OVER 200 FOLLOWERS. THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT.
Divination had been an... interesting experience, to say the least.
Despite the fact Divination was a class Ed and the military had opted not to take during the duration of the mission in the school, he had been stopped by the subject's teacher on the way to the library. His first impression of the teacher had been one of a crazy, homeless lady. She was a lady with a very skinny physique, draped in a very long and gauzy but a fairly colourful shawl, wearing a cloak covered in shiny sequins Ed had only seen on decorations and other pieces of apparel. Bangles and jewels decorated her arms, beads in her frizzy brown hair. Ed locked his golden eyes with hers; her black glasses had magnified her eyes to ten times the size that it almost scared him.
"Hello there," she spoke with a dreamy voice, unlike and like the voice of Luna Lovegood from the beginning of the year. It was ethereal, soft and misty, like a breath into the wind, and that kind of voice would've persuaded Ed to tuck himself into bed if she had simply said in that same voice the word 'sleep.' "I see you are the new student for this year? For politics and whatnot?"
"Er - yes," he said simply, and to his surprise and displeasure, she instantly grabbed his arms and shook her head, saying, "I do not spend too much time with politics. The Ministry and Dumbledore affairs are a little too much for me and my Inner Eye." She let go of Ed's arms, then looked behind his shoulder. "I must be attending my Divination classes. You are a student doing this class, or not?"
Ed shook his head. "No.", and the teacher took his arm again and said, "But you must see what my classes consist of! You will find it very interesting, Mr..."
"Edward Elric."
"... Mr Edward Elric! Please, join my class!"
Out of courtesy, he did. He followed her on a long trek across Hogwarts Castle, and she led him to the North Tower - somewhere that Ed had only entered for Defence Against the Dark Arts lessons, but they kept on walking, and they began a tedious hike up several staircases. He silently thanked his Teacher for the stamina he had received from six months of nonstop hard training, as the staircases Ed climbed up seemed to never end. The teacher had not said a word to him, instead muttering to herself in rushed, inaudible tones. Once they had reached the top, there was nothing and no-one up there, but a painting of a bare stretch of lush green grass hanging on the wall.
So this was Divination?
No wonder it's not popular, Ed thought jokingly.
"No, wait, Mr Edward," the teacher muttered, gesturing at the painting for Ed to look. He peered over the portrait, and noticed a short, squat knight make his way onto the green scene, followed by a fat pony who ambled onto the meadow, biting off some grass on the way. His metal armour was caked in dirt and soil, sword held lopsided in one hand, then he turned at Ed's direction and began to run... until he tripped and slid on the field.
"Who dares to trespass on the lands of the gallant Sir Cadogan?"
"Uh..." the teacher had simply waved him away, saying to the knight, "Nothing, Cadogan... carry on... I am just heading to my Divination class..."
Divination. That was the class Harry and Ron attended, wasn't it? It was apparently something to do with seeing the future. It seemed like some bullshit to Ed. Why would anyone want the power to see the future, and then change it into something worse by accident? he thought, as the knight - Cadogan - yelled some mighty words and charged in the direction of his pony, but then collided with the horse and fell face down into the soil.
Ed followed the teacher as they left him, climbing even more steps and stairs, wondering whether it was going to end. He felt lucky he had chosen not to take this class. Despite the fact he would have been able to walk up without becoming extremely exhausted, it was not something he would have liked to do a few days each week on a regular basis.
Once he heard voices and familiar chatter, it was now clear to the Fullmetal Alchemist that he and the teacher had finished their journey and reached their destination of the Divination classroom. A circular trapdoor with a brass plaque with the Divination teacher's name - Trelawney - opened, and a silvery ladder appeared instantly. Trelawney stepped aside, and said, "You go first, Mr Edward."
"Thank you." He stepped forward and climbed up, and he was now sure that everyone in the class was staring at him. He scanned the classroom; he saw his dorm-mates Finnegan and Thomas, Neville Longbottom, a few other girls from his Gryffindor class, and Harry and Ron, who seemed to be showing the most confusion and surprise. Ed quickly shuffled towards the two, and took his seat as Trelawney greeted the class and apologised for her lateness, and that she had went downstairs to the Castle for the first time in quite a long time.
"After all," she continued, "the Inner Eye tends to get clouded with the hustle and bustle of the mundane."
Two girls - Parvati and Lavender - began to giggle. There's nothing funny, though, Ed said, trying in vain not to look unimpressed, staring at them.
