Saving Us

15 : Year 2

For the past few days, Malfoy has been making me do his homework and he also has been making me hang out with him and his minions. Pansy wasn't too happy about it. Harry and the others have been on my case about it but Malfoy commanded me not to tell them anything, so basicly, I'm having to lie to my friends. I swear he's trying to ruin my friendship with them. And get this, Malfoy has now made it 2 more weeks, of course I told him no way, but he said I'm still his slave so I have to listen to him. I swear he's going to be the death of me. I was heading to the Quidditch stands to watch Harry practice. We were supposed to go to Hagrid's hut but Harry had practice. I see Hermione and Ron sitting on the benches watching the Gryffindor team play. I go over to them and sit down. Apparently, they just started. I rest my head on my knuckle with my elbow on my leg. I had scowl look on.
"What's wrong with you?" Ron asked. I shake my head and sigh.
"I don't want to talk about it." I said with a low voice. We started hearing a clicking noise. I look over and see the kid Colin Creevey. I shake my head and look back at the Gryffindor team, they stopped and were now looking at the Slytherin Quidditch team coming their way. We looked at each other and got heading over there.
"What's happening?" Ron asked Harry.
"Why aren't you playing? And what's he doing here?" He was looking at Malfoy. Malfoy was wearing a Slytherin Quidditch robe. Is this why he let me have a 'break?'
"I'm the new Slytherin Seeker, Weasley," Malfoy said, smugly.
"Everyone's just been admiring the broom my father's bought our team." Ron and I gaped, open-mouthed at the seven superb broomsticks in front of us. I grab Malfoy's broom and look at it carefully.
"Is this the new Nimbus Two Thousand and One?" I asked shocked. Marcus Flint snatched it away for me and handed it back to Malfoy. I make a face at him.
"Good, aren't they?" Malfoy said smoothly.
"But perhaps the Gryffindor team will be able to raise some gold and get new brooms, too. You could raffle off those Cleansweep Fives; I expect a museum would bid for them." The Slytherin team howled with laughter.
"At least no one on the Gryffindor team had to buy their way in," Hermione said sharply.
"They got in on pure talent." I snorted. The smug look on Malfoy's face flickered.
"No one asked your opinion, you filthy little Mudblood." He spat. Suddenly there was an uproar. I shouted and grabbed Malfoy's collar ready to punch him in the face but Flint grabbed a hold of me and pushed me aside making let go of Malfoy. Flint had dived in front of Malfoy to stop me, Fred and George from jumping on him. Ron plunged his hand into his jacket, pulling out his wand.
"You'll pay for that one, Malfoy!" He yelled, pointing it furiously under Flint's arm at Malfoy's face. A loud bang echoed around the stadium and jet of green light shot out of the wrong end of Ron's wand, hitting him in the stomach and sending him reeling backward onto the grass.
"Ron! Ron! Are you all right?" Hermione squealed. Ron opened his mouth to speak, but no words came out. Instead he gave an almighty belch and several slugs dribbled out of his onto his lap. The Slytherin team were paralyzed with laughter. Flint was doubled up, hanging onto his new broomstick for support. Malfoy was on all fours, banging the ground with his fist. The Gryffindors and I were gathered around Ron, who kept belching large, glistening slugs. Nobody seemed to want to touch him.
"We'd better get him to Hagrid's, it's nearest." Harry said to Hermione and I. We nodded bravely, and we pull Ron up by the arms.
"What happened, Harry? What happened? Is he ill? But you can cure him, can't you?" Colin asked. Ron gave a huge heave and more slugs dribbled down his front.
"Oooh," Colin said, fascinated and raising his camera.
"Can you hold him still, Harry?"
"Get out of the way, Colin!" Harry said angrily, pushing him aside. Hermione and I supported Ron out of the stadium and across the grounds toward the edge of the forest. We were within twenty feet of Hagrid's house when the front door opened, but it wasn't Hagrid. Gilderoy Lockhart, wearing robes of palest mauve today, came striding out.
"Quick, behind here." Harry hissed. We dragged Ron behind a nearby bush.
