Chapter Seventeen

[merrymelody]

Educational Decree Number Twenty Four

In which Hermione and Harry continue in their quest for world domination; Sirius appears; and Rox trembles at the thought of a Draco-less chapter approaching.



* Harry felt happier for the rest of the weekend than he had done all term.
...Knowing they were doing something to resist Umbridge and the Ministry, and that he was a key part of the rebellion, gave Harry a feeling of immense satisfaction.
He kept reliving Saturdays meeting in his mind: all those people, coming to him to learn Defence Against the Dark Arts...and the looks on their faces as they had heard some of the things he had done...and Cho praising his performance in the Triwizard Tournament - knowing all those people did not think him a lying weirdo, but someone to be admired, buoyed him up so much that he was still cheerful on Monday morning...

Not that Harry wants people to worship him, as he so eloquently stated earlier. But admiration's nice, isn’t it, even for one so reserved. So nice that it comes up less than a page later.

I'd like to enjoy Harry's happiness, since he's so very irritating in his anger; but he's actually just as irriating when returned to usual King-of-the-world form.

* '...And let's face it, we don't know how many of the people who turned up we can trust…any of them could have run off and told Umbridge...'

Immediate reaction here is to doubt everyone, presumably those from other houses especially; rather than question their own plan (in fact, doesn't it turn out that Umbridge, or someone on her 'side' was watching; which Hermione blithely dismissed?) or even that their enemy is smarter than they gave her credit for.
Beginning to see why there's such mistrust in the school already!

* 'Zacharias Smith!' said Ron at once, punching a fist into his hand. 'Or - I thought that Michael Corner had a really shifty look, too -'

Heh. To paraphrase Magpie, it's refreshing that there's absolutely no attempt to describe Ron's obvious biases as sensible or even worthy of consideration; unlike Harry's and Hermione's, whose should be immediately discussed, possibly with forcible interrogation (CoS) and who's turn out to be correct more than half the time, anyway; despite being equally motivated by personal grievances.

* 'Well, it's an old-fashioned rule,' said Hermione, who had just slid neatly on to a rug in front of them and was now getting to her feet, 'but it says in Hogwarts: A History, that the founders thought boys were less trustworthy than girls. Anyway, why were you trying to get in there?'

I thought the entire Wizarding World was caring-sharing, feminist, colour blind kind of place.
Because to me, that doesn't so much convey an idea that boys are less trustworthy, so much as the girls need protection and that while the boys might want to score with other students, the girls needed to be prevented from this and themselves.
I mean, just saying that the boys are "less trustworthy" implies that the girls wouldn't want, or be expected to want, to sneak into the boys dorms. Girls don't even like sex (or nice girls don't, anyway) and so they need elaborate gadgets to save them from the marauding boys, who want to steal their virtue.

And what happens if there's an emergency? What if a firemen needs to get in? Or a male teacher? Is there some kind of age barrier?

Also, it’s kind of sad that presumably Hermione has never had anyone visit her dorm in five years of living in it.

* 'You're so naive,' said Ron, 'you think just because you're all honourable and trustworthy -'

BWHAHAHAHA! Ron brings the comedy value, as always.

* 'No, they can't have done, because I put a jinx on that piece of parchment we all signed,' said Hermione grimly. 'Believe me, if anyone's run off and told Umbridge, we'll know exactly who they are and they will really regret it.'
'What'll happen to them?' said Ron eagerly.
'Well, put it this way' said Hermione, 'it'll make Eloise Midgeon's acne look like a couple of cute freckles.'

Aw. Hermione and Ron are really 'cute' here, too!
Everytime I think Ron is slightly more normal, dare I say it, ethical than Harry and Hermione; I'm reminded that he's not. Just so inept he can't accomplish their awesome spells and jinxes. And counter-hexes, of course.

Sadly, Hermione telling the boys this (and luckily, no-one else! Because telling people, while being a good idea for security purposes and *gasp* morally, might make people distrust Hermione and also, would prevent some really righteous vengeance!) means that we don't get Harry or Ron innocently confiding in Sirius, or Hagrid, or Dumbledore, or just inviting someone to their new group and getting hexed themselves.
That would have improved the book ten-fold. Especially cause you know Hermione would cry and say how sorry she was, and Harry would be horrified on purely ideological grounds, honest, rather than thinking it 'brilliant'.

* …I wonder whether this has been put up in all the houses?'

