Harry sighed to himself at the sight of Colin Creevey standing right outside the Great Hall. He was one persistent lad.
The boy seemed to be eagerly waiting for him the next morning at breakfast, and the moment he caught sight of him, he started waving the large photograph frantically.
He heard a giggle behind him and saw Hannah hiding her mouth behind her hand, her eyes twinkling in mirth.
Rolling his eyes, Harry walked through the large double doors of the Great Hall.
"You'll love it, Harry!" Creevey greeted exuberantly, all but thrusting the photo right in his face. Harry calmly took it from him and examined it.
"It does look nice," he nodded, handing it over to Susan who looked at it. Hannah leaned over her friend's shoulder with a bright grin.
"Oh? What is this? Someone wants to be close, hmm?" The blonde whispered in her friend's ear, making the redhead flush brilliantly, for that was how it looked. She was on Harry's left, and it was evident that she was leaning against him. She also did not fail to notice the way Daphne was leaning against Harry as well, and it seemed so did Hannah who was quick to point it out, much to her chagrin.
"Whatever," Susan muttered and handed the photo over to Neville.
"Say, Harry," Creevey began as they started walking over to their usual spot at the Hufflepuff table. "What d'you think about a few signed photographs to give out to your fans? I'm sure they'll love it!"
Harry ignored the way Hannah snickered at Creevey's suggestion and calmly slid into his seat at the table for breakfast. The boy looked at Hannah with a bright grin before turning toward him expectantly.
"We can ask Malfoy to take the pictures again!" Creevey continued without missing a beat. "He took such a great picture. I can tell he's got the talent."
Hannah guffawed this time, quickly looking over at the Slytherin table. However, Malfoy was not present, much to her disappointment as she sat back with an exaggerated pout. Susan patted her arm in amusement.
As amusing an idea it was to have Malfoy act like his personal photographer, Harry had something else in mind for the ponce. He looked over at Creevey and calmly replied, "Go and eat, Creevey. One photo is enough."
The boy looked like he was going to argue, but the arrival of a certain someone made his eyes widen in alarm. Creevey swallowed a lump and hurriedly nodded. They watched the young Gryffindor rush away toward his house table.
"Good morning," a calm and collected voice greeted and they looked at Daphne who was, as always, followed by Tracey who grinned. Harry nodded at the blonde and scooted slightly as she slid in beside him.
"You've terrified the poor boy, Daphne," Hannah said, chuckling. Daphne glanced at the fellow blonde before she looked over at where Creevey had just run off to.
"What did I do?" She asked curiously. Hannah chuckled and shook her head.
"Nothing, but I guess that chilling look in your eyes was enough to almost make him piss his pants," she replied mirthfully. Susan slapped her friend's arm in response.
Daphne rolled her eyes when she spotted the photo Neville placed on the table and she reached for it.
For a few seconds, the blonde scrutinized the photo with Tracey looking over from her right, much like Hannah had been doing with Susan a few minutes ago. Finally, Daphne nodded and handed it over to Tracey, who walked around the table and sat in front of her friend.
"The photo did come out really good. If only the little idiot was not in it, it would've been perfect group photo," she remarked, referring to Creevey who was squatted in front of them and was striking a victory pose.
"I don't think there's any harm with him being in it, to be honest," Susan replied. "It was his camera, after all."
"I never said there was any harm, but a group photo is for those in the group. He's not a part of our group," Daphne responded curtly. "That's why I said it was really good and not perfect."
Susan glanced at Daphne for a second, earning a raised eyebrow from the blonde before she shrugged from Harry's left and started fixing her plate. Daphne mirrored her actions on Harry's right. Meanwhile, the poor lad in between the two beautiful girls sat oblivious to the little drama that had unfolded, engrossed in the book he was reading as he chewed. From their seats right opposite them, Tracey and Hannah shared an exasperated look and sighed.
"What are you reading, Harry?" Neville asked, gulping down his pumpkin juice. Harry looked over and grimaced at the sight of that horrendous juice. He had no idea how people could like that thing. Orange, apple, grape, or any other fruit and he could understand, but pumpkin? He shook his head.
"A book I found over the summer," he replied. "It's about dueling."
