Author's Note: Hey everyone! Sorry it has taken me nearly three months to update, but hey, RL has been evil to me. It has been evil to my beta readers too. But school's out for all of us and hopefully I can mass produce chapters for you all to finish the story before July 16th. That's the deadline I've given myself. Anyway, you've waited long enough for this chapter, so have at it.
CHAPTER THIRTY
CREATING CHAOS
Xavier Jarrett, Amelia Bones, and Linus Towler were the three nominees selected by the Ministry," Hermione read over a week later from the Daily Prophet.
"Huh?" was Ron's response.
Hermione rolled her eyes. "Have you been paying attention to me at all?"
Ron munched on his breakfast. "You started blabbing on about the Ministry, so I tuned out."
Hermione gave him a scathing look and then started over.
Wizards Call for Fudge's Dismissal; Ministry Responds
The dementor attack on Hogsmeade village caused an uproar within the wizarding community, and several owls flew into the Ministry of Magic the next day, all of them condemning Minister of Magic Cornelius Fudge and vehemently requested his removal from office. The sheer number of Howlers forced the Wizengamot into session to discuss their options and how to keep the wizarding world safe at this time of war.
Elder Tiberius Ogden, who rejoined the Wizengamot in June this past year, announced late yesterday afternoon that Xavier Jarrett (Head of the Auror Division), Amelia Bones (Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement), and Linus Towler (Wizengamot Elder) were the three nominees selected to the Ministry to replace Cornelius Fudge.
Interviews with the three nominees will commence tomorrow morning. It is expected for the Ministry to complete their interviews by Friday and to have come to a decision by mid March.
Cornelius Fudge declined to comment and is expected to resign.
"About bloody time," was all Ron said.
"Amelia Bones," Harry said thoughtfully. "She seemed like a level-headed person when I met her."
"And I'm sure she has some fine credentials," Hermione said as she continued to read. "She's been employed by the Ministry the longest, so she probably knows the ins and outs better than the other two. She must be good at her job and well organized in order to be the Head of her department, and she must also be politically savvy."
"Is all that in the paper?" Harry asked, amazed.
"No, that's just a simple deduction."
Harry laughed. "Hermione, you amaze me sometimes."
Her cheeks went crimson. "I don't see how."
"Because your brain works in such a way that it befuddles my mind half the time," Harry replied.
"You can say that again," Ron muttered.
Harry grinned. "Well, let's go. We've got Herbology first, followed by Care of Magical Creatures. I wonder what Hagrid has in store for us today?"
"I imagine we'll continue to work with other animals while the kneazles prepare to mate," Hermione said as she grabbed her cloak and books.
"What's taking them so long?" Ron asked, annoyed. He always seemed to get annoyed when talking about Care of Magical Creatures since the class had taken on the kneazle project.
"It's quite obvious, Ron, that you know very little about reproductive systems," Hermione said, exasperated.
"I know enough," Ron said defensively.
"Oh? Then you know about all of that, do you-about how female mammals go into heat?"
Ron's ears turned red. "I just know that your lot get extremely moody once a month-especially Mum. She looks like she could kill you if you get her irritated. Ginny's, if possible, worse. And no matter what we blokes do, we're always wrong."
Harry grimaced and sent a sympathetic glance at Ron. The only women he had ever been around for long periods of time were his Aunt Petunia and Hermione, and Harry thanked his lucky stars that Hermione always had an even temperament. Aunt Petunia…well, she always acted that way.
"Well," Hermione said pleasantly, "you get one and deal with the whole thing and see how you like it? I say that we're entitled to a bit of grouchiness while going through it. Bloody painful."
Ron stared at her in disbelief. "I didn't want to know that."
"Well now you do, so deal with it," she replied with a smirk as they entered the greenhouse.
He looked over at Harry, his eyes showing a mixture of horror and disgust. "How did we get into this conversation again?"
"Kneazles," Harry answered and shook his head. "Now just don't mention it again and we can avoid this topic, okay?"
Ron nodded. "Right."
In Herbology, Professor Sprout had them carefully tend to a group of her poisonous plants, causing all of them to pull on their dragon-hide gloves. Neville was pruning one of them when suddenly a green acid shot out of it and hit Ernie Macmillan on the arm.
"OWWW!" he cried as the acid ate its way through his clothing.
Professor Sprout got out her wand. "Evanesco!" she said, pointing it at Ernie's sleeve. "Five points from Gryffindor for that serious blunder, Longbottom-class dismissed!"
Neville looked completely devastated. Ron patted him on the shoulder. "It's okay, Neville. Madam Pomfrey will have him fixed up quick. Look what she did for me!"
Neville sighed. "That was a stupid mistake. I cut the wrong part of the stem…I should have known better."
"It's alright, Neville," Hermione said gently. "Accidents happen. Why don't you go find Ernie after Care of Magical Creatures and apologize? You'll feel better afterwards."
"Alright," Neville murmured, slumping off.
"Any of us could have made the same mistake," Hermione said to Harry and Ron. "The poor guy is just beating himself up so bad."
"Not surprising, is it? People always put him down," Ron said.
"But he's been doing so well lately," Hermione said. "Think of all he's done in the D.A."
