"As I was saying, we need to go back to the Dursleys and bring them here. No problem with that because I can apparate us all back here but...the problem is if we encounter some death-eaters along the way..." said Harry quietly.
"What about extra protection....invisibility cloak or something?" asked Lee.
"We can use the disillusionment charm for that. It's safer and besides, we left some of our things at the Order's head ---"
"PROFESSOR MCGONAGALL! Potter's missing! Some death-eaters attacked the Dursleys..." said a panicky female voice from behind.
"We were able to fend them off but the woman said Potter left a few days ago..." growled another, unmistakably Moody's.
"Mummy! Mummy! Why did they bring us here? They're not going to kill us, are they?" cried a boy whose voice was muffled.
The three peered from behind to find out who the new arrivals were. Harry saw the Dursleys immediately. His uncle was clearly terrified but tried hard to hide what he thought was indignity on his part while his aunt was undeniably distraught. His cousin was hiding behind his mother's dress, destroying his reputation of being a notorious bully. He recognized Tonks and Moody too who seemed ready to have a heart attack.
"Calm down. Potter's here." said Professor McGonagall calmy, motioning them all to sit down and make themselves comfortable.
'So, she doesn't have any contact from the order too aside from if they come here personally.' noted Harry.
"WHAT?!?" exclaimed Moody, his eyes rotating 360 degrees until he found Harry, Luna and Lee staring cautiously at them.
"But Professor, we guarded him tightly and we are sure he did not leave the house." protested Tonks, feeling bad at their failure.
"I've been telling you that he can apparate but you won't listen." argued Aunt Petunia. "I also taught him how to use wandless magic ..."
"PETUNIA!" screamed Uncle Vernon who seemed to have forgotten his anxiety as he berated his wife for letting the forbidden words escape her lips.
Harry quickly strode to his aunt's side. Luna and Lee came out of the shadows too and discreetly went to join the other DA members to give them some privacy.
"Explain yourself, Potter." said Moody, glaring at him for causing them so much stress.
"I'm sorry Professor Moody, Tonks...I forgot that about the order members watching over the house. You see, after being endlessly frustrated at the lack of news, I started to make good use of my time. I taught myself how to apparate and Aunt Petunia, being one of the victims of a dementors attack before, taught me how to perform wandless magic from memory." said Harry.
Harry quickly told them a heavily edited version of the incidents after he and Luna left Privet Drive to visit Grimmauld Place. His story was greeted with shock, amazement and incredulity from his captive audience. He also shared with them the DA's plan of rescuing the Dursleys but he did not tell them the reason why. Mad-eye Moody shot him a questioning look but did not press on. Harry smiled at him in relief. For some reason, he did not want his uncle and cousin to know about it.
"Excuse me, Mr. Potter but I think your relatives need to rest for now. I'll take them first to their cubicle." interrupted Professor McGonagall.
"No, Minerva, if you don't mind, I wish to stay." said Aunt Petunia, surprising them all but Harry who seemed to know more than he was letting on. Vernon tapped his foot impatiently but left with his son when he realized that his wife was not going to change her mind.
"So, Potter, what's the real plan?" asked Tonks after they left.
"We wanted to bring Aunt Petunia so that she can tell us more about the dementor's attack on a wizard village forty years ago. We wanted to give her and other victims their powers back so that they can help us win this war." said Harry confidently, giving the impression that it was something that had already been thoroughly discussed by the DA members.
Harry was startled when his aunt suddenly hugged him and murmured a soft 'thanks' to him. Tonks and Moody gaped at him in shock but Professor McGonagall just encouraged him to go on. He then continued telling them about the Patronus kiss, Demeter, bringing the other DA members and their plan to train for battle.
"So basically, auror training eh?" questioned Moody, eyeing him intenly.
"Yeah, something to that effect. We cannot go on hiding forever and the Order do not have enough members to protect us all the time. Let's face it. We have to train for war because WE are at war." said Harry, determination etched on his young face.
Moody carefully assessed the young man in front of him and paused for what seemed life eternity before he replied, "Very well, then. If you all can get back here alive and without any major injuries, I will train you myself. But, if you fail, you will forget all about it. Consider this your entry test to auror training."
"We'll help, too." said Tonks, looking at Professor McGonagall for confirmation. She briefly nodded.
"Thank you. Don't worry, we will not fail." said Harry confidently.
"Don't be too sure about anything, Potter." growled Moody. "When is it again?"
"Next Monday."
"Okay, we'll be back that day and make sure you're all in one piece." With that, Professor Moody and Tonks swished their cloaks and disapparated to heaven knows where.
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"INCENDIO!" shouted Seamus, sending a chair on fire, surprising even himself at his progress.
"PETRIFICUS TOTALUS!" screamed Parvati at Lavender who immediately fell after being hit by the body-bind curse.
"Accio wands!" said Lee almost lazily, sending the wands of Colin and Dennis flying to him. He grinned wickedly as he returned their wands.
Colorful sparks flew around hitting and deflecting the walls and dummies strategically placed within the training room. The group started their own training to prepare for the second mission. Harry told them about Moody's challenge and that encouraged them to do their best. Professor McGonagall and Madam Hooch built a solid room within the Room of Requirements (which magically expanded) which served as their training ground. They put a silencing charm on the room so as not to distract the other occupants.
"HYDRO-OXIDUS!" shouted Ron, immediately pinning Hermione on the wall with the strong water cannon charm he conjured. He quickly stopped the spell and rushed to the nearly drowning Hermione.
"Good one, Ron! That was very powerful!" exclaimed Hermione at once, proud at her bestfriends progress. Harry gave him a thumbs up from across the room.
"PROTEGO!" cried Luna as Harry hit her with the cruciatus curse. The effect of the spell was minimized but still made her writhe in pain. The others stopped what they were doing and gaped questioningly at Harry.
"Harry! It's illegal! We should not be doing that!" exclaimed Hermione at once.
"Finite Incantatem!" Luna stood up at once. Harry continued explain, "Yes, I know, but charging from experience, death-eaters prefer using unforgivable curses on their enemies. We need to learn how to counter those curses."
"B-but ---those are illegal." Hermione stated weakly. Ron nudged her lightly, shutting her up.
"Never stopped the death-eaters, did it?" said Harry mildly. "Let's pair up again and practice defending ourselves against those spells, particularly the imperius curse. I'm sure none of us would enjoy being controlled by the enemies. Like this..IMPERIO!" shouted Harry unexpectedly at the unprepared Seamus.
