Chapter Three: House Rules
Hermione soon discovered that Hogwarts was a very odd place. Aside from the hierarchy and huge gap between "Purebloods" and "Mudbloods" that Hermione learned of the very first day, there were many other things that were somewhat odd. First off, she soon discovered that these things were most certainly not an issue in the other three houses. Also there were so many different passageways and corridors that it was easy to become lost. There were trick stairs that disappeared if you stepped on them, tapestries that hid whole other corridors, and on top of all of that was Peeves, the school poltergeist. The only thing Peeves obeyed was the Slytherin ghost, the Bloody Baron. Then there were the classes. Though Hermione had memorized all of her textbooks by heart, the lessons themselves were odd.
But even with getting lost on several occasions and receiving homework in all classes, she could not be distracted from the odd behaviour of nearly every student in her house. Thankfully the rumour of her being Sirius Black's daughter hadn't spread throughout the entire school…yet. Though she didn't actually know rumours were going around about her being Sirius Black's daughter, everyone pestered her because of it. Everywhere she went, Slytherins would try to get a good look at her. Pansy Parkinson and her gaggle of friends always whispered whenever she was around. Some older students would just randomly walk up to her, stare at her face for a few seconds, and then call to a friend, "Yeah, I see what you're saying. She does look like Bellatrix Lestrange.
The only people that didn't seem to care were Harish, Fred, George, Draco, and Daphne. At meals Hermione found herself now a part of Harish's small group of friends. Other people noticed as well, saying that he was starting to gain an inner circle like the last dark lord had. Hermione didn't mind hanging out with them all that much. The twins were funny and Daphne was the only girl in the year that would talk to her. When she had asked why, the plain girl had simply said that her family was neutral; she didn't care about the Wizarding World's problems. Harish, though distant and always acting like he was a prince, wasn't all that bad either. He had taken her in and was being really nice to her. The only person in the group that wouldn't really talk to her was Draco, but Hermione didn't care enough to ask why.
For Draco his life turned odd as well. Not only Pansy fawned over him, but it was nearly every single girl in the school. The only girls not affected were Hermione and Daphne. It was really quite bothersome, and he couldn't figure why they all acted like that. Before Hogwarts, the only girl that acted odd around him was Pansy, but he had thought that it was just her.
On Friday of the first week, Hermione went to sit in her seat at breakfast that she had finally grown used to. Several people craned their necks to look at her and she hardly failed to notice. Unknown to her, Harish slipped a potion into her goblet while she looked at the students who were being quite obvious about staring at her. The twins, however, did notice and Harish held a finger up to his lips.
Hermione turned back to her plate and shook her head. "This is just so odd," she muttered.
"Welcome to my life," Harish replied, smiling.
"So what do we have today?" Daphne asked, sitting in a vacant seat beside Hermione.
"Double potions with the Gryffindors."
"Ugh," all six Slytherins said together.
"Be sure to give Ron—"
"A nice kick for us," the twins said before winking at Hermione.
She laughed. "I may end up doing that just because he's so rude."
Then Fred turned to Draco. "Now Draco, you are allowed to pick on Ron."
"Just so long as you don't mention anything about our parents or their money," George added.
Draco nodded. "Alright. He is stupid enough that I should not have to bring in insults about your parents."
"So what do you think Professor Snape is going to be like?" Daphne asked Hermione. "I've heard that he's rather strict."
"But not with Slytherins," Draco said. "Plus I'm his godson so there would be no need to pick on you."
"Good morning, Daphne," Harish said to her.
"Hello," Daphne said, hardly looking at him before talking more with Hermione and Draco about their classes so far.
Harish scowled. The twins smirked at each other before teasing Harish, "Aw, is wittle Hawish not used to being ignored?"
Harish folded his arms across his chest and his scowl deepened.
George mocked gasped, and Fred lowered his voice and said where Daphne couldn't hear, "Or does someone have a crush?"
"No—just—no!" He hopped up and said, "I need to go grab my book for Divination!" before hurrying out of the room. The twins' smirks grew even wider.
AHA—WE-ALL-SAW-IT-COMING!
Ron and Neville sat down together at the Gryffindor table. Ron began shoving food into his mouth as quick as possible. From overhead, a rustling could be heard as hundreds of owls flooding into the Great Hall, delivering mail to the many students there. Neville's own owl dropped multiple things on his lap. One was a package of things he forgot that were shipped there by his grandmother and the other was a letter. Curious, he opened it and read it quickly.
"What does it say?" Ron asked, his mouth full of food.
