Magical - Harry Potter Fanfiction

25| Sacrifices

"Hurry up, I've got to take you all to Herbology," barked Snape over the class's chatter.

The Herbology class was very quiet, there were two people missing from the class. Justin and Hermione.

Professor Sprout put us to work pruning the Abyssinian Shrivelfigs. I went to tip some withered stalks onto the compost heap and I found myself face-to-face with Ernie. Ernie and Hannah came to work at the same Shrivelfig as Harry, Ron and I.

"That kid Malfoy," said Ernie, as he broke off some dead twigs, "He seems very pleased about all this, doesn't he? I think he might be the heir."

"That's clever of you," said Ron sarcastically.

"What do you think, Charlene?" Ernie asked.

Before I could answer, Draco started to walk towards us.

"Who said my name?" Said Draco as he came striding over.

"You know," began Ron in a rather loud voice on purpose. "We've got the heir of Slytherin, Slytherin's monster, no Slytherin's have been attacked, the problem would probably be solved if we just kicked all the Slytherin's out!" Draco lunged at Ron, trying to right hook his face.

I pulled Draco back just in time.

"Charl! Why would you do that?" Asked Draco.

"I don't want Ron getting punched, obviously," I said.

"You heard him! Bad mouthing a school house like that. And you were almost sorted into Slytherin, Charlene!" Draco snapped. "So I would shut your mouth if I were you."

I sighed.

"Come work with me," Draco said, pulling me away.

"Honestly, these two are the slowest people I've ever met," Draco complained, gesturing to Crabbe and Goyle, who sneered at him.

Crabbe and Goyle walked off to work somewhere else, leaving Draco and me alone.

At the end of the lesson, Professor Sprout took us to our Defense Against the Dark Arts lesson. Lockhart bounded into the room and we all stared at him. Every other teacher in the school was looking grimmer than usual, but Lockhart seemed kind of cheerful.

"Come now!" he cried, beaming. "Why all these long faces?"

Nobody answered.

"Don't you kids realise," said Lockhart, speaking slowly to us as if we were all five years old. "The danger has passed! The culprit has been taken away!"

"Says who?" said Dean Thomas loudly.

"My dear young man, the Minister of Magic wouldn't have taken Hagrid if he hadn't been one hundred per cent sure that he was guilty," said Lockhart, like Dean was a small child.

"Oh, yes he would," said Ron.

"I flatter myself I know a touch more about Hagrid's arrest than you do, Mr Weasley," said Lockhart in a satisfied tone.

Ron started to say that he didn't think so but stopped in mid-sentence when I kicked him under the desk.

Three days before our first exam, Professor McGonagall made another announcement at dinner.

"I have good news," she said. "Professor Sprout has informed me that the Mandrakes are ready for cutting at last. Tomorrow night, we will be able to revive those people who have been Petrified. I need hardly remind you all that one of them may well be able to tell us who, or what attacked them. I am hopeful that this dreadful year will end with us catching the culprit."