two rings and bad things

19_ dementor attack

"Have you heard about Sirius Black?!" Malorie asked anxiously.

"Yes! I read it in the Daily Prophet, I hope they catch him soon," Ed replied in a British accent, which had completely developed over the years.

"Yeah, he seems mad, I still can't believe he broke out of Azkaban..." Malorie added.

They had just gotten on the Hogwarts Express and already eaten a bunch of food from the trolley.

However, Lance McCoy wasn't with them. He was in the next compartment over with Theodore Nott and Blaise Zabini.

But Ed and Malorie didn't mind, they were getting older and weren't surprised that he wanted to hang out with other guys.

"So, what have you been up to since we saw each other last?" Ed asked.

"Not much, really. Although, my Aunt Glenna took Claire and I to visit my Grandparents. What about you?" said Malorie.

"Well, I practiced Quidditch quite a bit and saw Annette Heyden. She goes to Beauxbatons... Oh, I almost forgot! My family also-" Ed stopped abruptly, because someone had entered their compartment.

She was going to say her family went on a roadtrip, but considering that the person who just walked in hated anything muggle-related, she decided it was best to keep her mouth shut.

"What do you want, Malfoy?" Ed asked rudely.

They still weren't on good terms from last year. But unlike a year ago, he was a lot taller now and looked much older.

"Just seeing if you saved a seat for Potter and his mudblood friends," he said.

"Well, I haven't, so you can leave now," she replied.

"Not so fast, that's exactly what you would say if you were waiting for him. So no, I will not be leaving," he said as he sat down at the same booth as Ed, across from Malorie.

She gave him a disapproving look.

"Go on, you can still talk. I don't mind," Malfoy stated, knowing he was bothering them.

"Nevermind Malorie, I'll tell you later," said Ed.

They were getting closer to the school now, but the friends were still talking nonstop.

"So, you're going to try out for Quidditch then?" Malorie asked.

Ed glanced over, she knew Malfoy was interested in Quidditch and wanted to see if he was going to say anything, but he seemed to be ignoring them.

"Yeah, my parents got me a Nimbus 2000 for my birthday," she explained.

"Why not just get the Nimbus 2001 then?" Malfoy asked.

She knew he was going to say something, he was always looking for drama.

"Because some people actually appreciate what they get, believe it or not, even if it's not the most expensive item."

"But wouldn't you rather be rich like my family?" he bragged.

"Yes. I would love to be a spoiled pureblood brat who doesn't care about anyone but themselves," she in a very sarcastic tone with a smile on her face.

Malfoy sneered at her.

"You're a filthy blood traitor, and that's all you'll ever be," he insulted.

"Why are you being so rude? I never did anything to you," said Ed.

"Are you suggesting that we become friends again?" Malfoy asked.

Ed thought for a second, considering what the right answer was.

"...Possibly," she responded.

All of a sudden, the train stopped and the lights went out. The storm outside got worse too, the rain was pounding on the train.

Everything went cold, frost was forming on the windows and a bone-chilling draft blew through the compartments.

"What's going on?" Ed asked, concerned.

"Dementors. They're after Sirius Black," Malfoy replied, surprisingly without his usual smug tone.

The three of them looked at each other worryingly.

Then their attention went to the door, where a black-cloaked, gruesome creature stood.

Ed was terrified, it looked like it had risen from the dead.

It reached out its bony hand towards the door handle, which opened with ease, and floated in.

Malorie and Ed moved closer to the window to get away from it.

A wave of sadness soon filled the compartment,  like they would never be happy again.

Perhaps this was why Malfoy moved over to Ed and put himself in front of her to protect her.

Fortunately, the dementor then became distracted and left.

But their shock didn't leave.

They sat there for a moment, trying to process what had happened, and soon the train started moving again.

Malfoy suddenly got up.

"I'll be right back," he said. He was going to check on everyone else.

"What's he doing?" Ed asked Malorie, who shrugged.

He came back a few minutes later, but for some reason he was still not acting like himself.

"They're gone now, thank goodness. It could have sucked your soul out," he explained, relieved.

But this comment was more directed towards Ed, and they both knew it.

"What in the world- he was being... nice almost," Ed thought to herself.

They started getting their school robes on, but they did so in silence, each of them preoccupied with their thoughts.

And Malfoy was thinking about Ed.

He knew she was a blood traitor, but she was different from the rest of them. They even got along well first year, and she was just like any other Slytherin. Besides, she was smarter than his other friends; he was getting tired of Crabbe and Goyle being so stupid. Maybe she wasn't so bad...