"The giant, Hagrid wants to know if I want to have tea with him this afternoon."
"Why?" Ron asked.
"I dunno, it says that he knows my parents."
Ron suddenly became interested. Neville never mentioned his parents.
"Well, how about we visit him after Potions?" he suggested.
Neville nodded and jotted down his reply on the back of the parchment.
HAGRID—YOU-MEAN-THE- SCARY-GIANT-THAT-GUARDS-THE-FOREST?
After Harish left, the twins looked at each other before going out of the room as well. When they caught up to Harish, Fred asked quietly, "Really though, what did you slip into Hermione's goblet?"
"Just a little potion to block ancestral spells."
"Is it permanent?" they both asked.
"No. The effects wear off if she is blood-adopted by a witch or wizard."
They nodded.
They walked all the way back to the common room and Harish grabbed his book. As they were heading to Divination, Harish muttered quietly to the other two. "You know what I think?"
"What?" the twins whispered in unison.
"I think that after our lessons we should check out the third floor corridor."
The twins cracked two identical grins. "Motion carried."
They started the ten minute walk to North Tower, where Divination was to be held. After five minutes and their seventh staircase, they stopped for breath.
"Here," Harish said between gusts of breath and pulling out the Marauder's Map. "I think there's a shortcut somewhere around here."
Harish was about to lead them to the left when a voice sounded from behind the three of them.
"Aha!"
Harish turned around to see a painting of a short knight standing in front of a fat, grey pony. They watched, half amused as he attempted to point his rage sword at them, but ended up dropping it on his foot.
"What villains are these that trespass upon my private lands! Come to scorn at my fall, perchance? Draw you knaves, you dogs!"
Harish looked at his knees and sure enough, there were grass stains on them, indicating that he had just fallen off of his pony.
The third year boy rolled his eyes and led his two friends to the shortcut. When they had rounded the corner, a clanking could be heard behind them.
"Come back here, you scurvy braggart! You rogue! I was speaking with you!" The knight appeared in a painting in front of them. "Halt in the name of Sir Cadogan!"
"I wonder," Harish said, drawing to a halt in front of the insane knight. There was an odd gleam in his eyes. "Is it possible to hex a painting? Maybe I should use fiendfyre." He turned to the twins and asked them seriously, "Do you think that would be a bit much?"
"I apologize my noble gentleman." Harish looked back at the painting, satisfied to see that the knight was now rather pale. "If ever you are in need of assistance, call on Sir Cadogan." And he ran off as quick as possible to his pony.
They turned a couple more times before arriving at a tightly spiralling staircase. Huffing and puffing the three boys ran up and up until finally they emerged onto a tiny platform where the rest of the class was gathered. There were no doors off this landing; instead there was a trapdoor on the ceiling. On it was a golden plaque that read "Sybil Trelawney, Divination teacher."
"How are we supposed to get up there?" one of the other students asked.
Just then, the trapdoor opened and a silvery ladder descended right at the boy's feet. Everyone got quiet. Since the class was made up of all Slytherins, they parted and let Harish ascend. The twins went up right after him.
They emerged into the strangest classroom in all of Hogwarts. In fact, it didn't look like a classroom at all but more like a cross between an old attic and Madam Puddifoot's tea shop down in Hogsmeade. At least twenty round tables were crammed into the room, each one surrounded by a number of poufs and chintz armchairs. Everything was lit with a dim crimson light; the curtains were a dark red and scarlet scarves draped over all of the lamps. It was stiflingly hot, and the fire that was burning in the fireplace was giving off a sickly sweet perfume that was so strong, Harish could feel a throbbing pressure behind his eyes. There were shelves lining the circular walls full of an assortment of quills, large glass balls, packs of playing cards, old candle stubs and a wide array of different teacups.
"Where's Professor Trelawney?" Harish whispered. The room had a whole feel to it that was similar to a library.
A voice suddenly came out of the shadows, a soft misty sort of voice.
"Welcome," it said. "How nice it is to see you all in the physical world at last."
Professor Trelawney was just as odd as her classroom was. She was very thin and her eyes were magnified to ten times their regular size by a pair of large, round glasses. She was draped in many shawls. Innumerable beads hung from her thin neck and bangles and rings adorned her hands.
"Welcome to Divination," the professor said in hardly a whisper. "My name is Professor Trelawney. You may not have seen me much because I find that leaving my tower and joining the regular hustle and bustle of the rest of the castle clouds my Inner Eye."
