CH 88: Nott From My Nose

{[Last Time in Tainted Desire]}

"I don't have a problem with your objectives," I explained just in case. "Just make sure to run anything important by me before implementing," I added, and Daphne nodded. It seemed like a small thing, but actually, it was even more patronizing than asking her to involve me with the planning. With this, I basically claimed the right to approve or reject any plan she might come up with, neatly positioning myself higher than her in her little political conspiracy.

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{[Now]}

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Of course, whether it would take hold or she would try to circumvent it, it was to be seen. For the rest of the way, I limited the discussion to casual topics, not bothering to micromanage Daphne, something no doubt confused her. Of course, I simply didn't have any interest in her schoolyard plans, I had much more important things in mind.

If it wasn't for the coincidence of Nott selecting my cabin for his action, I wouldn't have to get involved with the argument.

The breakfast itself was much more interesting. I sat at one end of the table, and Daphne chose the opposite end, reminiscent of a king and a queen taking control of the table in a feast.

Nott wasn't even in the breakfast, nor was his followers, no doubt ashamed of showing their faces. Amycus Carrow, on the other hand, was sitting on Snape's seat and trying to look strong, but his dancing eyeballs and not-so-subtle sweating betrayed his nervousness.

No doubt he was caught flatfooted by the absence of Snape, who was by far the best dueler between them, leaving them a touch outnumbered against Dumbledore loyalists.

His worries were empty, of course. McGonagall and other Dumbledore loyalists might be strong and brave, but also they lacked the sense of initiative to act without a charismatic leader.

With Dumbledore gone, that role was left to Potter, and Potter was currently busy conducting a useless search for Voldemort's Horcruxes, unaware that I either already took possession of them, or knew their location and ready to swipe them in a moment's notice.

Maybe I would organize a resistance later on, just to cement my fake-conversion to the light side in case Hermione's assurances about my double-agent status were not enough.

I had no intention of languishing forgotten after Voldemort's demise, and the title of the Savior of Hogwarts had a nice ring to it.

Then, I noticed a shift of expression on Amycus' face, particularly when our eyes met. His panic was replaced by frustrated anger.

Not surprising considering he belonged to Senior Nott's clique —who was not having a good time, still searching for the leaks that resulted in Muggleborn camps being raided thanks to my little frame-up job— and he needed to explain why Nott Junior's vaunted position had lost all of its impact before he could even step into the school.

With Snape's absence, it was Amycus that needed to deal with that particular detail, much to his distaste.

I was lucky that he didn't know I was responsible for Snape's disappearance as well, or he might have reacted more explosively than just a few angry glares.

Still, I made sure to send him a mocking smirk before avoiding his gaze, just to underline that I wasn't afraid of him.

It looked like a stupid pride thing Draco might have done, but actually, it had a reasonable driver. Since we were already in conflict, my confidence would force him to assume I had a reason to be.

Considering Snape was mysteriously away in a mission, and he was very close to my family, I even had a perfect alibi for my confidence, ensuring Carrow twins wouldn't bother me a lot.

Then, my gaze slipped over the teacher's, only to stop when I arrived at the seat of the Flying Instructor. The seat was being held by Cho Chang rather than Madame Hooch.

I smirked at the possibilities. I was already planning to seduce Ginny, but stealing Potter's old girlfriend as well had a certain appeal, not to mention she had a killer body and an exotic beauty.

The school year was going to be interesting.

My first period was a free period —more accurately, the history class with the resident ghost, which, according to Draco's memories, was even more boring than I had assumed, so I skipped it— so, I decided to go to the library.

However, there was still a particular issue, namely, Nott's absence from breakfast. After the beating he had received, he should be smart enough to raise his head.

Still, better safe than sorry, I decided as I slipped to an empty classroom and pulled the map, checking the location.

It was good that I did so, because I saw Nott and several of his supporters hanging around my new rooms —well, technically his, but it was his fault for being too weak to defend it.

I would have ignored it, but Susan was still there as well, walking around the suite, probably preparing for the class. Likely, her shower ran a little too long.

The problem, she would come across Nott after leaving the room, and while she was probably a decent fighter, not good enough to fend off an ambush from overwhelming numbers.

And no doubt Nott would have some interesting humiliations in mind for her.

I sighed as I pulled the Invisibility cloak around myself, using a secret passage to cover the required distance in less than a minute. When I arrived, Susan was yet to leave the suite.

I could have removed Nott and his team easily, but being the hero had a certain appeal as well. I stayed hidden while the door opened and Susan left the room, her amazing figure unfortunately hidden behind Hogwarts' boring robes.

Nott and his team followed her —quite ineptly, I might add— and revealed themselves the moment she arrived at a relatively concealed corner, grabbing her and dragging her into an empty classroom. I slipped in before they could close it.

"You made a big mistake, Bones, by deciding to believe Greengrass' words," Nott started gleefully as he raised his wand, while his supporters stayed a step back, their smirks dirty and excited.

However, what I found most interesting was no all of them were Slytherins. No, two of them were actually from Hufflepuffs, and one from Gryffindor. Nott had surprising depths.