Thea Howell and The Boy Who Lived

Chapter 9: The Third Floor Corridor

Yet, it got even weirder after the fact.

Not a day later, Harry was flying across the field on a snazzy new broom. And this wasn't any old broom, it was the Nimbus Two Thousand. To say everyone was jealous was an understatement. It was perfect timing too, as Quidditch Season was coming in winter, and it would not surprise me if McGonagall was handing out favours.

Malfoy spent the next few weeks bickering at the what he could have missed. The time, the date, the ominous tip to Filch. His muttering and frantic moments filled every single moment — desperate to know how a 'low life' like Potter survived the night, then get his hands on such a broom. Malfoy tried to get him in trouble with the old 'first years aren't allowed such-and-such', but it didn't work, the teachers were done with his whining.

I had to admit; it was delightful watching his perfectly slick hair become dry and frazzled.

Malfoy's dreadful pacing, the steps echoing throughout the dungeons, forever ruined bath time. Heck, Snape even was disturbed by this that he removed a point from Slytherin after Malfoy knocked over a potion for treating toe fungus on Goyle. Poor lad had mushrooms growing out of his ears for days.

I, having some common sense, kept to myself. Snape was not off my case yet and a test was coming up soon in Transfiguration, so I had no time for Gryffindors. Even forced the twins to study with me — to say it shocked them was... understated. Still eating their lollies though; much improvement needed. If it weren't for Dumbledore's Tea-Day Tuesdays, I might have had a hernia from all the study. But the new books were defiantly coming in handy. Spending days sitting in the Slytherin lounge, ignoring all the jeering and jokes as my wand light up like a lantern, embers dropping off and floating away into glowing smoke. The paintings would shout at me but I'd just stick out my tongue then continue to study, waking up in the leather chair the next morning before starting again at breakfast.

Safe to say, Halloween came around a lot faster than expected. The morning arose to the delicious smell of baking pumpkin and nutmeg drifting through the corridors. All lessons seemed to be cheerier too. McGonagall and Sprout seemed sweet as they smiled, skipping across the cobblestone.

Hagrid was acting strange, too. He was carrying large slabs of meat, fillet and ribs - the size of full grown cattle. Even Henry was enjoying the special treatment, feasting on extra gizzards and pumpkin flesh; his calls echoing across the grounds.

"Stop eating that, Henry! That's for Fluffy," he said. "That pup keeps growing by the minute."

"Where is Fluffy?" asked I.

Strangely, Hagrid went pink and silent.

Must be a new 'pet' he 'found'. Hagrid was always soft on animals.

That day, Professor Flitwick announced in Charms that he was teaching us how to make objects fly, something everyone had been dying to try since they'd seen him make Neville's toad zoom around the classroom.

Something I remember to study... I sat up straighter in my seat as he spoke.

"Now, don't forget that nice wrist movement we've been practicing!" squeaked Professor Flitwick, perched on top of his pile of books, as usual. "Swish and flick, remember, swish and flick. And saying the magic words properly is very important, too — never forget Wizard Baruffio, who said 's' instead of 'f' and found himself on the floor with a buffalo on his chest." He laughed, but no one else laughed. He went pink and quickly put the class into pairs in very little thought.

Harry's partner was Seamus Finnegan, who had already a dirt splattered across his face. He got so impatient that he prodded it with his wand and set fire to it — Harry had to put it out with his hat.