Norbert the Illegal Dragon
The next few weeks were quite busy for Hayley and the others. Hermione had started to research about whatever that was happening to her, along with drawing up study schedules for them. Ron and Harry were fine with that at first, but soon got irritated when Hermione started to tell them to do the same.
She also handed one to Hayley along with her color-coded notes, "We must start preparations as soon as possible!"
"Hermione, there are still ten weeks left. You know that, right?" Hayley retorted in return, tucking away the material Hermione had given her, safely in her bag. They were currently heading for Potions, in the dungeon. Professor Snape was in his usual sour mood, berating Harry and the Gryffindors with the occasional insults thrown at Hayley now and then.
Harry and others were still convinced that Snape was after the Philosopher's Stone. And Hayley had started to believe them as well after Harry told them about the secret meeting between the professors in the forest after Harry's quidditch match. The conversation had clearly implied that Snape was threatening Quirrell and was trying to find a way to get past Fluffy, the three headed dog. Maybe Professor Quirrell was innocent after all.
After the class ended, Hermione dragged them all to the library. This had been going on for some time now, Hayley was grateful that her friend cared a lot about their progress as much as she did her own but this was getting too much. Easter Holidays had passed but it didn't seem at all like a holiday because the teachers had started giving them piles of homework.
Harry and Ron were complaining more than Hermione nagged. She was used to Harry's complaints over homework but it seemed it was amplified in Ron's company. Harry had finally gotten a companion who understood his woes regarding homework and studies but at least they got some work done after complaining for a while.
The four of them were in the library, they spent most of their free time here. Ron had started his usual bemoaning about some complex potion as he threw down his quill in frustration, "I'll never remember this!"
Hayley looked up from her Transfiguration homework and gave him a glare but he was already looking out the library window. With a heavy sigh, she was about to go back to her work when she saw Hagrid carrying something in his hands. Was that a book?
Ron also saw him and exclaimed in surprise, "Hagrid! What are you doing in the library?"
Harry finally looked up from his book and narrowed his eyes at something Hagrid was hiding behind his back. Hayley followed her brother's line of sight and also noticed Hagrid acting a bit sketchy.
"Just looking," he said, in a shifty voice that got their interest at once. "And what're you lot up to?" He looked suddenly suspicious. "You are not still looking for Nicolas Flamel, are you?"
"Oh, we found out who he is ages ago," said Ron impressively. "And we know what that dog's guarding, it's a Philosopher's Sto-."
"Shhhh!" Hagrid looked around quickly to see if anyone was listening. "Don't go shouting about it, what's the matter with you?"
"There are a few things we wanted to ask you, as a matter of fact," said Harry, "about what's guarding the Stone apart from Fluffy --"
"SHHHH!" said Hagrid again. "Listen, come and see me later, I'm not promising I'll tell you anything, mind, but don't go rabbiting about it here, students aren't supposed to know. They'll think I've told you."
"See you later, then," said Harry. Hagrid shuffled off.
"What was he hiding behind his back?" said Hermione thoughtfully.
'I think it was a book." Hayley answered as she stared after him. Ron sputtered as he tried not to laugh out loud.
"I can't imagine Hagrid reading. But I'll go check what he was up to." With that, he hopped off his chair and disappeared around the shelves. He came back with a pile of books in his hands and slammed them down on the table.
"Dragons!" he whispered. "Hagrid was looking up stuff about dragons! Look at these: Dragon Species of Great Britain and Ireland; From Egg to Inferno, A Dragon Keeper's Guide."
"Hagrid's always wanted a dragon, he told us so the first time we ever met him," said Harry.
"Is he going to raise a dragon? You don't think he already has one?" Hayley asked worriedly.
"But it's against our laws," said Ron. "Dragon breeding was outlawed by the Warlocks' Convention of 1709, everyone knows that. It's hard to stop Muggles from noticing us if we're keeping dragons in the back garden. Anyway, you can't tame dragons, it's dangerous. You should see the burns Charlie's got off wild ones in Romania."
"But there aren't wild dragons in Britain?" said Harry.
"Of course there are," said Ron. "Common Welsh Green and Hebridean Blacks. The Ministry of Magic has a job hushing them up, I can tell you. Our kind has to keep putting spells on Muggles who've spotted them, to make them forget."
