Springfic: "Hearts on the line" for phil_urich
Title: Hearts on the line
Author: lyras
Recipient: phil_urich
Character(s): Percy Weasley, Ernie Macmillan and Padma Patil (with ensemble).
Rating: PG-13
Warnings (highlight to view): none
Wordcount: ~9,000 words
Summary: As Voldemort sweeps to power for the second time, many people have difficult choices to make. Here are some of their stories.
Author's Notes: To phil_urich, I really hope you enjoy this! The title and all section headings are taken from songs by Mumford and Sons: White Blank Page, Roll Away Your Stone, the Cave, Little Lion Man and Awake My Soul. Four lines of dialogue are taken directly from Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows; these are attributed at the end of the story.
Betas: Thank you so much to r_becca for all the encouragement, bullying and beta-reading. Without her, this story might never have been finished. Any remaining errors are my own.
1. A white blank page
Percy was drinking in the Leaky Cauldron when the news arrived. This wasn't something he did often, but it wasn't often that your brother got married without inviting you to the wedding.
He was huddled over a corner table, pretending to edit a report but actually wondering how things were going at home. Bill would be fine; he'd always been the calmest of the Weasley boys. Suave, Percy thought with the envy of one who knew he would never be cool. That was why Bill had ended up with Fleur, while Percy, whose relationship with Penny had fizzled out soon after school, spent more nights at his desk than he did socialising.
His mother would be bustling but charming: she was an excellent hostess once everything was in swing, although Percy bet that she'd been a nightmare for the past few days. Stress and his mother were not a good match. As he imagined her, smiling and surveying her happy brood, he felt a pang of longing. She was the only one who had never made him feel shallow for being ambitious, and who had never tried to deflate his vanity. Even his father...well, he had always had the impression that his father was disappointed in him, somehow.
And Harry - was Harry there? Everyone at the Ministry of Magic was gossiping about his whereabouts; they knew about his disappearance from Little Whinging, and about the disappearance of his Muggle relatives. Scrimgeour had raged about that. 'That damned Order of the Phoenix', as he referred to them, kept sabotaging his work; if they'd only trusted the Ministry, Harry would have been in safe hands. All the plans had been in place, but no, the Order had to go and interfere.
Even Scrimgeour, Percy had noticed, was obsessed with Harry. Everyone was obsessed with Harry; everything revolved around Harry. Percy had often thought that his parents seemed to love Harry more than they did him.
"Easy, dear," murmured his quill in a breathy voice, and he looked down to find that he had scratched a thick, wavering red line across the parchment he was supposed to be checking.
Percy sighed, and put his family out of his mind for the fiftieth time that evening. This report wouldn't edit itself, and Scrimgeour wanted it first thing in the morning.
He worked through another three feet of parchment before he was disturbed by a cough. When he looked up, his father's old colleague, Perkins, was sitting opposite him, his white hair as wild as his eyes.
Percy sat up straight and waited for the blow. It was always blows for which Perkins sought him out; nothing good had happened to his family in years. It had been Perkins who told him about Bill and the werewolf attack, only a couple of months ago.
"The Burrow," Perkins muttered. "There's been a raid on The Burrow."
~*~
Ernie pushed his way through the unusually subdued throng in the Leaky Cauldron and plonked three Butterbeers on the table. "So," he said as he sat down, "what do we know?"
Hannah cast a Muffliato charm before she spoke. "There's a new Minister for Magic, and no one knows where Scrimgeour is. All the Weasleys are safe, though. I had an owl from Neville, and he'd heard from Ginny."
"What about Harry?" asked Susan. She looked perfectly calm if you discounted the fact that she was clutching her mug as if it was a lifebelt thrown to her in a rough sea.
Hannah shrugged. "Ginny didn't mention him, but you wouldn't expect her to."
The other two nodded. For the past few days, the Daily Prophet had been full of Harry: he was wanted for questioning about Dumbledore's death; he was suspected of 'crimes against the state', whatever that meant; and he was generally an extremely undesirable person.
"I don't believe he killed Dumbledore," Hannah said fiercely. "And that Skeeter woman's a bitch."
"Speaking of Dumbledore," Ernie remarked, "I presume you've seen the news about Snape?"
Susan shook her head. "I don't get it. How can he possibly be headmaster? He's not even a very good teacher, unless you're brilliant at Potions."
"He was pretty good with Defence Against the Dark Arts last year," Ernie said lamely. He'd always got on fairly well in Snape's lessons - but then, he was good at Potions. He shrugged. "What am I saying; the man's a maniac and a murderer. How can he be the new headmaster?"
The others shook their heads. "I am so not looking forward to school this year," remarked Hannah.
"It's going to be touch," Ernie agreed. "We'll need to stick together."
~*~
Padma was trying to concentrate on a letter from Terry Boot, but the atmosphere at the Patil breakfast table was even less conducive to reading than usual.
"Well, that settles things," her father said. "You're not going back to school. We're not letting either of you out of our sight until this blows over."
"Dad, no!" Parvati exclaimed. "Don't be ridiculous. Everyone else'll be at school - we'll be perfectly safe. At least, as safe as anywhere else in the country."
"Yes, and that's another thing. Maybe I should send you to stay with your grandmother."
Padma glanced up at this. She rather liked India, particularly Kerala, the area where her grandmother lived.
"No way." Parvati thumped her palms flat on the table. "No. Way."
"It might be safest, darling," their mother said.
Setting Terry's missive aside, Padma flipped open her Hogwarts letter, which had also arrived that morning.
Parvati held up three fingers and tossed her hair back. "One, we're not leaving the country without you, and you can't leave your work. Two, me and Lavender have a pact about things this year. We're in this together. And three-"
"Three," put in Padma, "it's illegal for us not to attend Hogwarts this year."
"What?"
She threw her letter onto the table. "Read it. The Ministry's just passed a new law."
~*~
2. And a swelling rage
"Father?" Over the past fortnight, Percy had tried everything to get hold of his father. His position gave him inside information, and he knew that all the Weasleys were being watched - even Bill and Fleur, who had cancelled their honeymoon and taken refuge instead in the little cottage they'd bought for their married life. His father was being watched more closely than any of the others, which was why Percy had finally found the courage to confront him.
His father looked up; his eyes were black with weariness. "Percy." The note of resignation in his voice made Percy ache.
"Dad, I...I hope everyone in the family's well?" That wasn't what he wanted to say at all. He wanted to ask whether his mother was all right, and to check that nothing had happened to Ginny during the raid. Had any of his brothers been beaten up?
But he had renounced that right along with his family, and besides, anyone around here could be a spy. He glanced behind him, but no one was nearby except for Arthur's two subordinates, who appeared to be making notes but were probably listening assiduously.
His father closed his eyes for a moment. "We're...everyone's as well as can be expected."
What does that mean? Percy wanted to demand. For Merlin's sake, you're still my family. Instead, he nodded. "That's good to hear."
"I can see you're well." His father mustered a tiny smile to take the edge off the comment.
Percy nodded again. "Yes. I'm well. Of course, I'm very busy, as always."
"Be careful, son," Arthur Weasley blurted. "I still worry about you."
Percy shook his head and turned away. "You're the one who should be careful. For the family's sake, if not your own."
~*~
Ernie, Hannah and Susan sat tight-lipped in their compartment, listening to the footsteps of the guard as he paced up and down the train corridor. By the window were two first years, one Ernie's cousin Jake. The latter had got past the censors who had appeared at King's Cross without a problem, but Callypsa Cresswell's surname must have been on the wrong sort of list. When Ernie noticed her, she was cowering between four grim, shouting men.
When he had asked what the problem was, one of them had turned to him. "This girl's uncle is wanted for failure to prove his blood status. She might know where he is."
Ernie had worked hard to keep his voice casual. "It's unlikely, I would have thought. Who would trust a child with that kind of information?"
"I'm not a child," Callypsa had put in indignantly.
"Well, do you know where your uncle is?"
She had shaken her head, her face crumpling. "If you mean Uncle Dirk, he not really my uncle - he's Dad's cousin. And nobody knows where he is. Mum thinks he might be...might be..." She fell silent, tears overflowing from her eyes.
Ernie had turned back to the men. "Ernie Macmillan, seventh year prefect. I'll look after her now, if you've finished." He had smiled at the girl. "My cousin's a first year, too. You can sit together, seeing as you're both new."
He'd marched her along the platform to where Jake and Hannah were waiting, expecting to feel a wand at his back any second. But the men had let them go.
Now, Callypsa sat stiffly beside him. She was purportedly reading Jake's copy of Martin Miggs, the Mad Muggle, but it had been some time since she had turned a page.
"I heard from Justine," Susan said abruptly. "His mum's got him into a Muggle boarding school, and he hasn't heard anything from the Ministry, so he's hoping they'll leave him alone if he keeps his head down."
"Good," Ernie said.
The footsteps stumped past the door again. Ernie caught Susan's eye and grimaced. Sooner or later, he and Hannah would need to report to the prefects' carriage, which would no doubt involve more bureaucracy. Not to mention Draco Malfoy, smug in his Pureblood righteousness.
He turned back to the window, where the Northumbrian countryside flashed by, as wild and untouched as ever. It was hard to believe that the wizarding world was undergoing such fundamental changes, he thought wistfully, when the world was still so beautiful.
~*~
Padma, Parvati and Lavender caught up on gossip, trying to ignore the heavy tread of the guard outside their compartment.
"I mean," Parvati muttered resentfully, "what are they trying to achieve? What are we likely to get up to on the train?"
"Mobilise, I expect," answered Padma. "They don't want us forming groups - remember Umbridge and the DA in our fifth year?"
"Ugh, Umbridge." Lavender shook her head. "I hope we won't get her back. Who do you reckon's going to take Defence Against the Dark Arts now?"
Parvati shook her head. "I have no idea, except that it won't be foul, murdering Snivellus." She had heard the nickname somewhere over the summer, and had latched onto it. Padma wasn't certain it was a good idea to talk about the new headmaster of Hogwarts in pejorative terms at all, but she supposed that at least if a nickname was used nothing could be proved.
"Maybe Professor Lupin'll come back," Lavender said hopefully. "He was good."
Footsteps approached their compartment again, and they fell silent. This time, however, the steps stopped, the door opened and Neville Longbottom entered the carriage.
"Sorry to interrupt," he said loudly, shooting them a nervous smile. "I just wondered if any of you had seen Trevor."
"Trevor?" asked Padma.
"Your toad?" Parvati added. "Wow, Neville, I didn't realise he was still alive!" Lavender nudged her. "I mean, what an awful thing to say! Sorry. But we haven't seen him."
Neville glanced at the open door. "Do you mind if I hunt around a bit in here? Luna said she thought she saw him hopping off in this direction, that's all."
"Be our guest," said Lavender, smiling at him.
The three of them stood up and checked the various crannies of the compartment, while Neville patted down their seats and bent to inspect the floor underneath them.
"I'll have to keep looking," he said when he stood up, brushing dust from his robes. "Thanks - I'll see you all later, yeah?"
"Aw, he's so lovely," murmured Lavender when the door had closed behind him.
Parvati gave her a horrified look. "Lavender Brown! Ron was bad enough. Tell me you don't fancy Neville now."
"No!" protested Lavender. "It's just...d'you ever think it might be nice to find someone quiet and uncomplicated to settle down with? If I was going to do that - which I totally don't want to do, by the way, or at least, not for about fifteen years - it'd be with someone like Neville."
Parvati looked unconvinced. "He's sweet, I suppose, but he just doesn't seem like your type."
