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Draco leads me down corridors and staircases towards the dungeons. I follow, shakily, attempting to keep up with his fast-paced strides. Despite his speed, however, he stops to look around every corner, forcing me to stop just as quickly. Finally, we reach a long stretch of dimly lit hallway, and I can see on the wall at the other end a pair of large, black doors. Draco picks up his pace once again, and I attempt to match it, but my head starts to spin so I am forced to continue at a brisk walk.
As we draw closer to the doors, I become mesmerised by them. The swirls of black are snakes, curled in or one another and forming numerous elegant knots and images. The heads of the snakes circle around the door handles. In the dim light, I swear I can see them moving.
I run into Draco, who stopped to check the corridor running across ours.
"Sorry I-"
He doesn't respond, merely taking my hand. We walk across the corridor, reaching the large metal doors. I step behind Draco as he whispers the password. The snakeheads move, slowly, mechanically, and the doors swing open.
Draco enters without hesitation, and I tentatively follow.
The room is large, looming, with stone walls covered in extravagant carvings. The long rectangular room is illuminated by green lights and a series of large intricate windows, through which you can see the swirling waters of the great lake. I shudder as the door behind me closes. Despite the fireplaces on each wall, it's freezing in here.
When we had entered, I had spotted a few Slytherin students scattered on the ornate lounge chairs and sofas, but as we walk down the room towards the far end, they seem to come out of the woodwork. What was a moment ago five or six people, becomes twenty, thirty, all pooling at the end where Draco and I are headed. I keep my eyes on the floor, waiting for someone to throw me out. Draco stops, and I look up slowly, hanging back as a tall, dark-haired girl stands up and walks over to us, arms crossed.
"Draco-"
"Let me explain-"
"You know the rules, and frankly, I don't really want to get us in more trouble with Rat Face than necessary just so you can have sex with your girlfriend."
"That's not what she's here for!"
"Especially since she won't be able to get to your dorm room, and you can't get into the girl's dorms, and after what happened last time we are not evacuating the common room for two halfwits to get it on, capiche?" She finishes. I can feel my face grow red. A couple first years giggle over near the fire.
"Will you let me explain, Lindsey?" Draco asks, seemingly unperturbed by what Lindsey is insinuating. Lindsey sighs, shifting her weight and giving a singular nod. "She needs somewhere to stay, that's all. You'll probably all hear about it tomorrow, if not tonight, but some shit just went down with a student-run organisation, which, as it so happens, she was involved in-"
"We don't take in lost puppies. Especially not Griffindors. Extra especially if they're Potters, she should have gone to Hufflepuff."
"She is the one who er-" He glances at me, wincing, "gave them away, I guess, not by choice, mind you, and now all her friends want her head on a stick. She just needs somewhere to sleep, for god's sake."
"Why should we take her in? If she gets caught here, we're all in trouble. Especially me. I'm the first Head Girl from Slytherin in years and I don't want to lose my badge because a Potter couldn't keep a secret." Those words stung. They hit me like a knife in the gut. I take a breath, holding in my tears. Not now. Not while I have an audience. "Not to mention that fact we hardly win the house cup anyway with old beard-face in charge!"
She turns to me now, tilting her head to the side and walking up to me slowly. I shrink backwards, not meeting her gaze. "Why should we take you in? We have one rule. We help ourselves. That's it. No one else will help us- hell, no one else likes us- We deal with our own problems and try our best to prove we aren't all monsters. Why do you think we join all the teacher's pet associations? Why do you think we do everything we can to win a Quidditch match? Every mistake we make is a crime, and every point we can get is a blessing."
She stops, looking down at me, "By taking you in we break our rule. We don't help people from the other houses unless they're related to a Slytherin in which case we make an exception because we're not monsters," She pauses, creasing her forehead, "Anyway, that's irrelevant. We only help each other because no one else will help us. Now, first and foremost, you're not a Slytherin, secondly, you're a Potter, and thirdly, you don't seem to have a very good track record with keeping secrets and being part of a team. Therefore, you need to leave, now." Lindsey turns, walking back to one of the large green couch's and sitting on the arm, nodding towards the door and giving me a sarcastic smile.
I glance at Draco, and he shrugs, helplessly. I can't leave. If I leave I'll have nowhere to stay and if I did want to return to my old room, I'd have to give up on being a student. I'd have to give part of it away. Not to mention having to tell McGonagall about Umbridge. I can't. I'm not leaving without a fight. I think for a moment, there has to be a loophole. There has to be.
"I was never sorted," I say quietly, looking Lindsey right in the eye. "I was just put in Gryffindor because McGonagal is my adopted mother. That sorting hat has never even touched my head, so you can't throw me out on the basis of my house because for all I know I could be a Slytherin," I sigh, "Now, I can't do anything about the Potter bit, but if you throw me out because of my name, you aren't going to improve your image, are you? In fact, you'd just prove to everyone here, and everyone outside that you are just a bunch of judgmental, selfish pricks."
I stand up a bit taller, knowing I was winning because of the look on Lindsey's face. I know what I have to do.
"Now, has anyone here had a detention with Umbridge?" I ask, my voice cracking as I say her name, but I hold back tears. I'm fine. Lindsey scoffs,
"We're the worst hit house. Rat Face hates us like everyone else. In fact, more than everyone else. You're not special, sorry sweety."
I take in a shaky breath and raise my left hand, my scar facing the crowd. I must not tell lies printed into my skin makes a few of them wince. A girl, who, for a moment, I fail to recognise, stands and raises her hand like I have mine. On hers, however, instead of I must not tell lies, it reads I must not cheat. Pansy Parkinson's eyes meet mine, and we silently make a truce. I don't know whether she has shrunk or I have grown, but we seem to be the same size. I no longer feel as though I am a mouse and she is a cat in search of prey.
After Pansy stands up, so do a few others, then more, until at least half of the crowd is standing, one hand raised. Heartbreakingly, four of them are first years.
"So? As you can tell, you still aren't that special." Lindsey says, but the bravado in her voice is gone. I grit my teeth, close my eyes and turn away from them. I curl my arms back, hooking my fingers around the bottom of the back of my white school shirt, and pull it up to reveal my back. I hear a gasp from behind me, a few of the older kids curse under their breath. Once I let it sink in, I let go of my shirt and turn to face them.
"It isn't a competition, Lindsey. I'm just trying to prove my point. You can play the victim and refuse to help people all you want- I know how you're treated. But if you don't help others they won't like you any more than they do now. You want to change the face of Slytherin. Fair enough. But among your classmates, helping me isn't going to make them hate you. Well, they might a bit, until they stop hating me, but helping me won't hurt you. I just need somewhere to stay. Please. Please. I have nowhere else I can go."
She sighs, defeated, "Fine,"I grin, "You can stay. On one condition-"
"Name it," I say quickly,
"No sex in the common room."
"Deal."
xxx
WHOOP
So, guys, I have a long weekend this week and I'm publishing this early and I might do another chapter if I feel like it but I might not so don't get your hopes up too high :)
Thanks for reading,
See you next week!
Taylor xx