"It's a simple matter if you know what you're doing!" Lockhart said loudly to Hagrid.
"If you need help, you know where I am! I'll let you have a copy of my book. I'm surprised you haven't already got one - I'll sign one tonight and send it over. well, good-bye!" And he strode away toward the castle. We waited until he was out of sight, then pulled Ron out of the bush and up to Hagrid's front door. Harry knocked urgently. Hagrid appeared at once, looking very grumpy, but his expression brightened when he saw who it was.
"Bin wonderin' when you'd come ter see me - come in, come in - thought you mighta bin Professor Lockhart back again -" Hermione and I supported Ron over the threshold into the one-roomed cabin, which had an enormous bed in one corner, a fire crackling merrily in the other. Hagrid didn't seem perturbed by Ron's slug problem, which Harry explained as Hermione and I lowered Ron into a chair.
"Better out than in," Hagrid said cheerfully, plucking a large copper basin in front of him.
"Get 'em all up, Ron."
"I don't think there's anything to do except wait for it to stop," Hermione said anxiously, watching Ron bend over the basin.
"That's a difficult curse to work at the best of times, but with a broken wand -" Hagrid was bustling around making us tea. His boarhound, Fang, was slobbering over me.
"What did Lockhart want with you?" I asked, scratching Fang's ears.
"Givin' me advice on gettin' kelpies out of a wall," Hagrid growled, moving a half-plucked rooster off his scrubbed table and setting down the teapot.
"Like I don't know. An bangin' on about some banshee he banished. If one word of it was true, I'll eat my kettle." It wasn't like Hagrid to criticize a Hogwarts' teacher like this, which surprised Harry and I.
"I think you're being a bit unfair." Hermione said in a voice somewhat higher than usual.
"Professor Dumbledore obviously thought he was the best man for the job -"
"He was the on'y man for the job," Hagrid said, offering us a plate of treacle fudge, while Ron coughed squelchily into his basin.
"An' I mean the on'y one. Gettin' very difficult ter find anyone fer the Dark Arts job. People aren't too keen ter take it on, see. They're startin' ter think it's jinxed. No one's lasted fer a while now. So tell me," Hagrid said, jerking his head at Ron.
"Who was he tryin' ter curse?"
"Malfoy called Hermione something - it must've been really bad, because everyone went wild." Harry said. Yeah, I almost punched Malfoy in the face if it wasn't for Flint pulling me away. I looked at Harry.
"It was bad," I said. I looked back at Hagrid.
"Malfoy called her a 'Mudblood,' Hagrid."
"He didn'!" He growled at Hermione.
"He did," She said.
"But I don't know what it means. I could tell it was really rude, of course -"
"It's about the most insulting thing he could think of," Ron said hoarsely, emerging over the tabletop looking pale and sweaty.
"Mudblood's a really foul name for someone who is Muggle - you know, non-magic parents. There are some wizards - like the Malfoy family - who think they're better than everyone else because they're what people call pure-blood." He gave a small burp, and a single slug fell into his outstretched hand. He threw it into the basin.
"I mean, the rest of us know it doesn't make any difference at all. Look at Neville Longbottom - he's pureblood and he can hardly stand a cauldron the right way up."
"An' they haven't invented a spell our Hermione can' do." Hagrid said proudly, making Hermione go a brilliant shade of magenta.
"It's disgusting thing to call someone," Ron said, wiping his sweaty brow with a shaking hand.
"Dirty blood, see. Common blood. It's ridiculous. Most wizards these days are half-blood any way. If we hadn't married Muggles we'd've died out." He retched and ducked out of sight again.
"Well, I don' blame yeh fer tryin' ter curse him, Ron," Hagrid said loudly over the thuds of more slugs hitting the basin.
"Bu' maybe it was a good thing yer wand backfired. 'Spect Lucius Malfoy would've come marchin' up ter school if yeh'd cursed his son. Least yer not in trouble." That is true, but I still think Malfoy deserves it.
"Harry," Hagrid said abruptly as though struck by a sudden thought.
