Atlas Malfoy and how history repeats itself

Part 7

Hermione drags us to a part of the castle I've never seen and pulls us to a halt in front of a trophy cabinet. She says, "Harry, you're going to be a good seeker. Look."
I peek over Harry's head and say, "Who is James Potter?"
Harry has already started walking off, he says, "That's my dad."

We walk round for hours talking. Eventually, we come to a corridor, where i hear Ron say, "Blimey, where is this?"
I look up from my watch and say, "What floor are we on?"
"The third floor..." Hermione's voice trails off as I hear a little meow. I jump back, before saying, "Awww, it's a little kitty!"
"That's not just any cat, Atlas, that's Filche's cat." Harry groans and we run, down the hall until my legs burn and I'm dragged into a room. I click back the door and pant. Hermione looks at me in confusion and I say, "I'm not used to running while being absolutely starving hungry! And look at the time. We've missed dinner."
"I think we might become dinner...." Ron's voice wavers and I turn round, gasping at what I see. A three headed dog, all heads looking like they want to rip me up and eat me. My jaw drops and the dogs start barking, to which Hermione shoves me out the room, and we push the door shut. I still hear the barks and the door buckles.

"What are they thinking? Keeping a thing like that in a school!" Ron groans as we walk back to the common room. We reach it, and Hermione says, "Don't know if you saw, or even bothered looking, but did you see what it was stood on?"
"NO," Ron snaps, "Don't know if you looked up from it's feet, but it's face was pretty close and seemed pretty hungry. Correction- it's faces! There were three."
We reach our room and Hermione says, "Well, it was stood on a trapdoor, which means it wasn't there by accident. It's very clearly guarding something. Now, I'm going to bed before either of you come up with an idea that get's us killed- or worse, expelled."
With that, she drags me into the room and I say, "Merlin's beard... a three headed dog? Wer hält so einen Hund in einer Schule..."
"I don't speak German, Atlas." She snaps as she gets into her pyjamas. I follow suit and repeat, "I was just saying, who keeps a dog like that in a school? Guarding something or not, do you not think it a little bit extreme?"
Hermione turns round and launches a hairbrush at my head. I barely miss it and she says, "I've read your mum's letter."
"And so you threw the hairbrush at me?"
"No, I threw the hairbrush at you because you agreed with Ron." She snaps. I get into bed and say, "What did my mother say?"

Hermione is silent for a bit before saying, "She just said she was sorry for anything Draco was going to do, and said he was like his Father."
"Anything about me?"
"Not really, other than the fact that she said you were nothing like them and I could trust you to not spread lies."
I smile and turn over, "Good night Mines."
"Night, Atti."

The next day, Hermione has to race off to some meeting or something, leaving me alone to figure out what to do. I sit on the sofa opposite the fireplace in the common room, sprawled out and waiting for everyone else to be done with after lunch lessons. The walls are lined with rep carpets of some sort, an the carpet is another shade of red. Really going strong on the red. Two boys who I learnt of as Fred and George Weasley at the sorting sit on the two armchairs next to the sofa and say, "Malfoy? What are you doing out of lessons? Everyone else has gone."
"Well, Fred, my father has done yet another thing to inconvenience me, and now I guess I'm doing my O.W.L's a whole year and a bit early. Honestly, I'm so annoyed. Somehow, me doing exams early means less lesson time? Stupid really..." I trail off as George says, "We've decided not to go to potions today. Still got our O.W.L's to look forward too. We think that once we do our owls, we might just leave."
"Leave school?" I sit up and continue, "How are you going to leave school? Don't you have a family reputation to uphold?"
"Nope, and I doubt you will now." Fred scoffs. I raise my eyebrows, "Context?"
"Well," George says, leaning forwards, "Aren't your whole family Slytherin? You really think they're going to flaunt you like gold now you're a Gryffindor?"
It suddenly dawns on me and I say, "Oh my god, I can't fix this, can I? I can't go home and show my dad I'll still follow his rules. I've broken all four of them."
Fred sits on the sofa next to me, as George takes my other side. They say in unison, "What are the rules?"

I stand up, and walk to the fireplace, where I turn round to face them.
"D'you really want to know?"
"Yep!" They say, smiling. I take a deep breathe and say, "Number one; be a Slytherin. We are apart of the Noble House Of Black, act like it. Number two is be top of your classes. We again, are apart of the Noble House Of Black. The Black family are smart. Next, number three, be friends with purebloods. Purebloods keep the wizarding world running. And fourth, the most controversial one so far... the Dark Lord is always right. I've broken rule one by being Gryffindor, rule three by being friends with Hermione, and rule four, which is more of a command now that I think about it. Rule two won't be hard to break, since I'm not going to loads of lessons. I have a different way of being graded, but if you really think about it, it doesn't count. Also, the only reason Hermione isn't ahead of me is simply because she is a muggle born and didn't grow up surrounded by magical things. I mean, come on, this is so unfair."
Ron pokes his head in and groans at the sight of his brothers. He leaves and Lavender Brown walks in. She says, "Oh, Atlas, thank god you're here. Hermione is sobbing in the girls toilets by that dodgy part of the corridor? I asked her if she wanted anything and she said she needed you. She said to get food before going to her."

I wolf down a plate of food, and race to Hermione. I hear her wailing and I say, "Mines? Are you okay?"
She pokes open a cubical door and pulls me in. Her face is white and she whispers, "Did you not see the troll?"
"What troll?" I hiss back, but I hear the thumping of footsteps in return. Amazing, really amazing. She wraps me into a hug and says, "Ron said I had no friends. That's why I was in here."
"Stupid-"
The cubical comes crashing down and I scream. Hermione and I duck, sobbing and screaming, just to see Harry and Ron stood awkwardly. The troll bends down to grab Hermione, but stops, getting up and turning to Ron and Harry, who are throwing pieces of wood at it.

I squeeze my eyes shut and hug Hermione. Who knows how long I have my eyes closed for, but by the time I open them, the troll is on the floor? I get up with Hermione and say, "Is it dead?"
"STUDENTS!" McGonigal's voice rings out. I turn round to her and she says, "Are you all stupid? Coming to where you know a troll is? How are you alive?"
Severus grabs my arm and says, "I'll deal with Miss Malfoy."