The Mudblood

Chapter 16 : Year 2

I hurried to Defense Against the Dark Arts, my mind still brooding. How could I possibly have elicited so much power from a wand that wasn't even mine? Using Malfoy's wand felt even more powerful than using my own. That just had to be impossible. The wand chooses the wizard, and this wand chose Malfoy, not me.

I tried to wipe any crazy possibilities from my mind as I entered Professor Lupin's classroom. I'd never actually met him before because he was new, but I was quite eager. From the rumors I'd heard, he was the one who had saved me from the dementor on the train.

Apparently, even though I thought I'd be late, I ended up being the first one to arrive. The third year's Defense Against the Dark Arts was just leaving, so I ran right into Harry, Ron and Hermione.

"Lainey, hey!" Ron greeted enthusiastically. "I—er—how was your first day of classes?"

"Oh—er—great so far," I said, trying not to think about the events that had gone down during my free period.

"Did you hear Malfoy got attacked by hippogriff in Care of Magical Creatures?" Ron asked giddily. "You should have seen the look on his face—he was bloody terrified."

My lips formed a crooked smirk. "I just saw him in the hospital wing and he was still being particularly dramatic about it."

"Oh—er—you visited him?" Ron questioned awkwardly.

"Well—not exactly—"

"I should go," Hermione interjected quickly. She put her hand on my shoulder as she walked past. "We'll chat later, Lainey."

"Oh—sure—"

"I actually do need to talk with you later," Harry said quite seriously. "Could we—er—meet in the library after dinner?"

"Oh—of course—"

"Are you going to eat dinner with us, Lainey?" Ron asked hopefully. "I—erm—I think Ginny would want you to..."

I smiled shyly as I looked down. "Sure, I'll eat dinner with you guys."

"Great, see you then," Ron said hastily before rushing out of the room. Harry gave me a nod and then followed.

The classroom was now completely empty, except for Professor Lupin, who stood in the front, staring pensively at me.

"Well, Miss Fitzroy, we meet again," he greeted as I walked in.

My brow furrowed slightly as I placed my books down on one of the tables. "Again?"

"Ah, yes, we met on the train. You were unaware, of course, since you'd just been attacked by a dementor, but I took care of that for you," he replied with a warm smile.

I blinked, feeling a slight pang of déjà vu. Obviously I'd been in this room before, but the room wasn't what seemed familiar—it was Lupin's voice. I'd heard it before. I suppose I could have heard it unconsciously on the train, but...

"Oh—yes—thank you so much for saving me," I replied quickly. "I would be dead if it wasn't for you—so thanks."

"Anytime, Lainey." He paused for a moment, studying me carefully. "Now, Lainey, I heard that you performed the Patronus Charm on the train?"

"Oh, yes—er—I tried to, at least."

He raised his eyebrows. "I heard differently, actually. I heard that you successfully warded off the dementors—temporarily, at least. But, nonetheless, you were able to conjure a Patronus, which is a very complex and challenging spell, one much beyond your year."