take over Hogwarts and get rid of Professor Dumbledore. He didn't want Dumbledore telling people Voldemort had returned," Harry said. He was a little surprised that Flint didn't flinch at the sound of the Dark Lord's name. He noticed a lot of people were now using Voldemort's name. Even the 'Dailey Prophet' was starting to use "Voldemort" instead of "He-who-must-not-be-named", but never on the front-page, though.

"Fudge is just an old fool, Potter. Every Pureblood family knew the Dark Lord had returned the night Cedric died," Flint said.

"Yeah, well nobody but Dumbledore seemed to believe me, that's until I did that interview for the "Quibbler"," Harry said.

"You mean no one admitted that they believed you until that interview. Both Fudge and the Dark Lord had nothing to gain from people believing your story. Now that it's all out in the open, the Ministry is checking everywhere for Death Eaters. Now they send an Auror by every two weeks to check the league players' arms for Dark Marks. Every Slytherin I know is starting to wear short-sleeve robes, so that they aren't accused of being one."

"Do you know any Death Eaters, Flint?" Harry asked, not really expecting a truthful answer from the Slytherin.

"Well, I've never actually seem anyone with the Dark Mark. But it wouldn't surprise me if some of the people my parents associated with were Death Eaters. They were very close to the Malfoys, Notts and Averys you know," Flint said.

"What about your parents, did you ever think that maybe your dad might be a Death Eater?" Harry asked, realizing this was starting to sound like an interrogation.

"What, you don't think I haven't checked?" Flint said with a smile. "It would be pretty bad for my career if someone in the family turned out to be a Death Eater. No, even though my dad is as Pureblood as they come, he has always pandered to both sides. I guarantee he wouldn't join the Death Eaters unless there was some real money in it for him.

"So, what's this I hear about you being kicked off the Quidditch team?" Flint asked, obviously trying to change the subject.

"Actually me, Fred, and George Weasley were banned for life after we beat up Draco Malfoy for insulting our parents after a game. But Dumbledore got the ban lifted, I'll be back on the team this year."

"Oh please don't mention that spoiled little fart to me. Accepting those damn brooms was the worst thing I ever did as captain. You know in the two years I played with Malfoy he only caught one bloody snitch, and that's including practices. He only caught that one because when he accidentally flew into it the snitch just happened to get stuck in his cloak," Flint said with a disgusted look on his face.

"'The Prophet' said that you're a Beater now. But I remember you playing Chaser." Harry asked.

"Potter, everybody and his brother wants to be a Professional Quidditch Chaser or Keeper, people think that's where all the action is. There's no way I could have made a professional team if I tried out for Chaser. Look at Wood, he was a great Keeper and he ended up as the third-string Keeper on the Cannons' reserve team. He has to work part- time at the Cleansweep factory testing brooms to make ends meet.

"The truth is, there's not a lot of really good Beaters and Seekers in the Pro league, Potter. Neither position is really a fan favorite. The fans love to boo at the Beaters and throw things at them when their favorite players are hit or interfered with. The Seekers aren't much more popular. The fans get really mad if the snitch is caught right away; remember, unlike the games here at Hogwarts, people pay to see the League games."

"Pro Seekers catching the snitch right away, that happens a lot?" Harry asked.

"It use to. The last couple of years the games have only averaged about forty minutes. It's mainly due to all of the super-fast brooms the Seekers are now using. This year the league has sped up the snitches to 120 percent. They're suppose to be un-catchable for the first hour of play."'

"The snitch slows down after an hour?" Harry asked.

"Of course, all snitches slow down. Didn't you know that, Potter?"

"No," Harry said.

"The Snitches normally start out at 100 percent. They drop 10 percent of their speed every hour, until they reach 50 percent. By then even I could catch one," Flint said.

"I never knew that," Harry said.

"That's because you always catch the bloody thing before it gets a chance to slow down," Flint said with a laugh. "I've always been pretty good with a bat and bludger, that's why I tried out for Beater. Lucky for me, both the Tornados Beaters were retiring this year."

"'The Prophet' said you've been doing really well. They say you might even get Rookie of the Year honors."

