A/N: Sorry for the long wait, I've been busy with mock exams and and a ma-hoo-sive ICT project so I haven't had time to write much of this chapter.....anyway, hope you enjoy it and don't forget to review!

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CHAPTER SEVEN

The Hogwarts High Inquisitor

Albus choked on the breath he didn't know he'd been holding. Next to him, Rose was staring wide-eyed at the toadlike face of Professor Umbridge up at the Staff Table. A displeased murmur had broken out amongst the students; many, like Albus and Rose, sat incredulous in their seats – others were whispering furiously to their friends, swapping tales about the woman with the ridiculous velvet bow atop her grey curls.

Albus had heard about Dolores Umbridge from his parents and many of his aunts and uncles. Why on earth would Professor McGonagall allow her to come back to Hogwarts? Then again, Albus thought, she doesn't look very happy about it herself. Albus remembered the faded scars on the back of his father's hand; I must not tell lies. Aunt Hermione had called Professor Umbridge a tyrant, driven crazy with increasing power, using her connections with the Ministry of Magic to take control of Hogwarts and do as she pleased.

"Well, then, now that it's out of the way, let the feast commence!" Professor McGonagall called over the angry chatter. She clapped her wrinkled hands, and at once the golden plates and dishes filled with magnificent food. There was roast chicken, turkey, lamb and beef; lasagne and enormous boats of gravy and huge platters of chips; and all the things Albus loved to eat but was forced to consume in moderation. He tucked in gladly, his stomach rumbling; Rose rolled her eyes at him but helped herself to steak and kidney pie with an expression of longing. Though hungry, Albus found it difficult to concentrate on what he was eating. He was watching Professors Umbridge and Winters up at the Staff Table with a very close eye. Both were old, with very wrinkled faces; Professor Umbridge had a wide, pale face and fishy eyes. Professor Winters had curly white hair and very dark, sharp eyes, like those of a bird of prey. She looked disturbingly smug as she sipped from her goblet. Cutting up his steak viciously, Albus could only imagine what kind of uproar would come from the students because of this staff change.

When they were all done eating and the last remains of the puddings had disappeared from the golden plates, Professor McGonagall took to the podium for the last time.

"Now that we are all fed and watered, I have a few start of term notices. Will all students please remember that no magic is to be used in the corridors, and that a full list of contraband items can be found on Mr. Filch's office door. I must once again remind you that the Forbidden Forest is strictly off-limits to all students, and that no student has the right to be out of bed after half past nine in the evenings. That is all for this evening, and good night to you all. You may be dismissed – first years, the Prefects will show you to your dormitories".

Albus and Rose got up to leave with the rest of their house and began to walk the familiar path from the Great Hall to Gryffindor Tower.

"I can't believe that Umbridge woman is back here!" Rose hissed once they were out of earshot of any teachers. "I mean, how could Professor McGonagall allow it?"

"I know" Albus replied sullenly, staring at the floor. He was deep in thought. Rose raged on.

"She's awful! And did you see that other Professor, the one who's teaching History of Magic? She looked really smug and horrible..." She trailed off, a deep frown on her face.

"She's the one who openly insulted the Malfoys at Flourish and Blotts in the summer" Albus said quietly. He didn't want to be overheard.

"Really? That was her?" Rose exclaimed. "What's she doing here? She can't just be here to teach, that's for sure, and I bet that Umbridge isn't just the staff and student welfare official either. They really shouldn't be allowed, not if that Winters woman is prejudiced against people she knows nothing about" she finished darkly, flicking her curly red hair over her shoulder. Albus guessed that Rose must have picked up the hint about Professor Winters and the Malfoys. And she was right. If her feelings against Scorpius' family were that strong, could she only have returned to Hogwarts for the teaching post?

"Nightingale" Albus said gruffly to the Fat Lady when they reached the portrait hole, and the door to the Gryffindor Common room swung open.

Many of the timid-looking first years were peering about nervously. Albus, despite his bad mood, gave a couple of them an encouraging smile as he passed them, heading towards the stone steps leading to the boys' dormitory. Then he froze in his tracks as he heard an all-too-recognisable sound behind him.

