October 7 1995
Harry felt happier for the rest of the weekend than he had done all term. He and Ron spent much of Sunday catching up with all their homework again, and although this could hardly be called fun, the last burst of autumn sunshine persisted, so rather than sitting hunched over tables in the common room they took their work outside and lounged in the shade of a large beech tree on the edge of the lake.
Harry and Ron headed downstairs from their dormitory on Monday, still in a mightily good mood despite the prospect of having all their least favourite classes in one day today.
It wasn't until they were halfway across the sunlit common room that they noticed the addition to the room that had already attracted the attention of a small group of people.
Aurora, Elizabeth and Victoria were standing a few feet away from the crowd, glaring at the board and talking quietly among themselves.
This got Harry curious. He made his way to the front and saw that a large sign had been affixed to the Gryffindor noticeboard, so large it covered everything else on it - the lists of second-hand spellbooks for sale, the regular reminders of school rules from Argus Filch, the Quidditch team training timetable, the offers to barter certain Chocolate Frog Cards for others, the Weasley's latest advertisement fot 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.
BY ORDER OF THE HIGH INQUISITOR OF HOGWARTS
All student organisations, societies, teams, groups, and clubs are henceforth disbanded.
An organisation, society, team, group, or club is hereby defined as a regular meeting of three or more students.
Permission to re-form may be sought from the High Inquisitor (Professor Umbridge).
No Student organisation, society, team, group, or club may exist without the knowledge and approval of the High Inquisitor.
Any student found to have formed, or to belong to, an organisation, society, team, group, or club that has not been approved by the High Inquisitor will be expelled.
The above is in accordance with Educational Decree Number Twenty-four.
Signed:
Dolores Jane Umbridge,
High Inquisitor
"Does this mean they're going to shut down the Gobstones Club?" An anxious-looking second-year asked his friend.
"I reckon you'll be OK 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."
"She can't." Said Ron at once.
"There were people listening in the 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..."
And Harry had thought they believed him, thought they even admired him...
"Zacharias Smith!" Said Ron 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 it yet?" Harry said, looking round at the door to the girls' dormitories.
"Let's go and tell her." Said Ron. He bounded forwards, pulled open the door and set off up the spiral staircase.
He was on the sixth stair when there was a loud, wailing, klaxon-like sound and the steps melted together to make a long, smooth stone slide like a helter-skelter. There was a brief moment when Ron tried to keep running, arms working madly like windmills, then he toppled over backwards 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." Said Harry, pulling Ron to his feet and trying not to laugh.
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 dishevelled. "I didn't realise that would happen. It's not fair!" He added to Harry, as the girls headed off for the portrait hole, still giggling madly. "Hermoine and Aurora are allowed in our dormitory, how come we're not allowed-"
"Well, it's an old-fashioned rule." Said Aurora. She'd approached them from behind, Victoria and Elizabeth laughing loudly behind her. "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 Hermione -" Said Ron.
"Why did you need to see me?" Hermione had just slid neatly on to a rug in front of them and was now getting to her feet.
"Look at this!" Said Ron, dragging her over to the noticeboard. "Someone must've blabbed to her!" He said angrily.
"They can't have done." Said Hermione in a low voice.
"You're so naive." Said Ron, "You think just because you're all honourable and trustworthy-"
"No, they can't have done because I put a jinx on that piece of parchment we all signed." Said Hermione grimly. "Believe me, if anyone's run off and told Umbridge, we'll know exactly who they are and they will really regret it."
"What'll happen to them?" Said Ron eagerly.
"Well, put it this way." Said Hermione, "it'll make Eloise Midgeon's acne look like a couple of cute freckles. Come on, let's get down to breakfast and see what the others think...I wonder whether this has been put up in all the houses?"
It was immediately apparent on entering the Great Hall that Umbridge's sign had not only appeared in the Gryffindor Tower. There was a peculiar intensity about the chatter and an extra measure of movement in the Hall as people scurried up and down their tables conferring on what they had read.
