Chapter 5
"You're trying to tell us that Weasley has the Prewett Family ability and that you, a Mudblood, somehow have the Rosier Family ability?" Higgs scoffed.
"I am not a Mudblood," I growled and my hair set on fire a little while my eyes turned red. Damn it! This always happens when I get mad.
"Don't worry, Pet," Bella said. "When I get out of Azkaban, I'll track him down and Crucio him for daring to insult Morgana's Chosen!"
"Bella, it's kind of attractive when you're plotting to hurt people," I absentmindedly said.
"Kind of!? ... Thanks, Pet."
"She also has the Black Family ability," Draco said. "Potter too. Potter's a Parselmouth and Granger also has Animal Communication."
"Harry Potter? A Parselmouth? And the first Animal Communicator is centuries a Mudblood?" Pucey said with disbelief. "There's no way." I used my Metamorphmagus ability to transform into Pucey.
"Yes way," I said in Pucey's voice. Higgs got mad at this and Pucey looked disgusted. I transformed back.
"A filthy Mudblood thinks she has the right to turn into a Pureblood!" Higgs snarled before shooting a Cutting Curse at me. Harry pulled me out of the way before it could hit.
"That's it!" Marcus yelled at Pucey and Higgs. "I've warned you two about this before. I don't care if you're Prefects, though I have no idea why Professor Snape chose you two as Damien Rookwood would've been a better 6th year Prefect and Tyson Rowle would've been a better 7th year Prefect, nothing gives you the right to attack other Slytherins! You know the rules! You're both off of the Team, effective immediately."
"What!?" Pucey yelled.
"You can't do that!" Higgs yelled, threateningly.
"I'm Captain. It's my choice who is on the Team. So, yes. I can. I don't care if this means we lose the Quidditch Cup and that I now have to replace three players. You two need to know there are consequences for your actions."
"Does this mean I can be a Beater again?" Miles asked. Her thoughts were full of excitement, though her tone wasn't.
"Yes. Dinah never should've switched you from Beater to Keeper just because Terence wanted her to be a Beater instead of Keeper and they were dating. She was a better Keeper than Beater."
"You can't do that!" Higgs yelled and pointed his wand at Marcus but, before he could do anything, his wand flew out of his hand and into the hand of Professor Snape. Professor Snape must've been standing there the whole time as we're still blocking the entrance to the Common Room. It was then that I noticed the Common Room was full of the upper years and they were all either staring at Professor Snape, the Prefects, Harry, Ron or me and they were all whispering.
"Actually, Mr Higgs, I think you'll find that Mr Flint is right," Professor Snape said. "He is the Captain of the Slytherin Quidditch Team. It's solely his decision as to who is on the Team. Just as it's solely my decision as to who gets to be Prefect. The only reason you and Mr Pucey were chosen over Rookwood and Rowle is that your grades were slightly better. However, since making you Prefects, it has been brought to my attention multiple times that you two do not act in the best interests of Slytherin House as a whole and solely in your own best interests. I have debated this many times before but this has just solidified my resolve. I hereby strip you both of your titles of Prefect and, in your stead, make Damien Rookwood and Tyson Rowle Prefects." The Prefect badges disappeared off of Higgs and Pucey's robes and two boys with Prefect badges stepped out of the crowd and over to the other Prefects. They both had slight smirks on their faces. "Furthermore, Pucey, detention for a week. Higgs, detention for three weeks."
"But--" Professor Snape cut Higgs off.
"Make that a month." Higgs quickly shut his mouth and disappeared into the crowd with Pucey before they could get a worse punishment. "Now, onto the rules of Slytherin House. One, if you have a problem with someone else in Slytherin, make sure it doesn't leave the Common Room. It's already three Houses against one. Don't make those odds worse. Two, if you have a problem with someone in Slytherin, you can formerly announce a duel. However, only 3rd years and up can duel each other whilst first and second years can duel one another. Never can a first or second year duel someone third year or above. Whatever the terms are for the duel, they must be adhered to. If not, you bring shame upon yourself and your House and will face severe repercussions. Three, if you must break school rules, try to not get caught. If you must get caught, make sure it's by a Slytherin Prefect or myself as we tend to be much more lenient than others as they are biased against Slytherin. Of course, Minerva is the least biased but even she favours her Gryffindors over the other Houses, just much less than the other staff members. Curfew is nine and everyone must be in the Common Room or dorm room by that point. Do you understand these rules?" Everyone nodded and Professor Snape left,
"Okay, for first to third year, it doesn't matter if girls share dorms with boys as long as there's three in that dorm room. Dorms are twos or threes. Once you start your fourth year, the dorms will be rearranged to girls only and boys only. Prefects get their own rooms and Head Boy and Head Girl, if in Slytherin, get their own room and adjoining bathroom. There's one bathroom per dorm, the triples being bigger due to the extra person," Gemma said. "It's up to you to arrange yourselves in a way that everyone is pleased with their own rooms. You've got ten minutes to figure it out between yourselves." It was very obvious that this was a test. All of the upper years were watching and placing bets on if we could figure it out, how fast, who would be with who and several other things too. Crabbe and Goyle started demanding Draco choose, Theo and Blaise argued they should go away as they don't belong in Slytherin, Pansy and Daphne were ignoring everyone while talking about fashion, Tracey and Millicent were excitedly talking about what colour scheme their room should be, Draco was trying to decide whether he should side with Crabbe and Goyle, Theo and Blaise, stay out of it or defer to me while Harry and Ron just waited for my opinion whilst also observing the chaos. Quite a few of the upper years were curious about their reactions and the way Draco kept looking at me as if debating if he should ask me something. Theo and Blaise quickly picked up on this too and looked at Draco. Then, noticing Theo and Blaise's silence, Pansy and Daphne looked at the two of them and then Draco too. A few moments later, Draco opened his mouth.
