✓ | RECKLESS AND BRAVE | Draco Malfoy

49 | WHELVE

WHELVE
(v.) to bury something deep; to hide

TESSA WAS PRETTY UPSET WHEN SHE HEARD FROM HARRY ABOUT WHAT HAD HAPPENED LAST NIGHT WITH SEAMUS. She was frowning when Harry walked with her in the common room along with Dean, Neville, and Ron.

     "Does he think he'll turn into a nutter if he stays in a room with me too long?" Harry mumbled.

     "Don't worry about it, Harry," Dean muttered, hoisting his schoolbag onto his shoulder. "He's just . . ." But even he didn't have any excuse for his best friend.

     Neville gave him an apologetic look before he and Dean went out, leaving Ron, Tessa, and Harry meeting Hermione as they made their way toward the portrait.

     "What's the matter?" Hermione asked, taking a quick glance at Harry's troubled face. "You look absolutely — oh for heaven's sake."

     Tessa turned to where Hermione was crying exasperatedly at, and found a new sign at the common room notice board.

GALLONS OF GALLEONS!
Pocket money failing to keep pace with your outgoings? Like to earn a little extra gold?
Contact Fred and George Weasley, Gryffindor common room, for simple, part-time, virtually painless jobs
(WE REGRET THAT ALL WORK IS UNDERTAKEN AT APPLICANT'S OWN RISK)

     "They are the limit," Hermione said grimly, taking down the poster.

     "It's all good fun, Mione," Tessa said, defending the twins. "There's nothing wrong with it."

     Hermione sent her a look but said, "We'll have to talk to them, Ron."

     Ron looked alarmed. "Why?"

     "Because we're prefects!" Hermione said as they climbed out the portrait hole. "It's up to us to stop this kind of thing! Anyway, what's up, Harry? You look really angry about something."

     "Seamus — that's what happened," Tessa grumbled as Ron nodded and added, "Seamus reckons Harry's lying about You-Know-Who."

     Hermione sighed. "Yes, Lavender thinks so too."

     Tessa raised an eyebrow. "When did she say that?"

     She flushed. "You were asleep already when I talked to her about it."

     "Been having a nice little chat with her about whether or not I'm a lying, attention-seeking prat, have you?" Harry said loudly.

     "No, I told her to keep her big fat mouth shut about you, actually. And it would be quite nice if you stopped jumping down Ron's and my throats, Harry, because if you haven't noticed, we're on your side."

     Harry was quiet, and Tessa reached over to give his hand a comforting squeeze. "Sorry," he said in a low voice.

     "That's quite all right," Hermione said before remembering something, "Don't you remember what Dumbledore said at the end-of-term feast last year?"

     The three of them blankly stared at Hermione.

     "About You-Know-Who. He said — 'His gift for spreading discord and enmity is very great. We can fight it only by showing an equally strong bond of friendship and trust — "

     "How do you remember stuff like that?" Ron's mouth hung open.

     "I listen, Ron."

     "Tessa has photographic memory, why can't she remember that?"

     Tessa shook her head at him. "I remember images and things I see, Ron. Not so much on the hearing."