Author's Note: I had planned on updating a lot earlier today but suddenly the fire alarm went off at work and everything got thrown out of the window (not literally, of course). But now I'm home, so I'm updating. Thanks to reviewing everyone and enjoy the chapter!
CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN
ENGLAND, IRELAND, SCOTLAND, AND WALES
"Come on, we must see the headmaster!" Ginny cried, tugging on Harry's sleeve, for he had gone very still when Ginny had proclaimed that she knew where the next attack was going to take place.
"How d'you know?" he asked, giving her a shrewd look.
"It doesn't matter how I know," Ginny said. "The point is, I know."
"You've been talking to Malfoy again, haven't you?" he accused. "He told you, didn't he?"
"So what if I have been talking to Draco. He and I have something in common," Ginny said defensively. "It doesn't matter, though. We have to see Professor Dumbledore. You know the password to get past the gargoyle. Take me to see him!"
"What did he tell you?" Harry demanded. "And did you ever consider that he might be lying to you?"
"I don't think he was lying," Ginny said. "He seemed very nervous when he was talking to me, looking behind his back and jumping at the smallest noise. Please, Harry, we must tell Professor Dumbledore."
"Alright, fine. I'll take you to him, but I hope that this isn't some sort of farce on Malfoy's part. The wizarding world can't afford to send the Aurors on a wild goose chase," Harry said, heading back down the stairs.
"It's not a wild goose chase," Ginny said. "Draco said he received the information from his father-that he receives a lot of information from his father because, well, his father wants information from him."
"He told you all this?" Harry said.
"Yes."
"Why?"
"I don't know, really. Perhaps it's because I'm the only one who's willing to listen," Ginny said.
They reached the gargoyle, which was probably a good thing, because it caused Harry to bite back his retort. "Pepper Imp," he said instead.
The gargoyle hopped aside and Harry stepped onto the revolving staircase with Ginny at his side. She looked up at him, but he didn't look at her.
"Harry, what happened to your face?" she asked.
"Never you mind," he said as they reached the top. He stepped off of the staircase and took the griffin knocker in his hand. "You're absolutely sure that Malfoy is telling the truth?"
"Yes," she said earnestly. "And don't take that tone of voice with me. I don't let Ron talk to me like that, so I'm not about to let you."
Harry scowled and knocked on the door. When Dumbledore called, "Enter," from the other side, Harry pulled the door open.
"After you," he said to Ginny.
Ginny strode into the headmaster's office, although Harry could tell she was a little nervous. He followed her inside and closed the door behind him.
"Miss Weasley and Mr. Potter, how good to see you," Dumbledore said, smiling. "What can I do for you?"
"Ginny has some information for you, sir. Information that she believes is important for the Order to know," Harry told him.
Dumbledore gazed at her with keen interest. "Does she?"
Ginny stepped forward. "Yes, sir," she said. "I was told by a trusted source-"
Harry scoffed.
"Mr. Potter?"
"Ginny, you should tell Professor Dumbledore who your 'trusted source' is," Harry said.
She frowned at him, but turned back to Dumbledore and said, "It's Draco Malfoy, sir."
"Mr. Malfoy?" Dumbledore said, his face barely betraying his surprise.
"Yes, sir. Draco told me that he received information from his father about where You-Know-Who is going to attack next. Worse, he told me that his father has been passing information to him on all of the attacks that have already taken place. I think his father wants to make sure he has all the information that he'll need to gain favor with You-Know-Who in order to become a Death Eater once he leaves Hogwarts," Ginny told him.
Harry stared at her in surprise. Just how often did she and Malfoy speak?
"Where, exactly, did Mr. Malfoy say that Voldemort's forces were going to attack next?" Dumbledore asked.
"Oxford, sir," Ginny said. "He said the Death Eaters are going to attack Oxford next."
"Did he mention any other locations?" Dumbledore asked.
She shook her head. "No, sir."
"Sir," Harry said, stepping forward, "should we believe this tip off? I can't help but wonder why Malfoy would want to warn us about the next attack. He's usually gleeful over something like this."
Dumbledore looked thoughtful for a moment. "It is possible that, with the death of his mother this past summer, Mr. Malfoy no longer feels a strong allegiance to not only Voldemort, but his father as well."