"Hem hem" A woman gave a fake cough and all heads turned. Albus turned and saw Professor Umbridge standing in front of the fire, clipboard in hand and a very sinister smile plastered on her wrinkled, toadlike face.

"Professor McGonagall suggested that I do a little tour of the common rooms tonight to introduce myself and talk a little bit about why I have returned to Hogwarts this year" Professor Umbridge simpered in a cringe-worthy voice. She paused as if expecting some kind of answer from the students before her. The first-years had stopped in their tracks; their mouths were open in rather comical 'Os'. Then she went on.

"My role at the school is to ensure that all staff and students can feel safe to learn and teach without feeling threatened by anyone. There has always been a zero-tolerance policy on bullying and abuse of both staff and students at Hogwarts, and since the Second Wizarding War it has been strongly implemented, in particular in light of any backlash between the children of the war survivors and sufferers"

She paused for dramatic effect, her pouchy eyes coming to rest on one or two students. "It has been an ongoing project at the school that everyone is equal, and has the right to be treated equally. Therefore, if you feel that there is something going on which you are worried about, whether it's a classmate or a member of staff, you must come and see me and I will investigate and sort it out immediately" Professor Umbridge explained. Albus wrinkled his nose involuntarily. "That is all for now. Goodnight"

And then Professor Umbridge left the Common Room, horrible velvet bow askew. Albus gaped after her. The nerve of that woman, talking about equality and zero tolerance when her methods of punishment involved making people write with their own blood! Frowning, Albus turned and ascended the steps to the dormitory. Some of the other boys were there already; Jemima sat perched on his bedside table, waiting for him. She nibbled his ear affectionately as he pulled on his pyjamas and got into bed.

For a while he lay awake, staring at the ceiling. He was thinking about Professor Umbridge and Professor Winters – Professor Winters in particular. He had a nasty feeling that this was not going to end well. He made a mental note to check when they had History of Magic next, hoping that he could find out a bit more about Professor Winters before their lesson. But from what he had seen of her so far, he did not like one little bit.

***

Albus woke the next morning to autumnal sunlight streaming in through the gaps in the hangings around his bed. He had not slept particularly well and now sat up in bed, rubbing the sleep from his eyes and reaching for his school robes. He pulled them on without really thinking, taking a quick look at the other beds. A couple of the other boys were still asleep; the others had left for breakfast already. He hoped Rose would wait for him in the Common Room – he never did get used to the stares and whispers that followed him whenever he went anywhere alone, even if they were kind of complimenting him.

Once he was dressed, he went down into the Common Room to find Rose already there, as he'd expected, sitting on the squashy old sofa with her nose in an ominous-looking book. Albus resisted the urge to roll his eyes as he met her and she turned to greet him.

"Good morning, have you seen my Potions textbook? I left it down here yesterday and now I can't find it...oh well, there's no point looking for it now, I've already been up for an hour and I'm starving so I'll ask Professor Slughorn if I can borrow one until I find mine..." Rose chattered, putting the heavy book into her bag, which lay at her feet.

"Rose, you're babbling" Albus replied. This time he did roll his eyes.

"Sorry" she said. "I've just been really rattled thinking about this Umbridge issue, and about that Gloria Winters woman!" She got up from the sofa and they exited the Common Room.

"Me too" Albus said as they made their way down the many staircases. "It's really getting to me...I wonder how Scorpius is taking it, that woman insulted his parents for everyone to hear". Albus knew that Scorpius was very defensive of his parents – especially his father – and hated it when anyone said anything bad about them.

They were met halfway down the stairs by Molly Finnigan. She was carrying a handful of new quills and looking distinctly apologetic.

"Look, Rose –" she began, only to be cut off rudely by Rose.

"Come on, Al, I don't want to be late receiving my timetable" she said, grabbing the sleeve of his robes and pulling him down the stairs behind her.

"Rose, wait! Look, I'm sorry about what I said about the Scamanders, alright?" Molly called after her. "I didn't realise they were such good friends of yours. Please can we still be friends?" Rose turned back at the bottom of the stairs, her expression hard – then she gave in.

"Okay, then, since you apologised and you quite clearly mean it" Rose sighed. "Come on, I'm hungry!" And Molly joined them into the Great Hall.

