Thursday December 1st, 1994.
Defence Classroom.
"Ugh…" Draco moaned as he blinked, and his senses started to come back to him.
The first thing he was aware of, was that he was laying on his back with Pansy and a few other of his close associates kneeling or crouching next to him, looking equal parts concerned and angry.
"Draco!" Pansy said, reaching down to help him up into a sitting position. She turned to send a scornful sneer in the direction of the Gryffindors, most of whom were laughing and snickering at her boyfriend's predicament.
"Wha' happen?" Draco slurred, not quite awake as he started rubbing his face.
Pansy's face twisted into an expression of pure hate.
" Greengrass." She snarled.
Draco's eyes widened, then narrowed as they turned hard and cold, his lips turning down, as he frowned. He then looked around as Goyle helped him to his feet.
"Where is she." He growled quietly.
"Went with Moody and the mudblood, took Potter to the Hospital Wing. You must have hit him pretty hard. His performance was pathetic. " Bulstrode sneered, grinning.
Draco snorted. He had noticed that Potter had seemed off his game, in fact, he'd noticed over the past couple of days that Potter just seemed to be getting more tired. A slow smirk pulled at his lips as a thought occurred to him.
'He's not been feeding…hopefully it's been too long and he'll wind up dead.' He thought.
"The bitch needs to pay for betraying us." Theodore hissed.
"She will. " Pansy growled.
Draco said nothing more, as he silently ruminated Daphne's clear betrayal of Slytherin, he'd have to inform Snape, and measures would have to be taken.
He looked over and the Gryffindors and was about to fire of a few cutting remarks, when the door opened and Weasley re-entered the room, followed by Moody. His eyes flicked the the doorway, expecting to see Greengrass stepping through, but she didn't. Moody closed the door and turned the rest of the class.
"Alright you lot, back to your positions. We have a lesson to finish." He growled, his magical eye sweeping the room.
Where was Daphne? Why hadn't she returned with them?
Draco's eyes narrowed as a thought occurred to him.
'She stayed behind. She's helping the mudblood…helping POTTER!'
He grit his teeth in a repressed snarl of fury, but then quickly schooled himself when he saw that eye flick his way.
He paid no attention to the slight smirk on the Professor's face.
-=-=-=-
Later, after dinner.
Daphne made her way through the halls, idly trudging her way back towards the Slytherin dorms, as slowly as she could. If she were honest with herself, she was terrified.
She'd sat with her sister and her friends among the Second Years during dinner, and the looks she'd gotten from her own year-mates when everyone had first sat down, in particular Draco and his crew, and soon after, the higher years…
She shuddered.
During dinner, she'd also looked up at the head table to see if Snape had anything to add, he hadn't even looked at her beyond a cursory glance and his usual habitual sneer, though that was usually more hidden when he looked at any of his own students.
The evening copy of the Prophet had been yet another coverage of the First Task, or more precisely, Harry offering his arm as a snack to a Horntail.
'Isn't it about time that useless waste of paper started covering something else?' she thought.
Then she paused, thinking.
Maybe she shouldn't go down to the dorms tonight…she really hadn't liked that look Draco had been giving her. But where else could she go? The only other places to sleep at Hogwarts were the Staff Private Quarters as well as the Head Students' Private Quarters in each house, and she currently didn't have the password for Slytherin's.
Then again, even if she did , she likely wouldn't make it through the main door to the dorms without getting attacked. No, she needed somewhere else…
Then, the proverbial lumos went on in her head.
She smiled, turned, and started heading in the other direction, towards the Seventh Floor corridor leading to Gryffindor Tower.
Along the way, she bumped into Susan, who grinned at her, giving her a thumbs up.
"Daphne Greengrass, you sneaky snake."
Daphne pulled up short, blinking in confusion. "Huh?"
"Don't 'huh' me, I know what you did." Her friend replied.
Daphne raised an eyebrow, an almost imperceptible smile crooking her lips, deciding to play along. "I'm reasonably sure I have no idea what you mean."
Susan rolled her eyes. "Okay how about this? I heard from Neville during dinner that you cursed Draco in the back in DA, then you go with Hermione, Ron and Moody to take Harry to the Hospital Wing after Draco knocked him out, which led to the aforementioned cursing-in-the-back, but you didn't come back . And during dinner, Harry looked rather well off, better than he has the last few days at least. Which leads me to one conclusion."
She paused, gathering herself, then she grinned at her friend, who rolled her eyes. "Which is?"
"You Daphne Greengrass, went and snatched yourself some Parsellingus!"
"Some what…?" Daphne asked, incredulously. Not quite sure she'd heard that right.
Susan grinned at her own creativity. "Like it? That's what I'm calling it now. Getting your fanny licked by a Parselmouth."
Daphne stared at her, slack jawed, her eyes going wide as she processed what she'd just heard, her face heating in a fierce blush. Then she mastered herself and gave Susan a quick glare.
"Bones, don't ever say that word again!"
"Why not? It's accurate." Susan grinned. "Besides, you gotta spill!"
Daphne raised an eyebrow again. "This, after you gave me grief about offering him your fanny on a silver plate the other day?"
"You were offering both, and he's already had yours. I wanna know what it was like! You know girls talk about this sort of stuff!"
"Maybe." Daphne snorted, "But I'd rather think Harry would like the details of his 'feedings' kept quiet." She paused for a moment, then continued. "Besides, if you're that desperate to know, just drag him into a cupboard, sit him down then drop your skirt and knickers." She then stepped around Susan and kept walking. Susan turned to follow.
"Where are you even going anyway? This isn't the way down to the Slytherin dorms." Susan said, as she fell into step with the blonde. Daphne sighed, her shoulders sagging a little.
"Daph?" her friend asked worriedly.
"I can't go back down there, not tonight. I saw the look on Draco's face during dinner, and his friends, they're planning something, I know it, and to be perfectly honest, I don't feel like walking into an ambush back in the dorms tonight."
"So where are you gonna go?" Susan asked.
"Room of Requirement." Daphne replied, as she turned and headed down a side corridor, heading in the direction of Gryffindor Tower.
"Want some company?" Susan asked.
"Wouldn't you be missed back at the dorm?"
Susan shrugged, "Nah, Hannah asked Neville to join her in our room tonight." She smirked and gave Daphne a wink, the blonde snorted.
"Being Purebloods, I'm surprised they're taking the risk starting this early."
Susan shrugged, "Han says she likes doing it. You know she's actually got an animated tattoo of his family crest on her fanny?"
Daphne raised an eyebrow as she turned to her friend. "Oh? And how'd you know that?"
"Saw it this morning. It was on her chest when I first saw it the other night, but this morning, it was right between her legs, as if someone had painted it on her lips, I don't think she noticed. It's one of those that you can move with your wand, but there's also ones that move randomly, and even those that can move based on your own thoughts."