"I do not have a type," snapped Lavender.
Padma stopped listening; she was eyeing a crumpled piece of parchment that she was sure had just appeared on the seat. She picked it up.
Room of Requirement tonight, after the feast. Bring your galleon.
She brandished the note at the other two, who were still arguing. "Quiet and uncomplicated, yeah?"
~*~
3. All my bridges have been burned
Percy was exhausted.
He had spent the day going over the latest surveillance notes about the many people on whom the Ministry was keeping tabs. He still wasn't entirely sure that Dolores Umbridge hadn't set him this task as some kind of torture, or to prove his loyalty, because at least half of the people he was covering were family or old friends.
What was worse was the fact that his heart had gobbled up the information as if starved. He could at least glimpse his father at work, even if they couldn't - and wouldn't - speak openly. But through the surveillance, he had discovered that his parents were openly consorting with Remus Lupin and his new wife. He had rather liked Lupin as a professor, but spending time with a known werewolf was just the type of unwise action that had always frustrated him so much about his family.
Bill and Fleur seemed content to live quietly in their new cottage, and Charlie had returned to his dragons. But Fred and George were antagonising both the Ministry and the Death Eaters with their various advertising campaigns, and Percy had not liked Dolores Umbridge's expression when their name had come up in a meeting the previous day. She was not one to forgive a humiliation, and the way the twins had left Hogwarts counted among her more momentous failures.
According to the notes, Ron was very ill with Spattergroit, and likely to be out of action for a while. So at least he wasn't risking his life alongside Harry, thank goodness.
But Ginny...within three days of returning to Hogwarts, she had been caught red-handed attempting to steal the sword of Gryffindor from the headmaster's study. Only Percy's knowledge that anyone nearby might be awaiting an opportunity to report him had prevented him from dropping his head into his hands. His baby sister, whom he'd failed so badly during her first year at school, had grown up to be just as rash as the rest of the family. Of course, the signs had always been there. But if he'd made more of an effort, perhaps he could have been a better influence on her.
Now he was stuck here, and she was at the mercy of her own hot-headedness and Dumbledore's murderer.
Please, please, let her stay safe, he prayed silently, and reached for the next stack of parchments.
~*~
Ernie knocked on the door of Dumbledore's - no, Snape's - study. It swung open to reveal the new headmaster, seated behind the broad desk and to all appearances deep in paperwork. The office itself, Ernie noticed with a kind of relief, looked very similar to the way it had in Dumbledore's day. Only its occupant had changed.
Without looking up, Snape waved him inside. Ernie approached the desk with as much swagger as he could muster, but mentally, he was running through all the things he had done since school had begun that had broken either the letter or the spirit of the law. What had Snape found out? The DA hadn't really done anything yet, unless you counted Neville, Ginny and Luna's attempt to steal the sword of Gryffindor - but they'd done that more or less off their own bat. Nevertheless, Ernie and many of the other senior students had been busy over the past few weeks: coordinating and refining the galleon messaging system; getting the word out to potential allies; planning heists (he had just discovered this word, and was very fond of it); and generally adjusting to the shock of having people like Amycus and Alecto Carrow as professors.
Ostensibly, he'd been a model student. Under the surface, he was a raging rebel, and it looked as if Snape might have found him out.
Finally, Snape looked up and stared at Ernie as if he had forgotten his presence. "Ah, Macmillan." He signed one more parchment with a spare movement, and placed his quill on the desk. "Thank you for taking the time to answer my summons. I understand that the life of a prefect and NEWT student is a busy one."
"No problem, Professor." Ernie swallowed. He had never been good at dealing with sarcasm, especially from people in authority. Keep calm, he told himself, and met Snape's gaze squarely.
"I wanted to discuss certain developments of which I am not unaware in the school at large," Snape said slowly. "Indeed, I can hardly keep from being aware of them, when senior students who should know better attempt to steal an invaluable artefact from my own study."
"Yes, Professor," said Ernie stolidly.
"I shan't ask you to betray your fellows, Macmillan. But I do suggest that open resistance on the part of people like Weasley and Longbottom is shortsighted and likely to lead to more trouble."
"Professor."
Snape picked up his quill again. He seemed to be pondering. "Your young cousin has joined us this year, I believe?"
"Yes, Professor." Feeling that he could at least be more forthcoming on this subject, Ernie added, "Jake. He was Sorted into Ravenclaw."
"Indeed. Along with another young student whom I am told you have befriended; one whose family is not quite as, shall we say, Pureblooded as the Macmillan family. Callypsa Cresswell."
Ernie nodded. "Professor," he managed. However it operated, Snape's spy system was certainly effective. A movement caught his eye; he looked down to find a money spider scampering over the parchments on the desk.
Snape followed his gaze and casually pointed his wand at it. The spider stopped moving instantly, and Snape looked up again. "I am not, myself, in favour of corporal punishment for students, except in extreme circumstances. However, I should like to remind you that other staff members may not be so patient. Nor so fair."
"No, Professor." Ernie swallowed again. Was Snape really implying...?
"Hogwarts is working closely with the Ministry of Magic this year, as you know. I urge you to accept this, and to encourage your fellows to do likewise. Otherwise the consequences may be...worse than you imagine."
He really did talk like a villain in those Muggle films of Justin's, thought Ernie. "I'm not sure I understand what you're saying, Professor."
"Really? You surprise me; I had always understood that, despite being in Hufflepuff, you were not stupid." Snape tapped his wand on the desk. "I merely wished to remind you that the consequences of our actions are not always as we expect. Sometimes they may devolve upon innocent heads, instead of our own." He hesitated, looking pensive. "If I were you, I should bear that in mind. It would be a shame if your little friends were to be hurt on your behalf. Have I made myself clear?"
"Yes, Professor." Ernie strove to keep his tone expressionless. "I see."
"Good." Snape gave a twisted smile. "I shall let you get back to your potions research. Professor Slughorn tells me that you still show promise."
"Thank you, Professor." As Snape looked down, Ernie turned on his heel, and managed to hold his trembling in check until he reached the revolving staircase that led down into the castle at large.
~*~
By the second half of term, Padma was seriously worried about Parvati.
This was nothing new: all their lives, Parvati had been the do-er while Padma had been the one counselling restraint. But 'doing' had normally meant nothing more exciting than jumping off high ledges or confronting bullies.
It had begun with a disagreement and a bruised wrist, and escalated quickly. Most days now, Parvati turned up to dinner with new injuries acquired through what the Carrows called 'insubordination'. Conversations between her and Lavender revolved around the most useful cosmetic charms to cover bruises, or the best ways to withstand pain. The students were beginning to discuss openly how far the Carrows might take their punishments. Padma was terrified that a tragedy was looming, and that Parvati would be its first victim.
Padma herself had attended every DA meeting, contributed a few ideas for making the DA's rebellion known, and even joined in a couple of midnight raids. But in lessons with the Carrows, she attracted as little attention as possible. When Alecto Carrow preached the evils of Muggles, she told herself that they were only words. It wasn't as if the woman was actually torturing Muggles in the classroom. Keeping her head down when Amycus Carrow jinxed students who were slow to learn his favourite curses was harder, but whenever she thought about protesting, others were ahead of her: Parvati, Lavender, Terry, Neville; even some of the Hufflepuffs.
Not once did Parvati hint that her twin should do more. But as Padma watched Lavender, whom she'd always rather despised, stare Carrow down with blood dripping from her jaw, punishment for refusing to practise the Cruciatus Curse on Nifflers brought in for the purpose, she began to dislike her own cowardice, and long for the holidays.
~*~
4. The noose around your neck
As the train pulled into King's Cross, Parvati sat up with a sigh. "Thank goodness that's over."
Neither of the others bothered to reply. Padma pulled open the compartment door and looked out. Students already filled the corridor; clearly they weren't the only ones eager to get off the train and rejoin their families.
Levitating her trunk along the platform, her gaze was caught by a movement inside one of the compartments. She looked along the train, but all the doorways were empty; it looked as if everyone had already disembarked. Catching Parvati's arm, she leaned closer to look properly through the murky window.
"Shit!" Parvati dragged her arm from Padma's and dashed onto the train through the nearest door.
By the time Padma reached the compartment, Parvati was crouching over Neville, who was on the floor under the table and looked as if he had been knocked out. Beside him, Ginny leaned against a seat, her head lolling, blood trickling down her jawline, and her arm bent at a sickening angle. Her eyes were open and full of frustrated fury.
"What the hell happened?" Lavender appeared in the doorway.
"Luna," Ginny choked. "They've taken Luna."
Lavender bent over and stroked her good arm. "Ginny, I'm going to get your parents, okay? It's going to be all right."
Parvati was busy with Neville, who was now stirring, so Padma squatted beside Ginny. "Let me Heal that for you."
She shook her head fiercely. "I want people to see this - let them see what monsters they are. Oh, Merlin...Luna." Tears mingled with the blood on her cheeks. "I'm going to kill them. How could they?"
"Who was it?" demanded Parvati as she helped Neville to sit up.
"Didn't recognise them," Ginny said, "but they must've been Death Eaters. And if I ever see them again, I'll kill them."
Padma tried to imagine vague, airy Luna at the mercy of Voldemort's followers. Would they send her to Azkaban, or keep her somewhere separate? What had she done to deserve it?
"It's her father," Neville mumbled as if he'd heard her thought. "She's been worrying all term that they'd do something to him because of The Quibbler."
"So they took her to punish him?" asked Padma in horror.
"Looks like it." Ginny struggled to her feet, face twisted in pain. "Those bastards. I mean it, I'll kill them. Oh, Dad!" She stumbled towards a man who had arrived in the doorway; he folded her into his arms and let her sob onto his robes.
"It's Parvati and Padma, isn't it?" Mrs Weasley, appearing behind her husband, laid an arm around her daughter's shaking shoulders and looked at the others. "Neville, dear, your grandmother's on her way. Do you need a Healer?"
"I'm fine," Neville said thickly. "I'd better go - Gran shouldn't be worried."
"He was knocked out when we got here," Parvati said with an exasperated look at him. "He definitely needs a Healer."
Mrs Weasley's smile was a mere twist of the lips. "I'm glad you two were here. Thank you so much, my dears. We'll make sure they're all right now, but you should leave. I made - your friend's Lavender, isn't she? - stay behind. Your parents won't want you being dragged into this.
Parvati looked mutinous, but Padma nudged her. "You're right - they won't. Thanks, Mrs Weasley. We'd better get going. Um, Merry Christmas."
She hauled Parvati onto the platform and hurried them both towards the barrier.
~*~
For want of better entertainment, Christmas Eve found Percy at a Ministry gathering hosted by Pius Thicknesse, who was proving a much tougher Minister for Magic than anyone who had known him as an Auror would have suspected. Percy appreciated the invitation, which implied that his family connections were not damaging his career any more than they always had done.
After an hour or so spent networking as best he could, however, he found his enthusiasm waning. Everyone he spoke to seemed either as wary as he was or brazenly pleased with the new policies that Percy himself was doing his best to ignore. He was heading towards the exit when a voice accosted him.
"Ah, Percy Weasley. Just the young man I was looking for!"
He froze in the doorway, and fixed a smile on his face before turning around. "Dolores."
She smiled back, catlike. "Fetch me a drink, would you, dear? A Gillywater, I think. I'd like a little chat with you about something before you leave."
"Of course." Bowing slightly, he headed towards the drinks table, where he snagged a Gillywater and a glass of red wine for himself from the house-elf on duty. If he had to talk to Umbridge, he might as well try and enjoy himself.