It was not wrong. Dolohov's book was a treasure trove of knowledge, but most of it revolved around dueling techniques, spells one could use in various ways, and his recollections from the events he participated in. The more Harry read, the more he realized it was very similar to Slytherin's way of explanation.
"Right, you did mention you were thinking about joining the circuit," the boy nodded.
"Wait, you're seriously going to compete in the championship?" Susan asked quickly, surprised. Harry glanced sideways and nodded.
"I've been having sessions with Professor Flitwick for a little while. He's a former champion, and we've been going over things I can expect and such. It's a long shot but I believe I can manage," he replied. "Given my age, I'll only be able to compete in the U-18 though."
"Well, if I had to, I'd bet on you," Daphne replied. "I know you're more capable than any other student I've seen, and considering how only those under 18 will compete, you should be just fine."
"Professor Flitwick is the best this country has had to offer for a few decades now," Neville chimed in.
Harry nodded at Neville before he turned sideways toward Daphne.
Susan looked over at the way Daphne was smiling encouragingly at Harry and pursed her lips. She quickly schooled her features to smile pleasantly at Harry.
"And you've been studying in advance as well. Not to mention how the professors always say that you can cast the spells better than even students in their NEWT years. I'm sure you'll be perfectly at home with all the older contestants you'll meet on the circuit," the redhead said brightly.
Harry glanced at Daphne and Susan a few times, slightly unnerved by the way they were smiling at him. He nodded before he busied himself with his book once again, eating simultaneously.
The redhead and the blonde smiled at him before they looked at each other. The two girls exchanged a look and a raised eyebrow as they went back to their breakfast.
Hannah leaned back and looked over at Tracey, and both witches shared another exasperated look. Their friends couldn't be any more obvious.
However, it seemed their genius friend was entirely oblivious to what was going on as he kept eating his breakfast calmly while reading his book.
From his spot in between Hannah and Tracey, Neville closed his eyes and sighed. Either Harry was as dense as he suspected he was, or he was smarter than he thought. The tension was palpable between Susan and Daphne, and it did not take a genius to know that it was all centered around a certain emerald-eyed wizard. Yet, Harry never seemed to react to it all.
The drama seemed to be intensifying as the year progressed. It was slightly funny to see Daphne and Susan exchange those looks, but it was also concerning. Daphne had been more explicit in showing her feelings lately, which led to her and Susan clashing sometimes. It never escalated, but a look here or a remark there and it was evident that something was up with them.
He only hoped that by the time it was all said and done, no one got hurt.
-Break-
Harry spent the next few days keeping an eye on Lovegood whenever he could. He had to admit that she was different, and he could see why students considered her a little odd.
She had this perpetual dreamy countenance and loved to talk about the imaginary creatures that only she could see. She also had this odd habit of reading that magazine called The Quibbler upside down. Harry had never read it, but he had heard a few people making jokes about it and its publisher, who happened to be the girl's father. He had not failed to notice how isolated she always was in the Ravenclaw Tower. The only time he had seen her with someone else was when she was out and about with the Weasley girl. Every other time, she was by herself. He also noticed that she spent very little time in the Ravenclaw tower. Instead, she roamed about the castle, either with Weasley or on her own.
The Weasley girl was a firecracker, and he had seen her glaring at anyone who so much as looked at Luna the wrong way. A true friend, she was. Harry could respect that. However, it was when she was not present with Luna did things took an ugly turn. The blonde girl was stared at, and students whispered behind her back. He knew they were fully aware of the fact that she could see and hear them. Seeing how Luna never reacted only emboldened them instead of dissuading them from doing it.
It was when he was making his way back to the tower one evening that he saw her.
Luna was wandering about the castle. That was not surprising. What was surprising, however, was the fact that she seemed to be looking for something, and it was close to curfew. She had not noticed him approaching her as she kept looking around.
"What are you doing here?" He asked curiously. The girl looked at him and cocked her head sideways.
"You are Harry Potter," she replied. Harry noted she had a very soft voice.
"I am. And you are Luna Lovegood."
"Some people call me Loony," she replied, the serene smile on her face never faltering. Harry frowned.
