I have no choice!
She had to be strong, she owed it to everyone who bore Daoming Si's tyranny for years! So, she was determined when she prepared herself to confront her enemy.
In the Great Hall, Daoming Si made a loud announcement saying she had received a red card and Minerva McGonagall had a hard time to silence the exploding of exclamations and chatterings which followed it. Shancai stared back at him without a blink, chin up, defying him even if, internally, she wasn't really reassured. Being a focal point for an entire school wasn't what she preferred in her life.
Immediately, the majority of students avoided her like she was a plague and only Xiaoyou, Qinghe and a reluctant Lizhen stayed by her side. It did not take long before all the dishes Shancai tried to touch exploded on her face, for her friends as well. When eventually she could taste something, she had her tongue burning because of strong spices that appeared in the meal, sprinkling all her food.
"Every person who would stay on Dong Shancai's side will suffer the same fate!" Sang Daoming Si, to the Gryffondor girl's and her friends' great horror.
After having their faces being sprayed by buckets of waters coming from nowhere all morning long, have been chased by their books, inks and feathers which decided to show their discontent, have swallowed again and again meals in which someone put too many spices (and having their tongue burning at the same time) then having to bear Peeves, the poltergeist who chose to target them, Lizhen ended to forfeit, irritated.
"Sorry Shancai, but I warned you more than once against him!" She exclaimed on the verge of tears. "For almost seven years, I did everything I could to not be spotted, to be the more discreet as possible! Maybe you don't mind about the way people look at muggles' children, but I do! I did everything to blend into the masses, to fit into the mold – and I find myself being the target of several hundreds of students because of you!"
Offended, Xiaoyou and Qinghe wanted to protest but Shancai silenced them. "Lizhen is right. It's my fault, you don't have to stand that! It's better for you to let me alone!"
They tried to protest again but Shancai ran away and avoided them for the rest of the day and as well for the following days. There was no way her friends had to suffer this as well, even if she had to be utterly alone! Knowing her friends weren't suffering because of her helped her to keep her chin up and bravely suffer the Slytherin boy attacks. Daoming Si laughed at her: "You're all alone, now, ugly girl!"
She just stared at him, chin up, proudly, which irritated more the Slytherin boy. The stronger she was, the more he insisted, increasing his cruelty, but there was no way she gave up. She even got James Sirius Potter's attention when he ignored her for more than six years while they were in the same class.
The great Harry Potter's son didn't accept cowards and always despised her, didn't even glancing at her. But now she resisted to Daoming Si when he was the only one to do that until now, he accepted to show her some respect and even to propose some help.
Daoming Si trapped Shancai on the top of the stairs. The one she wanted to climb decided to go elsewhere, she started to turn but came face to face with Daoming Si. She felt the panic rising in her body but she resisted him while he stared at her with his dark and piercing look.
"Well, well, well! Am I wrong or the little Dong Shancai is here, alone? Where are your loyal friends, little Gryffondor girl?"
He made a few steps toward her and, without looking away from him, she stepped back until she felt the wall against her back. She felt her guts frozen while thin drops of sweat ran alongside her forehead. She was scared to death deep inside, fear of what he would do to her, but there was no way she showed that to him!
Daoming Si nunquam titillandus - Part 2: Spice
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