Returning back to Hogwarts was more difficult than Cordelia had imagined it to be.
After constant reassurance from Lazarus that he would be looking after himself and would be the one coming to collect her when she comes back, again, did only Dora board the train again.
Lazarus had asked Dora to keep his health a secret to herself and not tell the Malfoy's just yet.
Dora kept strong. Returning back, she was more invested in her studies than before.
The wandless magic lessons had yet to begun.
Anyone with proper working eyes and ears could see the tension that was between the golden trio.
It was a little amusing for Dora to see the Granger girl fret and cry over and about their friendship.
Whoever sent that firebolt, Dora was glad that they did so. Not because Harry had lost his nimbus but because the entertainment the broom provided.
Remus had informed Dora that he had indeed passed on the presents to Harry, also about him teaching Harry the Patronus Charm.
"Well, what do you reckon his patronus would be?" She questioned Remus.
"No idea. What do you reckon it could be?" Remus questioned right back.
"If you think about it...." She trailed of thinking, "It could be a stag or a doe maybe. But it could be anything"
"We'll have to find out" Remus chuckled.
That night Dora decided to talk to Granger.
And as if luck was on her side, she found Granger alone in the dorm that they were sharing.
"Granger" she started, walking towards her own bed, making the bushy haired girl look up with questioning eyes.
"Yes Black?"
"I would watch what I'm talking about if I were you" she said in a steel voice, "With all the pressure that you are under with all those extra lessons that you are taking. Watching your back could proof to be quite difficult" she finished.
"What are you-"
"I think you're smarter than that, or perhaps I'm under the wrong impression"
That was all.
Hermione could only assume that Dora meant- Professor Lupin.
That means she knows.... Hermione shook her head and focused back on her book.
-
Dora and Cedric had been studying a little in the library, completing their homework.
"How do you tolerate Snape ugh," Dora groaned, "This essay is rubbish" she said as she swiftly completed her essay on Undetectable Poisons.
Cedric chuckled. "Oh just sailing and trying to avoid the waves"
"Also, thank you for the presents. You didn't have to" Cedric softly told Dora, as he looked through several books.
"Ah, you did not have to either" she chuckled and played with her bracelet that was given to her by her grandfather.
The terrible memories attached with this Christmas flooded her mind. Making her miss her grandfather.
Dora took out a parchment and wrote a small checking-up letter to her grandfather.
"I think we have done enough for today" Cedric said yawning a bit.
"Yeah. I thought same" Dora said not being able to contain her yawn.
Walking towards the Gryffindor Tower, Dora thought back upon all the things that she had done that day.
It was getting harder to spend time with Draco, he would study only in his common room and when outside, would only be trying to bully others. Which Dora didn't appreciate.
Dora needed to focus on her lessons and the upcoming wandless magic.... she couldn't wait to start with that class.
I need to focus on my studies and make grandfather proud.
Walking into the common room, Dora saw Oliver Wood, the Quidditch captain for Gryffindor fussing over the firebolt.
"-Told me I'd got my priorities wrong. Seemed to think I cared more about winning the Cup than I do about you staying alive. Just because I told her I didn't care if it threw you off, as long as you caught the Snitch first." Wood shook his head in disbelief. "Honestly, the way she was yelling at me...you'd think I'd said something terrible. Then I asked her how much longer she was going to keep it..." He screwed up his face and imitated Professor McGonagall's severe voice. "As long as necessary, Wood....I reckon it's time you ordered a new broom, Harry. There's an order form at the back of Which Broomstick...you could get a Nimbus Two Thousand and One, like Malfoy's got."
"I'm not buying anything Malfoy thinks is good," said Harry flatly.
Dora tried to hide her smile, when she heard Harry talk so flatly.
She remembered the little 'thank you' and the wishing note that Harry had sent during Christmas break. The Snowy white owl very similar looking to Luella.
January faded into February with no change in the bitterly cold weather.
Dora had seized going up the Astronomy tower for the time being. Not wanting to catch a nasty cold.
Returning from the library, Dora spent her time translating the runes.
This was when Harry Potter and his red head friend, Weasel, entered the room with the firebolt in his hand. Making everyone go haywire over it.
Collecting her stuff, Dora walked up into the dorm room.
It was all quiet for a few seconds before Dora was startled by someone screaming, making her run out of the dorm and down the spiral staircase to see it was only the red head shouting at his bushy haired friend.
Rude....
"LOOK!" he bellowed, striding over to Hermione's table. "LOOK!" he yelled, shaking the sheets in her face.
"Ron, what --?"
"SCABBERS! LOOK! SCABBERS!"
Hermione was leaning away from Ron, looking utterly bewildered. Harry looked down at the sheet Ron was holding.
"BLOOD!" Ron yelled into the stunned silence. "HE'S GONE! AND YOU KNOW WHAT WAS ON THE FLOOR?"
"N -- no," said Hermione in a trembling voice.
Dora watched as Ron threw the sheets at Hermione and rolled her eyes, walking back upstairs.
-
It was the day of the match. Gryffindor against Ravenclaw.
Dora had a red and golden scarf around her neck for the match.