"So what on earth is Hagrid up to?" Hermione whispered out seriously.
Hayley remained behind in the library when the others went to ask Hagrid about the Stone. She gave them the excuse that she was behind her homework, the boys didn't question her and Hermione gave her a questioning look. She just shrugged her shoulders and went back to scribbling down Transfiguration notes.
When she was certain they had left, she gathered her things and went deeper inside the library where the books on strange dreams and visions were. She and Hermione had done a bit of research before they got busy with their school work so she knew where to look. She took out several books on dreams and visions, and went to sit at an empty table by the far corner of the library where very few students studied.
She flipped through the pages of a book on dream interpretation but it didn't yield much. She closed it with a thud and opened another one. It was called A Beginner's Guide to Divination. It had stuff about fortune-telling, how to predict the future by star formations, how to see omens from tea cups.
She closed the book with a heavy sigh and her afternoon went by like this. Maybe she should go and ask Madam Pince about it. She'd definitely know where to look. So she went and asked the librarian who gave her a long pointed look.
"You are a first year, Ms. Potter. Why are you looking into visions and divination when you should be preparing for your exams?"
"You see, Madam Pince, I am doing an essay on it for grace marks. I've always been curious about this type of thing and I want to know more." Hayley wanted to pat herself on the back for lying so smoothly, although it was a bad thing to do. But she needed the librarian's help to know where to look.
Again, the old witch studied her for a long moment and sighed deeply, muttering something about first years and their stupid curiosity. "What do you want to know about specifically?"
Hayley gave her a bright smile and said, "Visions. Having dreams while waking up."
She didn't know if she said it right or not. But Madam Pince nodded and stood up from her chair and led her deeper inside, the book shelves looked old and untidy as they went. Like students barely came to this section of the library. The lights also grew dimmer and it made the place look a bit eerie and Hayley thought that Madam Pince might turn out to be some mad old lady who secretly murders her students.
But thankfully, nothing of the sorts happened and Madam Pince pointed to a row of shelves and left with a sour look. Hayley looked around and she realized that she liked the brightly lit library better. She quickly roamed her eyes over the books and a few titles caught her eye.
Prophecies, Visions and Omens. She took that one out and carefully carried that in her arms because the book was old and she was afraid she might damage it.
Death Omens and Other Ominous Signs. She shivered at that title and stayed far away from it because thankfully she wasn't having any dreams regarding death, well, except her parents'. She was still having nightmares, the same thing over and over again: her mother was crying on the floor of their nursery and a figure came then... then... a flash of green light...
Hayley shook her head and tried to focus her attention on the task at hand. This wasn't the time to think about that so she once again skimmed through the book shelves. She noticed that the books here were mostly about prophecies.
She mulled it over in her head. Prophecy. She had a small understanding of that word; seeing into the future, something that's about to happen. She opened the book that was in her hands and started to read on prophecies. There was a paragraph that seemed to explain what exactly a prophecy is:
A prophecy is a declaration or prediction concerning future events, often communicated through mystical or supernatural means. Typically, prophecies are framed in an enigmatic or cryptic manner, leaving room for various interpretations. The ambiguity of these foretellings can influence the actions of individuals or groups, as they may choose to either embrace or attempt to alter the predicted outcomes. The fulfillment of a prophecy often depends on an individual's response to it, and their decisions can lead to different paths or consequences.
She was right about what that meant but it was different from what she's been experiencing. There was another paragraph that seemed to elaborate more clearly.
Typically these prophecies are conveyed through cryptic messages or riddles. These predictions are often revealed when an individual enters a trance-like state, where they are believed to receive visions or guidance from supernatural forces. The mysterious nature of prophecies often leads to various interpretations, influencing how individuals or societies respond to them.
So that means she's having visions of the future...? But she wasn't giving any cryptic messages or anything because if that was the case then Hermione surely would have told her. There were no cryptic messages or riddles. And she wasn't even sure that those 'visions' were actually from the future.
There was more information in the book, apparently people who saw these kinds of visions and prophecies were called Oracles.
Oracles...
Hayley remembered seeing a book about Oracles on the shelf. So she quickly started to search for the book and soon her eyes landed on some similar titles.