"Some people are idiots then. What are you doing so far away from the tower? You know the curfew will start soon, right?"
"The Nargles took a few of my things and hid them around the castle. I'm just looking for them," she replied, her electric blue orbs staring right into his emeralds.
"I see," Harry muttered. He knew Luna believed in these creatures and the girls had told him how these Nargles could be people who bullied her and hid her things around the castle. "What are you looking for right now?"
"My wand," she replied, still smiling. It was honestly a bit unnerving how she could smile like that.
Harry's eyes widened. Stealing and hiding someone's belongings was bad, but doing something to someone's wand was way worse.
"And it's around here?" He asked.
Luna nodded.
"The Nargles told me it was in that bathroom," she replied, pointing to the bathroom in the distance. Harry looked over and frowned. It was that haunted girls' bathroom.
"Alright," Harry shrugged. "Don't let me keep you from it then. Good luck."
With a parting nod, Harry walked away. However, a few seconds later, he glanced behind him and saw Luna walking toward the bathroom. Immediately, he donned his cloak that transformed to fit him and pulled the hood over his head. Invisible now, he walked behind the blonde who was curiously looking around once again.
She reached over and pushed the door to the bathroom open. Harry entered behind her and looked on curiously.
A girl with brown hair that was tied up behind her was leaning against the large round sink, smirking.
"Took you long enough, Loony," the girl snarked.
"I found some humdingers near the staircase. They were playing tag," the blonde replied airily.
The brunette snorted.
"You and your foolish mind, Loony. Well, I don't care. You're weird, and you know what happens to weirdos like you?"
Luna stared unblinking as the girl pulled out a wand from the pocket of her robes.
"This seems familiar?" she smirked before she spat on the wand. Harry bristled at that while Luna stood unblinking as the girl looked at her tauntingly. "What? Nothing to say?"
"There are so many Nargles around your head," Luna replied sincerely.
The girl's face contorted into one of rage and she clenched her hand around the wand.
"Don't you dare spew those vile lies about me, you loon!" She snarled and threw the wand inside one of the cubicles. Harry saw the wand almost land inside one of the toilet bowls and he quickly cast a silent levitation charm to keep it afloat. "There are no weird creatures around me. Now go and pick your wand from that shitter just like the pathetic bint you are."
Jerking her hand off harshly, the brunette spat near Luna's feet and marched off.
Harry watched disdainfully as the girl pushed the bathroom door open. He levitated the wand back toward Luna who stared at it curiously before she looked around. Casting an overpowered cleaning charm on the piece of magical wood, Harry deposited it in her hand and took off after the brunette.
Someone needed to learn a lesson, and it was high time.
-Break-
A few weeks passed and their classes went by as usual. Snape was his insufferable self, looking for every opportunity to berate anyone not from his house while Lockhart was trying hard to be a charming and accomplished wizard – an act that fooled no one apart from his sycophantic fangirls. It was a boon that Harry did not have to attend the buffoon's classes anymore. He got enough second-hand recounting of how irritating those girls' sighs were in classes from his friends.
Malfoy had taken to avoid even looking at him since that incident in the courtyard, and Harry was pleasantly surprised by the restraint the blonde was showing. Daphne had even told him that he never bothered either her or Tracey anymore, and Harry had to admit that the boy had a few brain cells still in perfect working condition. It still did not change his mind about making the boy's time at Hogwarts a short one though, but he decided to hold off doing anything for now.
He reckoned the ponce must have felt so humiliated after being treated like a servant, and he must be very confused over how he had simply obliged when Harry ordered him to click a picture. After all, he was the son of the House of Malfoy – a family that prided itself on being the crème de la crème of the pureblood crop. To be treated like that in front of scores of students was one thing, but to simply go along with it and be unable to do anything against it was a different level of mortification.
Harry did not bother to think much about it. He knew Malfoy must be doing enough thinking for both. He was happy to see that things had reverted to how they had been before the ponce had decided to put his foot in his mouth and tried to beef with him.
Not everything reverted to how it had been though. His friends had taken to studying much further in advance, and now apart from the free time at their disposal, they had two class periods to study ahead – History and DADA. Although it would have been preferred to have a proper instructor in the latter, having Harry as their friend helped.
