Disclaimer: J. K. Rowling owns all Harry Potter characters.
Passing Sorrow
"And this concludes-"
Harry Potter reached for the remote and turned off the television set. He continued to eat his dinner in solitude. The Dursleys were attending a party and would not be back till midnight. He had suspected this to be Tonk's doing though. The Order had owled him and informed him that some of them would be arriving at around eight this evening. Harry took the Daily Prophet beside him and read the headline:
Ministry still on the Lookout
"I will not rest until the Ministry
is able to catch the remaining
Death Eaters that are roaming
free among us."
That was what a tired and
irritated Cornelius Fudge said
after an interview. The Ministry
had refused to reveal their plans.
Harry scanned the pages but placed it back on the table. He sighed. There was no news about any suspicious attacks yet. And that made him more worried, Voldemort could be up to something. He glanced at the clock: six-thirty. He still has one and a half-hour to pack and prepare his things. He swallowed the last of his supper and got up. Grimmauld Place…Sirius…he wondered whether returning there was a good idea. He had no choice though; at least back there he would be able to know more about Voldemort.
Hermione wrung her hands as she walked around in circles with a worried expression.
"Relax, will you? You're only making me more nervous," Ron said in an irritated tone.
"How do you expect me to be so calm? Harry will be here any minute now. What if he still has not recovered from the incident? What if he starts asking us about Voldemort again? And we have no idea on what's happening? " Hermione countered shrilly.
Ron winced at the sound of You-Know-Who's name. "I just arrived here two days ago and you've only been here for three hours. He can't expect much from us. If he wants information, he can always ask Fred or George. They joined the Order months ago. Besides, he's doing fine. Remember the trip back from Hogwarts?"
Hermione frowned at him. "He's been awfully silent if you ask me. He'd rather keep the burden to himself."
Ron did not say anything. He went back to his game of Exploding Snaps. Minutes later, the door opened and there stood Harry.
Harry looked around. Sitting by the bed was a tall, redheaded boy. Standing next to him was a girl with bushy hair. Ron and Hermione, his best friends ever since he went to Hogwarts.
"Harry!" Ron and Hermione said together as they walked towards him.
"Hey guys!" he greeted as Hermione gave him a hug.
Ron closed the door and made sure that nobody was outside. They sat down at Ron's bed.
"Oh, Harry! We were so worried! We thought that something bad might have happened on your way here," Hermione began anxiously.
"So, how's your summer Harry?" Ron asked, ignoring Hermione who was frowning at him.
"It was alright, I guess," Harry replied. The Dursleys continued to treat him like he did not exist. And he had no objections to that.
On the other hand, Hermione and Ron were trying hard to hide the fact that they wanted to talk about Sirius. The expressions on their faces clearly show it. But they were too late; Harry could already tell. How many times had he seen those look on their faces ever since they returned from the Ministry of Magic?
"Why don't you just ask me?" he asked.
"What do you mean?" Ron said, pretending not to know a thing.
"You know what I mean!" Harry said, his anger rising once more. "Why don't you just admit that you want to talk about Sirius?"
Hermione looked at him nervously. "It's not what you think it is, Harry."
"We know what happened already, Lupin and the others told us," Ron said.
Harry glared at them. "Oh you have don't you? Then why act like you did not know a thing?"
"We only want to help you and make you feel better," Hermione answered quietly.
"Then forget it!" Harry snapped. He knew they meant well. But how could they understand? They had no idea how it feels to lose someone you love so much.
Hermione stood up. "I wish you'd stop being so selfish! So you think that we haven't got a clue about how it feels to experience the death of a person we care for."
"Then what do you think Ron felt when he thought Crookshanks killed Scabbers? What do you think I feel now that my grandfather is hospitalized and in a critical condition? These may not be of any concern to you, but they do to us. Pain, fear and sorrow, we have experienced these too," continued Hermione.
Tears were welling up in her eyes. Remembering these thoughts only bring back bad memories. Ron shifted uncomfortably on his seat, not knowing what to do. Harry opened his mouth but no words came out. He felt like a complete jerk. Everything Hermione said was true. He was being an inconsiderate prat who has forgotten about everyone that cares for him.
He left them worried, especially his friends. The only thing he ever thought of lately was Sirius. Nothing else had mattered. But now that he was brought back to his senses, this was going to change. "I'm sorry."
Hermione, who was wiping her tears, managed to choke, "Forget it… Just, stop acting like that."
Ron nodded. "We're here mate. You have a problem, share it with us."
"…Alright." Harry avoided meeting their eyes. He wanted to stop feeling guilty so he decided to change the subject at once, "How long have you guys been here? Anything new lately?"
"I just arrived two days ago and Hermione came a few hours earlier than you," Ron answered abruptly.