He knew that Divination was messed up when she asked them to open up their 'dream diaries' and share them with the class. Ed saw Harry roll his eyes, and quickly take a book and quill out of his bag, quickly scribbling down something onto the page, muttering rapidly and inaudibly. In front of them was a crystal ball, and Trelawney quickly explained that as they read their dreams out loud, a significant symbol would appear in the ball and they would have to interpret it. Ed shook his head. There was no point looking in at dreams. And what if someone had forgotten their dreams? And what if they had dreamed the most bizarre and embarrassing ones, ones that explored one's darkest and deepest secrets?
To Ed, dreams were more unreliable than divine intervention (though he was sure that Al would highly disagree on the 'divine intervention' part). But whatever. Harry and Ron seemed to struggle as they peered into the dream diary – it had been very obvious that they were attempting to lie about their dreams, especially since their 'dream diaries' had nothing in them.
"So… yesterday I – well – you, me and Hermione were on a Quidditch field," Harry lied, wiping sweat from his forehead. "And Hermione – well, she got on a broom and kicked the Quaffle into the goal."
Quaffle. What a strange term. That was the red ball used in their sport 'quidditch', wasn't it?
"Then?"
"I don't remember the rest of the dream," Harry snapped. "You try. It's hard trying to make up a dream on the spot."
Ron tapped his chin in deep thought. "Well I… I went out to Hogsmeade in my dream. Uh, um… I went to Honeydukes, like the candy shop there, so…" he waved his hands around in futile gestures. "Then… then I bought the – the cockroach clusterand the… blood-flavoured lollipops…"
No wonder wizards are fucked up, Ed thought. They have candy with cockroaches and lollipops that taste like blood.
"I can't see anything in the crystal ball," Harry said. "But… your dream probably means you'll become a candy shop owner? Selling candy no-one will buy?"
Ron laughed. "Mate, who'd be seeing me in a shop? At a counter? Taking care of stuff?"
They both erupted in laughter, until Trelawney came over to them, tut-tutting as she arrived. "Cockroach cluster, you say?" she asked, glaring straight at Ron.
"Y-Yes," he said, and Ed saw his ears slowly becoming a bright shade of red. "And blood-flavoured lollipops. At Honeydukes. You – you know, the shop at Hogsmeade."
"I see." She peered into the crystal ball, sighing and muttering repeatedly as she did so, then her eyes widened in surprise, clapping a hand to her mouth. "Mr Weasley, what a short life you have lived!"
The students looked at her. Parvati and Lavender gasped louder than Trelawney, hugging each other in fear. "What's – what's happened?" Ron asked nervously.
"What, my dear?" she said, then sighed. "Oh, Mr Weasley. The omens in your dream point to only one thing – your death by the end of the school year?"
A collective gasp ran across the room, bar Ed and Harry. Ed rolled his eyes. Trelawney turned to Harry, who recounted his 'dream' of Hermione playing Quidditch. The Divination teacher looked at him with a confused look then turned to Ed.
"Now, Mr Edward, what dream did you have last night?"
Normally, Ed forgot his dreams. He was sure of that. He had been too preoccupied with reality to even think a thought or ponder about his dreams. With a slight exception. Dreams about his mother and his brother, and Nina too, when they entered and exited his dreams like a fluid. But there was no way in hell he was telling her about that.
"I do not know," Ed replied. "I do not remember."
"Ah, I see," she whispered in reply, now turning her gaze and attention towards the crystal ball. To Ed, it was nothing but a ball with clouds of smoke inside, but Trelawney must have seen something, the alchemist mused, when she saw something and her eyes widened in curiosity and wonder.
"You are from a land stained with blood, my dear," she said. "With your past full of suffering and pain as well."
"I-" Ed began to stammer, but halted as soon as everyone turned to stare at him. Jeez, he thought bitterly. Just because I am the new 'foreign exchange student', it doesn't give you any right to just stare at me and be curious about what I'm doing –
"Your future will be filled with obstacles and tough turns," she whispered softly. "You will make both new friends and foes as you overcome these obstacles. Do not forsake the future because of the burden of your past."
Then she shuffled away, muttering to herself, making her way towards other students. Biting his lip, Ed frowned. Harry and Ron still stared at him, mouths open wide, and some other students, instead of resuming their work, began whispering among each other, and while Ed couldn't decipher what they had talked about, he was sure the chatter was about him.
