Protection In The Dungeons

Detention

I walked out of Defense Against The Dark Arts around 2:45 p.m. I had about fifteen minutes to get to detention. I was extremely anxious. I had been picking at my lateral nail fold on both thumbs until they bled. I had a tissue wrapped around both my thumbs. To prevent myself from picking at them more, and to slow the blood. I walked into Professor Snape's office at 2:56 p.m. Professor Snape had not come back from his last class yet, so I was alone in the office.

    I squeezed the tissues a little tighter. I glanced at my watch. 2:57 p.m. I shifted my weight anxiously, glancing at my watch every few seconds. I had to resist the urge to pick at my thumbs even more. I kept watching the door, waiting for the horrors of detention with Professor Snape. I'm not sure what I was expecting, but I was expecting it to be unpleasant.

Professor Snape walked in around 2:59 p.m. He sat down in his chair and looked at me. "Ms. Strand, you shouldn't just stand there gawking."

I gulped.

The professor pointed to a stack of files. "For your detention, you will sort these files alphabetically."

I hesitated for a second, a little intimidated by the huge stack of folders.

    Unfortunately, Professor Snape noticed. "Why are you hesitating? You do know your alphabet, right?"

    My face flushed with anger at his words. This made him smirk even more, but he was still annoyed with my slow response. "Get to work. Now."

    I started sorting the files, it seemed to hold each student's potions exams. I didn't read any of the files, because Professor Snape was watching me the entire time. I also believe that it's wrong to invade people's privacy. (But mainly because Professor Snape was watching.)

I sorted the files for two hours. When it was about 5:00 p.m. Snape had just finished grading some exams. He looked at the clock and said: "That will be all for today, Ms. Strand."

    I left quickly. Only six more days of detention to endure. I sighed as I made my way back to my dorm. I fixed my hair, and washed my hands thoroughly. Trust me. You want to wash your hands after every visit to the potions room. The ingredients can be toxic and dangerous. I felt kind of exhausted today, as I had a poor sleep the night before. (Turns out stressing about detention can keep you up at night.) I collapsed on my bed, intending to take a quick nap.

    I woke up startled. I had the dream about Cedric and Snape again. I checked my watch, 5:15 p.m. I'd only been asleep for five minutes. I breathed a sigh of relief. I got up, and walked to the great hall for dinner. I sat down next to Cedric.

    I loaded my plate with food. A chicken leg, mashed potatoes, green beans, beef soup, and corn. "Cedric?"

    "Yeah?" He started eating his soup.

    "I've been having weird dreams about you..." I blow on my soup spoonful to cool the hot soup.

    Cedric choked on his soup. "Dreams? What kind of dreams?"

    I handed him a napkin. "Like... murder dreams..."

    Cedric looked at me, wiping his mouth. He was Amused, concerned, and confused. "What now?"

    "Murder dreams." I bit into my chicken leg.

    "M-murder dreams?" He set his spoon down, and turned to face me. "What sort of murder dreams?"

    I shrugged. "It's the same dream over and over. I wake up in a weird, spooky room. I look around, and I see you holding a wand at me, ready to attack. I beg you not to kill me, but you explain that this is the way it has to be. Then I look around the room, and Professor Snape is watching us with a cruel sneer." I waited for his response to my description of my nightmare.

Cedric looked at me. "Oh fu-" He looked at me like he remembered something. "Fudge. I was going to say fudge." I laughed a little, and he ignored my laughter. "Those dreams... that sounds kind of creepy. How long has this been going on?"

I looked away. "Never mind. It doesn't matter. I was just a little... worried that I might be having visions of the future." I sighed. "Maybe I'm just paranoid."

Cedric patted my shoulder. "Don't worry, kid. I'm not going to kill you. And Professor Snape isn't going to either. I know he seems... intense at times. But he's never killed a student before. In fact, I don't think he's ever killed anyone before. He's the kind of guy that intimidates you, but if you were in life threatening danger, he'd protect you. Even if it meant that he died in the process."

I smiled up at him. "Thanks, Cedric."

Cedric pinched my cheek. "No problem, kid."

"Don't ever pinch my cheek again."

Cedric smiled and went back to eating. I went back to eating my food too. Feeling a little more at ease. But only a little.