Everyone stared in amazement as they witnessed how Seamus climbed the wall, breakdanced on the floor, declared his undying love for Lavender, and stunned Colin. The others glared at Harry for this.
"Please don't be mad at me." pleaded Harry gently. "It's just to show how the imperius curse works. It controls the mind of the person completely and if ordered, they will not hesitate to hurt even the ones they love most." His friends nodded in understanding. He released Seamus from his control and instructed the others on what to do.
After several days of rigorous training, all became adept at fighting the imperius curse, even young Dennis who seemed so weak at first could totally throw it off. Disillusionment charm was a cinch but apparition was met with some difficulty. But all were able to apparate quite well eventually though not as good as Harry yet who could not only apparate other people with him but also pass anti-apparition barriers. Their shield charm also became stronger. They discovered that if they conjure the spell spell together, it will form a shield strong enough to repel unforgivable curses completely.
The next morning, Ron called for a meeting to discuss their strategies.
"Here is the group list. We separated them according to their relative distance from each other. The house-elves are going to guide us to their location so we don't have to worry about that." said Ron, handing each of them a copy of the grouping. "I trust that any personal differences shall be ignored at this moment. Is there any problem with the grouping?"
Group#1: Harry, Luna, Dennis - Hannah, Katie, Susan, Terry
Group#2: Ron, Lavender, Padma - Angelina, Ernie, Zacharias, Alicia Group#3: Hermione, Parvati, Seamus - Dean, Fred, George, Neville
Group#4: Lee, Colin, Cho - Michael, Anthony, Justin
"The team leaders are Harry, Ron, Hermione and Lee. Are you ok with that?" said Luna. The others nodded in assent.
"Since this room and their location have anti-apparition barriers, we need to go to Hogsmeade first and apparate from there to a point near the safe- houses and bring the other members there before apparating back to Hogsmeade. Okay?" said Ron.
"But how do we go to Hogsmeade?" asked Seamus.
"The same way that the Death-eaters came here, of course." said Lee.
"Wouldn't it be safer if Harry just apparate us to the place?" asked Cho.
"Yes, it would be safer but we wouldn't learn that way. We didn't train like madmen here if we're just going to let Harry do all the work." said Ron heatedly.
"That's good enough. By the way, Cho and I made another batch of fake galleons and put a more advanced protean charm there. If before, it only tells the date and time of the DA meetings now it can inform us if any of our friends are in danger." said Hermione to distract Ron, giving each of them a fake galleon and gave the leaders the coins for the other members.
"If it burns very hot, it means someone's in danger and you only need to look at the galleon to know who's calling for help." added Cho.
"You're really brilliant! Thanks!" exclaimed Ron, forgetting his irritation at Cho as he stared at the golden coin with in his hand with DA etched on its surface.
========================================================
"We're ready." declared Harry during lunch. "Today is Sunday... Tomorrow we must go and bring our comrades-in-wands back. If you have any doubts about this mission, say it now. Otherwise, it will be too late." he paused to see if any of them wore a tiny hint of reservation on their faces but what greeted his eyes were supreme determination and unrivaled courage. The group was almost glowing with it. "All right. We will meet here and leave at exactly 6 am tomorrow. Rest well for now. We will need our strength." Chapter 11 - The Second Mission
"Umm...Harry, can we talk?" said Ron tentatively.
"Sure." said Harry as he led Ron to a nearby sofa.
"Umm...about Ginny...I mean..."
Harry nodded in understanding. "You're asking if we are going to rescue her too?" he glanced at Ron who looked tormented with the thought of his only sister suffering at the hands of the enemies. "What do you think? Silly, of course we are. We just need to strengthen ourselves first."
Ron sighed with relief. "Thanks, mate. I just need to hear that. You know, before tomorrow."
"Don't worry. I'm sure Dumbledore ----" Harry suddenly stopped. Ron eyed him questioningly. "Nothing...I just remembered that Dumbledore was the one who adviced me to go here."
"But how? He was captured weeks ago." said Ron.
"I think he used mental telepathy to talk to me. Wait, I'll try if I can make it work reverse. I also want to ask him a few questions myself." said Harry, concentrating hard on the headmaster's face until it became solid in his mind.
"Professor, can you hear me?"
"Harry?"
"Yes, professor, are you and Ginny allright?"
"Yes, don't worry about us. Focus on your plan for tomorrow."
"Ok. Professor, I want to ask you something else if you don't mind. Do you have any idea how I can be talking to you right now? And why did my scar stop hurting. The pain is supposed to be intense now but I don't have any visions anymore."
"No, I don't mind. The shock you gave me when you almost demolished my office last June made me realize that. As for the first question, I think some of your inert powers surfaced at last due to the urgency of the situation. As for the second question, I can only presume that Voldemort has been closing his mind to you too to prevent you from discovering his plans. He does not want to take chances now that he's winning the war."
"Oh!" was all Harry could say to that.
"Be careful tomorrow, Harry."
"We will. Thanks, Professor. Take care too." With that, Harry cleared his mind again and started to tell Ron what the headmaster had told him about Ginny. He was exhausted from the effort but seeing the relieved expression of his best friend was worth every ounce of energy he spent.
=========================================================
Monday, 5:45 a.m. at the Training Room
All the members of Dumbledore's Army, wearing special DA cloaks magically sewn by their house-elf friends, were nervously pacing the floor while waiting for the signal to leave. The team leaders were currently reiterating the plan and outlining all possible scenarios to their respective groups. Professor McGonagall carefully stayed away from their path to avoid increasing their stress. As the clock struck 6:00 a.m., all members disillusioned themselves and silently followed their leaders to the path that led to Hogsmeade. They were glad to find the place deserted except for the house-elves nervously waiting for their arrival.
"Remember, the whole operation should take no longer than 15 minutes. If anything happens, just press the coin and the rest will try to help if they can. Also, as soon as the group has completed its mission, return to the training room immediately and wait for the others. We'll have a short meeting afterwards. Okay?" said Harry. "House-elves included."
The others mouthed a silent "yes" followed by swishing of cloaks and small 'pops' as the DA members apparated to their destinations.
Several minutes later, Ron's and Lee's groups arrived safely at the Training Room. No one said anything as they waited for the others to return. Some resorted to reading while others played solo wizard chess to while away the time. Each constantly checking the time and wondering what's taking the others so long. It had been almost an hour. Some unconsciously held the coin as if expecting it to burn soon. The wait was almost unbearable when they heard arguments erupting outside the room and it seemed to be getting nearer.