When Divination had ended, and Trelawney announced their homework for the class ('Complete your dream diaries for the next few days and answer the questions from the passage of The Dream Oracle that we have just read'), Ed began to leave and followed the other Gryffindor students to the next class.
However, as he passed Harry and Ron, not bothering to stop or walk with them, he heard the words come out of Harry's mouth: " – his past can't be that dark, can it?"
"It's Trelawney," Ron replied. "It's probably bullshit."
He didn't stop to eavesdrop even more. Yes, Divination truly was an interesting experience.
Too bad for Trelawney that he wouldn't attend any lessons held in the future.
He was quite surprised at what he had just received from Owlbus just as Ed was planning to send his new letters and reports and he had went up to the Owlery. The owl was feeding himself with birdseed and God knows what else, but at seeing Ed he flew up to the alchemist, frantically flapping his wings, holding out his leg, and Ed ducked swiftly in order to avoid a gouged out eye. Grumbling, he took the letter out with some harsh force, in the hope to teach the damn bird a lesson, but he only retaliated with a sharp peck on his flesh forefinger.
Blood began to seep out slowly, with little resistance and viscosity. Soon enough, the whole top of his finger was beginning to become red with the blood. Shit, you damn bird. Muttering swear words, he sucked a little on the finger, in the hope it would dry out.
"Damn you too," Ed grunted at the owl a few minutes later as he flipped open the envelope's flap and peered inside. The letter was very brief, but it was written very neatly, but the letter was so cursive Ed had to read it several times to understand it:
Ed,
We've decided for our first meeting for the Defence Against the Dark Arts lessons will take place on the first week of October – it's a Hogsmeade weekend, that means you'll be allowed to visit the village with us.
Meet us outside Zonko's Joke Shop and we'll all go together.
Hermione
He tracked back in time through his mind, and remembered that Mustang had mentioned this 'Hogsmeade' before. So it was a village, with a joke shop now that it was mentioned in the letter.
The idea of lessons to train yourself for the outside world outside of class seemed like a good idea. But to Ed, there was no point of him attending because of his inability to perform magic. But there was also another reason to go, wasn't there? To take care of Harry – his body-guarding mission. Ed shook his head. I haven't been really acting like some bodyguard, haven't I? He was sure that avoiding the client, and spending the time of 'body-guarding' reading books in the library was not part of the plan. I guess it's time to act like some bodyguard before Mustang comes after my tail…
Sighing, he tied his mail to Amestris on Owlbus' leg, and left the Owlery swiftly, not even waiting to see the owl take off into the sky, its destination far away.
The Hogsmeade weekend arrived with little event, and Harry saw that even though outside was bright and sunny, a strong breeze had also decided to visit. They queued in front of Filch, and Harry had to wonder whether the line was becoming ever-so-slow on purpose, thanks to the caretaker himself.
He shivered as Filch took a large sniff from him, and Harry remembered his strange encounter with Filch in the Owlery about Dungbombs. He briefly recounted the story to Ron and Hermione, who seemed very confused. But to Harry, he was sure the event mattered very little to him.
When they were at Hogsmeade, they were quickly met by Elric, who shuffled over and joined them in their journey through the village. He held two small bags from Honeydukes, and Harry was sure it contained plenty of sweets and candies from the humble shop.
The alchemist smirked at them, and fished inside one of his bags until he pulled out a smaller packet of a peanut-looking brown sweets. Harry read the label, reading Cockroach Cluster – made of real cockroaches!
"Uh, Elric," he said, "you do know the Cockroach Cluster is made of actual cockroaches?"
"I also have blood lollipops. Got them from corner of shop. I have more too," he smirked even more, and Ron grimaced. "You're going to eat them?"
Elric laughed and shook his head. "No, no, I am sure they will taste very bad. But," he smirked again, with a glint of mischief in his eyes, "I will trick Mustang with this." He muttered something in Amestrian, then said, "this will be fun. Fun to see his reaction."
The rest of the walk was in silence. Harry was surprised to see that Hermione had not chosen The Three Broomsticks as a place for the meeting, where she quickly explained there was too much people.
"It's a little, well… dodgy place," Hermione explained. "Luckily, we're allowed to visit it, it's just that Professor Flitwick also gave me a reminder to bring our own cups."
"There're other pubs in Hogsmeade?" Ron asked, eyes widened. "I thought The Three Broomsticks was just the one."