"Aren't those temporary?" Daphne asked, trying to hide a giggle.
"Usually, though you can get permanent versions." Susan said, as they turned onto the seventh floor.
"I'm sure Neville appreciates the sentiment." Daphne said as they turned in to the corridor Harry had mentioned, soon spotting the tapestry.
"Okay…lets see if this works." Daphne said, as she paced in front of the ridiculous wall decoration.
When the door appeared, Susan put a hand on Daphene's shoulder, making her pause.
"Are you sure you'll be okay?"
"I'll be fine Sue, I'm sure one of your other dorm mates wouldn't mind sharing if Hannah and Neville don't want some 'help'."
Susan raised an eyebrow. "Just what are you implying Daphne Greengrass? Besides, Neville is cute, but he's not my type, plus Hannah isn't the type who likes to share."
Daphne grinned evilly. "Hermione is."
Susan snorted and rolled her eyes, "I'm sure that was just a heat of the moment thing during an emergency situation. Besides, I'm not really on-board with the idea of sharing a bed with another girl. Yes Hannah and I share a room, but we don't share a bed."
"Aren't the Hufflepuff dorms Co'ed?" Daphne asked.
"Generally, but it's usually up to the students in each year, and like I said, I want to give Hannah and Neville some privacy."
"Alright, I'll see you tomorrow." Daphne said, giving her friend a quick hug, before turning and heading into the room, which she'd modelled after her own dorm room.
Friday December 2nd, 1994.
At breakfast the next morning, Susan sat down at the Hufflepuff table, glancing over to the Gryffindor table at Hannah, noticing with a small smirk the almost constant slight smile on her friend's face.
"Looks like she had a fun night last night." she said.
"Uh, what are you talking about?" Padma asked, looking over at Hannah, who was casting heated glances at the boy sitting next to her every few minutes.
"Hannah and Neville. Judging by that smile that seems to be permanently fixed on her face, she had a very fun night. And what are you doing here anyway? Shouldn't you be sat with the Ravenclaws?"
Padma rolled her eyes as she started to pay more attention to her breakfast.
"What's the matter Bones? Feeling left out?" she asked, smirking at the slightly flustered look that spread across Susan's face.
"Hardly." Susan snorted.
"Oh? You sure you're not feeling a tiny bit jealous that all three of your best female friends are getting their fannies licked and you haven't? Or that they've all had a chance to swallow a wand?" Padma retorted, snorting as Susan turned away, her face pinking a little.
Padma let out a theatrical sigh, "I know how you feel. It's absolutely galling that my sister got a turn with Harry and I didn't."
"Oh? Isn't having a go with twins every boy's fantasy?" Susan asked, trying to ignore the curious stares from the rest of the table that their house-mates were giving them.
Padma shrugged, "I imagine so. But when I approached him, I must have caught him at a bad time, he seemed a bit fed up and pissed off, he snapped at me, made some comment about our entire society worshiping him for something he didn't even do, or remember doing, and that everyone of us seems to be ignoring the fact that it was his mum that did all the work, and did the one thing the rest of us ' Didn't have the balls, literally or figuratively, to do' , as he put it."
" Ouch." Cedric muttered, further down the table. "Though you gotta admit, the guy has a point."
"Anyway, back to my original question." Padma said, giving Susan a grin, "You're definitely jealous. You know there's nothing to stop you yanking him into a broom cupboard."
Susan snorted, as did several others now listening in. "You mean like Weasley tried to do? Besides, I don't need to just focus on Harry, I'm sure I could get any boy I wanted." Susan said confidently.
"Sure. All the boys that have tried to chat you up the past year or two, you've ignored or turned down." Justin said, Susan rolled her eyes as she swallowed the toast she'd been eating.
" That's because all of those boys couldn't look higher than my boobs, and couldn't think higher than their hips." Susan said with a huff, "If I'd know what a Parselmouth could do, I'd have made a play for Harry years ago."
"Sweetie, no one knew what a Parselmouth can do in bed, and those that did certainly weren't spreading it around, would you? That's probably the real reason why Parselmouths get such a bad rep, because once word started to get around how good they were in bed, regular people couldn't compete." Padma said, patting Susan's arm.
"I doubt You-Know-Who knew about it." Susan growled, "If he did, he wouldn't have been such an asshole. I'm betting half the reason he turned out like he did was because he never got any while here."
The others that were within hearing range shuddered, " Please! Don't put that image in our heads Bones! We're trying to eat here!" Justin moaned.
"Besides, in regards to the boys around here, most of them that usually follow you around like puppies are now leaving you alone, and going after a certain french witch." Padma said, smirking.
"You mean the ones that can't look any higher than a girl's rib cage? She can keep 'em. Especially the ones that act like their brains have shut down around her."
"You mean like Weasley?" Justin grinned. Susan shuddered, it still disgusted her, the look of absolute vacancy in his eyes as he stared at the Veela, his mouth hanging open, drool, and other half chewed material, dribbling from his mouth. It was… horrifying.
"I heard from Neville that Ron was still following the orders Moody gave him while under the Imperious after the effect had been lifted." Justin said.
Susan nodded, "My aunt told me that those with exceptionally weak minds are even more susceptible to that curse than most. It is possible to be resistant, or to break free once you're under it, but you need to be very strong-willed, and that will never be Ron Weasley."
Before anyone else could comment on the topic, a flutter of wings heralded the arrival of the morning post.
When the post owl had made it's delivery and left, Susan picked up her breakfast again and started to eat, only to realise the hall and suddenly gone deathly silent. She looked around and saw everyone reading a copy of the Prophet , and those that didn't have their own, where sharing.
Curious, she picked up her copy and started to read.
Then promptly wished she hadn't , as she tried desperately to keep her breakfast down at the headline stared at her.
PUBLIC DISPLAYS OF DEPRAVITY!
Boy-Who-Lived: Philandering playboy: A cheat at sports events and love?
Hermione Granger: Loving girlfriend or Cheating Temptress?
By Rita Skeeter
At first, Susan wasn't aware that she'd started gripping the paper with enough force to turn her knuckles white, or that her fingers had already started to tear through it, or that her hands were shaking, or that her face suddenly felt cold.
'Oh no…please Merlin no!'
Her eyes skimmed the article, the only sound she could hear was the rustling of paper, her own rapid breathing and the hushed whispers from the Slytherin and Durmstrang students, as well as the French contingent.
"Fuck…" Cedric muttered.
The sound of hurried footsteps drew her attention to the Gryffs, just in time to see Hermione's retreating form as she ran for the main doors, flinging them open.
The cold chill she'd felt the moment she'd read the headline, was replaced by a seething, equally cold sense of fury.