No. Just Gryffindor. It's all a PLOT AGAINST YOU. They're threatened by your already amazingly powerful group, and probably want to sabotage your Quidditch games, too, because They're Just Jealous!

* They were all looking at Harry.

Heh.

* He glanced around to make sure there were no teachers near them. 'We're going to do it anyway of course,' he said quietly.

The coolness of Harry's rebellious anti-authority attitude slightly diminished by the checking there was no authority nearby first, but that's just him being slyly smart. He can do that sometimes!
Sure, he can't at any other time in this book ever, but still.
It wouldn't be a HP book if there wasn't some way that Harry, and of course, his friends, proved themselves to be more cunning than any Slytherins; more clever than any Ravenclaws and loyaller than any Hufflepuffs. They're an example of interhouse-unity all by themselves!

* 'Knew you'd say that,' said George, beaming and thumping Harry on the arm.

The twins are really fond of keeping Harry as their ally/friend. In addition to him being their backer and a good person to be seen with, politically speaking; they appear to genuinely like him and consider him like or one of 'them'. Warning signs flashing?

* ‘I’ll tell Michael,' said Ginny impatiently, swinging herself off her bench, 'the fool, honestly...'

Gosh, Ginny’s certainly not nervous or shy around her current boyfriend, is she? Considering Hermione's explanation of why she was so quiet around Harry was that she fancied him.
In fact, she's not obsessive about Michael as she was about Harry, neither does she appear to place as much import to romance as she did previously. If I didn't know better, I'd say she's become much cooler, except of course she was always like that, except around boys she fancied. Or something.
Perhaps Ginny still holds a torch for Harry (she's pseudo!cool! She's masquerading! Who could stop being charmed, endeared and adoring of "perfect boyfriend" Harry?) or perhaps Harry is just so special that her feelings for him could never be equalled ever again.

* Many of his classmates were pointing out Hedwig to each other, too.
'Oh, I've always loved that owl, she's so beautiful,' Harry heard Lavender sigh to Parvati.

Aw, look! Hedwig is inexplicably popular, just like her master!

* Only then did he realise that Hedwig's feathers were oddly ruffled; some were bent the wrong way, and she was holding one of her wings at an odd angle.

That’s some fairly minor damage. Who did it, anyway? Umbridge? Death Eaters? I’d expect better.

* 'Professor Binns,' said Harry loudly, and everyone in the class turned to look at him.

Heh. Every time a sentence like this appears, I keep waiting for the inevitable 'He didn't enjoy it! Honest! He's really introverted and humble! Blush, blush!'

* 'I'm not feeling well.'

Harry really has issues with authority, doesn't he? It doesn't appear to occur to him to tell the truth.
Of course, Binns has shown no bias or favourable attitude towards Harry, hence he can't be trusted and is probably Evil.

* Two stone gargoyles flanked the staff-room door. As Harry approached, one of them croaked, 'You should be in class, Sonny Jim.'
This is urgent,' said Harry curtly.
'Ooooh, urgent, is it?' said the other gargoyle in a high-pitched voice. 'Well, that's put us in our place, hasn't it?'
...'It's urgent, apparently,' said the second gargoyle snidely.

Heh. I rather like the gargoyles. They remind me of Labyrinth or something.
I think they should place Phineas Nigellus opposite them.

* Professor Grubbly-Plank appeared at Professor McGonagall's shoulder, smoking a pipe and holding a copy of the Daily Prophet.

Am I the only one who finds this slightly suspicious?
Especially with McGonagall being unusually deferential, silently watching Grubbly Plank be gruff, interjecting only to demonstrate that she and G-P are on a first name basis?

* 'Looks like something's attacked her. Hagrid's got the Hogwarts Thestrals well-trained not to touch owls.'

Hagrid can train animals not to attack other animals? Heh. Shame he can’t do that for his students.

* And he told them what Professor McGonagall had said.
To his surprise, neither of the others looked shocked.
On the contrary, they exchanged significant looks.

Heh. Does Harry just think Hermione and Ron are really slow, or is he expecting that they're as dumb as him and are completely horrified by this groundbreaking news?

* 'And nobody would understand what it meant if they didn't know where we'd spoken to him before, would they?'

No, no-one could ever decipher 'Same time, same place' without some kind of codebreaker.

