Old Grudges

Knock, knock, knock! Someone rapped on the door to the Potions Office. Snape, who had been grading essays behind his desk, set down the parchment in his hand. Urged by the frantic knocking, he opened the wooden door and stared at the student outside in surprise. Barely perceptibly, he frowned. "Mr. Malfoy, what happened to your face?"

"Professor, we saw Potter's ghost in Hogsmeade!" Malfoy cried fearfully.

"Come in and tell me." Snape stepped aside to let the three enter the office. "If you cannot calm down for the moment, I have a calming draught here."

"We were talking to Weasley on the outskirts of Hogsmeade when a huge lump of mud suddenly hit the backs of all three of our heads..."

Malfoy took a deep breath and began recounting how he had seen Harry Potter's head floating in midair in Hogsmeade, as well as how he had apparently been hit by a Tripping Jinx on the way back to Hogwarts and fallen, scraping his cheek.

"I already know about this. You had better go to the School Hospital and have your injuries treated before they leave scars."

Snape indicated that they could leave. He intended to find Potter. From Malfoy's account, Potter had clearly sneaked off to Hogsmeade.

Sure enough, that brat was just as unruly as his father.

Watching Snape's retreating figure stride away, Malfoy's lips curled into a cold smile of triumph. Harry Potter would definitely be punished for this. He was not allowed to visit Hogsmeade.

In fact, Malfoy had already figured everything out on the way back to Hogwarts Castle.

The nearly hour-long journey had given him enough time to calm down completely and sort out the entire chain of events.

He had even figured out how to take revenge on Harry Potter.

Reporting Potter