November Snow

t w o

"... I booked the pitch for Gryffindor today."

I had a free period, but instead of staying inside and reading books, I would love to have some fresh air. So I walked to the Quidditch pitch, wanting to watch something good. And there was something, though I wouldn't say if it was good or bad. The Gryffindor and Slytherin quidditch players were arguing over the pitch for practice, and I stood at the back to listen.

"Easy, Wood. I've got a note." Marcus Flint said.

You see, after a few days at Hogwarts and making loads of new friends in different houses, I came to know most of the students' names, to my surprise. There were Marcus Flint, captain of the Slytherin team, and Oliver Wood, captain of the Gryffindor team. My house team vs the-house-where-most-of-my-friends-were-in team. I shouldn't intervene, huh?

"I, Professor Severus Snape, do hereby give the Slytherin team permission to practice today, owing to the need to train our new seeker." Wood read the note he snatched from Flint's hand and looked up "You've got a new seeker? Who?"

I should have guessed. If Potter was in the Gryffindor team, only one person would be so enthusiastic to join the rival team and that was Malfoy. And I didn't know if I want to cheer for the Slytherin team anymore when they had the arrogant Malfoy boy in the team.

"Draco?" And Potter seemed so surprised.

"That's right." Malfoy said "And that's not all that's new this year..."

As soon as the arrogant boy mentioned that, the other six members of the team held out their new broomsticks, and the Gryffindors looked so stunned. Those were Nimbus 2001s, brand new and expensive broomsticks that were just launched in market not long ago.

"A generous gift from Draco's father." Flint said.

Okay, so I could now assume that Draco was not an arrogant kid. He was an arrogant rich kid. And his father, Lucius Malfoy made it worse.

You see, before the Averies' tragedy, the Malfoys always had to bow in front of us. We were a rich, powerful and ancient family of all Slytherins. That was until tragedies happened: my grandparents were killed by the Dark Lord, my mother's siblings were killed by Death Eaters, one by one, and lastly, my mother died in a tragic fire. Before the Malfoy boy was born, his family started stepping up and took our place. That was why he didn't know anything about the Averies. And I didn't wish him to find out either.

"At least no one on the Gryffindor team had to buy their way in." Hermione stood up for Weasley when he was insulted by Malfoy "They got in on pure talent."

"No one asked for your opinion, you filthy little Mudblood." Malfoy spat.

Well that was it, I wasn't going to stand out of the fight any longer. I marched towards the group at the same time as Fred and George lunged at Malfoy's throat, but lucky him, strangling someone was still illegal and Wood was able to stop the two of them.

"You'll pay for that one, Malfoy!" Weasley was angry enough and whipped out his wand "Eat slugs!"

He pointed his wand at Malfoy, but I could see that the wand was broken and recklessly mended with tape, and I could predict what would happen. Whatever spell he wanted to put on Malfoy backfired and a green bolt of light hit him square in the stomach, sending him backwards and landed on the grassy field. Hermione ran to him, I picked up my pace just to witness a slug dribbled out of his mouth. Ew.

"You shouldn't have used your wand when it's broken, Weasley." I approached him.

He looked up at me, obviously didn't know who I was, and opened his mouth to say something, but another slug dribbled out of his mouth as soon as his lips parted. Again, ew. The Slytherins laughed loudly, angered the ginger boy. He tried to stand up but the third slug slipped out of his mouth, making the Slytherins roar in laughter. And it was my turn to get irritated.

"Will you just stop?" I hissed.

"No one asked you to open your mouth either, Mudblood." Malfoy smirked.

"If it's so important to you, then let me tell you something." I stood up, fuming with anger "I am a freaking pure-blood, and you're pathetic."

I turned around to check out on Weasley, who had thrown up the fifth slug. Hermione's face grimaced at the disgusting sight.

"We'll have to take him to Madam Pomfrey or Hagrid, Hermione." I told her.

"Wow." A first-year, just like me, ran up with a camera and an enthusiastic face "Can you hold him still, Harry?"

"You kidding me?" I half grunting, half yelling at the boy.

"Get out of the way, Colin." Potter pushed him aside and spoke to Hermione "Let's take him to Hagrid. He'll know what to do."

They helped Weasley walked away and I picked up his wand before following them. It was a long trip, since Weasley kept spitting slugs every three steps of the way and Hermione seriously looked like she was going to throw up any minute now. Potter was struggling too, judging by the difference in the two boys' heights and all the slugs getting in their path.

I ran up and knocked on Hagrid's door as soon as we got to his front porch, he opened it just few seconds later looking at me with his questioning eyes. I pointed to the trio behind me and he let us in immediately.

"Got just the thing. Set him down on that chair over there." He began searching his small place for something as Potter and Hermione sit him down.

The gamekeeper's cottage wasn't the tidiest place in the whole wide world, with all types of trunks and bottles, spider webs and things I didn't know what they were. But it was cozy, much cozier than the Slytherin common room. The dirty looks they gave me already sent chills down my spine, let alone the green common room with not much light.

I looked back and Hagrid pitched a bucket in between Weasley's knees. We all looked at him, questioning his action. I recalled he said he had something, and I didn't think it was a freaking bucket.

"Better out than in." Hagrid shrugged "Who was he trying to curse anyway?"

"Malfoy." Potter said "He called Hermione, well, I don't know exactly what it means..."

"He called me a Mudblood." Hermione said quietly, still upset about that.

"He didn't!" Hagrid exclaimed. But the pained look on her face told him otherwise.

"It means dirty blood." Hermione explained "Mudblood's a really foul name for someone who was Muggle-born. Someone with non-magic parents. Someone... Like me!"

"Also used for quarter-bloods, half-bloods, three-quarter-bloods, basically anyone who is not a pure-blood." I said, crossing my arms and leaning against the wall as four pairs of eyes looked at me "It's not a term one usually hears in civilized conversations."

"And you are?" Potter asked.

"November Avery, first year." I told him "Friend of Hermione."

"Ah Averies." Hagrid said "Your family are respectable people."

"So I have heard." I nodded "We don't really value blood."

"You see, Harry." Hagrid said "There are some wizards, like Malfoy's family, who think they're better than anyone else cause they are what people call pure-blood."

"And most of the time they are Slytherins." I added.

"That's horrible." Potter said.

"It's disgusting." Weasley said as a slug escaped his mouth.

"You should've thought carefully before using your broken wand, Weasley." I told him and earned a glare, but I didn't really care "Especially when you fixed it with tape."

"And it's codswallop to boot. Dirty blood. There's hardly a wizard today that's not half-blood or less. If we hadn't married Muggles, we would've died out long ago. Besides, they haven't invented a spell our Hermione can't do." Hagrid took her shoulder and she smiled sadly, but appreciated it "Don't you think on it, Hermione. Don't you think on it for a minute."