"Yeah, Neville's definitely gotten better, and he proved it in the Department of Mysteries," Harry said, a small lump rising in his throat. He hated thinking about the Department of Mysteries.
Hermione put a comforting hand on his arm as they walked through the snow to Hagrid's hut.
Hagrid stood outside with Fang at his side. He had a huge grin on his face as they approached. "Hullo!" he greeted them.
"Hello Hagrid," Harry said. "How are you?"
"I'm fine. Got a letter from Olympe this morning. Nice to hear from 'er again," he said.
The rest of the class approached, Malfoy in the lead. "Oh God, why are you smiling? Did you bring some sort of monster to show us today?"
Hagrid chuckled. "None of yer business, Malfoy. Now, I've just bin over ter check on yer kneazles…it's gettin' to be that time. So, I thought today would be a good day to study 'em some more. Perhaps if yer lucky, yeh'll even get ter see their matin' habits."
"Yeah, if we're lucky," Malfoy muttered sarcastically, loud enough for everyone to hear him.
"So go on and get with yer partner," Hagrid said, ignoring him.
Ron frowned and walked over towards Parvati, leaving Harry and Hermione alone. She smiled. "Come on, let's go see how Eros and Psyche are doing."
Harry followed her over to their pen to find Psyche mewing slightly while Eros walked around the pen. Hermione smiled. "They're so cute!"
"If you like felines," Harry said. "I'm more of a dog person myself."
"You and Crookshanks get along well enough," Hermione commented.
"Yeah, well, he's your cat, so he's alright in my book."
Hermione smiled. "You know, if it wasn't so cold out I'd ask Hagrid if he would let Crookshanks come down here with the kneazles, but seeing as we're trying to get them to mate, it's probably not a good idea."
"Why not?" Harry asked.
She smiled again. "Males are rather territorial," she replied. "They'd try to tear my poor Crookshanks apart if he came near their pens."
"I'm sure Crookshanks could show them who's boss," he said, causing her to laugh.
"The mighty Crookshanks, I'm sure," she said and giggled.
Harry laughed and looked over at the kneazles. Both Eros and Psyche were doing something rather strange…"Er-Hermione? What are they doing?" he asked.
She looked over. "-Oh! Er-let's go get Hagrid," she said, grabbing his hand and leading him away.
*****
Harry was very happy to get away from Hagrid's hut when the class was over. Hagrid had both him and Hermione sit down and write, in detail, what they saw. Harry had found it quite disturbing. That was why he was welcoming the distraction of Quidditch practice as he pulled on his Quidditch robes in the locker room.
"Heard your kneazles mated," Ron said as he pulled on his boots.
Harry groaned. "Did you have to remind me?"
Ron smirked. "Yeah."
Harry pushed his shoulder. "Git."
Ron laughed. "Well, you just had this mortified look on your face as you walked away from class, mate. I had to tease you."
"So like Fred and George," Harry muttered.
"So like a Weasley," Ginny corrected, walking over. "We're ready."
"Alright," Harry said, nodding.
The team headed out to the pitch. On Harry's instruction, they took off and began practicing. Harry watched his team in pride. They had worked tirelessly to return to the state they were in when they had played Slytherin. None of them showed signs of being rusty. And the person who had worked hardest of all was Ron, continuously proving that he was, even after the dementor attack, still able to play. Harry was incredibly proud of him.
When they finally called it a night, they walked back into the Great Hall and sat down as one, discussing their theories on the upcoming Hufflepuff match.
"I think we'll be fine," Katie was saying. "It's the Ravenclaw/Slytherin match that we'll have to worry about."
Ron nodded. "Both teams are good. I'd give it to Slytherin though, because of the brooms."
"But Ravenclaw is talented," Alex McGuire added. "Talented enough to be versatile. Look at that Hazelwood. She's a Chaser but she played Beater in the exhibition match. And I played with Bancroft-he's a good Beater."
"And Cho outwitted you," Ginny added with a grin.
"I still say Slytherin will win," Ron said.
"It will be a high-scoring match, I think," Katie said.
"Which means we have to score a lot against Hufflepuff to stay in the hunt," Harry told them. "Do you think that will be a problem?"
"There was one nice thing about working with the girls," Katie said. "We shared information about our teams."
"Our information on you, Harry, was how Cho came up with that Bludger ploy-sorry about that," Ginny added, grimacing.
Harry brushed it off. "Don't worry about it. So, you two have information on Hufflepuff then?"
Katie nodded. "Yes, that Knowles told us a bunch, such as that Smith really fears Bludgers-"
"Then Andrew and I will be sure to send one his way whenever we get the chance," Alex said with a grin.
"She also said that if they start losing by too much, Warren gets down on himself and starts leaving his left goal hoop open," Ginny added. "So once we start getting a big lead, it will just get easier."
Harry nodded. "Let's hope you're right."
*****
Ginny was right, Harry thought bemusedly on Saturday as Gryffindor made its tenth goal. John Warren had been wide open when Katie shot the Quaffle past him, making the score 100 to 40. Gryffindor was having an excellent day, and the weather reflected that. Harry felt the nice, warm sun on his back as he flew around the pitch, listening to Colin's commentary on the match.
