Hanging over George's back, you grunted, "Seriously, put me down, Weasley."
He shook his head and laughed gleefully while he carried you downstairs. When he set you down in the empty hallway, you crossed your arms and refused to look at him. He chuc...
The members of Dumbledore's Army all entered the hall for their punishment. Everyone was silent as they glared at the smirking Umbridge.
You and George began to take seats next to each other, but Umbridge clucked her tongue and tutted, "No, no, that won't do. Miss Potter, come with me."
You looked at George's horrified face for a second before you stood and followed the pink-coated lady to the other side of the large room. Umbridge pointed to the seat that was farthest from George and commanded, "Sit." Umbridge then brought the first year named Michael over and set him in the seat in front of you with a snarky smile on her cruel face.
Umbridge then addressed the room as you all took your seats, "I have put parchment and the quills you are to use in front of you. I want all of you to write 'I will not break rules' over and over until I decide that it's time to go."
Everyone just stared at her as they all got ready to write it out. The students all carefully picked up the quill that would serve as their torturer that day. You prepared to start writing the lines, taking a deep breath to prepare yourself for the pain when Umbridge sickeningly sang, "Miss Potter, you have a special assignment."
The other members of Dumbledore's Army all glared at her, and several them were ready to spring into action if Umbridge did anything to you.
You raised your chin with unwavering eye contact and questioned, "And what would that be?"
Umbridge tapped her wand on the edge of your desk and sighed, "I think you need a different reminder, Miss Potter... You need to write the word rotten, and all of them will not leave until I'm certain that you will never be able to forget this word."
You swallowed and stared at the cruel woman before you. Umbridge wanted the word rotten to be permanently scarred into your skin, but you wouldn't give her the satisfaction of showing the pain you were feeling inside at that thought.
Hermione grabbed the back of George's robes when the angry boy tried to rise from his seat, his mind racing with all the special assignments he wanted to inflict on the woman.
Umbridge only smiled wider at his outburst. She let out a disgusting giggle, "Your punishment starts now."
You gripped the quill in your hand and began writing the word over and over. You didn't dare to look at your brother or George or your friends whose stares were burning into the side of your head. You just focused on writing the word as fast as you could to reduce the pain of the others in the room.
At first, it just burned a little, but as you neared the middle of the page, your hand was on fire as the word was being carved into your hand. You were trying to ignore the blood on your hand when a sharp pain caused you to blow air through your teeth. Your eyes fluttered closed for a moment as you tried to catch your breath.
When you reopened your eyes, you didn't dare look at the others, but if you had, you would have seen George's distraught face while the others glared fiercely at Umbridge for what she was doing.
You just took a deep breath and resumed. You focused on your breath as the pain felt unbearable, but you just imagined the relief you would feel when all of this was over.
As you neared the bottom of the page, Umbridge crossed the room to examine your hand. Umbridge tilted her head to the side with fake sympathies as she tutted, "Oh, look at all that blood. You won't be forgetting what you are any time soon... You are all dismissed."
Umbridge seemed pleased with the deep wounds that carved the word "rotten" into the back of your hand. A broad smile sickeningly pulled on her face once her eyes found the letters there.
You just stood with an empty expression, carefully putting your good hand on the back of the sobbing first year as the two of you moved towards the door.
The others were in shock at how much blood was on your hand and how little you seemed to react to it. You knew that they couldn't tell how hard you were working to hold in your reactions to the searing pain that was still gnawing at you. After seeing how little blood was on your friends, you knew that rushing your torture was worth it. The pain was great for you, but at least it had reduced their suffering.
You made it to the doors as Fred and George flanked behind you with scowls. Their tall frames shielded you from Umbridge's watchful eye as you left the room.
They found Cho standing outside the doors as she was trying to make eye contact with the group, but no one would even look at her, except you. Your eye contact was brief since your eyes flickered away not even a second after they had connected. Cho covered her mouth as she saw the blood coating your hand. She had given away their secrets to Umbridge to avoid torture, and she realized that these actions were the reason for the empty look in the eyes of the girl who always smiled.
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//AN: Hi! Happy Thanksgiving if you celebrate! Sorry for this sad chapter on a holiday, but I hope you enjoy this lovely gif. 😌
