they were just kids [draco malfoy]

Year 4 - 44

"This is outrageous!"

Astrid smacked the D.A.D.A. book she was carrying against the nearest wall gaining a few glances her way.

Mike Hallminster who was walking next to her chuckled lightly. 

"I can't believe it," the girl clutched the book closer to her chest then looked at the boy with a deep whiny frown. "Can you believe it?"

Astrid certainly couldn't.

The boy had walked up to her after breakfast for a little chitchat and as they had slowly walked to class he had uncovered to the girl that Quidditch had been cancelled for the year. Astrid was beyond devastated about the news. It was the fourth year after all... the year Flint had gone and graduated. The year she had been dreaming of ever since she first got on the team. The first year she would get a real chance to play as a regular and not some wimpy reserve.

Yet they had to go and cancel the sport altogether.

"McGonagall told us it's because something more important will be happening in the school, though she refused to tell us what it was. Lizabeth, a girl from my year-"

"Who?"

"Lizabeth Morgan, you know."

Astrid looked at him thoughtfully, trying to remember who he was talking about.

"Short brown hair. Dating Pucey."

"Pucey?" Astrid exclaimed her eyes wide.

"Yeah, why?"

"Oh nothing, forget it," secretly Astrid had hoped some big drama could turn out of the Adrian-snogging-Bletchley's-little-sister thing but apparently the bloke had moved on. She wondered what had happened in order for the relationship to break as she recalled joking to the boy towards the end of the previous year that she might just have to use the same method of persuasion to secure her a spot in the Hufflepuff game. The couple had still been on good terms then. "What were you saying?"

"Oh. Eh, Liz told me her parents kept talking about some kind of tournament."

"Tournament," Astrid scoffed; back to her bitter mood.

They were nearing Astrid's classroom as well as the time until classes started was running out.

"I'm sure it's not going to be that bad."

"If next year they cancel quidditch again, or worse, place Malfoy as the captain, I swear to all the Gods out there," she shook her head slowly. The year hadn't started out on a particularly good note and she desperately hoped it would get better.

They now stood right out the door to her classroom and Astrid could see the figure of their new professor sitting at the far end of the classroom, watching the students with his chilling glassy eye. She saw the professor's eye lock on her standing outside and she hastily looked away. 

She had no intention of in any way provoking the man who was known to be an ex Auror. Or the intention of even being noticed by him. 

Astrid knew she hadn't done anything wrong, but the way the professor looked upon everyone - inspecting, scrutinizing - she felt he would somehow, with that odd eye of his, look right through her and find out something she didn't even know was there. It felt like a constant feeling of the dread you feel when your parents tell you that they have to talk to you about something. You know you haven't done anything, but suddenly you're fearing you might have. 

And not only did he have that all-knowing look to him, he also was an ex Auror. And Aurors unlike parents actually had the power to send you to Azkaban, which made it all the worse. Dementors were surely a fear of hers. But to be locked up in a small cell with nothing but them as your roomies was downright terrifying.