All of them wanted to progress, but the lack of a suitable teacher meant they could only do so much. Neville had been the one to propose the idea of Harry instructing them on the subject.
Harry had been skeptical of it in the beginning, but after a bit of coaxing from everyone, he relented. It helped that their sessions culminated in him taking on multiple of them at once, which had the benefit of strengthening his abilities and spellcasting as well. It was an investment worth making in his opinion.
Harry was oddly proud of how well his friends were progressing. Their spell repertoire was increasing by leaps and bounds, and while they had a long way to go when it came to spellcasting, they were easily beyond any average second-year.
They were currently in the Come and Go Room, practicing their spells while Harry monitored them, correcting their actions every so often.
Daphne had deemed it enough for the day a few minutes ago and she was standing beside him to the side, watching the other five casting various hexes and jinxes.
"Did you write in that diary again?" She asked, not taking her eyes off the practicing group. Harry nodded.
"A few times, yes. No response yet, though I feel his intrusion every time I write in it."
"The guy must be feeling frustrated after failing to get inside your head for so long," Daphne replied with a chuckle before her face morphed into one of utmost seriousness. "Be sure you don't overdo it though. The risks are too high."
"I know, Daphne," he replied, sighing. "You've said this so many times already."
"I can't help it, alright?" She retorted, turning toward him. Harry glanced at her, only to see the worried expression on her face. Daphne continued in a whisper, "I care for you, Harry… This diary… it's dangerous. No matter how capable you are, you never know when it might start influencing you. Just… take care when you use it."
Harry stared at her for a few seconds, unblinking, and settled on giving her a nod of understanding.
"I appreciate it, but you don't need to worry," he replied. "I'll tell you the same thing I've told you so many times and what I said to Susan when she began with the same thing some time ago: I have it all under control."
Daphne frowned before she nodded curtly and looked over at the practicing group. She did not fail to notice Susan giving her odd looks every so often and she sighed. It was a topic she knew she would have to discuss with the girl, but she didn't think she was ready for that conversation yet.
Soon, they all were done with their practice for the day. It was early evening and they decided to just lounge around the room. While Hannah and Tracey were busy trying out different arrangements they could get the room to make for them, Neville was sitting with Daphne and Susan on the couches with Harry leaning beside them against the wall, his eyes closed.
"The Weasley girl's doing perfectly fine, it seems," Susan remarked casually. "I've seen her and Luna around the castle. They've been having fun."
"I noticed it as well," Daphne nodded. "After what happened with Luna, I thought I should keep a lookout for her. Seems like someone dealt with the issue quite quickly."
They all turned to look at Harry who opened his eyes and sighed.
"You were right. She was being bullied by this third-year 'Claw. Some Edgecombe girl," Harry remarked. Susan immediately perked up.
"Her mother works in the Floo department. Aunt Amelia says she's a people pleaser who tries too hard to gain the minister's favor."
"What happened?" Daphne asked curiously.
Harry sighed and told them how he had found the girl harassing Luna. They were particularly livid when he told them how Edgecombe had spat on Luna's wand before throwing it in the toilet.
"What did you do to her?" Neville asked curiously, a little apprehensive.
"I've heard that she missed lots of classes this month," Hannah chimed in from her spot with Tracey.
Five pairs of eyes turned toward him and Harry chuckled.
"I had some help from the Weasley twins, or rather, the items they gifted me with."
"You mean those stinky ones," Daphne muttered before her eyes widened. "You didn't…"
Harry nodded with a smirk.
"My dear Hedwig also hates bullies, and she was very happy to plant those stinkers under the girl's pillows every night for the past two weeks or so. Everyone in our house was disgusted with how she smelled, and even her closest friends started avoiding her, making her nothing more than a pariah in the house. Cho, who was her dormmate, even switched dorms permanently because it got unbearable to live with the girl. It was so bad that she had to skip her classes for weeks, which overloaded her with a pile of work to catch up on. In the end, I had a little letter delivered to her that said," Harry said and willed the room to conjure a massive board. They saw a whiteboard materialize out of thin air. Harry envisioned what he wanted to be written on it and watched as the letters slowly appeared.
