Summary:Hazel Potter and her second year at Hogwarts, where she deals with the fallout from her first year and puts up with yet more shenanigans, most coming from a new Professor even more useless than last year's.
Notes:Beta read by Paracosmist8: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Paracosmist8/pseuds/Paracosmist8
Chapter 1: Birthdays & BrawlsChapter TextThis summer seemed set to be as hot and boring as the previous one. The first night back, Hazel had patiently explained to her relatives that she was not allowed to use magic in front of Muggles, except in life or death situations, and she had no intention whatsoever of being expelled.
"That said,'' she concluded, "on the very slim chance you see me with my wand out, please just get behind me, or run and hide, alright?"
Vernon replied with his usual outraged bluster and threatened to lock her school things in the cupboard under the stairs, but Petunia shushed him sternly, and seemed oddly certain nothing would happen. Hazel tried to learn why she thought this, of course, but she had refused to explain and Vernon sent her to her room for asking questions.
At least the fish had survived.
The next morning Dudley knocked on her door. "Um, did… did you sleep okay?"
"Not really," she muttered, yawning and rubbing her eyes. She had in fact had more nightmares about Quirrell and Voldemort, and the vague recollections of the night her parents died.
"Yeah, um… you were moaning a lot…" he mumbled, looking down at the floor. "I don't think Mum and Dad noticed, but… but I did…"
She felt, simultaneously, as if her guts had turned to ice and her cheeks had lit aflame. "I'm so sorry… I'll write to my Professor about… about that…" He nodded and turned away, and she shut the door again. "Well shit." It wouldn't do to have her aunt and uncle woken up at all hours by her screaming nightmares, and wondered if her dorm mates had been forced to endure them too.
There was no sense suffering alone, not when she had no idea how to handle this. She went straight to her desk and pulled out parchment and a pen.
Professor Snape,
I hate to bother you so early in the holidays, but my cousin just told me I had a nightmare last night, and it woke him up. Do you have any ideas on how to handle this? I would rather not wait until my Aunt and Uncle notice before doing anything.
Thanks in advance,
Hazel Jade Potter
"Sorry to wake you so early, Hedwig, but this is very important," she said softly, reaching for her dear owl. Hedwig hooted sleepily, but seemed to wake up when Hazel offered her some treats. She tied the letter to her feet and let her out the window, and watched as she flapped her wings and soared away. Hopefully Snape would have some useful suggestions…
At breakfast, she learned Dudley was being bullied at Smeltings by older and bigger students who also had wealthy and influential families, and since 'boys will be boys' as Vernon had put it, there was nothing else to do but teach the big oaf how to hit back against boys his size. So they signed him up for self defense classes three times a week, and grudgingly allowed Hazel to go too after she made vague allusions to what might happen if she were to be left alone at home for two hours. At that first class Hazel proved to be the better student, and Dudley did his best to keep up; the older bullies must really have been traumatizing for the kid, she decided on the way home.
That evening she went upstairs and found Hedwig back, and she had brought a letter and a package. The letter was written in cramped, spiky handwriting, and she had to wipe her glasses off to make sense of it:
Miss Potter,
I regret that I was unable to bring these books to your attention before term ended, as they would have assisted with this very issue. They serve as an adequate introduction to an obscure branch of magic called Occlumency.
"Ock-lew-men-see?" Hazel muttered, pausing to peer at that word. "Never heard of it…" She kept reading:
Occlumency deals with closing off one's mind, guarding against intrusion. A side effect of practicing it is increased willpower and control over thoughts and emotions. Study the books carefully, in the order I sent them, and perform the exercises every night before bed, or when you have time during the day.
When you return for the fall term, come speak with me, and we shall see whether or not you did as I instructed.
Good luck,
S. Snape
Increased willpower, eh? she thought to herself, reading back over the letter. Nothing else that she could see…
She opened the package and found a stack of three old books, with dark covers. The one on the top was titled Introduction to Occlumency, and had been written by a wizard named Maxwell Barnett. Cracking it open, she saw right away that it would prove desperately boring; the wording was archaic, and clearly written for more experienced witches.
"Snape thinks I can handle this, so I've got to do my best!" she said to herself, though she despaired in the next second. This was going to be a very busy summer, what with Occlumency, her normal homework, and the Muggle classes…
At least she wasn't totally deprived, she thought as she fingered her wand. What she hadn't told her relatives was that there was a loophole or two in the rules; as long as she wasn't caught by Muggles, or didn't do any major magic anyway, it would be just fine. So she read by wandlight at night, scribbling away at parchment and doing her summer homework, and practicing the Occlumency exercises (which really seemed more like meditation to her) before she went to sleep; it really was homework this time, she reflected with a smirk.
Naturally she tried to pace herself, but even so, she had everything done before two weeks was up, so she practiced the wand movements and spells with a pencil in her hand to keep from doing anything illegal. She wouldn't know it was right until she was back on the Hogwarts Express, of course.
Dudley continued being weirdly nice to her, insisting she get the same food he did. It ran counter to Vernon and Petunia's desire to ignore Hazel as much as possible, but they wouldn't dare oppose their son, so they overcompensated by sobbing over what a gentleman ickle Duddy-kins was becoming, and snarling that Hazel had best get the dishes done as promptly as possible or her things really would be locked away, see if they weren't. Since she didn't want Hedwig locked up or to be unable to correspond with her friends, she meekly did as ordered.
All in all, there was enough going on that Hazel could keep herself occupied, especially as she watched herself changing. The lumps on her chest were more than just lumps by now, though if the reflections of her older self and her mother she had seen was any indication, they were nowhere near their full size, and it was with some trepidation that she started wearing the magicked underthings.
She was growing in other ways too, taller and wider, and she was glad for Dudley's change of heart; it meant she wouldn't miss out on the nutrients she would need to sustain this growth spurt. Even so she looked forward to returning to Hogwarts, where she could really eat her fill and drink as much milk as she wanted. Being so busy helped, as it didn't leave her enough energy to have the nightmares about Quirrell and Voldemort, but she kept up with the Occlumency despite that.
It wasn't until the week of her birthday that anything interesting happened at all. "Hazel!" came Vernon's shout as she came in from outside one afternoon. "Come in here!"
"Yes, Uncle Vernon?" she said as she entered the kitchen. She saw him and Petunia, both looking offended; a letter lay on the table between them. "Oh, is that for me?"
"I thought your kind used those ruddy owls," he grumbled as she reached for the envelope. It was of a heavier paper than usual, with a very expensive stamp in the corner, and was addressed to Ms. Hazel J. Potter, 4 Privet Drive, Little Whinging, Surrey. The return address, she noted with a start, was just a PO box from some hamlet on the south coast, but the name above was L & N Malfoy. Malfoy!
Quickly she pried it open, and two sheets of parchment fell out. One was a formal and flowery invitation for Hazel to spend the remainder of the summer at Malfoy Manor, and a note to reply in the usual way as to a good time and place when they could retrieve her. The second was from Draco, and he hoped she was well and that the letter got there on time, because they were coming for her the day after her birthday whether the Muggles approved or not. That sent a chill down her spine; Lucius and Narcissa Malfoy? Here?
"It's... an invitation," she said slowly. "From one of my friends at school. He wants me to spend the rest of the summer at his family's mansion."
"You're too young to go out with boys!" Petunia said immediately. "You're not to accept!"
"It's not a date, Aunt Petunia, and it's not like we'll be alone," she replied politely, struggling to hide her excitement. She heard Dudley thumping in as well, but ignored him for now. "You won't have to put up with me for the rest of the holidays!"
That was a powerful lure for Vernon, she noticed. "Give me that," and he snatched the first letter from her hand before she could say yes or no. While he and Petunia read she slipped the second one away out of sight. "Mansion, they say! Rubbish."
"The Malfoys are an old and powerful family, you know," Hazel said slowly, watching their expressions. "Incredibly wealthy and connected as well."
If there was one thing Vernon respected, it was wealthy and connected people. "Hrm... Alright, brat, you listen close. I've got some very important visitors coming by tonight, Mr and Mrs Mason, and we're thisfar from sealing the biggest deal of my career!" Mr Mason, she assumed, was probably a contractor of some kind, if he was looking to make a deal with Vernon (who was a director at a firm called Grunnings, which made drills). "You're to help Petunia get the house ready, and then I don't want to see hide nor hair of you for the rest of the night! And if this goes well, then... then you can..."