"That's because I found a whole new way to play the position," Flint said. "Most Beaters go after the Chasers to keep them from scoring. Not me. I go after the other Beaters right away, the crowd loves that. If I can knock out the other teams Beaters, my partner and I can control the bludgers for the rest of the game."

"It sound like it's working, the Tornados are undefeated this year," Harry said.

"It's been great Potter. We're only four games into the season and I've already racked up 29 broken bones, 7 concussions, and forced two player into early retirement due to injuries," Flint said proudly. "I just love the sound of bones cracking under the impact of a bludger." Harry had to agree, it did sound like Flint found his true calling.

"Don't worry Potter. As soon as you turn seventeen there will be plenty of teams showing up at your door wanting to sign you. I can guarantee the Tornados will be one."

"I really don't think I want to be a professional Quidditch player," Harry said.

"You have to, mate," Flint pleaded to Harry. "The fans are tired of all these foreign Seekers who think they are better than everyone else. They need a proper British Seeker to root for. What could possibly be more important than that?" Flint asked.

"Actually, I've decided to become a Auror for the Ministry," Harry answered.

Flint gave Harry a very strange look, as if Harry had told him that he wanted to be an astronaut and fly to Mars. "Potter, you do realize Fudge isn't going to let you get anywhere near the Ministry, not while he is still the Minister of Magic. The man fears you and Dumbledore more than he ever will the Dark Lord."

Harry was a little stunned by Flint's statement. Not just by the fact that it was true, but also because he hadn't thought of it before. All applications for Auror training have to be approved by the Head Minister's Office. There was no way in hell Fudge was ever going to approve Harry's application.

"Don't worry Potter, a star Quidditch player can get almost as much press as the Minister himself. Take me for example; three months ago nobody cared what I had to say. Now, everybody wants to know where I buy my clothes and what kind of cologne I wear," Flint said with a grin.

"You know Flint, for someone being forced to get married, you really don't seem to be that upset," Harry said.

"Are you kidding Potter? This Marriage Law was a true gift from heaven," Flint said.

"You can't be serious?" Harry asked, sounding a little confused.

"I am serious. Before this law, my family already had me betrothed to this German witch. I swear Potter, the woman had to be half mountain-troll, and that would be the better-looking half. I don't care what Edgecombe looks like; she has to be better than that chocolate-eating Water Buffalo I almost had to marry. Besides, having a nice teenage wife to shag between games doesn't sound too bad, does it?" Flint said with a slightly depraved looked on his face.

"Listen Flint, Marietta is barely seventeen years old. She's a very shy person. I doubt she's even had a boyfriend yet. You might want to take it easy with her," Harry said. He didn't know why, but he felt the need to protect Marietta almost like a father. It probably had something to do with the fact he had decided to forgive her and let her back into the D.A club.

"Don't worry Potter, she's not the first seventeen year old virgin I've had. Hell, she won't even be the first I've had this month," Flint said with an unpleasant grin on his face. For just a minute, Harry had forgotten he was talking to a Slytherin, but there it was. Flint might not be a Death Eater, but he was still capable of doing serious damage to Marietta.

"So, I hear you've been roped into marring Malfoy's sister. I didn't even know he had a sister," Flint said.

"He doesn't, I'm betrothed to his mom," Harry corrected.

"WAY TO GO POTTER!" Flint yelled, and then slapped Harry hard on the back, causing him to almost fall over.

"Flint, not even you can't think it's a good idea for me to marry Mrs. Malfoy," Harry said.

"Are you kidding, Potter? I would give up my best broom for just a half-an-hour with her," Flint stated. Harry just gave Flint a mystified look. "Listen Potter. A couple of summers ago Mr. Malfoy invited the whole Slytherin Quidditch team to come practice at Malfoy Manor, they have their own private pitch. One morning we were all in the main dining room having breakfast when Mrs. Malfoy came in. She looked like she was still wearing the clothes she slept in, but I doubt anybody looks that good just waking up. She had this peach- colored silk nightgown on with this thin white lace robe over the top. She kept the robe open in the front. When she bent over to pick up a copy of the morning paper by the window, facing east, the sunlight shined right though her silk nightgown. My imagination wasn't even close to the reality of what I saw. I got such a case of wood, I almost flipped the dining table over when I stood up."

"Looks aren't everything, Flint," Harry stated.