"Hufflepuff with the Quaffle again…Smith passes to Knowles-attempted to pass to French, but stolen by Weasley! She's soaring back…quick pass to Bell, who scores!"
Harry watched as Ginny and Katie gave each other a high five. Warren was kicking the air in frustration before passing it off to Knowles. Harry glanced around. Summerby, their Seeker, was on the other side of the pitch, looking around. Harry shook his head.
"Knowles passes to Smith and here comes a Bludger sent by Kirke! Smith does a squirrelly roll to dodge it-drops the Quaffle! French picks it up. Boy, were they lucky! She flies around McGuire, Weasley and Farrell chasing after her. Farrell flies in front of her-Weasley steals! She tosses off quickly to Bell, who flies under Beater Mathis. She passes it to Hunter Farrell…here comes a Bludger! Ooh, he barely missed that one! Quite the talent this first year is. Smith tries to block him-doesn't work. He's only got Warren to deal with now…GOAL! Farrell plows it right through Warren's left hoop. So the score is now one-twenty to forty in this lopsided match. This is doing some damage to Hufflepuff's hopes of becoming the Quidditch Cup winners."
Harry secretly began to wonder what had happened to the Hufflepuff team that had defeated them last year; granted, Harry, Fred, and George hadn't been on the team. Funny what one year could do.
"And what's this?" Colin cried, grabbing Harry's attention. "Smith dives under Bell-breaking away. Only the Keeper Weasley is left. Ron is eight for twelve today. Smith throws-SCORE! Weasley missed the feint and Smith brings the score to one-hundred and twenty to fifty, Gryffindor, but they've got a long way to go to get back into this."
As Harry flew down towards the Gryffindor end of the pitch, he saw Ron scowling at Smith. "It's okay, Ron!" he called. "You'll get him next time!"
Ron nodded before shouting back, "You bet I'll get that little twit."
By the time Smith got back to the Gryffindor end of the pitch, the score was 150 to 50, and that time, Ron stopped him with an amazing catch, causing Harry to laugh and cheer.
"And what an amazing save by Weasley! It almost slipped through his fingers, but somehow he hung on!" Colin said
Just then, Harry caught a glimmer of gold over by Summerby, who had completely abandoned his search and was watching the match, shell-shocked.
"You bloody fool," Harry whispered and flew around in a casual manner, keeping his eye on the Snitch for any sudden movements. Then, as he was getting closer to the suspended Summerby, he dived, causing the other Seeker to jump and nearly fall off of his broomstick.
"Potter's seen the Snitch!" Colin sang merrily. "Harry Potter's diving-Summerby is heading after him."
The Snitch twitched and sped away, but Harry was following it at top speed. Summerby was falling behind. Apparently he didn't see that it was pointless. Harry reached out, followed the Snitch as it made a thirty degree turn, and snatched it out of the air.
"He's caught it! Potter has caught the Snitch! Gryffindor wins!" Colin yelled as the crowd roared. "Gryffindor wins in a blowout match, three-hundred to fifty!"
Harry landed, holding the Snitch up high, and was nearly pounced on by the rest of the Gryffindor team when they landed. Ron pumped his fists into the air triumphantly as the Gryffindors stormed the pitch, running over to congratulate their team.
"What a match!" he heard Ron shout over the sea of students enveloping them.
Harry couldn't have agreed more.
*****
Monday morning, after breakfast, Harry, Ron, and Hermione were heading to Transfiguration. Harry and Ron were still talking about the match.
"They ought to cut that Summerby from the team," Ron was saying. "Even I noticed the Snitch was right under him. He must be as slow as Crabbe and Goyle."
"I think he was just devastated that his team was losing so horribly," Harry said.
"Especially after they beat us last year," Ron added sourly.
"Last year was an odd year," Harry said and then smirked. "But we still won the Cup."
Ron perked up. "Yeah, nobody could believe it."
"The comeback of the year," Harry said.
"Of the decade," Ron corrected.
"Of the century," Harry amended.
Hermione rolled her eyes behind them. "When you two stop flattering yourselves, maybe you'll notice that you just walked past Professor McGonagall's classroom," she said.
They paused and turned around. Sure enough, they had waltzed right past the Transfiguration room. They both turned red before walking back. But before they could walk in, someone called out gently, "Harry!"
The three spun to see both Professor Dumbledore and Kingsley Shacklebolt walking down the corridor towards them. Kingsley's face looked extremely serious, but Dumbledore had a small smile on his face. "Good morning," he said to them. "Harry, we'd like to have a word with you…if you could come with us? Could you two tell Professor McGonagall that I'm borrowing him?" he asked Ron and Hermione.
"Er-sure," Hermione said, grabbing Ron by the sleeve and pulling him inside.
Dumbledore's smile widened. "I think my office would be a suitable place, so why don't we go there?"
"Er-okay," Harry murmured, following into step behind Professor Dumbledore. He wanted to say hello to Kingsley, but the stoic look on the Auror's face made him think better of it.
They ran across Filch and Peeves along the way-Filch was howling and trying to remove a suit of armor's helmet from his head and Peeves was cackling merrily. When he spotted Harry, Dumbledore, and Kingsley, his twisted smile widened. "Why, Professor Dumbly-dorr, how are you this fine morning? Filchy here has gotten his head caught. And what's this? Potty-wee Potter? And the skinhead?" His eyes were filled with mirth. "Are they finally putting you in Azkaban, Potty?"