"Of course, Uncle Vernon, thank you so much," she replied levelly, though inside she could whoop for joy. Getting away a whole month early! "I'll be as quiet as a titmouse, promise."
He glared at her for a second more, unsure as always how to respond when Hazel was being polite. Then he shook his head and turned away. "Dudley and I are going to the City for dinner jackets after their practice today! Then we'll run through the routine when we get back and as long as nothing goes wrong-!" here he shot another glare at Hazel, "it'll be all tied off and we'll be looking at vacation homes in Majorca over the winter!" Petunia and Dudley both cheered; Hazel had to turn away so they wouldn't catch her rolling her eyes.
Self-defense would be fun at least; they had moved on from throws to breaking grapples, and she was already taking on students twice her size. To his credit, Dudley wasn't too far behind, though he had a large advantage in size and power already.
They had their practice, Hazel showered and got ready to help Petunia while the boys left. It didn't take long for her to change her mind and send Hazel outside, however; she'd been practically terrified of being alone with Hazel ever since she'd come back, no doubt reluctant to endure more questions about the past. Hazel didn't mind in the slightest of course, and wandered off down the sunny streets to the playground on Magnolia Crescent.
Most of the equipment was busted up by Dudley and his gang of thugs, and at the moment some of the older girls were dithering about in the sun. Hazel groaned; most of them were her tormentors from school. They noticed her quickly enough and laughed as they went to surround her, and not feeling especially cowardly she stood her ground. "Look who finally showed up, girls!" the biggest and meanest of them sneered. Her name was Jessica, and she had a superficial resemblance to Dudley. "Been too good to hang out, Potty?"
"Sure have," she countered levelly, crossing her arms. An old and comfortable anger rose up in her, and though this was exactly what Snape wanted her to learn Occlumency for, she embraced it. "Too good and too busy! There's a reason I got into Lady Astoria's Academy for Young Ladies and you didn't, after all!"
That brought a red flush to Jessica's face. "You did not, you lying brat!" she snarled. "I heard from your cousin that you got taken in by some private school up in Scotland!" She brought her fist up to smash Hazel's face in, and promptly found herself flat on her back for the trouble while Hazel was already backing away to keep from being surrounded again. "Get that lying bitch!"
Hazel was very glad she was good at fighting, because these four weren't playing by the rules. It was mostly dancing back and forth trying not to be surrounded, and rebuffing their wild swings by catching and throwing. Fortunately, once Jessica finally hit the dirt for the last time the fight went out of the other three, and she let them haul Jessica off. She touched her face and grimaced; she'd been caught on the nose and in the eye, her scalp hurt like hell from when one of them got a good handful and yanked, and unless she managed to sneak upstairs there was no way Petunia wouldn't notice.
Best to just get it over with, she told herself as she started back for number 4. She was passing a heavy patch of hedges when a hissing voice caught her attention. "Miss Hazel Potter! Miss Hazel Potter!"
"Who's there?" she called, peering at the hedge and wishing she had her wand. All she saw was a pair of large eyes, very low to the ground. "What do you want?" Whatever it was, it only hissed her name again, beckoned to her and disappeared. With nothing else to do, and hoping to delay facing Petunia, she approached the hedge and ducked past it.
The hedges were tall enough to give good shade, and thick enough that by the time she reached the center, it was quite isolated. Waiting there for her was a tiny, shivering creature about two feet tall, with enormous eyes and ears and spindly arms and legs, and dressed in what seemed to be a pillowcase. As she watched, it squeaked and bowed low. "Miss Hazel Potter! Such an honor for Dobby, such an honor!"
"Er, what are you?" she replied, wishing for her wand again.
"Dobby is being a house-elf, miss," he replied nervously. "Oh, miss has been hurt! Dobby can help!" She shrugged and got down to one knee, and Dobby raised a hand, snapping his fingers; a white glow surrounded her, and the injuries she had suffered disappeared, along with any damage to her clothes. There was no more pain either, she quickly realized. "Miss Hazel Potter cannot get into trouble!"
"Please, just... just Hazel, Dobby, please."
"Miss Hazel is so kind and generous!" he cried, throwing himself to her feet. "Ah, Dobby has heard all about Miss Hazel's bravery and kindness, and how she defeated the Dark Lord not once but twice! But the dangers are not stopping, miss, oh no!"
"Dobby, enough!" she snapped, tugging him to his feet again. "What do you mean, the dangers are not stopping?"
He gulped nervously and looked around. "Dobby was sent by, by Young Master Draco!" he whispered, leaning in very close and speaking so quietly she had to strain to hear. "Dobby is serving the Malfoys! But Master Lucius is planning horrible things for to happen at Hogwarts, miss!"
"What horrible things?" she whispered back, though she wanted to scream.
"Dobby cannot say! Dobby was ordered to silence by Master Lucius, and Young Master Draco is not able to say otherwise! But he ordered Dobby to warn Miss Hazel, so Dobby was coming straight here!"
"Am I in danger from the Malfoys?" she asked, standing up.
"No, no, at least, Dobby isn't thinking so, miss," he replied, wringing his hands. "Master Lucius knows that Miss Hazel is a friend for Young Master Draco! Ah, Dobby cannot say any more, but please don't get Young Master Draco in trouble, miss, please!"
"Right, right, you were never here," she replied quickly, mind a whirl as to what could be going on. Dobby gave her a watery smile, then disappeared with a snap of his fingers and a crack, leaving Hazel with a sinking feeling and a lot of questions. She hurried back home though, quietly made her way upstairs and whiled away the time until the guys came back by working out on the floor; she loved how powerful her body was becoming, and didn't want to lose any of it by slacking off.
Vernon and Dudley returned, and Petunia shrieked for her to come downstairs and eat before the Masons arrived. "Hurry! They'll be here any minute!" she hissed, pointing at a bowl of soup and a sandwich waiting on the table. She was already dressed up, Hazel noticed as she shoveled the food down. It disappeared quickly, and Petunia practically shoved her out of the chair. "Get back upstairs, now!"
"I'm going, I'm going!" But she paused at the foot of the stairs. "Um, you look nice, Aunt Petunia, you'll do fine I'm sure. Good luck, Uncle Vernon, Dudley." Then she left the room, hoping for the sake of seeing the Malfoys that the deal went off without a hitch and they would be in a good mood in a few hours.
She stretched out on her bed and read Hogwarts: A History, even though she'd already read it once. "Why don't they mention the Sorting?" she asked herself, while laughter and the clink of silverware drifted upstairs. Her stomach growled, but she focused on Occlumency and ignored it; if Petunia were in a really good mood she'd get some of the leftovers, if Dudley hadn't eaten them all anyway.
She must have drifted off, because the next thing she knew, there was a rousing cheer and much clapping from downstairs, and she pushed herself off the bed, wiping drool from her face. Eventually, the ruckus quieted down, and doors slammed, and a car was heard driving off, and then Vernon was calling her downstairs. "Yes, Uncle Vernon?" she said as she reached the foot.
She could tell right away that he was immensely pleased, because he didn't scowl when he saw her. "You can write your friends and tell them you're going," he said shortly, tugging his necktie off. "And Petunia says you and Dudley are to finish the leftovers, hurry up."
"Thank you, Uncle Vernon." She went to the kitchen and sat down, helping herself to what was left of the fancy dinner. Roast pork, bread, mashed potatoes and gravy, some juice; it had nothing on Hogwarts, of course, but it was nice enough. Dudley was already there of course, stuffing his face as usual. She went to the fridge to pour herself some milk. "How'd it go anyway, Dudley?"
"Boring," he said through a mouthful of meat. He swallowed roughly and kept going: "All Dad and Mr Mason wanted to talk about was golf, Mum and Mrs Mason didn't say much except to gush about each others' dresses or whatever."
"Sounds awful." She went back to eating, priding herself on being neater than her cousin even if she went just as fast. "I just sat upstairs and read my books, it was boring too."
He didn't have much to say to that. After a few moments he spoke up again: "So... what do they feed you at that… castle?"
"All kinds of things," she said with a grin. "There's literally endless food at mealtimes, Dudley, and everything you could ask for to drink. And the desserts..." She closed her eyes and shivered. "Some of them I'd never even heard of!"
The thought of endless food brought a look of awe to his face. But before he could keep asking questions, Petunia bustled in, already changed back into her usual evening things. "What sort of rubbish is she telling you, Dudders?" she asked, fondly ruffling his hair.
"No rubbish, Mum, I was just telling her about the Masons," he simpered, and Hazel hid a gag.