How to Become an Oracle?
Oracles and their Prophecies.
Stories of the Oracles From Around the World.
Oracles and Seers.
Her eyes stopped at the last one and she took that one out. Seers. That was a new word and she hadn't seen it in other texts. She put the book she was reading previously back in its place and was about to open the one about the Seers but her stomach growled loudly.
She looked around the library and found that it was much darker now and she glanced at her watch. It was already dinner time, more precisely, it was about to be over. She scrambled for her book bag that she hadn't even realized she had discarded on the floor. She ran out of the dark corner of the library, carefully clutching the book in her arms and made her way to Madam Pince's work desk and quickly asked for the book to be issued outside the library.
"You are still here? What have you got there? Let me see... Oracles and Seers. Hm? A bit of an advance study for a first year."
Hayley impatiently waited for the librarian to be done with her musings and so she can leave with that book. She couldn't keep it in, "Can you please hurry up, Madam Pince? I am getting late for dinner."
The old witch gave her a nasty look and scrunched up her nose at her, "And whose fault is that?"
Hayley didn't answer, she was tired and hungry and impatient. So she kept her mouth shut before she said something that might land her in detention. She didn't have to wait long as the witch handed her the book and she zoomed out of there and finally reached the Great Hall. She ran to the Slytherin table and found out that the food was almost gone and there was only dessert left.
She sat down with a sigh at the far end of the table and started to shove chocolate pudding in her mouth. She also helped herself to a piece of fruit cake and custard. She saw the first year Slytherins sitting on the opposite end of the table, enjoying their dessert.
She then turned around and looked at the Gryffindor table. There sat Harry, Ron and Hermione, their heads huddled together and were whispering to each other, deep in conversation. Hayley wondered if they got any answers out of Hagrid. She'd have to ask them tomorrow. She finished her custard and soon Professor Dumbledore said his last words for the evening and they all dispersed to their dormitories. She changed into her pajamas and fell into a deep slumber as soon as she hit the bed.
—•••—
The next morning, she found Harry waiting for her by the doors of the Great Hall and pulled her aside. "Where have you been? I looked for you in the library yesterday and you weren't even at the dinner."
"Yeah I was busy. With homework." She provided shortly. She was planning on telling Harry about her... condition but she didn't know how and she herself didn't understand what was happening so she didn't want to worry him. At least not now.
Thankfully, Harry was more focused on telling her about his visit to Hagrid's yesterday and the new information they got on the Stone. The other professors had all chimmed in and had performed the spells to protect the Stone, including Snape. Harry emphasized on his inclusion and how the only obstacle that remained in his path was Fluffy and Professor Quirrell.
Harry exhaled dramatically as he finished. But before Hayley could comment on her brother's theories on Professors Snape, Quirrell and the dog Fluffy, Harry leaned in closer and whispered, "And Hagrid's got a dragon."
She audibly gasped and said out loud, "What!? A dra-"
But before she could scream more in her shock, Harry had clamped his hand on her mouth to keep her shut. "Shhh. Hagrid will get in trouble if anyone finds out! It's illegal."
Right. Wow. A dragon. Okay. Now that she had processed all that, she nodded her head and Harry let go. "Wow. Are you serious? A dragon?"
Harry nodded grimly and he looked worried. "We can't talk here, it's too crowded. Let's take a walk."
"But what about breakfast? I didn't have a proper dinner yesterday and I am famished." She whinned as she patted her stomach. Harry peeked inside the Great Hall and looked at the Gryffindor table which was already fully packed.
"We can sit at the Slytherin table. Come on," she dragged him by the arm despite his protests. They sat down where she sat last night at the end of the table, it was often empty so she knew no one would bother them there.
"You know I am not welcome at this table." Harry grumbled while Hayley filled her plate up with toast, sausages, eggs, and a piece of pecan pie. She elbowed him and shoved the tray with eggs towards him.
"I invited you so you're welcome. Now eat."
Harry didn't complain much and started to enjoy his breakfast. He took a sip of his pumpkin juice and asked, "Why no one's bothering us? I thought Slytherins would jump on a chance to humiliate me for sitting at their table."
