Project Doxycide: A Dramione story

1

PROFESSOR SLUGHORN HAS AN UNUSUAL WAY OF ASSIGNING PARTNERS. He has us draw numbers from a hat and find the table with that number. There were thirty-eight students. Nineteen pairs. I drew my number from the hat. 10. I sat myself down at the table he labelled 10, which was at the very back of the classroom. I watched as the other students drew their numbers and got their partners assigned. Harry was at table seven with Ron. Lucky him. Ginny got assigned table nine with Parvati. I was so busy with looking at the other students getting their partners that I completely forgot about mine. I watched as Draco Malfoy sat at the seat next to me. Draco Malfoy of all people! I was partnered up with Draco Malfoy! I was about to ask Professor Slughorn to change my partner to anyone but Draco, but I was too late. He had already started teaching.

"Happy first day of school everyone," he said cheerfully. He got a few cheerful remarks and a few grumbles. "I know most of you are unhappy to return to Hogwarts after the war but rest assured that Hogwarts will be going back to being as normal as possible. Now as seventh years all of you have a special project." He waved his wand and sent a folder to each group. I snatched mine and it was labelled Doxycide. I opened it and saw that there was nothing inside it.

"There is nothing there!" said Ginny.

"Very good observation, Ms. Weasley!" said Professor Slughorn "That's your project! You have to brew the potion you have assigned with your own knowledge. You will work on this project in class today and you will submit it by the second last day of school. I have reserved some rooms of all of you to work and you will work on your project in those rooms in your own time, but today all of you work here." He paused and wrote the rooms on the board. Malfoy and I were the storage room on the fourth floor. He finished writing and we all got to work.

"Okay, Malfoy," I said bitterly "Just because we are partners for this project, it doesn't mean we have to work together. You do whatever you want while I work on it."

"Fine by me," he said shrugging "It's not like I wanted to work with an anno-"

"You do not want to finish that sentence," I threatened him. 

"Or what?" he asked mockingly "You'll hit me?"

"Oh, I did it in our third year I can very well do it again!" I said charging at him. I was about to hit him but I felt someone grabbing me from my stomach, restraining me from doing so. I immediately knew who it was.

"Let. Go. Of. Me. Ronald. Weasley!" I said fighting to get out of his grip. He eventually let me go and said "You can punch him later when Professor Slughorn won't give you detention. Besides, that little ferret is not worth it!"

"You know, I'd be afraid of you," Pansy said, coming to Draco's rescue "But your sister is a lot more scary than you are."

"Aw look! Malfoy's got himself a girlfriend!" Harry said, joining in "If she was half the person my girlfriend is, she'd be twice as good as she is now!"

"Potter, you may be the chosen one who defeated the Dark Lord and all, very grateful by the way, but you do not want to mess with miffed Slytherins," said Blaise.

"And you should really learn to be quiet unless you want to spend the rest of your pathetic life in oblivion," Ginny said and before I knew it all seven of us were just yelling at each other. We argued for about five minutes when Professor Slughorn stepped in.

"All right! That's enough!" he said "I need all of you to go work." Harry, Ron, Ginny, Blaise and Pany went back to their table grumbling.

"And you two," Professor Slughorn said turning towards me and Malfoy "You two really need to work together." He waved his wand and my left hand was hand-cuffed to Malfoy's right hand.