"It was his father who killed his mother," Ginny said. "He told me months ago."
Dumbledore frowned. "Indeed. It does not surprise me that Voldemort would test Lucius Malfoy in that matter. Lucius is very loyal to his master. He wishes to gain as much power as possible."
"You do believe what he told me though, sir, don't you?" Ginny asked.
"I do. I have noticed a change in Mr. Malfoy since his return to Hogwarts. He is more quiet and sullen. He doesn't take pleasure in the things that he once did. I would not be surprised if he is rebelling against his mother's killer," Dumbledore said.
"Are you saying that we should trust Malfoy now, sir?" Harry asked
Dumbledore smiled. "I believe you are as incapable of trusting Mr. Malfoy as Professor Snape is of embracing Professor Lupin like a brother."
"But you will alert the Order, sir?" Ginny asked.
He nodded. "Yes, and with it, I shall alert the Ministry. I know Mr. Greene will be very happy to set up another ambush."
"Thank you, sir," Ginny said.
"You're welcome, Miss Weasley. Now, I suggest that you and Mr. Potter return to your common room. Curfew will begin momentarily."
"Yes, sir," Ginny said.
"Good night, sir," Harry said.
"Oh, Harry?"
"Yes, sir?"
"Let me help you with your injuries," he said and waved his wand. Instantly, Harry felt the cut on his lip disappear, along with a few other aches and pains.
"Thank you, sir."
"My pleasure. Good night."
They left the office. Ginny had a look of triumph on her face. Harry, meanwhile, only frowned.
"How am I to explain this to your brother and my girlfriend?" he asked. "They've got a right to know now that Malfoy's passing information onto you."
"Who says?" Ginny said sharply, her triumphant look gone.
"In case you hadn't noticed, Hermione's not dumb. Once she reads that the Aurors were tipped off and knows that I wasn't the one doing to tipping, she'll start to wonder who the new source of information is. Then Ron will pick up on it because that's what he does. You can't keep this a secret forever, Ginny," he told her.
"I don't know why you're so adamant about other people knowing that I'm talking to Draco. It's not like it's hurting anybody," she said.
"Yes it is, or, at least, it will. You're just too blind to see who, though," Harry said, marching up a flight of steps with Ginny on his heels.
"Go on then, who?" she asked.
"Neville."
She stopped. "Neville?"
He rounded on her. "You've got a good, solid boyfriend right now, Ginny. Neville's a great friend of mine. I don't want to see him get hurt. Therefore, you have a decision to make. You can either keep seeing Draco Malfoy and break Neville's heart, or you can stop seeing Malfoy and stay with the person who you know really cares about you."
"I'm not 'seeing' Draco!" she said fiercely. "We're not dating! We just run into each other and talk. Don't make it sound like I'm cheating on Neville!"
"Well, that's the way it looks to an outsider. Think about that, Ginny, and decide."
With that, he started back up the stairs, leaving Ginny behind looking utterly bewildered.
*****
Harry paid close attention to the Daily Prophet over the next two weeks, but no news came of an attack in Oxford. Whenever he didn't find an article about it in the newspaper, he shot a glare across the Great Hall at Malfoy. He couldn't help but continue to wonder whether or not Malfoy had been telling the truth.
Meanwhile, he had more pressing concerns to deal with. The final Quidditch match of the season against Ravenclaw was fast approaching. He had his team out practicing for two hours every day after classes. He wanted to make sure they were absolutely at their best when it came time to play the team whose former captain was the one who came up with the idea of hitting Harry with a Bludger the moment he took off after the Snitch.
Unfortunately, Slytherin handily defeated Hufflepuff and moved themselves into second place, even though they had suffered their first losing season since well before even Charlie Weasley had been Seeker for Gryffindor. Gryffindor was, of course, in the lead, but it was a narrow one.
"The only thing we have to do is win," Harry said to his team after their final practice before the match. "We can do that. We've done it before."
That Saturday morning, however, Harry felt the jumble of nerves he usually felt before a match. He knew better than to let them get to him, though.
