The Last Laugh
Cat licked her lip as, suddenly, an idea sprang into her mind; “Hey, Colin!” she called, waving over to a boy in the same year as her on the Gryffindor table.
The excitable, young chap caught her gesture and rushed over; “Hi, Cat. What’s up?”
“Can you do me a favour before we all go home?”
“Sure, name it!”
“Can you take a picture for me?”
Colin’s face went so bright that Jo, next to Cat, wished she had her sunglasses handy.
“Wow, sure Cat! I’d love to!” He was jumping up and down on the balls of his feet now, his ever-present camera hovering in his hands as it hung round his neck on a leather strap.
“It might be dangerous, though…” she added, giving him a firm look.
“Cool!” he piped, only the more excited.
“Great. Then come here,” she said, gesturing for him to approach her. He slipped down onto the Ravenclaw bench as Cat whispered in his ear and explained her plan.
Jo just rose her eyebrow, trying to listen in, but getting only a push away.
~~
Cat glanced behind her and gave her thumbs up to Colin in the shadows before she turned to the wooden door of Snape’s office and knocked.
“Enter.”
She composed herself, grabbed the giant metal handle and pushed the door open. From behind his desk, the Potions Master, Snape, gave her a short, brusque glare; “Miss Madison,” he said, continuing to write across the parchment before him.
“Professor,” she nodded, twiddling her thumbs behind her back.
There was a brief pause in which Snape finally rose his eyebrows, placed his quill down and stared over at her, “I hope I am not wrong in believing that you had reason to come here. State it now or I will ask you to leave. I am not an exhibit on show for students like you to come and gawp at when it suits you.”
“No, sir, I was just waiting for you to finish your sentence,” she said.
His gaze penetrated her, “Don’t mock me, Madison. I wasn’t under the impression that I had to stop writing in order to listen.”
‘Not unless you can multi-task’ she wanted to say, but she just smiled gently and said, taking a step forward, “I just wanted to thank you, sir.”
He continued to stare, “Thank me?” he asked with that undeniable air of suspicion.
“Yes, sir,” she nodded.
He scoffed, shooting to his feet and bearing down over her from his six-foot height; “Well, you’ve said it. Go.” He crept around his desk in the way that tells one that he wants one to go, now, but Cat kept held her ground.
“You’ve just been a real help to me this year, sir, whether you’ve realised - or even intended it, or not. You’ve helped me get through some very difficult times, and I really wanted to say thank you before I go home.”
He was now stood over her, that sneering look on his face; “Most admirable sentiments, Miss Madison,” he muttered, gesturing briskly to the door.
“Yes,” she elaborated, making no move to leave, “It’s not often a Slytherin will look over his own for the benefit of a Ravenclaw.” Then, quickly, she wrapped her arms round his waist and smiled toward the doorway, “You’re the best, sir!” she said, fairly loudly, and Colin got the cue.
SNAP
Colin’s camera flashed in the doorway and the boy ran, whilst Cat pried herself out of the black folds of the Potion’s Master robes and said, “Good bye, sir. See you next year!” then ran in Creevey’s wake as it finally hit Snape as to what had just happened and he yelled after her down the dungeon’s corridor.
“MISS MADISON!” he thundered, emerging from his office just in time to see the tail end of Cat’s robes disappear up the stone steps. He growled to the world in general.
Cat and Colin were panting but laughing as they emerged into the entrance hall; “Get that picture developed ASAP, Colin, then we can have some real fun with it at the start of next term!”
“Oh, sure thing, Cat!” Colin chuckled, “Wow… you’re real brave, you know! You should have been a Gryffindor!”
“I’m happy where I am, Colin,” she nodded in thanks.
Creevey shrugged, “Yeah… well, ‘Where Eagles Dare’, right?”
She smiled in return, “Too right, Colin. Too right.”