Cherish Forever
Number Eleven
Piper took each step, two-by-two, to speed things along to get to their next class. Hermione was right at her side, demanding to be told exactly what Piper had meant when she said she thought Mr. Malfoy was here on more than just Ministry business. Harry and Ron were right alongside her.
"Alright! Will you all just shut it! You want to know what I meant by that?" She asked, slightly exasperated. The others nodded, eager to know. "I'm actually quite surprised not any of you have figured out that something very strange is going on here."
"What are you talking about?" Hermione questioned, looking slightly indignant. She didn't look too pleased about not having figured something out first.
'Well, isn't Lucius Malfoy supposed to be in Azkaban?" Piper whispered fiercely, so as not to be overheard by any passersby. Realization suddenly appeared in all three of their faces. Harry had a look of pure loathing on his face (which reminded Piper somewhat of Snape) and was about to say something, but Piper put a hand up and said: "Not here, not now. We don't know who could be listening. Besides, we're going to be late for Charms."
***
Piper knew it must have been torture for the three of them (she knew, because she felt it herself) to wait until the day was over to talk about Lucius Malfoy. Harry had tried to talk about it at lunch, but Piper had silenced him with a wave of her hand. When they sat down for dinner, Harry was watching Piper very closely, but Piper didn't seem to notice, because she was too busy stealing glances at Snape and Lucius Malfoy every-so-often. Snape had stolen a look at her at least twice, but now the two men were both in deep conversation, and at the same time, both turned and locked eyes with Piper. She quickly averted her gaze, but not fast enough to stop the shivers that crawled up her spine. As soon as she had eaten the last bite of her meal and set her fork down, Harry pounced on her immediately and practically dragged her out of the Great Hall, with Ron and Hermione at their heels.
"Okay, Piper, now can we talk about this?" Harry whispered, while checking to make sure they hadn't been followed. They four of them were standing out underneath the archway heading towards the courtyard.
"Yes, for Merlin's sakes we can talk about it now," Piper sighed.
"So, what is Mr. Malfoy doing out of Azkaban? The Ministry must know by now that You-Know-Who is back, and the Malfoys are some of his biggest supporters!' Ron cried out, which earned him a smack on the head from Piper, which Ron took as a signal to lower his voice.
'Well, something is definitely wrong with this picture. What I really want to know," Hermione stated with a hushed whisper, "is how he got out of Azkaban. I mean, Scrimgeour is the new Minister for Magic, right?"
"And something tells me that Scrimgeour isn't a push-over like Fudge was. I don't think Malfoy would've been able to buy his way out of Azkaban," Harry said with disgust.
"Maybe he got to Fudge before Scrimgeour was made Minister. He probably offered some bloody insane amount of money for the Ministry, and Fudge let him off the hook, without the press or anyone else knowing about it," Piper mused.
"Well, one thing is for sure," Harry stated with a grim determination in his eyes, "We need to keep a watchful on Malfoy, and on everyone else. Voldemort's back, and we don't know who we can trust."
Piper, Ron and Hermione nodded in agreement, and headed back for the Gryffindor common room. They headed into the hallways just as everyone was exiting the Great Hall. The four Gryffindors joined in the crowd. They didn't say much as they entered the common room. They plopped themselves down onto an available couch, at a loss for something to entertain themselves. Fred and George Weasley had left a year earlier, so no form of practical joke was to be seen. Piper missed the twins. They had been good friends, and quite frankly, there was always something to do when they were around.
"Piper, I'm going up to the dorm to get my book bag to start our homework. Do you want me to grab yours as well?" Hermione's voice cut through silence, making Piper flinch.
'Yeah, that'd be great, Hermione. Thanks," Piper replied, shooting Hermione a warm smile before she turned to walk up the stairs. Once again, the silence continued. Normally, Piper didn't mind silence, but this silence was more morbid than she would have liked. Harry, who was sitting on the opposite end of the couch, had a grim look set on his generally friendly face and Piper knew that Sirius was not the only thing on his mind anymore, thanks to Lucius Malfoy. However, if it got his mind off Sirius, Piper welcomed the thought of Lucius Malfoy with open arms, even though she never thought she would be thinking anything along those lines.