He did his morning exercises and returned to Gryffindor Tower, where he showered and got ready. Upon returning to the common room, he found a number of students up and talking excitedly about that day's match. Sitting off in a corner, doing her homework, however, was Hermione.
He walked over and kissed the top of her head, happy that he could do that now and not care about getting caught. "Hey," he said and sat down. "Arithmancy?"
"Yes," she said, vaguely, writing something down. When she finished, she looked up and smiled at him. "Big day today."
"Yeah. Bringing glory to Gryffindor House once more," he said. "Professor McGonagall is quite used to having the Quidditch Cup in her office. I'd hate to have it taken away from her."
"How very noble. Of course, today marks the end of your legacy as Quidditch Captain and Seeker," she reminded him.
He felt a wave of sadness when he realized it. It was his final match on the Gryffindor Quidditch team and, most likely, his final Quidditch match ever. He'd never play on a real pitch again. He'd never dodge another Bludger. He'd never catch another Snitch.
She reached over and placed her hand on top of his. "The game will miss you as much as you'll miss it. You're an extraordinary player, Harry. I'm sure this will be your best match yet. The one you'll always remember."
He nodded. "I wonder who will be captain next year," he said.
"That's not something to worry about now. Just focus on what you have to do today," Hermione advised.
He gave her a small smile. "Thanks."
"You're welcome."
Ron came downstairs, grinning from ear to ear. "Good morning," he said brightly. "The sun's shining. It's a beautiful day for Quidditch!"
"Yeah, I know," Harry said. "I've already been outside."
"Have you?" Ron said, looking mildly surprised and impressed at once. "Ever the hardworking captain, eh?"
"Something like that," Harry said.
"How soon does breakfast start anyway? I'm starving," Ron said.
"You're always starving," Harry said as he checked his watch. "Can you wait ten more minutes?"
"I suppose. Maybe."
"Why don't you distract yourself by thinking about all of the goals you're going to save today," Hermione suggested, going back to her homework.
"I could. Yeah. 'And Weasley makes a spectacular save with just his foot!'" He laughed. "I'd love to see the look on everyone's faces if I did that."
"Yeah, well, I wouldn't try to do anything too spectacular. I just want you to save the goals," Harry said.
"Don't worry, mate. I'll be on my 'A' game today," Ron said. "I'm feeling really good about this match."
"Good," Harry said as Ginny came downstairs. She glanced over in their direction and made a beeline for her fellow sixth years.
"I wonder what's wrong with her," Hermione said, watching Ginny for a moment as she talked to her friends. "She's been rather quiet and distant with us lately."
Harry frowned. He wanted to tell Hermione why, but restrained himself.
"Let's go down to the Great Hall and wait," Ron said. "We'll get first dibs then."
Breakfast was filled with the usual pre-match excitement that it held on the mornings before a Quidditch match. The Gryffindors all patted Harry and Ron on the back as they came in and took a seat. The other players sat down around Harry, including Ginny, but she only did so on Neville's urging.
"For once this season we've got a nice day for Quidditch," Andrew Kirke was saying, cutting up his waffles. "All we've got to do make sure we don't lose by more than fifty points and we'll have the Cup in the bag."
"We're not going to lose," Alex McGuire said firmly.
"Of course we're not," Ron said, giving Kirke a dark look.
"Hello," said a serene voice behind them.
"Hi, Luna," Harry said, turning around to see her properly.
She stood with a gigantic stuffed eagle hat perched precariously on her head, causing many people to stare at her. "I may be rooting for my own House today, but I thought I should at least drop by and say good luck to Ronald," she said, smiling down at him. "Good luck, Ronald."
He grinned. "Thanks, Luna. Does it come with a good luck kiss?" he asked hopefully.
"Well, I would, but I think my hat would fall off," she said. "Besides, I can't wish you too much luck, can I? My housemates would be furious at me. One of them even suggested that I put a mackled malaclaw on you to help them out. I didn't think it was very sportsmanlike, though."
"I thank you for that," Ron said. "Aren't those things ugly little lobsters?"
"Something like that, yes," Luna said. "Well, I'd better go. The longer I stay the more grief I'll have to put up with once I return to my common room." She walked away.
Kirke shook his head. "Ron, your girlfriend's weird."