"HOW DARE THE TWO OF YOU! DIDN'T WE SPECIFY THAT WE'LL COME FOR YOU AT EXACTLY 6:05AM? DIDN'T WE CLEARLY STATE IN OUR LETTER THAT YOU SHOULD BE READY WHEN WE ARRIVE TO PICK YOU UP! WE ALMOST GOT KILLED BECAUSE OF YOUR IRRESPONSIBLE BEHAVIOUR!"
The door suddenly opened and in came a livid Hermione followed by Dean and highly embarassed twins. Parvati was assisting Seamus who was limping with pain but assured everyone that he just tripped on the way back and was not cursed by the death-eaters. Ron let out his breath which he never realized he was holding when he noticed Hermione enter the room.
"But the gnome ate the letter, honestly!" said George.
"Yeah, we were just starting to read it when the gnome grab it from our dainty hands and shoved it down its throat." added Fred.
Hermione was about to curse them to oblivion when Ron, upon realizing what's happening, hastily step in.
"Really! You know, you don't need to make pathetic alibis. A simple apology will do." Ron glared at them.
The twins looked nervously at one another. It never occurred to them that little ickle Ronniekins would dare tell them off for anything. But he was right. Mustering enough courage, they both looked at Hermione and mumbled something that sounded lile "we're sorry." Hermione just rolled her eyes at them and walked to the other part of the room. Then, as if suddenly noticing something, she returned to where Ron was.
"Where's Harry's group?" she asked Ron.
"They're not here yet!"
"WHAT!" shouted Hermione in panic. She quickly checked her watched. "It's more than an hour!"
As if on cue, the door opened again and all eyes turned to the new arrivals.
"Guys, is Luna here?" Harry suddenly asked, scanning the people in the room.
"Why? What happened?" asked Cho who walked over to join the conversation.
"We don't know actually. When we apparated to Hogsmeade, she was still behind us but when we arrived there, we discovered that she's not with us anymore. We checked the place and even went back to the safe house but we can't find her." said Katie. Harry looked distraught.
"Master Harry Potter, Dobby is looking for your friend, Luna. Don't worry." said Dobby quickly and disappeared. The other house-elves followed too.
All stared into space without any idea of what to do next. The others did not really like Luna. Some even thought her mad but the situation called for some unity and any fighter for the good side should be treated with respect and concern. Their anxiety was tripled as they felt the coin burning. Each took out the coin and saw the words ------ "Help! Luna! The Quibbler!" blinking fast.
Without wasting anymore time, Harry called Dobby and requested him to find out where the Quibbler was. Within seconds, Dobby arrived with the exact location and Harry apparated to the Quibbler's office where a shocking sight greeted him. Luna was fearlessly fighting her attackers - 4 death- eaters. Dodging curses and sending out several trying to buy some time until help arrives.
Harry quickly pulled his own wand and tried to get close to Luna to shield her from some of the more advanced curses, thankful that the attackers did not seem to be very adept at curses yet.
"ESTUPENDO!" he shouted at them and the enemies backed away quickly, staring at their wands as if wondering why they were holding such a stupid piece of wood. Harry smiled as he started to ran to Luna's side. His smile faded, however, when he heard loud pops again as more death-eaters entered the office. The battle continued.
"CRUCIO!" one of the death-eaters immediately cursed Harry but he was able to duck in time.
Harry realized that he need to get Luna soon so they could escape but the death-eaters made them too busy. The four death-eaters were still behaving oddly but the new arrivals were more experienced than the first four. They never gave them time to breath. Curses flew across the room at lightning speed. Harry saw Luna struck by a stunning spell. He quickly revived her and was exhausted himself when he heard several more pops. The death- eaters stopped to look at the new arrivals too, not expecting any reinforcements. But they were surprised when several curses hit each of them as ten DA members who already started training arrived.
"YOU IDIOT! Why did you disapparate suddenly?" shouted Hermione in between curses. "I thought we're not supposed to go anywhere alone, especially in situations like this. Whatever happened to the 'strength in numbers' speech you gave last time?" she continued furiously.
"Sorry. I guess I didn't think. I was too ....never mind. Sorry again." mumbled Harry as he helped Luna up.
"Hey, Harry! Let's try that 'collective-defend-and-attack' strategy we practiced before." shouted Ron, clearly enjoying himself.
"Yeah, cool!" shouted the others. Harry smiled inspite of himself. His friends did not seem terrified anymore. In fact, they seemed to have the upper hand in this little encounter. He gave Ron a free rein to lead the commands.
"FORMATION!" shouted Ron. They DA members quickly surrounded the bewildered death-eaters, stuck out their wands and simultaneously yelled, "ABSOLUTO PROTEGO!" A rainbow shield covered the DA members. Then without removing their wands, Ron shouted, "HYDRO-OXIDUS!" at the stunned death- eaters with the effect of the spell multiplied six times due to the combination of their powers.
It hit the death-eaters forcefully and smashed them to the wall, sending some of the office equipments to fall on the ground. Sensing defeat, they quickly disapparated to heal themselves somewhere and glared maliciously at the DA members as they did so. Harry then quickly put up some defensive spells around the office to avoid another encounter.
Hermione, still clearly annoyed at the turn of events, glared at Luna and asked heatedly. "Can you please enlighten us why we are all here now instead of the Training Room?"
"I apologize. I just could not resist the urge to visit my dad's office before I go back. There's something that I need to check because I don't believe that my father is dead." Luna said evenly while Harry held her hand in support. Cho's eyes narrowed when she noticed it.
Hermione's face visibly softened. "Did you find out anything?"
Luna got up and retrieved two pots of plants from under one of the table, probably his father's. One was dead, the other was still blooming. They all stared at the plants unable to comprehend what it meant but Hermione appeared to be deep in thought.
"These are not ordinary plants. My mother enchanted them to live magically. One represented her, the other represented my father and third me. My father brings my plant wherever he goes because it gives him an idea of my current condition. The one representing my mother is dead but the one representing my father is still alive. So, it means....it means he's still alive and just hiding or probably captured somewhere.....but still alive!" Luna said tearfully and the others, sympathizing with her finally understood why she had to do it.
"Luna, I may not know how to find your father now but I think we can do something to make his spirit come alive." said Hermione brightly, trying to make up for her rudeness a while ago.
"What do you mean?" said Luna cautiously.
"All publications have stopped operating or forced to close because of the current situation. Who shall give news to the people then? Who shall inform them on what to do or where they can go for help if anything happens? The ministry is almost useless nowadays so I believe the most we can do is...." Hermione hesitantly glanced at the others before she declared, "I think we must reestablish....The Quibbler."