"No, but they make this whole marriage pill a lot easier to swallow," Flint said, confirming just how superficial he was. Harry believed he had had about as much company as he could stand from the Slytherin.

"Well Flint, I need to be getting back to Gryffindor Tower. I have a lot of schoolwork to catch up on," Harry said, trying to sound sincere.

"Alright Potter, I hope to see you on the pitch before too long," Flint said.

"We'll just have to see," Harry replied.

     ..................................................................................

Severus Snape entered the Staff Room to see that Dumbledore, McGonagall and the rest of the staff that was in the Order, were already there. He could have gotten there earlier but didn't want to have to socialize with anyone more than necessary.

"Now that Severus has finally decided to join us, we can begin," Dumbledore said, giving Severus a dissatisfied look. Severus wondered if the Headmaster realized his fatherly looks of disapproval stopped working on him when he was fifteen.

"As you all might have guessed, I called this impromptu meeting of the Order to discuss the actions we will need to take because of this new Marriage Law."

"And just what actions are those?" Severus rudely interrupted as he took the seat next to McGonagall.

"I'm glad to see your mood has improved since yesterday Severus," Dumbledore said with a smile. Severus just stared angrily back at him without comment.

"I want to discuss the actions the Order will need to take to insure no harm comes to those Muggle-born and Halfbloods that were chosen. I feel it's only a matter of time before there is a backlash against this law from the Pureblood families. I have already assigned members of the Order to keep an eye on those chosen. Most have had little, if any, contact with their Pureblood partners. I feel we may need to keep up this protection until all these marriage contracts are fulfilled."

"Albus, don't you think you're stretching the Order a bit thin?" Flitwick asked. "We may not be able to respond to the Dark Lord's next move if we are spread out all over Britain protecting these Muggle-borns."

"I'm afraid we have little choice in the matter. The Ministry is only concerned with the completion of these contracts, not with the safety of the participants. There are only six marriages outside of Hogwarts that I feel we need to keep an eye on. That should not be too much for the Order to handle," Dumbledore said.

"And what of the marriages inside of Hogwarts? Do you see any trouble there?" Professor Spout asked.

"I'm afraid so. It's the Flint and Zabini marriages that worry me most," Dumbledore answered.

"Why those Albus? I was under the impression Flint was grateful for being selected and Zabini always seemed to be one of the more tolerable ones of that Slytherin crowd," McGonagall asked.

"It is not Marcus and Blaise that concern me, Minerva," Dumbledore said. "It's their families. Both stand to lose a lot if their sons marry Muggle-borns. The Flint family, in particular, had to forfeit a very lucrative marriage contract they had arranged for Marcus. Since they're both the only heirs in their families, I don't' believe the families will disown them. But that doesn't mean they won't take out their anger on their sons' new brides.

"We can keep a close eye on Miss Edgecombe here at Hogwarts, and make sure a member of the staff accompanies her if she needs to leave the school. I had two members of the Order meet Miss Turnnage at the Muggle airport in London today when she returned. Miss Tonks has decided to do some under-cover work for the Ministry as a new employee for Flourish and Botts. This should allow her to keep an eye on Miss Turnnage without making the Ministry too suspicious."

"Albus, I am concerned about Miss Parkinson," McGonagall said. " She came to class without any of her textbooks. She said everything she owned has gone missing and someone had broken her wand. I don't believe it 's a good idea to have her stay in Slytherin anymore."

"I must agree with you Minerva," Dumbledore said. "Severus, you should go ahead and arrange new quarters for Miss Parkinson in the east wing. I will owl Ollivander's tomorrow for a replacement wand for Miss Parkinson. I received a notice from the Ministry today informing me that the Parkinson family has legally removed themselves as Miss Parkinson's legal guardians. The Ministry has also granted their request that Miss Parkinson not be allowed to continue using the Parkinson name."

"Douglas Parkinson is such an arse!" McGonagall stated.

"And just what am I suppose to call her Headmaster?" Severus asked.

"I suppose we could call her Miss Taylor, at least until she becomes Mrs. Weasley next month," Dumbledore answered.

