❝Jinxed by a Crazy love ❞ || HP

Chapter 16: The Toad Woman

The sorting had ended sooner, as the four were only noticing Ginny and Rigel flirting with each other. Dumbledore stood up again. 

'To our newcomers,' said Dumbledore in a ringing voice, his arms stretched wide and a beaming smile on his lips, 'welcome! To our old hands — welcome back! There is a time for speech making, but this is not it. Tuck in!'

Dumbledore sat down neatly and threw his long beard over his shoulder so as to keep it out of the way of his plate — for food had appeared out of nowhere, 

'Excellent,' said Ron, with a kind of groan of longing, and he seized the nearest plate of chops and began piling them onto his plate

'Thank Dumbledore!', Y/n said as she helped herself to food.

'What were you saying before the Sorting?' Hermione asked the ghost. 'About the hat giving warnings?'

'Oh yes,' said Nick whose voice filled with gladness. 'Yes, I have heard the hat give several warnings before, always at times when it detects periods of great danger for the school. And always, of course, its advice is the same: Stand together, be strong from within'.

'Ow kunnit nofe skusin danger ifzat?', said Ron. 

'What language is it?', Y/n choked on her food.

'How could it know if the school is in danger if that's a hat', Ron repeated more clearly.

'I have no idea,' said Nearly Headless Nick. 'Of course, it lives in Dumbledore's office, so I daresay it picks things up there.'

'And it wants all the Houses to be friends?' said Harry, looking over at the Slytherin table, where Draco Malfoy sat. 'Fat chance.'

'Why are you looking at my brother?', Y/n snarled at him.

'It's because he's--'

'Well, now, you shouldn't take that attitude,' said Nick reprovingly. 'Peaceful cooperation, that's the key. We ghosts, though we belong to separate Houses, maintain links of friendship. In spite of the competitiveness between Gryffindor and Slytherin, I would never dream of seeking an argument with the Bloody Baron.'

'Only because you're terrified of him,' said Ron. Nearly Headless Nick looked highly affronted.

'Terrified? I hope I, Sir Nicholas de Mimsy-Porpington, have never been guilty of cowardice in my life! The noble blood that runs in my veins —'

'What blood?', asked Ron. 'Surely you haven't still got — ?'

'It's a figure of speech!' said Nearly Headless Nick, now so annoyed.

'I assume I am still allowed to enjoy the use of whichever words I like, even if the pleasures of eating and drinking are denied me! But I am quite used to students poking fun at my death, I assure you!'

'Nick, he wasn't really laughing at you!' said Hermione, throwing

a furious look at Ron.

 'node iddum eentup sechew,' Said Ron with his mouth packed fully.

Nick did not seem to think constituted an adequate apology. Rising into the air, he straightened his feathered hat and swept away from them.

'Well done, Ron,' snapped Hermione.

'What?' said Ron indignantly, having managed, finally, to swallow his food. 'I'm not allowed to ask a simple question?'

'Oh forget it,' said Hermione irritably.

'So what were you telling about Draco?', Y/n said, turning her gaze towards Harry.

'Forget it'

'Oh, So you talk shit about my brother and ask the hell to forget me?'

Harry thought for a moment. 'I didn't actually say anything!'

'A--- Of course, you didn't' 

'Then why the hell are you fighting with me!?'

'I'm not fighting with you!', said Y/n. 'If you think so, I can't help it!'

'I'm not--'

'Shut up, you two!', Rigel yelped. 'That doesn't even seem like a problem!'

Y/n and Harry averted their gazes. 

Well, now that we are all digesting another magnificent feast, I beg a few moments of your attention for the usual start-of-term notices,' said Dumbledore. 'First years ought to know that the forest in the grounds is out of bounds to students — and a few of our older studentsought to know by now too.' 
'We have had two changes in staffing this year. We are very pleased to welcome back Professor Grubbly-Plank, who will be taking Care of Magical Creatures lessons; we are also delighted to introduce Professor Umbridge, our new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher.'
Dumbledore continued, 'Tryouts for the House Quidditch teams will take place on the —'.

There was a moment when nobody understood why Dumbledore had stopped talking, but then Professor Umbridge said, 'Hem, hem,' and it became clear that she had got to her feet and was intending to make a speech. 

Professor Umbridge gave a long speech in which Y/n listened to her "Hem, hem"-s

Y/n knew that this Toad Woman was going to have her life at stake this year. Y/n was gonna have her toughest year at Hogwarts, that too accompanied by misunderstandings and fights with Harry. She hoped for Ron and Hermione to get along this year.