Hermione looked at him, half hurt, half-scared, she said, "That's why we have no idea what's happening."
"Oh," Harry said disappointedly. He had no intention to frighten them or shout at them.
"But we could always ask Fred and George. They're part of the Order," Ron added. Harry said nothing.
"Did someone just mention our names?"
The three of them turned around and saw Fred and George standing. They were beaming at Harry.
"Harry old boy, a pleasure seeing you here," said Fred as he shook his hand.
"We heard your tragic tale, quite sad," George said pretending to cry. "Anyway, that's not the point. You need information about You-Know-Who?"
"Can you?" Harry asked hopefully.
"Of course, but not now," Fred said, he understood what Harry meant. "Mum might hear us. She's been patrolling the whole place, particularly this corridor."
"Why?" Harry asked raising an eyebrow.
"Dunno, maybe she wants to make sure that you guys are not doing anything stupid. So better behave yourselves," said George in a serious tone while Ron sniggered.
"And leave the mischief to us," Fred added happily.
"Anyway, there's nothing to know. Most of them are rubbish," George sighed. He pulled a chair and sat down.
"How come?" Ron asked earnestly.
"Well, the only things we hear are Snape's reports, the slimy git, and some news from the other spies," Fred said shrugging. He was leaning against the wall.
"What does Snape say?" Hermione asked.
"Nothing much, just stuff like what the Death Eaters are planning. They're keeping quiet for now though," George answered.
"Oh, I see," Harry said. He expected more than that.
Fred was now circling the room. "There's another meeting right now, but we decided to come and see you instead."
"Don't worry, Bill promised that he's going to tell us all about it when they finish," George said hastily after seeing the look on Harry, Ron and Hermione's faces.
"By the way, where's Ginny?" Harry asked. "She's here isn't she?"
"Oh, yes. She's at her room writing to Dean," Hermione answered.
"WHAT?!" Ron roared.
"Don't worry, it's just a friendly letter," Hermione said at once when she saw Ron's face reddening. The twins seem fine about it though.
"What about," Harry dropped his voice, "Percy?"
The Weasleys exchanged dark looks. Hermione, however, was as clueless as Harry was.
"Still stubborn, very supportive to Fudge," whispered George.
"Stupid really, siding with the Ministry," Fred muttered.
"Dad's still mad at him," said Ron shaking his head.
"We're better off without him," Fred and George said quietly.
Harry nodded. Even if he liked the Weasleys, he still has his least favorite, and among them, it's Percy. They discussed about some things like the twins' plans on opening a branch at Hogsmeade. Harry and Ron immediately checked out Hermione's reaction to that which made her say, "Really, it's not like I'm against Fred and George!" All of them laughed.
After some time, they left Ron's room to get some sleep for they did not want to face the wrath of Mrs. Weasley.
Fred tugged away the blanket from Ron and slapped him. "Wake up!"
"Go away!"
Fred sighed and said in a taunting voice, "Alright. But don't blame us for not informing you about last night's meeting."
He opened the door and was about to head out when Ron got up.
"So, where are we going?"
"My room of course," Fred replied grinning.
Ron, who was putting on a robe, asked. "You've got your own room? I thought you and George were sharing one."
"My room is his room. Now hurry up and shut your mouth," Fred hissed.
They walked quietly down the deserted hallway until they reached a room with a sign that read: Enter at Your Own Risk
Fred entered and Ron followed. He saw Harry, Hermione, Ginny and George sitting on the ground and was forming a circle.
"Ah, so Fred did get to wake ickle Ronniekins or rather, the sleeping beast up," George sneered. "Well, guess I lose this bet."
Hermione and Ginny were trying hard to suppress their giggles. Ron scowled.
"What time is it anyway?" Ron asked peering around.
"Two am," Harry answered sleepily. "Why do we have to it at this time?"
"He's right. Why not later when we're all awake and alive?" said Ron as he sat down beside Harry and Ginny.
"Don't want to get caught now, do we?" Fred explained. He looked at George and nodded.
"Well, Bill told us a whole pile of rubbish," George began. "But there were a few important things too."
"Such as?" Hermione said while raising an eyebrow.
"Such as Snape fuming about his hat being decorated with fresh daisies," Fred chuckled. Harry, Ron and Ginny snorted.
"Seriously," said Hermione with a dangerous tone.
"Sorry, just joking," Fred apologized.
"You remember those Death Eaters you caught?" George asked while eyeing them. Harry and the others nodded. "Well, they're planning to break out."
"How?" Ginny asked.
"Well, now that the dementors have left Fudge, it will be much easier," said Fred grimly.
"But there are Aurors guarding them," Ron interjected. "They'll have a tough time passing them."
"You're forgetting how nasty they can get, Ron," said Harry. "Besides, you cannot expect all the best Aurors to watch over them. Anything else?"
