Chapter 5
The next morning, Nellie woke up to find a cat laying on her. She tried to move without waking it, but no avail.
"Merow?" questioned the cat.
"Scat." Nellie said. The cat jumped off of the bed and made a little thump noise as it landed. Sun streamed through the room of the girl's 7th year dormitory. There were no other 6th year girls, so Nellie was put into the 7th year dorm with the other remaining girls, Pansy Parkinson and Millicent Bullstrode. Pansy had told Nellie last night that after Lord Voldemort had risen, that lots of Slytherin's had dropped out of Hogwarts, either because their parents made them, or for their own well being. Nellie yawned, stretched and got out of bed. She picked up her robe and her uniform headed to the bathroom to change. The wool skirt was itchy and her knee highs kept slipping down. The sweater vest was tight and so was her blouse. Nellie sighed and pinned her hair up at the sides with barrettes. Slipping her robe on, she silently made her way down to the Slytherin Common room. The fire was glowing slightly. The fire had died almost over night. She pushed open the solid stone wall and started to make her way to the great hall. The halls were quiet. According to her watch, it was only 7:30. Lunch began 15 minutes ago and classes would start in 40 minutes. Her first class was Defense Against the Dark Arts. Twice Nellie made wrong turns and ended up on the fifth and ninth floors. How she did that she didn't know. So she instead concentrated on going down all the stairs that went down. Again she must have missed the turn off because she ended up in the cold and drafty dungeons. Hoping for an exit, Nellie opened up the nearest door.
"Nellie! What a surprise!" Professor Snape said from his desk. "Care for a cup of morning tea?" he held up a flowered tea pot.
"Uh. Thanks, professor." Nellie said and awkwardly walked into the room.
"You're in my first class of the year after lunch." Snape said, tapping the tea pot with his wand and it began to pour Nellie some tea.
"Splendid." Nellie said and took the cup. She had only had tea a couple of times. She politely took a sip.
"I hardly get morning visitors." Snape said.
"I got lost trying to find the Great Hall." She admitted.
"Oh. Always confusing when you're the first one up and it's your first year here. I remember, " Snape began. "It was my first night here at Hogwarts. I was abandoned by the other boys in my dorm. They had all left without me and found their way by following one of the Slytherin Prefects. We had prefects back then. Anyways, so I dressed and started to find my own way and ended up in the girls bathroom where that silly Minerva McGongall was standing right in front of the mirrors adjusting her bra. I think I still have the marks." He said. He lifted the sleeve of his left arm and held it out to show Nellie.
"Stay clear of her nails. She files them into sharp points daily." He pointed out deep scar lines.
"What's that?" Nellie asked, pointing at something on the underside of his arm.
"Oh. That." Snape sad sadly. "You don't want to see that." He began to pull down his sleeve.
"No. I want to." Nellie insisted. Snape blanched.
"You. Sure?" He asked. "He'll come for you if you do." Snape leaned in close to Nellie. "He's everywhere." He whispered.
"Who'll come for me?" Nellie asked, very confused. Snape slowly blinked his eyes and sat back up. He lifted his sleeve again and showed her his arm.
"Him." Snape said, looking away. Nellie looked at his arm. Something very grotesque had been etched into his skin. A skull with a snake coming out of its mouth. It was a deep inky black color. Nellie tried to look away, but couldn't find herself being able to look away. She was transfixed by the Dark Mark. She had never seen anything like it before. There was something about it that she couldn't put her finger on. So the speak, she was so mesmerized, she didn't realize that she had reached out finger and touched the mark. Something jolted through her body. She gasped and jumped in her seat and drew her hand away. Snape flinched and yanked down his sleeve.
"I. better get some breakfast." Nellie said quickly. "Thank you for the tea, Professor."
"Don't mention it. To get to the Great Hall, just go up three flights of steps and take the staircase on your left."
"Thanks." Nellie said and fled the dungeon. Nellie looked at her finger, the one she had touched the dark mark. There was a black stain on it.
Back at the Lion's Den (the term I'll use whenever I skip between Slytherin and Gryffindor. Here it means, after Nellie went to have pie..), Harry couldn't sleep. He lay in bed with his hands behind his head. The drapes were drawn around his bed and somehow, they were making him claustrophobic. He felt trapped. He closed his eyes and tried to think of something rather than Lord Voldemort. He thought about how his classes would go tomorrow. Hermione had freaked out because the new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher was the one and only Ophielus Midrigge. Ron succeeded in getting her to shut up because she kept telling them little tid bits about Professor Midrigge's private life. He would have DADA with the Slytherin's and Potions with them too tomorrow. Thank goodness he had a good two days with a break in classes without them until he had Care of Magical Creatures. Ron turned over and grunted in the bed next to him. Harry's mind traveled to Hermione. He couldn't stop thinking about the train ride here. He secretly felt glad that Ron hadn't been in the compartment then. Harry tried to get to sleep but everytime he tried to close his eyes, Hermione's smile and her big brown eyes kept coming into view. Just about driven to insanity, Harry slipped out between the divide in his bed curtains and put his slippers on. He picked up his plaid red and gold robe and put that on too. He was going to do something that he, or any other boy ever in Gryffindor house that he knew of, had never done before. He slowly opened the door. Neville snuffled slightly. Seamus was having another of his fantasies about Lavender Brown and groaned. Harry shut the door after him and walked down the spiral stairs.