He found her again in an alcove overlooking the back garden.
"Thank you, dearie," she said, accepting her drink. "What a lovely party!"
"Yes, isn't it?" Percy said brightly.
"Now." She laid a clammy hand on his wrist. "Tell me honestly. How are you?"
"Er, I'm very well, thank you." It wasn't precisely the truth, but it was the only truth he could speak in this room.
She shook her head. "Now, now. I know things must have been hard for you recently, what with these little unpleasantnesses surrounding your family, and of course, there was your girlfriend."
"I - I don't have a girlfriend," he said.
"No, no, I realise that. You did very well to distance yourself from her when you joined us at the Ministry."
She was still smiling with what passed for kindness, but her eyes were as watchful as ever. "You mean...has something happened to Penny?"
Umbridge's laughter tinkled like broken glass. "Oh, Percy." She shook her head again. "You have so much going for you, but really, your upbringing has a lot to answer for. Nothing's happened to the Clearwater girl, exactly, but of course, she can't be a real witch."
Percy felt as if something heavy had clamped around his heart. "Er, well, of course, she was Muggle-bo-"
"And since she refused to renounce magic and admit her theft, she is now in Azkaban," said Umbridge sweetly.
"I...I see." Percy took a gulp of wine and spluttered.
Umbridge patted his back. "Now, Percy," she said when he had stopped coughing. "I don't want to hear any silliness about this. I've had my eye on you ever since you joined us at the Ministry, and you show great potential. But I worry sometimes about your background. Clearwater's part of that, but luckily, you needn't bother about her any more."
Percy took a deep breath. "No."
"As to your family...they're a terrible burden to you, my poor boy." She smiled again. "But you'll be pleased to hear I have a leetle suggestion as to how you could turn the situation to your advantage."
Percy had no idea how he made himself smile, but he managed it. "Do tell."
She leaned closer, and he forced himself not to lean back. "Your father - terribly sad, I do understand that - is strongly suspected of maintaining links with Harry Potter and other undesirables."
He swallowed. "My father has always relied on his heart rather than his head."
"Ye-es. I do understand how difficult it must be for you. He is still your father, after all."
"Only in name," said Percy bitterly. "He renounced me two years ago, and he's never shown any sign of regretting it."
Her breath was hot against his cheek. "Perhaps you could change that."
He looked up at her, forcing himself not to lean back. "I don't understand."
"As you know very well, the Ministry has been keeping an eye on your father. For the good of the country, we must deal with Harry Potter, and anyone with connections to him is important. If you could persuade your family that you...regretted your previous actions, you could become extremely useful to the Minister."
She regarded him from behind her Gillywater, and Percy was reminded of a bird of prey. Was this another test? If so, he was probably about to fail it. He shook his head. "I'm afraid you overestimate my family's affection for me. They wouldn't believe it for a moment."
Umbridge was still smiling. "Still, I think it's something you should consider," she said. "Your career will thank you for it, Percy."
"I'll think about it," he said helplessly, and made a show of looking at the clock. "I must go. Merry Christmas, Dolores."
~*~
Ernie was relieved to be back at Hogwarts for the spring term. His Christmas had been dreary, full of tight-lipped conversations between his parents which ceased when he entered the room. At one point, his father had had a chat with him, 'warlock to warlock' as he jocularly put it, about 'wise' behaviour at school, which had left Ernie incensed. He hated feeling that his parents, who had always prided themselves on their honesty and fairness, had resigned themselves to the reign of terror instigated by the current Ministry of Magic.
Nevertheless, thanks to Snape's warning, he was able to answer honestly - if sourly - that he wasn't doing anything to attract undue attention at school.
Being back at school, however, meant being back to the dilemma that had troubled him the previous term. He knew exactly how he wanted to act: he wanted to throw all his energy into the resistance. He wasn't afraid for himself. The disappearance of Luna Lovegood had, if anything, made him even more determined to do the right thing.
Except, was it truly right, if his actions had consequences for defenceless younger students?
So far, Jake and Callypsa had not been harmed beyond a few bruises, which had been quickly healed by Madam Pomfrey. But every time the Carrows paid attention to him in lessons, he imagined his little cousin tortured into oblivion, and pictured his Auntie Marjorie's face when she found out why.
Thus, he attended DA meetings and passed on messages, but avoided direct action, however much he longed for it.
The really annoying thing, he thought bitterly, was that if Snape had picked on him as some sort of Hufflepuff leader, he'd been proven wrong. Perhaps in the past, when he'd acted to protect others - but now, the senior Hufflepuffs merely side-stepped him to take their places alongside Neville, Ginny Weasley and the other leading lights of the DA.
So, knowing that his responsibility was to those weaker than him, Ernie stood alone and assuaged his frustration by thinking up ever-more violent suggestions to put to Hannah. He sensed that she and Susan were disappointed with him. Both had lost family to the Death Eaters, and they had a cause to fight: one that, to them, transcended everything else. But Ernie had been brought up to care deeply for those who were defenceless, and he felt unable to take the risk. Besides, if Snape's eye was on him, he might notice less of what the other Hufflepuffs were up to.
~*~
5. Weep, little lion man
Percy made no attempt to visit Penelope Clearwater in Azkaban. He was half-convinced that Umbridge had told him she was there as another test, and certain that any visits he made to Azkaban would be reported to the Ministry.
He did, however, write to Bill, stating that he was worried for their family. This was not because he was contemplating Umbridge's plan, but because her suggestion had made him realise how serious the authorities were about bringing 'traitors' to justice in the name of finding Harry Potter.
I know you may find this hard to believe, but it's true. I hear about Ginny putting herself in danger at Hogwarts, and about our parents openly consorting with suspicious characters. I worry about them, and about all of you. You must believe that I only want the best for you all.
Bill replied noncommittally, including a few snippets of family news that had not made it into the surveillance reports, presumably because they were innocuous. He ended as follows:
If you ever feel like listening to the other side of things, check out Potterwatch at the WWN. The password changes regularly, but the current one is our Uncle F.
Percy burned the letter immediately, but the password felt as if it was burning a hole in his brain. The following evening, once he had got all his work out of the way, he took his wireless into the bathroom, as being the part of his flat that was least likely to be under surveillance, and began tapping the dials with his wand. "Fabian Prewett," he whispered as the dials spun. "Fabian Prewett. Please...Fabian Prewett."
In the following weeks, Percy felt as if he was living in a dreamworld. He did his work at the Ministry - and did it well, since he knew no other way of working. He met colleagues for business lunches and forced himself to smile at the tasteless remarks that increasing numbers of them seemed to find acceptable. And each night, before bed, he turned on his wireless.
As Lee - his voice unmistakable to any Quidditch fan of a certain age - disclosed details (so and so was safely abroad; another person had been caught and murdered by Snatchers; someone else was in Azkaban), another world opened up. It was addictive, and almost enough to sustain him. Until the day his entire family disappeared.
The terrible thing, he thought later, was that he didn't even realise it had happened until he was called into the Minister's office. It was only when Thicknesse asked him abruptly if he knew anything of his father's whereabouts that he understood, and his obvious shock was probably what saved him from further interrogation.
He didn't know where they were. Not his father or his mother. Not Ginny, who was on holiday from Hogwarts, and so presumably with her parents. Not Ron, apparently still recovering from Spattergroit. Not George; not Fred. Not even Bill, who had trusted him enough to tip him off about Potterwatch - but not, apparently, with his address.
He sleepwalked through the rest of the week. Potterwatch had no information, but was full of titbits about a fight in which Ron, Harry and Hermione might have been spotted. Percy tried to discount this - to the best of his knowledge, Ron was not with the other two.
Finally, a letter arrived.
All safe.
He sat down heavily on the bed, tears pricking at his eyes. All safe. There were safe. They just didn't trust him enough to tell him where.
It was too much. He was exhausted, worrying about his family and listening to the wireless at night, and then pretending to be a loyal citizen every day at work. If he endured one more reproving glance from friends of his father's at the Ministry, he thought he might hex them.
He wracked his brains for people who might be able to help, considering and discarding various people who had appeared or been mentioned on Potterwatch. Lupin would have been the obvious one, but he was in hiding along with his wife and her parents. There was a man with the code name Royal, whose voice sounded extremely familiar from somewhere within the Ministry, but Percy had never been able to place him.
But there was another man, gruff-voiced and abrupt, whom Percy could place. He'd always been curious about the owner of the Hog's Head, whose dirty beard and ruffled features were so oddly familiar, and his first and only abuse of confidentiality at the Ministry had been to confirm his suspicion as to the man's identity.
Percy Summoned his parchment and quill, and began to compose a letter to Aberforth Dumbledore.
~*~
Every time Padma thought she had adapted to the latest developments at Hogwarts, something else happened to pull the ground from beneath her.
The final straw was the day she persuaded Parvati to move into the Room of Requirement. It was her idea: Neville had been the first, but he'd quickly been joined by Seamus Finnigan and Michael Corner. Padma was still shaken over Parvati's latest injuries, and she'd enlisted Lavender's help in persuading her that she should remain in the safety of the Room of Requirement during the day.
It had been the right thing to do, she knew that. Her twin was safe - from her own impetuosity, as well as from the Carrows. But now, there was no Parvati to wave at over breakfast; no Parvati to jog her elbow as they practised charms; no Parvati to shield her in Defence Against the Dark Arts. Padma felt bereft.
As more students failed to show up for lessons, the Carrows became increasingly irritable and their classes increasingly chaotic. Other professors did their best, but between the Carrows and the DA, Padma was starting to worry about her NEWT exams, which were due to begin the following month.
One morning, as Carrow ranted about the importance of intent when casting the Cruciatus Curse, her patience snapped.
"Professor, will the Cruciatus Curse be in our NEWT exam?"
Carrow whirled to face her. "What?"
"It's just...I was looking through the past papers, and there was no mention of dark magic anywhere. The emphasis was always on defence, not attack." Her fingers were shaking; she grasped her wand to calm them.
He rolled his eyes. "I thought we'd dealt with this in September. In order to defend, you have to attack. Don't you understand?"
"Yes, but I disagree with your logic. Anyway, has the exam changed? Because the past papers don't contain any of the curses we've learned so far this year."
He lurched along the aisle towards her and bent over her desk. "You should be careful, girl. I know an easy way to make sure everyone can tell you and your sister apart for as long as you both live."
He drew a finger across her cheek, and she forced herself to keep looking into his grinning face. "We're studying NEWTs here, not first year flying. I think I've got a right to point out any problems with the teaching."
"Yeah?"
"She's right." It was Terry, seated a couple of desks to the left. "These exams affect our entire lives. We're entitled to make sure what we're taught is relevant."
"Is that so?" Carrow looked around at the class. No one moved.
"Right," he said. "I've had it with you lot for today. If you think you know better than your professors, you can manage your own lesson for once. I've got better things to do." He strode to the doorway, and turned to look at Padma. "Oh. I'll see you in my office later. Seven o'clock." His mouth twisted. "Don't bother bringing any of your little friends."
As the door slammed behind him, Padma gripped her wand tightly, blinking back tears. A hand patted hers, and she looked up to find Ernie Macmillan standing in front of her desk.
"Don't go," he said. "Just don't bother."
"What am I supposed to do instead, then?" she asked. She was still reeling from the hatred in his voice. You'll be next to go.
He shrugged. "What everyone else is doing. Stay in the Room. It can take it."
~*~
"Come in," Snape called.