' Auntie needs to be told the whole story, I doubt there's much we can do to silence Rita now though.' She thought. All those months the Dementors had been stationed at the school, looking for Sirius Black, and Susan found herself contemplating a rather dark alternative. ' They were sent after the wrong person.'
Unfortunately, there wasn't much that could be done to Skeeter unless she broke one of the more serious laws, and Susan knew, or suspected, the insufferable hack was too smart to do that.
It was then that she heard something from the Ravenclaw table, Fleur was saying something while reading her own copy of the paper, and thanks to her aunt's career in law enforcement, she sometimes had contact with other DMLEs on the continent, though that was rare, her aunt Amelia had still made it a point to teach Susan several foreign languages.
Admittedly, her French was rusty, but she was well versed enough to understand the Veela's rant.
"J'peux pas croire le culot de cette pute! Si j'attrape cette pauvre excuse de cloporte et son journalisme à deux balles, je vais lui faire avaler sa putain de caricature de feuille de choux! Je vais lui enfoncer sa plume dans le cul à cette salope! Au moins elle aura du style comme ça la pétasse!"
Susan snorted. She probably could have come up with just as much of a fitting insult in half that sentence.
The sound of movement drew her attention back to Gryffindor, just in time to see Harry stand and start making his way towards the door, she watched as he paused and glared at the Slytherins, at Malfoy and Parkinson specifically, before exchanging a quick glance with Krum then Fleur, then his eyes locked with her own, and she saw the murderous rage burning in those green orbs.
' Shit, only seem him this mad once before, and that was after Hermione got petrified.' She recollected. Seeing him hesitate, she jerked her head in the direction of the door and mouthed " Go!" , he didn't waste any more time, as McGonagall joined him at the door, and the two left.
Once the two were gone, the murmurs started in earnest. She idly wondered what Dumbledore would try to do to keep the peace this time, though she didn't really see the point, the dame was already done.
She looked down at her own breakfast, suddenly not feeling very hungry.
-=-=-
Minerva sat at the head table, just tucking into her regular morning breakfast of coffee and toast.
"Rough night, Minnie?" Filius asked.
"Oh, you know, the usual here." She then turned and looked at Poppy, who was sitting next to her.
"Poppy? Are you okay? You look haggard."
"I think I'm going to have to burn Potter's bed in the infirmary." The woman replied, letting out a tired sigh.
"Whatever for?" Sprout asked, Pomfrey shuddered.
"Trust me Pom, you don't want to know."
Minerva raised an eyebrow, remembering how, the night before at dinner, Poppy had looked…well, stressed, would have been one way to put it.
Though Minerva hadn't asked about it, figuring it had just been another busy day of dealing with a school full of teenagers.
She was about to ask her what she meant, when the morning post arrived.
As soon as she unfurled her copy of the paper, she would have spat coffee all over the front page, had she not already swallowed what was in her mouth.
She stared in mute horror and and mounting fury as she read the headline, and the accompanying article.
Clearly, Rita was going all out here, sparing nothing in describing every sordid detail of the private lives of two of her favourite students. The complete destruction of the sense of safety, privacy and security that Harry and Hermione were being dealt by this article made Minerva's blood boil.
She'd read plenty of scandalous articles in her time, but this was somehow worse , namely because it exposed the private lives of two Hogwarts students in a way that she was sure, hadn't been done before, and the fact that one of them was Harry Potter, and the other was a muggle-born, well, she didn't know what was worse.
She tried to stop reading as the article started to mention, in some cases, explicit detail, some of the compromising positions and activities the two had been unknowingly caught in, but she couldn't, some unseen force compelled her to read the whole sordid thing.
She made a mental note to talk with Pomfrey about that incident the night before, wondering why she was only finding out about it now, and from Rita shit-eating-hag-fucker Skeeter of all people!
If she ever got her hands on that… creature… well, Amelia would probably want to award her an Order of Merlin, if she had the means to do so.
She cast a sideways glance at Pomfrey, and saw the look of fury coloring her face. Minerva looked back at the article, reluctantly, and noted with a raised eyebrow, the not-so-subtle snub at her long-time friend's professionalism.
It was then that she heard movement in the hall and looked up, in time to see Hermione running from the room, a few moments later, Harry got up and started to follow, pausing a moment to look around the room, which was now entirely focused on him.
"That two Knut whore wouldn't know professional conduct if it face-fucked her!" Pomfrey snarled, before ripping her copy of the paper in half, earning a snort of amusement and agreement from almost everyone else sat at the table.
"I wouldn't even waste two Knuts on her." Filius commented.
"Aye." Rubeus rumbled.
"Now Poppy, that is hardly appropriate." Dumbledore said.
"But it is accurate Albus." Pomfrey said, before she reached into her robe and pulled out a couple of potion vials, handing them both to Minerva. "They'll need these Minnie."
Minerva nodded as she stood and made her way round the table towards the main door, following the retreating form of Harry, all the while contemplating ways she could kill a certain reporter.
-=-=-
Daphne sat at the table, but refused to eat anything. She'd lost her appetite after reading that infernal paper. She knew her physical state was less than stellar, her hands were clammy, shaking, a cold sense of fear and rage wared within her for dominance. She felt her heart break as she watched Hermione run from the hall, part of her longed to follow, to comfort her friend, but she knew if she did, her standing in Slytherin would be even more dangerous. Sleeping in the Room of Requirement had been interesting, going to sleep in a copy of her own dorm room, but waking up in a large bed big enough to comfortably hold several people, had been… interesting. As had the candles and pink and dark red blankets, cushions and rose petals dotting the room.
She wondered if the room had been trying to tell her something.
She'd done her best to ignore the furious look Draco and his cronies had given her when she'd entered the hall and sat dowel. Clearly, they'd planned for something the night before, after dinner. No doubt something to pay her back for her actions in DA, but since she'd never returned to the dorms…
She'd cast a worried glance at her sister, fear suddenly surging through her. If Draco had laid a hand on little Tori, she'd kill him, consequences be damned.
Fortunately, Astoria hadn't seemed too nonplussed, though she had shot her a confused look, silently asking why Daphne hadn't been in the dorms the night before.
She looked down at the article again, noting with a chill of dread that it had indeed mentioned her, Hermione and Weasley taking Harry to Pomfrey, and clearly insinuated what had happened once there.
' How? Pomfrey would have spotted anyone close enough to eavesdrop…and there was no-one else in the room…'
Well…that explained the cold look of hostility on most of the Slytherins' faces that morning when she'd arrived at the table. She'd sat next to Astoria, trying to put as much distance between herself and the rest of her year mates as she could, but it hadn't helped much.
"So, Greengrass, you going to be dropping your knickers for Potter next?" Nott sneered from further down the table. "Or maybe bend over and beg him to lick your arse? Or are you gonna get down on your knees and suck him off alongside the mudblood, since you've clearly picked a side?"