"Fudge has finally agreed to befriend the giants. I expect that Hagrid and some Ministry officials will be sent," added George, who was now lying on his bed. "Nothing more."
Hermione stood up. "If that's the case, then we'll be returning to our rooms."
One by one they left, trying to maintain the silence so as not to get caught.
Days passed by so fast even if they were only cleaning the whole place. Harry was having a great time now that he was with his friends. The day came when they received their Hogwarts letter.
"Dress robes! What do we need them for?" Ron asked outraged.
"Isn't it obvious, there's going to be a ball," Hermione answered calmly while buttering her toast.
"Like the Yule ball?" Ron groaned. "No way. There has got to be another reason."
"Oh yeah, you'll be using the robes for cleaning, that I'll expect," said Fred. "Really, Ron. If you have any brains, then you wouldn't ask such a stupid question."
Ron glared at Fred.
"Bill! What are you doing here?" asked Ron surprised. The day has finally come for them to return to Hogwarts. They had already said good-bye to Mrs. Weasley and the others. "Why aren't you with the others?"
"Haven't I told you?" Bill said smiling.
"Told us what?" Ginny chimed in.
"That I'm you're new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher. I accepted the offer from Dumbledore days ago."
They stared at him. Then they broke into smiles.
"This is great!" Harry exclaimed.
"Yeah! You're going to be a wonderful professor," Hermione added beaming.
"Thanks. Well, let's not stay here and go find a compartment."
"There's no need. We already found one," said Ginny. They headed down the train until they reached almost the end and entered.
Harry sat down. "Don't you guys have a meeting?"
"Oh no! We forgot!" squealed Hermione. "See you later."
"Yeah, later," said Harry smiling. Ron, Ginny and Hermione ran out.
Prefects' Meeting
Hermione knocked the door and opened. She peered inside. To their relief, the meeting had not yet began but all the other prefects were there.
"Good thing Harry reminded us, or we're in big trouble," Ron whispered to Ginny who nodded.
They took the last remaining seats that separated the Gryffindor, Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff prefects from the Slytherins. Five minutes later, the Head Boy and Girl emerged from a door at the end.
"So," The Head Boy started smiling at them. "Let's begin the meeting. But first, a hand for our new prefects."
The sixth and seventh years clapped hard. When they have finished, the Head Girl said, "As you all know, prefects have duties such as patrolling the corridors and help in decorating for the feasts."
"And you have been doing these tasks alone or with the help of the other prefects in your House. But this year, the Professors have decided to make a little change," she continued. "You shall be paired with a prefect from another house, regardless of your gender. But of the same year level."
There was a murmur between the prefects. Stuff like, "As long as I'm not paired with a Slytherin" or "I hope that I'll be with" could be heard.
Hermione looked at Ron and Ginny. They were not thrilled about it too. When the noise died down, the Head Boy began speaking again.
"We are going to pick out two names at a time." He touched the three boxes with holes on each top in front of him. "And names mentioned will automatically be partners. Don't worry, it's not going to be permanent."
"Partners will be changed every two months," the Head Girl added. She placed her hand inside the box nearest to her. "For seventh year, our first couple will be…"
Later
"What's wrong?" Harry asked, seeing the look on Ron's face. Ginny, Hermione and Ron had just returned and they were not very happy.
"Was it the meeting?" said Bill while taking a bite on one of the Cauldron Cakes.
Hermione and Ginny nodded.
"What happened?"
"Well…" Hermione and Ginny narrated the whole events that took place on their meeting. Ron was grunting every now and then. When they had finished, Ron scowled.
"So…Hermione's paired with Padma. And Ginny's with another Ravenclaw prefect," Bill repeated.
Harry glanced at Ron who was still very sulky. "It's alright Ron."
"Alright?! Me going to do duties with Malfoy, it's like me kissing and liking Filch and Mrs. Norris. One thing's for sure, its going to be hell with him," Ron said, biting a piece of chocolate frog.
"Like I'm going to enjoy my time with you, Weasley." Draco was standing in the doorway with the usual sneer on his face. Flanking him were Crabbe and Goyle. His gaze was shifted from Harry and Ron to Bill. "What's another Weasley doing here?"
"I'd be careful if I were you," said Harry smirking.
"And why should I?" Malfoy drawled.
"You don't want to get into trouble now, would you?" Ginny asked, also smiling.
Crabbe and Goyle rubbed their knuckles in a menacing manner. Draco stopped them.
Billed smiled calmly. "I do not intend to send anyone, especially a prefect, to detention as early as now."
"You, mean-" Draco stepped back.
"That's right. My brother's the new DADA professor," said Ron grinning at the sight of Malfoy's face.
Author's Note: I've tried my best not to make them out of character. If ever you notice, please let me know. Anyway, hope you like it!!!