Ernie pushed open the door and stepped inside with as much assurance as he could muster.
"Macmillan." Snape put down his quill. "To what do I owe this pleasure?"
"Sir...Professor..." Ernie hesitated while he got his words straight. "I wanted to thank you for the warning you gave me, when we first came back to school after the summer."
"Ah, yes."
"And...I've been doing a lot of thinking." He pressed his lips together. To his horror, there was a lump in his throat. "In good conscience, I can't continue to pretend I don't have a problem with the way the school's being run. There's a culture of fear, misinformation is being spread, children are being taught the dark arts, and there are professors here who are evil. I can't support any of that."
Snape stared at him for a long moment. As so often, his face was expressionless, but to Ernie it looked even more pinched than usual. "Thank you for your opinion, Mr Macmillan. You may go." He picked up his quill again and bent over a parchment, leaving Ernie open-mouthed.
When Ernie reached the corridor on the seventh floor, the others were waiting.
"Ready?" Hannah asked. She had an arm around Callypsa; a large-eyed Jake was beside her, his arms full of Quidditch action figures.
"Ready," Ernie said, and smiled.
~*~
6. Roll away your stone, I'll roll away mine
Padma had always been convinced that Harry Potter meant well, and was prepared to believe that his past successes had been due to more than mere luck. But she was exasperated at the stupid decisions he managed to make at times. For example:
"We could have been looking for the diadem all year if he'd only bothered to tell us, instead of having this stupid race against time," she muttered to Terry.
Terry shrugged. "You know what he's like. Thinks he's got to save the world all by himself - although at least those two didn't let him get away this time." He nodded at Ron and Hermione, who were in a huddle with Ginny and the Weasley twins.
The atmosphere in the Room of Requirement was an odd blend of celebratory and grim. Every couple of minutes, more wizards entered from the Hog's Head passage: old students like Cho Chang, and quite a few parents of current students. Professor Lupin came in with a man Padma vaguely recognised as an Auror. Mrs Weasley hurried through the doorway and gave a cry as she pounced on Ron and Hermione.
Padma glanced at Parvati and wondered if she, too, wished that their parents were present. Everyone seemed to be happy, or at least, to be taking heart from the support that had arrived. And it was heartening - but they were still holed up in this room, with no plan or knowledge of what was happening outside. Had Harry found the diadem? What chance did he have, when Ravenclaws had been seeking it for centuries?
She watched Ron and Hermione head towards the staircase that led back to Hogwarts. Ron's face was grim and he walked with a purpose he'd always seemed to be missing before. She remembered the Yule Ball, when he'd been the world's worst partner because he'd been watching Hermione dancing with that Krum bloke. Had they worked out their differences yet?
Finally, Harry appeared again - without the diadem, but with news of a kind.
"They're evacuating the younger kids and everyone's meeting in the Great Hall to get organised. We're fighting."
The cheers were so deafening that Padma did not immediately realise that she herself had joined in. At last, they were going to act! She swallowed down her terror and trooped up the stairs along with the rest of Dumbledore's Army.
~*~
Percy turned away from the wireless, a wry smile on his face. Potterwatch had been particularly entertaining over the past week; he had to give Lee, Fred and George credit for making the best of a very serious situation. He didn't know what Ron was doing with Harry and Hermione, but there was no mistaking those descriptions. The three of them had been up to something, and had got the better of Gringotts, the goblins and the Ministry of Magic security detail in the process.
In the past few weeks, he had heard no more from his family, but he had to assume that the rest of them were safe. He would have heard otherwise at work. Ron, though - how long had he been at large? How long had he, Harry and Hermione been in hiding, somewhere in Britain?
He and Ron had always been the odd ones out in their family. Bill and Charlie, while casually kind, couldn't be bothered with a little brother always tagging after them. After Percy came the twins, who never needed anyone else, and then Ron, who had five elder brothers to live up to and a little sister to care for. Thwarted by Fred and George's independence, Percy had tried hard to look after Ron the way an elder brother should, but his advances had been rebuffed more often than not. Still, he hoped Ron was taking taking care of himself now.
Hermes hooted softly in his corner cage, and Percy froze. An owl was tapping at the kitchen window. He let it in, fed it and unrolled the note, which was brief and unsigned.
The rest of the country's coming, so you might as well, too. They're making a stand up at the school. Apparate directly into the bar - there's a Caterwauling Charm on the village. I can get you into Hogwarts.
Because he was Percy, he burned the note before doing anything else. Then he grabbed his wand and turned on the spot. He barely noticed Aberforth Dumbledore, who waved him sardonically into a passage on the top floor of the Hog's Head, and focused on hurrying as fast as he could up the slope that led to the school.
The end of the passage took him by surprise; he fell rather than jumped into a large room, and picked himself up with the help of a nearby chair. Looking around, he took in his parents, his brothers and his sister, along with Harry, Lupin, Bill's wife, Fleur, and an awful lot of others.
"Am I too late?" he asked. "Has it started?"
~*~
Once the younger students were safe, Ernie felt as if he had been let loose. He joined the group around Fred and George, who were organising the defence of the various passageways that led into the castle, but the fighting began well before everyone was in place, and quickly descended into chaos.
Voldemort hadn't just brought wizards: his troops included at least one werewolf and several giants, not to mention a horde of giant spiders, which scattered defenders right, left and centre. Nobody wanted to be caught by one of those things. The giants took Ernie straight back to the days of his childhood; all he needed now, he thought, was trolls and a magic fountain, and he'd be in one of Beedle's fairytales.
He, Seamus and Luna were in entrance hall when a chill feeling that had nothing to do with fresh air spread through the atmosphere.
"Patronus!" Ernie yelled. His boar soared towards a crowd of Dementors that surrounded Harry, Ron and Hermione, with a fox and a hare close on its heels.
As the Dementors fell back, the three of them hurried up to Harry, who was lying on the ground, his Patronus fading into his wand. It sputtered as they approached.
"That's right," said Luna gently. "That's right, Harry...come on, think of something happy..."
"Something happy?" Harry said, as if that was the hardest thing in the world.
"We're all still here," she murmured, "we're still fighting. Come on, now..."
Suddenly a stag burst from Harry's wand and cantered at the Dementors, who drifted away in search of easier prey.
There was no time to talk; as they turned to each other, a giant lumbered towards them and they scattered.
~*~
7. In these bodies we will live, in these bodies we will die
"Oh, my girl!"
Padma straightened, resting a hand on her aching back, to find her father dashing towards her. Parvati and their mother were close behind.
She fell into his arms, hiding relieved tears in his robes. They were all safe! That was more than could be said for many wizarding families today.
"Now," said her father, as he wiped his own tears away. "Let's get you both away from here."
Padma looked at him, and then at Parvati, who appeared uncharacteristically uncertain. Then she looked around at the rubble, and at all the people who had fought Voldemort's supporters the previous night, and who were now fighting to save the castle.
"No, Dad," she said slowly. "We can't; not yet. We have to stay and put things back together. You and Mum can stay, too, if you like - but me and Parvati are needed here."
Parvati did not let go of their mother's hand, but she reached out and squeezed Padma's arm.
Their father was a tall man, but as he stared at them in the sunshine, he seemed to deflate. Finally, he gave a rueful smile.
"Well, I suppose the office can do without your mother and me for a couple of days. Arminder?"
Their mother nodded. "Why not? Let's stay and help."
~*~
When Ernie thought about the battle later, it seemed to be one long blur, although a few moments stuck in his mind: Harry's body, lying on the ground where Hagrid had placed him; Neville breaking free of Voldemort's enchantment and wielding the sword of Gryffindor; Ernie himself shielding Professor Slughorn from a jinx and being rewarded with a yell of, "Fifty points to Hufflepuff!" The final confrontation between Harry and Voldemort, which no one who witnessed it was likely to forget.
And the aftermath: realising who had died and tending to the wounded; facing people who had lost loved ones, and owling parents who had done likewise. As a prefect, Ernie did all of these things, as well as owling his own parents (to tell them he was all right) and Justin (to tell him the news). Finally, he found himself beside Hannah's bed in the hospital wing, willing her to open her eyes. Others came and went - Neville and the other survivors of Dumbledore's Army, Professor McGonagall, Madam Pomfrey, even a couple of reporters who were quickly shooed out. Ernie remained on watch through all of this, but when Mr Abbott arrived, one look at his face told Ernie that he had no business intruding. After shaking his hand, he left Hannah alone with her father.
He found Susan by the lake. Lots of people seemed to be paying their respects to Dumbledore; students and families wandered quietly across the turf, close to Dumbledore's tomb. Susan was standing by herself, not quite looking at the tomb.
"It's a horrible thought," Ernie said as he joined her. "Breaking into Dumbledore's tomb like that, I mean."
She looked up and smiled gravely. "Yes. But it's been restored already. I wonder who did it?"
Ernie shrugged. "Does it matter?"
"No, I suppose not." Her smile faded. "How's Hannah?"
"Still unconscious. Her dad arrived, and I thought I'd better leave them alone."
"If she doesn't..." Susan shook her head, as if trying to shake off a stray thought. "It feels awful to say that if she doesn't survive, it'll be unfair. Everything's unfair."
It was true. "I'm so tired of everything," Ernie blurted.
She touched him softly on the arm. "Things will be better now."
He couldn't speak, his heart too full of the people who would never know that things were better.
"I know," Susan said. "But we have to keep going."
Ernie nodded. The school was in ruins, but it would be rebuilt, and perhaps they could come back next year and study properly for their NEWTs. There would be a new group of first years, whom Jake and Callypsa would no doubt look down on. A new Minister for Magic would be appointed, and hopefully the people in charge of the wizarding world would take a long, hard look at themselves. Things would get better, and if they didn't, he'd be there to push things along.
He sighed. "I'm going back to find out how Hannah's doing. Are you coming?"
She took his arm in answer, and they strolled away from the quiet lakeside, back towards the castle and responsibility.
~*~
Percy looked around the atrium of the Ministry of Magic. The statue erected during Thicknesse's reign had been removed and the Fountain of Magical Brethren restored to its previous position, although a plaque at its base stated that a new work of art would be commissioned 'to reflect the equal standing of all magical beings'. Everything looked back to normal, even down to the witches and wizards hurrying past on their way to work.
Fred's funeral had taken place the previous day. The Weasleys had tried to make it a quiet affair, but with the events of what the papers were calling the Battle of Hogwarts so close, there had been no means of keeping people away. Percy found that he didn't mind that many of those present had probably never even spoken to his brother. The wizarding world needed to mourn, and to honour its heroes, and if they needed funerals for that, then they were welcome.
Afterwards, the Weasleys and a few close friends had retired to The Burrow, and the real process of grieving and honouring Fred had begun. It had been a late night, but Percy did not begrudge Fred that.
As for himself, every moment, everywhere he turned, he was assaulted by memories of the battle. Hexing the Minister for Magic - now, there was something he'd never thought he would do. Not that Thicknesse really counted as Minister, in Percy's opinion, but still, it had been rather daring - and also very out of character for him. He was glad to be back where he belonged, working for the organisation to which he had given his heart. And this time, he was going to make sure things were done right.
Smiling, he walked towards the lift to begin his day.
~*~
Dialogue quoted directly from Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows:
"They're evacuating the younger kids and everyone's meeting in the Great Hall to get organised. We're fighting."
"That's right," said Luna [gently]. "That's right, Harry...come on, think of something happy..."
"Something happy?"
"We're all still here," [she murmured,] "we're still fighting. Come on, now..."
