Girl Who Survived: Book Two {Harry Potter: Order of Phoenix}

[Chapter Thirteen: Detention With Dolores.]

[Chapter Thirteen: Detention with Dolores.]

Dinner in the Great Hall that night was not a pleasant experience for me. The news about my shouting match with Umbridge had travelled exceptionally fast, even by Hogwarts' standards. I heard whispers all around me as I sat eating beside Harry, Ron and Hermione sitting across from us. The funny thing was that none of the whisperers seemed to mind me overhearing what they were saying about me. On the contrary, it was as though they were hoping I would get angry and start shouting again, so that they could hear his story first-hand.

"She believes Cedric Diggory was murdered... It's Potter, I tell you. He's rubbing off on her."

"Harry reckons he duelled with You-Know-Who..."

"Come off it..."

"Who do they think they're kidding?"

"Tur-Zease..."

"What I don't get," said Harry through clenched teeth, laying down his knife and fork (his hands were shaking too much to hold them steady), "Is why they all believed the story two months ago when Dumbledore told them..."

"The thing is, Harry, I'm not sure they did," said Hermione grimly. "Oh, let's get out of here."

She slammed down her own knife and fork; Ron looked longingly at his half-finished apple pie but followed suit. I got up quickly and gladly. People stared at us all the way out of the Hall.

"What d'you mean, you're not sure they believed Dumbledore?" Harry asked Hermione when we reached the first-floor landing. I wasn't speaking, though I was curious. I had done enough troublemaking for one day.

"Look, you don't understand what it was like after it happened," said Hermione quietly. "You arrived back in the middle of the lawn clutching Cedric's dead body... none of us saw what happened in the maze... we just had Dumbledore's word for it that You-Know-Who had come back and killed Cedric and fought you."

"Which is the truth!" said Harry loudly. My heart was breaking, but I did my best not to cry for Cedric. Maybe McGonagall was right.

"I know it is, Harry, so will you please stop biting my head off?" said Hermione wearily. "It's just that before the truth could sink in, everyone went home for the summer, where they spent two months reading about how you're a nutcase and Dumbledore's going senile!"

Rain pounded on the windowpanes as we strode along the empty corridors back to Gryffindor Tower. I felt as though my first day had lasted a week, but I still had a mountain of homework to do before bed, it wouldn't take long, but I just wanted to get some sleep. I glanced out of a rain-washed window at the dark grounds as we turned into the Fat Lady's corridor. There was still no light in Hagrid's cabin.

"Mimbulus mimbletonia," said Hermione, before the Fat Lady could ask. The portrait swung open to reveal the hole behind it and the four of us scrambled through it.

My foot caught the opening and I tripped forward, but Ronald caught me in the nick of time.

His hands were clutching my waist steadying me and my heart was racing. It was that same feeling you have when you take a step, but that step isn't there.

"You alright?" He muttered, staring at me.

"Um, yes." I said, my cheeks ablaze once again. He gave me the same questioning look he had yesterday and it made me blush harder. I avoided his stare and quickly climbed through the hole.

The common room was almost empty; nearly everyone was still down at dinner. Crookshanks uncoiled himself from an armchair and trotted to meet us, purring loudly, and when Harry, Ron, Hermione, and I took our four favourite chairs at the fireside he leapt lightly on to Hermione's lap and curled up there like a furry ginger cushion. Soon enough Simba dashed into the room excitedly, almost smiling at seeing me. He hopped up and licked my face quickly, warming my heart. He got comfortable and sat, looking peaceful. I gazed into the flames, feeling drained and exhausted, yet somehow strengthened more by my jungle cat's presence.