The Forgotten 7th Year

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If POV's that aren't from the silver trio get annoying, tell me and they'll stop.

Also, I'd been having a bad week the last I wrote a chapter, and that was why they ended up so sad. But I have no excuse for this one, it's been planned for awhile.

Hannah's POV

The next day was Defense Against the Dark Arts. Which of course, meant Amycus. And it was with the Slytherins. Which of course, meant no Neville.

I considered skipping, but he'd just give me detention and that'd be a hundred times worse.

My gut twisted. I felt sick. I had to clench my fist to stop my fingers from trembling.

I'd known this was coming. I had this class with the Slytherins every other week.

But when I'd taken this class before, I'd been the innocent one in all this. The only times I hurt him were purely in self-defense.

But when I'd raised my wand against him, when I uttered that horrid curse, I'd painted a target on my back.

Amycus now had a vendetta against me.

"What's wrong?" Susan rounded the corner.

"Nothing."

"Liar." She put her hands on her hips.

With a sigh, I relented and pointed to it on my schedule. It took effort to keep my hand steady.

"Oh. And you think because of your detention..."

"Not entirely." She waited for me to finish. I didn't.

"Ok, don't tell me. But tell me this, Do you want me to beat his ass for you?"

She paused a moment. "I couldn't do it alone, but if we got Ernie and Rolf, and I think even Zaharias would probably help. And in other houses, literally the entire DA, and even some people outside it."

"No, it's fine."

"No, it's not."

"It's not." I sighed. "It's not fair for him to be able to storm in and... and have his way with me." My chest felt tight. "It's not fair for them to hurt us. It's not fair that we're in their power, that they can do what to us and we can't raise a hand in self defense with even a hope of success." I closed my eyes. It was a moment before I could continue.

"We're useless. Our childish pranks only give them sadistic opportunities. We aren't helping anyone with this, least of all ourselves... would it... would it really be so bad if we stopped fighting back?"

She didn't respond.

"I need to get to class."

"Hannah-."

"I know what I said, and I'm I'm not sorry."

***

I stepped into class, and an involuntary shudder coursed through me. I was one of the last there, and Amycus looked up from a paper he'd been grading. He was two months behind in our assignments, and most people, (myself included), only did his assignments out of fear.

His expression stayed completely neutral, though his eyes looked me up and down.

My fingers started shaking. It was subtle, but I had no doubt he noticed. I was pinned under his gaze like a worm stuck squirming on a hook.

"Take a seat, Ms. Abbott." He smiled, almost, almost normally, but it made my skin crawl nonetheless. Everything made my skin crawl.

I sat.

My fingers drummed on the desk's top. They felt the smooth wood's parallel grain. It was a good desktop: well made and sturdy. I don't know why I appreciated this.

"Now, I meant to do this every Friday, but, well, I forgot. And it's so much more fun to surprise you with it." He waved his wand and papers flew off his desk to each of ours.

"Write down your votes. You know the drill. Loser gets detention. If you don't vote, you get a detention too." His eyes lingered on Sally-Anne far longer than was subtle.

My hands were still trembling. Like a pathetic little leaf.

Goyle and Crabbe looked gleeful as they scribbled down some poor student's name. Sally-Anne slowly picked up her pen between thumb and forefinger. She eyed it like one would a poisonous viper: poised to strike.

With trembling strokes, I penned down the name.

Draco Malfoy

I wouldn't feel bad if that git got what's coming to him. But of course he wouldn't. That's just not how the world works.

My paper flew to the mahogany teacher's desk. I refused to call it his desk.

I watched Amycus count the votes. He sorted them into piles, then, with the eyes of the whole class fixed on him, pushed the biggest pile into the wastepaper basket. He then plucked a vote off the next biggest pile, and read it aloud.

"Sally-Anne Perks."

I saw red.

No! He can't just do that! He has no right! I wanted to scream at him, to punch that leering smirk right off his lopsided face.

Calm. Loosing your temper won't help anything. What you need to do now is be calm.

I breathed in. Then out. In. Out. In. Out. With each inhale I thought of a curse I would use on him. With each exhale I imagined punching him.

I'm totally calm. All I want to do is bash his head in. With this conveniently solid desktop.

You're acting emotionally unstable.

Of course I am! What did you expect!? Sunshine and rainbows and birds singing in five part harmony? Of course I'm volatile when he's looking at us like... like that.

"Is something wrong, Ms. Abbott?" He fought a smirk.

No, I just want to be the cause of a hairline fracture in your skull that lets your nonexistent brain ooze out over the floor.

"No."

"No, Sir." He corrected.

I briefly considered pulling a Harry, but my detention would be so much worse then missing a Quidditch final. And it was the appropriate way to address Hogwarts professors. But... but we both knew this was different than mere protocol.

"No, sir." I refused to meet his eyes. My stomach revolted and I choked back bile.

"I thought not. Now, today's lesson is on Fiendfire. The incantation is Maledictus Ignis. It conjures-."

I zoned out: humiliation and self loathing screaming at me and my spineless cowardice.

I counted the seconds until class was over, and hastily shoved my books into my bag sprinted for the door.

"Ms. Abbott. Please stay a little later. We need to talk about your most recent test." He stood from his desk as the rest of the class drained like water through a grate out of the the room.

I froze.

He walked over to me.

"You're currently failing this class, unless you can find a way to earn some extra credit. And. I'm certainly open for suggestions." I stepped back. He stepped closer.

Something snapped.

"Pertrificus Totalus."

And I left. Just like that.