These lines are quoted for continuity purposes, and no copyright infringement is intended.
Author: lyras
Recipient: phil_urich
Character(s): Percy Weasley, Ernie Macmillan and Padma Patil (with ensemble).
Rating: PG-13
Warnings (highlight to view): none
Wordcount: ~9,000 words
Summary: As Voldemort sweeps to power for the second time, many people have difficult choices to make. Here are some of their stories.
Author's Notes: To phil_urich, I really hope you enjoy this! The title and all section headings are taken from songs by Mumford and Sons: White Blank Page, Roll Away Your Stone, the Cave, Little Lion Man and Awake My Soul. Four lines of dialogue are taken directly from Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows; these are attributed at the end of the story.
Betas: Thank you so much to r_becca for all the encouragement, bullying and beta-reading. Without her, this story might never have been finished. Any remaining errors are my own.
1. A white blank page
Percy was drinking in the Leaky Cauldron when the news arrived. This wasn't something he did often, but it wasn't often that your brother got married without inviting you to the wedding.
He was huddled over a corner table, pretending to edit a report but actually wondering how things were going at home. Bill would be fine; he'd always been the calmest of the Weasley boys. Suave, Percy thought with the envy of one who knew he would never be cool. That was why Bill had ended up with Fleur, while Percy, whose relationship with Penny had fizzled out soon after school, spent more nights at his desk than he did socialising.
His mother would be bustling but charming: she was an excellent hostess once everything was in swing, although Percy bet that she'd been a nightmare for the past few days. Stress and his mother were not a good match. As he imagined her, smiling and surveying her happy brood, he felt a pang of longing. She was the only one who had never made him feel shallow for being ambitious, and who had never tried to deflate his vanity. Even his father...well, he had always had the impression that his father was disappointed in him, somehow.
And Harry - was Harry there? Everyone at the Ministry of Magic was gossiping about his whereabouts; they knew about his disappearance from Little Whinging, and about the disappearance of his Muggle relatives. Scrimgeour had raged about that. 'That damned Order of the Phoenix', as he referred to them, kept sabotaging his work; if they'd only trusted the Ministry, Harry would have been in safe hands. All the plans had been in place, but no, the Order had to go and interfere.
Even Scrimgeour, Percy had noticed, was obsessed with Harry. Everyone was obsessed with Harry; everything revolved around Harry. Percy had often thought that his parents seemed to love Harry more than they did him.
"Easy, dear," murmured his quill in a breathy voice, and he looked down to find that he had scratched a thick, wavering red line across the parchment he was supposed to be checking.
Percy sighed, and put his family out of his mind for the fiftieth time that evening. This report wouldn't edit itself, and Scrimgeour wanted it first thing in the morning.
He worked through another three feet of parchment before he was disturbed by a cough. When he looked up, his father's old colleague, Perkins, was sitting opposite him, his white hair as wild as his eyes.
Percy sat up straight and waited for the blow. It was always blows for which Perkins sought him out; nothing good had happened to his family in years. It had been Perkins who told him about Bill and the werewolf attack, only a couple of months ago.
"The Burrow," Perkins muttered. "There's been a raid on The Burrow."
~*~
Ernie pushed his way through the unusually subdued throng in the Leaky Cauldron and plonked three Butterbeers on the table. "So," he said as he sat down, "what do we know?"
Hannah cast a Muffliato charm before she spoke. "There's a new Minister for Magic, and no one knows where Scrimgeour is. All the Weasleys are safe, though. I had an owl from Neville, and he'd heard from Ginny."
"What about Harry?" asked Susan. She looked perfectly calm if you discounted the fact that she was clutching her mug as if it was a lifebelt thrown to her in a rough sea.
Hannah shrugged. "Ginny didn't mention him, but you wouldn't expect her to."
The other two nodded. For the past few days, the Daily Prophet had been full of Harry: he was wanted for questioning about Dumbledore's death; he was suspected of 'crimes against the state', whatever that meant; and he was generally an extremely undesirable person.
"I don't believe he killed Dumbledore," Hannah said fiercely. "And that Skeeter woman's a bitch."
"Speaking of Dumbledore," Ernie remarked, "I presume you've seen the news about Snape?"
Susan shook her head. "I don't get it. How can he possibly be headmaster? He's not even a very good teacher, unless you're brilliant at Potions."
"He was pretty good with Defence Against the Dark Arts last year," Ernie said lamely. He'd always got on fairly well in Snape's lessons - but then, he was good at Potions. He shrugged. "What am I saying; the man's a maniac and a murderer. How can he be the new headmaster?"
The others shook their heads. "I am so not looking forward to school this year," remarked Hannah.
"It's going to be touch," Ernie agreed. "We'll need to stick together."
~*~
Padma was trying to concentrate on a letter from Terry Boot, but the atmosphere at the Patil breakfast table was even less conducive to reading than usual.
"Well, that settles things," her father said. "You're not going back to school. We're not letting either of you out of our sight until this blows over."
"Dad, no!" Parvati exclaimed. "Don't be ridiculous. Everyone else'll be at school - we'll be perfectly safe. At least, as safe as anywhere else in the country."
"Yes, and that's another thing. Maybe I should send you to stay with your grandmother."
Padma glanced up at this. She rather liked India, particularly Kerala, the area where her grandmother lived.
"No way." Parvati thumped her palms flat on the table. "No. Way."
"It might be safest, darling," their mother said.
Setting Terry's missive aside, Padma flipped open her Hogwarts letter, which had also arrived that morning.
Parvati held up three fingers and tossed her hair back. "One, we're not leaving the country without you, and you can't leave your work. Two, me and Lavender have a pact about things this year. We're in this together. And three-"
"Three," put in Padma, "it's illegal for us not to attend Hogwarts this year."
"What?"
She threw her letter onto the table. "Read it. The Ministry's just passed a new law."
~*~
2. And a swelling rage
"Father?" Over the past fortnight, Percy had tried everything to get hold of his father. His position gave him inside information, and he knew that all the Weasleys were being watched - even Bill and Fleur, who had cancelled their honeymoon and taken refuge instead in the little cottage they'd bought for their married life. His father was being watched more closely than any of the others, which was why Percy had finally found the courage to confront him.
His father looked up; his eyes were black with weariness. "Percy." The note of resignation in his voice made Percy ache.
"Dad, I...I hope everyone in the family's well?" That wasn't what he wanted to say at all. He wanted to ask whether his mother was all right, and to check that nothing had happened to Ginny during the raid. Had any of his brothers been beaten up?
But he had renounced that right along with his family, and besides, anyone around here could be a spy. He glanced behind him, but no one was nearby except for Arthur's two subordinates, who appeared to be making notes but were probably listening assiduously.
His father closed his eyes for a moment. "We're...everyone's as well as can be expected."
What does that mean? Percy wanted to demand. For Merlin's sake, you're still my family. Instead, he nodded. "That's good to hear."
"I can see you're well." His father mustered a tiny smile to take the edge off the comment.
Percy nodded again. "Yes. I'm well. Of course, I'm very busy, as always."
"Be careful, son," Arthur Weasley blurted. "I still worry about you."
Percy shook his head and turned away. "You're the one who should be careful. For the family's sake, if not your own."
~*~
Ernie, Hannah and Susan sat tight-lipped in their compartment, listening to the footsteps of the guard as he paced up and down the train corridor. By the window were two first years, one Ernie's cousin Jake. The latter had got past the censors who had appeared at King's Cross without a problem, but Callypsa Cresswell's surname must have been on the wrong sort of list. When Ernie noticed her, she was cowering between four grim, shouting men.
When he had asked what the problem was, one of them had turned to him. "This girl's uncle is wanted for failure to prove his blood status. She might know where he is."
Ernie had worked hard to keep his voice casual. "It's unlikely, I would have thought. Who would trust a child with that kind of information?"
"I'm not a child," Callypsa had put in indignantly.
"Well, do you know where your uncle is?"
She had shaken her head, her face crumpling. "If you mean Uncle Dirk, he not really my uncle - he's Dad's cousin. And nobody knows where he is. Mum thinks he might be...might be..." She fell silent, tears overflowing from her eyes.
Ernie had turned back to the men. "Ernie Macmillan, seventh year prefect. I'll look after her now, if you've finished." He had smiled at the girl. "My cousin's a first year, too. You can sit together, seeing as you're both new."
He'd marched her along the platform to where Jake and Hannah were waiting, expecting to feel a wand at his back any second. But the men had let them go.
Now, Callypsa sat stiffly beside him. She was purportedly reading Jake's copy of Martin Miggs, the Mad Muggle, but it had been some time since she had turned a page.
"I heard from Justine," Susan said abruptly. "His mum's got him into a Muggle boarding school, and he hasn't heard anything from the Ministry, so he's hoping they'll leave him alone if he keeps his head down."
"Good," Ernie said.
The footsteps stumped past the door again. Ernie caught Susan's eye and grimaced. Sooner or later, he and Hannah would need to report to the prefects' carriage, which would no doubt involve more bureaucracy. Not to mention Draco Malfoy, smug in his Pureblood righteousness.
He turned back to the window, where the Northumbrian countryside flashed by, as wild and untouched as ever. It was hard to believe that the wizarding world was undergoing such fundamental changes, he thought wistfully, when the world was still so beautiful.
~*~
Padma, Parvati and Lavender caught up on gossip, trying to ignore the heavy tread of the guard outside their compartment.
"I mean," Parvati muttered resentfully, "what are they trying to achieve? What are we likely to get up to on the train?"
"Mobilise, I expect," answered Padma. "They don't want us forming groups - remember Umbridge and the DA in our fifth year?"
"Ugh, Umbridge." Lavender shook her head. "I hope we won't get her back. Who do you reckon's going to take Defence Against the Dark Arts now?"
Parvati shook her head. "I have no idea, except that it won't be foul, murdering Snivellus." She had heard the nickname somewhere over the summer, and had latched onto it. Padma wasn't certain it was a good idea to talk about the new headmaster of Hogwarts in pejorative terms at all, but she supposed that at least if a nickname was used nothing could be proved.
"Maybe Professor Lupin'll come back," Lavender said hopefully. "He was good."
Footsteps approached their compartment again, and they fell silent. This time, however, the steps stopped, the door opened and Neville Longbottom entered the carriage.
"Sorry to interrupt," he said loudly, shooting them a nervous smile. "I just wondered if any of you had seen Trevor."
"Trevor?" asked Padma.
"Your toad?" Parvati added. "Wow, Neville, I didn't realise he was still alive!" Lavender nudged her. "I mean, what an awful thing to say! Sorry. But we haven't seen him."
Neville glanced at the open door. "Do you mind if I hunt around a bit in here? Luna said she thought she saw him hopping off in this direction, that's all."
"Be our guest," said Lavender, smiling at him.
The three of them stood up and checked the various crannies of the compartment, while Neville patted down their seats and bent to inspect the floor underneath them.
"I'll have to keep looking," he said when he stood up, brushing dust from his robes. "Thanks - I'll see you all later, yeah?"
"Aw, he's so lovely," murmured Lavender when the door had closed behind him.
Parvati gave her a horrified look. "Lavender Brown! Ron was bad enough. Tell me you don't fancy Neville now."
"No!" protested Lavender. "It's just...d'you ever think it might be nice to find someone quiet and uncomplicated to settle down with? If I was going to do that - which I totally don't want to do, by the way, or at least, not for about fifteen years - it'd be with someone like Neville."
Parvati looked unconvinced. "He's sweet, I suppose, but he just doesn't seem like your type."
