(HOGWARTS MYSTERY) Janelle Morgan -- Year 1: The Forbidden Corridor

Chapter 15: Victory of the Lions

As I entered the Great Hall, I decided to have some fun with Rowan. As I was looking for her at the Gryffindor Table, I put on the most believable sad face I could muster.

Merula must have noticed my fake sad face and believed it was legit, because when she saw me, she yelled to me across from the Slytherin Table, "Hey, Morgan! I heard you got ousted by Dumbledore. I wouldn't be surprised if he expelled you, just like your freak brother. Family trait, am I right?" She then laughed along with other nearby Slytherins, but I paid her no further attention, knowing she was wrong about everything she said.

"Hey, guys," I said in a mock-glum tone as I sat with Rowan and Ben.

"Oh, hey, Jane!" Rowan answered. "Ben and I were just talking about you. I hope you don't mind that I told Penny Haywood everything that happened inside that room. Of course she's not going to tell anyone else, or at least I hope she doesn't. The whole school already seems to know what happened; at least that there is cursed ice in Hogwarts. I don't think it was Penny's fault, though."

"Are you alright, Jane?" Ben asked in a concerned tone, noticing my fake sad face. "You seem a bit...upset. Did I get you in trouble?"

"No, Ben, it wasn't you," I said, shaking my head.

"How'd it go with Dumbledore?" Rowan asked with equal concern. "He didn't expel you, did he?" Seeing that my face hadn't changed (and, honestly, I was struggling not to change it at this point, as I was struggling to hold back my laughter), she said with dread in her voice, "Oh god, he did expel you! Don't worry; I'll hex him after the Feast. He has to let you stay!"

"Rowan, it's okay," I said with a small chuckle, evidently failing to hold it back any longer.

"No, it's not okay!" Rowan said insistently, making me chuckle more. "How am I supposed to survive next year without my bestie?"

"Guys, it's okay," I said, putting my hands up defensively. "You want to know what Dumbledore said?" Everyone nodded, eager to hear. "He said..." I then paused for dramatic effect, purposefully putting everyone on tenterhooks. "...that despite making many mistakes this year, I have 'demonstrated bravery, compassion, and resourcefulness', and that I 'show great promise' in the years to come. You know what that means?"

"That you're staying an extra year?" Ben said excitedly.

I shook my head. "He said 'years,' plural—as in, for the next six years!"

"Oh my god!" Rowan said, equally shocked. "That's excellent!"

"Amazing!" Ben added.

"Oh, I'm so glad you weren't expelled," Rowan sighed in relief, reaching over the table, and hugging me. Ben nodded in agreement. "What else did Dumbledore say? Did he say anything about the ice, or the Vaults?"

"No, he didn't," I shook my head somewhat troublingly. "I only asked about my vision, but he didn't really say anything about that either."

"Vision?" Ben asked, puzzled.

I then nodded to Rowan, allowing her to explain everything to Ben. "Yeah," she said quietly to him. "Jane has been having these weird dreams and visions about a walking suit of armor, and something about a staircase surrounded by mist..."

"And the ice," I added.

Rowan nodded. "Oh, yeah, and the cursed ice, which was what we saw in that room, remember?"

Ben nodded, remembering. "God, that was terrifying. I thought we were going to freeze to death."

"And there were ancient runes written in the ice," Rowan reminded him.