"That's quite enough, Peeves," Dumbledore said, waving his wand and releasing Filch.
"That's it!" Filch spat. "The Bloody Baron will be after you!"
Peeves jumped up to the ceiling. "That's a low blow, Filchy."
"Perhaps," Dumbledore said, "I could find something a little more constructive for you, Peeves? There is a tapestry on the fourth floor that has been unoccupied for quite some time. I believe its former tenants enjoy playing two floors below and they have agreed to letting me put up a new tapestry in its place. So, could you possibly remove it to the best of your abilities?"
Peeves' eyes sparked. "Don't worry, Professorhead, I'll have it down for you." With a cackle, he sped away.
"He's a menace, sir," Filch grumbled. "He needs to be kicked out!"
"He has his uses," Dumbledore murmured, picking up the helmet. "But I am sure this unfortunate fellow is in agreement with you."
Filch took the helmet back when Dumbledore handed it to him. "Yeah, I'll go return it," Filch muttered, and stalked off.
There was a glimmer of amusement in Dumbledore's eyes when he turned back to Harry and Kingsley. "Well, now that that's settled, shall we continue on our way?"
They walked down the corridor, around a corner, and down another corridor. They passed Percy, who paused as they walked by him, looking anxious. Harry noticed Kingsley shake his head slightly, but not before inclining it towards the redheaded man.
Finally they reached the stone gargoyle that guarded the entrance to Professor Dumbledore's office. "Cupid cakes," he murmured and it sprung aside. At Harry's inquiring look, he smiled. "They're a specialty a bakery in the wizarding portion of Manchester makes around Valentine's Day. I haven't changed my password yet."
They hopped onto the rotating steps that took them up to Dumbledore's office. Once inside, Dumbledore took out his wand and waved it, creating two chintz armchairs for Harry and Kingsley to sit on. Harry took his seat, wondering why they both wanted to talk to him. He wondered if he should have felt nervous, but Dumbledore's smile had him feeling at ease.
"Well," Dumbledore began, sitting down behind his desk, "you're probably wondering why you're here. Am I right, Harry?"
"Er-yes," Harry murmured, looking back and forth between Dumbledore and Kingsley.
"We just need to ask you a few questions," Dumbledore told him, "for the investigation."
"And for the Order," Kingsley said, breaking his silence. "So please, Harry, tell us everything you can, okay?"
Again, Harry glanced between Dumbledore and Kingsley before nodding. "Of course. Any way I can be of help."
A small grin formed on Kingsley's face. "Good. We hoped you'd say that."
"It's not going to involve Veritaserum or Legilimency though, is it?" he asked, glancing at Dumbledore.
Dumbledore chuckled. "We trust you to give us an honest answer, Harry."
Harry nodded. "Okay."
"Alright then. This is for the investigation and it's protocol, so don't take offense to it, okay Harry? Where were you the night of October 31st between the times of six PM and eight PM?"
Harry thought back. "On Halloween, I was in the Great Hall at six o'clock. I stayed until the feast ended at eight."
"And what about January 16th between the times of eight PM and ten PM?"
"At eight, I was still in Professor Lupin's classroom conducting a D.A. meeting. It ended around nine."
"You went to the dungeons," Kingsley said. "Why?"
"Because-" Harry paused, considering whether or not he wanted to tell them about the letter.
"Please Harry, we have to know," Kingsley said, "for the Order's sake. Does it have something to do with You-Know-Who?"
He nodded. "I found a letter in my pocket that night, telling me that a girl was going to die at nine o'clock unless I could find her and rescue her." Out of the corner of his eye he saw Dumbledore frown. "That's why I went to the dungeons."
"The letter told you it would take place in the dungeons?" Kingsley asked.
"No. It was…a deduction by Hermione and myself. A lot of intuition went into it," Harry replied.
"Intuition?"
"Well, before my Occlumency lessons, I had been able to see into Voldemort's mind," he told Kingsley and watched his jaw twitch in reaction. "I guess some of that lingered."
"Remus told us Ron was with you when you left, so why didn't he accompany you and Hermione to the dungeons?" Kingsley asked.
"I-er-told him to go get something that may have helped us find her," Harry said, scratching his shoulder uncomfortably.
"Go get what?"
"It's not prudent to the investigation, Kingsley," Dumbledore said.
Kingsley nodded. "Very well. Do you have any idea who put the letter in your pocket?"
"No," Harry replied.
"Do you still have it?"
"Yes," Harry said, nodding. "I've hidden it in my dorm." He frowned. "Afraid it's got a bit of blood on it though."
"It's okay, Harry," Dumbledore said gently. "Would you mind giving it to us though?"
He shook his head. "Anything to not remind me of it."
Kingsley's face looked very grave. "Then you're going to hate my next question."
Harry frowned. "Just ask it. I've relived that moment plenty of times already. Would you like to also know I stumbled upon June Winters?"
"Yes, please," Kingsley said.
And so Harry related the tale, about running into Luna in the corridor and seeing that Moaning Myrtle had flooded the bathroom, causing them to go talk to her, and thus finding June's body. He then spoke of the night Sinead died, and how he came across her, how she had been still alive.