She glanced over at Ron, who had a very sour expression on his face and he glared at something across the room. Piper turned to see what he was looking at, and saw Dean Thomas tangled up in the arms of Ron's pretty, red-headed sister, Ginny. Piper smiled a little, knowing that Ron couldn't stand any of the boy's Ginny dated, even if they were one of his mates. However, the smile slowly faded when she continued to stare at the couple, wishing that was her on the couch. Not, with Dean, obviously, but with someone else... The image of Professor Snape's face flashed through her mind, but she quickly shook it out. She did this for three reasons: 1) Snape was a teacher, 2) Because he was a teacher, nothing could ever happen between them because he would get fired and she would probably be expelled and 3) Her friends, worst of all Harry, would probably think she was mental and probably never speak to her again. Piper decided to push the thought out of her mind, and what better way than to make a little mischief?
"Oi, Ron! Don't you know it's rude to stare?" Piper shouted at Ron, who blinked, and turned away from the couple snogging on the couch, but not quick enough, because Ginny picked up on what Piper had meant, because she sent a death glare Ron's way.
"Something interesting over here, Ron? Or have you never seen a couple snog before? Or just trying to pick up some tips for the first time that you actually snog a girl?" Ginny smirked, as the common room erupted into giggles. Piper's eyes went wide and she let out a quick laugh, until Ron shot her a look, and she quickly covered her mouth to stifle her laughter.
"Just because I don't snog people in public, Ginevra," Ron sneered "doesn't mean I haven't." Ginny's eyes grew wide with anger, and she got up from where she sat and marched over in front of Ron, eyes flaring with her hands on her hips.
"Don't 'Ginevra' me, Ronald. You just can't except the fact that I date any boys at Hogwarts, can you? Well, for your information, you git, I don't need your permission to date anybody, and I also don't need your permission to snog in public," came Ginny's menacing reply. Ron looked at Piper, who he knew was the cause of all this. Piper merely winked at him mischievously, which was all she could do because she was still trying to stifle her laughter. Ron stood up.
"Well, maybe you should get my permission, because this makes you look like a little s-" but before he could finish, Ginny slapped him across the face. Hard.
"Makes me look like a what, Ron? Come on, say it!" Ginny was almost screaming at this point. Piper stood up quickly and practically threw herself between the two Weasleys.
"Can't we all just get along?" Piper said weakly, knowing it was pathetic attempt on her part, because this was something that Ron and Ginny would never agree on. By this time, Dean had also gotten off the couch, came over, and put his arm around Ginny's waist.
"You better watch what you're saying to my girlfriend, Ron," Dean said, trying to sound tough.
"And you better watch where you're putting your hands on my sister!" Ron roared, which snapped Harry out his daydreams and he scrambled over to be at Ron's side. At the same time, Hermione came down the stairs, two book bags strewn across her shoulders.
"Ron, please tell me your not at this again," Hermione asked wearily, putting and emphasis on the word again. Ron just glared at Dean and Ginny, and stormed up to the boy's dormitories, followed by Harry who muttered 'good night' to Piper and Hermione as he passed. Ginny and Dean returned to the couch, where their lips immediately found eachother's once again.
"What happened?" Hermione asked Piper.
Piper just shrugged, with an innocent smile on her face and merely said: "I was bored."
"You really need to get yourself a hobby, Piper," Hermione told her friend good-naturedly.
Piper laughed and flicked Hermione in the arm. She grabbed her book bag that Hermione had left on the chair, and pulled all of her homework out of it. She picked up her quill, dipped it in ink, when she suddenly sighed and said, "You know what? I don't even feel like doing my homework anymore." Hermione stared at her as she put everything back into her book bag.
"But that homework for Snape is due tomorrow!" She cried.
"So?" came the only reply from Piper as she headed up the stairs.