A hushed silence followed her pronouncement.
Chapter 12 - Confrontation at the Quibbler
"I beg your pardon?" Parvati said, eyebrows slightly raised and with arms folded across her chest.
"You must be kidding!" sneered another incredulous voice which turned out to be Cho. "No one reads that rubbish, you know."
Harry glared at the two girls while still holding Luna protectively. "Quibbler's reputation may not be that good but it was the ONLY newspaper that bravely published the truth about Voldemort's return when the others were too busy slandering me." he said venomously.
"I am not forcing it on you and besides I haven't even agreed to that yet." said Luna, glad for Harry's support and unconsciously leaned slightly on his chest. She felt Harry put her arms around her lightly as if it was the most natural thing to do but she didn't mind. She felt warm and secure and slightly light-headed.
"Well, I still think the idea stinks!" shouted Cho much to Luna's embarrassment and to the astonishment of all.
"Cho!" gasped Hermione. This was not exactly the reaction she expected when she stated her idea. "You don't have to be so rude. We're on the same side here in case you haven't noticed."
"I don't want our reputation to be tainted by that piece of trash! It's bad enough being on this situation without adding insult to our injuries." Cho declared stubbornly.
"So, is that what you care about? Your stupid reputation? What about the TRUTH? Or would you prefer that the world be ignorant in this chaos?" cried Luna angrily, shaking her head in disbelief that someone from her own house, supposedly the house of the most clever ones, would utter such nonsense. She turned to Harry and let her tears flow on his shoulder. Harry, oblivious to all, embraced her tightly while murmuring words of comforts to her.
The other DA members just stared at the scene in front of them, not really sure on whose side to take. But they were quite upset and confused about the situation. They thought that after what they just went through, everyone would behave more compassionately towards one another. They SHOULD behave that way. And when did Harry and Luna became a couple?
"Do you think your father would mind if we use his paper to publish the atrocities of Voldemort and what the whole community can do about it?" Hermione suddenly asked Luna, making a mental note to ask Harry about the PDA later.
"Well, if you put it that way....I think he will be very proud to be a part of it. But who would write the articles?" said Luna, focusing back on Hermione's idea now much to the irritation of ridiculous house mate who seemed on edge for some reason that she could not fathom.
"We, of course. Colin and Creevey can take care of the pictures and the rest of us could take our turns writing the articles. We don't have school right now so we have so much time in our hands." The Creevey brothers looked excited at this but a few groaned at the thought of doing paper work.
"It's for a good cause, guys." prodded Harry. "Besides, Hermione will be the one to write all the major articles and the editorial. Don't worry." he added with a sly grin at Hermione.
"So, is it all agreed then?" prompted Hermione.
"Are you really going to write all the major stuff?" asked Lee.
Hermione glared at Harry who simply shrugged his shoulders and shot her an 'I'm-Innocent-Don't-Look-at-Me-Like-That' look. "Fine." she said finally.
Everything went smoothly after that. Several suggestions flew into the air regarding what to write about, when to publish and where they were going to get the funds. They would have stayed longer if Harry had not remembered something.
"Hold on, guys, I think we better get back now. We have a meeting with Professor Moody ----Where's Cho?" He looked around and saw the pretty Asian girl sobbing furiously on a swiveling chair behind a desk overflowing with books and documents. He let go of Luna and walked towards her. 'Crying again!' he thought, wondering what made her cry now. She was a walking teardrop last year when Cedric died and the memory of her walking out of their date in tears didn't exactly endear her to him.
"What's the problem, Cho?" he asked gently.
"Oh, Harry!" cried Cho. She threw her arms around him and tried to kiss him but Harry resisted and carefully pried her arms away from him. Not a very smart move because then, Cho suddenly slapped him and screamed angrily, "So, I'm not good enough for the wizard savior now, am I? And who do you like now? That pathetic Luna? You could do better than that, you two- timing liar! Why not Granger or Ginny? At least they're both pretty and intelligent. It's so humiliating to be dumped for someone like HER!" she pointed her finger at a stunned Luna.
"Don't call her pathetic! At least Luna doesn't get all teary-eyed in every stressful situation. Besides, Luna and I are just friends and there's nothing between you and me anymore so whoever I date does not concern you now. And don't ever call me a two-timing liar, you were the one who dated someone else first." said Harry angrily, berating himself for being idiotic enough to fall for this narrow-minded girl.
The other DA members, except Luna whose eyes were transfixed on the wall, looked at each other awkwardly and tried to busy themselves with trying to figure out how to operate the machines there. The office was quite impressive now that they had taken the time to observe it and its contents. Magically operated printing machines were strategically placed to make the place seem spacious. The folders in the file cabinets were all in order and judging from the posters and smiling pictures on the wall and tables, they assumed that the working relationship of the employer and the employers was quite harmonious.
They were enjoying themselves. But no amount of distraction, however, could make them fail to notice how Cho tried to curse Luna and how Harry sent the spell back to its originator. Unable to say anything, they watched as Cho, hiding her now pus covered face, exclaimed in horror and fury as she hastily tried to remember the spell's counter-curse. Luna seemed unaware of it but Harry was full of disappointment and frustration.
"WHAT'S THE MEANING OF THIS? AREN'T YOU SUPPOSED TO BE AT THE HEADQUARTERS BY NOW" growled a very familiar voice after a soft 'pop'. They all turned to the person with their wands out. They heaved a sigh of relief when they recognized who it was ----Professor Moody. His normal eye was eyeing Cho with great curiosity while the other was scanning the room for some hidden enemies. His 360-degree eye stopped at the sight of four cloaked figures jumping up and down in a far corner of the office. "And who are those idiots?" he asked pointing in the direction oh the cloaked figures.
Harry gasped as he followed Moody's gaze. "Stupid death-eaters! I didn't realize they are still here." he stated apologetically.
"Obviously." Moody spat as he approached the figures.
The death-eaters let out terrified yelps when they saw the professor. Who wouldn't? With his rotating eye, wooden leg and heavily scarred face, Moody looked like an improperly reincarnated corpse. That, aside from his usual paranoia and unorthodox way of handling a situation, was frightening enough.
"Who are you?" demanded Moody at the four cowering figures who only looked dumbly at one another.
"W-what?" one asked fearfully.
"I SAID WHO ARE YOU?" repeated Moody, pointing his wand at them but still they couldn't seem to understand his question.
