Ella ○ Harry Potter

Nineteen: Detentions

For the first time in five years of Hogwarts education, Ella Grey sat down in the Great Hall after the very last end-of-year exam (History of Magic), and she was certain she scored a good grade.

Draco Malfoy sat down next to her, as Marcus Flint was across of her, and sighed deeply.

"Bloody Hell, Astronomy was too much last night, wasn't it?" he mumbled to himself and Goyle, who nodded miserably. "I suppose you did well this year, Grey," he noted, making a petrified looking Ella turn to him, blinking in surprise. "Or... not? Why do you look like you're gonna burst out crying any moment?"

"I think... I think I did really well," she whispered hoarsely. "Even in History of Magic. I... I think I'm gonna throw up."

"Okay!" Draco cleared his throat, resting a hand on her shoulder. "Take a sip of water, deep breaths, and then tell me how you feel." She nodded, reaching for her cup, taking a small sip, releasing a breath, and then nodding slowly again she turned to the blond and grinned.

"Okay," she admitted. "Thanks, Malfoy."

"Sure, Grey."

Ella turned back to her business, which was eating the chocolate cake the rested in front of her, and Draco turned back to Flint, making fun of Trawlney crazy ways of teaching. Many Slytherins chose to skip on Divination because of the stories about her, but Flint enjoyed her rather odd nature, and was pretty good at making up shapes in tea leaves.

"Grey, you're in Divination too, right?" Bridget wondered from down the hall. She was a year younger than Malfoy, and was brilliant with charms, but a bit on the weak side on other sides of magic. "Does it require a massive talent?"

"Nah, you just need to understand what the signs mean and try and feel like you're not fooling around, because if you do it blocks your intuition and then it won't work at all." Bridget nodded and turned to a friend, telling her that she'll sign up to Divination and Study of Ancient Runes. Around then, the student who took the OWLs in Defence Against The Dark Arts started trickling in, and Cedric walked in looking like he was about to fall asleep any moment, when his eyes landed on Ella.

He smiled widely, and walked over to the Slytherin table.

"Hey Diggory," Flint greeted the Hufflepuff captain, who nodded in return and questioned how his NEWTs went.

"Well, I'm almost out of here, so as long as I have a passing grade I'm all good."

"What are your plans now, again?" Cedric questioned, scooting in between Draco and Ella. Marcus grinned, exposing a gap in his teeth that Ella noticed for the first time.

"This guy, Barnaby Lee, who graduated a few years back-- his uncle is big in the Werewolf Capture Unit, so I've been in a steady relationship with Cecil regarding my joining. It's pretty much secure that I'm in, I just need to get a good grade in DADA and next time you see me, I'm wearing purple."

"Well, I think green suits you just fine, but good luck mate."

"Thanks Diggory, so why are you here?" he wondered, making Cedric clasp a hand on Ella's shoulder.

"My girlfriend, of course."

"Oh," Flint looked between them, and then grinned. "Well, Ella-- proud of you for not going with one of the Weasley twins you like so much."

"Ugh, blood traitors," Pansy groaned, looking at Ella up and down. Ella was a surprise when she entered the dorm at the beginning of the year and found her wearing nothing but a wide t-shirt and pants (she was quite surprised to learn there was a human alive who found g-strings comfortable), but she found out Ella was never too much of a burden. She would disappear often, but she was a quiet room-mate, and except for her affection to mudbloods and blood-traitors, nothing about Ella made her particulary upset. "Good for you for stepping it up, Grey. Maybe even stop seeing Lupin as your favorite Professor," she noted.

Ella glanced at the staff table, and saw an exhausted looking Remus speaking with Flitwick, but she turned with a wide smile, and raised her voice just enough so they would hear her over in the staff table, thanking Merlin for choosing to sit at the edge of the table. "What do you mean, Pansy? Professor Snape is my best friend in the whole wide world. Obviously he's my favorite professor."

She could feel a glare in her head and she turned to look at him, waving happily at the scowling teacher. "Grey, detention. Diggory, at supper you must sit with your house, leave at once or you'll get detention as well."

"What?" Ella asked, confused. Cedric shrugged, and waved his goodbye, apologizing to Snape. "Severus, I've done nothing wrong, but confess my eternal and undying love to you."

"You have detention until the last day." Was all he said, a tint of pink on his pale skin, and Ella scowled, turning to look at a table full of grinning Slytherins.

"Shut up yall."

"Keep this up and you'll have detention over all of September as well."

"Professor!"

"Just give up Grey," Draco warned.

::

Ella entered the Potions Master's office and sat down with a wide grin. Once he told her that for now, her detention will be with him (Filch swore at her and made it obvious he'll search for he'll look for an awful activity for their detention, and only then will take her out of Snape's hands).

"Hey Severus!" she greeted happily, and he looked at her in disdain.

"Ms. Grey, start by finding aconite, I believe I am almost out of it." Ella looked at the blue smoke coming from a small vial, and she tilted her head.

"Is that wolfsbane?" she wondered, and remembered that night was a full-moon.

"Is that any of your business?" she scowled at him.

"I'm starting to think we aren't really friends, Severus," she noted. He simply sighed, and turned back to his book. Ella shrugged to herself and went ahead to look for aconite, but after a while Snape snapped his book shut, and told her to follow him, holding the vial in his hand.

She followed in silence as they walked past Elizabth Burke's portrait ("Severus! Hope your students are being nasty to mudbloods!"), and greeted The Grey Lady as she floated past them on her way to the Great Hall, for some reason.

"Where are we going, sir?" she asked, trying to keep up with his long strides. He kept walking, and soon she realized they were walking right to Lupin's office. She tilted her head as Snape walked to the desk, looking sullen, before catching a glimpse of a paper on the desk.

"That bloody..." he mumbled to himself, and rushed out of the office, saying nothing to Ella, who was left confused. She hurried into the office, spotting the name REMUS LUPIN disappearing somewhere on the map, but also saw SEVERUS SNAPE heading to the staircase. She didn't even look at her own name, before she grabbed the vial and hurried after Snape.

"Professor!" she called as she ran after him, trying to catch up to him. He waited for a staircase to return to its place when she finally caught up, and he almost snarled at her.

"I forgot you were here, Grey. I suppose I could have you join me," he said. "But you will stay quiet."

"Of course sir."

"No matter what."

"I promise, sir." She assured.

"You don't even know where we're going," he pointed out as they exited the castle, and she grinned up at him, causing his steps to slow.

"Severus, you may think I'm joking; but you're my best friend. I trust you, and I always will."

"Quite ridiculous of you, Ella," he said simply, and hurried up again.

But she knew she trusted him for real when she walked right up to the Whomping Willow.

"Still trust me? You could leave now." He warned, but she grinned, and picked up a cloak.

"We're in this together, sir," she assured. "Is that an invisibilty cloak?" she wondered as she wrapped it around her torso. "Cool! Sir, do I look thinner?" Snape shook his head as he looked for a branch to press unto the Whomping Willow, and before long the two were creeping down a hall, Ella knowing one thing for sure:

That's the best detention she's ever had.