Bella and the Prisoner of Azkaban

Chapter Twenty

The day before the match, the winds reached howling point and the rain fell harder than ever. It was so dark inside the corridors and classrooms that extra torches and lanterns were lit. The Slytherin Team were looking very smug indeed, and none more so than Malfoy. 

"Ah, if only my arm was feeling better!" he sighed, as the gale outside pounded the windows.

Git.

I had no room in my head to worry about anything except the match next day. Oliver Wood kept hurrying up on me and Harry between classes and giving us tips. The third time this happened, Wood talked for so long that I suddenly realised I was ten minutes late for Defence Against the Dark Arts, and set off at a run with Harry beside me - he still walked to class with me even though things are tense - with Wood shouting behind us, "Diggory's got a very fast swerve, Harry, so you might want to try looping him-"

We skidded to a halt outside the Defence Against the Dark Arts classroom, and pulled the door open and dashed inside.

"Sorry we're late, Professor Lupin, we-" I started to say but stopped. 

It wasn't Professor Lupin who looked up at us from the teacher's desk; it was Snape.

"This lesson began ten minutes ago, so I think we'll make it ten points from Gryffindor. Sit down"

But we didn't move.

"Where's Professor Lupin?" Harry asked. Oh God...please tell me he's not dead!

"He says he is feeling too ill to teach today," Snape said with a twisted smile. "I believe I told you both to sit down?"

Oh. My.God. SNAPE POISONED LUPIN!

I made a move to go sit down but Harry grabbed my arm stopping me. 

"What's wrong with him?" Harry asked. Harry! Stop asking questions and sit down!

"Nothing life-threatening," he said, looking as though he wished it was. "Five more points from Gryffindor, and if I have to ask you again, it will be fifty"

I glared at Harry, removed my arm from his grasp, walked to my seat and sat down. Snape looked around at the class.

"As I was saying before Potter and Black interrupted, Professor Lupin has not left any record of the topics you have covered so far-"

"Please, sir, we've done Boggarts, Red Caps, Kappas and Grindylows," Hermione said quickly, "and we're just about to start-"

"Be quiet," Snape snapped coldly. I glared at him. "I did not ask for information. I was merely commenting on Professor Lupin's lack of organisation"

"He's the best Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher we've ever had," Dean Thomas said boldly, and there was a murmur of agreement from the rest of us. Snape looked more menacing than ever.

"You are easily satisfied. Lupin is hardly over-taking you - I would expect first-years to be able to deal with Red Caps and Grindylows. Today we shall discuss-"

I watched him flick through the textbook, to the very back chapter, which he must know we hadn't covered. 

"-werewolves," Snape said. 

"But, sir," Hermione said, unable to restrain herself, "we're not supposed to do werewolves yet, we're due to start Hinkypunks-"

"Miss Granger," Snape said, in a deadly calm voice. I glared at him again. It's Swan. "I was under the impression that I was taking the lesson, not you. And I'm telling you all to turn to page three hundred and ninety-four." He glanced around again. "All of you! Now!"

With many bitter sidelong looks and some sullen muttering, we opened our books. 

"Which of you can tell me how we distinguish between the werewolf and the true wolf?" Snape asked.

Everyone sat in motionless silence; everyone except Hermione, whose hand, as it so often did, had shot straight into the air. 

"Anyone?" Snape said, ignoring Hermione. He twisted smile was back. "Are you telling me that Professor Lupin hasn't even taught you the basic distinction between-"

"We told you," Parvati said suddenly, "we haven't got as far as werewolves yet, we're still on-"

"Silence!" Snape snarled. "Well, well, well, I never thought I'd meet a third-year class who wouldn't even recognise a werewolf when they saw one. I shall make point of informing Professor Dumbledore how very behind you all are..."

Oh, stuff this! I put my hand up. 

"Please, sir," Hermione said,  "the werewolf differs from the true wolf in several small ways. The snout of the werewolf-"

"That is the second time you have spoken out of turn, Miss Black," Snape said coolly. "Five more points from Gryffindor for being an insufferable know-it-all"

Hermione went very red, put down her hand and stared at the floor with her eyes full of tears. It was a mark of how much the class loathed Snape that we were all glaring at him. Me with murder in my eyes, because every one of us had called Hermione a know-it-all at least once, and Ron, who told Hermione she was a know-it-all at least twice a week, said loudly, "You asked us a question and she knows the answer! Why ask if you don't want to be told?"

"Detention, Weasley," Snape said silkily, his face very close to Ron's. "And if I ever hear you criticise the way I teach a class again, you will be very sorry indeed"

Did he just threaten a student?

No one made a sound throughout the rest of the lesson. We sat and made notes on werewolves from the textbook, while Snape prowled up and down the rows of desks, examining the work we had been doing with Professor Lupin. I really hate Snape. 

"Very poorly explained...that is incorrect, the Kappa is more commonly found in Mongolia...Professor Lupin gave this eight out of ten? I wouldn't have given it a three..."

When the bell rang, at last, Snape held us back. 

"You will each write an essay, to be handed to me, on the ways you recognise and kill werewolves. I want two rolls of parchment on the subject, and I want them by Monday morning. It is time somebody took this class in hand. Weasley, stay behind, we need to arrange your detention"

Me, Harry, and Hermione left the room with the rest of the class, who waited until they were all out of earshot, then burst into a furious tirade about Snape. 

"Snape's never been like this with any of our other Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher, even if he did want the job," Harry said to me and Hermione. "Why's he got it in for Lupin? D'you think this is all because of the Boggart?"

"I don't know," Hermione said. "But I really hope Professor Lupin gets better soon..."

I sigh. "I think the hate Snape has for Lupin goes deeper than a Boggart..."

Ron caught up with us five minutes later, in a towering rage. 

"D'you know what that - " (he called Snape something that made Hermione say 'Ron!' and me giggle) - "is making me do? I've got to scrub out the bedpans in the hospital wing. Without magic!" He was breathing deeply, his fists clenched. "Why couldn't Black have hidden in Snape's office, eh? He could have finished him off for us!

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That's all for now as my pain in the ass sister is kicking off because I have the computer. Byeeee!