Hogwart's Golden Girl - Reader Insert

Terrible Teachers

The next day, the Potter Twin's second year truly began in full swing and, oh did Hogwarts swing fast and hard. Things started to go wrong at Breakfast in the Great Hall, and even a wide and delectable selection of breakfast foods was not enough to prepare them for the day coming.

[Name] and Hermione gave a stiff 'Morning' as Harry and Ron sat down at the Gryffindor's table next to them. Harry initially thought the girls were not over the way they had arrived yesterday - and though that was certainly the case for Hermione - [Name] was rather... focused on something else.

Her irritation was directed towards Hermione's copy of Lockhart's 'Voyages with Vampires propped open against a milk jug. It was shockingly apparent (and petty) to everyone that [Name] was not looking forward to their first lesson with the book's author, later that day.

Neville Longbottom, on the other hand, greeted them cheerfully. "Post's due any minute – I think Gran's sending on a few things I forgot."

And, sure enough, there was a rushing sound overhead and a hundred or so owls streamed in, circling the Hall and dropping letters and packages into the chattering crowd. A big, lumpy parcel bounced off Neville's head, and a second later, something large and grey fell into Hermione's jug, spraying them all with milk and feathers. [Name] poorly hid her devilish grin as some milk dampened the ugly cover.

She wasn't smiling for long, however, as the large grey thing, also known as Errol, slumped with legs high in the air, unconscious, onto the table. Holding a damp, saturated red envelope in his beak.

"Oh no –" Ron gasped.

"It's all right, he's still alive," said Hermione, prodding Errol gently with the tip of her finger.

"It's not that – it's that." Ron was pointing at the red envelope. It looked rather ordinary to [Name] and Harry, but Ron and Neville were both looking at it as though they expected it to explode.

It wasn't too off either, as the letter began to smoke at the corners. A Howler - and what that was [Name] was about to discover as Ron stretched out a shaking hand, eased the envelope from Errol's beak and slit it open. Neville stuffed his fingers in his ears. A split second, [Name] knew why. For a brief moment, she really thought it had exploded as a roar of sound filled the Hall, shaking dust from the ceiling.

"... STEALING THE CAR, I WOULDN'T HAVE BEEN SURPRISED IF THEY'D EXPELLED YOU, YOU WAIT TILL I GET HOLD OF YOU, I DON'T SUPPOSE YOU STOPPED TO THINK WHAT YOUR FATHER AND I WENT THROUGH WHEN WE SAW IT HAD GONE ..." Mrs Weasley's yells, a hundred times louder than usual, made the plates and spoons rattle on the table, and echoed deafeningly off the stone walls. People throughout the Hall were swivelling around to see who had received the Howler and Ron sank so low in his chair that only his crimson forehead could be seen.

"... LETTER FROM DUMBLEDORE LAST NIGHT, I THOUGHT YOUR FATHER WOULD DIE OF SHAME, WE DIDN'T BRING YOU UP TO BEHAVE LIKE THIS, YOU AND HARRY COULD BOTH HAVE DIED ..."

[Name] sighed painfully as her Brother's name cropped up, again. Was it too late to stuff her fingers in her ears too?

"... ABSOLUTELY DISGUSTED, YOUR FATHER'S FACING AN INQUIRY AT WORK, IT'S ENTIRELY YOUR FAULT AND IF YOU PUT ANOTHER TOE OUT OF LINE WE'LL BRING YOU STRAIGHT BACK HOME."

A ringing silence fell. The red envelope, which had dropped from Ron's hand, burst into flames and curled into ashes. Harry and Ron sat, stunned, while a few people laughed and gradually, a babble of talk broke out again.

All [Name] could offer Harry and Ron was a sympathetic and slightly awkward pat on the shoulder. Harry already felt immensely guilty, there was no point in beating a dead horse.