Merely Misunderstood

Chapter Eleven

Hermione and Ron asked what had happened on the way back to Hogwarts, and I explained to them how I'd bumped into Draco, and how he'd offered a butterbeer. I tried to emphasize the point that we were actually having a good time until he brought up the nickname I hate so much, and when he'd seen the effect it had on me, he used it again, and I jumped up, preparing to jinx him.

Hermione was intrigued; she didn't think Malfoy could possibly have a good time doing anything except in bringing misery to others.
Ron, however, was trying to figure out his evil plan behind it, insisting that Malfoy invited me to a butterbeer to try and get our secrets out of me, so that he could make the rest of the school year a living hell for us.

When I insisted this wasn't the case, Ron shifted the conversation to different hexes I could've used, and Fred and George overheard our conversation, having been strolling behind us, and gave us a very interesting lecture on the best jinxes to use and their effectiveness.

By the time we'd reached Hogwarts, I knew exactly what to do the next time I was cornered by the Slytherin bullies.

"Don't worry about them," Fred said once I'd spoken this thought aloud.

"Yeah, they'll be too focused on getting back at Gryffindor after we've crushed them in Quidditch," George agreed, smirking.

"But if they do bother you again, well, we do know our jinxes," Fred hinted with a wink, and I thanked them, parting from my Gryffindor friends and heading back to the Slytherin common room.

I'd just gotten to the dormitory when Mirah rushed in, grabbing my hand and saying in a rush, "Come with me, hurry!" as she yanked me out the door.

"Why, what's going on?" I asked frantically as we pushed into the crowd of Slytherins heading out of the common room, led by the prefects.

Mirah told me, over all the commotion, that Sirius Black had broken into the castle and had tried to get into Gryffindor tower while we were away at Hogsmeade. The prefects had been ordered to lead their houses to the Great Hall, where everyone would spend the night.

"Well, look on the bright side," I muttered as we followed the prefects out of the dungeons. "It'll be like a school-wide sleepover."

"That's a good thing?" Mirah asked incredulously, and we laughed together.

We joined the other three houses in the Great Hall, and Headmaster Dumbledore stood before the crowd of students. He put up his hands to call our attention, and the Great hall fell silent.

"The teachers and I need to conduct a thorough search of the castle," Dumbledore said as McGonagall and Flitwick closed the doors to the great hall. "I'm afraid that, for your own safety, you will have to spend the night here. I want the prefects to stand guard over the entries and I am leaving the Head Boy and Girl in charge. Any disturbance should be reported to me immediately. Send word with one of the ghosts," he told Percy Weasley, who was looking very proud of himself.

Dumbledore almost left the hall when he paused, saying, "Oh, yes, you'll be needing...." he waved his wand casually, and the tables stacked themselves at each side of the hall. Another lazy wave of his wand, and the floor of the Great Hall was covered in squashy purple sleeping bags.

Once Professor Dumbledore shut the huge doors behind him, the Great Hall immediately started buzzing excitedly until Percy broke it up, shouting at us to get into our sleeping bags.

I chose a sleeping bag next to Mirah, and we both laid near the corner, which was nearly swallowed in darkness when the candles blew out. We whispered to each other about the day's events, and what we each had done in Hogsmeade, until Mirah fell asleep. I tried to sleep, too, but every noise perked my attention, and every shifting body made my eyes snap open. I never knew it could be so difficult to sleep with a mass murderer wandering the castle.