"I doubt Miss Parkinson would appreciate being reminded of her true parentage. I think it would be best if we continued using Parkinson until her marriage. I doubt the Ministry will object as long as we don't put anything in writing with the name Pansy Parkinson on it," Snape said.

"You're probably right, Severus," Dumbledore said.

"Also, I have already informed Miss Parkinson that she will be spending the night in the infirmary once again. Tomorrow, I will have the house-elves prepare a room in the east wing for her," Snape said.

"Albus, do you see any trouble coming with Mr. Potter or Miss Granger's marriages?" Flitwick asked.

"I'm afraid I can't really predict the response Narcissa will have to this marriage. Unlike her two high-tempered sisters, she has always been a very calculating woman. I don't know if that is a good or bad thing at the moment," Dumbledore said. "As for Miss Granger, I believe we can trust she'll be safe in Severus' hands."

"I wouldn't be so sure of that, Headmaster. Lately, I have found myself looking though my undetectable poisons texts. Don't be surprised if the little Gryffindor pain-in-the-arse suddenly develops an incurable case of Elvin Red Flu," Snape said with an evil grin on his face.

"Severus Snape, Hermione Granger is one of the finest student to ever grace Hogwarts' halls," McGonagall said angrily. "I will expect you to treat her with the respect and kindness that a true treasure like her deserves."

"To quote your little bushy-haired prodigy, you can expect bats to fly out your arse for all I care," Snape said with a smirk. McGonagall quickly reached over and smacked him up side the head with her open hand.

"Severus, I should transform you into a house-elf," she said heatedly. "Maybe after a couple of weeks in the school kitchen you would learn some humility." Severus rubbed the back of his head as he glared at the old witch. He had felt the sting of her hand many times before, ever since he was ten. He wondered if she would ever start treating him as an adult.

"If you two are quite done, I have another matter to discuss," Dumbledore said sounding a little impatient. "Our new Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor will be arriving tomorrow. He would have arrived at the start of the week, but an illness delayed him."

Severus wondered whom the Headmaster had chosen this time. This year he didn't even attempt to apply for the position. He figured if the five previous D.A.D.A Professors didn't convince Dumbledore that he was the best man for the job, than nothing would. Now the Headmaster had apparently chosen a sickly old wizard to do a job he probably wasn't qualified for. He just hoped he wouldn't be wasting his time making medical potions to keep the old buzzard alive. Far too much of his spare time was already used up making Lupin's Wolfsbane potion. A disturbing thought crossed Severus' mind as he thought of Lupin. He realized that Monday had been the start of this month's full moon.

"Headmaster, this illness our new Professor suffers from, it wouldn't happen to have anything to do with the full moon?" Severus asked with a suspicious look on his face.

"Well as a matter of fact, it does," Dumbledore answered with a straight face.

Without another word, Severus simply got up out of his chair and left the room.

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Hermione entered the Great Hall for dinner by herself. Harry and Ron were still in the Gryffindor Common Room discussing new strategies for the upcoming Quidditch season. There was nothing that could drive her from a room faster than a discussion about a bunch of fools on brooms chasing after some flying balls.

She took the seat next to Ginny who was sorting though a plate of blueberry muffins, apparently hunting for the one with the most berries in it. "Why aren't you with Harry and Ron discussing the Quidditch team? Don't you plan on playing this year?" Hermione asked.

"Oh, I'm playing this year alright. I just don't want to be around when they decide who is going to be the new team captain," Ginny answered.

"Why not?"

"Because they'll try to make me chose between the two of them, and that's just a no-win situation." Ginny said.

"What about you? Why can't you be the new team captain?" Hermione asked.

"Me? You're joking right?"

"No, I'm serious Ginny. There's no reason it has to be only Ron or Harry. Neither of them has any more experience at captaining a team than you do. Besides, it would probably be best if neither were Captain. The one that doesn't get chosen will probably resent the other. Remember how Harry felt about Ron getting that prefect's badge. This could be ten times worse."

"I'll think about it," Ginny said with a reflective look on her face.

Hermione scanned the room as she began to make her plate. The staff table was almost deserted. 'Dumbledore must be having some kind of a meeting' she thought to herself. When she looked over at the Slytherin table, she observed that Parkinson was at the far end sitting alone. There was at least ten feet between her and the next Slytherin. The scene reminded Hermione of her first couple of months here at Hogwarts. She had been a pariah herself until that Halloween night when Ron and Harry rescued her from the mountain- troll. Soon, Pansy would have one thing in her favor. In less than a month she would have Ron to protect her from her enemies, and that was a lot more than she deserved.

