Chapter 25

The next few weeks were slow, busy and hard. There was so much animosity towards Harry around the school because of his “entrance” into the Triwizard Tournament. Harry and Ron were not speaking to each other and poor Hermione was trying to mend their relationship but to no avail. Although Raven was distraught over the whole ordeal, she was thankful that Draco now found something to focus on rather than her. He took pleasure in torturing and poking fun at Harry, and Raven was helpless to stop him. For Raven, the break in agony from Draco allowed her to regain a little bit of the strength she had lost the last few months.

She thought that this particular day was going to be normal when right before Potions she noticed Harry and Draco about to duel. Raven had no idea why they were fighting, but whatever the reason she hoped Harry would turn Draco into something unfixable. Harry’s spell missed Draco and hit Goyle which, incidentally, made Raven laugh while Draco’s spell hit Hermione. As she watched behind some students, Snape came out and punished Harry instead of Draco which infuriated Raven. She made her way into the Potions classroom and noticed that Harry was sitting by himself. Knowing that Draco would be furious with her if she sat next to him, she sat on the other side of Ron, who was sitting by Seamus Finnegan.

Ron and Raven exchanged hellos and Snape began to explain what they were going to do in class. Snape had every intention of testing the students' antidotes potions on a poisoned student which, he decided quickly, would be Harry. Fortunately, Colin Creevy walked in and told Snape, nervously, that Harry was needed with the other champions. Raven breathed a sigh of relief for Harry and proceeded on with class.

After class, Raven stuck around to have a word with her uncle. Her anger against him was going to pop and she wasn’t afraid of the consequences.

“Are you crazy or just naturally this hateful?”

“Excuse me?” The vein that Raven liked to expose on his forehead was quite prominent and his usually pale face was beaming red.

“You heard me. I don't think I stuttered and I’m not repeating myself.”

“The same blood that runs in my veins runs through yours. So you tell me, are you naturally this hateful?”

“Why did you let Draco off? Why do you insist on attacking Harry when, and I’ve said it before, your “pet” is just as guilty?” She almost felt like her old self when she suddenly became weak and could barely stand. Although her head was spinning, she was trying to hide it, trying not to let Snape know that something was wrong.

“Why do you insist on protecting Potter?”

“Harry is not the problem and doesn‘t need protecting. Harry can take care of himself. But you always take the side of a Slytherin even though you know they are guilty. You blame Harry for everything that goes on in this school. You know he didn’t ask for this life, yet you punish him everyday.”

Raven was now clutching her bag so hard that her knuckles were turning white. Snape just stared at her with rage in his eyes. Her head was still spinning, now even harder. She was starting to wobble a little bit so she casually walked over to a table and rested her body on it.

“You are hiding behind your power as a teacher to make him pay for all of the things that his father did to you in school, aren’t you? I see it now. He humiliated you and the only way you can get back at James Potter is to punish Harry. You are a selfish coward!”

“I am not a coward!”

“Well, you have a terrible way of showing that your not!”

“Get out of my classroom!”

Raven turned to leave and she couldn’t control her dizziness any longer. As she turned, her feet got tangled and she fell to the ground, nearly hitting her head on a table.

“I know what you did.” said a voice in her head.

“What did I do?” she asked out loud, not paying attention to Snape who was asking her if she was okay.

“You did not stand behind him, you have disappointed me.”

“I don’t care about you,” she said. Snape was talking to her but it only looked to her like he was mouthing words; nothing was coming out.

“You will care and you will obey. You forget that you belong to me. You will not dishonor him.”

“Leave me alone!

The voice stopped and Snape was shaking her trying to get her attention.

“Who were you talking to?”

“I don’t know.” But she knew who it was; Lucius Malfoy. Although his voice wasn’t recognizable, she knew that it was him. For the first time in a while, her Occlumency worked and she made him think that she really didn’t know. All she needed was Snape to have it out with Lucius. Lucius could have him fired, or worse, for interfering. “Let me up.”

She got up and regained her composure. Raven looked at Snape for the first time in months in her typical confident demeanor. Grabbing her bag, she turned and walked out of the classroom, much to Snape’s objections. As she left the dungeons, she stopped to catch her breath. How did Lucius know that she was talking bad about Draco? How much in control of her is he?

Raven went up to the Great Hall where students were already enjoying their dinner. She sat for a moment and ate a few bites, as she always did, and then decided to spend some time in the library to work on some homework. Her classes were suffering due to her fatigue and lack of concentration. If she didn’t get her grades up, it would be another reason for Snape to jump down her throat about something.

“Raven? You busy?” asked Ron.

“A little. What’s going on? You okay?”

“Well, a letter came for you after you left. Thought I would give it to you.” He looked upset about something. Raven knew that it had a lot to do with his fight with Harry.

“Thanks, Ron,” she said, taking the letter. “Sit down. Talk to me for a moment.”

Ron sat down and stared at the table. “I know what you’re going to say. You’re going to try and get me to mend things with Harry.”