"Well hurry up, both of you, I want this place clean before bed." For the first time she looked straight at Hazel, and her pleased smile faded a bit. "So when are those people coming for you?"
"Saturday," she replied, "the day after my birthday."
"Mum, we never do anything for Hazel's birthday, she'll be twelve," Dudley said, turning puppy dog eyes up at his mother. "We should go see that movie about the soldiers!"
"Uh, sure, Dudders, we can... we can do that, I guess." Petunia seemed at a loss for words, and as usual defaulted to moaning about what a nice boy her son was.
Hazel finished eating and took her things to the sink. "It was delicious, Aunt Petunia, thank you," she said meekly, looking down. "I'll go get ready for bed now." Seeing her Aunt and Uncle so at a loss was worth the bile she had to swallow to be nice to them, she decided as she skipped up the stairs. She couldn't spend as much time in the bathroom as she'd gotten used to, but it was still nice to shower before bed.
Chapter 2: Meeting the MalfoysSummary:Hazel meets Draco's family, reunites with the Weasleys, and has the dubious pleasure of also encountering her new Defense Professor. Nobody dies, strangely enough.
Notes:Beta read by Paracosmist8
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter TextAs pleased as her Aunt and Uncle had been, Hazel was still determined to be on her best behavior while waiting for Saturday, not wanting to annoy them into rescinding their permission. She had, of course, sent a letter with Hedwig, saying they had agreed to let her go with the Malfoys and begging them to be on their best behavior, as Vernon and Petunia really were the worst sorts of Muggles from their pure-blood point of view. Draco wrote back promptly, telling her not to worry about a thing and that they'd call for her around noon.
Frustrated by the lack of detail on such an important event, Hazel threw the letter across the room and sulked for the rest of the evening, eventually throwing herself to the floor to do push ups until she felt better.
She did a lot of pushups that night. Sit ups too. And pullups, when she charmed a piece of wood into hovering inexorably in midair.
It seemed like she and Dudley were both irritable as hell for the rest of the week, and thus she spent a lot of time out of the house. All of a sudden she was completely certain they didn't understand her at all!
Occlumency couldn't control it very well; chocolate and sweets seemed to help, and throwing everything she had into swimming or self-defense, and beating up her old bullies again until they all ran off crying. That only lasted one night, of course. Her birthday came, and Dudley threw a fit until they all went out for pizza and some bloody movie about a bunch of soldiers, and she laughed and jeered along with everyone else, finding an especially perverse glee in all the blood on screen.
"Thanks, Dudley," she whispered after the movie, knowing it wouldn't have happened if not for him. He just grinned back, and everything was fine.
The next morning arrived, and she got up early, working out and cleaning up and getting dressed. Breakfast was subdued, and she could tell Vernon was on the edge of changing his mind, and she tried to act meek and quiet. But the itchy irritation that had bothered her all week still simmered under the surface, and she ran away to her room once more to pack all her things. And with her magic trunk, she really could pack all her things.
At the stroke of twelve, an old-fashioned car horn honked from outside. She ran downstairs, seeing Vernon dressed in his Muggle best; to others it might seem welcoming, but she knew it was his attempt to look intimidating and grand. It might work on Muggles, she reflected, trying not to giggle. The doorbell rang and she went to get the door, expecting to see Draco and maybe his father; instead she saw Draco and Millicent Bulstrode, the stocky girl who was her best friend in the Slytherin dorms. "Well met, Heir Potter," Draco said smoothly, offering his hand.
"Heir Malfoy," she muttered back, shaking it briefly and then the same for Millicent. "Come on in, I suppose…"
They were both wearing Muggle clothes, she was grateful to see: Draco was as pampered and smooth as always in a sleek gray suit, and Millicent was stunning in a Muggle skirt and vest. "Er, this is my aunt and uncle, Petunia and Vernon Dursley, and my cousin, Dudley."
"Mr Dursley, Mrs Dursley," Draco said, bowing low. Vernon seemed to approve of the boy's austere suit, if the slightly relaxing expression was any indication. "Draco Malfoy."
"Millicent Bulstrode," the other girl murmured, curtseying. "We're here to get Hazel…?"
"Don't let us stop you," Vernon grumbled, waving them off and retreating upstairs, no doubt to take his best suit back off. Petunia sniffed and hovered in the corner, watching the young witches and wizard like a hawk.
"Help me with my trunk, Dudley," Hazel murmured to her cousin, and they both went upstairs. "Were you gonna stare the whole time, you lout?" She opened Hedwig's cage and let her out the window, reasoning she could make her own way to Malfoy Manor, like she had before.
"I mean, why not?" he replied in a snide tone. "They don't really look like… like weirdos, do they?"
"And what exactly are weirdos supposed to look like?" she retorted, trying not to get worked up. It was only her cousin, only her cousin...
Finally they were out the door, her trunk and owl cage were stowed in the back of the beautiful old car, and the three students were seated in the back seat, where a regal older witch was waiting for them. "Ah, and this is the famous Hazel Potter?" she drawled, only looking at her forehead for a moment.
"Hazel, this is my mother, the Lady Narcissa Malfoy," Draco explained from his seat next to his mother.
"Narcissa, my dear, please. At least while we're in the car." She peered forward and tapped the hand rest beside her. "Dobby, take us to Diagon Alley."
"As the Mistress Narcissa wishes," came a familiar whining voice, and Hazel had to keep from jumping up. "Dobby is hoping Miss Hazel Potter is having a nice holidays?"
"Er," she started, but Narcissa tapped the hand rest again and the noise was cut off. Best to play the fool, she decided fast. "Sorry, what was...?"
"One of our house-elves," the Lady said dismissively. "Pay them no heed, Hazel darling, they're merely servants." Hazel saw Draco had a troubled expression, but with an effort he smoothed it away. "Your Hogwarts letter arrived at the Manor yesterday, my dear, they must have known you were coming to stay."
"Another one?" she replied. "I got one last year, though..."
"Yes, but you need new things for this year, dear. All three of you are trying out for the Quidditch team, yes?" They all nodded, and she smiled for real this time. "I was quite the Chaser in my time, I'll have you know; Draco must have gotten it from me, he certainly didn't get it from Lucius..."
"The elf isn't driving, is he?" Millicent asked nervously. "I don't think house elves are tall enough..."
"Some sort of elf magic, I'm sure," Narcissa replied, her tone of voice indicating she didn't really care. "There's an illusion, of course." She waved it aside. "Lucius claimed to have some kind of business in the City, or he'd be here as well."
"Father isn't as good with Muggles as you are, Mother, I'm not sure he'd come anyway," Draco murmured. "I didn't want to get Hazel in trouble..."
"Of course not, darling." Hazel saw how her expression softened as she regarded her son, and wished for a painful second that someone would look at her that way for once. "Ah, and here we are."
"Already?" Hazel craned her head, and sure enough, they were outside the Leaky Cauldron. The enchanted Ministry car had been that good too, she remembered. "Um, I'm still in my Muggle things..."
"It's summer, dear, no one will notice," Narcissa replied carelessly. "Too hot for robes anyway. Now, I have your letters here..." and she dug around for the heavy envelopes. "Your school things should all be identical, but double check to make sure."
Hazel read her letter, which was simply confirming she planned to continue her education, and if so to report to King's Cross at the usual time. There was also a new list of supplies, but... "All these books are by the same person," she said doubtfully, scanning the list. Gadding with Ghouls ? Voyages with Vampires ? "Sounds like rubbish to me!"
"Don't say that too loudly, dear," Narcissa smirked. "Mr Lockhart is quite, shall we say, popular with the witches of Britain this year."
"If his books are on the list, does that mean he's our teacher?" Millicent sighed. "Mum's crazy about him, I guess he's got a nice smile..."
"What, you think he'd teach us to smile at our enemies?" Draco laughed as he got out of the car. Hazel caused a stir when they went into the pub, as usual, though this time she had the Malfoys at her side, and Narcissa had the same ability to quell a crowd as Snape did so they were able to pass through quickly.
Diagon Alley was unusually crowded, and Hazel's heart sank; she'd hoped to get her shopping done quickly and quietly. "I'm sorry in advance," she told the other three in a low voice, pulling her hair forward to hide herself. "For the record, I hate the attention." One day, she promised herself for the umpteenth time, one day she'd be famous on her own merits.
It took her a moment to realize that, as they headed for Gringotts, the crowds weren't everywhere, but concentrated around the central shopping square. That just meant they'd have to fight all the harder when their errands brought them in that direction.
