Harry Potter and all characters, etc. belong to J. K. Rowling, not me.
Dumbledore Answers Harry - Chapter 11 - Potter's Army
The weeks went by quickly after Draco Malfoy left the school. Newspapers reported several Death Eater attacks daily. Minister Bones had repealed the law that said only purely wizarding homes, where every resident was magical, could be connected to the floo network, specifically restricting muggleborn students, as well as people who married muggles, from having floo connections until now. Now, any home that had any witch or wizard living there could have a floo connection, complete with security systems.
Hermione's family immediately got that so they would have a way to escape if they were attacked. Their security system was such that if you weren't on their 'welcome list,' which consisted of the family, Harry, Ginny, and Ron, and tried to floo there, only your head would appear in their fireplace (which had been charmed to not look unusual to any muggles besides Mr. and Mrs. Granger) and would have to wait for a Granger to allow them entrance. Their fireplace also had to be magically enlarged to accommodate people.
Inside Hogwarts, many of the Slytherins started attacking muggleborn students when they found them alone in the halls. When they were found by teachers, they were too scared to say who it was that attacked them, knowing that the bully would only get detention and then attack them some more. Everybody really knew who it was, but couldn't prove it.
Harry, Ginny, and Hermione were taking a shortcut to the Great Hall after he'd taught them the defense he'd learned from Flitwick when they heard a fight. Actually it sounded like a slaughter. Harry signaled his friends to be quiet as he stuck his head around the corner. What he saw made his face turn red with fury. Five older Slytherins were punching, kicking, and cursing a Hufflepuff girl that appeared to be a first year while calling her things like 'mudblood.' Harry also saw Lee Jordan of Gryffindor turn down that hall, stop, and start walking the other way. Harry turned his head to see the girls were watching as well. He whispered, "You don't have to help if you don't want to, but I can't just stand by and watch."
The two girls looked at him like he was insane if he thought they weren't gonna help. He signaled them with his hand. 3, 2, 1, "Now!" he shouted as they all jumped out, put up Protego shields, and started attacking the Slytherins.
"Bates Mocus!" shouted Ginny, forcing bat bogies to come out of and start attacking one of them, who ran off.
"Petrificus Totalus," shouted Hermione, freezing another where he stood.
The other Slytherins started unsuccessfully firing spells at the trio who'd been learning the most advanced defense in the school.
"Expelliarmus!" shouted Harry, disarming two of them who'd been standing too close together, "Stupefy! Stupefy!"
While Harry stunned those two, Hermione petrified the last one, just as Professor McGonagall came hurrying back with the Slytherin who'd escaped. "Mr. Potter! Miss Weasley! Miss Granger! What has gotten into you? Attacking students like this?"
"What?" shouted the three Gryffindors.
"Mr. Hill came running down the hall being chased by…by a curse he said that Miss Weasley shot at him. He said that you three were attacking that girl and he and his friends tried to help."
"That's a LIE!" shouted Harry. "They were attacking the girl. Isn't that true," he said, now looking at the girl who was sitting down trembling and crying. She closed her mouth and refused to answer.
"It's three witnesses against five, Mr. Potter, and you will not speak to me in that tone again!"
"Give us all veritaserum, and have us show our memories in a pensieve," suggested Hermione.
"I should think that you of all people would know that the use of veritaserum on a student is forbidden, and that pensieve memories aren't used to determine punishments for students. I'm taking fifty points from each of you, and you all have detention. Now go to dinner, and then straight to Gryffindor tower."
They ate quickly and silently, furious at McGonagall, and went back to the common room.
"I can't believe she took points from us for helping a student!" shouted Ginny.
"I don't care what she says, I'm not gonna turn my back on people who need help!" declared Harry.
"But we'll lose all our points like Slytherin, and won't get the house cup," said Hermione.
"If having the damn house cup means we're cowards, I don't want it!" said Harry.
At that point, most of Gryffindor came into the room, having just learned that the trio had cost them one hundred fifty points. "Why were you picking on that Hufflepuff girl?" said Percy to Ginny.
"We were rescuing her, not attacking her!" Ginny shouted at her brother. "Lee saw the Slytherins beating her up and walked away!"
At that moment, Lee nodded his head in shame while Percy looked at him. "I don't care if you were rescuing her or not! You can't cost us house points! Lee did the right thing! Don't get involved! You deserve your detentions!"
That did it. To Harry, the decision was simple. Evil must be opposed, not tolerated. Percy was telling them to tolerate evil. Harry punched Percy.
The sixth-year prefect fell backwards at the second-year's attack. He was sitting on the floor in shock, holding his hand over a quickly blackening eye.
Lee spoke up. "It didn't feel like the right thing. I knew it would cost house points if I interfered. I've never felt lower than when I turned my back on her."
