Disclaimer: I don't own the characters; they are property of JK Rowling.
A/N: Thanks to those who have reviewed. Please, leave me a comment. I mean, guys, last chapter got 200 hits and only 3 reviews…you can do better, I know you can. Thanks to GeoTube who has betaed my story.
Chapter Seven
"Ministry's Attack"
Several days later, Harry was hiding the Dark Arts books he was studying during the nights, to not be noticed, when Hermione and Ron entered the common room. Harry was busy in hiding his books that he didn't notice that they were both coming down from the boy's dormitory.
He then went to have breakfast after them, and seeing Ron with an arm around her waist, made him smirking. "Yes, Weasley. Enjoy her until my revenge will come, because from that day you won't have anything to enjoy anymore," he thought.
While Harry was eating, he saw a horrible look on Hermione's face. She became extremely pale, and since she was reading the "Daily Prophet," this couldn't mean anything good.
Suddenly, few moments later, Ronald Weasley stood up, the newspaper in his hand, and started to shout to all the Great Hall.
"Hey, all of you! Hear this!! The famous Harry Potter is accused to be a Death Eater!!"
One moment later, the Great Hall looked with disgust toward Harry, but he didn't notice this, and the comments which followed, because he snatched the "Prophet" from Ron's hand, and started to read, disbelieving and shivering.
"The famous Harry Potter, the Boy-Who-Lived, was declared yesterday evening from the Minister Cornelius Fudge, one of the people inquired to be a Death Eater. There are already some clues against the young wizard, for example the fact that he was the one of the very few people knowing the Order of the Phoenix whereabouts not being a member, you all surely remember the attack the organisation, illegal but operating against the Dark wizards, had suffered not long ago. He was the only person who could have revealed the secret; because he was the unique, he wasn't questioned with Veritaserum about having revealed that. Then, there are the facts of that famous night in the Ministry, and he, in that occasion, managed to have one member, Sirius Black, killed."
The article continued for long, and every line shocked more the poor Harry. There were almost three pages of totally invented clues against him, twisting the facts in the typical "Daily Prophet" style!
He, also, received a letter from the Ministry, which informed him that he had to attend to a trial at the end of the school year. For the moment, he would remain at Hogwarts, while the Ministry would search more proofs against him, and it would confirm the already existent ones.
Harry was so shocked that he stared to the newspaper and the letter for minutes, then shifted his gaze to the floor. He then searched Hermione's eyes. She couldn't say nothing, since Ron was near her, but from her eyes, he found the answer he was searching. She was still on his side, no matter what. She had been the previous year, when the Ministry and the "Prophet" had tried to make him look bad, and she would be this time too.
Finally, Harry started to notice the comments about him, and most of them were arriving from the Slytherin table; curiously, however, he didn't hear Malfoy's voice.
He stood up, going to the Transfiguration Class, and remained quiet all the lesson, while the others looked at him disgusted and horrified. He didn't care. He had learnt since his years in the same school as Dudley to not care about the other's judgement of him, since it was often influenced by lies on him.
Exiting from the class, he heard a Ravenclaw whispering to another.
"I always said that. Only a Dark Wizard could defeat You-know-who as he did at the age of one, he was destined to this fate since the day he's born…"
Others looked at him secretly, behind columns and doors, and he overheard Seamus speaking to Dean.
"Do you see it now? My mother was right on him! He's mad and very dangerous…"
Another student, another piece of nonsense. "Well, what do you expect from a guy who can speak to snakes? I'm sure Dumbledore hid it, but he was actually the one who opened the Chamber of Secrets, four years ago…"
Harry was almost amused to hear such amenities.
A group of Hufflepuffs started to run away, as he turned in their direction, while a Slytherin fourth year was whispering to another.
"I heard he helped Sirius Black to escape, when he was captured here…" Now, that was not a lie, but they did not know the real story of Sirius, though, so they could not understand.
For many days it seemed that all the school was against him, so he was very shocked when, walking near the Charms Class, wandering alone in the corridors after dinner, he was grabbed by no other than Draco Malfoy and led in the classroom.
In it, there was a little group of students, but Harry hadn't the time to look well who was there, because Malfoy started speaking, so he revolved his attention to the Slytherin boy.
"Potter. You and I have been always fierce enemies, but I want to tell you that this time, I'm on your side. I know you are not a Death Eater, one would wonder how could the Ministry come up with that, but then you look at Fudge's face and you simply understand…" The comment earned a chuckle from Harry and the other people in the room. "So, I want to offer you all the support I can give you, and the other people in this room wants to do the same," Draco continued.
Finally, Harry looked around him, seeing that in the room there was Neville, Luna, Justin Finch-Fletchey, Ernie Macmillan. Hanna Abbott and Terry Boot were there too; he was contemporarily glad that them trusted him, and sad for not seeing Hermione.
Seeing the sad look in his eyes, Malfoy smirked.
"Don't worry, Granger wants to help you too, but you know, she has to pretend to be faithful to the Order, and with that huge prat of Weasel near her, she couldn't come here…"
Hearing this, Harry cheered up.
"First of all, I want to thank all of you for trusting me. Second, I want to inform you that I'm studying many books against the Dark Arts and also Occlumency and Legilimency," he started then he explained what those two subjects were, before continuing.
"So, I think that if you really want to help me, you have to study those subjects, too. You know that helping me means eventually facing the Dark Lord, don't you? That means you'll risk your life and probably be injured, at least. So if you don't want to do this, you can leave, without problems…"
Nobody stood up, and then Ernie spoke.
"We are with you in this, Harry, and we will always be, till the end. We need a better world."
"Yes, that Fudge is a total moron. He needs really a good beating and that is what we will give him…" Terry added, and all of them burst in laughter.
"But don't forget that our primary target is Voldemort," Harry added, frowning a little. He did not know if they were ready to take on such a hard battle.
Draco was the last to go away, at the end of the meeting.
"Malf-I mean, Draco, why are you going against Voldemort?" Harry asked him.
"Just because I'm the son of one of the most important Death Eaters, this doesn't mean I am one or I want to be, Potter," the Slytherin sneered, before walking out of the room.
On his way towards the dorm, Harry met Hermione, who hugged him, tears flowing on her cheeks.
"I'm with you, Harry. I'll always be…" she said. He knew what she meant.
Harry kissed her on the cheek, brushing away her tears with his hand.
"I know, Mione. I know"
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