Aurora, Harry, Ron and Hermione had barely taken their seats when Neville, Dean, Fred, George, Jace and Ginny descended upon them. "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." Said George, beaming and thumping Harry on the arm.
"The prefects as well?" Said Fred, looking quizzically at Ron and Hermione.
"Of course," said Hermione coolly.
"Here come Ernie and Hannah Abbott." Said Ron, looking over his shoulder. "And those Ravenclaw blokes and Smith...and no on looks very spotty."
Aurora and Hermione looked alarmed.
"Never mind spots," Aurora said. "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." Said Ginny impatiently, swinging herself off the bench, "the fool, honestly..."
She hurried off towards the Ravenclaw table, Harry watched her go. Cho was sitting not far away, talking to the curly-haired friend she had brought along to the Hog's Head.
Just as Harry was going to look away, Cho giggled and looked over to him, looking pleasantly surprised he was looking her way. She blushed deeply and smiled shyly at him.
Harry smiled back a little awkwardly. He heard a loud thump at his left side and quickly turned towards it. Aurora had forcefully put her goblet back on the table, glared at Harry before stomping out of the Great Hall.
"Potter..." Elizabeth groaned, getting up as well.
"What?" He asked, shocked. "What happened? What did I do?"
"You're being too obvlious as usual." She answered before hurrying after Aurora.
Harry didn't see them again until their first class, History of Magic. Aurora was already seated in her usual spot next to Dean. She still looked a little angry but whatever Dean was telling her, seemed to help.
Harry clenched his fists. He was supposed to be the one comforting her, not Dean Thomas.
Harry spent much of the lesson glaring holes into Dean's head. He ignored Hermione's frequent glares and nudges, until a particularly painful poke in the ribs made him look up angrily. "What?"
She pointed at the window. Harry looked round. Hedwig was perched on the narrow window ledge, gazing through the thick glass at him, a letter tied to her leg. Harry could not understand it. They had just had breakfast, why on earth hadn't she delivered the letter then, as usual? Many of his classmates were pointing out Hedwig to each other too.
"Oh, I've always loved that owl, she's so beautiful." Harry heard Lavender sigh to Parvati.
He glanced round at Professor Binns who continued to read his notes, serenely unaware that the class's attention was even less focused upon him than usual. Harry slipped quietly off his chair, crouched down and hurried along the row to the window, where he slid the catch and opened it very slowly.
He had expected Hedwig to hold out her leg so that he could remove the letter and then fly off to the Owlery, but the moment the window was open wide enough she hopped inside, hooting dolefully. He closed the window with an anxious glance at Professor Binns, crouched low again and sped back to his seat with Hedwig on his shoulder. He regained his seat, transferred Hedwig to his lap and made to remove the letter tied to her leg.
"She's hurt!" Harry jumped. Aurora had crouched by his left side and was examining Hedwig. Harry only now noticed Hedwig's feathers were oddly ruffled, some were bent the wrong way, and she was holding one of her wings at an odd angle.
Aurora bent over the owl. "She's shaking, Harry." Aurora sat up a little sttaighter. "Professor Binns," she said loudly, and everyone in the class turned to look at her. "Harry's not feeling well. I should get him to the hospital wing."
She nudged Harry and he tried his best to pretend as though he was sick.
Professor Binns raised his eyes from his notes, looking amazed, as always, to find the room in front of him full of people.
"Not feeling well?" He repeated hazily.
"Not at all well." Said Harry. He secretely handed Hedwig to Aurora who concealed the owl behind her back.
"Well, of you go, then, Perkins...Rudolfs..."
Once outside the room, Aurora handed Hedwig back to Harry who put her on his shoulder and hurried off up the corridor.
"Where are we supposed to go?" Aurora whispered, when they were out of sight of Binns' door.
Harry thought for a minute. His first choice of somebody to cure Hedwig would have been Hagrid, of course, but as he had no idea where Hagrid was his only remaining option was to find Professor Grubbly-Plank and hope she would help.
Harry looked out of the window. There was no sign of her anywhere near Hagrid's cabin. If she was not teaching, she was probably in the staff room.