"But the killer wasn't there," Harry said. "How could they have just vanished?"
"Disillusionment perhaps, but you would have noticed something moving," Kingsley said.
Harry suddenly thought about something. "What about an invisibility cloak? Do you know anybody who owns one?" he asked, choosing his words carefully.
"Only Mad-Eye Moody," Kingsley said, "and I've heard you have one yourself."
"Yeah, but not a whole lot of people know about that," Harry murmured.
"And it will remain that way," Dumbledore said reassuringly.
"But you said Cassidy was still alive," Kingsley said. "Did she see anything?"
"Her attacker wore a mask," Harry said quietly, but did not mention the other thing Sinead had said.
"That figures," Kingsley murmured. "Okay, Harry, I'm fresh out of questions for you. Thanks for cooperating."
Harry nodded and began to get up, but Dumbledore held up his hand. "I have a question for you, Harry. Have you been receiving any more visions?"
He settled back down and shook his head. "None."
"Very well. Is there anything you'd like to ask us?"
Harry frowned as a number of questions entered his mind. Again, choosing his words carefully, he turned to Kingsley and asked, "Your partners…can I trust them?"
Kingsley sat back and considered this. "I believe you've spent some time talking to Joaquin Crow, am I correct?"
"Yes," Harry replied, "we've spoken on a couple different occasions."
"Has he ever told you about his uncle?"
"His uncle?"
Kingsley nodded. "Yes, his uncle."
Harry shook his head. "No. He's spoken of his brother, and has mentioned his mother and father."
"So then you know about his parents' divorce?"
"He said they divorced in his fourth year and that his brother went with his mother to Spain while he stayed with his father so that he could take his O.W.L.s the following year," Harry replied.
"But he didn't tell you about his uncle, Jeremy Crow?"
"No."
Kingsley nodded. "It's rather personal. I only know about it because I was one of the Aurors who reported to the scene."
"Reported to the scene?"
"When Crow's parents divorced and his mother refused to take him back to Spain, his uncle took him in for the summer, and every summer after that, as Crow and his father have never gotten along very well. Crow's father…well, he was a business man and he never spent time with his children, so naturally Crow was resentful. But his uncle was a very good man, widely respected, and Crow loved him dearly. See, Jeremy Crow was one of the first people to voice their objections to You-Know-Who's rise to power. The Crows, while being a pureblood family, saw the importance of half-bloods and Muggle-borns. Jeremy Crow was an activist."
"Was he in the Order?" Harry asked.
"No," Dumbledore replied, "but he would have made an excellent member."
"What happened to him?"
"He was murdered by Death Eaters the summer before Crow's seventh year, and Crow witnessed the entire thing," Kingsley replied.
"He came back to Hogwarts with such determination, I recall," Dumbledore said. "He was bright enough that he was open to any career. At first, he wanted to become a Healer, but after his uncle's death, he decided to become an Auror."
"He had sworn vengeance against the Death Eaters who killed Jeremy," Kingsley murmured. "And then, a month after he entered Auror training, you defeated You-Know-Who. We tracked down the Death Eaters who killed his uncle, so he never had the chance, but by talking to him these past months, I know that he's shifted his vengeance to Death Eaters in general."
Harry didn't know what to say. His brain had fogged over with shock and sympathy. He shook his head to clear it and then asked, "Okay, what about Frost?"
"Mara Frost is a gifted individual," Kingsley said. "She was in the same class as your father, actually. Not a very sociable woman though. She is probably the third-most authority in the entire Auror Division on the Dark Arts and the defense against them. She's a very skilled dueler and knows a thing or two about potion making."
"The only people to surpass her abilities in school were your parents and Sirius," Dumbledore commented. "Professor Lupin was close."
"She's very thorough," Kingsley added, "a bit of a control freak, and she can be secretive at times, but she's a good Auror."
"Nothing interesting about her past?" Harry asked.
At this, both Kingsley and Dumbledore frowned. "Nothing that is worth repeating," Dumbledore replied. "Now, I have kept you away from your class for too long. Thank Professor McGonagall for me when you return to class, will you?"
Harry nodded. "Yes, sir."
"Excellent. Good day, Harry."
"Good day, sir," Harry said, getting up.
"Thanks again, Harry," Kingsley said. "Don't forget to give one of us that letter."
"I won't," Harry assured him and opened the door. "I can give it to you tomorrow morning before breakfast."
"Very well, then. Good-bye."
"Bye," Harry replied, closing the door behind him as he exited.
*****
The next morning Harry handed the letter over to Kingsley to review with the Order.
"Thank you, Harry," Kingsley said again, and stuffed it into his pocket.
He walked into the Great Hall, feeling as though a small weight had been lifted from his chest. There were still several more to go. He sat down next to Ron, who was chatting happily with Hermione, Ginny, and Neville. Harry smiled. He knew exactly what Ron was talking about.
"So anyway, because I'm not leaving for the Easter holiday, I'll take the Apparition test a few days after we return home," he was saying. "I can't believe I'm going to be seventeen tomorrow."
"Yeah, Dobby wants to know what type of cake you'd like," Ginny said.