"Yeah, but I like her that way," he said with a grin, watching her sit back down amongst her fellow Ravenclaws.
A half an hour before the match was due to start, Harry told the team it was time to go get ready. He got up and headed out into the entrance hall with his team and Hermione right behind him. He smiled at her when she walked over.
"I'd like to give you a kiss for luck," she said and did so, much to the catcalls of his teammates.
"Bloody hell, get a room," Ron said, grinning.
Harry grinned as he pulled away. "That was a lot of luck."
"I know. Now go win that Quidditch Cup," she said with a wink and walked back into the Great Hall.
He had a little skip in his step as he led the team down to the locker rooms. They chatted as they changed into their Quidditch robes. Eventually, they heard the pounding of footsteps as the student body entered the stadium, talking loudly. There was even a rendition of the Gryffindor version of "Weasley is Our King."
Harry checked the time. "Okay," he said. "It's time. Good luck and good flying out there. If we do our best, we'll be the ones holding the Cup at the end of the day."
Grabbing their broomsticks, the seven members of the Gryffindor Quidditch team walked out of their locker room and into the sunlight. Harry led them straight onto the pitch, where the blue clad Ravenclaw team was waiting.
"Here comes the Gryffindor team-Weasley, Kirke, McGuire, Farrell, McDonald, Weasley, and their captain-POTTER!" Colin Creevey yelled to a roar of approval from the Gryffindors in the stands.
Harry looked around. There were banners in the stands. One of them, being held up by Seamus and Dean (who he figured drew it), was a very lifelike drawing of Harry catching the Snitch. It had been charmed so that it was animated. He couldn't help but grin.
When they reached the middle of the pitch, Madam Hooch said, "Captains, shake hands."
Jack Chambers, the new Ravenclaw captain, extended his hand, which Harry shook. "Good luck today, Potter."
"You too, Chambers," he said with a smile.
"Mount your brooms," Madam Hooch ordered as Harry and Chambers ran back to their respective teams. "On my whistle. Three-two-one-" She blew her whistle.
Harry kicked off from the ground and soared into the air, listening to Colin's commentary as he began his search for the Golden Snitch.
"Farrell snatches the Quaffle and heads off toward the Ravenclaw goal, Weasley and McDonald right behind him. Hazelwood comes in and tries to steal the Quaffle, but Farrell passes to McDonald, who dodges a Bludger sent by Bancroft. McDonald passes it to Weasley, who flies right over Bradley and continues onward toward the Ravenclaw goal posts. Another Bludger-ah, but she dodges it and passes to McDonald, who passes to Farrell, who will give Keeper Zoe Reid her first test for the day. He throws it-SCORE! HUNTER FARRELL SCORES FOR GRYFFINDOR! That's ten-nil, Gryffindor," Colin said.
"Good job, Hunter!" Harry yelled as he flew past the second year. Hunter grinned at him.
"Reid gives the ball to Bradley, who launches it someway down the pitch. I don't think that was a smart move. Both Chambers and Weasley are flying for it. Careful there, Ginny! Don't crash!"
Chambers, seeing that Ginny would rather crash than see him get the Quaffle, backed off a bit and let Ginny catch it.
"Weasley with the Quaffle. She passes-oh, no! It's been stolen by the waiting Chambers. I guess that wasn't a bad move after all. So, it's Chambers with the Quaffle now. He dodges Kirke and the Bludger he sends, loops around McDonald, and passes to Hazelwood. Hazelwood passes-no! It gets tipped away by Weasley and lands into the waiting hands of Farrell, who flies off back toward the Ravenclaw goal. Here comes a Bludger sent by Emerson-whew! Dodged that! He passes it to Weasley, who passes it to McDonald, who's got no one in her way but Reid. McDonald shoots-SAVED! Reid saves it!"
The Ravenclaws were cheering. The Hufflepuffs were politely clapping. Meanwhile, the Slytherins booed.
"Reid throws the Quaffle towards Bradley, but uh-oh, Farrell takes it out of the air and launches it through Ravenclaw's left goal hoop! SCORE! Twenty-nil, Gryffindor!"
The Gryffindors were cheering. As Harry flew around, he saw another banner pop up that said "Farrell Forever."
