(858 words)
October was here, meaning bullets of rain thundered on the castle almost everyday. It did disrupt Quidditch practice, but after Anthony noticed that Oliver Wood didn't let the rain affect Gryffindors training sessions, he got the Hufflepuff team working harder than ever.
It wasn't uncommon to see you walking into the Hufflepuff common room dripping from head to toe, leaving muddy footprints behind you, and aching all over. You almost regretted trying out for Chaser. Almost.
Anthony was always praising at how much you improved since the trials. You were getting almost every single one of your hits into the hoops. Arguably, that may have been because Herbert Fleet wasn't necessarily the best Keeper, but you liked the praise nonetheless.
One Saturday, a few days before Halloween, you had just finished your training session and were talking to Maxine O'Flaherty who was a sixth-year on the team.
"Okay, listen up!" Anthony shouted through the rain. "If we want a chance at beating the other houses, we have to train everyday from now. So, get here bright and early tomorrow, 6 am!"
"Seriously..." you muttered silently under your breath.
"There's no use in training if you're going to lose, Rickett." a voice said as you were leaving the changing rooms. Marcus Flint.
"You've got a team of losers, you've got no chance of even coming third." he smirked.
"Just shut up, Flint," Anthony grumbled, pushing past him.
Flint and the Slytherin team hollered in laughter as you and the rest of the Hufflepuff team followed Anthony out.
"Okay guys, just ignore what Flint said; we've got a great team, and I think we're going to do better this year!" Anthony encouraged. You were amazed by his enthusiasm despite Flint's rude words and the awful weather.
*
With Halloween in two days, the school was definitely in the spirit. Peeves was scaring first-years by coming through walls every now and then; there were carved pumpkins around the school; and Fred and George were also busy pranking Filch.
Homework really took it's toll on you. You were drowning in essays and revision for mid-term exams. Snape didn't really make it easier, in fact, on your Tuesday Potions lesson, he said that he wanted three whole essays in by Wednesday.
You grumbled to Hannah as you sat in the library trying to transfigure a pencil into a twig for an upcoming test.
"I can't do it!" you moaned, slumping your shoulders and placing your head on the table.
"Shhh!" Madam Pince hissed.
"It's not that hard, you can do it," Hannah said.
"Easy for you to say." you mumbled sourly.
"We do have the school feast to look forward to. I'm so excited, I love feasts," Hannah pointed out.
Your mouth watered simply thinking about the food, and this thought kept you going for the next two days, when it was finally time for the feast.
The Great Hall had been decorated with the usual live bats, Hagrid's vast pumpkins had been carved into lanterns large enough for three men to sit in, and there were rumours that Dumbledore had booked a troupe of dancing skeletons for the entertainment. You jumped up and down in excitement.
You walked in, and saw a thousand live bats flutter from the walls and ceiling while a thousand more swooped over the tables in low black clouds, making the candles in the pumpkins stutter. The feast appeared suddenly on the golden plates, as it had at the start-of-term banquet.
The feast ended fantastically, Dumbledore sent fireworks from the end of his wand into the ceiling. The fireworks took the form of Halloween objects and danced across the tables.
You began to leave the Great Hall, chatting to Susan about your Quidditch training sessions, when suddenly the chatter, the bustle and the noise died, causing you to crash into Ernie who was walking with Hannah in front of you. You couldn't see what was happening, so you pushed to the front and silently gasped when you saw Mrs Norris hanging immobile from a torch bracket.
And before you, foot-high words had been daubed on the wall between two windows.
THE CHAMBER OF SECRETS HAS BEEN OPENED.
ENEMIES OF THE HEIR, BEWARE.
Then someone shouted through the quiet.
"Enemies of the heir, beware! You'll be next, mudbloods!" Draco grinned wickedly.
He made direct eye-contact with you, a smirk spreading across his usual cold features. You felt a little nervous and looked away.
"What's going on here? What's going on?" you heard a voice making his way through the crowd. Filch stepped into view, and when he saw Mrs Norris he fell back, clutching his face in horror.
"My cat! My cat! What's happened to Mrs Norris?" he shrieked.
His popping eyes fell on Harry who stood in the limelight.
"You!" he screeched. "You! You've murdered my cat! You've killed her! I'll kill you! I'll --"
"Argus!"
Dumbledore had arrived, followed by a number of other teachers. He escorted Filch, Harry, Hermione and Ron away from the scene to Lockhart's office through the silent crowd. You looked at your three Gryffindor friends in shock. They couldn't have had anything to do with this, could they?
YOU ARE READING
Forgotten Memories (Draco Malfoy x Reader) DISCONTINUED
Fanfiction"Do you know who I am, (Y/n)?" "No." ~ Draco Malfoy's biggest mistake was falling in love with you, a Muggleborn Hufflepuff. You were everything he wasn't and everything he needed. (CURRENTLY ON YEAR 3)
