Through the Pages of Time: Joey’s Hogwarts Tale

Poor worm.

Suddenly, a blur of red and yellow streaked through the corridor—Joey, sprinting at full speed.

"Hey!"

A strong grip caught her arm, yanking her to a staggering halt. She almost tumbled forward.

"Which bastard dares to grab me—"

Before she could finish her curse, she turned and met the icy glare of her older brother, Ryan. His face was set in a dangerous shade of blue.

"Who were you calling a bastard?" he asked in a tone that sent a shiver down her spine. "Take a look at yourself. You're turning into a delinquent."

Joey gulped. Ryan was terrifying when he was truly angry. She immediately backtracked, shrinking her neck in submission. "Sorry, brother. Mistook you for someone else."

"And what exactly were you running for?" Ryan asked, still not letting go of her arm. He had a strong feeling that whatever she was up to, it wasn't anything good.

"Fred and George got into a fight with some Slytherins! Professors McGonagall and Snape took them away—I need to go defend them!" Joey declared.

Ryan winced. Reason with the professors? Was she insane?

"Fighting means punishment. You need to trust the professors to be fair," he said as patiently as he could, though he really wanted to tie his sister up and send her straight home.

"You're so cold, brother!" Joey cried. "Do you even know who they fought with? Shafiq! The guy who called me an American hillbilly!"

Ryan's expression darkened. He remembered hearing about that—Shafiq had openly mocked Joey during a Quidditch match. It was infuriating. The nerve of those self-righteous purebloods calling someone else a hillbilly!

Ryan sighed and pulled Joey in the opposite direction.

"Hey! What are you doing? I need to find them!" she protested, struggling against his grip.

"You're going the wrong way," he said coolly. "They're in Professor Snape's office."

Joey stopped resisting, her eyes gleaming. A good show was about to unfold.

Deep in the dungeons, Professor Snape's office was dimly lit by brass lamps, their glow doing little to dispel the cold atmosphere. Joey wondered if Snape's perpetually foul mood was because he had spent too much time in this freezing space. Maybe if he worked in a sunlit room, he'd be a little less menacing.

Inside, Professors McGonagall and Snape were locked in a heated argument. Fred and George, standing behind McGonagall, looked worse for wear—Fred had paper stuffed up his nose to stop the bleeding, George's mouth was bruised, and both their faces were swollen. Meanwhile, the four Slytherins behind Snape seemed to have gotten away with barely a scratch.

Fred and George lost?!

Joey exploded. Like an arrow loosed from a bow, she burst into the office and shouted, "Four against two?! That's shameless bullying!"

Silence fell.

Professor McGonagall's mouth opened, but no words came out. Ryan, standing at the door, covered his face in pure mortification. Fred and George looked surprised at her sudden entrance, while the Slytherins smirked with amusement.

Professor Snape's brows knitted together in fury. "Professor McGonagall, is this the 'reasonable' behavior you spoke of? Barging into a professor's office and yelling? Very—reasonable."

His cold eyes bore into Joey, as if trying to discern what part of her brain had given her the audacity to charge in like that.

McGonagall's face twitched. She resisted the urge to smack Joey on the head and said firmly, "We'll discuss Ms. Forester later. Right now, we need to address Mr. Weasley's assault by Mr. Shafiq and his friends."

"Again, this was no assault," Snape replied, smirking. "It was a mutual fight, agreed upon by both parties."

"A fight between four fourth-years and two first-years?" McGonagall's voice was sharp. "They had no chance! They were cornered!"

"Oh, Gryffindors have always had a penchant for heroics. Perhaps they wanted to play the part?" Snape sneered, briefly turning to glare at his own students.

Shafiq and his gang had been grinning smugly, but at their professor's cold gaze, they straightened up immediately.

"Professor McGonagall, hiss—we agreed to fight," Fred said through clenched teeth, wincing in pain. "We accept the punishment."

"Yeah," George added, voice muffled by the tissue in his nose. "Only regret we have is not winning."

Snape shrugged. "See? Your Gryffindors never disappoint. If that's the case—fifty points from Gryffindor, sixty from Slytherin. Fair enough?"

McGonagall seethed. This was not fair! But before she could argue, she also had to make sure Joey didn't say anything to make things worse.

Just then, Ryan knocked on the door. "Excuse me, Professors, may I come in?"

Snape sneered. "Mr. Forester, you've been standing there for quite some time. Do you only now remember to ask for permission?" Still, his tone was noticeably more civil toward Ryan than it had been toward Joey. Gryffindor's archenemy indeed.

"I'd like to serve as a witness," Ryan said politely. "I believe my account could be useful in determining a fair judgment."

Snape raised an eyebrow. "Given your relationship with Ms. Forester, I'd say you should recuse yourself."

"Oh? Just now, you separated the fight incident from my sister's outburst. As a witness to the former, I see no conflict of interest." Ryan smiled politely.

McGonagall, thrilled by Ryan's sharp reasoning, secretly cheered for him. See? A few words, and Snape is turning blue. Meanwhile, my own students are giving me an aneurysm.

Snape inhaled sharply. "Fine. Speak."

Ryan bowed slightly. "I overheard Mr. Shafiq calling Mr. Weasley and his brother 'red-haired bastards,' mocking them for having their girlfriends' hats stolen, and calling all Gryffindors 'filthy traitors.'"

McGonagall gasped. Her finger trembled as she pointed at Shafiq.

"They also said Dumbledore is the greatest enemy of the wizarding world and that only his death would bring prosperity," Ryan continued calmly.

Snape's face paled. He spun on Shafiq and the others, who stared back at him defiantly.

McGonagall nearly lunged at them. "How dare you—!"

Ryan sighed internally. Gryffindors…

Snape's voice dropped to a venomous whisper. "Slytherin. Deducted. One hundred points. Your stupidity comes at a price. I will be writing to your guardians. If they do not wish to see you expelled, they will deal with you."

Shafiq flinched. His smile twisted into something more like a grimace.

"Now, Professor McGonagall, take your students and leave!" Snape hissed, his patience completely shattered.

As McGonagall led them away, Joey muttered, "Wow. Snape is terrifying when he's mad."

"Ms. Forester, ten points from Gryffindor for storming a professor's office!" McGonagall snapped.

Ryan, meanwhile, earned twenty points for Ravenclaw.

Joey and the twins sulked. Damn Ravenclaws.