"E-er, Professor, I hit them with the stupidity curse a while ago." Harry offered the information. Moody's lips twitched slightly at that and muttered some spell to remove the cloaks from their heads.
"That's Crabbe and Goyle!" exclaimed Ron. "Harry, your curse was a waste of time. They're already stupid!"
"Pansy!" Hermione couldn't believe Voldemort was recruiting children to be his servants.
"The other one is called Nott! His father is also a death-eater." said Harry.
"Hmm....come on, let's bring them to the new headquarter. We might find out some useful information from them." said Moody gruffly as he tied the death-eaters and made his way to the fireplace. He dumped them unceremoniously in it before stepping in himself. Others followed suit until only Harry and Luna remained.
Harry, still remembering the uncomfortable feeling of using the floo network. decided to apparate instead. Luna was already stepping into the fire when he quickly grabbed her hand and spun away to the Training Room where the others were waiting for them.
"Where's Moody and the others?" asked Harry when they arrived.
"They are with Professor McGonagall right now but he told us to stay here and wait until he comes back." answered Hermione.
Now that the immediate danger had passed, they all talked about the day's events animatedly while waiting for Moody's arrival. Some flourished it up a bit to make it sound more exciting. One even went as far as claiming that he had almost beaten Lucius Malfoy to the ground in a duel, in which his group mates laughingly protested that he couldn't know it for sure because the enemies wore masks and disapparated quickly when they sensed their disadvantage.
Everyone was in a jolly mood after that except for one extremely pretty girl who discreetly stayed away from the others while her eyes were gleaming with hatred as she looked on the happy faces of a handsome black- haired boy and a blond-haired girl wearing a dreamy expression on her face. However, her expression turned blank as soon as Professor McGonagall and Professor Moody entered the room.
"I'm glad that all of you returned safely and without a trace of any major injury however, I am not at all happy about what happened afterwards." said Professor McGonagall. "Professor Moody has informed me that you had an UNPLANNED visit to the Quibbler's office and fought several death-eaters there. Had your enemies been adult dark wizards, you would have been severely injured or worse, killed by now?" she continued, eyeing each of them carefully. "Care to tell us what really happened?"
Each of the DA members present at the Quibbler tried to explain at once but after seeing the irritated expressions of the teachers, they willingly let Hermione do all the talking with the other team leaders adding some details from time to time. As if planned, no one bothered to mention the disagreement about the Quibbler and the issue with Cho.
"Very well, then. I understand but this must never happen again." said the stern professor.
"So, that's settled. Are you all going to undergo auror training?" Professor Moody scrutinized each of them, sizing them up. He stopped at Hermione who looked as if she was on the verge of saying something and decided against it.
Harry, however, did not hesitate. He stared hard at Cho before he spoke clearly, "Professor, i hate to say this but all of us are going to train ... except for Cho." he declared.
"May I ask why?" asked Moody, recalling the scene he witnessed when he arrived at the Quibbler.
"She has an attitude problem that I believe may be dangerous to our operations." answered Harry with a certainty that shocked the others.
Cho, unusually silent since the professors came, quickly exploded with rage. "HOW DARE YOU! IT'S YOU WHO HAS AN ATTITUDE PROBLEM, NOT ME!" she eyed the others warily. "YOU ALL AGREE WITH HIM? TO HELL WITH YOU ALL! I QUIT!" With that, Cho hastily removed her DA cloak, threw it on the floor and left the room after throwing one last contemptuous glare at Harry and Luna.
Author's Note: Thank you all for reading my story. By the way, I would like to address the common comment regarding Harry's ability to apparate. Harry or any other strong wizard (like Moody) can apparate to Hogwarts due to the weakened anti-apparition barriers (weakened only, not totally gone) after the massive attack of death-eaters there. Also, since the enemies are arrogant enough to assume that their victims will not return, they have not inspected the place...yet...so the occupants are still safe...as of now. Some DA members will develop their powers more and will be able to pass through the anti-apparition barriers later.
If any reader is still unconvinced, please just let it pass. After all, this is just a story and I am just enjoying myself. Happy reading and I hope you won't forget to review :-)
Chapter 13 - Another Mission for Dumbledore's Army
"Smooth....very smooth..." commented Hermione sarcastically.
"I just did what I had to do." said Harry simply and quickly left the room, not wanting to talk to anybody at that particular moment. Contrary to what the others must have thought, he was not that insensitive. After Cho's attempt to kiss him at the Quibbler's office, he had a sneaking suspicion on what might have possibly triggered her peculiar behaviour. Cho wanted him back. Unfortunately, Harry did not share that feeling anymore. He now realized that dating her had been a mistake. He only liked her, not loved. He liked her because she was very pretty and really talented in his favorite sport but he now knew that all of it just amounted to a mere adolescent crush and nothing more.
He thought that Cho realized that mistake too after she started dating Michael Corner but he was wrong. It seemed that she had decided that he was still a better catch and would stop at nothing to get him back. That scared him out of his wits. Seeing her eyes glow with anger like that and her attempt at cursing someone who didn't even do anything to her made him think that he cannot be trusted. She had a dangerous streak and might even betray them all if given a chance...just out of spite....and he cannot allow that...For his and her sanity and the safety of their friends, she should not be allowed to learn advanced curses...yet, maybe later after she developed some sense of collective responsibility. But now, she had to find peace in herself first. 'Sometimes, it's really kinder to be cruel.' thought Harry before he fell into a deep and uneventful sleep.
Before the sun was up, Harry found himself being dragged to the breakfast table by an overeager Ron. He didn't really want to wake up that early. He figured that a nice long slumber could clear his mind of any worries but Ron seemed too excited to be ignored. Gradually, he ate his breakfast, slightly wondering why they had to rise that early. Even the professors were still napping with the exception of Professor McGonagall who seemed to be 'on-duty.'
"Why?" he asked Ron who was currently trying to gobble down his plateful of food with a single swallow. "Hey, what's the hurry?"
"Dunno" was the reply he got.
"What?!? Are you crazy? You woke me up for nothing!" said Harry in a hushed voice, not wanting to disturb the others.
"Well -- actually Hermione told me that Moody wants all the team leaders in the training room now. So hurry, it must be something important." said Ron.
With that, the two quickly finished their meal and hurried to the training room where they found Professor Moody, Hermione, Lee and Tonks seriously pacing the room and four cloaked figures bound in one corner. Harry noticed that the four were shooting dangerous glances at their captors. They were already back to normal.
"So, what have you found out?" asked Harry, assuming that they were all there to discuss the information they got from the young death-eaters.
