Kaia Black

06

I brought my fist to the door and forced myself to knock on the wood. The door opened with magic revealing a smug smile on Unbridge her face who sat behind her desk. The office was small but that didn't stop it from looking like a pink toad exploded inside of it. The walls were a bright pink colour and the place was decorated with many pictures of cats that meowed once you entered.

"Miss Black, take a seat." she signed me to sit down behind a table. A piece of parchment laid on top with a quill but no ink. I complied and sat down.

"Now, as punishment you'll be writing lines about your concerning behavior."

I felt the urge to roll my eyes or give her a piece of my mind but managed to stop myself. I bit on my lower lip and picked the quill up.

"No ink needed, this is a special quill. You will be writing down the following line, I will not misbehave in class and spread childish lies."

I tensed up even more but brought the tip of the quill to the paper. As confused as I was about not needing ink soon the pieces of the puzzle came together. As I wrote the first few words I felt a stinging pain on the back of my left hand. I scratched my nails over my skin and grunted. It felt like someone was pinching a dozen needles into my skin.

My face lost more of its colour when I saw the words I had just written down on the paper appearing on my hand. Carved into my skin was the line Umbridge had told me to write.

Like nothing was wrong Umbridge grinned to herself and continued reading the book in her hands. I decided to act like nothing was wrong as well, cause I knew that would annoy her even more.

The pain was bearable but it was the anger towards Umbridge that was the hardest to control. I couldn't let her get to me so that's what I was going to achieve. I was going to stay strong and prove her wrong.

After the several hours spent in Umbridge her office and writing more than two hundred lines I was finally released. But with the announcement that I was due to come back the remaining days of the week. I gave her a nod and left the office in a hurry. Groaning to myself I scratched the sore skin of my hand. I pulled my sleeves down and covered my skin. I wasn't waiting for any pity parties and I didn't want Umbridge to ruin any more moods.

I decided to just think about anything else and block the woman from my mind for the rest of the night. After all George and Fred had promised to show me one of their secret passageways.

I found them sitting in the Gryffindor common room and plopped down in between the twins, letting out a breath of exhaustion.

"Umbridge?" they asked in unison. I nodded and sat up straight, wrapping my arms around their shoulders. They raised their eyebrows and waited for me to speak up.

"How about we break some rules?" I suggested. They shared a look and jumped up. Both reaching out a hand for me they smirked saying "We thought you'd never ask."

It was honestly one of the best nights I had in a long time, just having fun with friends. It reminded me of the adventures with Viktor, my best friend who always managed to get us in trouble. But the nights we got in trouble were the most memorable nights and the nights when I laughed until I peed my pants.

Fred and George could do something similar to Viktor, they could distract me from my worries and make me laugh harder than ever. Hanging out with them was what made Hogwarts even more like a home. They weren't just funny and mischievous, they were good friends who weren't judgmental and knew when someone needed a break from everything.

"Lumos." Fred casted and stretched his arm out. I squinted my eyes due to the sudden light in the dark hallway and followed the small ball of light.

We had been joking around all night when we finally decided it was best to return to the dormitories. It was past bed time and teachers would definitely punish us if they caught us lingering in the corridors. But the risk of getting caught was what made it exciting.

Fred froze in place, George and I mimicked his movement. A sudden sound at the end of the corridor made George place his hand on my lower back as if wanting to protect me. It gave me goosebumps but I felt myself leaning into his touch, my back hitting his arm.

"We better get out of sight." Fred whispered and I nodded in agreement. "Stick together."

Fred turned the light off and I instinctively grabbed George's arm, a guidance through the dark. My cheeks flushed red when I felt him placing my hand in his and squeezing it reassuringly. I was thankful for him not being able to see my red cheeks and quietly followed the twins.

"This way." Fred whispered and before we knew it we found ourselves back in the Gryffindor common room through one of their million secret passageways. It was true what people said, the Weasley twins truly were the most mischievous students at Hogwarts.

I held a hand above my eyes to dim the bright lighting as I stepped into the common room. Only when Fred turned around to face both me and George, did I realize I was still holding onto George's hand. I smoothly let go of his hand and hugged my arms to my chest. But the smirk on Fred's face didn't go unnoticed by me and George was obviously less bothered by his brother seeing us holding hands.

"Well, Weasleys, I better get some sleep."

"Yeah, you better because you're completely losing it, Black." Fred chuckled. I glared at him and turned to walk up the stairs. I looked over my shoulder at George saying "Goodnight."

"Goodnight, Kaia." George replied, ending it with a wink. I rolled my eyes but couldn't contain the wide smile that formed once I turned back around again. I went to bed with a new feeling that night, a strange tingling feeling inside my stomach. And the image of a certain boy that I couldn't stop thinking about, George Weasley.