Halfway through his porridge, Professor McGonagall came down the Gryffindor table handing out the new timetables. When she handed Albus his, he immediately checked for History of Magic – and perfect, it was his very first lesson right after breakfast. Then he would see what this Professor Winters was like. They had History of Magic with the Slytherins this year; Herbology would be with the Hufflepuffs, and Potions with the Ravenclaws.

"I hate double lessons!" moaned Molly, frowning at her own timetable. "We've got double Flitwick after History of Magic and I'm no good at Charms".

So, when breakfast was over, the three of them made their way up to the History of Magic corridor, eager to see what the new Professor had done with the old classroom. Albus had to admit, it felt odd walking into the room and not being greeted by the pale, smoky grey figure of the wheezy Professor Binns, floating above his desk.

The room had not changed much; apart from the fact that all the desks had been pushed together to create four extended tables stretching from wall to wall lengthways. There was a large bookcase next to the teacher's desk on which was stacked thick and heavy-looking books. And on the wall to their left was a huge poster showing a timeline of some sort; the writing was too small to make out from this distance. Professor Winters herself was nowhere to be seen.

"Where do you want to sit?" Rose whispered to Albus and Molly. The other students around them seemed to be discussing the same thing; a few had already taken their seats next to their friends.

"Not at the front, somewhere in the middle" Molly said. "How about there?" she pointed to the row of desks second from the back of the classroom.

"Alright, come on then" Rose said, and they took their seats. It was then that Albus noticed that none of the Slytherins had arrived yet; all the students present were Gryffindors.

Albus turned his attention back to the poser on the wall and squinted to get a better look at it. Aha! Now he could see that the words across the top read The Timeline of the Wizarding Wars. So it was a poster showing the events from Lord Voldemort's First Rise to power to the end of the Second Wizarding War some twenty years ago. No wonder this Professor had been so rude in Flourish and Blotts; she was clearly well-read on both wizarding wars.

"Scorpius, come and sit with us!" Rose called, and Albus' attention was diverted. The Slytherins, Scorpius amongst them, had just arrived. Rose pointed to the empty seat next to her.

"Why would he want to sit with you, Ginger?" came a familiar sneer from behind Rose. Esmeralda Zabini had pushed her way past Scorpius and was now standing next to her chair with a less then amused look on her haughty face. "Hmm?"

Rose drew herself up to full height.

Leave her alone, they're my friends!" Scorpius said angrily, shoving Esmeralda out of the way so that he could sit down in the empty seat next to Rose. "Sorry" he mouthed at them. Esmeralda just stuck her nose in the air, fuming, and went to sit with her Slytherin cronies right at the very back of the classroom. Rose was very pink in the face.

Suddenly, the door closed with a bang and there was the rapping of shoes on the stone floor. Professor Winters had arrived. She made her way to the front of the classroom and stood facing the students in front of her desk. She wore robes of a brilliant amethyst purple and a long, dark wand was sticking out of one of the pockets. On her nose sat a pair of black-framed spectacles with a long black chain on them which hung around her neck.

"Welcome back to History of Magic" she said, taking her wand from her pocket. "I am Professor Gloria Winters and I will be teaching you this year. Now, the course you will be studying this year" she turned and tapped the large blackboard with her wand. The chalk picked itself up and began writing on the board. "will be a beginner's study into the First and Second Wizarding Wars, as we as a school think that it is of extreme importance that you as children learn about the conflicts of the past. The course will be split up into separate modules, or sections" Professor Winters rapped the board again. Albus read the words that had appeared there.

HISTORY OF MAGIC

2 MODULES: FIRST AND SECOND WIZARDING WARS

"The first unit we will be studying will be pre-First War wizarding Britain. This should take us from now until the Christmas break. When we return in January, we will begin the second unit, which will look at Lord Voldemort's Rise to Power. This is only a short unit and should take around five weeks to complete." Professor Winters suddenly turned back to face them, and her beady, black eyes rested on the row where Albus, Rose, and Scorpius were sitting. Her gaze shifted until she was staring straight at Scorpius.

"After that, the fourth unit will be looking at the Death Eater raids and the measures undertaken by the Ministry of Magic stop them. We will be looking at infamous cases of Death Eater attacks and deciding whether or not the Ministry was doing enough to protect the people involved" she said, and when she said those last words, she smirked nastily at Scorpius before turning away. Albus squirmed uncomfortably. Had Scorpius noticed the look she had given him? Had Rose noticed?

