After seeing Charlie my mood improved a lot. I spent a lot of the Sunday after Hogsmeade with Harry and Ron doing my own homework and helping them with theirs. We decided to make the most of what could be the last nice day of the year and decided to do it down by the lake. Hermione sat knitting having already completed her homework whilst the twins sat nearby with Lee discussing new products, every so often sending me a note for some input without the others hearing mainly Hermione. Harry also seemed in a better mood after yesterdays meeting which I was glad of.
On Monday we found a new notice on the Gryffindor notice board that had attracted a small group of students. A large sign had been affixed to the Gryffindor notice board, so large that it covered everything else on there — the lists of second-hand spellbooks for sale, the regular reminders of school rules from Argus Filch, the Quidditch team training schedule, the offers to barter certain Chocolate Frog cards for others, the twin's new advertisement for testers, the dates of the Hogsmeade weekends, and the lost and found notices. The new sign was printed in large black letters and there was a highly official-looking seal at the bottom beside a neat and curly signature.
I noticed Harry and Ron reading the notice over the heads of some anxious looking second years.
"Does this mean they're going to shut down the Gobstones Club?" one of them asked his friend.
"I reckon you'll be okay with Gobstones," Ron said darkly, making the second year jump. "I don't think we're going to be as lucky, though, do you?" he asked Harry as the second years hurried away. Harry was reading the notice through again. The happiness that had filled him since Saturday was gone. His insides were pulsing with rage.
"This isn't a coincidence," he said, his hands forming fists.
"She knows." I added making them turn to me
"She can't," said Ron at once.
"There were people listening in that pub. And let's face it, we don't know how many of the people who turned up we can trust. Any of them could have run off and told Umbridge."
"Zacharias Smith!" Ron said at once, punching a fist into his hand. "Or I thought that Michael Corner had a really shifty look too"
"I wonder if Hermione's seen this yet?" Harry said, looking around at the door to the girls' dormitories.
"Let's go and tell her," said Ron. He bounded forward, pulled open the door, and set off up the spiral staircase whilst I stood watching and waiting for it to end badly for him. He was on the sixth stair when it happened. There was a loud, wailing, klaxonlike sound and the steps melted together to make a long, smooth stone slide. There was a brief moment when Ron tried to keep running, arms working madly like windmills, then he toppled over backward and shot down the newly created slide, coming to rest on his back at Harry's feet.
"Er — I don't think we're allowed in the girls' dormitories," Harry saod, pulling Ron to his feet and trying not to laugh. I walked over to them laughing as Ron turned to glare at me just as two fourth-year girls came zooming gleefully down the stone slide.
"Oooh, who tried to get upstairs?" they giggled happily, leaping to their feet and ogling Harry and Ron.
"Me," said Ron, who was still rather disheveled. "I didn't realize that would happen. It's not fair!" he added to Harry, as the girls headed off for the portrait hole, still giggling madly. "Hermione's allowed in our dormitory, how come we're not allowed?"
"Can you imagine if Fred and George had access to the girls dormitories" I say just as Hermione speaks.
"Well, it's an old-fashioned rule," Hermione had just slid neatly onto a rug in front of them and was now getting to her feet, "but it says in Hogwarts, A History that the founders thought boys were less trustworthy than girls. Anyway, why were you trying to get in there?"
"To see you look at this!" Ron said, dragging her over to the notice board as I went to find the twins. I headed up to their dorm and knocked.
"Yeah" Lee called out.
"It's me" I call back.
"It's open Ror" Fred calls out as I open the door and walk over to where they're sat working on new products.
"Have any of you seen the new notice?" I ask as they all shake their heads. "She's banned all group activities. It's like she knows"
"But how?" George asks.
"Beat's me but there were a few other people in that bar maybe one reported back to her"
"Do you reckon it was one of the students?" Fred says.
"No chance. Hermione jinxed the list of names, if any of them was to tell Umbridge you'd know"
"Wicked" The twins say in unison.
"Come on let's go find my brother" I say standing as they follow. We find him in the great hall with Ron and Hermione just as Neville, Dean and Ginny go over to him. We take a seat opposite him as they all start asking questions. "Did you see it?" "D'you reckon she knows?" "What are we going to do?" They were all looking at Harry. He glanced around to make sure there were no teachers near them.
"We're going to do it anyway, of course," he said quietly.
"Knew you'd say that," George said, beaming.
"The prefects as well?" Fred said, looking quizzically at Ron and Hermione.
"Of course," Hermione said coolly.
"Here comes Ernie and Hannah Abbott," Ron said, looking over his shoulder. "And those Ravenclaw blokes and Smith and no one looks very spotty." Hermione looked alarmed.
"Never mind spots, the idiots can't come over here now, it'll look really suspicious — sit down!" she mouthed to Ernie and Hannah, gesturing frantically to them to rejoin the Hufflepuff table. "Later! We'll talk to you later!"
"I'll tell Michael," Ginny said impatiently, swinging herself off her bench. "The fool, honestly" She hurried off toward the Ravenclaw table
"Harry! Ron!" It was Angelina and she was hurrying toward them looking perfectly desperate.
"It's okay," Harry said quietly, when she was near enough to hear him. "We're still going to"
"You realize she's including Quidditch in this?" Angelina said over him. "We have to go and ask permission to re-form the Gryffindor team!"
"What?" Harry said.
"No way," Ron added, appalled.
"You read the sign, it mentions teams too! So listen, Harry I am saying this for the last time. Please, please don't lose your temper with Umbridge again or she might not let us play anymore!"