"Here you go," he gestured toward the board, and everyone started to read.
To the pathetic bully Edgecombe,
If you ever so much as look at Luna Lovegood or any other innocent student the wrong way, you will go through something much worse than the hell that the last few weeks have been for you. There will not be another warning, so keep this in mind. You don't know who has done this to you, but you better believe that nothing is hidden. Take the risk if you want to. Toying with you even more will surely be fun.
Worst regards,
You-Don't-Know-Who
"I made sure only she could read that letter and if she showed it to anyone, it would be some nonsensical gibberish. That was the end of it, and since then, I've not seen her bully Luna or anyone else. In fact, the girl even apologized to Luna and returned everything she stole from her the day she got that letter."
There was a moment of silence as Harry walked over and took a seat on one of the couches. He looked up when Hannah remarked, "I think you let her off too easily."
"Really?" Harry asked with a chuckle. "Forget about forcing her to miss classes and even overloading her with too much workload. Everyone's been looking at her with disgust for weeks, and many have been doing it even now when things have gone back to normal. Pretty sure she's learned her lesson here."
"The point was to teach her a lesson and to show her how suffering like that feels," Daphne remarked. "If she's learned her lesson, then I think it was enough."
"True," Susan agreed with a nod. "It wasn't as if it was done for fun or to make her suffer unnecessarily."
"Exactly," Harry nodded. "She's a bully, and if this little rough treatment made her learn her lesson, then it's good for both her and others. Otherwise, I've got a few things in mind for her should she step out of the line once more."
Everyone was skeptical of what else Harry would do to the girl, and they all wished she saw the sense in staying clean.
"Promise me something then," Hannah said to Harry, making him turn toward her. "Turn her into an ugly toad if she does something like that again."
Now that coaxed a chuckle out of them.
-Break-
Marietta Edgecombe sighed and shied away from the looks she was getting once again. The expressions on everyone's faces conveying their disgust with her had become routine to her after days of being subjected to them. It had all started the day she had thrown Loony's wand in the shitter, and the next day onward, her whole body smelled like shit.
A few more students had been targeted with the same prank early in the year, with her being one of them, and everyone knew it was the Weasley twins who had done it. However, she had no idea why she alone had been targeted this time.
She knew it was her only. After all, she had heard no talk of any other student being pranked like this again. Just like a couple of months ago, she had skipped classes and had to spend the day in her dorm again. However, her hopes that it would all end in a day went into smoke when the foul smell persisted for days on end.
Her dormmate and best friend Cho had also left their dorm, instead choosing to stay with another third-year girl, and even if she wanted to appreciate the fact that she had the entire dorm to herself, the foul smell did not let her.
For over two weeks it had persisted until one evening she received a letter. The handwriting was unfamiliar and she had been skeptical of opening it. After all, there was no guarantee when it came to those insufferable twins. A few scans that her mother had taught her came negative, and yet she had used her wand to prod the letter open.
It left her with a sinking feeling when she finished reading the letter, although calling it a letter was putting it mildly, for it was nothing less than a strict warning.
The twins knew she had been giving Loony the rough treatment, and they had put her through weeks of hell. Her social life had been all but tarnished. She had become a laughingstock of Ravenclaw. The professors were pissed with her for skipping classes again, and regularly this time.
She had begged the girls in her year to not say anything about her issues to anyone outside her house. Being humiliated in her house was still somewhat tolerable. She could never imagine how she could live down the embarrassment of the entire school knowing what was up with her once again. Unlike last time, she didn't have anyone to share this humiliation with either, so she knew the entire spotlight would be on her.
She had somehow avoided any harsh punishment, even though she was bound to serve detentions for a few months, and the massive workload that was now piled up for her was daunting. It didn't help that they had started their electives this year, which meant even more work.
All because she had treated Loony like the weirdo she was.
She had no idea those Weasleys were so close to Loony, and it was only when she saw the girl running about the castle with the little Weasley girl that she realized just what was afoot. Loony must have tattled to her friend who had sicced her troublemaker twin brothers on her.
Had she known the little weirdo had connections like that, she would've never gone after her.