"Piper Cherish Austin!"
"Goodnight Hermione!" Piper chuckled as she walked into her room, and shut the door.
"Alright! Will you all just shut it! You want to know what I meant by that?" She asked, slightly exasperated. The others nodded, eager to know. "I'm actually quite surprised not any of you have figured out that something very strange is going on here."
"What are you talking about?" Hermione questioned, looking slightly indignant. She didn't look too pleased about not having figured something out first.
'Well, isn't Lucius Malfoy supposed to be in Azkaban?" Piper whispered fiercely, so as not to be overheard by any passersby. Realization suddenly appeared in all three of their faces. Harry had a look of pure loathing on his face (which reminded Piper somewhat of Snape) and was about to say something, but Piper put a hand up and said: "Not here, not now. We don't know who could be listening. Besides, we're going to be late for Charms."
***
Piper knew it must have been torture for the three of them (she knew, because she felt it herself) to wait until the day was over to talk about Lucius Malfoy. Harry had tried to talk about it at lunch, but Piper had silenced him with a wave of her hand. When they sat down for dinner, Harry was watching Piper very closely, but Piper didn't seem to notice, because she was too busy stealing glances at Snape and Lucius Malfoy every-so-often. Snape had stolen a look at her at least twice, but now the two men were both in deep conversation, and at the same time, both turned and locked eyes with Piper. She quickly averted her gaze, but not fast enough to stop the shivers that crawled up her spine. As soon as she had eaten the last bite of her meal and set her fork down, Harry pounced on her immediately and practically dragged her out of the Great Hall, with Ron and Hermione at their heels.
"Okay, Piper, now can we talk about this?" Harry whispered, while checking to make sure they hadn't been followed. They four of them were standing out underneath the archway heading towards the courtyard.
"Yes, for Merlin's sakes we can talk about it now," Piper sighed.
"So, what is Mr. Malfoy doing out of Azkaban? The Ministry must know by now that You-Know-Who is back, and the Malfoys are some of his biggest supporters!' Ron cried out, which earned him a smack on the head from Piper, which Ron took as a signal to lower his voice.
'Well, something is definitely wrong with this picture. What I really want to know," Hermione stated with a hushed whisper, "is how he got out of Azkaban. I mean, Scrimgeour is the new Minister for Magic, right?"
"And something tells me that Scrimgeour isn't a push-over like Fudge was. I don't think Malfoy would've been able to buy his way out of Azkaban," Harry said with disgust.
"Maybe he got to Fudge before Scrimgeour was made Minister. He probably offered some bloody insane amount of money for the Ministry, and Fudge let him off the hook, without the press or anyone else knowing about it," Piper mused.
"Well, one thing is for sure," Harry stated with a grim determination in his eyes, "We need to keep a watchful on Malfoy, and on everyone else. Voldemort's back, and we don't know who we can trust."
Piper, Ron and Hermione nodded in agreement, and headed back for the Gryffindor common room. They headed into the hallways just as everyone was exiting the Great Hall. The four Gryffindors joined in the crowd. They didn't say much as they entered the common room. They plopped themselves down onto an available couch, at a loss for something to entertain themselves. Fred and George Weasley had left a year earlier, so no form of practical joke was to be seen. Piper missed the twins. They had been good friends, and quite frankly, there was always something to do when they were around.
"Piper, I'm going up to the dorm to get my book bag to start our homework. Do you want me to grab yours as well?" Hermione's voice cut through silence, making Piper flinch.
'Yeah, that'd be great, Hermione. Thanks," Piper replied, shooting Hermione a warm smile before she turned to walk up the stairs. Once again, the silence continued. Normally, Piper didn't mind silence, but this silence was more morbid than she would have liked. Harry, who was sitting on the opposite end of the couch, had a grim look set on his generally friendly face and Piper knew that Sirius was not the only thing on his mind anymore, thanks to Lucius Malfoy. However, if it got his mind off Sirius, Piper welcomed the thought of Lucius Malfoy with open arms, even though she never thought she would be thinking anything along those lines.
