| HIDDEN IN SECRETS |

chapter fourteen

FAMOUS

•

Word spread quickly throughout the school. Verena had always known that since her first year when Pansy made up rumours about her. In Slytherin, she was usually the day's gossip – second to Harry Potter.

And she was second again.

Upon arriving at the school, almost everyone knew something had gone down involving the Salvadors. Damien suffered from a cut lip and a bruised eye whereas Flint suffered from a light bruise on his cheek. Verena came to the Great Hall with messy hair, though it was known that she had won the fight for Pansy could barely walk inside without help.

There was a certain tension between them all, and anyone could tell. Others would never have thought the Slytherins would get into fights with each other since they have some level of respect for each other. They were wrong.

"For once, I thank you for beating Pansy," said Padma Patil. "Not only was it a show of strength, but skill as well."

"Hopefully her ego has gone down," said Cho as she sat beside them for breakfast. "Why did you fight in the first place?"

"I said something about her and Draco, then she turned all red and tried to jinx me," Verena explained.

"She fancies Draco, we all know that," said Padma. "She's always clinging to him like she's a koala and he's the tree."

"Except she's not as cute as a koala," Verena commented.

"Timetables!" called Anthony Goldstein, waving rolls of parchment in his hand. "Professor Flitwick asked me to pass these out. The others have already got theirs."

Verena and Padma took it from him and opened it. As they scanned through their schedule, Anthony was saying, "They've mixed it all up now. We've got Charms with Slytherin, Defense Against the Dark Arts with Gryffindor, and History of Magic with Hufflepuff."

"Actually, I don't mind it," Verena said. "One less class with Gryffindor is actually a gift."

"Oh, did you hear?" Anthony said, taking a seat. "They say Harry Potter and Ron Weasley crashed a flying car into the Whomping Willow."

"The Whomping Willow?" Verena questioned.

"It's a tree we have here at Hogwarts," Cho explained. "It attacks you if you go too close to it so we've all been warned not to go by it. It's probably why you haven't heard of it."

"No, she's just not observant," Terry Boot muttered from down the table.

"Good morning to you, too, Boot," Verena said in a sarcastic tone with a smile.

"Anyway, it's a miracle they weren't expelled," said Anthony, glancing at Potter and Weasley.

"A miracle? More like playing favourites," Verena remarked.

"There's been so much talk," Anthony went on. "They say the barrier closed when they tried getting through."

"That's impossible," said Cho. "It only closes after the parents get back through it."

"I'm just telling you what I heard," said Anthony with a shrug.

Suddenly, a loud, piercing voice echoed throughout the Great Hall.

"RONALD WEASLEY! HOW DARE YOU STEAL THAT CAR! I WOULDN'T HAVE BEEN SURPRISED IF THEY'D EXPELLED YOU, YOU WAIT TILL I GET HOLD OF YOU, I DON'T SUPPOSE YOU STOPPED TO THINK WHAT YOUR FATHER AND I WENT THROUGH WHEN WE SAW IT WAS GONE... "