"That was a nasty mistake on Keeper Reid and Chaser Bradley's part. No communication there, whatsoever. Now, Hazelwood has the ball and heads up the pitch. Stella Hazelwood with the Quaffle-here comes a Bludger sent by McGuire! She dodges it easily and passes the ball to Chambers. Captain Jack Chambers flies around both McDonald and Weasley. He's heading toward the goal. Only Ron Weasley can stop him…YES! WEASLEY SAVES IT!"
The Gryffindor part of the stands cheered and began to sing:
Weasley can save anything,
He never leaves a single ring,
That's why all Gryffindors sing:
Weasley is our King!
Ron tossed the Quaffle off to Ginny, grinning as they sang the song.
"Weasley has the Quaffle," Colin said. "She passes it to McDonald just as Emerson tried to send a Bludger at her. McDonald soars down the pitch. She dodges Bradley and Bancroft, who sends another Bludger. Ooh-she passes it off just in time to Farrell as the Bludger hits her in the shoulder. Ouch!"
Harry whirled around to see Natalie massaging her shoulder. He flew down next to her. "Are you okay?" he asked.
"Yeah, I'm fine!" she said and sped off.
"Farrell's near the goal. He's going to try it-no! He feints a shot, but passes it to Weasley, who…SCORES! WEASLEY SCORES FOR GRYFFINDOR MAKING THE SCORE THIRTY TO NOTHING!"
Harry then spotted another banner in the stands as he flew around. One that said "Ginny is Our Queen."
"Well done!" he yelled to Ginny as he passed by her.
He resumed his hunt for the Snitch. On the other side of the pitch, the Ravenclaw Seeker-Baird-was doing the same.
"Bradley has the ball now, but quickly passes it to Hazelwood, who passes it to Chambers. Chambers dodges a Bludger sent by McGuire. He passes it back to Hazelwood. Farrell's coming in for the steal, but no, Hazelwood gets it safely passed to Bradley. Bradley to Hazelwood-Hazelwood to Bradley. Bradley dodges a Bludger sent by Kirke this time and passes to Chambers. Chambers looks to throw right-SCORE! CHAMBERS FEINTED AND GOT IT PAST WEASLEY! RAVENCLAW SCORES!"
Once again, the Ravenclaws cheered.
"So it's Farrell with the Quaffle now. He dodges Chambers. He dodges Hazelwood. Bancroft sends a Bludger, but Farrell dodges that, too! He passes it off to Weasley, who goes around Bancroft and flies straight toward Bradley. Bradley stands his ground-or air, rather-but Weasley keeps coming. He's backing up toward the goal posts now. Reid is at the ready. Weasley's still coming. She's like a missile. She gets ready...and passes it back to McDonald, who rams it home! NATALIE MCDONALD SCORES!"
The Gryffindors cheered loudly while both the Ravenclaws and Slytherins booed.
"What a fabulous move by Gryffindor Chasers Ginny Weasley and Natalie McDonald there. Wonderful tactic! It's now forty-ten, Gryffindor."
Harry thought he saw a glimmer of gold suddenly, but upon closer inspection he saw that it was only the sun reflecting off of Bradley's watch. He continued to circle the pitch-waiting and watching.
"Ravenclaw's really trying to pick up the pace now. Bradley to Chambers-Chambers to Hazelwood-Hazelwood to Chambers-Chambers to Hazelwood-Hazelwood to Bradley. They're heading up the pitch, passing the ball back and forth. None of the Gryffindor Chasers can seem to steal the Quaffle. Kirke sends a Bludger at Hazelwood-she passes it to Bradley and loops around the manic black ball. Bradley flattens himself on the handle. It's all up to Ron to stop him. Bradley takes aim…SCORE! BRADLEY SCORES FOR RAVENCLAW!"
The Ravenclaws were cheering again and Harry distinctly heard the screech of Luna's eagle hat.