"Just this one, I think," Hermione nodded. "It's called the Hog's Head. It's very far from the bustle of the village, which is why I chose it. But there's a reason why it's very unpopular."
Whatever reason it was, Harry hoped that it was nothing too life-threatening.
But as the four of them entered the pub, Harry instantly understood why. Cobwebs that seemed decades old hung from the corners of the ceilings; the floor speckled with dust and sprinkled with the occasional beetle or cockroach. Ron, slowly backing away, bumped into Harry, and he quickly figured out there was a daddy long-legs on the floor, which Elric approached then stepped on. A solitary empty tankard stood alone on one table – dust and a bug had made its way into the very few drops of liquid left. Harry grimaced in disgust – no wonder no-one comes here, he thought, seeing the very few strange-looking visitors – was one of them a hag?
"Let's leave now," Ron said, shaking his head. "The Three Broomsticks would be a better place. It seems empty. Haunted, even."
"It's not haunted, Ronald," Hermione sighed, shaking her head. "There are people here. And it's common courtesy to get some drinks. Anyone?"
No-one moved.
"I figured."
Elric looked around. "Would it be good… be good to hold meeting here? Looks very… not good, I do not know word in English. There are also very few people here. If Three Broomsticks is as crowded as you say… that would be harder to overhear."
That actually makes sense, Harry thought, but then saw Hermione reply, "But someone could take advantage of that factor and use it against us, instead of being in our favour. I've heard of charms-"
"That very small chance," Elric said indignantly. "Three Broomsticks is full of people who just want drink. They just think we are just four students. They will not overhear-"
"Let's just sit down, shall we?" Hermione abruptly ended the argument and she led the three boys to a table, and Harry made a new note about his friend: that Hermione almost never wanted to be proven wrong, especially when she had arranged a meeting for them.
She had walked over to the counter and (reluctantly) ordered four Butterbeers, but Harry was sure not to touch it; the mug was very dirty, the liquid had little things floating around in it and Harry wondered if it had just been cleaned out of the previous liquid then just placed back in the cupboard. He looked back at the bartender – he looked like a typical shady man in stories, working in a fishy place in the darkest parts of the area.
"So, who is supposed to be joining with us?" Harry asked.
"Not a lot of people," Hermione promised, checking her watch. "I asked them to be here by now… oh, wait, they are here."
Another thing that Harry was sure about was that his and Hermione's definitions of 'not a lot of people' differed very drastically. Neville, Dean and Lavender, followed by the Patil twins, as well as (suddenly, without his knowledge, his heart flipped and dove down to his stomach then back up again) Cho and one of her friends, Luna Lovegood, Katie Bell, Alicia Spinnet and Angelina Johnson of the Quidditch team, the Creevey brothers, Dennis and Colin, Ernie Macmillan, Justin Finch-Fletchley, Hannah Abbott followed by another Hufflepuff girl, Ravenclaw boys Michael Corner, Anthony Goldstein and Terry Boot, Ginny, and another Hufflepuff Harry recognised from the yellow house's Quidditch team, and last in were Fred, George and Lee, carrying paper bags which Harry was sure were from Zonko's.
He looked at Hermione desperately. He counted quickly, and realised that, not counting his group right now, there were twenty-two people who had come to seek his teaching. He cursed. Yes, 'not a lot of people' was something (the only thing, maybe) that Hermione Granger did not know the definition of.
Hermione seemed oblivious to Harry's displeasure, and asked everyone to take a seat, and twenty-six Butterbeers were handed out, despite that Harry, Hermione, Ron and Elric already had some of their own. Ron was calling out, handing out Butterbeers, Hermione was welcoming everyone and talking rapidly. Meanwhile Elric, who had widened his eyes at the number of people who had entered the Hog's Head, had resumed his usual habit of keeping to himself, in his own thoughts.
While everyone brought out their gold to pay for the drinks, Harry went to Hermione and whispered furiously, "What have you been telling people? Free Defence lessons taught by the great Harry Potter?"
"They just want to learn and know what you have to say, Harry," Hermione said happily. "And the idea was quite popular, it was quite the contrary of what I expected." Harry glared at her, and she began to reassure him, saying, "Don't worry, I've got this covered."
"Twenty-five people," he breathed slowly. "I'm not teaching twenty-five people."
Hermione began the meeting, talking about the Defence lessons, and Harry's heart lightened as she spoke of Voldemort and his return, especially since she had ignored the flinches and the gasps around the room at the name.