"Come on." Harry said to Aurora and they set off downstairs. Hedwig hooted feebly as she swayed on his shoulder.
Two stone gargoyles flanked the staff-room door. As Harry and Aurora approached, one of them croaked. "You should be in class, Sonny Jim."
"This is urgent." Said Harry curtly.
"Ooooh, urgent, is it?" Said the other gargoyle in a high-pitched voice. "Well, that's put us in our place, hasn't it?"
Aurora knocked. They heard footsteps, then the door opened and they found themselves face to face with Professor McGonagall.
"You haven't been given another detention!" She said at once, her square spectacles flashing alarmingly.
"No, Professor!' Said Harry hastily.
"Well then, why are you two out of class?"
"It's urgent, apparently." Said the second gargoyle snidely.
"I'm looking for Professor Grubbly-Plank." Harry explained. "It's my owl, she's injured."
"Injured owl, did you say?" Professor Grubbly-Plank had appeared at Professor McGonagall's shoulder, smoking a pipe and holding a copy of the Daily Prophet.
"Yes," said Harry, lifting Hedwig carefully off his shoulder. "She turned up after the other post owls and her wings all funny, look-"
Professor Grubbly-Plabk stuck her pipe firmly between her teeth and took Hedwig from Harry while Professor McGonagall and Aurora watched.
"Hmm, said Professor Grubbly-Plank, her pipe waggling slightly as she talked. "Looks like something's attacked her. Can't think what would have done it though. Thestrals will sometimes go for birds, of course, but Hagrid's got the Hogwarts Thestrals well-trained not to touch owls."
Professor McGonagall, however, looked sharply at Harry and said, "Do you know how far this owl's travelled, Potter?"
"Er," said Harry. "From London, I think." He met her eyes briefly and knew, by the way her eyebrows had joined in the middle, that she understood 'London' to mean 'number twelve, Grimmauld Place'.
Professor Grubbly-Plank pulled a monocle out of the inside of her robes and screwed it into her eye to examine Hedwig's wing closely. "I should be able to sort this out if you leave her with me, Potter." She said. "She shouldn't be flying long distances for a few days, in any case."
"Er - right - thanks," said Harry, just as the bell rang for break.
"No problem." Said Professor Grubbly-Plank gruffly, turning back into the staff room.
"Just a moment, Wilhelmina!" Said Professor McGonagall. "Potter's letter!"
"Oh yeah!" Said Harry, who had momentarily forgotten the scroll tied to Hedwigs leg. Professor Grubbly-Plank handed it over and then disappeared into the staff room carrying Hedwig, who was staring at Harry as though unable to believe he would give her away like this. Feeling slightly guilty, he turned to go, but Professor McGonagall called him back.
"Potter!"
"Yes, Professor?"
She glanced up and down the corridor. There were students coming from both directions.
"Bear in mind," she said quickly, her eyes on the scroll in his hand. "That channels of communication in and out of Hogwarts may be being watched, won't you?"
"I-" said Harry, but the flood of students rolling along the corridor was almost upon him. Professor McGonagall gave him a curt nod and retreated into the staff room.
A hand grabbed Harry's and dragged him out of the way, so the crowd of students could pass.
The tingles that raised up from his hand was enough to know that it was Aurora's, whose hand he was holding. He didn't even need to look. But when he did, he noticed her previous concerned look had disappeared and she looked angry once again.
"No, Ara, wait!" He said and stopped her. He looked around him and dragged her to the side into a little less crowded corridor. "What's wrong? What did I do?"
"Nothing, Harry." She said calmly and Harry would've believed her if he hadn't known her so well.
"Oh, come on, Ara. You're obviously upset about something."
"No, I'm not. I'm fine."
Harry cringed. He had learned a long time ago that whenever Aurora said she was fine...she was anything but.
"Ara..." He sighed. He looked around him, noticing all of the students had now gone from the corridor. "Whatever it is...you can tell me..."
"Well, fine, then, Cho freaking Chang, Harry, Cho freaking Chang is what's wrong with me! I thought you said you weren't interested!"