"Hmm. You are right," she nodded in agreement as she finished her pie. "But they won't bother us here. This is the area the Bloody Baron likes to sit. Mostly. So students avoid these seats."
Color drained from her brother's face as he paused, his fork halted its way towards his mouth and a piece of egg fell onto the table. "Bloody Baron? He sits here?"
"Not always. So don't worry." She reassured him but he was still pale in the face.
Harry shivered, "He creeps me out. I mean, have you looked at him? He's covered in blood!"
"Shhh. Don't let him hear you!" She scolded him in a low voice and Harry pressed his lips together as he looked around. "Anyways! What were we talking about?"
Harry whispered to her, "Hagrid. Dragon."
"Right!" She whispered back, "A dragon! Hagrid's got a dragon! I still can't believe it."
She exclaimed as quietly as possible. Harry's face once again expressed the same worry she'd spotted earlier. "What are you so worried about?"
"It's illegal, Hayley! Hagrid could get into some serious trouble."
"Oh. Yes, you right. Hagrid is really careless with his own safety when it comes to 'fascinating' beasts." She pointed out, remembering the three headed dog he named 'Fluffy'.
Harry nodded. "And now he's got a dragon egg in his house."
"But Harry! It's a dragon. When do we get to see a real life dragon?" She exclaimed, her fascination grew as she spoke. She grabbed his shoulders and shook him as excitement took over her senses. "The creatures we have only read in books! I'd love to see one hatch actually or even see it grow up! How amazing it would be, Harry!"
He laughed and tried to get out of her hold, "Alright. Alright. It's intriguing I must admit and I am also a bit excited. Now let me go."
She also laughed at his reaction and he gave her a toothy grin. She squealed, "Who would have thought we'd actually be raising a dragon?"
Harry choked on his pumpkin juice, "No. No no no. Don't even think about it. I am already stressed because of Hagrid so don't go and encourage him. If that egg cracks and an actual dragon comes out, then we don't know how long we can keep it hidden."
She pouted at his stern tone, "Don't scold me like that! You know I find it annoying."
Harry rolled his eyes in reply.
Over the next week, they were busy with their extra homeworks and tests the teachers piled up on them, then one morning, Hedwig swooped in carrying a letter. She dropped it in Harry's hands and Hayley had to crane her neck to see what was going on as she was having her breakfast at the Slytherin table. She didn't have to wait long to know what exactly was happening as Harry stood up and gestured for her to follow him outside, the other two Gryffindors following close by.
She met them outside the Great Hall, "What is it?"
Harry gave her a note and she immediately recognized Hagrid's untidy handwriting: It's hatching.
She couldn't contain the squeal that escaped her but she recovered quickly. Harry was already worried about this whole ordeal so she tried to tone down her excitement even though it was a rare opportunity for them to witness the hatching of a dragon. Ron wanted to skip their Herbology lesson and go down there now but Hermione wouldn't hear of it.
Hayley also wanted to agree with Ron and skip her own Defense Against the Dark Arts lesson. She couldn't wait, and all kinds of questions circled around her head. How a baby dragon would look like? What would it even eat? Will it be able to breath fire already?
"Shut up!" Harry said sharply and she was startled out of her thoughts. She looked around and saw Malfoy just a few feet away from them, as he stared at them with an amusing expression and a serpentine smile on his lips.
Oh no. Did he hear them? How much did he hear?
They decided to go to Hagrid's in the morning break. So Hayley parted ways with them and went to the dreadful DADA classroom. She sat beside Pansy as usual and tried to avoid eye contact with Professor Quirrell as much as possible. She didn't want to look at him or even be near him.
She kept an eye on Malfoy but he didn't show much indications of how much he heard since he was focused on his lesson. She noticed this one thing about Malfoy that he was a bright student. She often saw him study in the Slytherin common room and the library. He also did his homework on time and got top marks on his tests. However, Hermione still beat him to the top of the class, and it was Hayley and Draco competing for second place. Only the finals would determine who would come out on top. Her guess was Hermione.
Finally, the class ended and she hurried out of the castle. She knocked on Hagrid's door and found the Gryffindors already inside.