"I do not have a type," snapped Lavender.
Padma stopped listening; she was eyeing a crumpled piece of parchment that she was sure had just appeared on the seat. She picked it up.
Room of Requirement tonight, after the feast. Bring your galleon.
She brandished the note at the other two, who were still arguing. "Quiet and uncomplicated, yeah?"
~*~
3. All my bridges have been burned
Percy was exhausted.
He had spent the day going over the latest surveillance notes about the many people on whom the Ministry was keeping tabs. He still wasn't entirely sure that Dolores Umbridge hadn't set him this task as some kind of torture, or to prove his loyalty, because at least half of the people he was covering were family or old friends.
What was worse was the fact that his heart had gobbled up the information as if starved. He could at least glimpse his father at work, even if they couldn't - and wouldn't - speak openly. But through the surveillance, he had discovered that his parents were openly consorting with Remus Lupin and his new wife. He had rather liked Lupin as a professor, but spending time with a known werewolf was just the type of unwise action that had always frustrated him so much about his family.
Bill and Fleur seemed content to live quietly in their new cottage, and Charlie had returned to his dragons. But Fred and George were antagonising both the Ministry and the Death Eaters with their various advertising campaigns, and Percy had not liked Dolores Umbridge's expression when their name had come up in a meeting the previous day. She was not one to forgive a humiliation, and the way the twins had left Hogwarts counted among her more momentous failures.
According to the notes, Ron was very ill with Spattergroit, and likely to be out of action for a while. So at least he wasn't risking his life alongside Harry, thank goodness.
But Ginny...within three days of returning to Hogwarts, she had been caught red-handed attempting to steal the sword of Gryffindor from the headmaster's study. Only Percy's knowledge that anyone nearby might be awaiting an opportunity to report him had prevented him from dropping his head into his hands. His baby sister, whom he'd failed so badly during her first year at school, had grown up to be just as rash as the rest of the family. Of course, the signs had always been there. But if he'd made more of an effort, perhaps he could have been a better influence on her.
Now he was stuck here, and she was at the mercy of her own hot-headedness and Dumbledore's murderer.
Please, please, let her stay safe, he prayed silently, and reached for the next stack of parchments.
~*~
Ernie knocked on the door of Dumbledore's - no, Snape's - study. It swung open to reveal the new headmaster, seated behind the broad desk and to all appearances deep in paperwork. The office itself, Ernie noticed with a kind of relief, looked very similar to the way it had in Dumbledore's day. Only its occupant had changed.
Without looking up, Snape waved him inside. Ernie approached the desk with as much swagger as he could muster, but mentally, he was running through all the things he had done since school had begun that had broken either the letter or the spirit of the law. What had Snape found out? The DA hadn't really done anything yet, unless you counted Neville, Ginny and Luna's attempt to steal the sword of Gryffindor - but they'd done that more or less off their own bat. Nevertheless, Ernie and many of the other senior students had been busy over the past few weeks: coordinating and refining the galleon messaging system; getting the word out to potential allies; planning heists (he had just discovered this word, and was very fond of it); and generally adjusting to the shock of having people like Amycus and Alecto Carrow as professors.
Ostensibly, he'd been a model student. Under the surface, he was a raging rebel, and it looked as if Snape might have found him out.
Finally, Snape looked up and stared at Ernie as if he had forgotten his presence. "Ah, Macmillan." He signed one more parchment with a spare movement, and placed his quill on the desk. "Thank you for taking the time to answer my summons. I understand that the life of a prefect and NEWT student is a busy one."
"No problem, Professor." Ernie swallowed. He had never been good at dealing with sarcasm, especially from people in authority. Keep calm, he told himself, and met Snape's gaze squarely.
"I wanted to discuss certain developments of which I am not unaware in the school at large," Snape said slowly. "Indeed, I can hardly keep from being aware of them, when senior students who should know better attempt to steal an invaluable artefact from my own study."
"Yes, Professor," said Ernie stolidly.
"I shan't ask you to betray your fellows, Macmillan. But I do suggest that open resistance on the part of people like Weasley and Longbottom is shortsighted and likely to lead to more trouble."
"Professor."
Snape picked up his quill again. He seemed to be pondering. "Your young cousin has joined us this year, I believe?"
"Yes, Professor." Feeling that he could at least be more forthcoming on this subject, Ernie added, "Jake. He was Sorted into Ravenclaw."
"Indeed. Along with another young student whom I am told you have befriended; one whose family is not quite as, shall we say, Pureblooded as the Macmillan family. Callypsa Cresswell."
Ernie nodded. "Professor," he managed. However it operated, Snape's spy system was certainly effective. A movement caught his eye; he looked down to find a money spider scampering over the parchments on the desk.
Snape followed his gaze and casually pointed his wand at it. The spider stopped moving instantly, and Snape looked up again. "I am not, myself, in favour of corporal punishment for students, except in extreme circumstances. However, I should like to remind you that other staff members may not be so patient. Nor so fair."
"No, Professor." Ernie swallowed again. Was Snape really implying...?
"Hogwarts is working closely with the Ministry of Magic this year, as you know. I urge you to accept this, and to encourage your fellows to do likewise. Otherwise the consequences may be...worse than you imagine."
He really did talk like a villain in those Muggle films of Justin's, thought Ernie. "I'm not sure I understand what you're saying, Professor."
"Really? You surprise me; I had always understood that, despite being in Hufflepuff, you were not stupid." Snape tapped his wand on the desk. "I merely wished to remind you that the consequences of our actions are not always as we expect. Sometimes they may devolve upon innocent heads, instead of our own." He hesitated, looking pensive. "If I were you, I should bear that in mind. It would be a shame if your little friends were to be hurt on your behalf. Have I made myself clear?"
"Yes, Professor." Ernie strove to keep his tone expressionless. "I see."
"Good." Snape gave a twisted smile. "I shall let you get back to your potions research. Professor Slughorn tells me that you still show promise."
"Thank you, Professor." As Snape looked down, Ernie turned on his heel, and managed to hold his trembling in check until he reached the revolving staircase that led down into the castle at large.
~*~
By the second half of term, Padma was seriously worried about Parvati.
This was nothing new: all their lives, Parvati had been the do-er while Padma had been the one counselling restraint. But 'doing' had normally meant nothing more exciting than jumping off high ledges or confronting bullies.
It had begun with a disagreement and a bruised wrist, and escalated quickly. Most days now, Parvati turned up to dinner with new injuries acquired through what the Carrows called 'insubordination'. Conversations between her and Lavender revolved around the most useful cosmetic charms to cover bruises, or the best ways to withstand pain. The students were beginning to discuss openly how far the Carrows might take their punishments. Padma was terrified that a tragedy was looming, and that Parvati would be its first victim.
Padma herself had attended every DA meeting, contributed a few ideas for making the DA's rebellion known, and even joined in a couple of midnight raids. But in lessons with the Carrows, she attracted as little attention as possible. When Alecto Carrow preached the evils of Muggles, she told herself that they were only words. It wasn't as if the woman was actually torturing Muggles in the classroom. Keeping her head down when Amycus Carrow jinxed students who were slow to learn his favourite curses was harder, but whenever she thought about protesting, others were ahead of her: Parvati, Lavender, Terry, Neville; even some of the Hufflepuffs.
Not once did Parvati hint that her twin should do more. But as Padma watched Lavender, whom she'd always rather despised, stare Carrow down with blood dripping from her jaw, punishment for refusing to practise the Cruciatus Curse on Nifflers brought in for the purpose, she began to dislike her own cowardice, and long for the holidays.
~*~
4. The noose around your neck
As the train pulled into King's Cross, Parvati sat up with a sigh. "Thank goodness that's over."
Neither of the others bothered to reply. Padma pulled open the compartment door and looked out. Students already filled the corridor; clearly they weren't the only ones eager to get off the train and rejoin their families.
Levitating her trunk along the platform, her gaze was caught by a movement inside one of the compartments. She looked along the train, but all the doorways were empty; it looked as if everyone had already disembarked. Catching Parvati's arm, she leaned closer to look properly through the murky window.
"Shit!" Parvati dragged her arm from Padma's and dashed onto the train through the nearest door.
By the time Padma reached the compartment, Parvati was crouching over Neville, who was on the floor under the table and looked as if he had been knocked out. Beside him, Ginny leaned against a seat, her head lolling, blood trickling down her jawline, and her arm bent at a sickening angle. Her eyes were open and full of frustrated fury.
"What the hell happened?" Lavender appeared in the doorway.
"Luna," Ginny choked. "They've taken Luna."
Lavender bent over and stroked her good arm. "Ginny, I'm going to get your parents, okay? It's going to be all right."
Parvati was busy with Neville, who was now stirring, so Padma squatted beside Ginny. "Let me Heal that for you."
She shook her head fiercely. "I want people to see this - let them see what monsters they are. Oh, Merlin...Luna." Tears mingled with the blood on her cheeks. "I'm going to kill them. How could they?"
"Who was it?" demanded Parvati as she helped Neville to sit up.
"Didn't recognise them," Ginny said, "but they must've been Death Eaters. And if I ever see them again, I'll kill them."
Padma tried to imagine vague, airy Luna at the mercy of Voldemort's followers. Would they send her to Azkaban, or keep her somewhere separate? What had she done to deserve it?
"It's her father," Neville mumbled as if he'd heard her thought. "She's been worrying all term that they'd do something to him because of The Quibbler."
"So they took her to punish him?" asked Padma in horror.
"Looks like it." Ginny struggled to her feet, face twisted in pain. "Those bastards. I mean it, I'll kill them. Oh, Dad!" She stumbled towards a man who had arrived in the doorway; he folded her into his arms and let her sob onto his robes.
"It's Parvati and Padma, isn't it?" Mrs Weasley, appearing behind her husband, laid an arm around her daughter's shaking shoulders and looked at the others. "Neville, dear, your grandmother's on her way. Do you need a Healer?"
"I'm fine," Neville said thickly. "I'd better go - Gran shouldn't be worried."
"He was knocked out when we got here," Parvati said with an exasperated look at him. "He definitely needs a Healer."
Mrs Weasley's smile was a mere twist of the lips. "I'm glad you two were here. Thank you so much, my dears. We'll make sure they're all right now, but you should leave. I made - your friend's Lavender, isn't she? - stay behind. Your parents won't want you being dragged into this.
Parvati looked mutinous, but Padma nudged her. "You're right - they won't. Thanks, Mrs Weasley. We'd better get going. Um, Merry Christmas."
She hauled Parvati onto the platform and hurried them both towards the barrier.
~*~
For want of better entertainment, Christmas Eve found Percy at a Ministry gathering hosted by Pius Thicknesse, who was proving a much tougher Minister for Magic than anyone who had known him as an Auror would have suspected. Percy appreciated the invitation, which implied that his family connections were not damaging his career any more than they always had done.
After an hour or so spent networking as best he could, however, he found his enthusiasm waning. Everyone he spoke to seemed either as wary as he was or brazenly pleased with the new policies that Percy himself was doing his best to ignore. He was heading towards the exit when a voice accosted him.
"Ah, Percy Weasley. Just the young man I was looking for!"
He froze in the doorway, and fixed a smile on his face before turning around. "Dolores."
She smiled back, catlike. "Fetch me a drink, would you, dear? A Gillywater, I think. I'd like a little chat with you about something before you leave."
"Of course." Bowing slightly, he headed towards the drinks table, where he snagged a Gillywater and a glass of red wine for himself from the house-elf on duty. If he had to talk to Umbridge, he might as well try and enjoy himself.