"So it's forty-twenty, Gryffindor as McDonald gets the Quaffle from Weasley. She passes it to the other Weasley-Ginny-who flies over Chambers. Bradley's in hot pursuit. She passes it to Farrell-who gets smacked by a Bludger in the hip. Ouch! Farrell hangs onto it, though, and passes it to McDonald-STOLEN! Hazelwood comes up and snatched the ball out of the air before McDonald had a chance to catch it. Hazelwood speeds down the pitch. She passes it to Bradley, who passes it to Chambers. Chambers is really flying. Ginny Weasley's there. She blocks him, but he passes it off to Hazelwood, who winds her way around the two Beaters, Kirke and McGuire. Keeper Weasley gets ready…SCORE! HAZELWOOD RAMS IT IN FOR RAVENCLAW, MAKING THE SCORE FORTY-THIRTY!"
Harry flew down towards where Ron was hovering. "Shake it off, Ron! We're still winning!"
Ron nodded and Harry saw him take a deep breath. Seeing that as a good sign, he flew off and continued to look for the Snitch.
Gryffindor scored two more times, as did Ravenclaw. It was when Harry heard, "SCORE! CHAMBERS GETS IT PAST WEASLEY TO TIE THE MATCH UP, SIXTY TO SIXTY!" that he began to worry. He had to find the Snitch.
Suddenly, Harry saw a streak of gold flying low over the pitch. It was the Snitch. He dived just as Baird did. It's current position suited Baird, but Harry knew that he had the faster broom.
"Go! Go!" he shouted, urging his broom on. The Snitch twitched slightly toward the left. He compensated for it.
Baird was closing in, as was Harry. She took her hand off of her broom, so did he. Harry estimated that they would reach the Snitch at the same time. He leaned forward on his broom, reaching out as far as he could. Baird was doing the same…
With a growl, Harry pushed himself forward, causing the broom to tip downward, but the extra inch was all he needed. As he suddenly went down, his hand grabbed the Snitch out of the sky.
"IT'S OVER!" Colin bellowed as Madam Hooch blew her whistle. "IT'S OVER! HARRY POTTER BEATS EMILY BAIRD TO THE SNITCH! GRYFFINDOR WINS TWO-HUNDRED AND TEN TO SIXTY! GRYFFINDOR WINS THE QUIDDITCH CUP!"
Harry landed on the ground, the Snitch struggling in his hand. He held it up high for everyone to see as the other six members of the team touched down and ran to him. Ron was shouting, "We won! We won!"
The whole of Gryffindor House stormed the field with Hermione in the lead. She ran into Harry's outstretched arms. He lifted her into the air and spun her before she kissed him.
"Good job, Harry! That was a wonderful catch! I'm so proud of you!" she cried, hugging him.
Ron was punching the air in triumph at his side. "Bloody brilliant! We're the champions!"
In no time, Professor Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall walked through the crowd. Dumbledore was carrying the silver Quidditch Cup. He stopped in front of Harry and his team.
"It is my great pleasure to present this year's Quidditch Cup to Gryffindor," he said in a magnified voice that carried all around the stadium. The Gryffindors cheered in response as Dumbledore handed Harry the trophy.
Harry hoisted the gleaming silver cup over his head, shouting, "YES!"
He, Ron, and the rest of the team were suddenly picked up and put on people's shoulders. They carried them all the way back to the castle, to begin a nice long celebration in their common room.
*****
Unfortunately, Gryffindor's celebration would not last. The next morning, everyone went down to breakfast in the Great Hall, still talking about the match even though the majority had stayed up until two o'clock in the morning doing so until Hermione shouted at all of them to go to bed.
Harry, Ron, and Hermione were sitting at their usual spots at the Gryffindor table and just beginning to eat their omelets and toast when the owl post arrived. A tawny owl landed in front of Hermione with the Sunday Prophet.
Hermione took the paper from the owl's beak and slipped a Knut into the pouch on his leg.
"And then, when Hazelwood passed it to Chambers, I got a little worried, because I knew that Chambers was a good Chaser," Ron was saying, stuffing a piece of toast into his mouth. "Tha's why I missed th' 'affle."
"That's okay. We still got them in the end," Harry said, grinning.
"Yeah. Tha' was 'ood," Ron said happily.
Hermione opened the paper and disappeared behind it.
"So anyway, I hear that Natalie's got a massive bruise on her shoulder where that Bludger hit her," Ron said, swallowing his toast and taking a swig of pumpkin juice.
"I bet she does," Harry said. "Both she and Hunter got hit pretty hard."