No one said a word to this peculiar announcement. Trelawney seated herself in a winged armchair and indicated for the class to do the same. She delicately arranged her shawl and continued, "So you have chosen to study Divination, the most difficult of all magical arts. I must warn you at the outset that if you do not have the Sight, there is very little I will be able to teach you. Books can take you only so far in this field…"
The twins both looked at Harish and he returned their looks with a sheepish grin. "I'm not that bad," he whispered.
"It is a gift granted to very few. You, boy," she said suddenly to Marcus Belby. "Is your mother well?"
"Yeah…" he grunted, sounding somewhat confused.
"I wouldn't be so sure of that if I were you, dear," she replied, the firelight glinting on her long emerald earrings. Marcus' confused expression deepened. "We will be covering the basic methods of Divination this year. The first term will be devoted to reading the tea leaves. Next term we shall progress to palmistry. By the way, my dear," she said to Hortensia Nott. "Beware red haired men." Hortensia looked at the twins and let out a snort. How could a pair of bloodtraitors do her harm?
"In the second term," Professor Trelawney went on, "we shall progress to the crystal ball—if we have finished fire omens, that is. Unfortunately classes will be disrupted in March by a nasty bout of flu. I myself will lose my voice. I wonder, dear, if you could pass me that teapot?"
Terrance Higgs stood up, took an enormous teapot from the shelf, and put it on the table in front of the batty Professor. Harish noticed that the boy stayed as far back as possible; as though he thought that her oddness would infect him as well.
"Now I want you all to divide into pairs. Collect a teacup from the shelf, come to me, and I will fill it. Then sit down and drink, drink until only the dregs remain. Swill these around the cup three times with the left hand, then turn the cup upside down on its saucer, wait for the last of the tea to drain out, then give your cup to your partner for them to decipher. You will use pages five and six of Unfogging the Future to interpret the tea leaves."
When the trio had gotten their teacups filed with tea they sat down around a table and tried to drink the scalding tea as quickly as possible without burning themselves. Harish cast a cooling charm on his before he put it up to his lips. They swilled the dregs as they were told and then drained the cups and swapped their cups over. Harish got George's cup, George got Fred's, and Fred got Harish's. They decided to do it this way as Harish didn't want to associate with the rest of the boys in their year and the twins didn't want to be split up.
After they opened their books to pages five and six, Harish asked Fred, "Alright, what can you see in mine?"
"A load of brown soggy stuff," the boy replied yawning.
Harish shook his head wondering if the whole year was going to be a joke.
OF-COURSE-IT-WILL—WE'RE-TALKING-ABOUT-TRELWANEY
It was lucky Neville had tea with Hagrid to look forward to as the Potions class was downright terrifying. He and Ron had made their way down to the dungeons right after they finished breakfast. Snape had started class by taking roll. He sneered at Neville when he had raised a shaky hand when his name was called.
"You are here to learn the subtle science and exact art of potion making," he began. He spoke in hardly above a whisper, but the entire room was silent. "As there is little foolish wand waving here, many of you will hardly believe this is magic. I don't expect you will really understand the beauty of the softly simmering cauldron with its shimmering fumes, the delicate power of liquids that creep through human veins, bewitching the mind, ensnaring the senses…I can teach you how to bottle fame, brew glory, even stopper death—if you aren't as big a bunch of dunderheads as I usually have to teach."
Silence followed his little speech. Ron shot Neville a look. One of the Slytherin girls, who was sitting next to Malfoy and surrounded by other girls, was sitting on the edge of seat as thought desperately wishing to prove that she wasn't a dunderhead.
"Longbottom," Snape said suddenly. Neville jumped. "What would I get if I added powdered root of asphodel to an infusion of wormwood?"
Neville's eyebrows came together as he tried to remember. He thought that Asphodel and wormwood may have been some plants that he read about, but he couldn't remember what happened if you put them together.
"I don't know, sir," he finally replied.
"Pity," Snape said, his lips curling into a sneer. The Slytherin girl from earlier raised her hand. "Yes, Miss Granger?"
"Please sir, they make a sleeping potion so powerful it is known as the Draught of Living Death," she said, sounding oddly like she had swallowed the text book.
"That is correct. Ten points to Slytherin." Snape flicked his wand and the definition appeared on the chalk board behind him. "Tell me, Longbottom, where would you look if I told you to find me a bezoar?"
Now this one Neville had no idea at all. "I don't know sir," he whispered. His face was beginning to grow hot.
Granger's hand shot into the air once again. "Miss Granger?"
"Used to save people from most poisons, the bezoar is taken from the stomach of a goat."