"After all the practice she's been getting, she'd probably be able to show the mudblood a thing or two." Crabbe guffawed, Goyle chuckling alongside him.
'What?'
"What the hell are you guys talking about? I've not been 'getting any practice' as you put it—" a snort from Parkinson and Bulstrode made her pause, before she continued, "—and I certainly won't be dropping my knickers or raising my skirt for anyone anytime soon."
"We'll see, Greengrass." Pansy growled, sending her a heated glare. "You are aware of what happens in Slytherin to those who side with the enemy , yes?"
Daphne scowled at the pug, but said nothing, so Goyle spoke up next,
"You need to learn what happens to those who shirk their loyalty to Slytherin." Daphne snorted, almost laughed outright.
"Loyalty? Seriously Gregory, are you listening to yourself? Slytherin isn't about loyalty, it never has been. There is NO loyalty in the Snake Pit."
"What about Blood Loyalty then?" Bulstrode snapped, glaring at the blonde, as were many of the upper years now.
"The only Blood I'm loyal to is my own." Daphne snapped back, "And since I didn't betray my family, I have no need to worry about that."
"Your family never supported the Dark Lord last time, did they." Nott said, eying her and Astoria with a calculating eye.
"No. We chose to stay neutral." Daphne said, knowing that what she was about to say could probably land her in even deeper shit than she was already in, but honestly, she didn't care, it needed to be said.
"My father was smart. You have to be, to be a successful businessman. He didn't want to be branded like a domesticated farm animal, which is why our family stayed out of the war." She said, staring at each of them hard.
"Blood Traitor!" Draco snarled, as he stood, hands on the table, leaning over as he glared at her with a look of such hatred. Nott just glared at her, his look cold but calculating. Out of all the Slytherins, the only ones not giving her looks of death were the First and Second years, though the Second years looked more shocked than angry, Astoria looked worried, and her friend, Tracey Davis, though her brother Roger, was giving her a suspicious look.
"Is there a problem here?" came the voice of their head of house. Everyone turned to see Snape standing from the table and approaching, the murmurs from the other tables had died down again.
"Daphne Greengrass has betrayed Slytherin! She helped Potter and the mudblood last night in Defence class, and she just insinuated that everyone who took the Dark Lord's Mark, all of whom did so with pride , are little more than farm animals!" Draco seethed.
"Is that an admission that your own father willing supported that wanker Draco?" Susan called out.
Draco turned to glare at her, only realise many eyes were now on him. He looked between Daphne and Susan, glaring at them both.
'Say nothing.' He thought to himself, 'Plan, bide your time Draco.' Drawing in a breath, he settled his glare on Daphne then sat down.
"Miss Greengrass, one week of Detention with me after classes, starting tonight. You'll be helping me prepare potion ingredients." Snape growled, his eyes drilling into her, she knew better than to match his glare, so just nodded. "Do try to keep your outbursts to a minimum Draco, a Slytherin does not draw attention to themselves like some boorish Gryffindor. "
And with that, he turned and headed back to his seat.
At his place at the table, Krum sat stone-faced, glaring down at the paper, translated into Bulgarian, wishing it wasn't. He liked Harry, he wasn't arrogant as many in Slytherin had claimed, no, that title was reserved for it's self-styled prince.
'Detestable little prick.' He thought with a growl. He looked further up the table, and saw the smug grin on the little bastard's face.
He'd been on the receiving end of a few scandalous articles himself, and he knew what Harry and Hermione were likely feeling right now.
He looked up just in time to see Hermione stand and run from the room, Harry following soon after along with the Transfiguration Professor.
His and Harry's eyes met briefly, and Krum did his best to convey what he was feeling in that look, then gestured for him to follow his lover.
He suddenly no longer felt hungry.
-=-=-
"I'LL KILL HER!"
Sirius' voice roared through the gloomy rooms and passage ways of #12 Grimmauld Place as he threw the screwed up paper into the fireplace and started to pace like a caged animal, glaring periodically at the wad of paper, watching it burn, wishing it was Rita.
Remus sighed as he rubbed his eyes. He hated it when his friend got like this, all this time cooped up was not doing Sirius' mental health any good.
Sure, he got to go out whenever he wanted, but only as Padfoot, never as Sirius Black, which was both a blessing and a curse.
After so many years in Azkaban, Sirius was still desperately deprived for affection, and although Sirius was able to find… company , for lack of a better word, among London's stray dog population, fleas, ticks, animal control, and parvo were legitimate concerns to Remus.
Though he wasn't exactly sure if Sirius could catch parvo or not, he knew he could definitely catch fleas. And had.
But he wasn't able to leave the house as Sirius Black , and actually interact with other people, as he once could, which was why Sirius tended to get like this.
And now this had literally landed in their laps while they'd been sitting down to breakfast.
'Well, this is a FINE way to start the day.'
He thought for a moment, wondering why Dumbledore had never arranged a trial for Sirius, after finding out his friend never received one, he wasn't sure if Dumbledore had ever visited Sirius or not, his friend's memories of Azkaban were one long jumbled nightmare he tried not to think about, and Remus never pressed.
Something…felt off with this whole situation. Rita seemed to have the run of Hogwarts, Dumbledore seemed to be losing his touch when it came to controlling information, considering he'd managed to keep news about the student attacks in 92 from getting out, so why was he suddenly not able to keep the press out?
"Did you go to Gringotts yet?" he asked, hoping to distract his friend.
"Not yet, I'll try to make it there sometime before Christmas, and if I can't, hopefully sometime early next year. Don't give me that look Moony, I do fully intend to make Harry my heir, but I want to wait until after he finishes this tournament."
"Why? You could arrange to disinherit Draco now." Remus said.
"If I do that, and then something happens to Harry and me, then House Black gets dissolved. And yes, I hate this place, I hate my mother's portrait, I can barely stand Kreacher, but I really don't want to see nearly one thousand years of history just go poof."
"Well then, lets hope Harry and you both live long happy lives." Remus said, "Now, sit down and eat your breakfast."
-=-=-
Office of the Under-Secretary, M.O.M
Dolores eyed the paper before her with disgust. While she certainly wouldn't mind anything that went towards damaging Potter's standing, she really didn't want to know the ins-and-outs of his private life.
Her eyes narrowed as they scanned the page, picking out details, her calculating Slytherin mind ever analytical.
Greengrass…
A prominent Pure-blood family, the father a businessman, not as rich as the Malfoys, Potters or any of the other really old families, be he did have connections. If her knowledge of the family was accurate, they hailed from the continent, from Scandinavia or Norway, and they had fled to England following Grindelwald's defeat. Why they had done so was not known. She did know that the family had remained neutral during Voldemort's… Riddle's… she corrected herself with a scowl, first rise. Maybe the family had supported Grindelwald during his campaign, and had been chased out? And to avoid persecution a second time, they'd stayed neutral with the next 'Dark Lord' rising?