Hazel and the Malfoys were both preferred customers, and with her enchanted wallet all Hazel had to do was refresh how much she could access, so that went quickly. They bought new robes, the kids got some Muggle things from the smaller shop next door (where Hazel recommended the magicked underthings for Millicent in a very hushed voice), then Narcissa took them to Twilfitt & Tattings for a few classier outfits each.
"Hazel, Millicent, you won't mind spending time with some of Draco's private tutors over the break, will you?" she remarked as they were being fitted. "You each have fine manners already, but I fear being raised by Muggles may have left you ignorant of the more important bits of wizarding etiquette..."
Hazel rather thought it was a waste of time, since she didn't care to sound like a ponce, but then figured it might come in handy to try and fit in with the bourgeoisie. "It would be an honor, Lady Malfoy," she replied in an airy tone, though the effect was broken when she and Millicent both giggled. Narcissa just gave them an indulgent smile, and Draco rolled his eyes when she wasn't looking.
Outside, it was now obvious that the huge crowds were mostly witches of all ages, and they were all gathered around Flourish and Blotts, the book store they were supposed to get their school books from. "Oh no, that ponce is in there," Draco muttered, pointing at a large sign above the shop that sported a garish, moving poster of a wizard with a too-wide smile. "Doing book signings! Mother, let's go look at brooms, shall we?"
Thankfully she agreed, and they went to the racing shop. However, Narcissa stopped in her tracks. "Lucius!" she called, spying a tall blonde man in a cloak, stepping out of the gloomy entrance to Knockturn Alley nearby. "Lucius, is that you? You said you had business in the City!"
The tall man gave a start and whirled toward them, and sure enough, it was Draco's father. "Ah, Narcissa," he said smoothly, though even Hazel could see he'd been caught by surprise. "I see you have the children-"
"Obviously!" she snapped, cutting him off. "Stop evading me, Lucius, what were you doing down there?"
"Er, well, I heard there were to be more raids soon," he went on in a hushed voice, brushing his robes down. "Obviously we have nothing that would interest them, but to be on the safe side I was speaking to Mr Borgin about holding onto a few embarrassing trinkets anyway..."
Narcissa only narrowed her eyes. "You said you'd rid us of the lot last spring, darling, after what happened to our Draco," she said in a quiet, seething voice, and Hazel did her best to not pay attention. "The Imperius Curse, Lucius, of all things! After everything you did before!"
"Of course, of course..." He looked troubled at the reminder, and his gaze flicked to Draco, who also seemed worried. "Well, I assure you, only our most precious heirlooms will remain after tonight." He was clearly reluctant to discuss the matter further, and Hazel could guess why; if he really had been a Death Eater before, that meant he was one of Voldemort's most fervent supporters, the kind who would expect his only son to receive a little deference when said Lord was on the cusp of coming back.
After a few moments, Narcissa stepped back, and he gave Hazel and Millicent a smooth smile. "Miss Potter, I hear we are in your debt for saving our son at school."
"He's my friend, Milord, of course I'd save him," she replied firmly. She wasn't sure she liked this man, just yet, and the prickly irritation snarled in the back of her mind.
"Lucius, please, my dear. I realize it doesn't come close to repaying our debt to you, but Narcissa and I had planned on buying new brooms for the Slytherin Quidditch team this year. All three of you plan to try out, yes?"
"Hazel's already on it, she was reserve in a match last year and outflew everyone! " Millicent gushed. "Draco and I were training up and Flint seems sure we'll make the grade, but we'll do the tryouts just the same."
"We were just going to go look at the new brooms before getting their books, Lucius," Narcissa explained, her previous outrage put away for now. "You're free to join us, naturally."
Lord Malfoy didn't even bat an eye at the cost of one Nimbus 2001, let alone seven of them, and happily signed a bank order authorizing debit of the galleons necessary for the transaction. "Better have them sent along, don't need our little fliers getting away from us," he said with an indulgent smile, prompting groans from the three students.
Then it was finally time to go to the book shop, which Hazel was dreading rather badly; that ponce Lockhart, the ponce's rabid fans, whatever newspaper flunkies were around... she sighed and centered herself, using the breathing exercises from Occlumency and self-defense, telling herself it would be fine, to just get it over with ...
It was not fine.
It was about as far from fine as one could get, in fact.
The bookshop was a madhouse of screaming, cheering witches, with that insufferable ponce in the center smirking and signing anything that got in range of his peacock-feather quill. A harassed looking wizard with an old-fashioned camera hovered here and there, trying desperately to get pictures of the famous man. Not even Snape could have threatened a way through this chaos, Hazel decided as they shoved their way to the counter.
She was separated from the Malfoys, and to her great surprise found herself next to Ron and Hermione! Well, to be more specific she was shoved into Hermione's arms, knocking all her things loose.
"Watch it, fat ass!" Hazel snarled, but the offender was already out of sight. "Ugh, I am so sor- Hermione??"
"Hazel!" Hermione was torn between being glad to see her friend and panic at losing her place in line. "Ugh, I- can you pick these up? I can't-!"
"Never mind, dear," came a long-suffering voice, as all the books gathered themselves back into Hermione's arms. "Hazel, darling, so good to see you!" It was Mrs Weasley, and Hazel grinned sincerely back up at her. "I'd love to stay and chat, dear, but-"
"But she's gotta see her boyfriend up front," said one of the twins, popping out of nowhere.
"While the rest of us buy our books!" said the second, appearing at her other side. Her grin widened and she shook hands with each of them; she liked the Weasleys a lot, even if they were in opposing Houses. "All right there, Hazel?"
"Better now," she laughed. "I'm not here for- I mean, I got separated from-" Oh no, the Weasleys and the Malfoys didn't get along, did they?
"Hazel, there you are!" Draco also appeared. "What are you doing in line? I thought you weren't-?"
"I'm not!" she insisted loudly, that prickly irritation snarling up again. "I got separated from you guys, and then I found the Weasleys here, and let's go before I hit someone!"
"That's not Hazel Potter, is it?" came a ringing voice, and the crowd parted like water. "Ah ha, it IS! Here for my autograph I'm sure!" To her horror, Lockhart had seen, and was lunging forward to grab her and pull her up. She tried to twist away but couldn't force the crowd to let her through. "Oh now, don't be shy! Just a few pictures, lass, let's go-!"
"Get off me!" she cried, grabbing his finger and bending it backward. "I'm not some dog you can put on display, Lockhart!" She shoved him back so hard he sprawled to the floor, and then stood there glaring down at him, ready for anything he'd try next.
But it seemed for now he'd learned, or at least didn't want the sight of himself being thrown around by a twelve-year-old to go on any longer, and with a laugh he got to his feet. "Ha! Well played, Miss Potter, well played indeed, can't be scared to fight dirty, now can you!" Gingerly he popped his finger back in place, even as seven different witches hurried forward to heal it for him. Mrs Weasley was one of them, Hazel noticed.
"Now, now, ladies, take it easy, one at a time!" One of them got the spell off, and then he was good as new. "Ha! Hazel Potter, ladies and gentlemen! Bet you didn't know you'd be making the front pages when you woke up today, did you?!"
"What?" She rounded on the photographer, who looked sheepish and backed away. "Publish anything with me in it and I swear to God I'll-!"
"So feisty, isn't she!" Lockhart beamed, getting in her way. "I dare say you need a few lessons in proper dueling, young lady! And as luck would have it, you'll be learning from the best!" He drew himself up to his full height and turned the smile on full blast. "Because I have an ANNOUNCEMENT! Ladies and gentlemen of Wizarding England, I, Gilderoy Lockhart, this year will begin teaching at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry!"
The crowd went berserk, including Hermione and Mrs Weasley. "Yes! Defense Against the Dark Arts, in fact! And in honor of this impromptu first lesson, Hazel and all her friends will get a full set of all my books! Including my signed autobiography!"
Instantly she saw a chance for some harsh revenge. The frown melted away, and she smiled shyly. "Oh, Professor Lockhart, that's so generous of you!" she giggled, twirling one end of her hair. "But I have so many friends! There's Draco, and Hermione, and Ron and Millicent and Ginny and Fred and George and-!"
Did her eyes fool her, or was that blinding smile toning down a notch or two! "Oh sir, I shall tell everyone how generous and kind the great Gilderoy Lockhart was! To give all my friends so many books, for free!" The crowd oohed and aahed at the generosity, and he had no choice but to follow up; she noticed two of the shop clerks watching every single book, and had no doubt Lockhart would pay a hefty price later.