Tonks grimly beckoned them all to sit on the small round table while Professor Moody conjured a transparent sheet that enclosed the captives, barring them from hearing anything they were going to talk about. Hermione was looking perplexed and even Lee seemed not his real self. Harry immediately braced himself for the bad news while Ron sat beside Hermione.
As soon as they were all comfortably seated, Professor Moody sighed heavily and started the impromptu meeting. "I trust you know what the veritaserum is. Through that powerful potion, we found some very interesting informations from the captives. According to them, Voldemort had discovered that Snape is a spy and sent his most powerful servants to kill him. They also told us that Dumbledore is still alive although very weak and that Voldemort himself is the one administering the torture. However, what concerned us most is Ginny's condition." Harry felt Ron tense at his last sentence.
"Dumbledore and Snape can handle the torture. After all, this is not their first encounter with the atrocities of war but it may be traumatic for the youngest Weasley......" He paused for what seemed like an eternity before he continued, "She is now the personal slave of Lucius' son and they are now at the Grimmauld Place." he finished matter-of-factly, staring directly into Ron's horrified expression.
"What exactly does a personal slave do, Professor?" asked Hermione, articulating Ron's thoughts exactly.
"You wouldn't wish to know, Miss Granger and I, for one, am not really sure of what's happening with Miss Weasley. The captives did not really know much about how Draco treat her...but I'm afraid it might entail....physical contact." said Tonks, hesitating at the last words which alarmed his listeners even more. Hermione nearly fainted at his reply and Ron went white as a ghost. Harry, on the other hand, seemed beyond shock at this point. He stared hard at the professor before asking curtly, "Then why are we still here?"
"Ah, I wondered when you'd come around to asking that. Took you long enough." replied Moody, twitching his lips on what might have been a smile if his face was not crooked enough to make it unrecognizable. "Here's the plan...."
The four were silent as Moody finished telling them the plan to get Ginny out of the Grimmauld Place. It was quite ingenious. Simple but very effective if executed properly. Even Hermione did not complain for once. They would just go to the place disguised as the four captives with the aid of the polyjuice potion that the Potions Master had prepared for the Order several months ago, Immobilize Draco with a few spells of their choice and bring Ginny back. Thinking that the meeting was adjourned, they all started to leave the room but Tonks stopped them with a silent shake of her head.
"Now, to our next agenda...Cho." They all turned to Harry at once who made a big deal of polishing his wand, pretending not to notice their stares.
"What about her?" he grudgingly asked when no one spoke for a while.
"I trust you to smooth things out with her as soon as possible. Heavens, we have enough problems on our hands without having to deal with adolescent squabbles." growled Moody, seemingly back to his old menacing self. "But between the two of us, I think Luna is a better choice." he whispered to a suddenly blushing Harry.
"Fine...fine..." said Harry sullenly to end the embarrassing situation.
"All right. Let's meet here again tonight after dinner and let's curse some fools." concluded Tonks, stifling a giggle at the sight of the young man's expression of disgust.
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"So, Harry, are you and Luna really ....you-know-what?" asked Hermione cautiously, ignoring her friends' discomfort. They were seated at their now favorite sofa near Professor McGonagall's table but discreetly hidden from other's view. Ron was still pondering about his sister's predicament but turned one ear to their direction, also curious about his bestfriend's reply.
"Nothing. We are not a couple if that's what you mean. We are not even dating for God's sake...We just wrote a few letter to each other before we arrived here, that's all." replied Harry honestly. He thought it best to just answer their questions and be done with it. After all, they were his bestfriends and would never blab it to anybody who would care to listen.
"You what!" exclaimed Hermione which caused Ron to raise one eyebrow.
"It's just simple friendly letters...not love letters...okay?" he replied exasperatedly. Luna and I were just friends..Why couldn't they just accept it?
"Okay, fine. Whatever you say.." said Hermione but still looked unconvinced. "You better talk to Cho now." Harry nodded gratefully and went to find Cho.
He walked around the room to find her but she was nowhere to be found. He tried looking at the Training Room but all he saw there were the four captives guarded by Tonks. He asked the other DA members if they had seen Cho anywhere but unfortunately, they did not. He finally approached Professor McGonagall but was met by a similar response followed by a stern lecture about his tactlessness. His apprehension increased when one of the female DA members commented that Cho did not sleep on their bed last night. He hurried to Professor Moody who was now eating his breakfast peacefully.
"Professor, I can't find Cho anywhere!" he told him worriedly.
The professor's eyes narrowed in concern. "I was afraid of this. Where's your map?" Harry silently cursed himself for not having thought of that. He summoned the map from one of his cloaks and they both stared at it for a few minutes.
"She's left Hogwarts!"
"That's quite obvious, son. I should have watched her more closely last night after what happened but I was too preoccupied." said Professor Moody with unmistakable remorse.
"No, it's all my fault. If I had not lashed out on her like that, she wouldn't have left." he slumped on the chair, suddenly feeling drained of energy.
"You did what you have to do but I must admit you could have handled it a lot better. Don't blame yourself too much. You're still young. You're not that adept at dealing with feelings yet."
"What do we do now? She could be captured or ....something...." he stopped. He didn't really want to think about what that 'something' might be.
"Why do you care? You certainly made it clear last night that you didn't want her around." asked Moody, trying to discern his feelings on the matter.
"She's still my friend!" cried Harry. "I may be annoyed at her right now but I don't want anything bad to happen to her."
"We can not do anything right now short of launching a very dangerous man hunt. And you know very well that we don't have any available Order members to cover that. I advise you to rest for now and concentrate on our mission tonight." said the professor, closing his eyes to stop the pressure from clouding his mind.
"No, I can't do that. Dobby!" called Harry to his friend who suddenly appeared in front of him.
"Yes, Mr. Harry Potter, sir. What can Dobby do for him?" asked Dobby eagerly, excited to be called upon for help by the one who helped him to be free.
"You know Cho Chang, right?" the elf nodded. "I want you to find her now. She left Hogwarts and it may be dangerous for her if enemies find her."
"Don't worry, Mr. Harry Potter. Me and my friends are going to help you find her." said the house elf before disapparating somewhere.
"You'd really make a fine auror someday, Potter. Good luck tonight!"
"Thank you, professor." With that Harry left to find someone who could make him forget the increasing weight of responsibility on his shoulders...someone he could talk to without feeling any pressure...someone he could laugh with and relax for a while before embarking another dangerous mission that night...someone like.................Luna.