She knew when to act and when to backtrack, just as she knew when to concede. Loony was untouchable now. She realized that. There was no way she would be incurring the wrath of the Weasley twins more than she already had. Their pranks sometimes were borderline bullying and were known to every student in the castle, and she was not at all eager to see just what more they could do to her. This stinky shit prank for the second time in as many months was more than enough.
She had swallowed her pride and apologized to Loony that very day after classes, holding back the vitriol that she wanted to unleash on the freakish girl. Her eccentric stare always gave her the creeps. However, she had been warned, and there was no way she was going to play with fire.
Weathering the stares and occasional sniggers that followed her, she climbed the stairs and shut the door of her dorm. It belonged to her now, with Cho having decided to just stay with Veronica Smethley. She was another girl who grated on her nerves. The way she fawned over Lockhart was disgusting. No matter how dreamy the man was, or how nice his shiny hair looked, or how absurdly charming his smile was, or how snugly his clothes fit his frame, or how shiny his teeth were whenever he flashed them, there was no way anyone should fawn over someone like that.
She was sure Cho would soon come to her senses. There was no way she could just discard their friendship of over two years, right? She was a victim. Surely Cho would see that, right?
Marietta slammed her fist on the door in anger, glaring at it. Her glare softened the very next second, and she forced herself to take deep breaths.
She had no choice but to lay low for now. Already, she had apologized to Loony and returned whatever she had borrowed from her, although she would have eventually returned everything to her anyway. She was hopeful that she would not be targeted anymore by the Weasley twins. She had, after all, done what they had asked of her. There was no reason for them to be angry with her anymore.
She looked at her face in the mirror and sighed. She looked haggard, with dark circles under her eyes and her once lustrous brown hair in disarray. It looked like a haystack painted in mud now. Her eyes were dull, and her skin looked pale from being isolated inside her dorm room with no sunlight.
Sighing, she pulled her school uniform off her body and took a few moments to stare at herself in the mirror. She was almost a woman now and had the body to show for it. She liked to believe that she was pretty, but still, no boy had shown any bit of interest in her, at least any boy she found worth her time. A few who she had found glancing at her when they thought she was not looking were better left ignored. There was no way she would ever lower herself to show interest in nobodies like them.
She was Marietta Edgecombe. Her mother had suffered miscarriage after miscarriage before she had finally had her, and as such, she had been brought up like the princess she was. Even after her father had died when she was four, her mother showered her with enough love and care to make up for his absence.
Her mother had always told her that she deserved the best, and that was what she would have. There was no way she would ever settle for anything less.
Giving her body a final glance in the mirror, Marietta walked over to her cupboard and pulled it open for her nightclothes. She threw the top and shorts she would be wearing on her bed and was about to close the doors when a silvery glint made her look inquisitively. Her eyes shot open wide and she quickly pulled the tiara out from under the clothes.
She had almost forgotten about this tiara. It was the one she had taken from Loony a few weeks ago, and since then, she had paid it no mind. It was pretty, she had to admit, but she recalled she had never tried it on.
She knew she had to return everything she had taken from Loony, or the Weasley twins would target her again, which meant she needed to give this tiara back. She quickly put on her nightclothes and was about to rush out for the first-year girls' dormitories when a sudden thought gave her pause.
'It won't hurt to at least try it once, right? It'd be only a moment, and it's not as if anyone would be able to tell. Loony can have it after that.'
She smiled. It made sense. She could at least try it out and see how pretty she looked with a tiara on her head. The royal blue gem in the middle was even a perfect representation of her Hogwarts house. There was no harm in trying it out for a few seconds.
Still smiling, Marietta walked over to the mirror and looked at her face. It was not as morose as before, and she realized it must be her excitement at trying the tiara out as well as defying the Weasley twins, albeit in such a minor way, that must be sending her blood rushing up north. With shaking hands, she raised the tiara high in the air. Her eyes locked on their reflection in the mirror, she slowly brought her hands down until the tips of her hair touched the tiara. Her smile broadened as she finally eliminated the gap between her head and the tiara, setting it right atop her head.
Before she could look at her reflection and admire how good it looked on her though, her eyes rolled back in their sockets and she went limp. Her legs gave away and she fell over in a heap, unconscious.
TBC.
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