From a Cradle to a Grave

Chapter 16

This week's Legacies episode (4x03) was the best thing EVER.

Hope's Pov

I must have fallen asleep, because I'm woken by the sound of loud pounding on a door.

"That bitch spelled the door shut!" I hear Pansy shriek.

"Did you try-"

"Of course I tried 'Alohomora', Daphne. Do I look like an idiot to you?" Pansy demands.

"You sure you want her to answer that?"

"Shut up, Bullstrode! Nobody wants you here!"

"Motus," I mumble drowsily.

At the flick of my finger, the door bursts open, slamming itself into whoever was standing directly outside the doorway.

"What the bloody hell is wrong with you?" Pansy screams as she marches in. "You attack me, then decide it's a great idea to go around locking people out of their dorm rooms?"

I notice that she keeps a safe distance from me as she expresses her anger at me. Clearly, my 'attack' spooked her a lot more than she's letting on.

When I don't respond, Pansy mutters a few more swear words, before marching over to her bed. Daphne and Millicent silently slide into their beds, as well.

I lay awake for what seems like forever, turning this way and that, until finally, I manage to fall asleep again...

When I wake up, I find that all three girls have already left for the Great Hall without me. I get dressed, combing down my sleek red hair that clashes horribly with my green Slytherin robes, and hesitantly walk down the stairs.

When I enter the Great Hall, I feel as though someone suddenly placed a Silencing Charm over all the students. Ignoring the strange ringing in my ears, I briskly walk over to the Slytherin table, only to find that Millicent Bullstrode is sitting in my usual seat.

"Move it, Bullstrode," I spit at her.

But she doesn't budge. One glance at her face tells me that she feels uncomfortable standing up to me like this. Undoubtedly, Pansy put her up to this.

I'm seriously considering just pushing Bullstrode off her seat, when a couple of the Slytherin sixth-years beckon for me to sit down next to them.

Adrian Pucey, Cassius Warrington, and Miles Bletchley, who are all members of the Slytherin Quidditch team, lean in towards me, as if preparing to say something extremely important.

I frown, wondering what they want. We've never shared a single conversation before, so why now?

"So tell us, Weasley," Warrington grins. "How d'you do it? How did you get past the Age Line?"

Of course. What else did I expect?

"Well, Warrington," I smile politely, "I suggest you stick your head up your own arse and search for the answer there, seeing as you'll have much better luck if you do so."

I march away from them, hearing the roaring laughter of Pucey and Bletchley as they clap Warrington on the back like wild animals.

Ignoring the looks from the other students, not to mention the stares of the teachers, I cross the length of the Great Hall, and come to a stop at the Gryffindor table.

"I need to talk to you," I desperately say to Harry, Ron, and Hermione.

The four of us walk out onto school grounds, and begin to take a stroll around the Great Lake.