Author's Note: Please review. Thanks :-)
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Chapter 14 - Mission Failed
........Luna.....
Harry found the silvery blond haired girl sitting on the sofa that he and his bestfriends had occupied a while ago. He saw her serenely sitting there with eyes half-closed as if lost in deep thought and unconsciously stroking the leaves of the plant they retrieved from the Quibbler's office. Just watching her made him smile. He slowly approached her, all the while wondering how it would feel if her soft hand was stroking his hand instead. They held hands before, usually in times of distress, but he could remember being pacified by her touch. It was amazing.
As if sensing his presence, Luna suddenly turned her gaze on him and gave him a slight smile. It immediately warmed his heart and he noticed that her usual blank stares and ethereal appearance were replaced with warmth and fragility. She timidly invited him to sit beside her, unsure of his reaction, but was pleased when he also gave him a smile and proceeded to do so. Not knowing what to say, he contented himself with watching the young woman caressing the magical plant.
"Harry, you didn't have to do that for me..." said Luna, finally breaking the silence.
"What?" asked Harry in confusion.
"You didn't have to defend me. I'm quite used to insults, you know. Not just from her but from everybody else. That thing with Cho....she was your girlfriend....and I feel terrible for making things bad between the two of you." said Luna as she lowered her gaze to the ground, neglecting the plant she was holding on her lap.
"No, I didn't have to but I want to. Cho was my girlfriend, not anymore. You're one of the most wonderful person I had been fortunate enough to meet and I could not stand hearing someone belittling you. You're very special and no one does that to any of the people I care about, not even her." said Harry, lifting her chin up to meet his gaze.
"Why are you being so nice to me?" she reluctantly asked but other rather awkward questions nagging her mind were left unsaid.
"I don't know...maybe because you were the only one I could talk to about Sirius' death without feeling guilt and pressure...maybe because you were the only one brave enough to communicate with me when I was almost suicidal in my aunt's house....I am not sure....maybe it's simply because I now realized that there were so much more to you than meets the eye. You're kind, smart, brave and you make me happy." Luna blushed at his words and averted her gaze again.
"I didn't know you were very expressive, Harry." she said in a hushed whisper as if she was finding it hard to say the words.
"Maybe you just bring out the best in me..." said Harry simply, taking hold of her free hand and lifted it to his lips.
Luna stared at him in amazement and almost drowned in the whirlwind of emotion flickering on his handsome face. She started to get up and leave the place but she found her knees too weak to go anywhere. She stared helplessly at the young man caressing her hand. She tried to get away from the nerve-wracking sensations but her knees wobbled from the sudden movement causing her to fall on his lap. Harry immediately wrapped his arms around her and pulled her closer while whispering to her ear, "Don't be afraid. I like you....I really do...and I haven't felt this way to anyone before...not even Cho...so please...don't escape from me."
At his words, Luna reluctantly wrapped her arms around him and nervously kissed him on the cheek..."I like you too, Harry."
Harry slowly bent his head, embracing her tightly to ----
"There you are! Oooopss, so sooorrrry!" said Ron, quickly hiding himself behind the shelf. Harry could swear he heard some muffled laughter from behind making him wonder how long have they been watching them.
"What do you want?" snapped Harry annoyed at the interruption but did not release his hold on Luna.
"Nothing! Just friends, huh?" Several DA members removed the disillusionment charm on themselves and teased the two relentlessly, led by Ron and the twins of course, before running to the dinner table.
"By the way, sorry for the ummm....interruption. Moody just asked us to tell you that we need to eat dinner now." shouted Ron from afar.
"AAHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!RONALD WEASLEY! I SWEAR I'M GOING TO KILL YOU SOMEDAY!" groaned Harry. There was no doubt now that they heard and saw everything. He looked at the red-faced Luna, her head slightly buried on his chest in embarrassment and he realized that he did not care. So what if they saw them like this?
"Hush, it's okay. At least now they know. They actually saved us the trouble of informing them, don't you think?" stated Harry, releasing his grip on her.
They walked hand in hand to the dining table, ignoring the snickers and some blatant teasings from their friends. But aside from that, dinner was uneventful. If anything,,. it only served to remind the four team leaders about their mission that night. The others had no idea about it but they sensed the apprehension on their leaders' faces. Their suspicion grew more when Professor Moody signaled the four to go to the training room with him.
Harry muttered a distracted 'wait for me' to Luna and stood up to follow Moody. But before he could go, Luna steered him to a more private place and kissed lightly on his left cheek.
"What's that for?"
"That's to say thank you for making me feel special." Then she kissed him again on his right cheek. "This is for good luck on whatever you're going to do tonight. Don't deny it." She then slowly put her arms around his neck and pulled him closer, pressing her lips to his. "This is to make sure that you'd come back safely."
Harry smiled at this and drew her close again. This time their lips met with unrestrained passion with his left hand gently caressing her back, making them both weak with longing. He pulled away reluctantly as he remembered the mission.
"What was that for?" asked Luna breathlessly.
"That's to make sure that you'd wait for me." replied Harry with a grin.
"Silly. Of course, I'd wait for you."
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After forcing the disgusting potion into their mouths, the four team leaders proceeded to apparate outside Grimmauld Place and enter in the usual way. It might appear highly suspicious if Harry just apparate all of them inside. The captives were not that powerful yet.
"Hey, what are you doing here?" shouted Draco in welcome when they saw his visitors. He motioned all of them to sit down. "Does father want anything?"
The four just shook their heads dumbly.
"Well, it doesn't matter. At least I have some decent company now. I'm so bored here." drawled Draco. Ron, in the face of Crabbe, clenched his fist to suppress his growing rage.
"What about your slave? Isn't she entertaining enough?" asked Hermione who took the appearance of Pansy. She was surprised when she noticed a concerned look pass his face so fast that she almost thought she imagined it.
"I got tired of her and besides, I can't spend all my energy ravishing her. It's just a waste of time. So what brings you here?" replied Draco lazily but the previous welcoming tone was gone. It was as if he did not want them there anymore.
"Nothing. Bored to tears too. Hexing people are not so fun anymore. Can we have a go at your slave? I'm sure we'd find her enjoyable." said Goyle, Harry in polyjuice, attempting to discern how cruel Draco was to Ginny. He was taken aback when Draco hastily stood up and pointed his wand at him.
"Don't you dare, Goyle. No one touches my property. She's mine!" Draco also pointed his wand at the other two boys. "That goes for you, too."