"You shouldn't force the house elves to help with your party," Hermione scolded.
"Dobby offered!" Ron retorted.
"He sure did," Ginny agreed, grinning before letting her eyes go wide and altered the pitch of her voice to sound like Dobby's. "Dobby will do anything for Harry Potter's friend, Mr. Wheezy."
Everyone but Hermione laughed. "Say Harry, d'you think we could somehow manage to sneak into Hogsmeade and get us some butterbeer?" Ron asked.
"Tonight?"
"Ron! Harry!" Hermione reprimanded.
"What? You only turn seventeen once!" Ron said. "I'd like for my birthday to be a blast. A party in the common room-everyone's invited."
"Including those whom you call 'midgets,' Ron?" Ginny asked, smirking.
"Sure, invite the midgets," Ron said merrily, causing them to laugh again.
That evening, while everyone else was at dinner, Harry obliged the cheerful Ron by grabbing his invisibility cloak and the Marauder's Map in order to sneak into Hogsmeade.
"This is going to be great!" Ron said enthusiastically.
Harry grinned before pulling out his wand and tapping the Marauder's Map. "I solemnly swear that I am up to no good." Instantly, ink began to spread across the paper, mapping out Hogwarts.
"Hey, how about instead of getting some butterbeer, we get some firewhiskey from the Hog's Head?" Ron asked.
"Hermione'll kill us if she finds out what we're doing," Harry said as they headed out, covered underneath the invisibility cloak.
"Oh, what can she do to us?" Ron muttered. "Put us in detention?"
Harry snorted, and echoed the words Fred and George once said, "I'd love to see her try."
Ron snickered. "I think the Marauders would be proud of us, don't you think?"
"Sneaking out and causing mayhem? Definitely," Harry replied. "My father would probably have been proud-his son the miscreant."
The reached the statue of the hump-backed witch on the third floor. Harry pulled out his wand and tapped it, murmuring, "Dissendium."
The hump on the witch's back opened. "You go first, Ron," Harry whispered. As soon as Ron was through, Harry followed right along behind him. At the bottom, Ron folded up the cloak and put it in his bag while Harry checked the Marauder's Map. "Okay, let's go."
They traveled the length of the tunnel until they reached the steps leading up to Honeydukes' cellar. Carefully and stealthily they climbed the steps, entered the cellar, climbed another set of stairs, and maneuvered their way out from behind the counter without anybody noticing them. They exited to the street easily, and Harry looked at his watch. "Honeydukes closes in an hour. We have to be back before they close or else we've got to find another way back to Hogwarts, and quite frankly, I don't want to have to break into the Shrieking Shack."
"No kidding," Ron replied. "Let's get to the Hog's Head, get the firewhiskey, and be done with it."
"Stay alert," Harry advised. "You never know where spies and other nonentities are lurking."
"I doubt Dung is in the Hog's Head this evening," Ron said, grinning. He remembered just as well as Harry did when they found out Mundungus Fletcher had been spying on them for the Order when the Hermione had invited everyone to start the D.A.
They continued walking and headed down the side street the Hog's Head was located on. When they opened the door and walked in, they immediately noticed how the smell of goats permeated throughout the inn.
Ron wrinkled his nose. "You'd think they'd clean up in here sometime," he whispered to Harry as they walked up to the bar.
"Be with you in a second," the barman grunted as he filled up a dusty looking glass with ale.
Harry and Ron turned to take a good look at the inn. People were drinking-some were talking to others, but most appeared to keep to themselves. Suddenly, with a loud THUD, a man fell backwards off his barstool as another man dived after him, all the while punching. In a corner, another man, Harry saw, looked quite green in the face. He saw the man turn and hurl on the floor.
"Yuck!" Ron murmured, watching the sick man too.
The brawl continued, many of the patrons hooting and hollering, as the man who had fallen to the floor slugged the other man right in the face.
"Oooh! Youngun's!" said somebody with a scratchy voice from beside Ron, causing both him and Harry to jump. He was a short old man, with long straggly white hair and yellow teeth, most of which were missing. His stomach stuck out between his holey shirt and sagging pants. "Comes here to gets a drink, eh? Ah, you're good boys. How old, eh? Just barely seventeen?" He chuckled. "I started when I was seventeen. Been drinking lots, I have. They says it's bad for you, but looks at me! I'm quite healthy!" He showed off his missing yellow teeth again.
"What can I get for you?" asked the barman behind them, causing them to jump again.
"Er-butterbeers," Ron said, giving the old man a terrified look. "Definitely butterbeers."
"Yeah," Harry agreed, slapping some gold onto the bar. "However many that will get us."
*****
Hermione did not learn about Harry and Ron's evening in Hogsmeade until the following morning when she and Harry were giving their birthday gifts to Ron.
"I can't believe you snuck into Hogsmeade!" she chided.
"Hermione, don't scold us for one day, would you? It's my birthday," Ron groaned.
"So it means you're allowed to be reckless?" she asked.
"It means I can have fun," he said.
She scowled. "Here," she said, handing over her gift. "Happy birthday."
Ron opened it up. "Er-what's this?" he asked, holding up a bronze disk about the size of the palm of his hand. Emblazoned on it was the figure of a man tied to a tree with an arrow through his heart.