"Well played, Potter," George said quietly, staggering under the weight of all their new books, "way to get back at that git."
"You're really living up to your Slytherin ways, you are," Fred agreed.
Behind them, Mr Weasley was having some kind of staredown with Lord Malfoy, probably over money or something. "We have a very different idea about what disgraces the name of wizard, Malfoy," Mr Weasley snarled, drawing Ginny to his side.
"Clearly," the blonde wizard sneered. He looked down, saw Hazel standing there staggering under so many books. "Hmph. Consider yourself lucky to be graced with the generosity of your betters, Weasley." He dropped a very old, second-hand Transfiguration book into Ginny's cauldron and turned away from the scene, beckoning for his family to follow. Hazel could only shrug at the Weasleys and hurry in their wake, wishing she had her weightless bag to shovel all this stuff into.
"Dumbledore's got to be out of his mind, letting a prat like that teach," Draco grumbled, shoving the last of the books into a sack. "Cheers for getting us all these though, Hazel, saved us a lot of Galleons."
"Yes, that was quite cleverly done, indeed." Narcissa had an approving smirk on her face, which made Hazel feel warm inside. "You'll find as you grow older that men like him have their uses. Oh yes, you both will," she said to their groans. "Now come, I think a little ice cream will do us all some good."
"Oooh, I want chocolate!" Until she said the words she hadn't known just how badly she wanted more chocolate, and since Florean Fortescue still remembered her from before she got the biggest cone they had. "Oh my god, I needed this..."
"Fame's not so bad when people give you free stuff, is it, Hazel?" Millicent teased, licking away at her own cone.
"Sh-shut up!"
Notes:Who's ready for school, then?
Chapter 3: At Malfoy ManorSummary:Hazel takes the rest of her summer break with Draco and his family, in the belly of the beast as it were. It's a very well behaved beast.
Notes:Beta-read as always by Paracosmist8
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter TextHazel ate a lot of chocolate over the month of August, when she wasn't forcing herself to read Lockhart's books, or flying around the Malfoys' Quidditch pitch. Millicent and Hazel got increasingly irritable with each other, and everyone else, until Narcissa took them both aside and had a very embarrassing discussion about young ladies and some of the things they had to deal with from themselves. Which explained the cravings, Hazel realized.
"Your lady prefects will give you this speech as well, along with some pills," Narcissa said at the end, handing them each some chocolate-covered strawberries. "The pills will help without disturbing anything else going on." She had an uncharacteristic smirk on her face, oddly girlish for the typically ladylike woman. "Hogwarts doesn't officially condone this sort of thing, of course, but what do they expect when they keep hundreds of adolescent boys and girls cooped up in that enormous old castle for months on end? Just don't be stupid about it, my dears, and don't get caught. It is embarrassing for a Slytherin to get caught."
"It was embarrassing to have to listen to all that," Millicent whispered as they finally got to leave, munching happily on the chocolate. Hazel agreed firmly, and wondered about the pills. Would they really keep the consequences of puberty away without interrupting it? Who made them anyway? She'd have to show them to Madam Pomfrey.
Lord Malfoy was busy and rarely around, and Hazel and her friends always tried to eavesdrop on him whenever he had associates over. She and Draco both wanted to know more about this supposed plot that Dobby had overheard, but they never learned anything new. It was always either old men patting themselves on the back, or such vague discussions that she was half convinced Lucius knew they were listening in anyway. All they could learn for certain was that a book was involved, but what kind of book was never mentioned.
There were also the Ministry raids, which of course never turned up anything. Lord Malfoy was too well connected, and Mr Borgin would always be by the night before to remove certain items from the Manor in preparation. After the second one, Hazel suggested that perhaps they could leave a few lesser things in their hiding spots so the Ministry would have something to say they found and leave them alone; nothing to really get the Malfoys in serious trouble, of course, but certainly something dangerous enough to warrant so many "random" raids. He looked thoughtful and said nothing, but the next raid was the last one so she laughed to herself and went back to playing with Draco and Millicent.
There were the tutors, of course, who seemed happy enough to have young ladies to teach. It wasn't all etiquette either, but poise and balance and how to insult with subtlety or praise with sincerity. Some of it was boring but Hazel thought she could see how it might be useful later, so she did her best like always.
Lockhart's books were much like Lockhart himself; vapid and full of hot air, and she doubted that the bombastic man she'd met was capable of everything described in them. Granted, some of what he wrote about might be useful? But it was too much trouble trying to sift the facts from the fluff, and she went back to the Standard Book of Spells: Grade 2 .
Draco even took her and Millicent to meet the house-elves, though she was disappointed there were only three, including Dobby. The other two were Trixy and Muggo, and they were ecstatic to meet the famous Hazel Potter. She never lacked for chocolate from that point onward, and Draco impressed on them both how important it was to treat house-elves carefully. "They have powerful magic, they do," was his explanation. "They can't ever betray their family, but you'll know if they're unhappy. Believe me, you'll know."
Hazel doubted she'd have any problem with that; it wasn't in her to mistreat those below her, though it was disturbing to think that other wizards weren't nearly so considerate of their elves.
Flying took her mind off of everything else, as it always did. The new brooms were simply amazing, yet even then it was clear that brooms weren't everything; Draco and Millicent didn't stand a chance of keeping up with her, and it was especially amusing when they both tried Keeping against her solo Chaser skills. Out of ten tries she got seven goals, laughing for the sheer joy of flight all the while. The broom reacted to her very thoughts before she could think them, it seemed, and it was always eager to jump to her hand when it came time to fly.
It came to a head late in August when she flew as high as she dared, took her hands off the broom and went into a swan dive straight off. For a second she was flying, her heart racing so hard it felt about to burst, then gravity took over and pulled her down, down, faster and faster, yet she felt her faithful broom close by, knew she was safe.
And when the ground was looming ahead in her vision she twitched her hand, calling her broom back to her, and pulled up so sharply her guts lurched. She came to a stop, fell off and threw up the remnants of her breakfast, but she was still laughing the whole time. She couldn't hear what Draco or Millicent were saying, her ears were ringing so hard. "Stop fretting... I knew... what I was doing... in control..."
The Malfoys were upset at dinner, of course, with Narcissa threatening to write to her aunt and uncle about the stunt. "Go ahead, milady," she replied, her mind's eye still replaying the dive over and over. "They'll only be disappointed I didn't muck up the landing and break my neck." Lord Malfoy shook his head and muttered something disparaging about Muggles, and after a few moments Narcissa told her she would have to take her broom away until school was back.
"I can't allow such things to happen here, dear, do forgive me," she said apologetically. "If you get hurt, it hurts all of us as well."
"One of the house-elves could fix me up though, couldn't they?" Hazel replied. "Draco told us they have powerful magic for serving their families."
"That's beside the point, dear," was the slightly condescending reply.
The next day their tutoring was all about hospitality, how it went both ways, the consequences for breaking it. Hazel didn't have time to sulk, and besides, they'd be returning to Hogwarts soon enough anyway.
Not being able to fly meant she stayed indoors more, and without Muggles around she could practice her magic without fear of violating any underage magic laws. Why this hadn't occurred to her before was a question for later, though she made sure to have Dobby close by just in case anything happened that shouldn't have.
Fortunately nothing did, and she was satisfied to see that she hadn't lost her touch with her wand. Maybe she'd have a bit of an advantage over Hermione? No, not if she was with the Weasleys, she realized. "Darn," she muttered, flicking her wand at random and throwing her book across the room by accident. Luckily it didn't hit anything, and with a sigh she got up to retrieve it.
After dinner the next night, Lord Malfoy took her aside. "Draco tells me you're studying Occlumency?" he asked politely.
So that was how that word was pronounced! "Um, yes sir." She hadn't thought her books were that interesting for her friend, but maybe she was wrong. "Professor Snape suggested I practice as a way of controlling my dreams, since I've been having nightmares about…"
"Say no more." He held up a hand to stop her, and she realized the events of her first year lingered in his mind, as well. "How well would you say it's going, so far?"
"Well, I'm not sure if I could keep my mind closed, since I haven't had to repel a Legilimens yet," she replied, unsure where his questions were going. "But I think it's going okay? I haven't had any screaming nightmares in a while, at least…"
"Hmm." It was hard to tell what he thought of that. "You are a very studious young lady, aren't you?"
