Night Raid

Jerry followed at the back of the group. They descended the stairs to the Castle basement and stopped before a damp stone wall.

"Remember, the entrance is hidden in the wall. This week's password is 'Pure-blood.' It changes every two weeks," Prefect Gemma Farley told the first-years.

Beyond the stone door lay the Slytherin Common Room, a semi-transparent chamber beneath the Black Lake. Huge octopuses and strange creatures could often be seen through its windows.

The walls were built of black Gothic marble. Overhead, a transparent crystal dome revealed the rippling light on the water above.

Green-glowing lamps hung from chains attached to the ceiling. The room had a fireplace with an intricately carved mantelpiece, with several carved chairs nearby.

Once they entered the common room, Prefect Gemma Farley took a raised position and began her speech:

"Congratulations! I'm Prefect Gemma Farley. Welcome to Slytherin House. First, let me clear up a few mysteries. You may have heard rumors about Slytherin House—that we're all dark wizards..."

She went on at length, mostly about pure-bloods. Jerry barely listened. When the speech ended, the other students introduced themselves and named their families, but Jerry ignored them and went back to his room alone.

He pushed open the door. It was a lavishly furnished single room, but Jerry didn't like it. It was damp, cold, and dim. It would probably be especially cold in winter, and he wondered whether living here long enough would give him rheumatism.

Most importantly, Tom couldn't fly in unless he perched on Jerry's shoulder and Jerry carried him inside.

Jerry thought it over. He would have to ask Hermione to look after Tom more often.

He put away his things and checked every corner of the room. Finding nothing wrong, he locked the door, washed up, and went to bed. Before long, he fell asleep.

In the middle of the night, voices woke Jerry.

"You two, keep your footsteps down. Don't wake him!"

"What are you afraid of? He's just a first-year. Even if we barged right in, he'd probably be shaking in his boots."

"Hurry up, Phelly! Use the Unlocking Charm! I can't wait to see that Mudblood cry!"

"Alohomora!"

The door opened with a click, and they came in.

From the darkness, Jerry saw three people. One was the hulking older student who had picked on him during the Sorting. He didn't know the other two.

"He's still asleep in bed," the big student whispered to the others. Then he leaped up and slammed down onto "Jerry" beneath the covers.

Crack! The bed frame splintered. Realizing something was wrong, the big student threw back the covers and found only a pillow. He knew he was in trouble.

"Expelliarmus!" A spell rang out from the darkness, disarming the only student holding a wand.

"Petrificus Totalus!"

"Petrificus Totalus!"

"Reducto!"

Jerry fired off three spells in quick succession. After immobilizing two of them, he hit the big student with Reducto. It was the first time Jerry had cast an offensive spell at a person.

"Quietus!"

He quickly shut the door, then silenced the big student's agonized howls with another spell. No one outside would hear the screams to come.

Jerry was furious. He couldn't bear to imagine what would have happened if he hadn't woken up and prepared himself. That leap would definitely have broken his ribs. The more he thought about it, the angrier he got. He hoisted the big student into the air with Levicorpus, then hit his right arm with another Reducto.

Only after watching him struggle in midair, mouth stretched wide in a soundless cry of pain, did Jerry feel a little better.

Jerry decided to teach the three of them a harsh lesson tonight—and warn the other Slytherin students that he was not someone to mess with.

He rummaged through his luggage and pulled out the Baseball Bat he had brought for just such an occasion.

The big student struggled harder when he saw Jerry approach with a wand in his left hand, the Baseball Bat in his right, and a kindly smile on his face.

"Don't be afraid. It won't hurt!" Jerry said reassuringly. It was a shame he couldn't hear their screams. If circumstances allowed, he would have liked every student in Slytherin House to hear them.

Thud! The Baseball Bat struck at the big student's chest. He instinctively raised his uninjured left arm to block it, and the bat broke it with a crack.

"Come on, why did you block that? I only wanted to break a few ribs. Now your left arm's broken too."

Ignoring his pleas, Jerry raised the Baseball Bat again and struck him squarely in the chest. Jerry heard bones break, and the big student passed out.

Jerry nodded, satisfied, then turned to the other two, who remained petrified.

Once he lifted the Petrificus Totalus spell, both of them burst into tears. Their legs were weak with fear.

"Levicorpus!" Jerry hoisted them into the air. He left their voices alone this time and began asking about the three of them.

"Mr. Green, I—I was wrong! Please forgive me! It was all G-Gray's idea. He threatened us into it!" Phelly said through his tears.

The two were Phelly and Jack, and the unconscious big student was Gray. Now they were placing all the blame on Gray, but it was no use. Jerry had no intention of letting them off.

"Don't be afraid. Why are you sniveling? Look at Gray. Three of his limbs are broken, and you don't hear him complaining."

When the two realized Jerry wasn't going to spare them, they shouted for help. Jerry responded by striking their mouths with the Baseball Bat, knocking out all their front teeth.

Jerry looked coldly at Phelly and Jack and ordered, "Swallow them!"

Terrified out of their minds, they did as Jerry said.

Seeing how obedient they were, Jerry's kindly smile returned. Then he repeated the process: Quietus first, followed by the Baseball Bat. Wands were convenient, but they couldn't match the satisfaction of hitting someone with a bat.

Jerry played no favorites. Each got the same treatment: two broken arms, one broken leg, and a few broken ribs. It wouldn't kill them, but they would remember him and fear him. From now on, they would take a detour whenever they saw Jerry.

"Phew." Jerry wiped the sweat from his brow. After glancing at the three unconscious students, he stripped off every piece of their clothing and dumped them in the Slytherin Common Room for all of Slytherin House to see.

As for whether the three would complain to Snape, Jerry wasn't worried—assuming they still had the nerve.

Jerry had known how far to go. He hadn't killed them, and with Madam Poppy Pomfrey's skills, they would only have to spend a few painful days in bed.

Besides, they had come looking for trouble first, and they had entered his room. It was self-defense. Even Dumbledore would, at most, say Jerry had been a little heavy-handed.