Harry looked at all of them. "You're supposed to be Gryffindors! People with courage, and yet you let the Slytherins take over the school because you're afraid of losing points! I'll bet Lee's not the only one here who's turned his back on suffering!" He saw a lot of faces nod in shame. "I say it's time to forget about house points, because the house cup bluntly doesn't mean a thing if people can't walk the halls of this school without being attacked! Detentions don't last forever. It's not like Filch can hang us by our toes! I think it's time that we acted like Gryffindors and took this school back by force!"
Even though Harry was a second-year, everybody was listening, and most of them were cheering at the end of his speech. Percy of course was glaring at him, but didn't have the guts to confront him when he saw how many people agreed with him.
Harry went on. "If you're with me, stay here, if you're not, would you mind giving us a bit of breathing room so we can plan." Percy was the only one who left. They then discussed their plans of patrolling corridors and always being in groups of at least three, and Harry agreed to start teaching any of them the advanced defense Flitwick had taught him, which had allowed three lower classmen to humiliate five upper classmen.
Their detention ended up being a conversation with Professor McGonagall. "Percy Weasley has informed me of your plans to 'Take back the school.' I must protest this barbarism. Gryffindor…"
"Gryffindor is supposed to be a house of courage, not people who stand by and do nothing while you teachers fail miserably in your responsibility to make this school safe!" Harry shouted.
McGonagall continued as her ears turned pink, "But you…"
"Got detention for stopping five bullies from seriously injuring that girl just because she's muggleborn!" shouted Hermione.
Ginny shouted, "Don't you even know that Slytherin is Voldemort's house? Why on earth would you ever take their word over ours?"
Harry yelled, "Yesterday, at least twenty Gryffindors admitted to having turned their backs to a scene like that one."
"Why don't they report it?" asked McGonagall with a concerned look on her face.
"Because it doesn't do any good! Every student that tried to murder Draco Malfoy is still attending school here! And I know they're helping in this attack on muggleborns! They learned that they can get away with murder literally, and you're proving them right!" shouted Harry.
Hermione almost looked on the verge of tears. "You've failed us, Professor! You failed me! I'm afraid to walk down the halls of this school alone thanks to you and the other professors! It's got to change, and this is the only way! If it doesn't change, I don't think any muggleborn students will return next year. I know I won't!"
McGonagall was listening to them, realizing the truth of what they were saying, and was fighting an internal battle between rules and justice. She finally said, "Do be careful. Detention over."
Harry was nervous about Flitwick's reaction to the situation, but found there was no reason for it. He told Harry, "Why do you think I learned how to duel, Mr. Potter? Go out and kick bigot butt for me!" at the end of his private lesson.
Over the next few weeks, there was more fighting in the halls then ever before as the Gryffindors disciplined the bullies. It was not uncommon to find a group of Slytherins unconscious in the halls. During the second week, people from other houses, including Cedric Diggory of Hufflepuff, started joining what the teachers were calling, 'Potter's Army.' After Harry's talk with McGonagall, many of the professors started being much more lenient even when they felt obligated to punish 'soldiers' for fighting. They'd get detentions that ended up being pep talks.
Before long, Percy was the only person in the whole school that would take house points from them. The other prefects, including his now ex-girlfriend Penelope Clearwater, started shunning him. McGonagall decided that she would not recommend him for Head Boy as she'd intended before this situation arose. She felt that he was too Slytherin in putting his ambitions over justice.
About three weeks after the Gryffindors started fighting back, things started to calm down some in the hallways. There were less and less attacks, and the bruised and battered Slytherins seemed much more subdued. No Gryffindor found any attacks during the fourth week, so during that meeting in the common room (they had one every week, and snuck in the non-Gryffindor members), they had a celebration in which Fred and George brought the butterbeer and food, and sold it for slightly more than you'd pay at Hogsmeade. 'Potter's Army' decided to continue their patrols for the rest of the year, and to wait and see if it was needed the next year.
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In the end, Ravenclaw won the House Cup, but Gryffindor did win the Quidditch cup, which Harry said was much more important. The whole team, and about half of Gryffindor, agreed.
Harry had his last weekly visit of the year with Dumbledore immediately after the feast.
"Well, this year certainly hasn't gone the way I thought it would," said Dumbledore sadly.
"I didn't expect Voldemort to come back either."
"With him back, it's more important than ever that you stay those six weeks at the Dursleys. I've already written them a reminder."
Harry put his head down. "I suppose so, sir."
To change the subject, the aged headmaster said, "I must unofficially commend your success at bringing order back to this school. During my free time this summer, I'll be working on changing Hogwarts' policies regarding punishments. That is, when I'm not searching for Horcruxes."
Harry eagerly asked, "You're hunting Horcruxes?"
"I have a few leads that I'm going to investigate."
"Can I come too?"
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Please review. Thanks to those who have. I wanted to get to the summer.