Blank Sheet

Umbridge

Filch dragged them to Umbridge's office without even listening to their explanation. On their way, he constantly murmured about old punishments which should be revived. He talked about things like whipping and famishing and sent them malicious glances then and now.

Medea was anxious. Ron had told her about the blood quills, the woman was a monster. Maybe she would come up with something even worse?

She thought about just running away, but she couldn't leave Hogwarts, so it would be pretty useless and she couldn't convince herself to leave Ron, Harry and Hermione behind. So she stayed.

They walked all the way up to Umbridge's office, and Medea's fear grew and grew with every step she made to the woman's torture chamber. She breathed faster and could hear the blood pounding in her ears.

She had never gotten in a situation even close to this at Beauxbatons or Durmstrang.

"Don't worry," Ron said next to her, he had noticed her anxiety, " she can't break you if you refuse to be broken"

Medea nodded, it actually cheered her up a bit, she held her chin higher and swallowed her fear. Because, after all, the enemy can't hurt you with emotions he doesn't see.

They now turned in the corridor Umbridge's office was in. It was all dark and quiet, their session had broken curfew for an hour or so. Every step they made broke the silence anew.

The pictures at walls murmured and mustered them, wondering what students were up to this late. Some of them were gleeful they were brought to Umbridge, some gossiped, and some send then empathetic glances. Still, the majority of the pictures were just angry to have been woken and Medea wondered if they needed sleep, as they weren't alive (or were they?).

Every fire was burnt down, all the lamps were put out, except for one room. And they were heading straight for it. When they got closer, Medea could hear a drone of voices, but before she could make out what they were saying it stopped.

The door was opened wide by a rather stout boy with long gorilla arms, he looked up and down the corridor dully. Medea remembered to have seen him with Malfoy often. Blaise didn't think much of them.

Filch led the four of them into the room, which was filled with many students, mainly Slytherins. Umbridge stood before them and held a box in her hand when they passed by, Medea caught a glimpse of shiny badges in that box.

Every single person in the room mustered them, they were told to stay before Umbridge's desk, behind which she dramatically sat down. She pointed her wand at a teapot, which filled her cup immediately with pink tea, and pulled out a pile of pink parchment.

"Well, well...Who can I write down for detention?" she asked in her fake-syrupy voice, "Mr Potter, obviously, you can't help it? Now, I deem you are Miss Granger?" Hermione nodded stuffily.

The room's walls were hung with numerous plates as a decoration. Every single one of those plates was home for a kitten, which played there and was obviously dressed or decorated with anything pink. Medea assumed the kittens to normally be very sweet though, right now, they looked at the intruders with disgust and even hate.

"So...how are the spare two named?" Umbridge asked her and Ron. They both answered tentatively. She could hear the Slytherins behind her whisper and cackle and was sure to feel their looks in her neck.

She heard Blaise's well-known laugh.

"Well, Mr Potter already knows the procedure. I await each of you every evening the following week, here at 6 pm sharp," she said, her voice still attempting-cute, but her look as if she would kill someone if they didn't come, "Now, does any of you have something to say in mitigation?"

All of them remained silent, though Harry attempted to speak once. Umbridge got up and orbited them, breathing down their necks and sending them researching looks.

"Empty your pockets, now!" she demanded. They obeyed, and Medea giggled to herself. There was nothing that toad could use.

In Harry's pocket had been two galleons, a Chocolate Frog and some Parchment, in Ron's had been a chocolate bar from Honeydukes, a sugar quill and a galleon and Hermione and Medea both pulled out a galleon and some scrunchies.

She looked at the stuff, disappointed and was about to ask another thing when somebody in their backs cleared his throat, obviously to catch Umbridge's attention. She turned but Medea was too afraid to do so and could just guess what was going on in her back.

Whatever had happened, Umbridge murmured something to Filch and he led them out the door again. Medea was relieved, she couldn't help but smile, even though she had the detention at the back of her mind. The others seemed similarly relieved, except for Hermione, who looked thoughtful.

However, Medea didn't want to ask with Filch around and he gave them no chance to speak anyways. She was told to go to her common room immediately and then the creepy caretaker left with the others to bring them to their common room, which they did not seem happy about.

Still, Filch didn't let Medea walk uncontrolled after curfew, she soon figured out that Mrs Norris was following her when she saw the cat's eyes glowing slightly in the dark. But she didn't mind, she was tired and her head hurt again, she couldn't think of anything else than her bed.