"Take another ten points." He flicked his wand and that definition appeared with the first one. "What is the difference, Longbottom, between monkshood and wolfsbane?"
Neville knew this one. It was in a Herbology book he was currently reading. "Nothing, sir. They are the same plant also known as aconite."
Snape looked rather sour and the last one appeared on the board. "Twenty points from Gryffindor for not being able to answer the first two."
"But that's not fair!" Ron exclaimed. "You didn't even award Neville for the one he did get right!"
"And another ten for your cheek, Mr. Weasley," he looked around at everybody. "Well, why aren't you all writing this down?"
There was a rummaging for quills and parchment and everyone wrote them down. Things didn't improve after that either. Snape put them all into pairs and had them working on a simple potion to cure boils. There was an uneven number of Slytherins so Granger was paired with Ron and Neville was put with Seamus. Then he swept around in his long black cloak, watching them weigh dried nettles and crush long snake fangs, criticizing almost everyone except some Malfoy, who he seemed to like. The professor was just showing the class how perfect Malfoy had stewed his horn slugs when Neville was suddenly engulfed in a huge cloud of green smoke and the cauldron let out a hiss as it began to melt. Everyone began to watch as the cauldron turned into a twisted blob and the potion that was inside began to seep all over the floor. Hermione, who had been commanding Ron imperiously to chop roots, hopped up on her chair and continued stirring their potion. The others also climbed on chairs and table to prevent holes being burned into their socks.
Neville was drenched in the potion and felt painful boils sprout on his face and his arms and legs. "Idiot boy!" Snape snarled, casting a spell causing all of the potion to disappear. "Didn't I say to add the porcupine quills after taking the cauldron off the fire?"
Neville whimpered as boils sprouted on his nose.
"Take him up to the Hospital Wing," Snape spat at Seamus and the two of them left the class. Neville was fixed up pretty quick by the nurse, Madam Pomfrey.
I-AM—A-LINEBREAK
Harish and the twins left for the third floor after classes ended. When they got out of the North Tower and back into the main building, Harish pulled out the cloak and draped it around the three of them. They were now getting the height where it would soon be hard to fit all three of the underneath it. As they walked to the third floor, the cloak pulled up around their feet when they walked. They could only hope that no one saw three pairs of feet wandering the corridors of their own accord.
When they got to the third floor, they passed the fourth corridor on the right. Then they passed the third and the second, finally coming to a stop at the first corridor. Harish looked at the door for a second before attempting to pull it open. It was locked.
"Alohamora," he whispered and the lock slid open.
Then he pulled the latch on the door up as quietly as possible and he pulled the door open a crack. He had no idea what he was expecting, but it certainly wasn't what he saw as he opened the door enough to look into the corridor.
There was a dog. It was so large that it towered all the way from the floor to the high ceiling. It had four set of enormous claws and three enormous heads. It had six sets of mad, rolling eyes and three sets of snarling white teeth.
The monster's growls shook the floor as Harish stood staring at it. After he recovered from the shock, he quickly scanned the rest of the corridor. His eyes fell at the dog's feet where one of the paws was situated on top of a trapdoor. The dog bounded forward, snapping and Harish slammed the door shut and in their haste to get as far away as possible, Harish forgot to lock the door back. He tore the cloak off of the three of them and they ran all the way down to a courtyard.
When they sat down beneath a tree, Harish asked, "Please tell me you all saw what I saw."
"A three-headed dog standing on a trap door?" Fred asked.
Harish and George nodded faintly. "That must be," Harish said, still breathing heavily. "Where the object was taken. The one that Hagrid brought here."
"Do you think we should—"
"Ask him about it?"
"Are you kidding?" Harish asked incredulously. "We always get into enough trouble just from trying to get into the forest. What do you think he'd do I we told him we've been spying on him and snooping around the castle where we shouldn't be?"
"Yeah."
"I guess you're right."
They saw Draco coming out to join them. His blonde hair, shining in the sun, was rather hard to miss.
"What are you all doing?" he asked, sitting down in front of Harish.
"There's something we need to tell you," Harish told the boy. And they began telling him about their adventure on the third floor. About halfway through, Harish cut off as Hermione walked towards them.
"Go away, Mudblood," Draco snapped. He was rather annoyed that he didn't get to hear what was in the forbidden corridor. "Can't you tell that we are busy?"
Hermione halted. She observed him before gazing at the three older boys. She had noticed that they had stopped talking as she walked up.
"Fine!" she huffed. "I would rather talk with Daphne than some boy who obviously thinks he is better than me!"
