Need Protection?

Pascal | 25

Harry flipped through the pages of the Daily Prophet, searching for any article that referred to Dark Owl. This wasn't a difficult task, considering how half of the articles that were printed on that issue were about him. A huff escaped his lips as he scanned the article in front of him, spotting Rita Skeeter's signature at the bottom of it. He didn't bother to actually read the article, although he did catch his name being repeated in a few lines.

"But of course, Rita Skeeter wouldn't miss the chance to slander me," he commented bitterly. "How predictable."

Athena, who was seated across him, took a sip out of her coffee. "You don't need to take her so seriously. You, out of all people, should know that."

"I know." Harry sighed and closed the newspaper, neatly folding it and placing it onto the table. "It's just really annoying. What she does isn't very helpful."

Athena reached the newspaper and reopened it, hiding her face behind it. "Won't you look at that. Headmistress McGonagall in the Daily Prophet."

"She was having none of Dark Owl's accusations," Harry commented, taking a sip from his own coffee.

Athena read out loud a passage from the interview "The stuff was selected after careful consideration. The people that were chosen for these positions are proficient at their subjects. To give an example, our Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher is an ex-auror with years of experience in that area. So I suggest that mister Dark Owl double check his sources next time he decides to make a public accusation." She whistled. "Oh, she was definitely not having any of it."

Molly Weasley, who was preparing supper and moving behind Harry's back, didn't miss their conversation. "Well, she has every right to be upset. After all, the curriculum taught at Hogwarts and the hiring procedures are of the school's jurisdiction, not the Ministry's."

"Yeah. I really don't understand what he was trying to achieve by stating that," Harry admitted.

"Probably all he wanted to do was point out inadequacies," Athena responded before putting the newspaper away. "I don't think this inaccuracy in his statement matters. I believe that he made his point crystal clear regardless."

Harry fell silent. It had been a few days since Dark Owl had managed to breach the Wizarding Wireless Network and broadcast his speech across the country. Yet the uneasiness and the anger had stuck with him. It was the only thing he could think about, while at the same time trying to figure out what the endgame was. Of course, he had little to work with, which only rendered him even more frustrated.

"Did you even hear a word I just said?"

Harry blinked. "I'm sorry, what?" he asked, dumbfounded. "Seriously, what's up with you? You've been very distracted lately," Athena pointed out before she let a sigh escape her lips. "Nevermind. It wasn't that important. I simply commented on the weather."

Indeed, outside it was snowing. The yard was already covered with a thick layer of snow. Even the gnomes knew better than to leave their holes in this cold. The windows became blurry and it was hard to see outside. Molly had to clean them up every once in a while. Under those circumstances, it was normal that training sessions were reduced significantly. It seemed unlikely that there would be any quidditch matches before New Year's Eve anyway. In a sense, this was a relief for Harry, because Ginny wouldn't be as exposed to a madman's evil intentions, although there hadn't been any other incidents in a while.

"Good morning," Ginny said as she entered the kitchen before she served herself a bowl of cereal. She gave the abandoned Daily Prophet a side glance before looking away.

"Oh, by the way Ginny, I asked your dad to bring down the christmas tree from the attic. Would you like to put it up while I finish some of my chores?" Molly requested.