It would have to warrant further scrutiny, especially if the eldest daughter was now throwing her lot in with Potter.
'Along with throwing her knickers at him, evidently.'
Dolores knew the mind of the teenager, nothing inflated a boy's ego more than a beautiful rich girl draped on his arm, or on his lap. She had no doubt the young Greengrass girl was an eye-catcher. As for the mudblood, well, at least she was keeping to her station.
This curse…it was clearly Greek, by it's name alone. She'd once heard of an old curse developed long ago, that worked somewhat like this, but she'd often dismissed it as a joke, a Wizard's ultimate fantasy. The only thing that really made it a 'curse' was the detrimental effects it had if it was ignored. At most, it was more of a medical condition.
She would have to look into it some more.
She'd have to compliment Skeeter on her work, the woman was doing a splendid job as a reporter. She'd have to find out who Skeeter's 'witnesses' were.
Dolores turned and looked at her calendar, the Yule Ball was coming up, and during February, the Second Task. She scowled. She still couldn't believe Krum had scored the lowest of the four Champions. Something would have to be done to rectify that during the next task, but to do that, arrangements would have to be made, carefully. Getting herself onto the committee was one way to do it.
They still hadn't figured out how Potter had got his egg from the Dragon without getting maimed, mauled or burned. Obviously he'd cheated, it was just proving that that was difficult. If they could , then they could strip him of his point allocation and even disqualify him from the tournament.
'Yes, that could work.' She thought. The best way to prove he cheated, was to catch him doing it again. How to go about it though…?
-=-=-
The Burrow
Molly put down the paper, looking up and sharing a concerned look with Arthur, who took the paper from her and started reading, his eyes widening and face paling, before he scowled and threw it down.
"Arthur, what do you think? Do you think there's anything we can do?"
Arthur sigh and shook his head, "What am I supposed to think Molly? He's at Hogwarts until the end of the school year, and you know Dumbledore has him staying with his family. I doubt there's much you or I could do. I've never even heard of this curse, or what ever it is. And if what that… woman wrote in this paper is to be believed, then, well, would you really be comfortable with Harry and Hermione doing… that under our roof if they have to?"
Of course not! Were the words that almost flew out of her mouth, but Molly shut it with a decided click. In her opinion as a mother, Harry and Hermione were far too young to be engaging in such activities. But if this cursed required them to, as Rita's articled seemed to theorize, then, well, there wouldn't be much she could do about that.
Her mind in a turmoil, running through all of her plans for Harry, Ginny, Ronald and Hermione, and wondering just how many were now falling apart. Her dream of One Big Happy Weasley Family now suddenly didn't look so certain.
She would have to talk to Dumbledore, maybe he could find a cure, maybe he already had? But if he had, surely he would have used it by now, and the article clearly indicated neither student had been cured yet.
And hadn't the article mentioned the eldest Greengrass daughter? She wracked her brain, drumming up all she knew of the family. Neutral, but with a dark-aligned past if what few rumors she'd heard were true. Father was a businessman, though she couldn't quite remember what he did.
Molly wasn't entirely sure how she felt about Harry and Hermione associating with her, as with neutrals, they could go either way.
Then there was the issue of how to handle Harry and Hermione when they next came to the Burrow, and if they stayed for a few days. Would she be comfortable with them doing the things that this article described? She honestly wasn't sure.
Once breakfast was finished, Arthur gave his wife a quick kiss and a hug, letting her know he'd be back in the evening. She knew it was pointless asking him if he could look into this matter with Harry and Hermione, so she didn't bother.
Once he had flooed to the ministry, she checked the time, trying to gauge how long it would take for Dumbledore to make it back to his office. Grabbing a handful of powder she threw it in, getting down on her knees in front of the fire.
"Hogwarts, Headmaster's office!" she called as the flames turned green and shot up to fill the fireplace.
"Albus! Are you here?" she called, wondering if she was too early. "Albus!"
"Ah, Molly my dear, what a delight, pleasant morning I trust, yes?" the man in question said as his head appeared in her fireplace a few moments later.
"Well enough, Arthur just left for work. Albus, I'm calling about that article in the Prophet."
Dumbledore sighed, brow wrinkling in a frown. He could already feel a headache starting, and for once, not because of staff complaining about his under-cover Agent in Tom's circle, or the idiot of a Minister.
"Yes, that article is a most unfortunate revelation for the school, and young Harry and Hermione especially. His reputation is already precarious, and hers likely will not fair well because of this."
"So it's true then?" Molly said.
"I'm afraid so. A week before the First Task, young Harry and Hermione were both hit by an ancient curse, which has left them in a predicament where they must…um… feed from one another to survive." Dumbledore said, not sure how to tell the overbearing Smothering Hen the full sordid details.
"You mean like Vampires?! " she asked, horrified.
"No, more like a Succubus and Incubus." He replied.
"What?" Molly asked, confused. That couldn't be right. Then she thought back to the article, and all the sordid encounters it had documented, and how one thing was common with all of them.
"Are the two of them really…that intimate? Surely they're too young! They're not in fifth year yet! They're too young to start the Bonding."
'And the whole point is for them to Bond with Ron and Ginny!' she wanted to yell in frustration.
Dumbledore closed his eyes briefly, sending up a silent prayer to whatever god was listening to help him get threw this, he was well aware of how Molly could get.
"Miss Granger is 15, and yes, they are that intimate. The Curse requires it. I will spare you the really sordid details, but suffice to say, they must feed from one another on a daily basis, twice at day at the very least, orally. If they don't, then they will grow weaker over a period of several days before their systems start shutting down. As for the Bonding, I'm certain they have already begun. It seems the curse was initially designed as a spell to accelerate the Bonding process, at least that's the theory, it's just that who ever made the spell, missed a few details."
Molly pursed her lips, mulling it over, thinking.
"What about at the end of the year? Harry surely cannot go back to his relatives if he must do this to stay alive. I highly doubt they will be willing to help him."
Dumbledore sighed gain, his headache, which had been a minor annoyance, was now a full blown throbbing pain at being reminded of that. He'd been worried about this very detail over the past two weeks.
"Unfortunately, Harry must stay with his relatives, for his own safety, and theirs. As for Miss Granger, I'm sure she'll be fine in the Muggle world, it can't be that hard for her to find someone willing to help her, I suspect. I suspect most of the boys in her local area would be willing to help her."
Molly snorted, rolling her eyes. "Come now Albus, you can't possibly believe that. They can come stay at the Burrow, Arthur and I would gladly take them in. And I'm sure Ronald and Ginny would be thrilled to have them around the house."
