Chapter 18

Oh," said Neville. "Yeah; sure, Harry." Then he pulled a plate towards himself and started loading it.

Harry was working on one of his tasks not directly given to him by his Grim Reaper, in making a closer friend of Neville; when Ron Weasley put in an appearance.

The boy first headed to sit at the table where he sat the previous night when he saw Harry and Hermione sitting with Daphne.

"Here he comes," Daphne muttered to Harry. "You let me deal with him, alright?"

Harry sighed and nodded.

Ron almost practically stormed over to stand near Neville's shoulder. His face going red with an expression of anger.

"Harry," he half-snarled, "Why is there a filthy snake sitting at our table?"

With an expression of cold fury on her face, quite well matched by Harry and Hermione, Daphne slowly stood in place and practically hissed back, "Mister Weasley, how dare you?"

At that moment, Ginny walked in, saw something was going on, and came closer.

Giving that a moment to sink in to Ron's head, she clearly said, "Why I'm sitting here is none of your business. However... since you so rudely demanded the information... Harry, Hermione and I... are bonded!"

That made Ron blanch in shock. And Ginny, who had also heard, cried out, "Nooo!" before she turned-tail and ran from the room in tears.

Professor McGonagall, who had been sitting at the head table and heard the start of the verbal exchange, hurried down. "Mister Weasley!" she exclaimed, appalled. "How dare you! Go to my office, right now. We'll be having words about your conduct, here, this morning."

Looking back at the Professor, Ron spluttered, "But, Professor! I've not even had my breakfast yet!" He then pointed at Daphne and said, "And she's sitting at our table."

"Do you think I'm blind, Mister Weasley?" asked the Professor. "Of course I know Miss Greengrass is sitting there. Now, go to my office... this instant!"

Looking as if someone had stabbed him in the back, stolen his Chudley Cannons bedspread and forced him to wear Slytherin colours all at the same time, Ron left the hall angry and fuming.

"Thank you, Professor," Daphne calmly said to the Professor. "That was rather... confronting."

Professor McGonagall nodded and said, "I apologise on behalf of Gryffindor House, Miss Greengrass. I shall be having heated words with Mister Weasley about his actions, this morning."

She then pulled a note from a pocket in her robes and handed it to Harry, "The Headmaster would like a word with you, in his office, immediately after breakfast, Mister Potter."

"As my Head of House, I request you join us, Professor," Harry firmly replied, not even opening the note.

Surprised, the Professor looked at Harry for a few moments before she said, "As you wish, Mister Potter. Please wait here for my return. I still have class schedules to hand out."

Harry nodded back and Professor McGonagall left the Hall, heading for her office.

As Daphne sat back down, Harry asked both girls, "Would either or both of you ladies care to join me in seeing the Headmaster?"

"I think we must," said Daphne. "We already know what he's going to want to talk to you about."

No sooner had she left when Malfoy, accompanied by his twin bookends, sauntered over from the Slytherin table.

"Again, Harry," Daphne muttered to him, "Let me deal with the ferret."

Harry gave her a slight nod in agreement before he turned to tell Hermione the same.

"Well, scarhead!" sneered the pompous idiot named Malfoy. "Word has it our Miss Greengrass has become bonded to you. It's such a pity her life's now ruined."

Daphne laughed at him. It was such a cruel, vindictive laugh, too. "Oh, Malfoy," she sneered. "How is it you managed to get yourself sorted into Slytherin when you behave like such a Gryffindor? So brash! So charge on in! Maybe someone should show you what the words cunning and guile mean in a dictionary. At least that way, you'll know how so unlike a Slytherin you're behaving..." she waved her hand at him "... with this nonsense."

Malfoy stood there fuming and glaring right back, before he spat, "You'll pay for that, Greengrass." And stormed off, again.

Daphne turned to Harry and asked, "Is that what he normally comes over here to do?"

"Pretty much," Harry shrugged. "I'm surprised we didn't hear the, 'When my father hears of this', nonsense."

Once Professor McGonagall returned with a still angry Ron in tow, she quickly handed out the class schedules to the now full table of Gryffindors. She skipped Harry and the girls and came back to them, last.

Ron sat right down the other end of the table near the seventh years, and refused to even look in their direction.

Professor Snape had been over, earlier, and handed Daphne her course schedule without a word. He did, however, manage to sneer at Harry while he did so.

"Will you be staying with a course schedule for Slytherin, or joining Gryffindor's schedule, Miss Greengrass?" she asked Daphne.

"Staying with Slytherin; thank you, Professor," Daphne replied. "I already have my schedule from Professor Snape."

"Very well," the Professor said. Turning to Harry she said, "I shall be by once the owl mail is delivered to take you to see the Headmaster."

"Thank you, Professor," said Harry.

Other than a copy of the Daily Prophet, Harry had no other mail. He did, however, hold Hedwig back for Daphne to send her parents a letter she'd written to them earlier, letting them know about the bonding. Hedwig seemed happy enough to take it. And Harry made sure she was given an extra rasher of bacon.

A minute later, Professor McGonagall returned. "If you've finished your breakfast, Mister Potter, we'd best be on our way to see the Headmaster."

Looking to Daphne and Hermione, Harry asked, "Ladies?"

With a nod from both, all three rose and made their way along the wall towards the head table.

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