"Hayley! Look! I've got a dragon. It could hatch any moment now." Hagrid exclaimed as he led her inside and she immediately joined her friends at the table where they were staring at a strange egg. There were some cracks on it and a clicking sound came from inside it.
She gaped at it with open mouth and wide eyes, it was the most strange looking egg she had ever seen. It was ten times larger than a chicken egg and it was all black. There was something moving inside it and then... It split open.
The baby dragon flopped onto the table. It didn't look like how Hayley had imagined it would. She thought it would look like some smaller version of a grown dragon with scales, sharp teeth and leathery wings. Its body was jet black but there were no scales on its body, it looked like he had leather for skin and the wings were too huge for its thin body. It had a long snout with wide nostrils,
the stubs of horns and bulging, orange eyes.
It sneezed. A couple of sparks flew out of its snout. Hayley gasped in amazement and wonder. 'Wow..."
"Isn't he beautiful?" Hagrid murmured. He reached out a hand to stroke the dragon's head. It snapped at his fingers, showing pointed fangs.
"Yes," she found herself saying. It wasn't pretty but the fact that there was a living, breathing dragon in front of her and could shoot out sparks when it sneezed was enough to convince her that it was indeed beautiful.
"Bless him, look, he knows his mommy!" said Hagrid.
"Hagrid," said Hermione, "how fast do Norwegian Ridgebacks grow, exactly?"
Hagrid was about to answer when the color suddenly drained from his face and he leapt to his feet and ran to the window.
"What's the matter?" Asked Harry.
"Someone was looking through the gap in the curtains... It's a kid. He's running back up to school."
Harry bolted to the door and Hayley followed him as he looked out. Even at a distance there was no mistaking him. His black robes trailed behind him as he ran up the steps to the school, his blonde hair shining in the sunlight.
Draco Malfoy had seen the dragon.
—•••—
Something about the smile lurking on Malfoy's face during the next week made Hayley and the others very nervous. They spent most of their free time in Hagrid's darkened hut, trying to reason with him. Even Hayley now thought it was too dangerous to keep an illegal dragon hidden inside his hut. Who knows what kind of trouble Malfoy would stir up because of this?
"Just let him go," Harry urged. "Set him free."
"I can't," said Hagrid, almost on the verge of tears. "He's too little. He'd die."
They looked at the dragon. It had grown three times in length in just a week. Smoke kept furling out of its nostrils. Hagrid hadn't been doing his gamekeeping duties because the dragon was keeping him so busy. There were empty brandy bottles and chicken feathers all over the floor.
Hagrid named the dragon 'Norbert'. It was a pretty name, Hayley thought. They tried to convince Hagrid but it was hard and finally Harry thought of Charlie, Ron's second eldest brother. He worked with dragons in Romania and since Hagrid already knew Charlie, he finally agreed to send Norbert away.
Ron wrote a letter to Charlie that very evening and they now anxiously waited for a reply.
The following week dragged by and the dragon was growing rapidly. Hayley kept a close eye on Malfoy and tried to find out what he was up to and what he had planned. She was in Slytherin common room and was studying at an empty desk when Malfoy strolled in and sat opposite her. He took out a parchment and tossed it to her.
She looked at him with raised eyebrows, waiting for him to say whatever he was here to say. She expected him to gloat about how he knew about Norbert. But simply smirked as he folded his hands in front of him, and said smugly, "I want you to finish this for me. I am not in the mood to do anything right now."
The audacity of this brat! Anger bubbled inside her.
She scoffed at him and huffed, "And what makes you think I'd do that?"
He leaned forward in his chair and whispered importantly, "If you don't do as I say, I'll tell Professor Snape you and Potter are hiding a dragon. He'll tell Professor Dumbledore. Then what do you think will happen to that stupid, savage Hagrid?"
Hayley's face paled and her heart started to beat faster due to fear for her friend. She clenched her jaw and looked at him with furious eyes, "Don't you dare harm him."
He sneered, "Then get to work, Potter. I want it finished by morning."
With that he stood up and left. She kept her mouth shut but there was boiling anger inside her. If only she could hex him to oblivion. She took the parchment he had in her hands and saw it was Astronomy homework. Begrudgingly, she discarded what she was doing and started to do Malfoy's homework. It was past midnight when she finished all her work.