He found her again in an alcove overlooking the back garden.
"Thank you, dearie," she said, accepting her drink. "What a lovely party!"
"Yes, isn't it?" Percy said brightly.
"Now." She laid a clammy hand on his wrist. "Tell me honestly. How are you?"
"Er, I'm very well, thank you." It wasn't precisely the truth, but it was the only truth he could speak in this room.
She shook her head. "Now, now. I know things must have been hard for you recently, what with these little unpleasantnesses surrounding your family, and of course, there was your girlfriend."
"I - I don't have a girlfriend," he said.
"No, no, I realise that. You did very well to distance yourself from her when you joined us at the Ministry."
She was still smiling with what passed for kindness, but her eyes were as watchful as ever. "You mean...has something happened to Penny?"
Umbridge's laughter tinkled like broken glass. "Oh, Percy." She shook her head again. "You have so much going for you, but really, your upbringing has a lot to answer for. Nothing's happened to the Clearwater girl, exactly, but of course, she can't be a real witch."
Percy felt as if something heavy had clamped around his heart. "Er, well, of course, she was Muggle-bo-"
"And since she refused to renounce magic and admit her theft, she is now in Azkaban," said Umbridge sweetly.
"I...I see." Percy took a gulp of wine and spluttered.
Umbridge patted his back. "Now, Percy," she said when he had stopped coughing. "I don't want to hear any silliness about this. I've had my eye on you ever since you joined us at the Ministry, and you show great potential. But I worry sometimes about your background. Clearwater's part of that, but luckily, you needn't bother about her any more."
Percy took a deep breath. "No."
"As to your family...they're a terrible burden to you, my poor boy." She smiled again. "But you'll be pleased to hear I have a leetle suggestion as to how you could turn the situation to your advantage."
Percy had no idea how he made himself smile, but he managed it. "Do tell."
She leaned closer, and he forced himself not to lean back. "Your father - terribly sad, I do understand that - is strongly suspected of maintaining links with Harry Potter and other undesirables."
He swallowed. "My father has always relied on his heart rather than his head."
"Ye-es. I do understand how difficult it must be for you. He is still your father, after all."
"Only in name," said Percy bitterly. "He renounced me two years ago, and he's never shown any sign of regretting it."
Her breath was hot against his cheek. "Perhaps you could change that."
He looked up at her, forcing himself not to lean back. "I don't understand."
"As you know very well, the Ministry has been keeping an eye on your father. For the good of the country, we must deal with Harry Potter, and anyone with connections to him is important. If you could persuade your family that you...regretted your previous actions, you could become extremely useful to the Minister."
She regarded him from behind her Gillywater, and Percy was reminded of a bird of prey. Was this another test? If so, he was probably about to fail it. He shook his head. "I'm afraid you overestimate my family's affection for me. They wouldn't believe it for a moment."
Umbridge was still smiling. "Still, I think it's something you should consider," she said. "Your career will thank you for it, Percy."
"I'll think about it," he said helplessly, and made a show of looking at the clock. "I must go. Merry Christmas, Dolores."
~*~
Ernie was relieved to be back at Hogwarts for the spring term. His Christmas had been dreary, full of tight-lipped conversations between his parents which ceased when he entered the room. At one point, his father had had a chat with him, 'warlock to warlock' as he jocularly put it, about 'wise' behaviour at school, which had left Ernie incensed. He hated feeling that his parents, who had always prided themselves on their honesty and fairness, had resigned themselves to the reign of terror instigated by the current Ministry of Magic.
Nevertheless, thanks to Snape's warning, he was able to answer honestly - if sourly - that he wasn't doing anything to attract undue attention at school.
Being back at school, however, meant being back to the dilemma that had troubled him the previous term. He knew exactly how he wanted to act: he wanted to throw all his energy into the resistance. He wasn't afraid for himself. The disappearance of Luna Lovegood had, if anything, made him even more determined to do the right thing.
Except, was it truly right, if his actions had consequences for defenceless younger students?
So far, Jake and Callypsa had not been harmed beyond a few bruises, which had been quickly healed by Madam Pomfrey. But every time the Carrows paid attention to him in lessons, he imagined his little cousin tortured into oblivion, and pictured his Auntie Marjorie's face when she found out why.
Thus, he attended DA meetings and passed on messages, but avoided direct action, however much he longed for it.
The really annoying thing, he thought bitterly, was that if Snape had picked on him as some sort of Hufflepuff leader, he'd been proven wrong. Perhaps in the past, when he'd acted to protect others - but now, the senior Hufflepuffs merely side-stepped him to take their places alongside Neville, Ginny Weasley and the other leading lights of the DA.
So, knowing that his responsibility was to those weaker than him, Ernie stood alone and assuaged his frustration by thinking up ever-more violent suggestions to put to Hannah. He sensed that she and Susan were disappointed with him. Both had lost family to the Death Eaters, and they had a cause to fight: one that, to them, transcended everything else. But Ernie had been brought up to care deeply for those who were defenceless, and he felt unable to take the risk. Besides, if Snape's eye was on him, he might notice less of what the other Hufflepuffs were up to.
~*~
5. Weep, little lion man
Percy made no attempt to visit Penelope Clearwater in Azkaban. He was half-convinced that Umbridge had told him she was there as another test, and certain that any visits he made to Azkaban would be reported to the Ministry.
He did, however, write to Bill, stating that he was worried for their family. This was not because he was contemplating Umbridge's plan, but because her suggestion had made him realise how serious the authorities were about bringing 'traitors' to justice in the name of finding Harry Potter.
I know you may find this hard to believe, but it's true. I hear about Ginny putting herself in danger at Hogwarts, and about our parents openly consorting with suspicious characters. I worry about them, and about all of you. You must believe that I only want the best for you all.
Bill replied noncommittally, including a few snippets of family news that had not made it into the surveillance reports, presumably because they were innocuous. He ended as follows:
If you ever feel like listening to the other side of things, check out Potterwatch at the WWN. The password changes regularly, but the current one is our Uncle F.
Percy burned the letter immediately, but the password felt as if it was burning a hole in his brain. The following evening, once he had got all his work out of the way, he took his wireless into the bathroom, as being the part of his flat that was least likely to be under surveillance, and began tapping the dials with his wand. "Fabian Prewett," he whispered as the dials spun. "Fabian Prewett. Please...Fabian Prewett."
In the following weeks, Percy felt as if he was living in a dreamworld. He did his work at the Ministry - and did it well, since he knew no other way of working. He met colleagues for business lunches and forced himself to smile at the tasteless remarks that increasing numbers of them seemed to find acceptable. And each night, before bed, he turned on his wireless.
As Lee - his voice unmistakable to any Quidditch fan of a certain age - disclosed details (so and so was safely abroad; another person had been caught and murdered by Snatchers; someone else was in Azkaban), another world opened up. It was addictive, and almost enough to sustain him. Until the day his entire family disappeared.
The terrible thing, he thought later, was that he didn't even realise it had happened until he was called into the Minister's office. It was only when Thicknesse asked him abruptly if he knew anything of his father's whereabouts that he understood, and his obvious shock was probably what saved him from further interrogation.
He didn't know where they were. Not his father or his mother. Not Ginny, who was on holiday from Hogwarts, and so presumably with her parents. Not Ron, apparently still recovering from Spattergroit. Not George; not Fred. Not even Bill, who had trusted him enough to tip him off about Potterwatch - but not, apparently, with his address.
He sleepwalked through the rest of the week. Potterwatch had no information, but was full of titbits about a fight in which Ron, Harry and Hermione might have been spotted. Percy tried to discount this - to the best of his knowledge, Ron was not with the other two.
Finally, a letter arrived.
All safe.
He sat down heavily on the bed, tears pricking at his eyes. All safe. There were safe. They just didn't trust him enough to tell him where.
It was too much. He was exhausted, worrying about his family and listening to the wireless at night, and then pretending to be a loyal citizen every day at work. If he endured one more reproving glance from friends of his father's at the Ministry, he thought he might hex them.
He wracked his brains for people who might be able to help, considering and discarding various people who had appeared or been mentioned on Potterwatch. Lupin would have been the obvious one, but he was in hiding along with his wife and her parents. There was a man with the code name Royal, whose voice sounded extremely familiar from somewhere within the Ministry, but Percy had never been able to place him.
But there was another man, gruff-voiced and abrupt, whom Percy could place. He'd always been curious about the owner of the Hog's Head, whose dirty beard and ruffled features were so oddly familiar, and his first and only abuse of confidentiality at the Ministry had been to confirm his suspicion as to the man's identity.
Percy Summoned his parchment and quill, and began to compose a letter to Aberforth Dumbledore.
~*~
Every time Padma thought she had adapted to the latest developments at Hogwarts, something else happened to pull the ground from beneath her.
The final straw was the day she persuaded Parvati to move into the Room of Requirement. It was her idea: Neville had been the first, but he'd quickly been joined by Seamus Finnigan and Michael Corner. Padma was still shaken over Parvati's latest injuries, and she'd enlisted Lavender's help in persuading her that she should remain in the safety of the Room of Requirement during the day.
It had been the right thing to do, she knew that. Her twin was safe - from her own impetuosity, as well as from the Carrows. But now, there was no Parvati to wave at over breakfast; no Parvati to jog her elbow as they practised charms; no Parvati to shield her in Defence Against the Dark Arts. Padma felt bereft.
As more students failed to show up for lessons, the Carrows became increasingly irritable and their classes increasingly chaotic. Other professors did their best, but between the Carrows and the DA, Padma was starting to worry about her NEWT exams, which were due to begin the following month.
One morning, as Carrow ranted about the importance of intent when casting the Cruciatus Curse, her patience snapped.
"Professor, will the Cruciatus Curse be in our NEWT exam?"
Carrow whirled to face her. "What?"
"It's just...I was looking through the past papers, and there was no mention of dark magic anywhere. The emphasis was always on defence, not attack." Her fingers were shaking; she grasped her wand to calm them.
He rolled his eyes. "I thought we'd dealt with this in September. In order to defend, you have to attack. Don't you understand?"
"Yes, but I disagree with your logic. Anyway, has the exam changed? Because the past papers don't contain any of the curses we've learned so far this year."
He lurched along the aisle towards her and bent over her desk. "You should be careful, girl. I know an easy way to make sure everyone can tell you and your sister apart for as long as you both live."
He drew a finger across her cheek, and she forced herself to keep looking into his grinning face. "We're studying NEWTs here, not first year flying. I think I've got a right to point out any problems with the teaching."
"Yeah?"
"She's right." It was Terry, seated a couple of desks to the left. "These exams affect our entire lives. We're entitled to make sure what we're taught is relevant."
"Is that so?" Carrow looked around at the class. No one moved.
"Right," he said. "I've had it with you lot for today. If you think you know better than your professors, you can manage your own lesson for once. I've got better things to do." He strode to the doorway, and turned to look at Padma. "Oh. I'll see you in my office later. Seven o'clock." His mouth twisted. "Don't bother bringing any of your little friends."
As the door slammed behind him, Padma gripped her wand tightly, blinking back tears. A hand patted hers, and she looked up to find Ernie Macmillan standing in front of her desk.
"Don't go," he said. "Just don't bother."
"What am I supposed to do instead, then?" she asked. She was still reeling from the hatred in his voice. You'll be next to go.
He shrugged. "What everyone else is doing. Stay in the Room. It can take it."
~*~
"Come in," Snape called.
Ernie pushed open the door and stepped inside with as much assurance as he could muster.