She glanced over at Ron, who had a very sour expression on his face and he glared at something across the room. Piper turned to see what he was looking at, and saw Dean Thomas tangled up in the arms of Ron's pretty, red-headed sister, Ginny. Piper smiled a little, knowing that Ron couldn't stand any of the boy's Ginny dated, even if they were one of his mates. However, the smile slowly faded when she continued to stare at the couple, wishing that was her on the couch. Not, with Dean, obviously, but with someone else... The image of Professor Snape's face flashed through her mind, but she quickly shook it out. She did this for three reasons: 1) Snape was a teacher, 2) Because he was a teacher, nothing could ever happen between them because he would get fired and she would probably be expelled and 3) Her friends, worst of all Harry, would probably think she was mental and probably never speak to her again. Piper decided to push the thought out of her mind, and what better way than to make a little mischief?
"Oi, Ron! Don't you know it's rude to stare?" Piper shouted at Ron, who blinked, and turned away from the couple snogging on the couch, but not quick enough, because Ginny picked up on what Piper had meant, because she sent a death glare Ron's way.
"Something interesting over here, Ron? Or have you never seen a couple snog before? Or just trying to pick up some tips for the first time that you actually snog a girl?" Ginny smirked, as the common room erupted into giggles. Piper's eyes went wide and she let out a quick laugh, until Ron shot her a look, and she quickly covered her mouth to stifle her laughter.
"Just because I don't snog people in public, Ginevra," Ron sneered "doesn't mean I haven't." Ginny's eyes grew wide with anger, and she got up from where she sat and marched over in front of Ron, eyes flaring with her hands on her hips.
"Don't 'Ginevra' me, Ronald. You just can't except the fact that I date any boys at Hogwarts, can you? Well, for your information, you git, I don't need your permission to date anybody, and I also don't need your permission to snog in public," came Ginny's menacing reply. Ron looked at Piper, who he knew was the cause of all this. Piper merely winked at him mischievously, which was all she could do because she was still trying to stifle her laughter. Ron stood up.
"Well, maybe you should get my permission, because this makes you look like a little s-" but before he could finish, Ginny slapped him across the face. Hard.
"Makes me look like a what, Ron? Come on, say it!" Ginny was almost screaming at this point. Piper stood up quickly and practically threw herself between the two Weasleys.
"Can't we all just get along?" Piper said weakly, knowing it was pathetic attempt on her part, because this was something that Ron and Ginny would never agree on. By this time, Dean had also gotten off the couch, came over, and put his arm around Ginny's waist.
"You better watch what you're saying to my girlfriend, Ron," Dean said, trying to sound tough.
"And you better watch where you're putting your hands on my sister!" Ron roared, which snapped Harry out his daydreams and he scrambled over to be at Ron's side. At the same time, Hermione came down the stairs, two book bags strewn across her shoulders.
"Ron, please tell me your not at this again," Hermione asked wearily, putting and emphasis on the word again. Ron just glared at Dean and Ginny, and stormed up to the boy's dormitories, followed by Harry who muttered 'good night' to Piper and Hermione as he passed. Ginny and Dean returned to the couch, where their lips immediately found eachother's once again.
"What happened?" Hermione asked Piper.
Piper just shrugged, with an innocent smile on her face and merely said: "I was bored."
"You really need to get yourself a hobby, Piper," Hermione told her friend good-naturedly.
Piper laughed and flicked Hermione in the arm. She grabbed her book bag that Hermione had left on the chair, and pulled all of her homework out of it. She picked up her quill, dipped it in ink, when she suddenly sighed and said, "You know what? I don't even feel like doing my homework anymore." Hermione stared at her as she put everything back into her book bag.
"But that homework for Snape is due tomorrow!" She cried.
"So?" came the only reply from Piper as she headed up the stairs.
"Piper Cherish Austin!"
"Goodnight Hermione!" Piper chuckled as she walked into her room, and shut the door.