"Okay, okay," Harry said, for Angelina looked as though she was on the verge of tears. "Don't worry, I'll behave myself"
"Bet Umbridge is in History of Magic," Ron said grimly, as they set off for their lesson.
"Come on let's get to lesson" I say standing as the twins and Lee follow suit.
As I was walking around during my free period I bumped into Harry who was holding Hedwig, her feathers were oddly ruffled, some were even bent the wrong way and she was holding one of her wings at an odd angle.
"What happened to her?" I ask as I gently stroke her head.
"I'm not sure. She showed up during my lesson at the window like it, she was carrying a letter. I'm going to take her to Professor Grubbly plank and see if she can help"
"Good idea I saw her heading towards the staffroom a minute ago"
"Thanks Rory, see you later"
"See you later Harry" I say as he walks off towards the staffroom as I go to find the twins who were currently working on a prank. Later as I sat in the common room Harry walked over to me.
"Rory, McGonagall thinks someone was trying to intercept the letter Hedwig was carrying so be careful when sending letters" I nod at him as he continues up to his dorm with Ron as Angelina walks over to me taking a seat.
"You okay Ang?"
"No. Umbridge has decided she needs time to consider whether to allow the team to play"
"What"
"Yep and the best bit is she's given the Slytherins permisson"
"That's ridiculous, go to McGonagall see if she can't help"
"Thank you Rory that's a great idea" She jumps up smiling before running out of the common room. I hadn't noticed Harry return until he slumped down into a chair, dragged his Potions essay reluctantly from his bag, and set to work. He kept glancing into the flames of the fire every few minutes just in case.
"Take it Pad's is paying you a visit tonight"
"Yeah" There was also an incredible amount of noise in the room: Fred and George finally to have perfected one type of Skiving Snackbox, which they were taking turns to demonstrate to a cheering and whooping crowd. First, Fred would take a bite out of the orange end of a chew, at which he would vomit spectacularly into a bucket they had placed in front of them. Then he would force down the purple end of the chew, at which the vomiting would immediately cease. Lee, who was assisting the demonstration, was lazily vanishing the vomit at regular intervals whilst I kept my distance hating puke. The cheers and sound of vomit hitting the bottom of Fred and George's bucket were punctuated by loud and disapproving sniffs from Hermione.
"Just go and stop them, then!" Harry said irritably, after crossing out the wrong weight of powdered griffin claw for the fourth time.
"I can't, they're not technically doing anything wrong," Hermione said through gritted teeth making me laugh slightly. "They're quite within their rights to eat the foul things themselves, and I can't find a rule that says the other idiots aren't entitled to buy them, not unless they're proven to be dangerous in some way, and it doesn't look as though they are." She, Harry, and Ron somehow managed to watched George projectile-vomit into the bucket, gulp down the rest of the chew, and straighten up, beaming with his arms wide to protracted applause without even wincing.
"You know, I don't get why Fred and George only got three O.W.L.s each," Harry said, watching as Fred, George, and Lee collected gold from the eager crowd. "They really know their stuff."
"Oh, they only know flashy stuff that's no real use to anyone," Hermione said disparagingly pissing me off in the process.
"You think you know them don't you Hermione. They know all the things in lesson's to pass them they just don't care because it's not any use to what they want to do in life. They don't want to be a little know it all that judges everyone else like you" I snap at her before grabbing my stuff and walking away and up to my dorm. I grab the mirror to talk to Pad's and Moony.
"Pad's, Moony" Again only Pad's comes to the mirror.
"Hey little wolf"
"Hey Pad's where's Moony?"
"Order business"
"Still"
"I'm sorry wolf I know you want to talk to him"
"I just miss him that's all. he's okay though, right"
"He's fine Wolf he checked in this morning" I nod still slightly disappointed that he's not there. I haven't been able to talk to Moony since returning to school because of him being away on order business.
"So how are you Pad's"
"I'm good. Did you enjoy your little surprise the other day" He smiles at me and I know he's talking about Charlie.
"I did thank you for that Pad's"
"You're welcome. Now the serious stuff" I wince at that, Pad's doesn't usually do serious.
"What's that"
"Hog's head" My eyes go wide "Yep, I know"
"How"
"Mundungus" I look at his for a moment.
"He was there?"
"Yep was dressed as a witch"
"Oh. In my defence it wasn't exactly my idea. Personally I wouldn't of chosen there for a meeting in the first place"
"Who's idea was it"
"Hermione's" I spit her name out angrily.
"What's happened between you two now" He raises his eyebrow at me being able to read me well.
"She said some things about the twins only knowing flashy stuff and nothing of real use. She takes any chance she can get to put them down about their products. They're brilliant Pad's and it annoys me that no-one else seems to notice that about them"
"They're lucky to have a best friend like you Wolf" I smile at him.
"Thanks Pad"
"Anytime sweetheart"
"Can you get Moony to get in touch when he can please Pad's. I'm generally in my dorm between 5 and 6 most evenings. I'm taking school more seriously this year, don't worry I'm still pranking"
"I'll let him know sweetheart"
"Thank you Pad's" I smile at him as we say our goodbyes. I head back down to the common room to find the twins who have now stopped demonstrating their products.
"Hey Rory, heard you had a little argument with Hermione over us" Fred smirks at me.
"I did"
"Didn't know you cared" George jokes as I roll my eyes at him before smiling. He wraps an arm around me before speaking again "Thank you"
"For what"
"Always backing us up" Fred says smiling at me.
"You guys are my best friends, of course I'd always back you up. I'm not going to let anyone talk down about you, you're both great"
"Thanks Ror" Fred says pulling me in for a hug.