Percy Jackson and the Heir of Slytherin [Book 2]

14) Mudblood

I pulled away from Cedric, turning to look at my friend on the ground. He was sitting up, belching up slugs. I felt sick, but I cared about Ron, so I tried not to throw up.

"We'd better get to Hagrid's, it's nearest," Harry said to Hermione. Together, they pulled Ron up. I walked over and started walking with them.

"What happened, Harry? What happened? Is he ill? But you can cure him, can't you?" Colin had run down to see us.

Ron heaved up more slugs and Colin held his camera up, "Oooh. Can you hold him still, Harry?"

"Get out of the way, Colin!" Harry said angrily. They pushed past the first-year. I stopped and said, "He's just worried about Ron. We're going to go and get him help now. See ya later, crocodile."

I ran off behind my friends, smiling at the lack of a limp.

We were about 20 feet from Hagrid's house when his door opened. But it wasn't Hagrid who walked out, it was Lockhart.

"Quick, behind here," Harry dragged Ron behind a bush. Hermione and I followed, crouching in the shrubbery.

"It's a simple matter if you know what you're doing!" Lockhart told Hagrid. "If you need help, you know where I am! I'll let you have a copy of my book — I'm surprised you haven't already got one. I'll sign one tonight and send it over. Well, goodbye!" And he was gone (yay).

Harry and Hermione quickly dragged Ron up to Hagrid's, knocking urgently on the door.

Hagrid opened the door looking annoyed, but he brightened up once he saw us, "Bin wonderin' when you'd come ter see me — come in, come in — thought you mighta bin Professor Lockhart back again."

Harry explained Ron's slug problem as he and Hermione lowered him into a chair.

"Better out than in," Hagrid placed a large bronze bucket in front of Ron. "Get em all up, Ron."

"I don't think there's anything to do except wait for it to stop," Hermione said anxiously, watching Ron. "That's a difficult curse to work at the best of times, but with a broken wand..."

"What did Lockhart want with you, Hagrid?" Harry asked, scratching Fang's ears.

"Givin me advice on gettin kelpies out of a well," Hagrid growled, sitting a teapot on the table. "Like I don know. An bangin on about some Banshee he banished. If one word of it was true, I'll eat my kettle."

Hagrid didn't usually talk bad about Hogwarts teachers but I agreed with him on this one. Hermione, however, said, "I think you're being a bit unfair. Professor Dumbledore obviously thought he was the best man for the job—"

"He was the on'y man for the job," Hagrid said, offering us food while Ron coughed. "An I mean the on'y one. Gettin very difficult yet find anyone fer the Dark Arts job. People aren't too keen ter take it on, see. They're startin yer think it's jinxed. No one's lasted long fer a while now. So tell me," Hagrid nodded towards Ron, "who was he tryin ter curse?"

"Malfoy called Hermione something. It must've been really bad, because everyone went mad," Harry looked a little confused.

"It was bad," Ron said hoarsely, looking pale and sweaty. "Malfoy called her 'Mudblood', Hagrid—"

Ron hurled slugs again.

"He didn!" Hagrid was outraged.

"He did," Hermione said. "But I don't know what it means. Percy and I were bombarded with it once. I could tell it was really rude, of course..."

"It's about the most insulting thing he could think of," Ron gasped. "Mudblood's a really foul name for someone who was Muggleborn — you know, non-magic parents. There are some wizards — like Malfoy's family — who think they're better than everyone else because they're what people call pure-blood." Ron belched up one small slug and tossed it into the bucket. "I mean, the rest of us know it doesn't make any difference at all. Look at Neville Longbottom — he's pure-blood and he can hardly stand a cauldron the right way up."

"An they haven't invented a spell that our Hermione can't do," Hagrid said proudly, making Hermione flush pink.

"It's a disgusting thing to call someone," Ron said. "Dirty blood, see. Common blood. It's mad. Most wizards these days are half-blood anyway. If we hadn't married Muggles we'd've died out."

Ron puked again.

"Well, I don blame you fer tryin ter curse him, Ron," Hagrid said. "Bu maybe it was a good thing yer wand backfired. Spect Lucius Malfoy would've come marchin up ter school if yeh'd cursed his son. Least yer not in trouble."

Harry nodded and looked over at me, "Where did you learn what it meant? You looked horrified up at the pitch."

"Quirrell...Voldemort...both, really..." I said quietly.

Hagrid's Hut went silent. Everyone stared at me so I just looked at my lap.

"Harry," Hagrid said, plastering a smile on his face, "gotta bone ter pick with yeh. I've heard you've been givin out signed photos. How come I haven't got one?"

Harry looked furious, "I have not been giving out signed photos. If Lockhart's still putting that about—"

Then Harry saw that Hagrid was laughing, "I'm on'y jokin. I knew yeh hadn't really. I told Lockhart yeh didn need teh. Yer more famous than him without tryin."

"Bet he didn't like that," Harry said.

"Don think he did," Hagrid said. "An then I told him I'd never read one o his books an he decided ter go. Treacle Toffee, Ron?"

"No thanks," Ron said. "Better not risk it."

"Come an see what I've been growin," Hagrid said.

We followed Hagrid out to the small garden behind his house. There were a dozen massive pumpkins. Like a boulder.

"Gettin on well, aren't they?" Hagrid smiled. "Fer the Hallowe'en feast... should be big enough by then."

"What've you been feeding them?" I asked.

Hagrid glanced around, "Well, I've bin givin them — you know — a bit o help."

I could see Hagrid's pink, flowery umbrella leaning against the wall of his hut. I strongly believed that pieces of Hagrid's wand were in that umbrella. His wand had been broken when he was expelled.

"An Engorgement Charm, I suppose?" Hermione said, looking amused and disapproving. "Well, you've done a good job on them."

"That's what yer little sister said," Hagrid looked at Ron. "Met her jus yesterday." Hagrid looked at Harry, his beard twitching. "Said she was jus lookin round the grounds, but I reckon she was hopin she might run inter someone else at my house. If yeh ask me, she wouldn say no ter a signed—"

"Oh, shut up," Harry said. Ron snorted and sprayed the ground with slugs.

"Watch it!" Hagrid tugged Ron away from his precious pumpkins.

We walked back to the castle soon after that, ready for lunch.

McGonagall walked up and started talking to Harry and Ron about their detentions. Ron would be cleaning the trophies in the trophy room without magic, and Harry would be helping Lockhart answer fan mail. That was funny.

We split up at lunch, me heading towards the Hufflepuff table, and my friends heading to Gryffindor.

I watched Ron for awhile, hoping he would spray slugs across his food.

I am not having a good time. A few days ago, I went swimming at my grandma's house, and I got super sunburned. Then when I was changing in her bathroom, I stepped on this stool leg. The leg is metal and curly, and it had broken skin. I now have this massive bruise. Two days ago, I went to the park. We were playing tag and I fell, but it wasn't normal ground. The stuff gives you carpet burn. And after that, I ran out of this one part of the playground, and promptly hit my head on the monkey bars. It's great.

Happy Pride Month from my aero/ace ass! Hope you all have a good time, LGBTQ+ or not, and I will see you on Thursday.