"That's because I'm not. But even if I was, what's it to you? Why d'you always get so upset when it comes to her?" Harry was more impatient than angry.
"Because she likes you!" Aurora yelled, realising that all of this made no sense.
"Well, if you're angry with me because somebody likes me then I should be yelling at you too right now."
Aurora let out a sound of indignation. "And why's that?"
"For how you've been flirting with Dean Thomas!"
"Flirting with Dean! Me? Are you insane?" Aurora yelled. "I don't even like him!"
"Yeah, well, tell him that!"
"Harry, Dean isn't even interested in gi-"
"Why are you yelling at me?" Harry interrupted. "Why are we yelling about nothing?"
"I don't know!" Aurora said, breathing hard. "You just make me angry."
Harry rolled his eyes with a scoff.
"Look, let's just forget about it. I'm curious to see what the letter says." Aurora said, pointing at Harry's right pocket where he had put the piece of parchment. "Read it."
Harry raised an eyebrow at her bossy tone but did as she said. "Today, same time, same place."
"Snuffles is meeting us in the common room tonight. Great!" Aurora groaned. "Another thing to worry about."
"What d'you mean? Don't you want to see your father? I thought you two had-"
"We are...well, trying anyway. But don't you see...Hedwig was attacked, Harry! I think someone tried to intercept her. I mean, she's never been hurt on a flight before, has she? So what if someone else read that letter? What if they're watching the Floo Network?"
"If anything, it's too dangerous to find a way to tell him not to come, Ara. We'll just need to be extra careful."
Aurora sighed and nodded. "Come on, we should go, we have Potions." And she headed for the dungeons with Harry behind her.
As they reached the bottom of the steps they heard the voice of Draco Malfoy, who was standing just outside Snape's classroom door, waving around an official-looking piece of parchment and talking much louder than was necessary so that they could hear every word.
"Yeah, Umbridge gave the Slytherin Quidditch team permission to continue playing straightaway, I went to ask her first thing in the morning. Well, it was pretty much automatic, I mean, she knows my father really well, he's always popping in and out of the Ministry....it'll be interesting to see whether Gryffindor are allowed to keep playing, won't it?"
"Don't rise." Hermione whispered imploringly to Harry and Ron, who were both watching Draco, faces set and fists clenched. "It's what he wants."
It seemed as though Draco was talking mainly to Caspian and Blaise Zabini. They seemed to have gotten along quite well these past few weeks. But both dark-haired boys seemed quite obvlious to Draco's words. Zabini was as usual leaning against the wall in a very uninterested, sexy sort of way and Caspian was distracted by Daphne Greengrass' flirting.
Aurora rolled her eyes and bit down on cheek hard in annoyance. Did they have to be all lovey-dovey in public?
"I mean," said Draco, raising his voice a little more, his grey eyes glittering malevolently in Harry's and Ron's direction. "If it's a question of influence with the Ministry, I don't think they've got much chance from what my father says, they've been looking for an excuse to sack Arthur Weasley for years...and as for Potter...my father says its a matter of time before the Ministry has him carted off to St. Mungo's...apparently they've got a special ward for people whose brains have been addled with magic."
Draco made a grotesque face, his mouth sagging open and his eyes rolling. Crabbe and Goyle gave their usual grunts of laughter, Pansy Parkinson shrieked with glee...but Nova and her clique were silent...not a muscle on her face moved as she stared at the opposite wall.
Aurora couldn't study her expression further because something hard collided with her shoulder, knocking her sideways. A split second later she realised that Neville had just charged past her, heading straight for Draco.
"Neville, no!" Harry leapt forward and seized the back of Neville's robes. Neville struggled frantically, his fists flailing, trying desperately to get at Draco who looked, for a moment, extremely shocked.
"Help me!" Harry flung at Ron, managing to get an arm around Neville's neck and dragging him backwards, away from the Slytherins.
Ron seized Neville's arms, and together he and Harry succeeded in dragging Neville back. Neville's face was scarlet. The pressure Harry was exerting on his throat rendered him quite incomprehensible, but odd words spluttered from his mouth. "Not....funny...don't....Mungo's...show...him...."