"Macmillan." Snape put down his quill. "To what do I owe this pleasure?"
"Sir...Professor..." Ernie hesitated while he got his words straight. "I wanted to thank you for the warning you gave me, when we first came back to school after the summer."
"Ah, yes."
"And...I've been doing a lot of thinking." He pressed his lips together. To his horror, there was a lump in his throat. "In good conscience, I can't continue to pretend I don't have a problem with the way the school's being run. There's a culture of fear, misinformation is being spread, children are being taught the dark arts, and there are professors here who are evil. I can't support any of that."
Snape stared at him for a long moment. As so often, his face was expressionless, but to Ernie it looked even more pinched than usual. "Thank you for your opinion, Mr Macmillan. You may go." He picked up his quill again and bent over a parchment, leaving Ernie open-mouthed.
When Ernie reached the corridor on the seventh floor, the others were waiting.
"Ready?" Hannah asked. She had an arm around Callypsa; a large-eyed Jake was beside her, his arms full of Quidditch action figures.
"Ready," Ernie said, and smiled.
~*~
6. Roll away your stone, I'll roll away mine
Padma had always been convinced that Harry Potter meant well, and was prepared to believe that his past successes had been due to more than mere luck. But she was exasperated at the stupid decisions he managed to make at times. For example:
"We could have been looking for the diadem all year if he'd only bothered to tell us, instead of having this stupid race against time," she muttered to Terry.
Terry shrugged. "You know what he's like. Thinks he's got to save the world all by himself - although at least those two didn't let him get away this time." He nodded at Ron and Hermione, who were in a huddle with Ginny and the Weasley twins.
The atmosphere in the Room of Requirement was an odd blend of celebratory and grim. Every couple of minutes, more wizards entered from the Hog's Head passage: old students like Cho Chang, and quite a few parents of current students. Professor Lupin came in with a man Padma vaguely recognised as an Auror. Mrs Weasley hurried through the doorway and gave a cry as she pounced on Ron and Hermione.
Padma glanced at Parvati and wondered if she, too, wished that their parents were present. Everyone seemed to be happy, or at least, to be taking heart from the support that had arrived. And it was heartening - but they were still holed up in this room, with no plan or knowledge of what was happening outside. Had Harry found the diadem? What chance did he have, when Ravenclaws had been seeking it for centuries?
She watched Ron and Hermione head towards the staircase that led back to Hogwarts. Ron's face was grim and he walked with a purpose he'd always seemed to be missing before. She remembered the Yule Ball, when he'd been the world's worst partner because he'd been watching Hermione dancing with that Krum bloke. Had they worked out their differences yet?
Finally, Harry appeared again - without the diadem, but with news of a kind.
"They're evacuating the younger kids and everyone's meeting in the Great Hall to get organised. We're fighting."
The cheers were so deafening that Padma did not immediately realise that she herself had joined in. At last, they were going to act! She swallowed down her terror and trooped up the stairs along with the rest of Dumbledore's Army.
~*~
Percy turned away from the wireless, a wry smile on his face. Potterwatch had been particularly entertaining over the past week; he had to give Lee, Fred and George credit for making the best of a very serious situation. He didn't know what Ron was doing with Harry and Hermione, but there was no mistaking those descriptions. The three of them had been up to something, and had got the better of Gringotts, the goblins and the Ministry of Magic security detail in the process.
In the past few weeks, he had heard no more from his family, but he had to assume that the rest of them were safe. He would have heard otherwise at work. Ron, though - how long had he been at large? How long had he, Harry and Hermione been in hiding, somewhere in Britain?
He and Ron had always been the odd ones out in their family. Bill and Charlie, while casually kind, couldn't be bothered with a little brother always tagging after them. After Percy came the twins, who never needed anyone else, and then Ron, who had five elder brothers to live up to and a little sister to care for. Thwarted by Fred and George's independence, Percy had tried hard to look after Ron the way an elder brother should, but his advances had been rebuffed more often than not. Still, he hoped Ron was taking taking care of himself now.
Hermes hooted softly in his corner cage, and Percy froze. An owl was tapping at the kitchen window. He let it in, fed it and unrolled the note, which was brief and unsigned.
The rest of the country's coming, so you might as well, too. They're making a stand up at the school. Apparate directly into the bar - there's a Caterwauling Charm on the village. I can get you into Hogwarts.
Because he was Percy, he burned the note before doing anything else. Then he grabbed his wand and turned on the spot. He barely noticed Aberforth Dumbledore, who waved him sardonically into a passage on the top floor of the Hog's Head, and focused on hurrying as fast as he could up the slope that led to the school.
The end of the passage took him by surprise; he fell rather than jumped into a large room, and picked himself up with the help of a nearby chair. Looking around, he took in his parents, his brothers and his sister, along with Harry, Lupin, Bill's wife, Fleur, and an awful lot of others.
"Am I too late?" he asked. "Has it started?"
~*~
Once the younger students were safe, Ernie felt as if he had been let loose. He joined the group around Fred and George, who were organising the defence of the various passageways that led into the castle, but the fighting began well before everyone was in place, and quickly descended into chaos.
Voldemort hadn't just brought wizards: his troops included at least one werewolf and several giants, not to mention a horde of giant spiders, which scattered defenders right, left and centre. Nobody wanted to be caught by one of those things. The giants took Ernie straight back to the days of his childhood; all he needed now, he thought, was trolls and a magic fountain, and he'd be in one of Beedle's fairytales.
He, Seamus and Luna were in entrance hall when a chill feeling that had nothing to do with fresh air spread through the atmosphere.
"Patronus!" Ernie yelled. His boar soared towards a crowd of Dementors that surrounded Harry, Ron and Hermione, with a fox and a hare close on its heels.
As the Dementors fell back, the three of them hurried up to Harry, who was lying on the ground, his Patronus fading into his wand. It sputtered as they approached.
"That's right," said Luna gently. "That's right, Harry...come on, think of something happy..."
"Something happy?" Harry said, as if that was the hardest thing in the world.
"We're all still here," she murmured, "we're still fighting. Come on, now..."
Suddenly a stag burst from Harry's wand and cantered at the Dementors, who drifted away in search of easier prey.
There was no time to talk; as they turned to each other, a giant lumbered towards them and they scattered.
~*~
7. In these bodies we will live, in these bodies we will die
"Oh, my girl!"
Padma straightened, resting a hand on her aching back, to find her father dashing towards her. Parvati and their mother were close behind.
She fell into his arms, hiding relieved tears in his robes. They were all safe! That was more than could be said for many wizarding families today.
"Now," said her father, as he wiped his own tears away. "Let's get you both away from here."
Padma looked at him, and then at Parvati, who appeared uncharacteristically uncertain. Then she looked around at the rubble, and at all the people who had fought Voldemort's supporters the previous night, and who were now fighting to save the castle.
"No, Dad," she said slowly. "We can't; not yet. We have to stay and put things back together. You and Mum can stay, too, if you like - but me and Parvati are needed here."
Parvati did not let go of their mother's hand, but she reached out and squeezed Padma's arm.
Their father was a tall man, but as he stared at them in the sunshine, he seemed to deflate. Finally, he gave a rueful smile.
"Well, I suppose the office can do without your mother and me for a couple of days. Arminder?"
Their mother nodded. "Why not? Let's stay and help."
~*~
When Ernie thought about the battle later, it seemed to be one long blur, although a few moments stuck in his mind: Harry's body, lying on the ground where Hagrid had placed him; Neville breaking free of Voldemort's enchantment and wielding the sword of Gryffindor; Ernie himself shielding Professor Slughorn from a jinx and being rewarded with a yell of, "Fifty points to Hufflepuff!" The final confrontation between Harry and Voldemort, which no one who witnessed it was likely to forget.
And the aftermath: realising who had died and tending to the wounded; facing people who had lost loved ones, and owling parents who had done likewise. As a prefect, Ernie did all of these things, as well as owling his own parents (to tell them he was all right) and Justin (to tell him the news). Finally, he found himself beside Hannah's bed in the hospital wing, willing her to open her eyes. Others came and went - Neville and the other survivors of Dumbledore's Army, Professor McGonagall, Madam Pomfrey, even a couple of reporters who were quickly shooed out. Ernie remained on watch through all of this, but when Mr Abbott arrived, one look at his face told Ernie that he had no business intruding. After shaking his hand, he left Hannah alone with her father.
He found Susan by the lake. Lots of people seemed to be paying their respects to Dumbledore; students and families wandered quietly across the turf, close to Dumbledore's tomb. Susan was standing by herself, not quite looking at the tomb.
"It's a horrible thought," Ernie said as he joined her. "Breaking into Dumbledore's tomb like that, I mean."
She looked up and smiled gravely. "Yes. But it's been restored already. I wonder who did it?"
Ernie shrugged. "Does it matter?"
"No, I suppose not." Her smile faded. "How's Hannah?"
"Still unconscious. Her dad arrived, and I thought I'd better leave them alone."
"If she doesn't..." Susan shook her head, as if trying to shake off a stray thought. "It feels awful to say that if she doesn't survive, it'll be unfair. Everything's unfair."
It was true. "I'm so tired of everything," Ernie blurted.
She touched him softly on the arm. "Things will be better now."
He couldn't speak, his heart too full of the people who would never know that things were better.
"I know," Susan said. "But we have to keep going."
Ernie nodded. The school was in ruins, but it would be rebuilt, and perhaps they could come back next year and study properly for their NEWTs. There would be a new group of first years, whom Jake and Callypsa would no doubt look down on. A new Minister for Magic would be appointed, and hopefully the people in charge of the wizarding world would take a long, hard look at themselves. Things would get better, and if they didn't, he'd be there to push things along.
He sighed. "I'm going back to find out how Hannah's doing. Are you coming?"
She took his arm in answer, and they strolled away from the quiet lakeside, back towards the castle and responsibility.
~*~
Percy looked around the atrium of the Ministry of Magic. The statue erected during Thicknesse's reign had been removed and the Fountain of Magical Brethren restored to its previous position, although a plaque at its base stated that a new work of art would be commissioned 'to reflect the equal standing of all magical beings'. Everything looked back to normal, even down to the witches and wizards hurrying past on their way to work.
Fred's funeral had taken place the previous day. The Weasleys had tried to make it a quiet affair, but with the events of what the papers were calling the Battle of Hogwarts so close, there had been no means of keeping people away. Percy found that he didn't mind that many of those present had probably never even spoken to his brother. The wizarding world needed to mourn, and to honour its heroes, and if they needed funerals for that, then they were welcome.
Afterwards, the Weasleys and a few close friends had retired to The Burrow, and the real process of grieving and honouring Fred had begun. It had been a late night, but Percy did not begrudge Fred that.
As for himself, every moment, everywhere he turned, he was assaulted by memories of the battle. Hexing the Minister for Magic - now, there was something he'd never thought he would do. Not that Thicknesse really counted as Minister, in Percy's opinion, but still, it had been rather daring - and also very out of character for him. He was glad to be back where he belonged, working for the organisation to which he had given his heart. And this time, he was going to make sure things were done right.
Smiling, he walked towards the lift to begin his day.
~*~
Dialogue quoted directly from Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows:
"They're evacuating the younger kids and everyone's meeting in the Great Hall to get organised. We're fighting."
"That's right," said Luna [gently]. "That's right, Harry...come on, think of something happy..."
"Something happy?"
"We're all still here," [she murmured,] "we're still fighting. Come on, now..."
These lines are quoted for continuity purposes, and no copyright infringement is intended.