* …the voice of Draco Malfoy who was standing just outside Snape's classroom door, waving around an official-looking piece of parchment and talking much louder than was necessary so that they could hear every word.
'Yeah, Umbridge gave the Slytherin Quidditch team permission to continue playing straightaway, I went to ask her first thing this morning. Well, it was pretty much automatic, I mean, she knows my father really well, he's always popping in and out of the Ministry…it'll be interesting to see whether Gryffindor are allowed to keep playing, won't it?'

Again, a point already made, but why did Draco go and ask Umbridge when he’s not the captain?
I guess the personal connection helped (if there really was one, which is always doubtful) and I guess it's practice for when Montague gets attacked ill (which makes me wonder - who runs the team, then? Do they bump up whoever's been playing longest? Do they even replace Montague's position, or were they waiting for him to get better?) but still...

* 'Don't rise,' Hermione whispered imploringly to Harry and Ron, who were both watching Malfoy, faces set and fists clenched. 'It's what he wants.'
'I mean,' said Malfoy, raising his voice a little more, his grey eyes glittering malevolently in Harry and Ron's direction…

Heh. Hermione’s right again.
I guess she should be imploring all the Gryffindor males, though. They're a tempermental crowd.

* …'if it's a question of influence with the Ministry, I don't think they've got much chance…from what my father says, they've been looking for an excuse to sack Arthur Weasley for years…

Why would they want to sack Arthur? In between his daughter attacking Muggleborns, his sons attacking everyone and him breaking the rules of his own department repeatedly and pursuing personal vendettas outside his apparent jurisdiction; I bet he’s the best damn worker they’ve got!
Of course, no doubt sooner or later the old ministry will be rehauled, the Malfoys’ influence gone (maybe them with it) and there’ll be someone realllly trustworthy instead. Oh boy, I can't wait!

* ‘…and as for Potter…my father says it's a matter of time before the Ministry has him carted off to St Mungo's…apparently they've got a special ward for people whose brains have been addled by magic.'
Malfoy made a grotesque face, his mouth sagging open and his eyes rolling.
Crabbe and Goyle gave their usual grunts of laughter; Pansy Parkinson shrieked with glee.

One day I will count up Pansy’s shrieks and find out whether she’s ever been described like a normal human being.

‘By magic’ is a really odd term, also, to me anyway, and one that Harry uses also later. Not by torture or by spells or jinxes (or counter-hexing!) but by magic. Almost comes across like some kind of degenerative disease - you use magic too long or as a weapon, your brain gets 'addled'.
Not really a phrase I'd expect from a pureblood.

* Harry leapt forward and seized the back of Neville's robes; Neville struggled frantically, his fists flailing, trying desperately to get at Malfoy who looked, for a moment, extremely shocked.
'Help me!' Harry flung at Ron, managing to get an arm around Neville's neck and dragging him backwards, away from the Slytherins.

Wow. Neville under PSYCHO KILLER RAGE influence is stronger than Harry?
And heh, I love Malfoy looking shocked. Like, who is this guy, again? And why is he so angry? I wasn't even unleashing my special powers of obnoxiousness, that was low-grade, every-day stuff!

* Crabbe and Goyle were flexing their arms as they stepped in front of Malfoy, ready for the fight.

I should hope so! Crabbe and Goyle really don't put themselves out much. They let Ron go for Malfoy in PS (and numerous other times); they let Harry and George in OotP (and laugh, for whatever reason! *slaps meaty wrists*); they let Hermione in PoA; now Neville... Not great bodyguards! (Although I'll always have a soft spot for Crabbe's attempt at rescuing Ferret!Draco.)

* …Neville's face was scarlet; the pressure Harry was exerting on his throat rendered him quite incomprehensible, but odd words spluttered from his mouth. 'Not…funny…don't…Mungo's…show…him…'

Hee. Neville gets strangled a lot in this book.
Also his reaction made me laugh more than the lame joke. I’m going to hell.
Although, even Ron and Harry have made jokes about mental people, iirc. In fact, Malfoy has before, too.
So is Neville a Buckbeak style attacker, who instinctively divines when someone is being cruel and when they're just kidding; or is it because it was such a specific zing?
(And not even intentional at that, which Neville appeared to have missed completely.)
And of course, if Neville doesn't even want his dormmates to know, he's gonna to have trouble concealing it from them after this, or he would if they were normal human beings rather than cannon fodder and idiots, there to fill space and make Harry, Hermione and even Ron look smart by comparison.
So, kind of an overreaction, but I guess attacking people 'proves' Neville is really brave and a true Gryffindor.
As Magpie put it: "Would Harry hit someone for pretending to kill someone because his parents were...Oh wait, he probably would. And they'd deserve it too!"

