Everyone had gone back to their respective dorms for the night. Danie was the only one in the common room. She was in an arm chair staring into the fire. Different thoughts and theory's swimming in her head. Should she tell the order? Was she over reacting? Was this the first step in something greater? She was startled by someone walking down the steps of the boys dormitory into the common room. Danie jumped a little. " Oh it's just you. Don't scare me like that" A small chuckle could be heard. " Sorry" George smiled. " Why are you up so late?" He asked gently. " Do you really have to ask. " Danie looked up at him. " Scooch over" Danie did as she was told. George squeeze himself into the chair. Danie was now basically on his lap. She cuddled up to him. He put his arms around her. " I'm scared" he pet her hair. " We all are. But if we let fear take over when are we ever going to find time to smile." Danie looked up at him. She never realized it before but he had more freckles than Fred. His eyes had a distinctive gleam as well. "Look at you being all serious" she teased. " Well it does happen every once and a while. I have a feeling you'll be seeing a much more serious side of Fred and I" he said sadly. This was the first time he hadn't even attempted to make a joke. He hadn't cracked a smile. He's actually thought about what the future will bring. "You've really thought about this haven't you" she said quietly. Taking in every detail of his facial features. "I've thought about alot of things" he said looking down at her. " Danie who was your first kiss?" He asked quietly. His face getting closer to hers. " I never had one" her eyes closed. She could feel his warm breath on her lips. " George where the bloodyhell did you go? " Fred called down the stairs. George and Danie pulled apart immediately. Danie fell off the armchair. George cursing under his breath. " I better go before he walks up all of Gryffindor tower. Don't stay up to late. ". With that George left. Danie sat on the floor in shock. She had almost kissed George Weasley. The foolish and reckless rule breaker that she was complaining to Remus about, not even a month ago.
The next morning ran by normally. Lee, the twins , Angelina and Danie were all eating breakfast. They were all talking about Quidditch. They didn't get to play last year so they were all hyped. " Oh I see Harry , I'll be right back" Angelina got up and ran over to Harry. Danie found herself making eye contact with George. Their moment fresh in her mind. She looked down at her breakfast quickly and tried to ignore her blush. Fred and Lee smirked. Angelina returned. "I just had to talk to him about the Quidditch try outs. " she explained. " You lot sure like that game. I never quite understood it" Lee let out a large gasp. The twins looked offended. Angelina just shrugged. " I figured as much. You definitely more of the quite afternoon of reading type." she smiled with a small chuckle. " You can blame that on my uncle. He has quite the book collection. " Danie smiled with pride. Harry and Rona conversation could be heard lightly form where they were sitting. ".....I wish Fred and George'd hurry up and get those Skiving Snackboxes sorted..." Fred and George smirked to eachother. " No, no leave him- and their gone" Fred and George got up and walked over to harry and Ron. "Can't they leave him alone for 1 day. It wouldn't kill them to act like a caring older brothers every once and a while" Danie groaned looking at them tease Ron. " Honestly I think it would" Lee joked. The three of them let out a laugh. The twins ran off to somewhere. The tree of them talked about their courses for the year. " All N.E.W.T level. You're smarter than I thought" Lee said. Danie blushed Slightly from embarrassment. " Not really, I just need to be at N.E.W.T level in Order to become an Aura. They only take the top of the top" Danie explained simply. " We should get to herbology" Angelina said getting up. Lee and Danie nodded in agreement. Danie stopped behind Harry and gave him a hug from behind. " Don't get into too much trouble. " She told him and gave him a kiss on his head. "Danie" he groaned. " I'm aloud to show my younger brother affection, anyway. I'll see you three later" Danie smiled at them and ran off to catch up with Lee and Angelina. Herbology was on of Danie's favorite classes. She loved being in the way green house with all the sunlight. And learning about the different plants. The twins got to class just in time. " Dang it" Lee gave Danie 10 sickles . " Thank you" she smiled and put it in her pocket. Lee and Danie had made a bet. Danie said the twins would be there right at the bell. Lee said they would be late. The Twins walked over to them. " You were almost late" Danie said keeping her voice down. " Emphasis on almost" they whispered to her. " Today we will be harvesting Dittany. Now can anyone tell me what Dittany is?" Danie raised her hand almost immediately. " Yes. Mrs. Potter". " The Dittany plant is used to treat cuts and wounds provided they aren't too deep." Danie explained. " Very good" professor Sprout smiled. " Can anyone tell me what Dittany is commonly used for? " Danie raised her and once more. " Yes Mrs. Potter". " Dittany , mixed with silver can heal werewolf bites and scratches but can not prevent lycanthropy....um it is also used to treat doxy bites" Danie said the first part a little shyly. Remembering the countless nights of her using Dittany to heal Remus wounds after he turned back into a man. " Brilliant. 5 points to Gryffindor" Danie gave a small smile. Professor Sprout went on to talk about Dittanys magical property and the multiple posions and healing tonics it's used in . " How do you know so much about Dittany" The twins asked in a whisper. " Remus" she whispered back. They nodded. Next was defense against the dark arts. Danie kept an open mind. Just because Umbridge worked for the ministry and very rudely interrupted The headmaster doesn't mean she's a bad person. Tonks is in the ministry and interrupts people all the time. Usually by tripping and braking something, bit Tonks is one of the sweetest people she knew. Danie sat beside Lee, behind the twins. " What do you think" " no idea probably something lame" the twins whispered to eachother. " I wish Lupin was back. He was the best!" Lee whispered. " Me too" Danie sighed. Umbridge stood up from her desk. Once again dressed in a very pink Cardigan and dress. And stood infront of the class. " Good morning class" She greeted sweetly. A few good mornings came her way but the class mostly whispered amongst themselves. " Tisk tisk tisk that won't do at all. I would like you to respond with 'Good Morning Professor Umbridge' once more! Good morning class" Danie found an uncomfortable feeling rising him her stomach. "Good morning professor Umbridge" the call chanted back in unison, with as little enthusiasm as possible. " Wonderful, that wasn't to hard was it" Danie noticed a certain edge to her words. Like a hidden Blade ready to attack at any moment. " Now wands away and quills out" there was a groan that fell over the class. They all put their wands away and pulled out their quills and some parchment. Umbridge pulled out her rather short wand and tapped the chalkboard making big bold words appeared.