When the morning came, she met Malfoy in the Great Hall for breakfast. She handed him the parchment with a sour expression but he smirked, "I don't need it anymore. I've already finished it."
Her jaw dropped but she quickly recovered, her hands clenched and the parchment crumbled. "Then. Why. Did. You. Made. Me. Do. It?"
She tried to control her anger but it was getting difficult. The smug rascal smirked, "Because I can."
She saw red and the next thing she knew she had grabbed him by his tie. It took him by surprise as he jerked away but her grip was tight. "What— Let go!"
She might have choked him if she hadn't realized the fact that she was too close to him, and remembered what happened the last time she was this close to him. She immediately let go and shoved him away. He stumbled but steadied himself and was furious.
"I'll tell everyone about the—"
"No. You won't!" Hayley cut him off, "Because then you'll lose your leverage over me and my friends. Am I correct?"
That made him pause then he straightened his tie and snapped, "You will pay for this, Potter!"
He stumbled out of the Hall and Hayley stomped to the Gryffindor table where Harry asked about the commotion. Apparently, they all saw that and Hayley explained what happened.
"I knew he'd do something like that!" Harry said lividly. "But don't worry, Norbert will be outta here soon. Charlie replied!"
Relief washed over her as she listened to her brother's words. He told her the whole plan and asked her to help carry Norbert. She also found out that Norbert had bit Ron's hand and it was in a bad shape. Ron was currently in the hospital wing, getting his treatment so he won't be able to come.
She later visited Ron with Harry and Hermione, only to find him in a terrible state in bed.
"It's not just my hand," he whispered, "although that feels like it's about to fall off. Malfoy told Madam Pomfrey he wanted to borrow one of my books so he could come and have a good laugh at me. He kept threatening to tell her what really bit me. I've told her it was a dog, but I don't think she believes me. I shouldn't have hit him at the
Quidditch match, that's why he's doing this."
Harry and Hermione tried to calm Ron down.
"It'll all be over at midnight on Saturday," said Hermione, but this didn't soothe Ron at all. On the contrary, he sat bolt upright and broke into a sweat.
"Midnight on Saturday!" He said in a hoarse voice. "Oh no oh no! I've just remembered— Charlie's letter was in that book Malfoy took, he's going to know we're getting rid of Norbert."
They didn't get a chance to answer. Madam Pomfrey came over at that moment and made them leave, saying Ron needed sleep.
"It's too late to change the plan now," Harry told Hayley and Hermione when they went to tell Hagrid about the letter. "We haven't got time to send Charlie another owl, and this could be our only chance to get rid of Norbert. We'll have to risk it. And we have got the invisibility cloak, Malfoy doesn't know about that."
"You guys should go and deliver Norbert. I'll try to keep Malfoy from stirring up any trouble." Hayley suggested.
When they told Hagrid about Charlie's letter, his eyes filled with tears, although that might have been because Norbert had just bitten him on the leg. The dragon was getting out of control and it was obvious why it shouldn't be kept as a pet.
Finally, it was Saturday and Harry and Hermione had already gone to Hagrid's to fetch the dragon. Meanwhile, she had her eyes fixed on the blonde brat who didn't hasitate to make their lives difficult. Malfoy sat in a luxurious armchair, near the fire. There was an eager glint in his eyes and he kept glancing at his watch.
It was almost midnight and the common room was empty now as the last student went to bed. Malfoy stood up and made his way to the door but she immediately blocked his path. He had an evil grin on his face, "Tonight will be your last night at Hogwarts. Those Gryffindor losers will be thrown out soon enough."
"I won't let you out of here and let you sabotage our plan." Hayley told him confidently. But all of a sudden, Malfoy had his wand out.
"Try me. I still haven't gotten my revenge on you for petrifying me."
She also had her wand out but before they could hurl spells at each other, a girl's voice startled them.
"What on earth are you two doing?" It was Vanessa Flint. She frowned at them, "I won't have my common room be destroyed by some stupid first years!"
Hayley and Malfoy put away their wands and Vanessa came closer to her, "It's you again. Trouble sleeping?"
"Uh... No. I am alright." Hayley said. The older girl nodded but then she waved her hand nonchalantly.