The common room looked eerie. The dying fire threw the chairs into lumpy shadows. Harry looked towards the staircase that led to the girl's dormitories. He took and breath and entered unwanted male territory. Creeping past the doors of the first through fourth years, he felt as if all the girl's were lying awake listening for un-expected boys. Past the fifth year's room. Would they all jump out at once and attack? Past the sixth years. A soft snoring (probably Ginny) could be heard. The seventh year door. Harry opened it and peeked in. It was much smaller than Harry's dorm. There were only 3 beds instead of 5. Harry recognized each of the girl's beds at once. Pavarti had the bed with the pink lacy canopy. Lavender's was the one with all the boy band posters plastered on the wall over her bedside table. And at the far side of the room, the one with the orange furball that was Crookshanks lying on top of the pile of many big books must be hers. Hermione's. The drapes weren't all the way closed, beckoning Harry closer. Sliding in the room, careful not to make a sound, he entered the room. He hoped Lavender and Pavarti were heavy sleepers or they would freak out and send the other girls in to capture him. Crookshanks stayed sleeping as Harry drew nearer. Hermione's mouth was slightly open as she slept, hands tucked underneath her two pillows. Harry squeezed his eyes shut. He hardly believed that it was 1:25 am in the morning and he was in a girl's dormitory. He couldn't resist. Slowly he opened the drapes wider on her bed. Hermione still didn't wake. Her breathing was slow and steady, like the ocean gently lapping at the sand of a beach. He bent down. She was Snow White. He was the handsome prince. She was Sleeping Beauty. He was the handsome prince. She was the damsel in distress, more likely in deep sleep. He was the handsome prince. Harry leaned down and kissed her gently on her lips. Did he just do that? Yes he did. He had succeeded in a mission no Hogwart's person had ever dared to do. At least he thought so. Harry drew away. Hermione's mouth wasn't open anymore. She still slept on. Harry began to back away but Hermione softly spoke. She was talking in her sleep. Hermione turned over.
"Harry." She whispered, and smiled in her sleep. As much as Harry wanted to yell out that he wanted to kiss her so deeply that the kiss would feel like a bottomless pit, he left the room. He hurried back to his own room. Actually feeling satisfied, he was able to fall asleep.
The next morning, Harry and Ron talked about persuading Professor Midrigge to transfer to the Divination Department because she was real psychic. Hermione walked into the room and sat down between Ron and Harry.
"Good morning!" she said brightly.
"Morning." Ron said. Harry didn't say anything, afraid he would let everything he had done last night spill out like the orange juice Neville was pouring into his goblet. Hermione reached over and took the jam and began to spread it on her toast.
"You know what guys?" she asked. She giggled.
"What?" Harry and Ron asked.
"I had the weirdest dream ever. I dreamed that.."
"What?" Ron asked, shoving a bagel half in his mouth.
"Oh nevermind." She said. She blushed and looked at Harry out of the corner of her eye. Harry thought he would die. That was when Nellie walked into the Great Hall. She looked quite shaken. Harry could imagine that any innocent person that had to spend a night in Slytherin Tower would be shaken. Neville was now pouring milk into his bowl of cereal. He looked up and went red as he saw Nellie cross the hall. He kept staring. He kept pouring. He poured and stared. He felt something wet on his pants.
"You done?" Dean Thomas asked Neville. Neville looked at his bowl of cereal. Neville had poured so much milk absentmindedly into his bowl of cereal that it overflowed over the table and spilled onto his pants.
"Uh. Yeah." Neville said and handed the milk to Dean. Dean took it and turned it over. Three drops of milk came out.
"Hog." Dean muttered.
At 8:15 or so, the Gryffindor 7th years were earliest to class. Hermione was like a peppermint toad and kept jumping up and down.
"Oh! This will be so exciting!!!!" she said. She clutched Harry's arm.
"I think this will be one of the best Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher's we'll ever have." She said. Harry immediately went red.
"It is all right Mr. Potter. Hermione is not going to kill you." Said a voice in his head.
"What?" he said outloud. Professor Midrigge walked past him, her eyes boaring into him.
"It's okay, Harry." Said the voice again. Harry stared dumbfounded at the teacher. Professor Midrigge unlocked the door and everyone filed in. Harry took a seat near the front.
"Good morning class." Professor Midrigge said. Most of the Slytherin's had arrived by now. Nellie came in and sat a bit near the back. Neville immediately changed seats. Suddenly Neville got that same dumbfounded look on his face that Harry had just gotten.
"A little crush we have Mr. Longbottom?" said the voice in Neville's head. He went red and stared at his books. Professor Midrigge picked up chalk from the blackboard tray and began to write, 'Welcome to class'. The bell rang and Professor Midrigge magicked the door shut.