"Yes sir, I am." This was easier to deal with, she thought. "I don't want my parents' sacrifice to go to waste, or the time and effort my professors are putting into teaching me. I didn't know a thing about magic before Professor Snape appeared at the door last summer, and now that I'm here I want to leave my mark on the world, be famous by myself and not by other people."
"A very Slytherin trait," he replied with an approving nod. "I would ask you to keep watching over our Draco, young Hazel. And while you may have little reason to trust me, I hope you may come to trust my wife."
"Yes sir. You and Draco are very lucky to have her, sir." He nodded, and she stifled a yawn. "I should get going, sir, good night…"
"Sleep well, my dear." He patted her on the shoulder, and turned away. She watched him go down the hall, still not sure what to think of him, then turned for her room.
Notes:Since this chapter was a bit shorter than usual, I'll update sooner next week to make up for it.
Chapter 4: Trouble at King's CrossSummary:Hazel and her friends converge on the station to go to Hogwarts at last, but a certain someone makes things difficult as usual.
Notes:Beta read by Paracosmist8
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter TextThe morning of September 1 came, and Hazel woke up early to pack her things and get ready.
They took the fancy car to King's Cross after breakfast, and this time Draco's father came along, to see his son off. The ride over was full of pointless small talk and speculation about what the year would bring, and Hazel put on the fancy manners she had learned to take part. Mostly to impress Narcissa of course, which she wasn't sure if she did or not.
At the station, she was pleased to see the Weasleys as well, and went over to shake hands with Fred and George. "Alright, guys?" A riot of bright blue caught her attention and she looked over towards it; a cross-eyed older man with stringy blonde hair and garish periwinkle robes was pushing a luggage cart, which itself carried a large trunk and a pretty girl with similar hair to the man. She too wore blue robes, and had a yellow-ish wand tucked behind her ear as well as a necklace of what seemed to be butterbeer corks. It was plain to see she didn't have a care in the world, as she hummed to herself and idly kicked her legs back and forth.
The twins noticed Hazel staring, and grinned. "Ah, she's seen our neighbors, bro," one of them said.
"So she has, so she has! It'd be awfully rude not to introduce them!"
"Terribly rude! Mum never raised us to be rude! No she didn't!"
"So, are you going to introduce us, or...?" Hazel cut in, trying not to laugh too hard. Behind her, Draco was greeting Ron and Hermione, while their parents glared coolly but kept to themselves
The cross-eyed man finally looked down, and of course his gaze went straight to her forehead. "Merlin's beard, it's Hazel Potter!" he gasped, reaching up for his daughter and lifting her down. "Luna, look, it's the Girl Who Lived! A real hero, she is!"
"Is she really?" The girl, Luna apparently, looked up at Hazel with unblinking eyes. "I dunno, Daddy, she might only be pretending."
"Who'd want that kind of attention?" he blustered on, apparently quite oblivious. He stuck his hand out, and Hazel noticed it was a bit clammy as she shook it. The man had a necklace with a funny triangular symbol on it, but she couldn't get a closer look. "Xenophilius Lovegood, owner and chief editor of The Quibbler!" he said proudly. "This is my daughter Luna! Do look after her, won't you?"
"Uh, certainly, sir," she replied with a giggle, privately wondering if there were ever a child less suited to Slytherin. Though she had to admire just how at peace with the world she seemed to be. "And I really am Hazel Potter, you know. Though sometimes I wish I weren't."
"Yes, I can see how that would be distressing," Luna went on serenely, "the wrackspurts must be awful."
Molly Weasley was making impatient noises by then, so they all moved along through the barrier, two at a time trying to avoid notice by Muggles. The Malfoys, it seemed, weren't passing through. "I don't know, bad company I guess," Draco muttered when Hazel lifted an enquiring eyebrow at him. "Those Lovegoods, eh?"
"I think they're nice enough," Hazel said defensively, not paying attention as they approached the barrier. She and Draco leaned nonchalantly against the wall, talking about nothing, waiting for the Muggles to not notice them. And waiting, and waiting…
"What's going on here?" he muttered, pushing against the barrier. It refused to let them pass. "Why can't we get through?"
"There aren't any Muggles watching," Hazel replied with a frown, glancing about to be sure. "Good thing we got here early, let's find-"
"Oh ho! We meet again!" came a familiar loud voice, and she flinched despite herself. "A lovely day to loll about I'm sure, but don't you have a train to catch?" It was Lockhart, sure enough, dressed in bright green robes that clashed horrendously with the bustling train station around them. Muggles turned to gawk and stare, and he preened at the attention.
"Professor, we're trying, but the barrier's closed!" Draco hissed, looking around for his parents while trying to push through without being obvious. "Do you know what's going on?"
"Haven't the slightest!" Lockhart blustered on, entirely too loudly, and more people stared. "But if you stand aside I'll give it the ol' one two!" and he rolled up his sleeves, still laughing away.
"Wot's 'e mean, ol' one-two?" a Muggle woman asked of her friend, pausing to watch the overwrought wizard. "Is 'e gonna punch it out with'at wall then?"
"What's going on?" Lord Malfoy demanded, pushing through the crowd. "Draco, why haven't you-" He caught sight of Lockhart and froze. "...Professor Lockhart, is it?"
"Ah! Yes! Yes, that's me!" Lockhart declared, turning his blinding smile on the quite unimpressed Malfoy. "Lovely to meet you, sir and madam!" and he turned that grin onto the equally unimpressed Narcissa, evidently hoping it would impress her. She just rolled her eyes and put a slim hand on her husband's arm.
"Surely a Professor would know how to work the barrier, hm?" Malfoy went on, stepping closer and speaking in a quiet tone that the Muggles wouldn't overhear, that nonetheless dripped with malice and sarcasm. "Would know that it won't let anyone through while Muggles are watching?"
"Sir, it was blocked up before he appeared," Hazel muttered, wishing she could speak that way. "But he's not helping, that's for sure."
"Oh, very well, very well," Lockhart blustered, finally catching on from the icy chill surrounding Narcissa and her husband. He did something with his hands, and Hazel thought she heard a snap from somewhere nearby, but didn't have time to consider it, as the barrier was finally letting them through.
"There you are! We were starting to worry!" Mrs Weasley cried the second they appeared on the other side. "Arthur and I couldn't get back through to check on you!"
"Darndest thing," the gate guard muttered, shaking his head at the barrier. "Oughter write ter Dumbledore, I ought…"
Hazel and Draco got their carts out of the way, and Narcissa appeared moments later, looking harassed. "Ministry wizards are dealing with the Muggles who saw us, and that Lockhart was sent off with a stern lecture," she explained briefly, ignoring Molly's stern look. "Good luck at school, you two… Draco, be safe…" She embraced her son and kissed his cheek, gave Mrs Weasley a curt nod and disappeared back to the other side.
"Glad we got through," Hazel said as they turned and trundled along to the train. "Can you imagine what kind of bullshit we'd've had to put up with otherwise?" Draco laughed at that, and they caught up with the others, who'd been waiting for them. Or maybe it just hadn't been that long?
To her great satisfaction she was able to manhandle her trunk up the steps quite easily, and feeling pleased with herself turned to do the same with Luna's trunk. "Oof!" she gasped, unable to get the heavy thing up. "Jeez, Luna, what'd you pack in this thing?"
"Oh, a bit of this and that," the girl replied with an uncaring shrug. "Daddy thought I should bring more books than the list said, though I wouldn't be surprised if a Blibbering Humdinger got inside too."
"A- sorry, a Blibbering what?" Hazel stammered, staring back at Luna. Before she could explain, the Weasley twins came along and hoisted the trunk up, though they grunted and strained, and managed to get it into a compartment. "Thanks, guys." They laughed and waved and disappeared, and Hazel shrugged as she dragged her trunk in as well. "Well, at least I got a seat."
Luna promptly sat down next to her and pulled out a funny looking magazine, which she assumed was the Quibbler, and soon enough, Draco, Ron and Hermione drifted in as well. Ron's sister Ginny followed, though she took one look at Hazel and hid her face behind her brother.
"Relax, Ginny, she's just like us," Ron said with a laugh, though Ginny refused and stayed hidden. "You're all she can talk about all summer, Hazel, looks like you've got another fan."
"Just what I need," she replied, rolling her eyes when they all laughed. A funny smell caught her nose, and she sniffed a few times. "Luna, is that...?"
"Oh, you noticed my perfume?" Luna said brightly, turning the page of her magazine. "Mum made it herself before she died, you know. Nargle scented, do you like it?"