Heh. I'm now imagining Harry banning use of all words or sentences mentioning or featuring 'death', 'kill', 'murder', or 'Voldemort' throughout the entire Wizarding World...
Except when he wants to use them to make a point, of course.

* Harry let go of Neville, who stood panting and glaring at him.
'I had to stop you,' Harry gasped, picking up his bag. 'Crabbe and Goyle would've torn you apart.'
Neville said nothing; he merely snatched up his own bag and stalked off into the dungeon.

Ha. Neville being angry at Harry endears him to me in a way a million sweet wrappers couldn't.
And as Magpie put it, again (shut up! I can't help having no original thoughts! It's been a long day! ;) in one neat sentence we now know to:
"a) give Neville credit for being very brave for moving to attack Malfoy and
b) blame Crabbe and Goyle for tearing poor Neville apart even though they didn't actually lay a hand on him."

* The class around them was whispering about what Neville had just done...

I wonder what the other reactions were. I’m actually surprised that Ron seemed confused, rather than just cheering Neville. Like, now you need a reason to attack? It was just Malfoy! He probably did something to deserve it!

* 'Well, the class seem fairly advanced for their level,' she said briskly to Snape's back.

Ooh. Let the neverending battles of whether or not Snape is an effective or 'good' teacher commence!

* 'And you have applied regularly for the Defence Against the Dark Arts post since you first joined the school, I believe?'
'Yes,' said Snape quietly, barely moving his lips. He looked very angry.
'Do you have any idea why Dumbledore has consistently refused to appoint you?' asked Umbridge.
'I suggest you ask him,' said Snape jerkily.
'Oh, I shall,' said Professor Umbridge, with a sweet smile.

How does Snape manage to be an effective double-agent when his emotions are apparently written all over his face?
I guess that's how we know he's a Sekrit "Good" Guy - he has little temper control...
And why doesn't Dumbledore hire him, anyway?
I read some interview blather about God The Big D thinking that Snape's talents lie elsewhere; although as usual, fanon and fic make more sense - too much goodwill looks suspicious, and Snape should be in the background.
Hiring the dramatic Moody and Lockhart makes sense from that perspective, I suppose, but still, it comes down to the ageold question surrounding almost everything Albus does: is he actively evil or just woefully stupid, arrogant and incompetent?

* She turned away, walked over to Pansy Parkinson and began questioning her about the lessons.

Pansy gets questioned by Umbridge several times, as well as interviewed with a flattering description by Skeeter, singled out for school honours by both the Dumbledore administration and Umbridge, as well as being the only Slytherin to defend a friend verbally. Go, Pansy! <3

* Snape looked round at Harry and their eyes met for a second.
Harry hastily dropped his gaze to his potion...

Heh. Harry's not as brave or defiant as he thinks he is.

* 'No marks again, then, Potter,' said Snape maliciously.
'Yes,' said Harry furiously. Snape had already given them homework and he had Quidditch practice this evening; this would mean another couple of sleepless nights.

Stupid Snape. Doesn’t he know that Harry is an athlete? They’re not subject to the same educational requirements as we ordinary mortals!
And how unfair (and indeed, ‘malicious’) of him to give Harry a poor grade on a poor potion that Harry failed through his own malicious desire to see Umbridge triumph against Snape.

* 'Hark who's talking, you walked out of Divination, you hate Trelawney!' said Ron indignantly.
'I don't hate her,' said Hermione loftily.

Is Ron indignant on Harry's behalf or because he just likes to fight with Hermione?
Also, 'hark' makes me laugh. Hee.
Hermione, like Harry by the end of this book, is above such petty mortal sins like 'hate'. They merely pity those unblessed with being practically perfect in every way.
I do love that each gets to lose their temper, sometimes repeatedly, before then announcing themselves to be superior to those who annoy them.
So they get to blow off steam and fight back, often with more force than the person annoying them; but also get to rejoice in having higher things on their mind and not lowering themselves to letting the plebians bother them.

* 'I just think she's an absolutely appalling teacher and a real old fraud. But Harry’s already missed History of Magic and I don't think he ought to miss anything else today!'

