Chapter 30

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There was absolutely nothing in the world that could have prepared me for the Hogwarts I was about to live in.

Theo was right: Slytherins were favored. Each morning, Slytherin was given the better breakfast, Slytherins were allowed to laugh and cut up, Slytherins weren't constantly scared of the ever-present Death Eater presence at the school.

The Carrows were the worst part of the gig. Suddenly, punishments at school were at an all time high. I saw the effects of the Carrows one Tuesday afternoon, during study hall.

"Ginny, calm down." I whispered, my eyes darting to the red-headed girl next to me. She had her hand resting on her open book, but her head was whipping back and forth anxiously.

"I can't. Luna has been in detention since 8 this morning. 8, Lizzie. It's nearly half two!" Ginny whispered.

"Look, maybe she went back to her dorm after." I tried, not even believing the words as they left my lips. Across the table, Neville Longbottom looked uncomfortably at the door.

"I don't think so. Luna would've come to find us." He murmured, looking around to make sure that Professor Snape couldn't hear him.

Before I could say anything to comfort Neville, the doors of the Great Hall opened quietly. We all looked, shocked, as Luna walked toward us.

She was clutching her books close to her chest, and her bag swung by her knees. However, her mouth was still bleeding profusely. Every few moments, she licked her lip. She looked up at us and smiled dreamily, blood still coating her teeth.

"Luna, are you okay?" Ginny whispered as soon as she was in earshot. Luna nodded absently and sat down.

"What happened?" Neville whispered.

"Amycus. He didn't like that I asked a question out of turn. He hit me in the face with a rod. It quite hurt, really." Luna said, brightly. Neville swore under his breath and grabbed Luna's chin gingerly. He apologized when she winced, but he tilted her head back and forth to check her mouth.

"Holy fuck, Luna. No, they can't do that! I'm going talk to him right now." I seethed, moving to stand up. Before I was even a few inches in the air, Ginny clamped her hand on my shoulder and pulled me back down.

"You've got to be kidding me, Lizzie." She rolled her eyes.

"I'd rather you not, Lizzie. Thank you. I don't want you to get hurt." Luna said, lightly. I scowled.

"They can't get away with this." I grumbled, looking around the room. Draco was sitting at a table by himself, eating an apple. Every few moments, he would scrawl something on a piece of parchment in front of him.

"I'll be right back. Relax, I'm not going to the Carrows." I told Ginny, when her eyes flashed maliciously. They all nodded as I rose quietly and made my way over to the Slytherin table. I walked to the opposite side of Draco, placing my books down with a thud. He looked up at me, and immediately he looked flabbergasted.

"Don't look so surprised." I muttered, angrily. He cocked his eyebrow up as he took another bite of his apple. I tried not to notice as a bead of apple juice ran down his chin.

"Look, you need to call off your mutts." I growled under my voice. Draco's eyebrows knitted together.

"I haven't the faintest idea what you're talking about, Clarke." He drawled.

"Your little pack of Death Eaters that are in charge of punishment, Malfoy. They're using physical punishment. Call them off, send them back to You-Know-Who. I'm sure you two are tight." I whispered, my eyes narrowing. Draco matched my expression and clenched his jaw.

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