The Seventh Year (Dramione Fanfiction)

Chapter 19 - NEWTs

don't own characters
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Hermione was stressed.
That's an understatement, Hermione was losing her mind.

"Hermione." Pansy snapped, using two hands to hold the girl still. "There is an hour until our NEWTs, and you've done nothing but study for like a week. If anyone should be freaking out right now it's me."

"I need to go over the potions flash cards again!" Hermione huffed, ignoring her friend and stepping around her to reach the pile of notes and parchment on her bed. "Will you read them?"

"They're not until tomorrow! Oh whatever." Pansy complained, exhaling loudly at how typical Hermione was acting. She hoped she could retain some of the knowledge too at least.
"What is the first ingredient-"

"Wolfsbane!" Hermione burst, throwing her robes on. "Right?"

"Yes, Hermione, it's wolfsbane." Pansy replied monotonously. "Look, this is unnecessary-"

"Hey!" Parvati cut in, walking into the room and throwing her hairbrush on the dresser. "What's going on?"

"There's an hour until NEWTs!" Hermione cried out, snatching the flash cards off of Pansy and flicking through them herself. "Where have you been?!"

"Probably having more fun than me." Pansy mumbled, which made Parvati laugh.

"How on Earth is this funny?" Hermione asked her, not hearing Pansy. "These tests are much harder than our OWLs!"

"Oh no I was laughing at something else." Parvati said, her ears turning red at being reprimanded as if she was a little girl. "I get it, NEWTs aren't easy, but we also can't stress just before the exams.."

"Which is why me and Parvati are going to take a walk!" Pansy smiled, jumping up and linking arms with her girlfriend, who frowned but let herself be pulled from the room. "See you at the exams!"

"They're going to fail." Hermione tutted, but allowed herself a small laugh at them anyway.

~

"You may begin." Professor McGonagall smiled at the students, looking more meaningfully at some rather than others.

Draco's eyes scanned the room until they landed upon Hermione, who was filling out the parchment at lightning speed. As if she wouldn't. He willed his eyes back to his own parchment and began the test without a second thought.

Blaise, however, was a different story. He was still watching Hermione, which was tougher for him because he was all the way at the back of the great hall. The moment that he read the first question, he began to curse his last name for not being closer to 'G' so that he could get help. He had no clue - but this was only the charms test - so he wasn't too worried, he'd been told that he wasn't going to do so well anyway.

"Mr Zabini." Professor Flitwick whispered sharply, snapping the boy out of his trance. "Perhaps it would benefit your performance if you were to actually write something."

Blaise rolled his eyes and began to string together any length of words that he could come up with, so long as they slightly related to what the question was asking. He heard a smug 'better' from the charms professor and fought the urge to hex him, after all, that might show him that Blaise did know a few spells.

An hour later, Draco lifted his parchment into the air and felt it being whisked to the front of the room along with everyone else in the hall's. Professor McGonagall gave everyone an encouraging but empty smile, removed the desks with a wave of her wand, and then exited the hall.

"Oh!" Professor Flitwick suddenly cried out when he noticed the students all looking confusedly at one another. "Right! Next up, is your practical examinations. I will be overseeing them, so er.. Let's begin!"