One of the things he hadn't enjoyed was the Hufflepuff boy, Zacharias Smith, who seemed to be very stubborn and refusing to believe in Voldemort's returning, despite Harry shooting back at him.
The conversation had quickly turned to Harry's feats and achievements throughout his years at Hogwarts, and while it wasn't him to feel very proud of his achievements, he felt pleased that he had done them. It had all gone quickly and smoothly, until Hermione said, "It won't be just Defensive magic that will be taught."
Murmurs throughout the group, then Hermione cleared her throat and said, turning to Elric, "Edward, if he'd like to, would be able to teach us some alchemy."
Elric looked up instantly, gaping at her, and there was chatter throughout the group again, and Zacharias angrily put up his hand.
"Alchemy? Get him to teach us some muggle power?" he roared. "What good will that do for us? It's not like we're going to do alchemy for our OWLS! The only reason Umbridge gave us that stupid book is because you guys are here!"
"Alchemy is good," Elric glared at him in annoyance. "It has saved me from dying many times. I have had to fight plenty of enemies. I have fought them with alchemy."
Harry stood. "Fighting Voldemort with a power he doesn't know would give us an advantage-"
"But what if You-Know-Who isn't back?" Zacharias said. "I'm not spending my time learning something I don't need to. I'm leaving." Zacharias turned towards the door, but Elric was too fast for him. Too. Fast. He jumped from his chair and leapt in front of Zacharias, glaring at him. "Fight me."
"Wha-?"
"If you think alchemy is that inferior, fight me here. Now."
"We can't fight here," Zacharias growled. "We're in a pub. We're in a public place. You'll get suspended."
"Don't do it, Edward," Hermione warned. Elric looked up at her, and then noticed the barman, who was looking at him with plain irritation, and saying in a low voice, "If you're going to fight, do it outside at least. I don't want any spilled blood in my pub. Get out."
Elric sighed, but looked up and glared into Zacharias' eyes. "You will come to the first lesson and you will fight me."
Zacharias pondered for a few moments, then said, "Fine. But I'll leave if you're teaching alchemy. I don't think it's worth my time."
Elric frowned, looking murderous, but then stomped back to his seat, pounding his fist on the table with such force. Harry, wishing to change the subject, looked to Hermione, who nodded and brought out a parchment and quill from her bag, and asked everyone to sign, as well as warn them not to tell Umbridge or anyone else about their new club. Some were eager, others were nervous or uneasy, but in the end, everyone's signature was on.
Then everyone stood and left. Hermione seemed happy at the success of the prospect of the first meeting, while Ron grumbled on and on about Zacharias, and Harry couldn't help but agree. Elric, on the other hand, had retreated to his own thoughts once again, but Harry was sure, by the alchemist's expression that he was still angry at Zacharias' words.
"Well, I can't help it," Hermione shrugged. "He overhead me while I was talking at the Hufflepuff table to Ernie and Hannah, and he seemed very interested in coming. I mean, it's better than Michael and his friends. The only reason he came with Ginny is because they've been going out-"
"WHAT?!" Ron suddenly stood, his mug of Butterbeer making a few clatters before it hit the floor with a thud, bellowing so loud the whole pub turned to look at him. The subject mattered little to Harry, however, as he thought about the prospect of him and Cho.
BY ORDER OF THE HIGH INQUISITOR OF HOGWARTS
All students organisations, societies, teams, groups and clubs are henceforth disbanded.
An organisation, society, team, group or club is hereby defined as a regular meeting of three or more students.
Permission to re-form may be sought from the High Inquisitor (Professor Umbridge).
No student organisation, society, team, group or club may exist without the knowledge and approval of the High Inquisitor.
Any student to have formed, or belong to, an organisation, society, team, group or club, that has not been in the knowledge or approval of the High Inquisitor will be expelled.
The above is in accordance with Educational Decree Number Twenty-four.
Signed,
Dolores Jane Umbridge,
High Inquisitor
"This can't be a coincidence," Harry growled. "It isn't. Someone must've told her. That's the only explanation."
Elric had seen them walk downstairs from the dormitory, and saw Ron nod his head, suggesting that it could be the work of Zacharias Smith (the bastard himself) or Michael Corner (but that was probably due to Ron's newfound hatred of him ever since finding out about his and Ginny's relationship.