Just as Hermione started to hunt for her own multi-berried muffin, the sound of someone choking filled the Great Hall. Hermione instantly looked back at the Slytherin table. Sure enough, Pansy was bent over her plate, trying to retch her guts out. Suddenly, a large clump of some kind of dark gray matter fell out of her mouth onto her plate with a loud splat. Pansy held both of her hands to her throat as she gulped air into her starved lungs.

"A little too much Mud for the Mudblood I guess," Hermione heard one of the Slytherins say. The rest of the Slytherins continued to laugh hysterically. As soon as she caught her breath, Pansy picked up her dinner plate and threw it at the wall. The plate smashed into several pieces and fell to the floor. Pansy then got up out of her seat and started to storm out of the Great Hall. She suddenly came to a stop as she neared Hermione.

Hermione quickly spun around, not trusting to keep her back to the Slytherin.

"I bet you just think this is so funny, don't you Granger?" Pansy shouted with a furious look on her face.

"You didn't see me laughing, did you Parkinson?" Hermione spat back at her. "Don't take out your anger on me because your disgusting House is starting to treat you like you have always treated me."

"You think you're so damn perfect, don't you?" Pansy said with fire in her eyes. "You think just because Dumbledore and McGonagall kiss your arse that you're something special. You may fool those stupid Gryffindors but I know the truth. You're nothing but a filthy Mud...nothing but a filthy mmm....just a filthy mmm........

"Is Mudblood the word you're groping for, Parkinson? Funny, I don't think it will have the same sting coming from you now," Hermione said, with a rather confident smile on her face. She wasn't about to let Pansy take her crappy day out on her.

"I am a Mudblood Parkinson. A Mudblood with two real parents who love and care for me, and will always be there for me. I'm not some piece of dirty street trash that's only on this earth because some pervert's condom broke sixteen years ago."

"YOU BITCH!!" Pansy screamed. There was a quick flash of movement, and then Hermione felt a sharp sting on her left cheek. Pansy had struck her across the face with her open hand. When she reached up to feel her sore cheek, she felt something wet on the side of her face. When Hermione looked at her hand, it had a little blood on it. Pansy always wore this gaudy gold bracelet with little metal pink bunnies on it. The bracelet must have cut her face.

"YOU'RE GOING TO PAY FOR THAT, PARKINSON!" Hermione shouted. She reached into her robes to get her wand. Hermione thought it was about time to test her new shrinking hex. Suddenly, Pansy lunged forward in an attack. Hermione had forgotten that she no longer had a wand. A physical assault was Pansy's only option.

Pansy immediately grabbed two handfuls of Hermione's hair. She quickly pinned her back against the table. Hermione grabbed two handfuls of blond locks herself, in an attempt to force Pansy off her. The sides of her scalp screamed in pain as both girls thrashed about on top of the table. Hermione was amazed at how strong Pansy was for her small size. Even though Hermione had a two-inch and ten pound weight advantage, she could not remove Pansy from on top of her. Suddenly Pansy let go of the left side of her head and reached over and picked up a large serving fork from a nearby tray. She then raised it over her head.

Before Hermione could let go of Pansy's hair and protect herself, there was a flash of red hair and both she and Pansy were knocked to the floor. Hermione soon realize that Ginny had leaped across the table at Pansy as soon as she saw her pick up the fork. Ginny now had Pansy's left arm pinned to the ground with her knee firmly pressed into her armpit. Hermione quickly grabbed hold of Pansy's right arm with both hands and forced it to the ground. Pansy continued to thrash around under the girls like a trapped wild animal. Hermione placed her knee on Pansy's right elbow so she could have her right hand free. She then brought her right arm up next to her head and closed her hand into a tight fist. She quickly lined herself up to throw a perfect straight right into Pansy's face. This was something she had dreamt of doing for nearly six years. "You're about to get your old nose back, bitch," Hermione yelled.

