Emily Potter - Book 5 - Order of the Phoenix

Chapter 17 - Thestrals

Emily tucked her bag to the far corner of the carriage, since Blaise wasn't back from his walk around the train she was planning to sit in for awhile in her brother's carriage wherever he may be. She locked the glass sliding door and went off to find Harry and the others. Before she could turn away from her own carriage, a girl collided into her, accidentally pushing her against the door.

"What the bloody – "

"I'm awfully sorry about that! Truly, I didn't mean to do such." The girl said, sounding quite embarrassed. Emily recognized the Scottish accent perfectly, it was Cho Chang, she blew the stray hair covering her eyes and saw the seeker of the Ravenclaw Quidditch team.

"Oh, I'm fine, don't worry about it." She said with a nonchalant tone, "Where are you heading?" Emily asked. Cho blushed a deep pink in her cheeks, avoiding meeting her eyes, "I was looking for your brother actually..."

Emily smiled brightly, lightly punching Cho's arm, "Harry? Oh, you don't say! What a coincidence, I'm heading to his carriage as well."

Cho's eyes widened in what seemed like relief, "That's great, I think he's in the carriage with Luna." She and Emily walked to the farthest carriage on the Hogwarts express, side glancing at every carriage they passed by until an ominous boom echoed through the train. The girls didn't take a second thought to run to the source of the sound, leading them to a putrid smell just around the area of the last carriage.

Emily's eyebrows furrowed at the sight in front of her and Cho, the glass was covered with green slime and the odour it was emitting made her eyes water. Before she made another move towards the carriage, she pulled out her gloves from her pocket and immediately wore them just in case. Cho stood behind her the entire time.

"Is that... Stinksap?" Cho muttered, pinching her nose as the green stuff seeped through the door.

"Stinksap comes from Mimbulus Mimbletonia if I'm not mistaken," Emily said curiously poking the green smile with the heel of her shoe, "And if I remember correctly, Neville got a Mimbulus Mimbletonia as a gift from his uncle..." She then slid the glass panel door open, revealing a carriage full of teenagers covered in Stinksap.

"Oh ... hello, Harry," Cho said nervously as she saw him by the window seat, "Um... Bad time?" Harry wiped the lenses of his glasses with free hand while his left hand held Neville's pet, Trevor. When Harry got his glasses cleaned up, he saw Cho Chang by door next to his sister who was smirking at him.

"Oh... hi." said Harry blankly.

"Um..." said Cho, "Well... just thought I'd say hello... Bye then." She closed the door again, rather pink in the face, and departed, leaving Emily inside the slimy carriage. Harry slumped back in his seat and groaned. He would have liked Cho to discover him sitting with a group of very cool people laughing their heads off at a joke he had just told; he would not have chosen to be sitting with Neville and Loony Lovegood, clutching a toad and dripping in Stinksap.

"Never mind," said Ginny bracingly, "Look, we can get rid of all this easily." She pulled out her wand, "Scourgify!" The Stinksap vanished in a cloud of smoke.

"Sorry," said Neville again, in a small voice, "I didn't expect it to react like that..." Harry noticed the smirk vanish from his sister's face upon hearing Neville. Emily sat next to him, picking up the potted plant gently, "It's a lovely thing your uncle gave you, Neville." She said admiring the Mimbletonia, "Watch this." Emily said, proceeding to take off her gloves, and touch the plant.

"NO, EMILY, DON'T – "

But she covered Neville's mouth with her free hand, shushing him, "It won't make a mess if you touch the area around the boils, see?" Emily said, her fingers delicately going along the green body of the Mimbletonia, "Look at it, swaying around its arms. It's happy." She said chirpily, handing Neville back his plant. He grinned at the sight, bashfully, "Thanks, Em." She grinned back, squeezing his arm, "Right! How about we get something to eat? I reckon the food trolley will be here – Oh, speak of the devil." Emily stood up and walked towards the sweet old witch who managed the trolley, "A box of Pumpkin Pasties, four bottles of Butterbeer... Oh! And these chocolate frogs and peppermint toads, please."