But yes, there was a traitor. However, he had expected a traitor to inform Umbridge later in their meetings, during its peak, maybe. Who, however? Zacharias Smith was the first suspect he could think of. That idiot will pay for trying to downgrade alchemy, he thought.
Whoever had told them off… disgust filled his veins. He shivered. Hopefully there would be some fair payback for them.
Betraying the team's trust so early in its career? Man, who would be cowardly to do that? Ed thought.
He sighed and headed downstairs.
Roy's stomach growled grumpily at him, and he was sure to take notes on trying to eat more after spending hours upon hours marking essays Umbridge had given the whole school.
He marked the last of the essays, cursing, and stood and walked out of his office. A little walk would be nice, along with fresh air. Ever since he had began as a teacher in Hogwarts, he hadn't been up to anything exciting. As he walked, he noticed a small sign stuck on the wall, with a black font and an official-looking seal. BY ORDER OF THE HIGH INQUISITOR OF HOGWARTS…
His eyes scanned the whole notice, and obviously it had been put up by Umbridge. It had confused him in the pit of his stomach why she would be willing to ban all groups, even the smaller organisations such as games clubs. Something must've happened to make her do this…
It didn't seem like it, but Roy was sure this was the beginning of Umbridge's abuse of power.
He knew a lot about abuse of power – a reasonable number of high-ranking officials had been guilty of it – he recalled Lieutenant Yoki's abuse of power with the residents of the Youswell Coal Mine, and how Fullmetal and his brother had stopped Yoki's money-stealing life and had freed Youswell.
He made a note to put this in his report to the Amestrian State Military.
As he walked back, he looked around. I'm sure there was a slice of air here somewhere… Glancing around, Roy slowly reached into his pocket to bring out his gloves. Yes, there's someone here…
There had been no-one in the corridor but him, and Roy sighed and shook his head, and removed the gloves. But as he did, Roy noticed it. For one second.
A pair of eyes and the ever-so-silent sound of footsteps heading the other direction. He squinted and concentrated in the hope to notice it again, but there was silence.
He was sure now.
Someone was watching him.
But who?
After walking around the hallways in circles, listening and gazing around cautiously, he gave up and headed back to his office. But there was something Roy was sure of – he wanted to find out who had been watching him and quick.
Ed had given up on copying down notes for History of Magic; instead resorting to writing his response to Al's letter behind the History of Magic textbook. He thought this was a very productive alternative, better than just drifting off to sleep like the majority of his classmates. It was very surprising that Binns was solely focused on droning on about tedious topics, instead of checking whether his students were keeping up with him, or even better, whether they were paying attention.
He partially wished he had had a teacher like Binns back when he used to go to school, because his teachers, especially his mathematics teacher, had always caught Ed and Al studying alchemy, reading Hohenheim's books instead of copying down whatever she was teaching.
The only interesting thing that had happened in the class was when Harry's owl, Hedwig, was making a loud tapping sound against the glass of the window. It's a miracle the damn teacher hasn't heard that yet, Ed thought, and shook his head. Binns was a ghost. And that fact made him uncomfortable.
Then Harry had taken his owl, and for some reason, raised his hand and said he was not well, being excused by Binns and heading out of the classroom.
When the class had headed out, Hermione and Ron caught up with him. "Hedwig's been hurt," Ron whispered, when they were finally out of earshot from the rest of the class, and anyone else in particular.
"The owl?" Ed widened his eyebrows. "So… what that got to do with me?"
Ron widened his eyes and opened his mouth to protest, but Hermione stopped him and replied, "Harry sent a letter to Siri – Snuffles. When Hedwig came back, her wing was hurt. Something's wrong with it. I think…" her face darkened. "I think someone was trying to intercept Sirius' letter. Someone's on to us!"
Ed looked at them with surprise. Lowering his voice, he whispered, "No-one… Who would do that?" His thoughts whirled around in a spinning circle, and the first suspect his mind could think of was Umbridge. If Sirius was thought to be a mass murderer and Harry Potter a hated figure in magic land… a connection between the two would prove to be detrimental to Potter's already unstable reputation.
Twenty minutes passed, and the wind flapped against Ed's bangs, moving side to side. Harry joined them, not with Hedwig anymore, but in his hand a small piece of parchment. He seemed surprised to see Ed there, but acknowledged him with a nod, and Ed nodded in return. With anticipation, Ed watched the three wizards open the parchment, and it read a short sentence: Today, same time, same place.