"And you would be comfortable with them being so intimate under your roof?" Dumbledore asked pointedly. Molly bit her lip to stop the automatic No! that almost materialized. "I suppose Arthur and I can make exceptions in their case." She groused.
Then after a moment, she continued, "But Albus, what about Ronald and Ginny? Couldn't they help? I'm sure Ron would jump at the chance to help Hermione, and I know Ginny is still infatuated with Harry, she always has been. True, Arthur and I told both of them not to start Bonding until they were in their fifth years, but…" she paused, wondering if what she was suggesting would really work. A part of her wondered if she was really okay with what she'd just suggested, but it was for the sake and survival of The Boy Who Lived, after all. Sure, Arthur would probably object, but she could keep him in line easily enough. She ruled the Burrow, after all.
"I'm not sure that would work Molly, I have already tried using Potions on Miss Granger and Harry both, to engender attraction towards Mister Krum in Miss Granger, and attraction towards Ginevra in Harry, but it has not worked."
Molly scowled, as a thought occurred to her, "Well, there has to be options for us, you know what's at stake!"
Dumbledore closed his eyes and sighed. Yes, he knew. And he's spent the last few days wondering why the potions weren't having any effect. The artificial memories he'd placed in Miss Granger's and Mister Krum's heads should have encouraged further interactions, but it hadn't.
He mentally huffed in frustration. That hasty little bit of memory alteration hadn't been planned. Poppy had come dangerously close to revealing the presence of those potions, and while it was possible that it could have been explained away as a prank by other students, hearing her start to mention them had sent him into a panic, and had reacted… hastily.
'No doubt just jubilation from Mister Potter's rather unorthodox Task completion.' He thought.
It was a moot point now anyway, the potions clearly weren't working. Miss Granger and Mister Potter were closer than ever now, and were surely Bonding by now.
He had never Bonded himself, nor had he really thought to study the intricate process, so he wasn't fully aware of all of it's side-effects, beyond the mental and emotional link that is established during the process.
The only question now was, how had that Curse affected it?
And speaking of…
Poppy had been livid about that article, as had Minerva and most of the other staff, he'd kept his reaction suitably controlled however. He honestly wondered how Miss Skeeter had gotten into the school, and why she'd gone into such graphic detail of what she'd seen. Usually she wasn't so… thorough.
Though the slight against the Veela Champion was a potential double-edged sword, her father was the French Minister, if he remembered correctly.
So that had the potential to blow up in their faces.
Still, if the Bonding was stopped before it was finalized, it would weaken, then eventually fade, normally. At least that was how he understood it. There was the second Task coming in February, he had planned to make Miss Granger Krum's hostage, and young Ronald Harry's, respectively. Mister Weasley had his own role to play in Dumbledore's plan for Harry, namely, being a buffer between Harry and Hermione, and making sure the two of them didn't get too close, though he didn't know it.
But now…he was wondering if it might be a waste of time making Ronald Harry's hostage, or weather they should add more , or more difficult obstacles…it needed more consideration. Unfortunately, it was already too late to scrap the Task and come up with a new one, he'd already negotiated the cooperation of the Merpeople, and they did not like being backed out on. Yes, he was aware of their history with Veela, but that would just add an extra layer of challenge for Fleur.
Especially if…
The wards on the Gargoyle guarding the stairs to his office alerted him that Minerva was coming, and unfortunately, he had to cut this short.
"I'm sorry Molly my dear, but someone is coming, I'm afraid I must cut this short."
-=-=-=-
Fleur was sitting in the Beauxbatons Carriage, putting away several of her assignments, and getting ready to head into the castle for lunch.
There wasn't much about the English cuisine they served here to write home about, though she did like some of it.
Her mind was still on that article…She'd heard the British Magical newspaper could be bad but, she'd had no idea! No one would have dared publish anything so scandalous or scathing in France, not about her anyway, not if they wanted to keep their job.
But this… Rita Skeeter …she had not been overly impressed during their first meeting, but now, she could tell there was nothing likable about her.
Her heart went out to her young co-champion and his paramour. They clearly didn't deserve this, and they surely didn't deserve to have their most private moments splattered across a sheet of paper for the whole school, and likely the rest of the country, to see.
She paused as she thought about what she'd read in that article. A shiver went down her spine as she wondered if the contents of those articles were censored appropriately depending on the age of the person reading it. She doubted it.
That meant the Hogwarts First and Second years likely read the same thing the older students and staff did. She had destroyed her copy in Horror and outrage, but she knew there was a chance Gabrielle could end up reading it, or be told what was in it. She hadn't had a chance to talk to her sister about the paper yet, so she wasn't sure how much her sister knew.
Their parents always made sure to read any articles in the paper before letting Gabby see them. She would definitely have to have a word with her. Veela matured faster than humans, physically and sexually, a fact that had caused Fleur endless grief in her earlier years at Beauxbatons, and had cost her many friends. It also manifested and affected their avian transformation abilities, which took time to learn how to control. And a transformation getting stuck half-way could be very uncomfortable, if not downright painful.
She mentally sighed and sent up a silent prayer to either Aphrodite or Hera, or Athena, which ever goddess was listening, for Gabby to have an easier time of it when it was her turn.
Which thankfully wouldn't be for a few more years yet, but still…her reading about what this Skeeter rat had apparently witnessed, could kick-start Gabby's curiosity and interest in the opposite sex early. And Fleur knew, once a Veela's natural instincts were manifested, they could become all consuming if not 'managed' properly.
If this hack of a reporter had affected her sister in such a way, well, the woman's days were numbered. International law be damned.
For a brief moment, she thought about some of the specifics the article had mentioned, specifically, the curse their attacker, most likely the blond haired boy who seemed to have a rivalry with Harry, had used.
There was something… familiar about it, from it's described effects.
'No, it couldn't be that. How would he know it? Where would he know it? Does he even understand the consequences he'll face?' then she thought with a snort of derision, 'He probably doesn't care.'
She remembered the questioning look she'd given Harry as he'd followed the crying form of Hermione out of the Hogwarts Hall, and how he'd implied that he would explain things at a later time.
Hopefully, that time would be soon.
Saturday December 3rd, 1994.
When Harry awoke the next morning, he noticed that he'd woken up first. Hermione still slept soundly, a very light snore accompanying the gentle movement of her breasts as she lay on her side, facing him.
He smiled as he blinked tiredly, thinking back to the night before, a hand moving to his stomach as he remembered drinking from Hermione.
'Did I really do that?' He thought, as he looked down, seeing their intertwined legs, his morning hardon pointing straight at the junction between her legs, a slight smile of admiration appeared as he took in her flushed, slightly swollen labia which were already glistening.
