Blue ━ Hermione Granger

| SIX: HOG'S HEAD

Her mood had dropped enormously, something which everyone at the school who knew Amandla enough could see. On many accounts Professor McGonagall had asked her to come for tea and biscuits, but she had always declined, afraid that being around someone that had taught her own parents would figure out the truth, if she hadn't already.

And Corey had tried to cheer her up, telling the worst jokes he could think of, but even that hadn't brightened her mood. Poor Cevira didn't know what to do either, and on Saturday they headed to the Hog's Head for the meeting, one that Amandla did not really want to attend.

There was quiet at first from Harry, Ron, and Hermione, who had stood up at the front. Chatter rang from the others as Amandla took a seat with her own friends, and she didn't miss the longing look Corey had sent to Luna. She had a note to ask him about it later.

"Hi, everyone. I thought it would be good if we met and talked over how we wanted to teach ourselves Defense Against the Dark Arts," Hermione started, and Amandla could see that she was quite nervous, "Because we need to learn it properly, not the rubbish Umbridge is doing."

One of the Weasley twins (Amandla couldn't tell the difference) brought up their butterbeer and shouted, "Hear, hear!"

"Obviously, this will help us pass our O.W.L.s, but more importantly, it gives us the ability to protect ourselves from...Lord Voldemort," Hermione continued.

Amandla froze at that name. She hated it. She never wanted to hear it again, yet it continued to haunt her, following Amandla her whole life. And flashes of that day flashed through her mind, finding her parents died.

It was a nice day, that day. She had gone with the Malfoys for lunch at the park, a muggle one amongst London where they knew no wizard would go. She had ice cream with them and Draco had played tag with her, it was perfect.

And they went to take the girl home, Apparating them to her house where the front door had been cracked open. She remembered her Uncle Lucius telling the two children to stay back as he got out as wand. Him and his wife went into the house where she could hear the shrill from her aunt, and the two children raced inside, what a mistake it had been.

She saw their dead bodies in the living room like they didn't even try to run, like they accepted their fate with terror in their eyes. Aunt Narcissa told her to turn away, but the younger version of Amandla stood paralyzed at the sight of her parents' dead bodies.

"That's the first time you've said his name," Harry said to Hermione, snapping Amandla out of her worst memory.

Hermione looked pleased with herself, but Amandla, still shocked, couldn't find any reason why saying his name was something to be proud of. She felt like saying something, but nothing came out.

"How do we know You-Know-Who's really back?" Zacharias Smith asked. Amandla knew it was an idiotic question, of course he was back, there was no denying it anymore.

"Dumbledore believes he is," one of the twins, Weasley, of course, answered him.

"You mean Dumbledore believe him," another student pointed out, nodding in Harry's direction.

"And you'd be a fool to not believe it either," Amandla spoke, standing up, "Ignorance gets people killed, Justin, I hope you remember that."

"And what would know about that?" Justin asked her.

"When I was six my parents got killed for being ignorant," Amandla said, sitting down again. Immediately, Cevira brought her hand to Amandla's to comfort the girl.