"Anyways, go to bed. Snape will make our lives hell if he finds out someone was dueling inside the common room." With that she left and disappeared down the corridor that led to girls' dormitories. She turned around to warn Malfoy not to pull any tricks but he wasn't there.
She looked around, he was nowhere to be found. Panic flooded her senses and she stormed out of the common room. She stumbled outside, the cold of the dungeon making her shiver involuntarily. She felt so stupid. How could she let him slip out like that? Where did he go!?
What was his plan exactly? What would he do? She thought. He'd try to catch them red handed. Right! The tallest tower.
She broke into a sprint and quickly went in the direction of the tallest tower. She reached the corridor at the beneath the tower and saw Malfoy lurking there. She immediately went to him and grabbed his arm, trying to drag him away.
"I told you I won't let you!" She breathed heavily as she dragged him away from the corridor but he continued to struggle.
"Let go of me, you stupid Witch!" He demanded furiously. When she didn't let go of him, he grabbed her by the hair and pulled. Pain flared in her scalp at the sharp tug and she hissed.
She did the same with him and had his blonde hair in her tight fist. He yelled out when she sharply pulled at his hair. "You let go first, you spoiled little brat!"
They were so furious with each other that they didn't see the figure that appeared around the corner and a gasp echoed down the corridor. They both froze and a lamp flared, illuminating the corridor and there stood Professor McGonagall.
Hayley and Malfoy both still hadn't let go of each other's hair and she couldn't even if she wanted to because she was frozen with fear. What will McGonagall do? What if Harry and Hermione get caught because of this?
Professor McGonagall came closer go them, wearing a tartan dressing-gown and a hairnet. She looked furious but also a bit shocked at their behavior.
"What are you doing here? Let go of each other! Are you two Hogwarts students or barbarians? Let go. Now!"
That last word sprung them into action and they both let go. But before they could explain themselves, Professor McGonagall grabbed them by their ears and dragged them down the corridor, the grip on her ear told Hayley enough to keep her mouth shut.
"Detention!" She shouted. "And twenty points from Slytherin! Each! Wandering around in the middle of the night, how dare you—"
"You don't understand, Professor. Harry Potter's coming—he's got a dragon!"
"What utter rubbish! How dare you tell such lies!" Professor McGonagall furiously shouted at him. Hayley tried to defend her brother.
"Yes, Professor! He's lying! There's no way that's true!"
She felt a sharp tug on her ear and she hissed in pain, "Ouch! Ouch! Professor—"
"Silence, Ms. Potter! You are as much in trouble as Malfoy! Come on, I shall see Professor Snape about you two!"
Oh no. Not Snape! Anyone but Snape. She cried inwardly.
Professor Snape was in his study, working on a potion when Professor McGonagall dragged them by their ears and only let go when they were both under the wrathful stare of the Potion's Master. They hung their head low and avoided making eye contact while McGonagall told him what happened and how they were fighting in the middle of the night.
She left soon enough and Professor Snape's cold and drawling voice filled the study, "Fighting now, are we? I'd expected such savagery from Miss Potter but you have disappointed me, Mister Malfoy."
Say what?
Hayley bit the inside of her cheek in case she said something she regretted. Malfoy flailed his arms around dramatically, "It's not my fault, Professor! Potter's got a dragon and he's—"
"I don't want to hear it!" Snape's voice echoed around the study and Hayley was glad she had kept her mouth shut. "Professor McGonagall has given you two detention and you will follow through with it. If I see you two fighting again, you'll get something worse than detention."
The warning in his tone made her look up and he gave her a disdainful look, "Off. To. Bed."
He didn't need to tell them twice as they both ran out and didn't talk to each other until they were inside the common room. Malfoy whirled towards her, baring his teeth looking furious. "This is all your fault, Potter! None of this would have happened if you hadn't followed me out."
"My fault?" She shouted with equal wrath, "If you weren't such a bully and minded your own business, then we wouldn't be even having this conversation! If it's anyone's fault, it's yours!"
"How dare you—?"
Before Malfoy could continue, the portraits around the common room woke up and started to yell at them for being noisy and loud. One even started to swear at them and Hayley had enough. With one last hateful look in Malfoy's direction, she stormed off to bed.