"Welcome class. My name is Professor Midrigge and you will call me that unless you are instructed to do so." She paused. "Yes, Mr. Finnigan, you will need your book today." Everyone stared at Seamus and then at the teacher.
"Oh dear me. I seem to have forgotten to make out the point that I can read your thoughts and I can enter yours any damn time I feel like it so there will be no excuses on why your homework is not done." The class's mouth fell open. Harry went very pale. Would she tell Hermione and everyone else what he did?
"That is safe with me, Mister Potter." Harry went red. "You have no need to fear. Now, I want you all to take out your books and open to the section of half breeds. No, Miss Granger, I will not give you extra credit because you have already read this section." It was Hermione's turn to go red. This would be a very interesting class.
"And, you three." Professor Midrigge suddenly turned to Crabbe, Malfoy, and Goyle who were seated in the far back. "I won't tolerate any funny business." They all were silent and stared at their desk.
"Now." Professor Midrigge said, pressing her hands together. "Let's start. Who can tell me how many original half breeds there are?" It kind of seemed that Professor Midrigge either liked quiet classes or hearing herself talk.
"Yes, Miss Granger. There are 13 half breeds. Who can tell me, not you Miss Granger, let someone else have turn, what are the most common already half breeds?" Hermione looked quite put out. She hadn't been able to open her mouth to say the answer. She wasn't sure she quite liked Professor Midrigge now.
"I'm sorry you feel that way." Professor Midrigge said. "If you would like to let the class hear you say the answer, just raise your hand." Nellie raised her hand.
"Yes. Miss Pot- I mean, Miss Vonwit."
"Centaurs are the most common half breeds. Griffins, Sphinx's, and Mer-People aren't that common, but are still in the same category. Some people think Hippogriffs should be added in that category, but they were bred by hippogriffs originally, not horses and giant eagles." Nellie said.
"Correct! Can anyone guess what the rarest kinds of Half Breed's are?" Ron raised his hand.
"Half giants?" Malfoy sniggered in the back.
"Close." Professor Midrigge said. "It does consist of a human and another person like being." She seemed to be hinting and gazed around at all of the students.
"No one?" Professor Midrigge walked back over to the blackboard and began to draw. She was quite good at drawing.
"Here's a hint." She had drawn a wolf on the blackboard. She turned her head slightly.
"I am very sorry Mister Weasley." She said. Ron had no clue what she was talking about. Neville raised a trembling hand.
"Mister Longbottom."
"A half werewolf? But I thought that werewolves were already considered half breeds since they're just humans that change into wolves, right?"
"Yes. That is true. Good Mr. Longbottom. 5 point to Gryffindor for pointing that out." Neville looked quite pleased.
"After a human has been bit by a werewolf, or simply a rabid wolf with some magic blood in their veins. They can gain that blood by eating prey such as unicorns." The class made gross faces. "As I was saying, after the human has been bitten, the blood is transferred and passed through the veins of the victim. Years ago there was no cure for werewolf bites, and there is a substance that cures them now, but due to the shortage of that plant which is only found in Morocco, more werewolves are appearing." Professor Midrigge erased the board with her wand and began to draw again.
"Werewolves are classified as magical creatures since when they stalk their prey, they are able to run and bound like a human could. And their feet and legs are bigger than others and after they recently transform, they can walk a couple of paces on their back legs." Professor Midrigge had drawn a picture of a werewolf, half standing.
"Some people believe that werewolves are half breeds because that they are mainly people that turn into vicious wolves when the moon is full. But what is very rare, is true half werewolves. When the werewolf, male or female, has a child with a regular human being, the child will have half the ability to transform. They will gain the paws, feet, tail, ears, and some fur of the werewolf." Professor Midrigge looked as if she was going to say something, but instead she closed it and said,
"You three may be excused." Everyone turned to look at Draco, Crabbe, and Goyle. They had looks of pain on their faces. "you're very lucky I am letting you go." They rushed out of the classroom.
"Please excuse me. I want you all to read the passage on rare half breeds." Professor Midrigge hurried out of the classroom after Draco and friends. She closed her eyes and held her hands up to her head.
"You just interrupted a class of mine." She thought.
"Go away." Said Voldemort firmly back in Professor Midrigge's head.
"You are very lucky I let your Death Eater's out of class to go and serve you. What is it this time? Need help putting up decorations?"
"Shut up." Voldemort said.
"Suit yourself." And she took her hands away from her head. She walked back into the classroom. While the class read the pages, Midrigge found many minds wandering as they read. Pavarti was whining to herself about how she hated having 'that time of the month'. Seamus was imagining bad stuff about Lavender. Hermione was caught up in her reading, except at some points, the words 'Harry Potter' would cross her mind. Ron was wondering what the teacher had meant about why she felt sorry for him. Nellie was wondering about the stain on her finger.
"He wants you." Professor Midrigge thought into Nellie's mind. Startled, but curious, Nellie thought back.
"Who? Why won't this go away?"
"You touched the mark of Voldemort."
"I did? That's what that was? Why won't it go away? What does he want with me?" Professor Midrigge did not answer.
CHAPTER 6 is coming soon! Post reviews!
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