DEFENCE AGAINST THE DARK ARTS
A Return to Basic Principles.
The title read. "Now your teaching in this subject had been rather disrupted and Fragmented, hasn't it?" Umbrage said sweetly. " The constant changing of teachers. Many whom do not seem to have followed any Ministry Approved Curriculum, has unfortunately resulted in your being very far below standard we would expect to see in your N.E.W.T year ." Danie felt anger pool in her stomach. She knew it wasn't but the Umbridge lady's words sounded like a direct attack at Remus. " Came down Danie" Lee whispered. Danie snapped out of it and realised she was gripping the desk so hard her knuckles where turning white. " Sorry" she whispered back letting go of the desk. " You will be know" Umbridge continued " that these problems are now to be rectified. We will be following a carefully structured , theory centered , ministry approved course of defensive magic this year. Copy down the following, please" Umbridge tapped the blackboard once more.
Course Aim
1. Understanding the principles underlying defensive magic.
2. Learning to recognize situation where defensive magic can be legally used.
3.Placing the use of Defensive magic in a context for practical use.
The class started writing down the course Aim absent-mindedly. " Now has everyone one got a copy of Defensive Magical Theory by Wilbert Slinkhard?" There were a few yeses here and there. " When I ask a question you should respond with yes professor Umbridge or No professor Umbridge. So has everyone got a copy of Defensive Magical theory by Wilbert Slinkhard?" She asked again.
" Yes professor Umbridge" everyone chanted back in annoyance. Umbridge however looked quite pleased with herself. " I should like you all to turn to page 5 and read chaper one: basic for beginners. "Lame" the twins whispered to eachother. " This is going to be an exciting class" Lee whispered sarcastically. Danie didn't even open her book. Instead she raised her hand. " Yes Ms.". " Potter ma'am" Umbridge eye twitched slightly, only for a quick second. "Ms. Potter a question about the book?" She asked sweetly. "Yes, I took the liberty upon myself to read -". " When did you have time to do that?" The twins asked in unison. " Last night now shush. As I was saying. I read the full book last night and am I correct in assuming this will be the entirety of the course for this year" " you are correct Ms. Potter , though if you behavior yourselves I may just do a lesson on the way the ministry uses Defensive spells" She said happily. " I can agree that the education of this course has been sporadic but given we are 7th years and preparing for our N.E.W.Ts I don't see how learning the basics all over again will benefit us in anyway. " Danie spoke calmly and with confidence. The twins and Lee where holding back a laugh. "As long as you have studied the Defensive theory's hard enough they will be more than sufficient" Umbridge stated plainly. Angelina raised her hand. ""Yes Ms." "Johnson. For our N.E.W.Ts we are to show a bunch of different Defensive spells . How are we supposed to do that if we are just going to learn theories. " She pointed out. Whispers and mom ass broke out throughout the class. "As I said. If you have studied the Theories hard enough, there is no excuse for not passing your N.E.W.Ts " There was a slight shift on her facile expression. " Your past teachers have shown inexcusable behavior and as a result you are all behind on what is required of 7th year Hogwarts students. " "Professor Lupin was the best teacher we've ever had!" The twins yelled. "You will raise your hand if you wish to speak, Mr. And Mr.". " Weasley" the said in unison. She raised her head and looked down at them. Her attention turned to the rest of the class. " Though he many have followed the curriculum better than his predecessors. Mr. Lupin in question it not a viable candidate to teach" Danie was filled with anger. "Danie " Lee said anxiously. Danie stood up slamming the palm of her hand on the desk. " Remus Lupin was the man who raised me I'll have you know and there is nothing Questionable about him! He was a perfectly viable candidate and a brilliant professor!" Danie was careful not to raise her voice but her tone was just as bold. " Sit down ms. Potter!" Umbridge yelled in her high pitched girlish voice. Danie sat back down not removing her eyes from Professor Umbridge. " Regardless of your past teachers I am here now and I intend to teach you what the ministry requires you to know" Danie had to bite her tongue to avoid speaking out against their fool of a minister. " How are theories ". " Going to protect us" the twins asked. " Raise your hands if you wish to speak. As for your question their is nothing to be protected from so why would you need protection " " was nice meeting to Professor Umbridge" Danie packed up her books and stood up, heading for door. " Where do you think you are going Ms. Potter?" Their was not an edge