Some people that were nearby that heard this announcement shook their heads. "We always knew that the Blacks and the Malfoys were on the same status level. The poor girl obviously feels annoyed that the Malfoys have risen above that because they managed to stay out of prison."
Meanwhile Hermione stormed off to the dungeons. Draco turned back to Harish and prompted him, "You were saying…"
But Harish observed him coldly. Any friendliness that was usually in his demeanour when he dealt with the younger boy was gone.
"Come," he said before grabbing the younger boy by the ear and steering him out of the courtyard. The twins stood on either side of Harish and Fred grabbed Draco's arm. Any Slytherin that had been in the courtyard as well followed curiously.
Harish took Draco all the way to the common room and finally took notice of the people following him. "I have an announcement to make." Hermione, who was now sitting on a couch next to Daphne, looked up at him. "Slytherin is a house of nobility," he said finally. Staring into Draco's face as he spoke. The younger boy began to feel slightly unnerved and embarrassed. He knew that this speech was somehow caused by him. "We work together to meet our goals. Within in the Slytherin common room we can have our quarrels, but out there we must get along. We need to at least appear united to the other houses. I do not want any of you picking on any member of the house especially when you are around other students. If you do, I shall find out and I shall punish you accordingly."
Draco hung his head knowing exactly what he did wrong know. Harish continued, "If you are insulting or provoking people from other houses, you must use cunning that we pride ourselves in possessing. Do not openly provoke where there is a possibility of getting in trouble. That is all. Now clear out." Everyone made their way to get up, but Harish pushed Hermione back onto the couch when she stood up. "Not you. I need to speak with you."
He looked at Draco. "I have decided to let the Mudblood know of certain things that have been going on inside the castle."
So he started over, telling Hermione about what they heard Hagrid say at Diagon Alley. Then he moved on to tell both of the first years what they had seen in the corridor. When they were finished Hermione frowned slightly, thinking all of this over. Draco looked confused. "What could they possibly be hiding within the school?"
The trio shrugged in unison. "That's what we would like to find out," Harish replied.
DON'T-IGNORE-THIS-TOP-SECET—PUMPKIN-JUICE—DRACO!
After Potions ended, Ron met up with Neville and the two of them went down to Hagrid's.
He lived in a small wooden house at the edge of the woods. Leaning beside the front door were a pair of galoshes and a crossbow. When Neville knocked they heard a frantic scrabbling from inside the cabin and several booming barks, The Hagrid's voice rang out, saying, "back, Fang—back."
The giant's big hairy face appeared at the door as he pulled it open.
"Hang on," he said. "Back, Fang."
"He let them in, struggling to keep hold of the collar of an enormous black boarhound. There was only one rooms inside and fowls hung from the ceiling. A copper kettle was boiling on the open fire and in the corner stood a massive bed with a patchwork quilt over it.
"Make yerselves at home," Hagrid said, letting go of Fang's collar. The dog bounded to Ron and started licking his ears. Like Hagrid, Fang was not a fierce as he looked.
"'Ello, Neville," Hagrid said. He poured three huge mugs of tea and put rock cakes onto a plate. "I 'aven'nt seen ye since ye were a baby, but ye look like yer dad." Neville grinned at being compared to his dad. That wasn't something that occurred often.
"Um," Neville started nervously. "This is Ron."
"Another Weasley, eh?" Hagrid grunted, glancing at Ron's freckles. "I spent half me life chasin' yer twin brothers away from the forest."
Ron scowled at the mention of the twins. Hagrid seemed to notice this and the twinkle in his black eyes receded somewhat. The rock cakes were shapeless lumps with raisins that almost broke their teeth, but Neville and Ron pretended to be enjoying them as they told Hagrid about their lessons so far. Fang rested his head on Neville's knee and drooled all over his robes.
Hagrid started asking Ron about his brother, Charlie, who was now doing work with dragons in Romania. Ron was telling the giant all about the dragons his brother told him about when Neville picked up a piece of paper that was lying on the table under the tea cosy. It was a cutting from the Daily Prophet.
Gringotts Break-In Latest
Investigations continue into the break-in at Gringotts on 31 July, widely believed to be the work of Dark wizards or witches unknown.
Gringotts goblins today insisted that nothing had been taken. The vault that was searches had in fact been emptied the same day.
"But we're not telling you what was in there, so keep your noses out if you know what's good for you," said a Gringotts spokesgoblin this afternoon.
Neville and Ron, who had been reading the paper over his shoulder, both looked up at Hagrid.
"We were there that day."
"We saw you as well."
"It could've been stolen while we were all there."