'Already? Still? Does she ever stop being wet?' He looked again at his erection, remembering that it hadn't really gone away since he'd been cursed. Sure, it mostly faded after Hermione had sucked him, but even then, it never fully went away. Normally he was able to ignore it though, as he suspected that Hermione had managed to mostly ignore her almost constant arousal.
He looked again at her fanny, though he couldn't really get a fully clear look without his glasses, and he really didn't want to move and wake her up. He saw the pink swollen nub of her clit peaking through her labia, and he unconsciously licked his lips as an idea struck him, something he couldn't recall trying, thanks to his half asleep mind. He'd have to try it once she was awake, or in the shower.
His gaze moved back up to her breasts, and he gently moved a hand to cup one of them, testing it's firmness and weight, trying to judge how full it was.
'She said I'd need to drink several times a day, right? Might as well get started.' He licked his lips as his stomach let out a growl, almost as if it knew what he was about to do.
Leaning forward, he kissed her left nipple, which had already pebbled, then circled it with his tongue, wetting it, then he closed his mouth over her areola, then closed his eyes and pressed forward as he started to gently suck.
After just a few moments, warm, sweet liquid started to flow into his mouth, and he started to swallow. He sucked in a deep breath as the now familiar feeling of revitalisation that he usually got from eating her out swept through him, and he gently looped an arm around her and pulled her a little closer, as he closed his eyes and continued to suckle.
"Mmm…" the soft murmur that escaped her lips as she seemed to curl up around him, made him smile. Then he felt a hand come up and stroke his face as a sense of love, trust, endearment and gratitude brushed his mind.
"Mornin' 'mione." He whispered, detaching from her breast just long enough to look up at her face as her beautiful brown eyes opened to pear down at him, before he went back to work.
"Mmm…morning…lover…mmm…" she moaned as her other hand moved down to take hold of his hard shaft, she gently squeezed it, then started to stroke it, before she shuffled her hips a little closer, and angled it up slightly, letting out a gasp.
Harry broke his contact with her breast and glanced down, watching curiously as his lover used the exposed glans to rub and stroke her hard clitoris.
"'Mione?" He murmured.
"I want to try it, see how easy it is to get off using your tip instead of a finger, and focusing on…mmm…oh yeah…just my clit. Oh…that's nice…"
Harry smiled as he let out a moan of his own, before returning to his 'breakfast'. Soon, he moved to her right breast, and continued suckling.
"Thanks for this Harry, I really needed it, I had a feeling they'd be full this morning." Hermione whispered above him, voice still thick with tiredness but also rising lust.
"Any time."
Hermione moaned as she started to rock her hips towards him, caressing her hard nub with his glans, his precum mixing with her own juices, leaving a clear sheen on both of them as she angled his shaft down a little, and rubbed his tip through her labia, a strand of clear liquid connecting his cock and her clit, almost like a string of saliva after a particularly passionate kiss between lovers.
It would be so easy, and so satisfying, to just thrust her hips forward and impale herself on him, as she'd wanted to do quite a few times already, and just let him fuck her. But no, they weren't ready yet.
As she moved his shaft back up to prod and nudge her own smaller nub, she started to run her other hand through his hair as he leisurely drank from her.
She started to go over what they needed to do today, which assignments they still had to work on, and if any of the hubbub from yesterday had died down yet.
'Who am I kidding? We'll be the talk of the school for at least another week. If I ever get my hands on that foul wretch, she's dead.'
With that thought came another realization: they would either have to triple check for any potential witnesses if they were in any corridors, or god forbid, outdoors, and if they were in an abandoned classroom, they'd have to double check the locked door as well.
They couldn't allow any more laxes in their situational awareness.
'Maybe Moody has a point.' She thought, as a particularly nice jolt of pleasure shot through her pelvis then up her spine, starting between her legs. She brought her right leg up and forward, trapping Harry's left. In response, his left hand moved down her back then gently stroked over her ass, which he playfully squeezed, making her squeak in a rather cute way.
A sense of mischief and amusement brushed against her mind, and her eyes narrowed as she looked down at him. Smirking, she reached down with the hand that had been cradling his head, and delivered a light, but definite slap to his backside.
She smirked at the sense of surprise she got, and did her best to telegraph a sense of smug satisfaction as she rocked her hips forward, pushing his glans against the rest of her clit, which sent another jolt and a shudder through her, making her moan.
A light stab of pain shot through her right breast, but soon faded into a tingling pleasure, making her moan go several octaves higher. She pulled back and looked down, eyes widening slightly as they met his upturned green ones, and a sense of amusement brushed her mind.
He bit her.
He'd bitten her nipple.
Not enough to hurt her too much, but enough that she'd feel it, and what little pain she'd felt quickly turned into pleasure.
'Oh, so that's how it's going to be, hmm?' she thought, then smirked down at him. 'Just you wait until we're in the shower and I'm sucking you dry Potter.'
When the flow finally stopped, Harry pulled back and swallowed, taking a deep breath.
"Hm, not bad. I think I could get used to this."
"And the fact that you could potentially skip every meal has nothing to do with it?" Hermione said, smirking.
"Well, Susan did suggest we see how that would work, didn't she?"
"Hm, maybe. We'll have to experiment at some point. Now then, in the shower, I want my breakfast." She said, sitting up and getting out of bed.
Harry watched her go, smiling as he watched her pert, cute bum sway as she walked, then she paused at the bathroom door, looking back at him.
"Well? Waiting for something?"
"Just admiring the view." He said. She rolled her eyes.
"Get your arse in gear Potter and get in that shower. Now."
"Yes dear." Harry replied, quickly following her.
A few moments later, after taking care of necessities, he stood under the shower spray as she sat before him, leisurely licking and nuzzling his shaft and balls with all the care of a woman who knew she had all the time in the world.
Occasionally looking up to make sure his eyes were closed, Hermione took one of the sponges and soaped it up, then started working it over his legs as she worked with her mouth, pausing momentarily to cover his crotch in soap, then standing to do his chest and stomach, then motioning for him to turn round.
"I'll do you then you do me, okay?" she purred.
"Sure." He replied, as he also lathered up a sponge, then turned round into the spray, letting the warm water wash his front, momentarily lamenting the loss of her wonderful mouth on him. As he rinsed himself down, he stiffened as he felt her fingers work the soap into his ass, then, as he expected her to prompt him to turn around so he could rinse his back, she quickly darted back around until she once again sat in front of him, under the spray, and looking up, she grinned and opened her mouth and stuck out her tongue.
"Aaah!" she said, her brown eyes full of laughter, as she took his entire length in one go, closing her lips around his base, swallowing to cut off her gag reflex, then she sucked. Hard.
At the same time, she brought her hands up between his legs, one cupping his balls gently, while the other went further back.
