As I had suspected, word of the twins' legendary party had become the talk of the entire school. For nearly two weeks the attention of students from all houses were directed towards Fred and George, treating them as if they were truly royalty. As word was spreading about the most legendary party and prank to date being pulled off successfully, word of Malfoy's failed attempts had also been circulating around the school.
Supposedly Umbridge had caught Malfoy trying to shut his own party down before she could, confirming the party was in fact at his expense. He was caught in the act, making Umbridge's job more enjoyable when dealing with Draco's crime and punishment. She had deducted fifty house points from Slytherin and suspended Malfoy from his duty of prefect for two weeks. After all he was a prefect and was supposed to be the one turning in mischievous students, not being the one to cause the mischief.
Of course Draco took this out on me, constantly giving me harsh stares and being even more snarky than usual towards me. But I'm used to it, Draco loves having any reason to target and deflect his anger onto me.
I've been trying to keep myself busy on the other hand, being sure to stay out of Draco's line of fire the best I can. He was blaming me and solely me for his party being crashed by Umbridge, but he could never prove its entirety. He's supposed to be laying low, staying clear of any trouble if he wanted to get his position back. Unfortunately for me his two weeks probation was quite possibly ending today depending on how the other prefects voted in their meeting this morning.
As always I'm sitting alone at my usual spot in the back of the library, left to my seemingly never ending pile of assignments and books in preparation for the O.W.L.s. Hermione and Ron were in the prefect meeting while Ginny, Neville, and Luna were in their classes. Harry and the Weasley twins were at the Quidditch pitch for a team practice before the highly anticipated match against Slytherin scheduled for this upcoming weekend.
I'm lost in thought, scribbling frivolously on the parchment in front of me. I hear light footsteps behind me drawing closer as they cross the old musty grey carpet in my direction. I suddenly lurch forward in my seat, someone kicking at the leg of the chair causing my arm to knock over the ink jar and spilling it onto my book. The ink slowly spreads out, flowing from the page of the book down to the parchment and table. I gasp lightly, lifting my arm in shock as ink drips from the sleeve of my robe.
Snickers can be heard to the left, my harsh gaze meeting with Crabbe and Goyle's. They're laughing at me, all of my belongings now covered with the dark pigment. I roll my eyes at them, jumping out of the chair quickly to try and save the soaked book and parchment from the table. I hold them up at the corners, sighing as the excess ink slowly drips off and begins pooling on the table. Crabbe and Goyle continue to laugh at me, walking past as they exit the library and turn left into the corridor.
When I look up everyone in the room has their eyes on me, intensely watching my every move. Some students are quietly sniggering at me, others have sympathetic looks on their faces at the unfortunate encounter. I huff quietly in annoyance, hastily wiping the rest of the ink off my belongings. I clean the table quickly, wanting to be relieved from the enormous amount of embarrassment I feel like I'm drowning in.
I know Malfoy sent his dogs out after me, they're furious at my part in shutting down their get together. Crabbe and Goyle are cowards though, they only approached me when they thought I was alone and vulnerable. I don't scare very easily, they're not going to win this battle. Malfoy having it out for me is nothing new, it's nothing I can't handle on my own.
I hastily scoop my drenched belongings in my arms, making a quick escape into the safety of the corridor. The corridors are mainly empty, giving me a sense of relief from the unwanted attention I had received in the library.
