Lazuli - Harry Potter Fan Fiction (Draco Malfoy)

CHAPTER SIX

The first lessons back of a new year are always interesting. But Defence Against the Dark Art's loomed out of my timetable more than the rest. That's because it's a completely new teacher, somebody that we've never had before. What will she be like? Will she be strict but fair, like Professor McGonagall? Strange and lenient like Professor Trelawney? Maybe even wise and worldly, like Professor Dumbledore himself.

We all file into Umbridge's classroom and look around for her. The teacher is nowhere in sight. Instantly, everyone rushes to sit next to their friends. I take a seat behind Harry and Ron, the only seat remaining, and pull my book from my bag whilst everyone chuckles and points at a paper bird that Padma Patel enchanted to fly around the classroom. On the desk beside me, Seamus Finnigan smacks it with his book and Goyle flicks a piece of paper at it. I feel someone pull the seat out next to be and a large, male frame sink into the seat next to me. By the glare that Ron gives me as he turns around, I can tell that it's Draco before I even look.

Draco takes a quill from his bag and doesn't make eye contact with me as he tests it on a piece of blank paper. I wonder if he's angry with about what happened with Caspar.

I don't have time to ask, the pretty bird erupts into embers and the ashy remains float down onto the desk in front of Padma. I turn around, just like everyone else, to see Professor Umbridge lowering her wand and smiling fakely at us. She's wearing a different pink jacket to yesterday - rather than hot pink fur, it's more baby pink knitted. Still, she appears odd in the medieval interior and exterior of Hogwarts. "Good morning children," she declares in a patronizing tone. Everyone returns to their seats and the chatter instantly stops. Umbridge begins to walk towards the front, waving her wand and simultaneously writing on the board. "Ordinary Wizardly Level Examinations. O.W.L's, more commonly know as, OWLS." She reaches the end of the room and turns to face us all, still smiling stupidly.

Ron shoots Harry a sarcastic look as Umbridge continues "Study hard, and you will be rewarded. Fail to do so, and the consequences may be..." her gaze falls on Ron and she pauses for a moment. I snigger slightly as Ronald glares at me, "severe." She finishes with a shrug of her shoulders that was probably supposed to be friendly but actually looks patronizing.

With a flick of her wand, stacks of yellow books fly from the desk at the front of the room and systematically make their way down the aisles, a book for each student flying off and landing gently on their desk. "Your previous instruction in this subject has been disturbingly uneven. But you'll be pleased to know that from now on, you'll be following a carefully structured, Ministry approved course of defensive magic."

I pick up the book and examine it closely, just as all my classmates are doing. 'Dark Arts Defence - Basics for Beginners.' There's a slightly sarcastic picture of two young children - a witch and a wizard - reading the book with a look of pained enjoyment on their faces. Whether the artist meant for it to look this way I'm not sure, but nonetheless it amuses me.

From the corner of my eye, I see Hermione put her hand in the air. Around me, everyone rolls their eyes and a few people mutter things like "Granger's at it again" and "Nerd."

"Yes?" Professor Umbridge nods at her, looking too enthusiastic to be genuine. Hermione, appearing a bit taken aback by the clown-like grin that Umbridge is pulling, clears her throat and then frowns at the Professor. "There's nothing in here about using defensive spells," she pronounces matter-of-factly. Umbridge, not expecting such a question, is momentarily thrown off guard before smiling again and exclaiming "using spells?" she chuckles to herself, "why, I can't imagine why you would need to use spells in my classroom." I see Hermione shrink back, embarrassed at her dismissal by Professor Umbridge, I can't help but smile, even though I share the same opinion as Hermione.