"I... yeah, I do." The others were laughing silently and she suspected her face was red, but she didn't care.
"So what kept you and Draco, anyway?" Ron asked.
"Oh god, it was that Lockhart bastard again," Hazel replied, and with Draco's help she explained what had happened.
"It was probably just a coincidence," Hermione said quickly, once they were finished. "I'm sure he didn't mean to-"
"Come off it, Hermione, he was acting out on purpose, like he always does!" Draco insisted. "He loves it when people are staring, no matter if it's a bad time for it or not!"
"I don't like him either," Luna remarked, turning to another page, "he has maggots in his smile." Hazel felt a rush of affection for the odd blonde girl, and smirked at Hermione's stony expression.
The snack trolley came by, and everyone bought lots of things. Hazel shared with Ron and Luna, and eventually Luna fell asleep on her shoulder. It was hard to get involved in the conversation after that, and eventually she yawned and dropped her head down too...it was hard to have any nightmares when the nargles were playing so close by...
"Hey, wake up you two," and Hermione was poking her in the side. "We're almost there, change into your school things." Hazel nodded and yawned, reluctantly nudging Luna up too. The boys stepped out, and Hazel, Luna and Hermione got changed. Ginny did too, though she took longer because she was still trying to hide from Hazel.
"Ginny, really! We're all girls in here, now stop playing around!" Hermione snapped, and that got her moving. Hazel tried not to laugh, and also tried to ignore Luna who was humming happily as she put her things on without a care in the world.
Hogsmeade Station was the usual riot, with Hagrid waving for the firsties to join him down by the lake. "See you later, Hazel!" Luna called, waving as she went that way, Ginny and the others clustering along behind.
"How are we getting to the castle, then?" Hazel asked, though the older students all trooped past the station to a muddy track. At least a hundred carriages stood out there, but- "What are those?!"
"What are what?" Ron replied, peering at the carriage.
"Those horse things! With wings!" Horse was the wrong word for them; they looked like nothing so much as fleshless dragons with hooves, with staring white eyes and skin so tight she could see every bit of their skeletons. "Can't you see them?"
Ron shook his head, but Neville just looked queasy. "I can see them too," he murmured, and behind him she saw Theodore Nott and Blaise Zabini hesitating as well. "I've never seen anything like it..."
"Are they thestrals?" Draco asked, putting a hand on her shoulder and stepping toward a carriage. "Father mentioned them once, apparently you can only see them if you've seen death or something..."
Abruptly reminded of Quirrell's last moments, especially the smell of charred flesh, Hazel had to turn aside and fight not to throw up all over herself. "Ugh... perfect," she groaned, willing the memories aside and joining her friends. She was too ill to enjoy the ride, and ignored most of the chatter, caught up in her own past as she was. She hardly noticed as Draco pulled her out the door and guided her across the entrance hall and into the Great Hall, where as second-year students they were allowed to sit farther up.
McGonagall brought the new firsties out and gave her speech, the Sorting Hat said something about the Founders and unity and all that, but all she could think about was Quirrell's death, and the gaunt faces of the thestrals.
An overexcited little boy named Creevey joined the Gryffindors, and "Harper, Lloyd!" joined the Slytherins to much applause a few students later. Luna went to Ravenclaw rather quickly, inspiring a flutter of disappointment in Hazel. Finally, Ron's sister Ginny was immediately Sorted into Gryffindor, and when the applause died down, Dumbledore got to his feet.
"Welcome, and welcome back!" he called, his voice carrying easily to all corners of the Hall. "Before we dig in I have the pleasure of introducing a new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher! Professor Gilderoy Lockhart!"
Hazel groaned, but nearly everyone else clapped wildly, and a lot of girls were wolf-whistling as the man himself stood up, waved, and grinned that blinding grin. It went on much too long, in her opinion, as her stomach had settled back again and she was ravenous as usual. Finally, Lockhart sat back and the applause died down, and Dumbledore smiled at them all.
His smile was much more genuine and tolerable, she decided. "Yes, thank you all for the enthusiastic welcome. Anything else I have to say can wait! Dig in!"
The tables were suddenly groaning under the weight of another magnificent feast, and Hazel noticed her goblet was full of ice cold milk with a jug nearby to refresh it. "Finally!" she muttered, grabbing the goblet and draining it all in one long go. She guzzled two more goblets as the feast went on, chasing down roast beef and some sort of yellow curry that made her eyes water, and a proper stack of garlic bread that had the other girls in her dorm frowning in her direction. She just stuck her tongue out at them and kept going, quite happy to eat her fill for once without worrying. Dessert was cake and chocolate ice cream and some kind of bright red treacle, and apple juice to go with the milk.
When even Hazel couldn't eat another bite (though she was one of the last to finish, she noticed with a smirk), Dumbledore stood up again to give the usual reminder of the rules (Forbidden Forest was forbidden, don't make Filch's job harder that necessary, no magic between classes, etc etc), then it was finally time to go to bed.
Gemma Farley was there again, though a new prefect took over and led them down, gave the password ("Destrier!") and let them into the Slytherin common room. There was the speech for the firsties, though Gemma and Jake Weeks beckoned the other students to their dorms. Gemma chose to follow the second-year girls inside, and Hazel realized why.
"Okay girls, stop me if you've already had this talk," she said with a smirk as she pulled out five little bottles of pills. "We're not technically allowed to have sex at school, and if you get caught its... Well, don't get caught, alright? And take these regardless, they're not just birth control, they'll keep your monthlies in check and painless too."
She handed them out, one for each of the second-year girls. "I know it's embarrassing, but we all went through it, okay? Don't hesitate to go to Madam Pomfrey if you ever have any questions, she's the witch who sourced and analyzed these." That was reassuring, she thought with a blush, looking at the bottle. Wasn't it a bit small, then...?
"Uh, Gemma, there can't be enough for the whole year in here..." she asked hesitantly.
"They'll refill themselves," Gemma replied. "Now look, girls, you know what sex can lead to, alright?" She was serious now, Hazel noticed. "Hogwarts isn't a daycare, and the stuffy old men on the Board have decided teenage pregnancy isn't something the school has to worry about. So if it does happen, for whatever reason, Madam Pomfrey can sort you out. If you decide otherwise you won't be allowed to stay, they'll send you home and you'll have to do all your classwork by owl until you come to term, and you'll miss out on everything else. Just take the pills and be careful, alright? I mean it."
"How often do we take them?" Tracey Davis asked.
"Once a week, around this time. The bottle will remind you, don't worry. Go ahead and pop one off, go on." She watched and waited for them all to open the bottle, shake out one of the little green pills and swallow it; they had no taste at all, and Hazel was certain it dissolved before reaching her stomach anyway. "There, not so bad, is it? Leave them in the nightstand, good luck and take care." She gave each of them a quick hug, then left the dorm.
"Ugh, finally." Tracey Davis flung herself onto her bed. "God, I don't even wanna think about boys! We're barely twelve years old!"
"You'd rather think about girls then?" Millicent teased, and Tracey went beet red. Hazel felt herself flushing too, and excused herself to the bathroom for her nightly routine. Toilet, workout, shower, mirror; all was well. She put her pajamas on and went back out, passing Millicent on the way, and crawled into bed.
It was good to be back at Hogwarts, she thought as sleep overtook her quickly.
Notes:A gentle reminder that this is Hazel's story, not mine, and she wants it ALL told. Even the awkward bits. I hope I'm still living up to everyone's expectations~
Chapter 5: The So-Called ProfessorSummary:Hazel's second year begins in earnest, and the new "Professor" wastes no time showing his quality. Hint: its very poor
Notes:Beta read, as usual, by Paracosmist8
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter TextClasses proved to be interesting, in more ways than one.
Everything was that much more challenging than first year and Hazel loved nearly every minute of it; the only minutes she didn't love were the ones when that celebrity prat Lockhart insisted on cornering her between classes for more unsolicited advice on fame and fortune. The only advice she took from him were his thoughts on appearance; she was getting breakouts and didn't want to end up like poor Eloise Midgen.
His classes, if possible, were even worse, as he opened up with a pop-quiz based on the stupid crap in his books."What is Gilderoy Lockhart's favorite color?" or "What is Gilderoy Lockhart's secret ambition?" and tripe like that; Hermione was breathless with glee as he announced her and Hazel were the only ones who'd gotten full marks. No doubt it would be the first and last time she'd be glad to have read that drivel.