Just as she was about to fire her punch into Pansy's pretty new nose, Hermione felt a hand grab hold of her right elbow. "What in the name of Merlin do you think you are doing Miss Granger?" a very angry voice roared from behind her. Hermione turned to see the livid face of Professor McGonagall staring down at her.

Both she and Ginny quickly got to their feet, releasing Parkinson. Pansy shot to her feet, then ran at high speed from the Great Hall. "Miss Parkinson come back here," Professor McGonagall shouted, but it was already too late. Pansy had already disappeared down the corridor leading to the dungeons.

"Explain yourselves," McGonagall demanded.

"She attacked me, Professor. Parkinson was angry after her stupid housemates played a practical joke on her. They turned her food into mud, so she tried to take it out on me," Hermione said sincerely to her Head of House. She then noticed that there wasn't a single Slytherin left at their table.

"Hermione's telling the truth Professor. I had to grab Parkinson before she could stab Hermione with this fork," Ginny said then held up the serving fork.

"And you said nothing to provoke her?" McGonagall asked, with a suspicious look on her face. Both she and Ginny fell silent; Hermione didn't think it was a good idea to repeat what she had said to Parkinson. "I thought so," McGonagall said, giving the girls a disappointed look. "That will be twenty points apiece from Gryffindor, and you two will both report to Mr. Filch for detention after dinner. Make sure you leave your wands in your dorm room. You will not be needing them tonight," McGonagall said with a harsh tone to her voice.

"Professor, this isn't fair. She started it," Hermione said, trying to defend her actions.

"Then you should have reported her to a member of the staff, instead of provoking her further," McGonagall scolded.

"So she's just going to get away with it?" Ginny asked sounding very irritated.

"Do not concern yourself with Miss Parkinson, Miss Weasley. I will make sure Professor Snape deals with her appropriately," McGonagall said.

"That's the same thing as letting her off. Snape never does anything to punish his Slytherins," Ginny said angrily.

"Quiet, Miss Weasley. You're in enough trouble as it is. Don't make me add to your detention for disrespecting one of your Professors. Now, I suggest both of you finish your meals. I guarantee you'll both need your strength tonight," McGonagall said, giving them a stern look.

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Pansy continued to wander the school corridors; it had been ten minutes since she fled the Great Hall. She was still steaming about what had happen to her. That stupid smug look on Granger's face angered her every time she thought about it. "Little Miss fucking Perfect with her perfect fucking grades and her perfect fucking friends," Pansy said to herself as she made her way down the corridor.

Pansy couldn't believe how bad things had gotten in only two days. She'd lost her parents and everything she owned. No one in the school liked her anymore, and in less than a month she would be forced to marry into that family of redheaded vagabonds.

Pansy knew she wasn't put into Slytherin for nothing. She would get it back, everything that was taken from her; she would get it all back. The only trouble was figuring out how. Pansy realized she would need help. But who? All of her old friends thought she was nothing but a filthy Mudblood now. She needed to find someone who realized that she was a true Slytherin, even though she might be a Mudblood. She could prove that she had nothing to do with the Muggle world, unlike that disgusting Gryffindor who reveled in the fact that her parents were filthy Muggles.

Then it hit her, she could go to the one person that had been there for her, Professor Snape. This stupid law had trapped him as well. He would understand and, once he was on her side the rest of the Slytherins were bound to follow. He could also talk to her mom. Pansy knew it was her father's idea to disown her. Her mother would never turn her back on her. Pansy headed back towards the dungeons. She hoped to speak with Professor Snape before McGonagall got to him.

As she made her way about halfway down the corridor leading to the dungeon, the two torches on the corridor wall next to her went out. She stopped and looked both ways down the corridor, but didn't see anything. Suddenly, two more torches went out, then another two and another two. Now the corridor was pitch black. Pansy could barely make out the light at the end of the corridor. The sound of a door creaking open broke the silence. "Is anyone there?" she asked nervously, but no one responded. She was just about to call out again, when a hand clamped itself over her mouth. At the same time more hands grabbed her by the arms and wrists. She felt herself being lifted and carried through a doorway. She heard the sound of a door being slammed shut and locks being engaged. "Lumos," a voice shouted and the room filled with light from the tip of someone wand. "Welcome, Mudblood," a cold sinister voice said.

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