"What does that mean?" Ed wrinkled his nose. "Same time, same place?"
"He probably means the common room again," Harry replied.
"What?"
"Well… I kind of talk to-" he lowered his voice before continuing "-Snuffles in the fire in the common room." Ed sent him a confused look, and Harry shook his head in a way to tell him to not worry about it. "It doesn't matter. It's a bit confusing, really."
Ed nodded. "Your owl is okay?"
"She's fine," Harry said. "I took her to Grubbly-Plank." Then he turned to Ron and Hermione. "Listen, you two, I saw McGonagall…"
"Really?" Hermione asked. "What did she say?"
"In her exact words, 'bear in mind that channels of communication in and out of Hogwarts may be being watched.'"
That increased the theory of the letter being intercepted. By Umbridge, Ed suspected.
"Harry, you've got to be careful!" Hermione gripped his shoulder in alarm. "It's the Ministry! They could find Snuffles!"
"Mate, we've been talking a bit, and we've agreed that your letter's been intercepted and read," Ron said worriedly.
"But no-one should know what I'm talking about, Ron, I was reading it over and over again and I was sure an outsider would be able to understand what I meant when I wrote it-"
The discussion went on and on, and Hermione looked at Ed. "What do you think?"
Ed coughed. "I do not know too much, except that you are to be more careful in writing anything to be sent outside of the Castle. Could be seen by other people."
"You should know a little about this. I mean, you were sent here by the Ministry, aren't you?" Ron asked.
"Not too much, no. But I have a suspicion." Ed quickly summarised his theory on how Umbridge could be responsible for the interception of Harry's letter, and Harry bit his lip in response.
"I swear," he growled, "I swear if that fucking hag's been looking through my letters… she'll pay."
That would mean, if Umbridge was looking through mail, Ed decided to be more careful. Who knows whether she's just targeting Potter or not. Would he have to resort to code? Or would the Amestrian language be enough?
I'll also have to warn Mustang, damn it, he thought.
There was a long silence, until Hermione suggested the four of them head towards Potions together, earning angry noises from Harry and Ron, and as they reached Snape's classroom door, Ed saw that blond-haired, arrogant green-tied Malfoy, boasting about something that sounded like their 'quidditch' team had been approved straightway by Umbridge.
Why does this quidditch thing matter too damn much, anyways? Ed thought bitterly. And I think Umbridge is biased towards the Slytherins, too. Shit.
Suddenly, Ed was snapped out of his thoughts with Neville Longbottom brushing past him swiftly, angrily lifting his arm for a punch, then being abruptly stopped by Harry, despite his pleas to let him go. He spluttered out words that made no sense; he also made note to look up the definition of the word 'Mungo's.'
The dungeon door opened, and Snape appeared. "Potter, Weasley, Longbottom? Why are you three fighting in my class? Ten points from Gryffindor. If you don't release Longbottom now, Potter, I will issue you detention."
Upon entering the dungeons, Ed realised something was standing out with the bleakness and the gloom of the dungeon classroom. Umbridge, wearing a hot pink cardigan and attire, stood with a sly smirk on her face, tapping her quill repeatedly against her clipboard. Umbridge took a quick glance at him, and Ed averted his gaze to the table in front of him. Looking at her made him feel uneasy.
Potions was an 'ok' subject for Ed in particular; to his pleasure it had not required any form of magic, despite his potions being 'abysmal' in Snape's words, and his papers being enough to get E or A grades, to make up for it.
Umbridge began to inspect the class, and it was almost as if Ed could feel her breathing down on him, like she had during his detention. It made him shiver for no reason. He looked up, and noticed Umbridge was watching him, writing down whatever on her clipboard, and Ed decided to ignore her and continue with his potion.
At the end of the lesson, Ed watched as Harry received zero marks for his potion and was given extra homework. The bell rung, and the whole class cleared out. But as Ed packed his bag and headed for the library, he heard a voice, "Wait."
Ed turned, and saw Malfoy, wearing a smug smirk, and his cronies Malfoy and Crabbe, looking fierce and burly behind him. Being a bodyguard, Ed had studied him and his antagonising over Harry, but he had proved to be no actual threat – just one of those fucking stereotypical bullies you would only find in stories. "Hey, Elric."
"Bye." Ed began to walk, but Malfoy put a hand on his shoulder. "I need to ask you a favour."