"Gotta bone ter pick with yeh. I've heard you've bin givin' out signed photos. How come I haven't got one?" Furious, Harry wrenched his teeth apart.
"I have not been giving out signed photos," He said hotly.
"If Lockhart's still spreading that around -" Hagrid started laughing.
"I'm on'y jokin'," He said patting Harry genially on the back and sending him face first into the table. I snorted.
"I knew yeh hadn't really. I told Lockhart yeh didn't need teh. Yer more famous than him without tryin'."
"Bet he didn't like that." Harry said, sitting up and rubbing his chin.
"Don' think he did," Hagrid said, his eyes twinkling.
"An' then I told him I'd never read one o' his books an' he decided ter go. Treacle fudge, Ron?" He added as Ron reappeared.
"No thanks, better not risk it." Ron said weakly.
"Come an' see what I've bin grownin'." Hagrid said as Harry, Hermione and I finished the last of our tea. We went outside and it amazed me how big Hagrid's pumpkins were.
"Gettin' on well, aren't they?" Hagrid said happily.
"Fer the Halloween feast... should be big enough by then."
"What've you been feeding them?" Harry asked. Hagrid looked over his shoulder to check that we were alone.
"Well, I've bin givin' them - you know - a bit o' help -"
"An Engorgement Charm, I suppose?" Hermione said, halfway between disapproval and amusement. I smiled proudly.
"I know a thing or two about the Engorgement Charm -" I stop myself.
"I - I mean, what's an Engorgement Charm - I mean, yeah, we're learning about it in Charms, but I don't know how to use one." I looked at Hermione for help.
"Well," She spoke up as Hagrid eyed me.
"You've done a good job on them, Hagrid."
"That's what yer little sister said," Hagrid said, nodding at Ron.
"Met her jus' yesterday." Hagrid looked sideways at Harry, his beard twitching.
"Said she was jus' lookin' round the grounds, but I reckon she was hopin' she might run inter someone else at my house." He winked at Harry.
"If yeh ask me, she wouldn' say no ter a signed -"
"Oh, shut up." Harry said. Ron and I snorted with laughter and the ground was sprayed with his slugs. I laughter harder.
"Watch it!" Hagrid roared, pulling Ron away from his precious pumpkins.

It was dinner time, Ron and Harry had detention, so it was just me and Hermione, and since I didn't want to leave her by herself at the Gryffindor table, I sat with her. We were talking about - well, Hermione was telling me all the great things Lockhart has done.
"- And those ghouls - quite courageous I must say." Hermione said dreamily. I shake my head.
"That sounds rubbish." I said. Hermione looked at me shocked.
"Rubbish! How?" She asked.
"He doesn't have a scar on him!" I exclaimed.
"If he really did all those dangerous things I'm pretty sure he would have at least a scar..." I looked up thinking.
"On his face."
"That doesn't matter." Hermione said, obviously denying that I'm right. I groan and shake my head.
"Nia!" I hear someone say my name angrily. I look to my side and see Malfoy swaggering over to me with his minions following close behind. I groan even more.
"What do you want, Malfoy?" I asked rudely and annoyed.
"Next time you do that, you'll be scrubbing my shoes." He said. He went over to the Slytherin table with his minions following behind. I turn around and groan loudly in anger. I sigh and notice everyone at the Gryffindor table was staring at me. I glared at them and they quickly looked away.
"As I was saying," I said resting my elbow on the table and putting my chin in my palm, and pretending like nothing happened.
"I think he's just full of it. All the fame has got to his head-"
"Nia, what was that all about?" Hermione asked curious. Think of something! I sigh and shake my head.
"It's just a joke Snape once said to me." I lied. She nodded, but I could tell she wasn't buying it.
"If you say so."

READ PLEASE
Hi! So update about the job, I start this Tuesday so whenever I have time I'll write, but I won't know cause I have to start training and it's like for 4 weeks. So what I'm trying to say is that it's going to take a week or so to publish a chapter. I'm so sorry about this but I'll trying my hardest to write fast and sooner. Please be patience with me ~ Poppy