Adele's POV
"Adele, pass this to Seamus." Fred whispered, handing me a note.
I rolled my eyes, but nevertheless grabbed it. "What is it?"
"Don't read it. Just give it to Seamus." George said.
"Fine." I hissed.
I tapped Neville on the shoulder. "Neville! Give this to Seamus."
"Sure. Is it a love note?" He asked me.
I made a face. "Ew, no. Just give it to him. It's... instructions for Potions." I said the first thing that popped into my head.
Neville grinned. "I could use some help with Potions."
"Neville, don't open it!" I hissed.
"Quiet!" Snape shouted.
Neville unfolded the note and scanned it. Then he passed it along to Seamus. Seamus also read the note, and grinned at me.
The twins glared at me. "What?" I asked.
Fred drew a finger across his throat, and I gulped. Suddenly, I had a bad feeling about what was coming.
I think my eardrums burst as I heard a huge boom. Once the smoke cloud cleared away, Neville and Seamus were both covered in something green and slimy.
Fred and George cracked up. The girls in the class screamed and left the room. The guys laughed hysterically, some falling out of their chairs.
Emily was the last one out the door, screaming bloody murder. I felt guilty momentarily, but then I remembered it wasn't my fault. I turned to give the twins a death glare.
That was the moment I realized that the strange green slime covering Neville and Seamus was all over me too. I bit my tongue and silently counted from one to ten, turning to face the twins.
"Once I get out of the Hospital Wing, you're so dead." I glared, walking out of the room.
"Not so fast, Ms. Middleton." Professor Snape said, his cold eyes gazing at me. "Mr. Finnigan here claims that this was your fault."
"Professor, I didn't-" I started, but then stopped. I knew what had happened.
Behind my back, I gave Fred and George the finger. "Professor, I didn't do anything."
"Yes you did!" Seamus shouted. "You gave me that stupid note, which was supposed to help me finish the potion without the room exploding!"
"But I was just passing that on, I didn't write it!" I shouted. "Fred and George gave it to me!"
They looked hurt. "Adele, I'm ashamed. Why would you lie? Seamus only thought you sent it, because your name obviously must've been on the note." George said, grinning.
Oh no they did not.
"Yes, it's signed as Adele here, Ms. Middleton. You have some explaining to do."
"I didn't do anything, those two signed my name!" I pointed at the twins.
"Ms. Middleton, as much as I want to believe it was them, and believe it, it would be good to have them expelled, it clearly wasn't. They didn't pass this note to Mr. Longbottom and Mr. Finnigan, and their names aren't signed. They didn't ruin my classroom, and get a dangerous potion all over my students!" Snape said.
It had indeed gotten over most of the students, who had left screaming to the Hospital Wing.
"Miss Middleton, you have detention for the next week. My office at eight." Snape said.
"Now go up to the Hospital Wing. Nobody knows what that potion is, it might be dangerous, knowing these two." Snape glared at Seamus and Neville.
I raced down the hall, tears spilling down my cheeks. To make it worse, my skin was very itchy. I had a feeling it had something to do with the potion.
As I got closer to the Hospital Wing, my skin grew less itchy, and began to get warm. It got hotter and hotter, until finally it was scalding when I collapsed on the floor of the Hospital Wing. Madam Pomfrey rushed over.
"I'm guessing you're coming from Potions?" She asked.
I nodded. "Ow! My skin's burning! Help me!"
My skin was scalding. It felt like someone had just put me in a big pot on the stove, and heated it up to three hundred degrees. My insides were boiling. It felt worse than what I imagined death to be.
The only thing comforting me was the coolness of the floor, but even that was hurting. Compared to everything else, it felt nice though.
Madam Pomfrey lifted me up, and I screamed. "Let go of me!"
"No, you must take a cool bath to get rid of the pain." Madam Pomfrey said.
I screamed again. A bath sounded painful right now. "Let me down!"
I saw Draco come into the Hospital Wing. "Where's Emily?"
"She's near Mr. Longbottom." Madam Pomfrey said.
I screamed again. The fire inside me was spreading.
He frowned seeing me. "Adele, what's wrong?"
"Potions accident." Madam Pomfrey shouted over my screams. "I have a feeling the Weasley's might have something to do with this."
Draco scowled. "I wouldn't be surprised. Is everyone in here?"
At that moment, I was able to notice Seamus and Neville come in. They had large red boils all over their faces, arms, legs, and every inch of their skin.
I felt a wave of panic. Did I look like that? Oh my god, Draco's looking at me right now, looking scared. Holy crap. Oh my god, I look like that. Holy crap, I'm going to kill the twins.
Madam Pomfrey put me down in a spare bed. "Miss Middleton, you'll have to wait. Mr. Longbottom and Mr. Finnigan look the worst of the lot."