“No.” Ron looked at her with curiosity. “Actually, I haven’t spoken to you in a while and wanted to talk. Just talk. But if you want to talk about Harry, we can.”

“No, I don’t. It will all just come back on me,” he said, looking back down at the table. Raven didn’t want to pursue it any further. She knew that if Ron wanted to talk to her about his dilemma, he would. “Are you any closer to fixing your problem with Malfoy?”

“I wish.”

“George misses you terribly. Fortunately, Fred is there to take his mind off things. They have come up with some brilliant ideas for stuff. Although most of them are secret, they do fill me in on a few of them. You’d be proud.”

“Well hopefully one day I will be able to hear all of their ideas. Knowing them, they are brilliant. I just hope that I will get to see them take shape personally instead of passing by their first shop hand in hand with Draco.”

“Ew! Don’t think like that,” he said, making a face like someone set off a Dung Bomb under his nose. “Just picturing you with him makes me sick.”

“You aren’t the only one, trust me.”

“Well, I have to go,” he said, getting up from the table. “Have homework to do.”

Raven and Ron said their good nights and she couldn’t help but stare at him as he walked away. She wanted him and Harry to make up. It was miserable to watch the two bickering the way they were. She remembered the letter that he gave her and picked it up. It was addressed to her but couldn’t tell who it was from. She opened it and her mouth dropped. It was a letter from Lucius.

Dear Raven,

I am going to be in Hogsmeade the day of your first trip and
request that you join Draco and me at Hogs Head Inn for a chat. I do not
want to take up all of your time but I do request, also, that you not
decline. It would be most irresponsible of you to not accept my humble
invitation.

Lucius Malfoy

Words could not express how she was feeling at this moment. All she could do was roll her eyes and ask why she didn’t run away when she had the opportunity.

Instead of thinking about her dreaded Hogsmeade visit, she decided to drown herself in homework. Soon it was time for her to leave the library and head up to the common room. There were a few people awake and after they went to bed, she curled up on the couch with her History of Magic book and read. She had become master of the cat nap. Whenever she felt the urge to sleep, she would hold a small book off the edge of the couch or table. When she would hear the book drop, she would wake up. She would catch herself before she dreamed and would get in a wink or two so people would stop complaining. When the sun would start to come up, she would sneak upstairs and get ready for her day. Sometimes she would mess up her bed and when one of the other girls woke up, she would fix her bed like she slept in it so they wouldn’t ask her too many annoying questions.

Raven was blown away at how quickly the week went by. It was as though Lucius had control over the time. He had to have known that she was dreading this trip to Hogsmeade. She was even trying to upset Snape enough to make him give her detention so she wouldn’t have to go. Unsuccessful in her attempts, she had no choice but to go but not without a little flair.

She pulled out a pair of black pants and a white t-shirt of a muggle singer named John Lennon. She thought Lucius would appreciate it. Once she realized that it would be cold outside, she decided to put a long sleeve black shirt underneath the t-shirt. She wore her black boots and thought that her long, pirate-looking, black would compliment her outfit nicely. She needed some color though. She painted her fingernails blue and the few colored highlights in her hair were now matching the color of her nails. She went a little heavy on the make up to cover the dark circles and paleness of her face.

"Hey Hermione, how do I look?” she asked Hermione who was putting on her coat.

“Umm…you look like you?”

“I was going for a look that would tell a particular father that his son is not right for me. Do you think I'll succeed?”

“Well, I’m sure he’ll like the muggle on your shirt. But I’m not convinced he’ll back down.”

“Thanks!” Raven said putting on her coat and following Hermione to the common room.

After knowing Raven for the past year or so, Gryffindors knew that Raven was an odd dresser and decided a long time ago to not question her choice in fashion. Lately, some have actually like her clothes. Someone told her one day, “its better than the clothes my mom gets me.”

Raven made her way to the entrance hall and found Draco at the doors waiting on her. When he saw what she was wearing, he gave her a questionable look with one eyebrow raised and nose scrunched up. Confidently, she walked towards him and never got rid of her peculiar smile.

“Come, Draco. Let’s get this over with."

When they made it to Hogsmeade, it was quite busy with all of the Hogwarts students in town. The streets were so crowded she could barely walk through without hitting somebody. As they approached the Hogs Head Inn, she looked to see how far Draco was behind her. She desperately wanted to get this over with. Whatever Lucius had to say to her could not be good. Another thing she couldn’t understand is why he would want to meet her at Hogs Head Inn. That place was disgusting and smelly. It was so beneath him. She thought later that it was the perfect place for vermin like him to want to hang out.

Draco came up behind her and opened the door of the inn for her; she did not return a thank you when she barreled through looking for Lucius. She spotted him in a corner looking smug and confident as always. Walking toward him, she noticed that witches and wizards were looking at her quite strangely, nothing new to her. She liked being noticed, whether in a good or bad way. Lucius stood when he saw her and looked at her wardrobe with a disapproving glare.

