Chapter Four

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NOTE: I do not own any of the ideas or characters expressed in this story (except Cassie Jackson). All of these belong to J.K. Rowling.

~*~

When I get my schedule of all the classes I’ll be taking this year, the first thing I think is, Well, these aren’t too bad.

          Then I compare it with my friends’ schedules. I find that I have absolutely no classes with either Katherine or Cho, and I only have Potions with Matt.

          As if that isn’t bad enough, Danny is in practically all my classes except for two. I groan with utter despair as he winks at me over his cereal. Crap.

          I steal a piece of bacon off Cho’s plate and nibble at it nervously. Who will I sit with in any of my classes? What if we have to work in partners? This thought sends me into a chewing frenzy. Like hell I’d work with Danny.

          “Calm down.” Cho giggles at my horrified face. “It won’t be that bad.”

          I try to chew on my stolen bacon some more, but I’ve eaten it all. This realization makes me want to cry. I wipe my hands on a napkin and force myself to feel better, replying, “Yeah. I mean, it can’t get much worse.”

          I have to fight my way through the crowds on my way to Charms class. By the time I make it to Professor Flitwick’s room, most of the students are already there. I try to find someone who looks nice enough to sit beside, but I can’t see anyone. It seems that the classroom mostly consists of Slytherins and Gryffindors. God, what were the teachers thinking, putting so many of those two houses together? And me?!

          I take a deep breath and sit at a table in the very last row. I hope to God that someone good will enter class late and choose to sit with me.

          Well, someone does show up late, but it isn’t nearly anyone good. I hear a pair of footsteps and turn hopefully, but my expression falls the moment I see the bleach blonde hair of Draco Malfoy.

          His eyes lock with mine, and he sneers at me. I pretend I haven’t noticed and turn back around.

          Flitwick walks up the steps to his podium at the front of the room and calls down, “Mr. Malfoy, you may take a seat next to Miss Jackson.”

          I feel like my heart stops. No, God no—anyone but Malfoy.

          Apparently, Malfoy’s thinking the same way I am. “No thanks,” he scoffs, and moves to sit beside Blaise Zabini, another Slytherin. I don’t blame him.

          Flitwick frowns and points to him, saying louder than usual, “I don’t think so, Mr. Malfoy. You are to sit with Cassie.” Malfoy opens his mouth to argue, but Flitwick interrupts with a snappy, “No excuses!”

          I see Draco Malfoy’s face turn hard, and I can’t help thinking how brave Flitwick is for talking to Malfoy like that, even though he’s a teacher. I mean, the professor is half his size, and it’s a well-known fact that the Slytherin has anger issues.

          The rest of the Slytherins laugh noisily as Malfoy clenches his jaw and reluctantly sits beside me, as far away as the table will allow. I inch to the left as much as I can, trying my best to just stay out of his way. Surely, he’ll remember me from the train now.

          Professor Flitwick begins handing out thick, worn textbooks that I’m sure contain hundreds of instructions about certain spells and enchantments. Despite having the worst possible seat in the classroom, I have to admit, I’m excited for this class. Charms has always been my favorite.

          Flitwick clears his throat and smiles down at everyone, then calls out, “Welcome to your sixth year of Hogwarts! This year, in Charms class, you will learn how to perform wordless spells. Although it may seem impossible, I am sure all of you will be able to accomplish it.”

          I’ve already used wordless spells before. My mom is an Auror, so she taught me how to perform them over the summer. I barely hold back a sigh; I miss my mom already.

          Flitwick interrupts my thoughts with a cheery, “Today, we’ll do a bit of review from previous years! With your partner, practice the simple spells found on page fourteen of your textbooks.”

          My stomach drops the moment the word “partner” leaves the professor’s tiny mouth. Damn.

          As I flip open my book without a glance at Malfoy, Zabini turns in his seat and smirks at my partner.

          “Have fun working with a blood traitor,” he whispers, barely holding back a laugh.

          My blood boils, but I try desperately to act like it doesn’t affect me. Malfoy snorts loudly, as if this is the funniest thing ever. Zabini turns back around and starts to work with Pansy, even though he doesn’t look happy about it.

          I slap the book open to the right page and mutter, “You can start.”

          Malfoy completely ignores me. He just stares at the page blankly, seeming to be deep in thought, just like he had been at the Sorting. What is his issue?

          I want to smack him so badly, but I’m too terrified. I’ve heard so many stories of how he beat up kids with Crabbe and Goyle. No matter how much I hate him, it’s not worth getting my teeth knocked out.

          Instead, I pull my wand out of my robes and feel the smooth ebony wood, my fingers bumping gently over the vines etched into the surface. I get a firm grip and whisper, “Wingardium Leviosa.”

          My textbook responds instantly, lifting up off the desk. I let it hover about a foot up for just a few seconds, then slowly bring it back down. Okay, next spell.

          Around me, other students are going through the list, and most appear to be quite bored. Flitwick shuffles around, peering over everyone’s shoulder and calling out things like, “Oh, that wonderful!” and “Mr. Finnigan, please, not so high!”

          I’m magically flipping through the pages of my book when Flitwick finally notices Malfoy’s doing absolutely nothing.

          I wait happily, knowing Malfoy’s about to get chewed out for being an unresponsive jerk. But when Flitwick gets closer, I don’t expect him to say, “Miss Jackson, why aren’t you working with Mr. Malfoy?”

          My mouth opens and closes for a second, then I burst out, “But sir, I tried! He wouldn’t—“

          “Enough,” Flitwick cuts me off. “You two are partners, aren’t you? I expected more effort from you, Cassie.”

          The professor walks away without another word. I stare after him in despair and utter exasperation. This year is not off to a great start.

          As I glare at Professor Flitwick’s retreating back, I slowly register the fact that Malfoy is laughing. Fuming, I turn to him and, despite myself, snap harshly, “Think this is funny, do you?”

          I expect him to whip out his wand and curse me for being rude, but instead he just keeps laughing and chokes out, “Yeah, I really do.”

          I’m too angry to be shocked that Malfoy actually spoke to me. I let out a sigh of frustration and continue on with the work, Malfoy allowing a small chuckle to escape now and then.

          After a while of this, Flitwick stands back up at the front of the room and uses up the remainder of class to talk about what else we’ll be learning this year. I try hard to focus, but Potions is next and I’m starting to get worried about that, too.

          Finally, the bell rings, and I shoot up out of my seat. I’m so busy trying to get out the door that I don’t even see it took Malfoy a few extra seconds to realize the bell had rung, he had been so deep in thought.

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