"It's a medallion," Hermione told him, "of Saint Sebastian. He's the patron saint of athletes, among other things. He's supposed to give you good luck."
Harry pulled on the gold chain around his neck, dragging his Golden Snitch pendant out from underneath his shirt. He wondered if his necklace was supposed to symbolize something.
"I didn't know you believed in luck," Ron teased.
"I believe in skill, but a little luck is required on some things from time to time," she said.
Ron laughed. "Thanks for the present, Hermione," he said, tossing it lightly into the air.
Harry handed over his gift. "It isn't quite as symbolic as Hermione's, but it will have to do."
Ron tore it open. "Holy hell! Chudley Cannons Quidditch collection cards!" he said, jumping up. "Wicked! Thanks, Harry!"
Harry grinned. "You're welcome."
Ron received several more gifts throughout the day. Through the mail, Fred and George sent him sent him one of their newest items, Flatulent Fudge. Ron looked over at Harry, a glint in his eyes, and asked, "Who should we give these to?"
Harry scanned the Great Hall until his eyes came upon Crabbe and Goyle, who were stuffing their faces. He grinned. "Targets identified," he murmured.
Hermione rolled her eyes. "You two are certainly up to a lot of mischief these days."
"After all of the hell we go through, don't you think we deserve it?" Ron asked, grinning.
"I won't have anything to do with this plot," she stated.
"Of course not, Hermione," Ron said. "You're shooting for Head Girl."
"That's not the reason," she said.
"Then why won't you help us?" Ron asked.
"Because I don't want to be anywhere near Crabbe and Goyle when you give those things to them," she said, going back to her breakfast.
"Here, hand over that package," Harry said. Ron picked it up and gave it to him; Harry began to read. "Ah, thank you Fred and George. They're geniuses. Look here," he said, pointing to the instructions on the label. "Mayhem will begin five minutes after fudge is administered."
"Hey, if we time this right, they could possibly gas the entire Slytherin common room!" Ron said excitedly.
"You could perform a Switching Spell and make sure it's the last thing they eat before they leave," Hermione said vaguely.
Harry smirked. "I thought you weren't in on this?"
Hermione shrugged. "I'm not. I'm just thinking out loud."
Ron rolled his eyes, but was grinning just the same.
*****
The day went by rather uneventfully. Harry and Ron carefully planned out what they would do at dinner and when it finally came, they couldn't have been more excited. They sat at the Gryffindor table, eating happily and watching Crabbe and Goyle. Suddenly, someone came up and tapped Ron on the shoulder. Both he and Harry looked up to see Luna Lovegood standing by them.
"Hello," she said. "Happy birthday."
"Er-thanks," Ron said, shifting uncomfortably.
"Here," she said, holding out something for him. "You mentioned you still needed it."
He accepted the gift-a chocolate frog card, Harry realized-and looked at it. His eyes grew wide. "Mother of Merlin!" he gasped. "It's Agrippa!" He stared up at Luna in awe. "Where'd you find it?"
"In my collection. I thought you'd like it," she said hazily.
He looked back down at the card. "Thanks, Luna," he murmured. "Is there a certain card you want in return?"
"No," she replied. "I don't want anything in return."
"No really," Ron insisted, "I should do something for you in return."
Luna laughed. "Ronald, it's a birthday present, although I wouldn't mind a picnic," she added vaguely.
"But it's cold outside," Ron said blankly.
"Who said anything about going outside?" she asked, smiling slightly. "Happy birthday again, Ronald."
He watched her go and then looked down at the card in his hand. "Incredible," he whispered.
Harry caught movement on the other side of the Hall out of the corner of his eye. "Malfoy's leaving," he murmured to Ron. "That means Crabbe and Goyle won't be far behind. Let's get this over with."
They quickly performed a Switching Spell on the fudge, swapping it for two harmless pieces of chocolate that sat on both Crabbe and Goyle's plates. Then they watched as they picked up the fudge and popped it into their mouths before getting up and heading out of the Great Hall.
"Shall we follow them?" Harry asked.
"Yeah, but not too close. I don't want to smell anything," Ron said.
Harry grinned. "See you in the common room," he said to Hermione, who was reading something and not paying the least amount of attention to Harry or Ron.
They casually walked out of the Great Hall. Ron stopped, pretending to tie his shoe, to let Crabbe and Goyle get far ahead of them. Then they crossed over and entered the dungeons. Harry searched around for a safe place. "There," he said, pointing to a large niche in the wall. "That should do nicely."
Harry and Ron quickly jumped into it, waiting. A few minutes later, they heard the pounding of feet and people gasping for air. "You blokes are gross!" they heard somebody yell.
"Move! Move!" someone else shouted. "Get us out of here!"
Then they heard Malfoy's voice. "Crabbe! Goyle! There's no way in hell you're sleeping in the dormitory tonight!"
Harry and Ron snickered, giving each other congratulatory high fives. "Let's get to your party," Harry said and ducked out of the niche, heading back to the common room with Ron, grinning all the way.
*****
Ron's party went over extremely well. Ron told the entire common room about the Flatulent Fudge and what he and Harry had pulled. The Gryffindors roared in laughter. Dean slapped Ron on the back. "You've got to hand it to your brothers," he said. "Those two really know what they're doing."
