Before the Dawn | George Weasley

7

I sat shivering in the Slytherin common room, the heat from the fireplace slowly thawing me from my frozen state. I had stripped my soaked outer layers, leaving them on a pile on the floor beside me.

Miles tossed a dry jumper at me, hitting me squarely in the face, and settled on the floor next to me. I leaned against him, trying to absorb his body heat. 

Marcus sat in an armchair across from us with his wet hair standing up in spikes. "Why didn't you tell me you were going? You could have sat with me."

I pulled on Miles's jumper gratefully, revelling in the extra layer of warmth it provided.  "I didn't realise you were going, either. I got mixed in with the Gryffindors."

"You and those Gryffindors," Marcus scoffed. "Almost seems like you like them."

Miles snorted. I started shivering again, and he gave a soft sigh and rubbed my arms to help me warm up. I flashed him a grateful glance, edging even closer to him.

"Some of them are alright." I held out my hands to feel the heat radiating from the flames in the fireplace.

"Well, luckily for you, you'll get to see all your new friends sooner than expected."

Miles and I straightened. "The match has been rescheduled?"

He hummed, smiling at my excitement. "End of next week."

"What's happened? Everyone's talking, but nobody's making sense." Graham asked excitedly, jumping over the back of the couch behind me. He was followed closely by Lucian and Peregrine, who looked just as curious.

"Dementors invaded the pitch and Potter dropped like a rock," Marcus snorted, the others echoing his laughter. I didn't join in, recalling the terrifying sight of Potter plummeting helplessly through the air. "Dumbledore stopped him before he hit the ground, unfortunately."

"Shame," chuckled Lucian.

"At the end of the match there were so many dementors you couldn't even see the sky," I said quietly, shivering at the memory.  "It was scary."

"At least Gryffindor lost the match." Miles nudged me, and the others nodded in agreement. "And to Hufflepuff, no less."

"Why were the dementors there, though?" I wondered aloud. "I thought they weren't supposed to come onto school grounds. I've never seen Dumbledore so angry."

Marcus shrugged. "Dunno. Made for an entertaining match, though."

The boys all laughed again.

* * * * * *

That evening, once I had dried off, I pulled my damp coat on over Miles's jumper and left the common room.

It was almost nightfall; I had to hurry. The school's curfew rules were even stricter since Sirius Black had apparently broken into the castle, and I knew I could get in trouble just for walking alone, let alone at night.

I dodged quickly through the rapidly-emptying castle halls until I had reached the Great Hall, then, drawing a deep breath, pushed open one of the doors.

The Gryffindors' makeshift common room was comprised of rows of sleeping bags and not much else. Students gathered in small groups and sat on the floor throughout the Hall, and I felt a twinge of sympathy as I scanned the crowd.

"Nice of you to join us today," a voice crowed.

"How'd it feel being a part of the best house for once?" another jeered.