The dungeon door opened. Snape appeared there. His black eyes swept up the Gryffindor line to the point where Harry and Ron were wrestling with Neville. "Fighting, Potter, Weasley, Longbottom?" Snape said in his cold, sneering voice. "Ten points from Gryffindor. Release Longbottom, Potter, or it will be detention. Inside, all of you."
Harry let go of Neville, who stood panting and glaring at him. "I had to stop you." Harry gasped, picking up his bag. "Crabbe and Goyle would've torn you apart."
Neville said nothing. He merely snatched up his own bag and stalked off into the dungeon.
"What in the name of Merlin," said Ron slowly, as they followed them. "Was that about?"
Harry did not answer. Instead he looked around at Aurora. They had known exactly why the subject of people who were in St. Mungo's because of magical damage to their brains was highly distressing to Neville, but they had sworn to Dumbledore that they would not tell anyone Neville's secret. Harry wondered whether Aurora remembered that but the blank look on her face told him she didn't.
They took their seats at the back of the class and waited for the lesson to begin. "You will notice," said Snape, in his low, sneering voice, "that we have a guest with us today." He gestured towards the dim corner of the dungeon and Aurora saw Professor Umbridge sitting there, clipboard on her knee. She glanced sideways at Harry, Ron and Hermione, her eyebrows raised.
Snape and Umbridge, the two teachers she hated most. It was hard to decide which one she wanted to triumph over the other.
Well, actually it wasn't. One was her best friend's father and quite the brilliant potionmaster while the other was just an insufferable Ministry witch who could do nothing but stir problems. She knew who she liked more at the moment.
"We are continuing with our Strengthening Solution today. You will find your mixtures as you left them last lesson, if correctly made they should have matured well over the weekend - instructions - " he waved his wand again " - on the board. Carry on."
Professor Umbridge spent the first half-hour of the lesson making notes in her corner.
"Salamander blood, Harry!" Hermione moaned, grabbing his wrist to prevent him adding the wrong ingredient for the third time. "Not pomegranate juice!"
"Right," said Harry vaguely, putting down the bottle and continuing to stare at the corner where Umbridge was sitting.
Aurora followed his gaze. Umbridge had just gotten to her feet. She strode between two lines of desks towards Snape, who was bending over Dean Thomas's cauldron. "Well, the class seem fairly advanced for their level." She said briskly to Snape's back. "Though I would question whether it is advisable to teach them a potion like the Strengthening Solution. I think the Ministry would prefer it if that was removed from the syllabus."
Snape straightened up slowly and turned to look at her.
"Now...how long have you been teaching at Hogwarts?" She asked, her quill poised over her clipboard.
"Fourteen years," Snape replied. His expression was unfathomable.
"You applied first for the Defence Against the Dark Arts post, I believe?" Professor Umbridge asked Snape.
"Yes," said Snape quietly.
"But you were unsuccesful?"
Snape's lip curled.
"Obviously."
Professor Umbridge scribbled on her clipboard.
"And you have applied regularly for the Defence Against the Dark Arts spot since you first joined the school, I believe?"
"Yes," said Snape quietly, barely moving his lips. He looked very angry.
"Do you have any idea why Dumbledore has consistently refused to appoint you?" Asked Umbridge.
"I suggest you ask him." Said Snape jerkily.
"Oh, I shall." Said Professor Umbridge, with a sweet smile.
"I suppose this is relevant?" Snape asked, his black eyes narrowed.
"Oh yes," said Professor Umbridge, "yes, the Ministry wants a thorough understanding of teachers' - er - backgrounds." Her eyes glanced over at Elizabeth, who was staring back at her defiantly, having already finished her potion.
Professor Umbridge turned away, walked over to Pansy Parkinson and began questioning her about the lessons. Snape looked round at Harry and their eyes met for a second. Harry hastily dropped his gaze to his potion, which was now congealing foully and giving off a strong smell of burned rubber.
"No marks again, then, Potter." Said Snape maliciously, emptying Harry's cauldron with a wave of his wand. "You will write me an essay on the correct composition of this potion, indicating how and why you went wrong, to be handed in next lesson, do you understand?"