"Err...umm...no need to get upset, Draco. We're just asking, you know." said Lee who took Nott's appearance but he, too, was wondering about Draco's reaction.
"So, where's she? Your father asked us to check on her. You wouldn't want us to tell him something he doesn't want to hear, do you?" asked Hermione shrewdly. She knew they only have one hour before the effect of the polyjuice potion wears off and they couldn't waste anymore time talking to him.
"In the left bedroom upstairs. Don't bother her. She's sleeping now." replied Draco with a hint of panic in his voice. Hermione raised one eyebrow but decided not to comment on it. Harry chose that moment to summon some butterbeers and gave one to each one of them, careful to put a few drops of sleeping potion before he handed one to Draco.
"Doesn't matter. Come on! Let's drink to victory!" announced Harry and they all took large swigs on the beverage.
Within seconds, Draco collapsed on the sofa, unconscious. The three boys acted as look-outs while Hermione hastily went upstairs to retrieve what they thought was a thoroughly destroyed Ginny. They decided to let her go alone for they did not want to find Ginny in a very compromising situation. Several minutes had passed but still no Hermione and Ginny. They carefully checked the watch and was shocked to see that they did not have much time left.
"Hermione! Come back now! We're running out of time!" shouted Ron. He was answered by an ear-splitting scream, unmistakably Hermione's.
Harry and Ron hastily ran upstairs to help her, leaving Lee to stand guard, but was utterly shaken by the sight that greeted them. They found Ginny with her wand pointed at Hermione who was twisting on the ground in extreme pain. They wondered how come Ginny had a wand with her but they were more disturbed about the fact that she hit Hermione with an unforgivable curse.
"Ginny! STOP! That's Hermione. We came to rescue you." shouted Ron, thinking that his sister thought they were enemies.
"I know." answered Ginny calmly without turning to face them.
"You knew? B-but why?" Ron was clearly flabbergasted at her response.
Harry was now wondering if she was under the Imperius curse. Ginny slowly turned around to point her wand at them. Harry looked directly into her eyes, watching for tell-tale signs of magical control. There was none. He only saw absolute hatred on her once radiant eyes. She was acting on her own free will.
"You let me down...CRUCIO!" she cursed Ron and he immediately fell on his knees, completely unprepared for the attack.
"No, Ginny, you're wrong. Sorry if we didn't come earlier. But now we're here. Please come back with us." pleaded Harry, unwilling to curse the person he always treated as his younger sister.
Ginny hesitated for a moment, thinking of what he said, but decided to ignore his plea. Her dark expression returned. "I won't. I belong here.....CRUCIO!" she bellowed at him, instantly lifting the curse on Ron who was still too weak to move.
"PROTEGO!" shouted Harry. Inspite of everything, he still did not want to harm her in any way.
Sensing that she could not defeat Harry on a duel, Ginny quickly ran downstairs but seeing Draco's unconscious state fuelled her rage. "You hurt him!" she exclaimed as she ran back to where Harry was.
"LEGILIMENS!" screamed Harry in frustration. He desperately wanted to know what happened to make her act this way. Behind him, Ron and Hermione were slowly regaining their strength and watched in amazement as Ginny clutched her head in an attempt to block Harry's effort to break into her mind. But Harry was stronger. Soon images of Draco and Ginny flashed into his mind. Ginny being taken away from Hogwarts...Ginny terrified at being left alone in a dark and smelly dungeon ...Draco choosing her to be his personal slave...Draco and Ginny locked in a tight embrace....Ginny lying on his lap....Ginny eagerly preparing dinner for the two of them...
Harry broke the contact in shock and stared at Ginny in disbelief. None of those images portrayed Draco forcing her to do anything. She was very much willing...As he watched the young girl weakly struggle on her feet, he quickly beckoned Ron and Hermione to follow him downstairs. Without a word, he grabbed their hands and motioned Lee to hold him too. Before they could even ask him anything, the four were immediately lifted from the ground and were spun around in a spiral motion. When their feet touched the ground, they were already at the training room.
They saw eager faces waiting for them...especially the twins who really took an effort to create welcome banners for Ginny. Even the professors were in high spirits. It was Neville who noticed them first. "Hey, what happened?"
Everyone turned to the four at once. Ron and Hermione were still weakly clutching their sides, pain clearly etched on their faces. Lee seemed perplexed but Harry wore a blank expression that they could not fathom.
"What happened?" asked Professor McGonagall looking worried.
"We had a little problem with Ginny, professor." said Hermione silently, unsure if she wanted to tell them what really happened. She could not believe it herself. She watched silently as Luna unconcernedly walked towards Harry and massaged his forehead. The simple action gradually eased his tension and she saw Harry visibly relax. "Ask him." said Hermione to Professor McGonagall, pointing one shaky at Harry.
"Harry, where's Ginny?" ventured one worried Fred who couldn't take the silence anymore.
Harry closed his eyes, taking his time before he carefully answered, "She did not want to come."
"B-but why?" asked George, nearly falling on his chair as he did so.
Harry wished he did not know the answer to that because the truth was painful and unacceptable in the current circumstances but he was left with no choice. He sighed deeply as he replied, "She's in love with him." Seeing their disbelieving faces, he continued. "She used the cruciatus curse on Ron and Hermione..." Several gasps were heard. "I used Legilimency to find out and...and...I saw everything. Draco did not force her. She's willing."
Professor Moody started to say something but Harry cut him off.
"We failed. I'm sorry." Harry said as he looked at each of Ginny's brothers. He was grateful to see that they don't blame him at all but the disappointment on their faces was starting to weigh him down. He felt Luna's hand on his shoulders, discreetly leading him away from the group.
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Please Review. Thanks!
Chapter 15 - The Final Straw
"It's her choice, Harry. You can't do anything about it." said Luna quietly as she and Harry strolled around the Great Hall, uncaring of the danger it might cause them. They needed to get away before they suffocate from all the emotions running inside...fear...anger...frustration...
"She said we let her down....maybe she got so frustrated with the situation that she eventually decided to join the dark side." said Harry, staring glumly at the once majestic hall.
"Or maybe...she just fell in love...Sometimes people do foolish things when they're in love...maybe she saw a side of Draco that we have never seen before."
Harry vaguely remembered the hint of panic in Draco's voice when he suggested that they would like Ginny to cure them of their boredom but it was there. Even Hermione noticed his instinct to protect his 'slave' which was highly unnatural for him. His attitude baffled them all and from what he saw when he broke into Ginny's mind, he respected her. He sat in confusion, thinking in silence. So far, the side he was in