“Miss Snape, how interesting you look, as always,” he said, pulling out a chair for her on his left side. “Wearing a shirt with a muggle on it wouldn’t be my first choice for you to wear, but I can’t fight your choice of attire. Choose your battles, is what I always say. Anyway, please have a seat.”

“Thanks,” she said, opting to sit on the other side of the table, just to tick Lucius off. For Raven, the annoyed look on his face at her first of many insults to come, was priceless. While she sat she gave him her confident, evil glare, and awaited the reasoning behind this date at her first outing of the year. She was appalled that this was how she was spending her trip but was willing to compromise if it didn’t take forever.

“You look tired and pale. Are you feeling alright?” he asked.

“Why am I here, Lucius? I have things I want to do before we go back.”

“You can stay with me for a while. We need to have a chat.”

“Well, get on with it!”

“There are a few things in which we need to discuss. Draco informed me that you do not want to switch houses. I would like to convince you otherwise.”

“Good luck trying. I am not switching houses, end of story. The sorting hat placed me in Gryffindor for a reason. I am not going to break that because you and your son want to keep better tabs on me.”

“See father, she has been this rude all year,” Draco said. “She won’t listen to me or take care of herself. She insists on fighting me on everything! I can‘t understand it.”

“Oh, don’t play stupid, Draco,” she said, clearly frustrated. “You know why! You remind me everyday. And of course I am not going to listen to you. You’re a moron.”

“Now, now,” said Lucius, interrupting the conversation before it got too carried away. “We do not need the callous words. Draco, she is clearly upset, we need to be understanding. Once and a while we need to remind her what her future will be. She will eventually give up her fight.”

“You are so full of -”

Lucius put his hand up quickly in front of her face. “That is not appropriate language for a beautiful girl such as yourself. Now, there is too much anger at this table. I will put an end to all of this now, once and for all.”

“You’re going to drop the contract and get this bloody ring off my finger?”

“I can’t do that, Miss Snape. Once again, you need to be reminded what your wonderful future will be.”

“And how are you going to do that?” Because anyway you look at it, my future will be filled with turmoil and grief if you succeed with this marriage plan of yours.”

“You forget, it was also your fathers. Do you want to go against your father’s wishes and absolve this contract?”

“Well, since my father wanted out, then yes, I do want to honor his wishes. I want out.”

“Why do you insist on disrespecting me?”

“Because you don’t have my respect, probably. I mean, there is nothing to respect when you are talking to a Death Eater.”

For a moment Raven thought that Lucius was going to explode. A wide-eyed and shocked Draco was leaning back in his chair trying to avoid being caught up in the attack.

“I am not a Death Eater!” he muttered under his breath. He realized now that people were starting to look over at their table. Angry and embarrassed, he straightened his black robes and messed with his long blonde hair. He took a deep breath and gave Raven an intense stare. “You might do well to have some discipline in your life. Since your father and now your uncle have decided not to teach you respect and let you say and have your way, you will need to be taught your place.”

“My place? My place?” Her eyes felt as though they were going to pop out and now the anger that she was trying to make Lucius feel was now burning hot inside of her. She erupted. “My place is in the arms of one person, George Weasley. My place is in Gryffindor. My place is away from here, away from you and completely away from your son! Now excuse me. The conversation has gone dry and the company is leaving a bad taste in my mouth. I would wish you good bye but I think good riddance is more appropriate.”

Raven, for a moment, felt proud of herself. There was a surge of excitement and power in her. All the strength that she had lost was now pulsing through her body in the form of vibrant energy. Nothing could touch her. When she walked out the door, she breathed in a huge gulp of frigid air. It felt refreshingly good. Deciding she wanted to relieve her sugar craving, she was heading to Honeydukes Sweetshop when her ring finger started to tingle. Not going to let it bother her, she kept walking. The further she got from the inn, the more the pain increased. Her regained strength was now depleted and she had to stop to sit on a nearby bench. The chill outside was starting to go to the bone and she just wanted to leave, but was unsure how she was going to get back to Hogwarts. Her legs were tired and she felt as though she couldn’t walk another step today.

Hermione walked over to Raven and sat down. “I can tell by your exhausted posture that your meeting with Lucius went well.”

“Oh! We had a wonderful time!” Raven smiled. “We exchanged knitting patterns and hair straightening techniques. It was most delightful.”

Hermione laughed. “You really have a way with words. Sarcasm suits you. You’d be really boring without it.”

“Someone has to be real. I’m not saying they have to be smart but they have to be real.”

“I guess that’s true.” Hermione’s smile faded. “So? I take it Lucius isn’t bowing out.”

Raven looked down and rubbed her hand. “Did you know he had the audacity to ask me to switch houses? Again?” Raven stood up. Raven started to feel angry again but quickly cooled. “I’m getting out of this Hermione. I’m getting out and when I do, things are going to change. I’m not going to be the same person. I will be affected.”

“Will this change be good or bad?”

Raven took a few steps away. She turned around to face her friend. Her expression said nothing. The intensity of her eyes gave an unhappy reflection. Whether or not this was the answer to Hermione’s question, it only gave one response: Prepare for the worst.

Chapter 26