"What do you think, Granger?" Draco asked. This immediately shut up Crabbe and Goyle, whose mouths were now hanging open, and Tracey and Millicent, who looked at Draco, then me, then Draco, then me and then shrugged. The upper years looked a mix of shocked, smug or confused.
"Crabbe and Goyle in a room, Pansy and Daphne, you, Theo and Blaise, Tracey and Millicent and then me, Harry and Ron," I said. "That's five rooms."
"Not the girls split, and the boys as two, two and three?" Draco asked.
"Well, Daphne and Pansy want to share and Tracey and Millicent do," I said.
"Millie. Please," the girl said, politely.
"Millie," I said with a smile and she smiled back. "That splits them into two rooms as it's three at most in a room. I want to share with Harry and Ron and I doubt they'll have a problem with that." I looked at them both and they smiled.
"No problem," Ron said.
"Prefer it to just me and Ron, actually," Harry said. "I've never shared a room before and I'd love to share one with both of my best friends."
"That makes three rooms," I said to Draco. "That leaves Blaise and Theo in one room and Crabbe and Goyle in the other as I doubt, given how they were arguing with each other, that they'd want to share. That just leaves placing you in a room. I figured you and the girls would be more comfortable with you in with the boys and I figured you'd prefer sharing with Theo and Blaise. If I was wrong though, switching to Crabbe and Goyle's is an option."
"No, Theo and Blaise would be the better option. I've spent more time with them than Crabbe and Goyle," Draco said. "Personally, I don't see a problem with your suggestion."
"Me neither," Ron said and Harry, Theo, Blaise, Millie and Tracey nodded in agreement.
"I think it's better than whatever anyone else would've come up with, given all the arguing," Daphne said and Pansy nodded.
"I don't want to follow the suggestion of a Mudblood," Goyle said and Crabbe nodded.
"Please," I scoffed. "If Draco had suggested it, you would've jumped at it saying 'Yeah. Malfoy's always right' or 'listen to Malfoy. He's the best'," I mocked. Everyone other than Crabbe, Goyle and Draco chuckled or laughed as Draco just turned a bright red.
"You'll regret that, you filthy Mudblood," Crabbe said as he and Goyle pulled out their wands. Harry and Ron pulled out theirs too but I held up my hand and they lowered them.
"Hold on a second," Marcus said. "There are rules for this. Follow me." Crabbe and Goyle didn't look like they were going to move. "Or get detention." This made them move. The upper years moved out of the way as we got closer and their movement revealed the dueling platform that had been hidden behind them. "Granger. Since you're the one being challenged, it's your choice. One of them at a time, both at once against you or you can choose a second to even the odds."
"The two of them against just me," I said with a smirk.
"Since you three haven't even had a class yet this year and are firsties, you'll only have on Prefect as officiator. As you pulled your wand out first, Crabbe, you get to choose which of us you want. Tyson Rowle, Teddy Taylor, Damien Rookwood, Miles Bletchley, myself or Gemma Farley?" Marcus asked. Crabbe smirked. His thoughts tell me that Teddy is his first cousin on his Mom's side.
"Teddy," he said. Teddy walked over as Marcus stepped back.
"Vince, Goyle on that end," Teddy said as she pointed to one end of the platform. "Granger, the other." The three of us got into position. I had been able to try a few Spells in Diagon and on the train as the Ministry can only track where magic has been used and not who used it. However, I've been able to master a few Spells, including the Shield Charm. The Shield Charm is a 4th year Spell but the intent you need to make it work is the desire to protect so it wasn't hard for me, someone who's been bullied her whole life, to feel that desire and make the Spell work. "State your terms."
"You tell everyone you're a filthy Mudblood and do everything we tell you to for a month," Crabbe said with a smug grin.
"Granger?" Teddy asked with a knowing smile. Her thoughts tell me she knows I'm going to beat them and that she's looking forward to it.
"You do whatever I tell you for a month with no complaint, never call me Mudblood again and agree with my rooming arrangement," I say to them. They looked a little less enthusiastic but still very confident.