in her voice now. " You Nd the ministry now very well that there are many threats out in the world now more than ever. You just refuse to open your eyes" " I have quite enough of your outrageous behavior. You will be joining me for detention every night this week at 5 pm sharp!" Umbridge said firmly. " As you wish. But this is a school professor Umbridge and I do intend on being taught" with the Danie left the room. A small applause could be heard from the room. Quiet put out. Danie walked to the library an hour and a half later the twins Lee and Angelina found Danie lost in a book. She looked up at them. " How was Class?" She asked. "Boring !" Lee groaned. " She's not to fand of you " the twins said. " I don't expect her to be. I was out of line, I'll have to be sure to apologize to her during my detention" Danie said closing her book. " Don't apologize you were awesome!" Angelina smiled. " I don't know about that. She is a professor after all and she's only doing what she being told to do my the ministry had told her to do" " you really need to learn how to not be a goodie two shoes " Fred sung his arm around Danie's shoulder. " Common we have an hour before posions, Alicia will be waiting for us by the black lake" Angelina smiled and lead the way to the black lake where a girl with black hair fastened into twin braids awaited them. " Hey what too you all so long?" Alicia asked. " We had to get Potter from the library" Lee said with a smile. He sat down beside Alicia on the grassy hill. They all sat down in somewhat of a circle. They joked and laughed. Taking about Quidditch and classes. " Wait so Lupin is a werewolf!?" Angelina asked in shock. " Yeah! Why do you think he was sacked" the twins said. Lee, Alicia and Angelina all looked astounded. "That's bloody awesome!" Lee practically yelled. " I'm glad you think so" Danie smiled. " Aren't werewolves dangerous. I mean they don't have any control over their transformation" Alicia said. " Yeah but that only happens during a full moon"George explained. " What do you do when it's a full moon Danie?" Angelina asked. She couldn't tell them about her being an unregistered Animagus. What did she do before that. Oh right!" Remus has a magically enchanted room in our house that I'm not aloud near. Every full moon he locks himself in there and then chains himself to the wall" she explained." Isn't it terrifying?" Lee asked. " Not really. It's Remus, when I was younger it was scary all the howles and screaming but it got better over time. When he's in a good mood or when he's calm or relaxed he can control himself almost completely" Danie smiled at them. "Well that's good. Is it painful do you think...you know transforming" Alicia asked. Danie looked up at the sky. " I'd say it's extremely painful. His body is involuntarily being forced to transform in a wild like creature. Every time he turned back into himself he's always in alot of pain. And always with a new scar or two" she could remember every time Remus transformed. " I don't understand why people are so afraid of werewolves" Fred said. " Yeah. It's not like they transform every day it's just once a month. " Added George. "People only see the world not the person" Danie looked at the group around her. " Well at least we can talk about it, and the more people talk and educate themselves on it the more that can be done" Angelina smiled. "Exactly!" Alicia added. She looked down at her watch. " Oh shoot! We have to go or were going to be late for posions" she said getting up. " Would that really be the worst thing?" The twins asked. " Do you wanna deal with Snape?" Lee pointed out. " Good point" the group of them ran back into the castle and down the halls laughing. They mad it to the dungeons just in time. The took their places infront of the multiple rows of tables. " Today we will be brewing Amortentina. Which of you actually read your posions book to know what Amortentina is?" Snape said in his typical stretched out voice. Danie raised her hand. " Ms. Potter" he said with disgust in his voice. " Amortentina is a love potion Though it doesn't really create live more infatuation" she explained. " That is correct. Amortentina is supposed to smell different to each. I have brewed a batch" he waved his wand and a cauldron of Amortentina sat in the middle of the room. "Now how would like to come up and share their findings" he said in a dull voice. Many of the girls raised their hands. A few girls went up and told the class what the posions smelt like to them. A few guys went up as well. "Ms. Potter" Snape called out. Danie hesitantly walked up to the cauldron and smelt it lightly. "It has a very fresh and earthy smell. And like a fireplace or perhaps fireworks? Maybe" Danie stopped talking and went back to her spot at the table. " Now you will brew Amortentina , you have an hour" Snape called out. The rest of the class felt awkwar. She couldn't shake the feeling for the rest of the day.