── ⲇ ──
That morning, Y/n woke up pumped than ever. She had to make this training session count. Because their next match was approaching soon.
Very soon.
Like, tomorrow, soon.
She rushed to the Great Hall and was soon met by her Quidditch players. It saddened her to not see George, Fred, and Harry amongst them but nonetheless, she had a team.
So after they ate breakfast and made their way to the lockers to change, Y/n went over their plans for tomorrow's game.
"Now, we're going to go out there and practice these plays." She clasped her hands together, marching out of the locker room with her entourage.
── ⲇ ──
And if she thought practice was horrible, the match was worse. The only good thing about it was that it was short.
Twenty two minutes of agony.
The only reason they weren't so far behind in points was because of Ginny catching the snitch.
Back in the common room, Y/n sat with an ice pack over her face, her lips cracked and bruised as well. She would've been less upset about it if it was from the other team.
But no, her wounds were from her incompetent teammate who hit her with his bat when he missed the Bludger.
Meanwhile, Ron sat hunched over, staring at his knees with his bottle of Butterbeer in hand. Y/n wouldn't let him resign, she had faith in him. She's seen him play before, without the crowds, and she knew he was good.
"I haven't even got the heart to make a mockery out of him..." Fred muttered, walking over to his girlfriend and standing beside her. She looked up at him, looking utterly defeated. He couldn't even bring himself to make a joke to her.
She'd just brush it off anyways. So he sat next to her and laid his head to rest on her shoulder.
She yawned softly, laying her head on his.
── ⲇ ──
Time and time went on.
And Umbridge's grip on the school kept getting tighter.
The Quibbler was banned.
Harry viewed into Voldemort's head again.
Trelawney was sacked as a professor and despite Umbridge's efforts, she still remained in the castle.
Everything was just starting to seem like one bad thing after another.
The only things to look forward to were the DA meetings.
They had finally started to learn to conjure Patronuses. Y/n attempted it before but she was feeling rather depressed under the effects of a dementor.
"Make it a powerful memory. The happiest you can remember. Allow it to fill you up." Harry told them.
Y/n thought to herself, "I have loads of happiest memories... so why isn't one working?" Were they not happy enough? Was she not happy enough? Was she ever truly happy or perhaps she allowed herself to believe she was but truly she never was.
But why wouldn't she be happy?
She had her brother, a home and the wonderful family she lived with, her amazing friends, and her ever loving boyfriend.
Shaking her head, she shook her thoughts out. Ginny got her Patronus. Fred and George got their Patronus. Ron did as well. And of course, perfect Hermione got her Patronus.
Y/n huffed, feeling her face flush in embarrassment. "Not a single happy memory." She thought to herself. Every happy memory was just clouded by her bad thoughts.
"I still can't do it!" Lavender Brown had shouted angrily. Neville was struggling as well. That was expected of them. Not of Y/n.
Y/n Potter was top of her classes. She was Quidditch team captain. And she was a fucking Animagus for Merlin's sake! This shouldn't be that hard.
Before she could attempt again, the door to the room opened and closed. It was Dobby.
"Hi, Dobby!" Harry said. "What are you - What's wrong?"
The elf's eyes were wide with terror and he was shaking. The members of the DA closest to Harry had fallen silent; everybody in the room was watching Dobby. The few Patronuses people had managed to conjure faded away into silver mist, leaving the room looking much darker than before.
"Harry Potter, sir..." squeaked the elf, trembling from head to foot, "Harry Potter, sir... Dobby has come to warn you... but the house-elves have been warned not to tell..."
He ran head-first at the wall. Harry, who had some experience of Dobby's habits of self-punishment, made to seize him, but Dobby merely bounced off the stone, cushioned by his eight hats. Hermione and a few of the other girls let out squeaks of fear and sympathy.
"What's happened, Dobby?" Harry asked, grabbing the elf's tiny arm and holding him away from anything with which he might seek to hurt himself.
"Harry Potter... she... she..."
Dobby hit himself hard on the nose with his free fist. Harry seized that, too.
"Umbridge?" asked Harry, horrified.
Dobby nodded, then tried to bang his head on Harry's knees. Harry held him at arm's length.
"What about her? Dobby - she hasn't found out about this -about us - about the DA?"
He read the answer in the elf's stricken face. His hands held fast by Harry, the elf tried to kick himself and fell to the floor.
"Is she coming?" Harry asked quietly.
Dobby let out a howl, and began beating his bare feet hard on the floor. "Yes, Harry Potter, yes!"
Harry straightened up and looked around at the motionless, terrified people gazing at the thrashing elf. "WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR?" Harry bellowed. "RUN!"
Everyone bolted to the exit doors. Fred quickly grabbed ahold of Y/n's hand as they ran down the corridors. The Owlery or the library were the closest places to hide in.
Fred quickly pulled her into the boy's restroom. The two were panting and attempting to calm their breathing.
"My heart is pounding..." she muttered, her ear twitched as she heard heavy footsteps headed their way. "Crabbe is coming..."
They shared a look before nodding firmly.
Crabbe soon came in, his heavy breathing alerting them that he arrived. And one by one, he started blasting the bathroom stalls open with his wand.
Until he reached the very last one. "Oi! A little privacy!?" Fred shouted, zipping his pants up as he growled lowly, looming closer towards Crabbe.
Quaking, Crabbe started to back away, and just as he was about to run out, the shrieking of a bat caused him to fall over. The bat flew closer towards Crabbe, as the boy screamed and scurried out.
Y/n shifted back into herself self, laughing triumphantly.
── ⲇ ──
And the days just kept getting worse.
Because,
"BY ORDER OF THE MINISTRY OF MAGIC
Dolores Jane Umbridge (High Inquisitor) has replaced Albus Dumbledore as Head of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
The above is in accordance with Educational Decree Number Twenty-eight.
Signed: Cornelius Oswald Fudge, Minister for Magic"