"The fifth unit of the First Wizarding War, and the last, will be Lord Voldemort's First Fall in October in 1997. By the half-term holidays in February, we will have finished the first module. Any questions?" Professor Winters took off her glasses and cleaned them on the hem of her robes. "I'll take your silence as No, then". There was no humour in her voice as she spoke. In fact, her voice held no warmth or charisma whatsoever. She sounded just as cold as she had done that day in Flourish and Blotts. Then her withered face hardened alarmingly.

"I do not expect any trouble from any of you whilst you are under my teaching. If you hear something that you don't like, or if you are upset by anything we are studying, you may leave the classroom without fuss until you are ready to come back in. I understand that these are difficult topics for many of you and I appreciate that you won't like hearing some of it. But I want no trouble" Professor Winters said in a clipped, superior tone that made Albus want to slap her.

It was quite clear to him why she had said this particular anecdote. It had been aimed at the Slytherins – because she knew that many of them came from families who had had connections with the Dark side and the Death Eaters during both Wizarding Wars. Albus wasn't stupid; he could see right through Professor Winters. And the thing about difficult topics, well, Albus had a funny feeling that she wasn't exactly going to be non-biased when teaching them about the Dark side. She had said herself in Flourish and Blotts that all Death Eaters and everyone who had connections with Lord Voldemort should have been imprisoned in Azkaban...and Albus knew that not all of them had been jailed, namely the Malfoys.

Distracted by his thoughts, Albus didn't notice the piece of paper pushed his way by Rose at first. It was only when Professor Winters instructed them to get out their books and he leaned down to fetch his that he saw the piece of parchment near his elbow. Putting A History of Modern Magic on the table, he picked up the parchment and turned it over to read the message. It was then that he saw that the note had come from Scorpius, and not Rose. She's probably going to draw attention to the fact that my family were on the Dark side during the War. I don't know if I could handle her saying bad things about my Dad he had written. Albus bit his lip, then turned the paper over and wrote a reply.

If she says anything, go to McGonagall. She's not supposed to bully particular students because of her own feelings.

He pushed the parchment back along the table. Scorpius took it and read the note. A small, slightly reassured smile appeared on his pale face. It was clear he had been worrying about it since the Flourish and Blotts incident.

***

Dear Mum and Dad, Albus wrote.

Did you know that Professor Umbridge is back here? She's not teaching, though. She's the 'Staff and Student Welfare Official' or something like that, she's kind of like a Muggle Guidance Counsellor I think. But from what you told me about her, Dad, what she knows about student welfare wouldn't fit on the back of a stamp. Those scars on your hand still give me the creeps.

We've got a new History of Magic teacher, too. She's called Gloria Winters and she's really strange. She's got really strong feelings against Death Eaters and kids from Death Eater families and she's supposed to be teaching us BOTH sides of the First and Second Wizarding Wars without being biased. I don't know how that's going to happen seeing as she was pretty publicly nasty about the Malfoys in Diagon Alley in the summer. Did you hear about that? Scorpius said his Dad was really upset over it. Scorpius is worried she'll have a go at him in lessons and pick on him because his Dad used to be Death Eater. I still can't believe that he was!

I'll have to go, because Professor McGonagall's given us loads of homework already (it's only the first week back!) and I'd better get it out of the way before Rose starts nagging me.

Lots of love,

Al

Albus was sitting at one of the circular tables in the Gryffindor Common Room after lessons had finished, writing a letter home to his parents.

Lysander Scamander was lying across the sofa reading The Quibbler upside-down and Rose sat opposite Albus at the table, engrossed in a Potions book.

Albus put his quill down and re-read the letter. He had thought it was a good idea to mention Professor Winters and Umbridge to his parents, just in case they had any more information for him. He hoped they could find something out for him – his Dad worked at the Ministry of Magic, after all.

"I'm just going to the Owlery to post this letter" Albus said to Rose. "I'll be back in a bit"

"Okay" came the distracted reply from his cousin. She turned a page eagerly.