I was too busy screaming to hear her. Touching the sheets was agony. I wouldn't be surprised if the sheets burst into flames.
Draco kneeled by my bed. "Adele?"
I screamed, and shut my eyes. Now they were burning too. It was slowly spreading through my body, becoming more painful by the minute.
"Mr. Malfoy, please get her in water." Madam Pomfrey said.
"Don't you dare touch me." I said threateningly, through my screams.
I can't even find words to describe this pain. It was just.... unbelievably horrifying, something that might be as painful as the Cruciatus curse.
He looked at me, an expression of pain on my face. "I can't."
"Mr. Malfoy, that is an order. Do it now. There's a bath on the other side of the curtain, just put her in." Madam Pomfrey said. "Leave her clothes on."
Draco flushed tomato red. "Um, yeah. Okay."
He lifted me up, bridal style. I punched him and kicked too. "Put me down! Put me down Draco!"
I thought I saw a few tears in his eyes, but I was probably just imagining it. After all, why should he cry over me?
I'm not his girlfriend. I'm not Emily. I'm just Adele, nobody to him.
He looked like he was considering putting me down, but he continued.
My insides were on fire. I couldn't breathe, my windpipe was closed. I knew I would be dead any minute now. But there was an eerie calmness in knowing that I was going to die.
It seemed like it had been coming for a long time now. But I would welcome death with open arms.
Some people might think that I'm crazy. Even I think that I'm crazy. But... I didn't think there was a way to make it out of this. I was okay with that. Everything happens for a reason.
I heard a loud splash as Draco dropped me in the tub. My lungs filled with water as I tried to breathe. I sat up and coughed up water.
I felt something rough against my arms and legs, and this went on for a long time. I didn't know how I was still alive. I thought I would die.
Then the pain was gone.
"Adele, are you okay?" He asked.
I leaned against the back of the tub, and gave Draco a weak smile. "Yeah."
"I'm gonna kill the twins." He said angrily. "You guys could've died."
"Oh, it wasn't that bad." I lied, loving all the attention.
"Says the girl who was screaming her head off just seconds ago." Draco said.
"I really thought I was going to die Draco. I've never been through anything like that. I couldn't breathe. Fire was inside me, destroying me." My voice cracked with tears.
Draco looked pained, and a little frightened.
I closed my eyes, exhausted. When I opened them a few seconds later, Draco's face was close to mine, way too close to pass us off as friends.
I shuddered as he leaned forward and pressed his lips against mine. I was thrilled, and then I realized that there wasn't really... anything.
A shrill scream echoed through the room, causing me to jump away from Draco. I felt a wave of dread. Holy crap, please let it be someone else.
But of course, with my luck, you know it had to be Emily.
Isabella's POV
Emily and Draco hadn't been seen lately, not since I had seen her running from the Hospital Wing in tears, Draco racing after her.
It was hours later, just after dinner when I was passing the hospital wing, catching Adele leaving.
"Draco, that git." Adele muttered to herself.
"Adele!" I saw her. "Have you seen Emily and Draco? They haven't been seen all day."
She looked worried. "No, not since... they left earlier."
"Yeah, do you know what happened? Emily looked really upset." I asked her.
Her gaze shifted down to the floor. "Nope. But whatever it was, it couldn't have been good."
"No, Emily was just running away from her boyfriend in tears because he proposed to her." I rolled my eyes. "Of course it wasn't good!"
"So, you haven't seen Emily since then?" She asked.
"Nobody's seen them since earlier today, when they left here." I said. Adele looked really guilty, but I'd have to ask her later. What mattered now was finding Emily and Draco.
"Maybe we should go to Dumbledore." Adele said, worried. "Normally I would look longer, but I'm scared, what with Luna and Kase disappearing already. I hope she isn't gone."
"Yeah, let's go." I said.
We raced through the corridors and up the staircases until we finally reached Dumbledore's office. Gasping for breath, we paused for a moment at the door.
"You think we'd have gotten used to so many stairs by now." I managed to say.
"Password?" I hadn't realized Adele had knocked on the door.
"Cockroach cluster." I said. I quickly hopped up on the staircase with Adele as it moved upwards. When it stopped, we got off, but we heard noise from inside the office.
"Albus, if you don't get these children back, as the Minister of Magic, I will shut down Hogwarts." I heard Fudge say from inside Dumbledore's office.
"I can assure you, Minister, we are taking many precautions. Dementors will once again be guarding the school grounds, and we have many parents, staff, and Ministry employees searching for the children." Dumbledore said, sounding eerily calm.
I gasped. "Adele, did you hear that?"
She nodded, pale and speechless.