"Yes," said Harry furiously.
Snape turned away.
"Maybe, I'll skive off Divination." He said glumly, as they stood in the courtyard after lunch, the wind whipping at the hems of robes and brims of hats. "I'll pretend to be ill and do Snape's essay instead, then I won't have to stay up half the night."
"You can't skive off Divination." Said Hermione severly.
"Hark who's talking, you walked out of Divination, you hate Trelawney!" Said Ron indignantly.
"I don't hate her," said Hermione loftily, "I just think she's an absolutely appalling teacher and a real old fraud. But Harry's already missed History of Magic and I don't think he ought to miss anything else today!"
~~~~
"No Quidditch practice," said Angelina in hollow tones when Harry, Aurora, Ron and Hermione entered the common room after dinner that night.
"But I kept my temper!" Said Harry; horrified. "I didn't say anything to her, Angelina, I swear, I-"
"I know, I know," said Angelina miserably. "She just said she needed a bit of time to consider."
"Consider what?" Said Ron angrily. "She's given the Slytherin permission, why not us?"
"I wouldn't worry, if I were you." Aurora said absent-mindedly and they all turned to her. "What is the use of one Quidditch team having permission to play without anyone to play against?"
"True, true," Angelina said.
"Well, look on the bright side!" Said Hermione, "at least now you'll have time to do Snape's essay!"
"That's a bright side, is it?" Snapped Harry, while Ron stared incredulously at Hermione. "No Quidditch practice, and extra Potions?"
Harry angrily sat down on one of the sofas, pulled out his Potions book and started his essay.
There was a sudden incredible amount of noise. Harry looked up. Fred and George appeared 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 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 Jordan was helping them clean up the vomit, while Jace and Luca were nowhere near them. Luca was on the other side of the common room, doing his homework and glancing jealousy up at the couch in front of him, every few minutes. On the couch, Jace and Elizabeth were seated. Elizabeth was sitting with her back against the armrest, her long legs sprawled over Jace's lap. He was laughing loudly at something she had just said, before kissing her quickly and smiling down at her.
It was well past midnight when they finally had the common room for themselves. Aurora had fallen asleep on Harry's shoulder by accident. Ron, who was also dozing lightly in an armchair, gave a muffled grunt, awoke, and looked blearily into the fire.
"Sirius!" He said.
Harry whipped around and Aurora woke and sat up. Sirius's untidy dark head was sitting in the fire again. "Hi," he said, grinning.
"Hi," chorused Harry, Aurora, Ron and Hermione, all four kneeling down on the hearthrug.
"How're things?" Said Sirius.
"Not that good." Said Harry. "The Ministry's forced through anther decree, which means we're not allowed to have Quidditch teams-"
"Or secret Defence Against the Dark Arts groups?" Said Sirius.
There was a short pause.
"How did you know about that?" Harry demanded.
"You want to choose your meeting places more carefully." Said Sirius, grinning still more broadly. "The Hog's Head, I ask you."
"Well, it was better than the Three Broomsticks!" Said Hermione defensively. "That's always packed with people-"
"Which means you'd have been harder to overhear." Said Sirius.
"Told you." Aurora said, laughing at Hermione's face. She turned back to Sirius. "Who overheard us?"
"Mundungus, of course." Said Sirius, and when they all looked puzzled he laughed. "He was the witch under the veil."
"That was Mundungus?" Harry said, stunned. "What was he doing in the Hog's Head?"
"What do you think he was doing?" Said Sirius impatiently. "Keeping an eye on you, of course."
"I'm still being followed?" Asked Harry angrily.
"Yeah, you are." Said Sirius, "and just as well, isn't it, if the first thing you're going to do on your weekend off is organise an illegal defence group."
But he looked neither angry nor worried. On the contrary, he was looking at Harry and Aurora with distinct pride.
"Why was Dung hiding from us?" Asked Ron, sounding disappointed. "We'd've liked to've seen him."