"Hey Ron, do you think you could get me some of that stuff to use on people?" Dylan asked, grinning. "To give the Slytherins another dosage?"
Ron laughed. "I'll see what I can arrange."
By the time Harry fell into bed, he was extremely sleepy, and he was in a very good mood. He was happy that Ron had had such a nice birthday, and that nothing had brought it down. He slipped into sleep, grinning.
He was in a room, sitting, and others were standing before him. It was dark, a fire in the hearth giving off the only light in the room. The faces before them, half-lit, were a pasty white.
"Do you understand your mission?" he asked them.
"Aye, we understand," said one of the men.
"And you understand that you are to do this as stealthily as possible?" he asked.
"Aye."
"Only kill those who get in your way and complete your mission," he said. "Oh, and I will know if you do something funny. My pet, Nagini, will be going with you."
The men glanced down as the large snake hissed and slithered into view. "Don't vorry," another one of the men said. "Ve shall carry out our mission."
"Excellent," Harry said. "My followers are currently carrying out a ploy to distract the Aurors. You should have little trouble. Now go."
They bowed and exited. When Harry was alone, he looked down at the snake. "You shall be my eyes tonight, my pet," he murmured and then suddenly, Harry found himself on the floor, slithering out of the room after the men.
Harry traveled out to a large room with several fireplaces. The men threw powder into them, and emerald flame erupted. Harry quickly slipped into a fireplace with one of the men as he yelled in a raspy voice, "The Ministry of Magic!"
Harry felt himself whirl around and around until he reached his destination. He slithered out of the fireplace and into the Atrium of the Ministry of Magic, following the men. One of them smiled, and he caught a glimpse of white fangs. Vampires.
It was late. The only person in the Atrium was Eric, the security guard whom Harry had met the year before. He stood up, wide-eyed. "Stop!" he shouted, pointing his wand at the vampires. They smiled.
"I think he means to get in our way," one of them said and advanced on him, as did several of his cronies.
Harry did not watch, but he heard the screams as he continued on, following the men to the lifts and heading down. When they got off, he slithered along behind them as they walked down the corridor. They came across a young woman, who gasped.
"She's in our vay," a vampire said and grabbed her, closing his hand over her mouth to muffle her scream.
"This door," somebody said and opened it, leading them into an anteroom. They looked around. One of them pointed to another door. They carefully and quietly walked over to it. A vampire with dark brown hair knocked.
"Judith? Is that you?" came a familiar voice. "Come in."
The vampires smiled. A violet haired vampire kicked open the door. "Surprise!" he shouted.
Harry slithered inside as the vampires swarmed in. Harry rose up and saw the face of Cornelius Fudge, looking frightened and alarmed. "Sweet Merlin!" he cried.
"Aurors are out handling a Muggle attack and you're all alone," a vampire taunted. "What a shame. We would have liked more blood."
And as they crowded around Fudge, Harry turned away. When he heard Fudge's scream, he screamed himself and jerked awake.
"Oi! What is it?" Ron asked groggily as Harry launched himself out of his bed and pulled on a robe. He felt sick, but he had to get to Dumbledore. He put his shoes on and ran towards the door. "Wait! Where are you going?" Ron asked.
"Vision…Dumbledore," Harry mumbled, pulling the door open and running out.
He jumped down the spiral steps three at a time and ran through the common room, out of the portrait hole, and down the corridor. He took every shortcut he could think of to Dumbledore's office. Then, when he reached the stone gargoyle, he cried, "Cupid cakes!"
Nothing happened.
"What? No!" he groaned. "You can't have changed the password on me! Dammit! Er-chocolate frogs? Sugar quill? Cauldron cakes? Licorice wand?" The gargoyle suddenly moved aside. Harry sighed and ran up the rotating stairwell before pounding on Dumbledore's door.
"Come in," he heard from behind the door. As he pushed open the door, part of Harry's brain that wasn't in panic mode wondered how Dumbledore could stay up so late.
"Professor Dumbledore-"
"Harry? What it is? Did you have a vision?" Dumbledore asked, quickly standing up and moving around his desk.
"Yes!" Harry gasped. "Voldemort-he sent vampires! Fudge is dead!"
Dumbledore stiffened. "You're sure of what you saw?"
"Yes," Harry said, breathing deeply. "I went to bed and I was in Voldemort's head, but then I was in his snake's. He must have possessed it."
"I must leave immediately," Dumbledore said, grabbing a piece of parchment and a quill before scribbling down a note and handing it to his phoenix, Fawkes. "Take this to Minerva," he murmured to the bird. It blinked before bursting into flame and disappearing.
"What should I do, Professor?" Harry asked.
Dumbledore put a hand on his shoulder. "You've done everything you can, Harry. I truly thank you for coming to me immediately. Now, go back to bed, clear your mind, and try to get some sleep. I will return when I can."
"Yes, sir," Harry said. "Sir? What does this mean for the wizarding world?"
Dumbledore frowned. "Chaos-exactly what Voldemort wanted." Suddenly Fawkes returned. Dumbledore took hold of his tail, and, looking grim, disappeared with a burst of flame.