They couldn't shut down Hogwarts! Hogwarts was my only home. My parents had been killed a few years back, and then I had to move to America with my Aunt and Uncle. But I wanted to go to Hogwarts, so I'd been sent here.
If Hogwarts was shut down, I'd have to move back to America.
And what about Adele? She'd be fine, living in Hogsmeade with her mother, but I'd miss her like crazy. I feel like she's practically a sister to me, or maybe I'm just desperate for one.
That's what I've always wanted, a little sister. I asked my parents for a little sister every christmas, but I'd never gotten one. Mom was pregnant too, but then she was murdered.
Only a few more months, and I would've had a sister.
The door to Dumbledore's office swung open, and there stood the old man himself, smiling kindly down at us. "Hello, Miss Clark and Miss Middleton. May I help you?"
"Sir, we think Emily Taylor and Draco Malfoy have gone missing." Adele said bravely.
Well, I wasn't gonna do it.
The Minister stood up. "Good day Albus." Then he stepped into the fireplace and disappeared.
Dumbledore's smile disappeared. "Are you sure?"
We both nodded. "Neither of us have seen them in a few hours, and with everyone disappearing, it can't be too good."
"Have you checked the Hospital Wing? They might be there." Dumbledore suggested.
"No, but we were just scared... We'll go look now. Sorry for interrupting." I apologized, slighty embarassed.
Dumbledore smiled. "It's no trouble, Miss Clark. Having some of the school's most popular students disappearing is more important than my discussion with the Minister."
Adele and I left his office.
I had just been laughing, but now the reality of this was crashing down on me. Draco and Emily were most likely gone. They could be dead. Don't tell Adele I said this, but if they were with Luna and Kase, than they probably were dead.
"I kissed him!" Adele blurted out.
"What?" I asked. "Who did you kiss?"
"Er... Draco." She said, looking at the floor.
"Adele! What happened? Why in the world did you kiss him? You know he's dating Emily! Oh my god, Emily! She's gonna be so mad at you. Why did you do that to her? She's so sweet, and... oh my god, you're so dead." I said.
"I know, I feel awful." Adele's eyes swam with tears. "And it wasn't even worth it! I guess I don't like him anymore, the kiss was awful."
"Ooh, that's even worse." I said.
"How is that worse?" She asked. "Shouldn't it be better, if Emily knows I hated it?"
"No. It's worse. Your best friend's boyfriend cheated on her with you, and it wasn't even a good kiss. Shame." I sighed.
Adele rolled her eyes. "You're so weird sometimes."
"I know. But I've embraced it." I grinned.
"Okay, let's go, seriously." Adele said, taking off again.
When we arrived at the Hospital Wing, we found that Neville had eaten a Canary Cream, and it hadn't worn off in awhile. Parvati Patil had been hexed apparently, she didn't normally have three extra fingers. Just looking at her made me want to puke.
Madam Pomfrey was giving Parvati a potion when we came in. "Girls, you must leave, the patients are resting."
"Hey! Is Emily Taylor here?" I asked.
"Or possibly Draco Malfoy?" Adele asked her.
"Miss Taylor is in the bed near Mr. Longbottom, but Mr. Malfoy hasn't been here." Madam Pomfrey said. We rushed over to Emily's bed.
She was asleep, a smile on her face. At least she wasn't hurting badly. I heard footsteps behind us, and Madam Pomfrey appeared. "What happened to her?" I asked.
"Well, everything's fine except she's recovering from a very strong love potion, one she's been taking unknowingly for a long time, probably since the beginning of term." Madam Pomfrey said.
"You mean... Draco gave her a love potion?" Adele asked, her voice cracking.
Madam Pomfrey nodded. "I'm afraid so. I just hope that when she wakes up she won't remember dating him, for her sake."
"Whoa. This is huge." I whispered to Adele.
She smacked her forehead. "Ugh, I'm so stupid! On the train: Draco gave her some chocolate! There must've been a love potion in them!"
Emily's eyes fluttered, and she sat up in bed. "Adele? Isabella? What happened?"
"Er, you hit your head." Adele blurted out.
"You fell down." I said at the same time.
"What they mean is you fell and hit your head." Madam Pomfrey said into the silence.
"What do you remember?" Adele asked her.
"Not much.... I just remember being really upset." She said.
Madam Pomfrey and I shot Adele a look. She blushed. "Well, you were just imagining that, I'm sure. Have you seen Draco?"
Emily's face darkened. "Draco... I was mad at him. But I don't know why." She said thoughtfully.
Adele sighed, obviously relieved. "Well, we've got to go. Bye Emily!" We left the hospital wing.
I have no idea what Adele was thinking about. But, me?
I was wondering how long it would be before Emily figured out Draco cheated on her with Adele.