MEMENTO MORI | DRACO MALFOY

FIVE

CHAPTER FIVE

     Ophelia was kept busy the next few weeks, so much so that she didn't have much time for her mind to fester over Moody. Their lessons had become so demanding and time consuming that she hadn't had time to think about much, really. No one had. The students supposed that the Professors were stacking up the homework prior to the start of the Tournament, knowing full well the student's heads wouldn't be fully immersed in their studies once the excitement began.

One thing that shook Ophelia to her core, however, was when Professor Moody decided that they were ready to have the Imperius curse placed on each of them — for a realistic demonstration — or so he called it.

There were protests, several of them. The students were fully aware that casting the Imperius curse was illegal, Moody had even told them himself.

"Dumbledore wants you to know what it feels like." Moody growled, shutting down the many voices of protest. "It's much simpler to resist later on once you know how it affects you. If you'd prefer to learn the hard way, when someone is cursing you to control you completely, you may be excused."

Ophelia sat in the back with her hands folded uncomfortably in her lap. She'd taken to sitting as far away from Moody as possible after their first lesson. Not that it made her feel any better about being in his vicinity, but the increased distance was a little less unsettling. She'd at least have more time to prepare for an impending interaction as he'd slowly hobble towards her.

She contemplated getting up and leaving. It would have been the wiser choice, but she remained put. Perhaps if someone else had left she would have followed, but not a soul moved from their seats, not even when Moody gestured for them to gather around the empty desk up front.

"Who's first?" He growled as both eyes whipped around the room. "Mr Thomas, how about you give it a go?"

Dean Thomas was a quiet Gryffindor. Ophelia didn't know much about him other than that he hung around with Seamus Finnigan most of the time. She watched as he rose from his seat uneasily as Seamus clapped him on the back reassuringly. Dean didn't look around at all of the watchful eyes as he stood face to face with Moody. The man's reaction didn't change when he casted the curse at Dean's forehead, though it was difficult to determine whether it had even affected the boy.

Suddenly, the tall Gryffindor began to hop around the room on one foot while singing the National Anthem. There were gasps and snickers that immediately ceased when Moody glanced their way. Everyone was frightened of who would be the next.

As each student took their turn, none of them were able to resist the curse. She hadn't expected anyone to, really. When Moody called Potter to the front of the room, he stepped forward and stared at Moody intently. Everyone watched in anticipation. If Harry Potter was able to survive the Killing Curse, perhaps he'd be the one to resist the Imperius curse as well.

When Moody cast the curse, there was no movement. Not straight away. By the look on Potter's face, it appeared as though he was having a conversation with himself, inside of his head. Minutes later there had still been no movement, until Moody cocked his head to one side. There was a crashing noise as Potter's body crashed into the desk, simultaneously knocking it over.

"That's more like it!" Moody bellowed while clapping his hands together. Harry looked confused and ashamed all at the same time. "Potter fought it and damn near beat it! We're going to do it again, so get a good look at his eyes, everyone!"

Moody Imperiused Harry several more times until he was able to resist the curse completely. Ophelia was glad that Potter had taken up the majority of the class time, she quietly hoped he wouldn't call on her before the end of the lesson. She was very quickly disappointed.