Young Warrior

Chapter 21 - Why Me?

It was a Sunday morning and I woke up earlier than usual. Harry had met with Hagrid yesterday and I was busy procrastinating about Voldemort being back. This was still a possibility, it's not for sure but I have a bad feeling about things. My mind ponders about whether I'm being rational or not.

I walked to the great hall for breakfast and everyone was wearing these big circle pins on their robes. A Hufflepuff quickly passed by me while I was poking at my toast. I could only catch a glimpse of his yellow robes. "Hey, Hufflepuff!" I called the guy. He turned around and it was Cedric Diggory.

He smiled a charmingly and sat next to me. "Isabella right?" I smiled awkwardly "Um yeah." He huffed out a laugh. "Do you know what those badges are that everyone's wearing? Did I miss something?" I asked him. "No actually, they're sort of um...Malfoy made them. They say 'Potter Stinks' I told them not to wear it but they wouldn't listen."

I look over to my left and see Draco walking in with a box in his hand. They looked like more badges but they were purple. Everyone crowded around him and then a few people turned to look at me. "Can you excuse me real quick Cedric?" he nods "Yeah I should get going but I was going to ask..." I look back at him, tearing my eyes away from the crowd surrounding Malfoy to hear what he has to say.

"I was going to ask if maybe you would like to go to the Slytherin party with me this Friday? I hear they throw one every year." I had completely forgotten about the Slytherin parties. I went to my first one last year with Ron. I zoned out thinking about how me and Draco spent the whole night on the Astronomy Tower.

I snap back to reality remembering Cedric asked me. Wait...Cedric just asked me? Me...?

"Yeah of course! I would really like that." I smiled at him and he smiled back, "Okay great! I'll see you around Gryffindor." He said as he got up,
"Later Hufflepuff." He laughed and walked away. Merlin that was corny...but cute.

So many thoughts were going through my head I was overjoyed. Then I remembered, Halloween is already Friday? I was always down on Halloween. At least Harry knows some of the truth now. It definitely made me feel a little better about things.

I get pulled out of my thoughts when more people started to look at me. Draco glares at me as if he was waiting for a reaction. He's still holding a box filled with badges and more people keep grabbing at them. I saunter over to him. He smirks. I look him dead in the eye and he holds up a purple badge. "Care for one Evans?"

I break eye contact with him and look at the badge in his hand.

It reads "Potter Stinks but Evans reeks" he had other ones that just had Harry's name on them and few other badges that said "Support Diggory, The Real Champion." I scoff and slap the badge out of his hand. "Really?" I said in a cold tone. He nodded with a smirk. "What did Harry even do to you?" I scoff and his smirk fades.

"Potter is just on my nerves per usual." he rolls his eyes. "And he put his name into the Goblet." he shrugged, "Everyone hates him."

I felt anger rising in my chest. "He didn't do it Malfoy." I defended Harry.

He leaned closer to me and whispered "I guess I just happened to kill two birds with one stone. Two cousins."

He pulls away and laughs as Crabbe and Goyle laugh along but Draco was whispering so low Crabbe and Goyle couldn't even hear him, I dont know why they were laughing. Does Malfoy push them around that much?

I look around to see other people wearing badges with my name. He looks back at me and says
"I told you it wasn't over."

I felt my face burning with anger as I look around the great hall. These people didn't even know me but yet they didn't hesitate to wear a badge with my bloody name on it.