He got up from the table and reached for his cloak, which was draped over the back of the chair. He pulled it on and rolled up his letter. Then he left the Common Room, ignoring the Fat Lady as she protested feebly about being woken up in the middle of her afternoon nap. The corridors were more or less deserted, and his footsteps echoed eerily on the stone floor. The Owlery was in the grounds, away from the main castle, a tall turret with winding steps going steeply upwards to the top. This was where all the owls slept – the school owls and many of the students' own owls, too. He hoped Jemima wouldn't mind waking up to deliver his letter.

Albus reached the enormous entrance doors and carefully pushed them open as quietly as he could. Chilled autumn air washed over his face as he stepped out into the grounds. From here, he could see the fifty-foot-tall goalposts of the Quidditch pitch in the distance and, to his right, the Owlery turret. Smoke was issuing from the chimney atop Hagrid's hut at the edge of the Forbidden Forest. It was surprisingly calming, walking across the grassy expanse of the grounds to the Owlery. The leaves on the trees swayed slightly in the gentle breeze as Albus neared the Owlery.

As he walked, he watched the owls flying in and out of the Owlery window, delivering letters and returning after long flights.

He climbed the steep, spiral steps to the top and entered the circular room which was lined with perches, on which sat dozens of owls. He spotted his own Barn owl, Jemima, sitting cleaning her feathers with her beak and looking important. He crossed the straw-and-owl-droppings covered floor and motioned for her to come down.

"I've got a letter for you" he said, stroking the soft feathers on the top of her head. She stuck her leg out obediently. He took a leather string from his pocket and used it to tie the letter to her scaly leg. Then she hopped onto his shoulder and nipped his ear affectionately. Albus went to the open window. "It's for mum and dad, okay? Try and deliver it as soon as you can" he said. Jemima squeezed his shoulder with her talons as she crouched and took off through the window, the letter tied to her leg. Albus watched her fly further and further away until she was a tiny brown dot in the distance.

On his way back, he tried not to worry too much about what his parents might say about Professors Umbridge and Winters. Instead, he thought about Quidditch. In two short months the Quidditch season will begin again and he would start training with the rest of the Gryffindor team ready for the Inter-House Championships. He couldn't wait. Flying made him feel free...as if his problems were thousands of miles away...where he couldn't reach them....where they couldn't bother him...

"Ah, Mr. Potter. I was hoping I would run into you, I wish to have a word" Professor McGonagall called. Albus whipped around to see her coming towards him, her square spectacles perched on the end of her straight nose.

"Why did you want to speak to me, Professor?" Albus asked, puzzled.

"It's about your friend Mr. Malfoy. I simply wished to ask you keep a close eye on him this year" Professor McGonagall said.

"You understand, of course, how Professor Winters feels about Slytherins and those whose families have connections to You-Know-Who, I take it?" she asked.

Albus nodded gravely, his worries coming back to the surface.

"Then you will understand that Professor Winters has not taken kindly to teaching Mr. Malfoy this year" Professor McGonagall sighed. "She has, to say the least, certain opinions of the Malfoy family that are less than flattering and I must ask you to look after your friend. Given the opportunity, Professor Winters will use any excuse to degrade him and his parents, and I do not wish for any harm to be done. Can you do that for me?" Professor McGonagall asked.

"Yes, Professor" Albus replied.

"Thank you. Run along, now, I am sure you have schoolwork you need to be doing" Professor McGonagall gave him one of her extremely rare smiles, and walked away down the corridor, her emerald green robes billowing along the floor behind her, leaving Albus in a lurch. So Professor McGonagall knew all about Gloria Winters and her attitudes towards people like Scorpius' parents. At least there was a teacher who was on their side should Professor Winters say anything.

A/N: Okay, I know the title of the chapter doesn't have much to do with what happens, but I hope you enjoyed it all the same. How do you feel about Professors Umbridge and Winters now? What d'you reckon Harry and Ginny will say? And how much does Professor McGonagall know about it all? Stay tuned to find out!

You know the drill - love it, hate it, on the fence about it, I DON'T CARE, JUST REVIEW IT! I can't make the story better if you don't tell me what you like and what you don't like!

COMING UP: Esmeralda gets her bitch on, and the Malfoys are less than happy.....oh dear!

HPfangirl4life xxx