"He was banned from the Hog's Head twenty years ago." Said Sirius. "And the barman's got a long memory. We lost Moody's spare Invisibility Cloak whrn Sturgis was arrested, so Dung's been dressing as a witch a lot lately..."
"Well, he makes a fine woman." Aurora yawned.
The others laughed.
"Anyway," Sirius said, "First of all, Ron - I've sworn to pass on a message from your mother."
"Oh yeah?" Said Ron, sounding apprehensive.
"She says on no account whatsoever are you to take part in an illegal secret Defence Against the Dark Arts group. She says you'll be expelled for sure and your future will be ruined. She says there will be plenty of time to learn how to defend yourself later and that you are too young to be worrying about that right now. She also" (Sirius's eyes turned to the other three) "advises Aurora, Harry and Hermione not to proceed with the group, though she accepts that she has no authority over them and simply begs them to remember that she has their best interests at heart. She would have written all this to you, but if the owl had been intercepted you'd all have been in real trouble, and she can't say it for herself because she's on duty tonight."
"On duty doing what?" Said Ron quickly.
"Never you mind, just stuff for the Order." Said Sirius. "So it's fallen to me to be the messenger and make sure you tell her I passed it all on, because I don't think she trusts me to."
"So you want me to say I'm not going to take part in the Defence group?" Ron muttered after a little pause.
"Me? Certainly not!" Said Sirius, looking surprised. "I think it's an excellent idea!"
"You do?" Said Harry, his heart lifting.
"Of course I do!" Said Sirius. "D'you think your father and I would've lain down and taken orders from an old hag like Umbridge?"
"But - last term all you did was tell me to be careful and not take risks-"
"Last year, all the evidence was that someone inside Hogwarts was trying to kill you, Harry!" Said Sirius impatiently. "This year, we know there's someone outside Hogwarts who'd like to kill us all, so I think learning to defend yourselves properly is a very good idea!"
"And if we do get expelled?" Hermione asked, a quizzical look on her face.
"Hermione, this whole thing was your idea!" Said Aurora, staring at her.
"I know it was. I just wondered what Sirius thought." She said, shrugging.
"Well, better expelled and able to defend yourselves than sitting safely in school without a clue." Said Sirius.
"Hear, hear," said Harry and Ron enthusiastically.
"So," said Sirius, "how are you organising this group? Where are you meeting?"
"Well, that's a bit of a problem now." Said Harry. "Dunno where we're going to be able to go."
"How about the Shrieking Shack?" Suggested Sirius.
"Hey, that's an idea!" Said Ron excitedly, but Aurora made a sceptical noise and all four of them looked at her, Sirius's head turning in the flames.
"Well, papa, you see, it's just that there were only four of you meeting in the Shrieking Shack when you were at school." Said Aurora. "And all of you could transform into animals and I suppose you could all have squeezed under a single Invisibility Cloak if you'd wanted to. But there are fourty-one of us and none of us is an Animagus, so we wouldn't need so much an Invisibility Cloak as an Invisibility Marquee-"
"Fair point." Said Sirius, looking slightly crestfallen. "Well, I'm sure you'll come up with somewhere. There used to be a pretty roomy secret passageway behind that big mirror on the fourth floor, you might have enough space to practise jinxes in there."
"Fred and George told me it's blocked." Said Aurora, shaking her head. "Caved in or something."
"Oh..." said Sirius, frowning. "Well, I'll have a think and get back to-" He broke off. His face suddenly tense, alarmed. He turned sideways, apparently looking into the solid brick wall of the fireplace.
"Sirius?" Said Harry anxiously.
But he had vanished. Harry gaped at the flames for a moment, then turned to look at Aurora, Ron and Hermione. "Why did he-?"
Hermione gave a horrified gasp and leapt to her feet, still staring at the fire.
A hand had appeared amongst the flames, groping as though to catch hold of something. A stubby, short-fingered hand covered in ugly old-fashioned rings.
The four of them ran for it. At the door of the boys' dormitory Harry looked back. Umbridge's hand was still making snatching movements amongst the flames, as though she knew exactly where Sirius's hair had been moments before and was determined to seize it.