"Forty points to Gryffindor for two such knowledgeable young ladies!" he finished, acting like he was handing out the Victoria Cross.
"Excuse me, sir," Hazel blurted out, standing and frowning up at him, "I'm in Slytherin, not Gryffindor."
"What? Oh rubbish, surely your parents-"
"My parents are dead, and I am NOT my parents!" she shot back, getting angry now. "And I don't appreciate being constantly reminded of them! Now reassign those points you gave me or wipe them off altogether!"
Lockhart looked down, and for the first time noticed the green and silver accessories on her robes. "Ah, right, well, do forgive me," and he chuckled awkwardly. "Twenty points to Slytherin then? And another twenty to make up for the mistake?"
"Fine." Hazel sat down at that, noting with some amusement that most of the girls in the class, and even a few of the boys, were now glaring at her with venom in their eyes. Like she cared, let them think what they liked. "So? Were you gonna teach us about anything else besides your own hubris?"
"Now now, I am a very important wizard, little miss," Lockhart boasted, getting his bearings back and sweeping to the front of the room. "But I do have a bit of a lesson in mind, oh yes I do!" From behind his desk he brought up a large, covered cage, which was rattling slightly. "I must warn you! My job is to arm you against the foulest creatures wizardkind has ever known, the worst fears of many a witch and warlock! All will be well if you stay calm and remember that I am here!"
And he swept the cover off with an exaggerated swirl. The whole class stared in silence; Seamus Finnigan laughed outright. "Really? Cornish pixies, that's yer bloody nightmare?" he scoffed.
"Ah ah, Mr Finnigan, bite your tongue! These are freshly caught Cornish pixies! Devilishly tricky, they can be!" Hazel looked at Draco and mouthed 'Freezing Charm', and the sharp-featured boy nodded curtly. The creatures were a bright blue, eight inches high, with pointed faces and incredibly shrill voices. "Right, everybody ready? If you've read my books you'll know what to do-!" And with another exaggerated gesture he swept the cage open.
Chaos engulfed the room as the pixies streaked in every direction, but Hazel didn't hesitate. Angry with Lockhart and still frustrated at her fellow students she waved her wand and shouted, "IMMOBULUS!" She felt her wand thrum as the pixies froze in midair and fell to the ground, and she used Wingardium Leviosa to flick them back to their cage. Beside her, Draco was doing the same thing with the ones that she missed.
"Oh, well, nicely done, ten points to each of you," Lockhart declared grandly, sweeping the cage shut. "Although if you'd read Break with a Banshee you'd know the proper way to deal with the buggers is my own patented Peskipiksi Pesternomi charm!" and he chuckled in a self-aggrandizing way. "Homework tonight, learn and practice that spell! We'll try again next week!"
"Please sir, what are the wand movements?" Hermione gasped, waving her hand in the air. "We can't practice without-"
But whatever the answer may have been, was cut off when the bell rang. "You'll figure it out! It's all in the books!" Lockhart said cheerfully, still laughing that self-satisfied laugh. "Remember! Practice!"
"Patented my eye," Ron muttered as they filed out, "useless arse anyway. Bet that Pepinski spell's rubbish too..."
"You're just jealous, think of the hands-on experience we had!" Hermione shot back, giving him a stink eye. Hazel couldn't figure out how such a normally sensible girl like Hermione could have fallen for that conceited prat, but she didn't have time to think too hard about it.
Herbology proved even more interesting, as they were working with Mandrakes. Professor Sprout handed out earmuffs and warned the students not to let them slip. "They're just babies, yet, but they'll still throw you for a loop if their cries reach your ears! Full grown Mandrakes can kill a person dead, so don't falter!"
Everyone was split up, Hazel and Draco with Ravenclaw students Terry Boot and Padma Patil. "Your sister's in Gryffindor, isn't she?" Hazel said after shaking hands.
"Yes, we're still not sure why the Sorting Hat separated us," Padma admitted. "Siblings usually go together, don't they?"
"Usually, yeah, look at the Weasley bunch," Draco remarked. There was no more time to talk though, as they had to fit their earmuffs and gloves on for the Mandrakes. When she finally had the first one yanked out she beheld a tiny little thing that looked like a muddy, ugly infant with the stalks and leaves growing right from its head, but even through the earmuffs she could almost hear its frenzied wailing. It made her slightly dizzy, and she stuffed it into a new pot with a grimace.
Professor Sprout made it look easy, but it really wasn't. The little plants hated being uprooted, flailing their tiny fists and gnashing out at her fingers, but they hated being replanted even more it seemed. Looking at Draco and the others, Hazel swore all hers were particularly chubby, and she was a mess of sweat and dirt by the time Professor Sprout cast a light spell to get their attention.
Making sure every last Mandrake was potted, she gestured for them to remove their ear muffs. "Good job, you got them all," she said warmly, "fifty points to both your Houses. And for homework, of course, two feet of parchment about the healing and restorative properties of Mandrake roots, especially with regard to potions and draughts!"
"Mental little things, aren't they?" Hazel was saying as they finally got to leave, dirt-stained and ready to wash off before their next class. Draco nodded fervently, and she suspected he was especially eager to be clean again.
Transfiguration was a lot of fun, for once. Most everyone else seemed to have forgotten last year, or at least skimped on their summer work; Hazel and Hermione, as usual, got right into it and soon had a lovely pile of beetles transfigured into buttons on their desks. For bonus points McGonagall told them the spell to change them all back, and fifteen points each when their buttons were beetles once more.
She was looking forward to an evening nap before Astronomy after dinner when someone yelled her name; she turned automatically and was nearly blinded by a flash of light and a crack. "All right, Hazel?" a breathless voice stammered while she blinked her eyes clear. "I'm Colin Creevey! I'm in Gryffindor but I wanted to be in Slytherin with you but-"
"Didn't your parents even teach you to ask before violating someone's privacy??" she demanded harshly, wondering what happened to consent.
"W-Well yeah, but… but I didn't want to lose you! It was a perfect shot!" the kid blundered on obliviously. Up close he was short, shorter than she'd been in her own first year, and his mousey brown-blonde hair hung about like wet noodles. "No one's gonna believe I met you otherwise! You're famous , you know?!"
Draco was doing a poor job hiding his amusement, and in a group of Hufflepuffs behind them she saw his old goons, Crabbe and Goyle, laughing openly at the scene. She couldn't take much more of this. "Look, kid-"
"This place is amazing! " he went on excitedly, still not noticing. "So many famous people! You and Lockhart and Dumbledore and- HEY! When I get these pictures done can you sign one of them?!"
"What's all this then? Signed photographs?" came that hated voice, and Hazel cringed. It was Lockhart, of course. "Ha! Hazel Potter, you rascal, I shouldn't have asked!" She tried backing away but Draco was in the way, and before she knew it Lockhart's arm was around her shoulder. "Go on then, my boy, can't do better than both of us!"
"Let me go!" she hissed, but with Draco blocking her in and her legs frozen, she couldn't get away, and settled for hiding her face while that damnable camera clicked and banged away. "There, you've got your damn pictures, now let me-!"
"Ah ah, language, Miss Potter!" Lockhart chuckled, finally letting her go. Creevey seemed about to pass out from joy, half the crowd around her was laughing and the other half looked like they wanted to throttle her for stealing Lockhart away again. "Keep this up and I'll have to dock a few points, hm?"
"I don't care how famous you are, Lockhart, if you EVER touch me again I'll make you regret it!" she snarled, whipping out her wand. That finally made him back away from her, and she thought she saw a tinge of fear in his eyes. "Now get the hell out of my way!"
"...Right, right! Move along, the lot of you, don't want to be out too late!" Lockhart blustered, clapping his hands and making shooing motions. "You're a bit young yet for signing pictures, Hazel, makes you look a little bigheaded and all that! I won't be around to cover for you every time, not like this!"
"Suits me fine," she muttered, putting her wand away and stalking off. "What the hell, Draco?!"
"First off, it was bloody hilarious," the blonde boy smirked, "could've fried an egg on your face. Second, it won't look so good for him when you show those pictures to Dumbledore when you file a harassment complaint, will it?"
"What about you? You had me blocked in just like he was!"
"All that camera saw was me trying to pull you away from him, trust me," he said smugly. "Now come on, we've got Astronomy tonight."
"Asshole," she muttered, though she fell in beside him anyway, plotting all the nasty ways she could get back at Lockhart.
Notes:I welcome any and all critique, as long as it's honest. Don't hold back!