The month of may.

May passed slowly like a ticking clock. I was forced to use occlumency more and more. I promised Snape not to let Draco get my goat, but with him spewing vile, threatening Tim and Lockhart's adamant disposition about Hagrid being the culprit, I had to rely on Occlumency to hold my tongue.

I had been patted on my back for punching Draco a few times, and the more he talked, the more people started to think he was the heir.

Grant and Tim had to suffer my bad moods, but they knew how to calm me, slap in a cassette and watch me mellow out to music. As I sat listening to music in the dorms, I would clean Starlight and practise tuning her to the correct frequency of sonorous stupefy.

Everyone was doing poorly in classes. It was hard to concentrate with basically no freedom.

Dark arts was still a joke, still doing scenes from Lockhart's books like they were plays.

Most of the transfiguration was turning animals into things, like rabbits into slippers. I understood the lessons well. Each animal and object taught us different techniques of the same spell. Why anyone needed to turn rabbits into slippers was beyond me. But it taught us how to use the properties of the animal to enhance the object. For example, the rabbit's soft fur to make the slippers soft.

In herbology, we worked on different plants and always got updates on the mandrake growth. They were almost mature, and it was almost an analysed day now.

History of Magic became my unwind time; I put my headphones on, listened to music and read any book I had on me.

Heads of houses led us to our meals and escorted us to the bathrooms. At night, they patrolled the halls.

It was a sad time for Hogwarts, made even sadder when we were informed that exams would start on June 1st, which was a week away.

While everyone complained about having exams in this sorry state, I was counting the days.

The weekends sucked. We weren't allowed out of the common rooms. I usually sat in my dorm room listening to music. But the weekend we got the news about exams, I decided not to. I headed out into the gloomy atmosphere of the common room and studied with Grant and Tim; Daphne and her friend Tracy Davis joined us. Soon, Theodore Nott and Blaise Zabini joined as well. With Grant, Tim, and I being in the study group, we were well ahead of our peers, so we took questions and helped explain things.

Those four asked that they could be in the study group next year, too. I promised that they would be allowed.

Eventually, it was the 29th. I sat in charms class at the start of the morning; it was a self-revision class to go over what we learned this year. I listened to music and wrote in my songbook. Soon, the class was over, and Flitwick was taking us to our next class, which was herbology. We were almost there when we heard Professor McGonagall's voice. "All students are to return to their house dormitories at once. All teachers return to the staff room. Immediately, please."

"Okay, you heard the headmistress to your dorms," Flitwick said and hurried off towards the staffroom. The Slytherins headed towards the dungeons, and the Ravenclaws went up the tower. 

We sat in the common room. I brooded in the wingback chair that I usually claim. Forty minutes went passed till Snape strode in. "Pack your things. The Hogwarts Express will take you all home in the morning", he said in a serious tone. "Is anyone missing?" he asked the head prefect of the house.

"no sir, all accounted for," the prefect said

"lunch and dinner will be in the dorms," Snape said and strode back out.

One of the first-year girls cried, and the older girls gathered around her. Draco looked shocked at the outcome. "Eddie", Daphne came up to me ", you have to do something."

"huh?" she snapped me out of my brooding. "What do you mean do something?" 'Did she know my plans.'

"look around. Everyone is tense and upset; play something to get their minds off it," Daphne pleaded, "Please."

"yeah, okay", I coughed, 'this is what minstrels were for' I thought to myself. I pulled out Starlight. 'go big or go home.' 

I cracked my neck and activated Starlight. 'and if I'm going big, better make it the biggest.' the thought continued. Grant and Tim saw me standing up with starlight and smiled.

•Hey Jude by The Beatles•

♫Hey Jude, don't make it bad.

Take a sad song and make it better.

Remember to let her into your heart,

Then you can start to make it better.♫

I started to play and sing in the common room. Waves of spell light flowed softly through the room. The girl who was crying slowly stopped, and people focused on me.

♫Hey Jude, don't be afraid.

You were made to go out and get her.

The minute you let her under your skin,

Then you begin to make it better.♫

Tim pulled out his drumstick and joined me in the performance by playing anything that made a good sound: the table, the chairs, the cups and the plates.

♫And anytime you feel the pain, hey Jude, refrain,

Don't carry the world upon your shoulders.

For well you know that it's a fool who plays it cool

By making his world a little colder.♫

Grant joined me in backup singing. And clapping to the beat. The spell of the song started to lift some people's moods.

♫Hey Jude, don't let me down.

You have found her, now go and get her.

Remember to let her into your heart,

Then you can start to make it better.♫

Daphne danced slowly beside me, and the girl who was crying joined her. i could see a general swaying happening to the Slytherins.

♫So let it out and let it in, hey Jude, begin,

You're waiting for someone to perform with.

And don't you know that it's just you, hey Jude, you'll do,

The movement you need is on your shoulder.♫

The Slytherins were really getting into it and started to clap with a Grant.

♫Na na na nananana, nannana yeah♫

By the last verse, I was seeing swaying, head bobbing, and even more slow-dancing

♫Hey Jude, don't make it bad.

Take a sad song and make it better.

Remember to let her under your skin,

Then, you'll begin to make it

Better better better better better better, oh.♫

Grant led the Slytherins in the final part of the song as I just played the guitar.

♫Na na na nananana, nannana, hey Jude...♫ for almost 4 minuets.

It was a sight to see the whole of Slytherin's house singing. Hey Jude, though we may be wizards, we were still British. 

After that, I brought out my speakers and played music from my collection in the common room. The atmosphere wasn't as bad but it was still a sad feeling that they were going home tomorrow. 

When the last of them went to bed i put on my satchel cast a disillusionment charm on my self and headed out to the courtyard that i said i would be in. dodging the teachers was kind of easy.