AUTOPHOBIA - G. WEASLEY

First Year: Practice

✯ CHAPTER SIX ✯

❝That makes sense.❞

DRACO MALFOY COULDN'T believe his eyes when he saw that Harry, Ron and Estella were still at Hogwarts the next day, looking tired but perfectly cheerful. Indeed, by the next morning Harry and Ron thought that meeting the three-headed dog had been an excellent adventure (while Estella thought it had been more of a scary one), and they were quite keen to have another one. In the meantime, Harry filled the both of them in about a package that seemed to have been moved from Gringotts to Hogwarts, and they spent a lot of time wondering what could possibly need such heavy protection.

"It's either really valuable or really dangerous," said Ron.

Harry shrugged. "Maybe it's both."

"Well, either way, they've definitely hid it well," Estella confirmed, sure of her statement. "There's absolutely no way anyone is going to make it past that dog."

But neither of the boys seemed to agree with her. Harry actually looked somewhat worried. There wasn't much any of them could do though, they would need a lot more clues to actually be able to figure anything out.

Neither Neville nor Hermione showed the slightest interest in what lay underneath the dog and the trapdoor. All Neville cared about was never going near the dog again -- not that Estella could blame him.

Hermione was now refusing to speak to Estella, Harry and Ron, but she was such a bossy know-it-all that they saw this as an added bonus, though sometimes Estella thought it would be nice if she had someone in her dorm that she could talk to.

All they really wanted now was a way of getting back at Malfoy, and to their great delight, just such a thing arrived in the mail about a week later.

As the owls flooded into the Great Hall as usual, everyone's attention was caught at once by two long, thin packages, both carried by six large screech owls. Estella was just as interested as everyone else to see what was in these large parcels, and was amazed when the owls soared down and dropped one right in front of her and the other in front of Harry, knocking food from the table everywhere. They had hardly fluttered out of the way when another owl dropped a letter on top of Estella's parcel that was addressed to both her and Harry.

"I'll open this first," she said, a confused look on her face. "Dad once told me to always open the letter or card first when you receive a parcel from someone, because it might be important."

She ripped it open, and it was lucky that she had listened to Remus the time he had told her that, because it said:

DO NOT OPEN THE PARCEL AT THE TABLE

"Oh, and he was right," she continued talking to Harry, handing him the letter as she spoke. "We can't open this here."

Once Harry had finished fully reading the letter, he handed it back to Estella. She noticed that his face was really shocked, but also excited, so naturally she continued reading the piece of parchment in her hand straight away.

It contains your new Nimbus Two Thousands, but I don't want everybody knowing you've both got a broomstick or they'll all want one. Oliver Wood will meet the both of you tonight on the Quidditch field at seven o'clock for your first training session.

Professor McGonagall

Estella looked at Harry again, and they both struggled hiding the glee on their face. She handed the letter to Ron so that he could read it.

"A Nimbus Two-Thousand!" he moaned enviously. "I've never even touched one."

They left the hall quickly, wanting to unwrap the two broomsticks in private before their first class, but halfway across the entrance hall they found the way upstairs barred by Crabbe and Goyle. Malfoy seized Estella's package from her and felt it.