Has Hermione learned her lesson from her crush on Lockhart, who also fit her description?
Or is this hypocrisy, perhaps influenced by Lockhart being a male, and an attractive one at that; bolstered by her devotion to Hagrid, who, like Umbridge, is a pretty "appalling" teacher?
Also, I can kind of see both sides here - Hermione's being bossy and using double-standards here; Harry's being lazy and will then expect help from either Hermione or Dumbledore, should he miraculously not pass every subject with flying colours.

* Harry thought he'd surely be much better employed doing Snape's punishment essay than sitting here trying to find meaning in a lot of made-up dreams.

Heh. Harry, like Hermione, should totally get to decide what schoolwork students have to study! They'd make much better teachers, as the DA shows! Blahblah, angryarrogancecakes.
Of course, if Harry had concentrated in his first lesson, he wouldn't need to neglect his second; but since I'm a procrastinator of the first order myself, I'm approaching Trio levels of hypocrisy here.

* 'Well, carry on!' said Professor Trelawney loudly, her voice high-pitched and somewhat hysterical, 'you know what to do! Or am I such a sub-standard teacher that you have never learned how to open a book?'

If Trelawney hates the idea of failing so much, why doesn't she do some actual um, work?

There seems to be a contrast, again, between two spectrums here - with Hagrid, for example, and at times, Trelawney although her portrayal is much broader since Harry dislikes her; there's an idea that they should gain automatic respect for their profession, whether or not their lessons are effective: students should respect their teachers, children their elders, people in positions of authority shouldn't be questioned.

Draco's accident, for example, is very much described as a mistake he made by not showing proper respect - obviously to Buckbeak, but secondly to Hagrid: he was "too stupid" to listen to Hagrid, the most knowledgeable in the situation, he was "plotting to disrupt the lesson" in Harry's estimation - if he'd respected Hagrid it wouldn't have happened.
Hagrid's conduct, in this particular matter, is entirely unquestioned, even by Draco or indeed, his Father, apart from several brief mentions:
Pansy voices the opinion Hagrid "should be sacked", emotionally and without reason as opposed to Hermione's expert defense backed up by her later research into Hippogryff "baiting" or god figure Dumbledore's support and approval (he "assures" the board Hagrid "bears no responsibility".)
The governors think Hagrid "should have started smaller".
Umbridge questions the "injuries in class" and notes it.
And of course, interestingly enough, Hagrid, who's immediate reaction, fiercely contested of course by Ron, Hermione, Harry and apparently Dumbledore is "all my fault" and the expectation that he will be fired.

But then of course, there's Umbridge, who is loathed universally in part and initially because she is an inept teacher.
Her lessons are boring (much like some of Hagrid's which became "extremely dull" after he "lost his confidence"), she believes knowledge should be restricted (similiarly to Dumbledore and Hagrid who hide information from Harry and others both as friends and professors, even concerning class objectives (Hagrid opened his mouth, apparently thinking hard; there was a few seconds' pause, then he said roughly, "Tha's next lesson...") she's overly authoritative and patronising ("Yeh'll do wha' yer told..."; 'Mind yer own business! Now, if yeh've finished askin' stupid questions, follow me!'")

The strong message here appears to be that we should dislike Umbridge for her bad teaching as much as for her malicious personality and cruel deeds - there's even an arguable comparison to her closest counterapart in both chronological order and in terms of student abuse; (Umbridge attempted Crucio, Moody applied Imperius. Umbridge used self-inflicting quills, Moody transfigured and "bounced") Mad Eye Moody's imposter, who is described as "turn(ing) out to be a maniac" who "still (taught) loads."
Certainly there are no personal traits of Umbridge that don't appear in other characters, both the more negative ones:
(Her smugness is shared by Snape and his Slytherin students.
Her physical unattractiveness ditto, as well as with the Dursleys, who also share a belief in corporal punishment.)
And positive:
(Her belief that 'children' shouldn't involve themselves in the upcoming strife is echoed in Molly Weasley.
Her use of rules to circumvent and punish is shared by Hermione, as well as her joy in suffering, which occasionally appears in all three of our most central characters.
As does an attempt to use an Unforgiveable, like our titular "hero" Harry; and using benign objects of learning as weapons (her quill versus Hermione's parchment.)

* The class stared perplexedly at her, then at each other. Harry, however, thought he knew what was the matter.

Another instance of Harry being more intuitive than anyone else, for no apparent reason and contrasting with previous and future behaviour and any sense of realism.

* 'The Establishment!' said Professor Trelawney, in a deep, dramatic, wavering voice. 'Yes, those with eyes too clouded by the mundane to See as I See, to Know as I Know...of course, we Seers have always been feared, always persecuted...it is - alas - our fate.'