"Oh god…Hermione!" he moaned, tilting his head back, closing his eyes, pleasure shooting through him…which was just what she wanted, as the hand that wasn't on his balls, went further back, as she slid her middle finger up and back, until she found what she was looking for.
Harry's eyes snapped open as he felt the tip of her finger start to gently probe somewhere it hadn't before.
"Wha-wait, what are you—" he stammered, she just smiled up at him.
"Well, I figured I wanted to try something. Prostate massage. And there's only one way I can reach it." And with that, she slid her finger in, gently moving it around until she found the hard mass she was searching for, and pressed on it just as she started to suckle again.
"Ah! Uh…Hermione…" groaning, Harry tensed, thrusting his hips forward.
"Mmmmm…" she purred, flicking her tongue over his tip as she felt his shaft swell with his impending release, noting that he was quicker than usual, clearly, feeding from her had worked him up somewhat.
She looked up at him and smiled around his dick as she suckled, then finally, with a groan of her name, her mouth was filled with the sweet creamy nectar she'd come to relish the feeling of as it slid down her throat.
Gasping, Harry staggered back, before his knees gave out and he ended up sitting before her.
"Well? What do you think?" She asked. Panting, he regarded her with a calculating look.
"A little warning next time, please. Now, on your feet miss Granger, it's your turn."
"With pleasure." She cooed as she stood, "Besides, I need to shave, and so do you."
-=-=-=-
Draco scowled to himself as he exited his own private room in the Slytherin Dorms, making his way to the common room, glancing around, he only saw his closest affiliates, that was good, last thing he needed was someone like Davis overhearing and ruining everything.
"She's not in the Girls Dorm." Pansy said, scowling.
"You're saying she was somewhere else last night as well? She didn't come back after her Detention with Snape?" Goyle asked. Draco snorted,
"Of course she did, he escorted her, but she dipped into the Second Year Dorm then left before Curfew, remember?" Bulstrode snapped, folding her arms.
Draco seethed, "Are you telling me that she spent a second night outside the Dorms, and no-one knows where? I told you to grab her as soon as as Snape left."
"We tried." Crabbe protested, "But Davis was in the common room, and you know she'd have put up a fight, she always does. And we actually did try to go after her when she left, but we lost her."
Draco nodded, Tracey always resisted more than Daphne or the others, good thing he was so good with memory charms, though he hadn't done anything with Tracey the night before, he'd been waiting for Daphne. "Well, we know now for sure that she's been helping Potter, probably Bones too, since they both like to spend time with Granger, and all of this week, I've heard tell of several girls dragging Potter into closets, even that crazy little Ravenclaw, what's her name?" he paused, then thought for a moment. "At least the tip-offs and eye-witness accounts we gave Skeeter paid off. Alright, we need to send Greengrass a message, and not just her, we need to send a message to Potter, we'll discuss it after breakfast, come on."
-=-=-
Daphne blinked slowly as she opened her eyes, and looked around, before slowly sitting up to take in her surroundings. She was in the Room of Requirement. She was alright. She was safe.
Then the memory of last night came back to her.
Her detention with Snape had been predictably gruelling. He'd had her help him preparing potion ingredients, which had taken hours , and had been quite disgusting. Pickling rat brains, and other assorted animal parts, was not how she'd wanted to spend her evening, thank you very much.
Snape had also asked her what had transpired that morning at the Slytherin table to get Draco so riled up at one of his own house-mates.
So she'd told him.
His reaction at first had been…unreadable. Evidently he hadn't known how to react to all the Death Eaters being refereed to as 'Branded Farm Animals', and just for a moment, she thought she'd seen a flicker of a smirk of amusement on his face, but it had been so fast that she honestly wasn't sure.
After that, he'd stayed unusually silent, only speaking to give her directions.
When the whole thing was finally over, near Curfew, Snape had advised that she keep all future comments regarding the more prominent members of their elite, and in particular, those of a certain disposition or sporting body art, be kept to herself.
Then he'd escorted her back to the dorms, then left. She'd noticed Draco's cronies, glaring at her, but no Draco. Remembering the conversation from Breakfast, and the utterly frigid atmosphere and lunch and dinner, she'd ducked into the Second Year's dorm to check on Astoria, before she then ducked out and left.
She'd easily spotted her pursuers, but thankfully lost them before she reached the Seventh Floor and the entrance to the Room. Last thing they needed was Draco finding it.
"As nice as this room is, I can't sleep in here every night, a prefect or teacher is bound to catch me sooner or later." She lamented to the empty room.
"Okay Greengrass, sort yourself out, then down to breakfast, sit with Susan, Slytherin is getting too unfriendly."
And with that, she stood, and started to get ready for the day ahead, hoping it wouldn't be too stressful.
-=-=-=-
Sometime after breakfast, Hermione had met up with both Susan and Daphne, while Harry had gone off to study in the library, so he claimed.
"Well, well, if it isn't Scarhead's three whores."
Her hands curling into fists, Hermione turned to face the approaching Draco Malfoy. Flanked as ever by Crabbe and Goyle he strode down the corridor like he owned it. Behind his thugs, Hermione saw Pansy and Millicent. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Daphne tense up, palming her wand, as did Susan as her house-mates approached.
Malfoy stopped a few feet away from her, a sneer on his face as he looked over them. "Seems you didn't get the message few weeks ago Granger, and from what I read in the Prophet , you even got Greengrass here to help you on Thursday." He glared at Daphne, who returned it. "Don't think I've forgotten what you said yesterday at breakfast Greengrass. Your family are the cowards, not mine. There's a word for helping the enemies of your house Greengrass. It's called treason. "
He then sneered at Hermione. "As for you, mudblood. I think it's time I found out what you've learned over the past few weeks of swallowing Potter's dick." Then he smirked, "I'm assuming from the article yesterday, and your reaction to it, mine and Pansy's contributions to Skeeter met your approval?" He said, smugly.
"So it was you!" Hermione snarled, her hand dropping towards her wand. Her motion was stopped however when she saw the four wands that were now pointed towards her and her friends. A muttered curse from her left shoulder confirmed that Susan had also noticed. Even these particular students couldn't miss at this range.
"No funny stuff mudblood whore." Malfoy snapped, but then his expression turned harsh. "Drop your wands and kick them over to me." When none of them moved to comply his face darkened.
"Do it, or we'll stun you where you stand, then take them off you...along with your clothes." Crabbe and Goyle chuckled and grinned, leering at them stupidly.
Hermione's heart and mind raced, looking for an out. But there was none, and while the idea of giving up her wand to these... monsters turned her stomach, having them stun her and strip her while she was unconscious was even more terrifying.
Slowly, reluctantly, she drew her wand by two fingers before stooping down and setting down on the floor, her eyes never leaving Draco as she did. ' If only you were here Harry...' She thought as the other two girls set their wands down as well.