"They don't have to worry about it hampering them at practice, now, though," Ron said and then frowned. "That was our last Quidditch match here."
Harry nodded. "Yeah, it was." His seven-year run as Seeker had finally come to an end.
"It's kind of sad, isn't it? They're going to replace us next year, not that anyone could ever replace you, Harry. I don't think Gryffindor will ever see another Seeker like you," Ron said.
Harry gave him a small smile. "Thanks." He glanced over at Hermione and noticed, for the first time, that her hands were shaking. "Hermione? Are you okay?"
Hermione appeared from behind the paper, a grave look on her face. "No, I'm not. He's done it again, only this time it's much, much worse."
"What? What happened?" Harry asked, his mind completely torn away from Quidditch.
Up at the staff table, Professor Dumbledore suddenly stood up. The students went quiet.
"As some of you may already be aware of, yesterday a horrible attack took place in four cities: Oxford, Dublin, Perth, and Barmouth. As some of you may have also read, over two-hundred wizards and Muggles alike were killed. This has been the most grievous attack ever made by Lord Voldemort. I ask that we, as a whole, united body, take a moment of silence in honor of all those who have lost their lives, not only in this attack, but in all of them," Dumbledore said and bowed his head.
Harry bowed his head, too. Oxford had been attacked, only it was much worse than had been anticipated. Three other cities-Dublin, Ireland, included-had been attacked as well. Over two-hundred people were dead. It just didn't seem real to him.
"Thank you," Dumbledore said quietly and sat back down.
Harry and Ron turned to Hermione, expectantly.
"It's too horrible," she said, dropping the newspaper on the table. "Here, just read it."
ENGLAND, IRELAND, SCOTLAND, AND WALES ALL HIT IN WORST ATTACK YET
Dawn brought only emptiness and sadness to residents of Oxford, England, Dublin, Ireland, Perth, Scotland, and Barmouth, Wales today.
Last night, each of these cities were hit in the latest, most horrendous attack by You-Know-Who and his followers.
The attacks started simultaneously around 8:00 yesterday evening and lasted for more than an hour.
In Oxford, vampires attacked a community and broke into homes, attacking residents. However, the damages in Oxford were not as horrible as the other three towns due to the fact that the Aurors were already prepared for an attack to take place there.
Led by Head Auror Gawain Greene, fifteen vampires were either killed or captured in the fight.
28 Muggles and three of the Aurors lost their lives.
In Perth, werewolves ran amuck, biting twelve young witches and wizards that live in the town and mauling 74 wizards and Muggles to death before Aurors arrived on the scene, led by Adrian Dawlish.
Dawlish and his fellow Aurors were able to capture seven werewolves. The rest of them, said to have been led by Fenrir Greyback (who is believed to have supported You-Know-Who in the last year), escaped.
In Barmouth, dementors swarmed into the town of only some 2,000-odd residents. There, the dementors performed their Kiss on 42 Muggles before Cadfael Talybont, 39, was able to contact the Aurors, who came and drove the dementors away. All 42 Muggles have been taken to St. Mungo's, but they are as good as dead.
The worst of the attacks took place in the Irish capital of Dublin, where Death Eaters set houses on fire, murdered both wizards and Muggles alike, and lit up the sky with the Dark Mark. Aurors arrived 15 minutes after the attack started, but the Death Eaters fought them.
59 Muggles were killed along with 16 wizards. Four Aurors in a group of 20, led by Mara Frost, were also killed.
"This is the worst day known to wizarding kind," said Minister Amelia Bones late last night in her office. "I am most terribly sorry to both the wizard and Muggle families of those who lost their lives. I am equally sorry to each and every Auror that lost their lives tonight in the line of duty. This is a very sad day indeed."
"It pains me to lose people out there," said a very somber Gawain Greene after he returned to his office. "Those men and women gave their lives to protect our freedom. They're heroes."
Obliviators and other Ministry officials will spend the rest of the week modifying the memories of Muggle survivors and repairing the damage inflicted by You-Know-Who and his followers. It will be hard for the wizarding world, however, to get over this attack.
"I'll never forget it," Nymphadora Tonks, an Auror, said when she returned from Dublin. "Never."