She was on her second piece of toast when she saw Harry come in with his firebolt. Making almost everyone in the hall gawk at it.
Harry set the broom down on the table, not too far away from where Dora was sitting.
Dora watched as people came over to congratulate Harry.
She was surprised to see even Cedric come over, congratulating Harry for having acquired such a superb replacement for his Nimbus.
But the most hilarious of all was the bickering between Harry and her cousin Draco.
"Sure you can manage that broom, Potter?" said a cold, drawling voice.
Draco had arrived for a closer look, Crabbe and Goyle right behind him.
"Yeah, reckon so," said Harry casually.
"Got plenty of special features, hasn't it?" said Draco eyes glittering, "Shame it doesn't come with a parachute in case you get too near a Dementor."
This made Crabbe and Goyle sniggered.
Dora couldn't understand why Draco hangs out with them in the first place.
"Pity you can't attach an extra arm to yours, Malfoy," said Harry. "Then it could catch the Snitch for you."
Harry's reply made even Dora giggle, trying to hide it from her cousin, by covering her mouth and coughing.
The match was not very interesting, but Dora still watched from her Gryffindor stands.
Clapping once in a while, she saw Remus standing with Professor McGonagall. A red flag in his hand.
Of course... Dora chuckled to herself.
Harry Potter was letting Cho Chang, the Ravenclaw seeker do him dirty by being a gentleman. Which didn't settle well with Dora but her thoughts were soon distracted when she saw three dementors looking over at Harry.
But something was really funny about the dementors, they didn't give the cold vibe.
Dora was a little happy to see Harry produce a small patronus shield, enough to send away the dementors.
And while the dementors were thrown back, Dora saw the platinum blonde hair under one of the hoods.
Rushing down the stands, she missed when Harry caught the snitch.
Dora moved towards where she had been the "dementors" falling to see Professor McGonagall rushing after her as well.
There lay Draco, Crabbe, Goyle and even Marcus Flint. In long black robes.
Dora was finding it hard to keep herself from laughing.
"You gave Mr. Malfoy quite a fright," she heard Remus.
This made Dora look up to see Harry staring down at her cousin and the rest while Professor McGonagall yelled at them.
"An unworthy trick! A low and cowardly attempt to sabotage the Gryffindor Seeker! Detention for all of you, and fifty points from Slytherin! I shall be speaking to Professor Dumbledore about this, make no mistake! Ah, here he comes now!"
But Dora's smile immediately vanished when she heard the Weasel laughing. This made Dora roll her eyes.
Dora stayed back, while Draco was getting scolded.
"That was hilarious" she laughed when she saw Draco walking towards the entrance of the school.
"My father will hear about this" he grunted, dusting off the mud that clung to his uniform.
-
Dora had gone off to sleep early, but was deeply annoyed when she heard yelling coming from the boys dormitory.
Walking down the stairs with other girls, while she wrapped a robe around herself, she saw the red head Ron Weasley, shakily telling his brother something.
"Percy- Sirius Black!" said Ron faintly. "In our dormitory! With a knife! Woke me up!"
The common room went very still, even Dora's eyes widened a little.
"Nonsense!" said Percy, looking startled. "You had too much to eat, Ron- had a nightmare --"
"I'm telling you --"
"Now, really, enough's enough!"
Professor McGonagall was back. She slammed the portrait behind her as she entered the common room and stared furiously around.
"I am delighted that Gryffindor won the match, but this is getting ridiculous! Percy, I expected better of you!"
"I certainly didn't authorize this, Professor!" said Percy, puffing himself up indignantly. "I was just telling them all to get back to bed! My brother Ron here had a nightmare --"
"IT WASN'T A NIGHTMARE!" Ron yelled. "PROFESSOR, I WOKE UP, AND SIRIUS BLACK WAS STANDING OVER ME, HOLDING A KNIFE!"
Professor McGonagall stared at him.
"Don't be ridiculous, Weasley, how could he possibly have gotten through the portrait hole?"
"Ask him!" said Ron, pointing a shaking finger at the back of Sir Cadogan's picture. "Ask him if he saw-"
Glaring suspiciously at Ron, Professor McGonagall pushed the portrait back open and went outside. The whole common room listened with bated breath. "Sir Cadogan, did you just let a man enter Gryffindor Tower?"
"Certainly, good lady!" cried Sir Cadogan.
There was a stunned silence, both inside and outside the common room.
"You- you did?" said Professor McGonagall. "But- but the password!"
"He had 'em!" said Sir Cadogan proudly. "Had the whole week's, my lady! Read 'em off a little piece of paper!"
Professor McGonagall pulled herself back through the portrait hole to face the stunned crowd. She was white as chalk.
"Which person," she said, her voice shaking, "which abysmally foolish person wrote down this week's passwords and left them lying around?"
There was utter silence, broken by the smallest of terrified squeaks. Neville Longbottom, trembling from head to fluffy slippered toes, raised his hand slowly into the air.
Dora felt bad for Neville, it was wrong of Professor McGonagall to be yelling at him, in her opinion. Sir Cadagon kept changing the passwords like a mad person.
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