Ha! Is JKR doing a bit of self-parody here, or is just ironic that Trelawney’s paranoid melodramatic ravings about The Man resemble the Trio’s completely unintentional?

* 'You and Umbridge have got something in common,' Harry told Hermione quietly…

BWHAHA. Out of the mouths of babes.

* 'Please turn to page thirty-four of Defensive Magical Theory and read the third chapter, entitled "The Case for Non-Offensive Responses to Magical Attack". There will be -'

‘Non-Offensive Responses’?
That sounds like a bunch of peacenik long-hair crap!
Damn Umbridge with her stupid wands away rules and not letting the kids talk. How does she expect to teach anything?

* 'I know, I know,' said Angelina miserably. 'She just said she needed a bit of time to consider.'

Is it me, or is Angelina taking this slightly over-seriously? Hollow, miserable tones, an air of ‘desperation’ and occasional weeping?
It is after all, only a game.
Also I love that the Gryffindor Quidditch teams’ reaction to being questioned over their fitness to play is to um, prove Umbridge’s point and lose half their members to suspension.

* 'Consider what?' said Ron angrily. 'She's given the Slytherins permission, why not us?'

Hahahaha. Wow, that sounds like a really unfair example of House prejudice! That sort of thing would never have happened under Dumbledore’s watch!
What is with all these crazy new ideas that Evil Umbridge is introducing? Certainly Dumbledore wouldn’t have stood for teachers punishing their students with physical abuse, either!

* Fred would…vomit spectacularly into a bucket they had placed in front of them…

You know, I could totally buy twincest in canon, because I can’t imagine the twins ever scoring with any normal human being.

* Hermione was not helping matters; the cheers and the sound of vomit hitting the bottom of Fred and George's bucket were punctuated by her loud and disapproving sniffs, which Harry found, if anything, more distracting.

Why doesn't Harry just leave the common room? Since it's everybody else's fault that he can't concentrate, and all.
Also, not to be gross, but doesn't the smell of vomit bother any of them?

* 'I can't, they're not technically doing anything wrong,' said Hermione through gritted teeth.
‘They're quite within their rights to eat the foul things themselves and I can't find a rule that says the other idiots aren't entitled to buy them, not unless they're proven to be dangerous in some way and it doesn't look as though they are.'

Again, Hermione's unique approach to law - there appears to be no actual interest in knowledge of this subject, or really any, for the sake of knowledge itself (note her defense of Dumbledore's right to conceal information, in direct opposition to her stated beliefs about the same issue with regards to Umbridge's lessons) or the desire to change the world.
Instead she sets out with an predetermined objective ("Free elves", "Start Army Defence Club", "Save Buckbeak") and works to accomplish this, expecting that the rest of the world will obey her personal interpretation (the counter-hexing argument, the homework club) without any apparent understanding of why any rules exist at all, and very basic 'technical' knowledge; and ignoring rules that may contrast with her idea of what's most fair.
The Sorting Hat made an excellent choice for her.

* 'Oh, they only know flashy stuff that's of no real use to anyone,' said Hermione disparagingly.

For once, Hermione appears to be very wrong.
Fred and George know how to make extremely effective weapons.

* 'No real use?' said Ron in a strained voice. 'Hermione, they've made about twenty-six Galleons already.'

Not a very flattering picture of either the Twins or Ron, who's only and highest desire appears to be money.
Also, if Ron wants cash so badly himself, I really wish he'd do something to actually earn it, instead of sitting around feeling sorry for himself and envious of every other person who might have something he lacks.

* Fred…rattling his box of Galleons ostentatiously so that Hermione scowled.

Heh. There's a bit of a rivalry going on there, I think; what with the twins keeness to put down Hermione's values and likewise, Hermione's dismissal and attempts to discipline them.
I notice one of them specifically challenges her about whether "prefects" will still be participating in the DA after it's banned, and her "cool" reaction.
*chants 'Fight, fight, fight!'*

* Harry, who was making very little progress with his Potions essay, decided to give it up for the night.

Bets are on for Harry’s “miraculous” entry into Snape’s advanced potions class next year due to either pressure from Dumbledore or a Sweet Valley High style revelation that he’s so naturally gifted that he passes exams on his gut instincts and intuitons.

