The Golden Quartet (Harry Potter x Reader x Cedric Diggory)

Fifth Year - Chapter 25

Sirius, Remus, and Tonks were in charge of escorting you all back to Hogwarts. Mr.Weasley had been recovering very well but you guys still didn't want to risk anything. It was very possible for another attack to happen and the adults just wanted you all to get to school safely. Breakfast was eaten at Three Broomsticks before you guys were walked to the front gates of Hogwarts. No one really wanted to be escorted to school like babies but you all understood safety was more important. You grabbed your dad's hand and walked with him at the front.

"I keep hearing Azkaban," you admitted.

Your voice felt a lot better. It was still scratchy but you could tell when it was going to be bad and knew when to stop talking. You still took medicine. It was necessary until you couldn't feel your vocal cords rubbing against each other whenever you tried to talk. But you were too excited to not say small sentences all the time.

Sirius didn't stop walking but turned his head to look at you. "Poppet, how long have you been hearing it?"

"Since St. Mungo's."

"We'll look into it."

"You don't have to, Padfoot," Remus said.

You all turned to look at what he was pointing to. The latest Daily Prophet had come out. You could see the headline right there: Mass Breakout from Azkaban. You were sure you had heard some of the names written down between the whispers and slithering that had been plaguing you for months. Antonin Dolohov, Algernon Rookwood, and Bellatrix Lestrange. You, Tonks, and Sirius stared at that last name with vitriol. Bellatrix Lestrange, one of the few reminders of the dark wizards that had emerged from your family tree. Sirius grabbed your shoulder.

"Children, hurry up and back to Hogwarts, now. We'll be gone on an Order mission until further notice."

You honestly thought you would rather be back at Hogsmeade and run into Bellatrix herself than deal with what you saw after you finished unpacking your trunk and walking near the Great Hall. Umbridge had put up lots of decrees. Apparently because the Ministry gave her a stupid title and said she had permission to inspect Hogwarts, she thought she was Dumbledore now. Every decree was ridiculous and you didn't understand what she was trying to accomplish. What was more ridiculous was that you had to be there to see and read the decrees because you were a prefect.

The new one was by far the worst. Teachers weren't allowed to talk about what they weren't being paid to teach students. You scoffed— Padfoot, who was in your arms, hissed in agreement. She was determined to deny Voldemort's existence no matter what. It was obvious the decree was only because of the Azkaban breakout. You didn't say anything when she looked at you but continued your walk into the Great Hall.

"How is everyone?" you asked, chuckling when the first years almost spit out their food.

Having not heard you talk at all the first semester, they were shocked to hear your voice. You told them that you couldn't speak much just yet but were almost done with recovery. You wanted to save your voice but any questions the first years had, you would be happy to answer. Being a good prefect was important to you and you felt like you had been slacking at that during the first semester. The students weren't the only ones to enjoy hearing your voice every now and then. The faculty smiled any time you raised your hand in class to answer a question.

The first month went by without any attacks. Despite having broken out of Azkaban, the Death Eaters were quiet. That didn't make you feel better and the Order echoed those feelings. Quiet Death Eaters meant something big was coming. You knew because you felt like you couldn't go more than two days before you heard whispers around the corner. You were dreaming of that room with silver orbs, becoming concerned when Harry revealed he had been having the same dream. The only thing that made any progress was your alchemy project. You had finally finished all the books you thought were relevant to your project.