"Yeah…"
"You know the book Umbridge gave us? On alchemy." Biting his lip, Ed nodded angrily. How could he forget that insult to alchemy? "Well, I find it to be… very lacking."
"Lacking?" Ed couldn't help but agree, but at the same time think that Magical Theory on the Art of Alchemy was 'lacking' was the understatement of the year.
"Lacking yes," Malfoy nodded. "It doesn't really tell me how to do alchemy, does it? Talks on and on about how it contradicts whatever and how magic is superior to it."
"All your texts on alchemy are lacking," Ed said simply. "I have read them all. They tell lies, and no information is useful for even basics."
"That's why I wanted to ask you a favour."
A suspicion on what this favour was began to linger in his head. He had been very sure that Malfoy would come back with his request after being rejected once. He doesn't know when to give up, doesn't he?
"Teach me alchemy." The three words that had just come out of Malfoy's mouth hit Ed in the chest, confirming his thoughts, despite the fact those were the words Ed had been suspecting. "You're one of the most capable alchemists in your country, right? You're part of the military that hires the best alchemists in exchange for top research on the subject in exchange for loyalty."
"How-" Ed began to ask, but Malfoy waved this away, and said, "Just a few words I heard from my father. He's got a lot of friends high up in the Ministry. So you could?"
"No."
"Why?"
"I do not want to. Now goodbye." Ed turned and left, and Malfoy ran after him. "You know, it's sad how you have to stay in the house of Mudbloods and morons," he sneered. "In Slytherin, there are plenty of people who would enjoy in-depth conversations on alchemy. It's a topic that's been in our heads since you came."
"But why would you want to learn it?" Ed asked. "You have magic. Magic is not enough for wizards?"
"Not enough, no," Malfoy shook his head. "In certain aspects, alchemy is superior over magic, despite its limitations. Besides, our texts are very lacking. You said it yourself, they don't even have the correct information."
Slytherin. House of the snake. Ed could understand how this guy made it into the green house. The way he manipulated words like that and twisted it to his own advantage, being as slithery as the serpent… no wonder.
Ed tapped his chin thoughtfully. He knew that until he said yes, that Malfoy wouldn't stop bothering the hell out of him to teach alchemy. But he didn't want any alchemy students, especially one who he had been told was the son of a follower of Voldemort. Then an idea struck him. Something from his childhood. Yeah, he'd never figure that out… His lips played into a mischievous smile.
"Fine, I will teach you." Ed turned and looked at Malfoy straight in the eye. He began to smirk, but it quickly faded when Ed pointed at him and said, "But I have one condition."
"What condition?" Malfoy said curiously. "If it's money, or homework help, or-"
"You have to run twenty laps around the outline of the Quidditch field – or the school grounds – every morning, and you will have to answer my riddle."
"Run?! Why?!" Malfoy protested, and Ed chuckled in reply. "You wizards should learn not to just train spirit for something, but also body. Also, running is good for stamina. You will not survive in battle if you just stood still."
"But I can't run twenty. I can't."
Ed coughed. "Okay, I will half it. Ten laps. And you still have to solve my riddle."
"Fine. What's the riddle?"
"All is one, one is all." Memories of him and his brother being under Teacher's tutelage filled him with nostalgia, and it made him smile. Then the times when Teacher yelled them to 'shut up' and beat them several times during duels made him sigh. I guess those were the good old days…
"What?!" Malfoy protested again. "I can't solve that! How can you figure that out by running?"
"My alchemy teacher left me on an island full of wild beasts for a month trying to solve this riddle. I solved it. You are doing something easier, so you will be able to solve it."
"I can't-"
"That is my offer," Ed said finally. "If you want to learn alchemy, run ten laps and solve all is one, one is all. I will give you three guesses to the answer. If you guess all three wrong, I will not teach you alchemy. Deal?"
Malfoy bit his lip, frustrated; he glanced at Crabbe and Goyle and then back at Ed, and he nodded.
"I think that is all I have to say," Ed said. "But if you tell anyone about this, how I am willing to teach you, I will cancel lessons and I will not teach you, even if you know answer to riddle."
Malfoy nodded, and Ed, satisfied, left.
Thank you for reading Chapter 11.
And no, there won't be any pairings I make in this story. Cho and Harry will not end up together. It'll end up the same way it did in OotP. As for Ed, he's too preoccupied with missions and work and trusting these "fucked up wizards" to be involved in romance.