* 'Well, it was better than the Three Broomsticks!' said Hermione defensively. 'That's always packed with people -'
'Which means you'd have been harder to overhear,' said Sirius. 'You've got a lot to learn, Hermione.'

*sharp intake of air* Sirius has just signed his own death warrant, much as Cedric did. No room in this narrative for people beating Harry or questioning Hermione’s intellect.

* …so Dung's been dressing as a witch a lot lately…

Heh! That got casually slipped in there, didn't it?

* 'What do you think he was doing?' said Sirius impatiently. 'Keeping an eye on you, of course.'
'I'm still being followed?' asked Harry angrily.
'Yeah, you are,' said Sirius, 'and just as well, isn't it, if the first thing you're going to do on your weekend off is organise an illegal defence group.'
But he looked neither angry nor worried. On the contrary, he was looking at Harry with distinct pride.

Sirius is turning out almost Lucius like in the expectations category, except that Lucius appears to value traditional accomplishments such as academic success, athletics and political influence, whereas the way Harry can impress Pseudo Daddy is by screwing up like him.
Ironically, in this particular series, it's Harry's way that ends up benefitting him best.
Although I note he's already mastered schoolwork, Quidditch and being famous and important.

Also I'm mystified as to why covert surveillance of people is totally okay by the Order's standards, when the same thing would and is condemned when used as a tactic by the other side as being a 'tell tale' or a 'sneak', even when practiced by schoolchildren.

* 'She says on no account whatsoever are you to take part in an illegal secret Defence Against the Dark Arts group. She says you'll be expelled for sure and your future will be ruined. She says there will be plenty of time to learn how to defend yourself later and that you are too young to be worrying about that right now. She also…advises Harry and Hermione not to proceed with the group, though she accepts that she has no authority over either of them and simply begs them to remember that she has their best interests at heart.'
'So, you want me to say I'm not going to take part in the Defence group?' he muttered finally.
'Me? Certainly not!' said Sirius, looking surprised. 'I think it's an excellent idea!'

Gosh. I wonder why Molly thinks Sirius is irresponsible and a 'bad godfather'.
Could it be that he blatantly encourages her child to disobey the rules she sets and does everything because of his own selfish motivations rather than any apparent concern for Harry's or anyone else's welfare?
I mean, I don't rate Molly particularly, and certainly she has her own issues going on (the 'accept(ance)' of her lack of authority of the other two appears to indicate St. Remus probably had a word in her ear, though) but I find it ironic how angry both characters and members of the fandom were of her questioning sexy rebel Sirius' abilities as a parent, when she, at least, doesn't appear to have actively told the Trio to ignore his opinions, behind his back.
And I notice Sirius doesn't even make a pretence at having 'their best interests at heart'.

* 'D'you think your father and I would've lain down and taken orders from an old hag like Umbridge? I think learning to defend yourselves properly is a very good idea!'
'And if we do get expelled?' Hermione asked, a quizzical look on her face.
'Hermione, this whole thing was your idea!' said Harry, staring at her.
'I know it was. I just wondered what Sirius thought,' she said, shrugging.
'Well, better expelled and able to defend yourselves than sitting safely in school without a clue,' said Sirius.
'Hear, hear,' said Harry and Ron enthusiastically.

Fourth mention there in less than a paragraph of people being able to ‘defend’ themselves. I bet James and Sirius were really good at that. And of course, counter-hexing.
And god, Sirius’ constant referring to himself and James as the best example possible is really quite wearing, even pre- Saint James falling off his pedestal.
Yes, it’d be great if the kids all got expelled, wouldn’t it?
Then their lifes could end at high school too, and they could sit around drinking with poor lonely Sirius and reminisce about the best days of their life, staving off the boredom of being ‘safe’ by getting themselves killed in stupid ways, one by one.
And more casual derogatory mentions of staff based on their sex - ‘that Umbridge woman’s foul’, ‘an old hag like Umbridge’, 'And don't say that Grubbly-Plank woman's a better teacher!', or if you want to date back a little, "You've been told to get all Lockhart's books, too! The new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher must be a fan - bet it's a witch."
Also, Ron and Harry are mindnumbingly stupid, but that's not news.

* …a stubby, short-fingered hand covered in ugly old-fashioned rings.

Ew! Even Umbridge’s hand is ugly! I mean, first I hated her for being stupid, malicious, and narrowminded; but I see I was misguided, when I was ignoring a perfectly valid reason - she’s like, fat and has bad taste and is old! And a woman! Gross!