Waiting For the End- Chapter Eleven
It's the third week of school. It is still September and Hermione continued on about hounding me to study. I did not like it. I did not like it one tiny bit. I didn't need to study; there was hardly anything to study.
Since Fred and George had landed themselves in detention Harry and I were hiding away in a corner, away from the crazy 'You-Have-To-Study!' Hermione.
We were in a tiny corner of the Common Room, where there was no hope of her finding us, my knees were hugged to my chest and my arms wrapped around my legs.
"What kind of food starts with 'H'?" I asked Harry, surprised I couldn't think of one.
"I don't know you're the one who has the letter!"
"I'll bring… jalapenos," I decided.
"Who brings jalapenos to a picnic? And jalapeno starts with 'j,' Lily."
"I knew that," I mumbled and tried to think of something else to bring to the picnic we were metaphorically attending. H… H… H… what the hell started with 'H?' Hell started with 'H.' Are there any foods that start with 'hell?' No, I don't think so. Shit.
"Hogwarts," I tried.
"Have fun bringing that to a picnic," he mumbled. We were talking quietly so that no one will find us and report us to Hermione.
"Hot dogs," I finally said.
"Huh?"
"It's more common in America," I told him. "You're turn."
"I… How about ice cubes," he said.
"I love how you get yours so easily," I sighed.
"Just do the 'j,'" Harry said.
"Jalapenos," I said. I could use that now.
"That works this time," Harry said. "Now, a food that starts with K…"
Then a small petite girl in Gryffindor robes, with a spiky hairstyle stood in front of us, and she coughed to get our attention. It was none other than Alice Cullen.
"I found you," she said simply.
"How did you find us?" I asked her.
"Your scent," she said as if it was the simplest thing in the world. "It's very distinct, that Tonks girl has the exact same one."
"Must be a metemorphmagus thing," I muttered to myself mainly. That really could explain a lot, but I'm not going to delve into that.
"Anyway, that Hermione girl was looking for you," Alice said. Harry cursed and ran. Oh, how lovely. That's cool. He can just run from me so easily.
"Don't you two like Hermione?"
"No, we love her and all, but she's crazy when she gets like this, and we find it best to stay away," I said.
"You sound like my brother," she said with a sigh. She then sat down next to me.
"Which one?"
"Edward, he's always convinced leaving is the best thing when it never is," she said. She sighed once more before springing up back to her feet like a cartoon character.
"Anyway, nice talking to you and all, but I got to run."
Well that was odd…
xXx
"Hey, Lily, would you set up those by the toi—" George was asking me but I cut him off.
"No, there's no way I'm going over there. I'm not getting knocked over by a ghost again. Someone else can set up Puking Pastilles by the toilets."
"Hey Fred, go set up the Puking Pastilles by the toilets," George commanded of his twin. Fred set up the sweets over there and came out unharmed.
"Wow, barely made it out with my life," he joked. I glared at him.
"You know," I said thoughtfully. "You still have yet to have blown up a toilet. Ginny must be disappointed that you have never sent her a Hogwarts toilet seat."
"She sees them nearly every day now," George said with a shrug. "I really don't think she needs one anymore."
"Well who wouldn't want one?"
"Do you want a Hogwarts Toilet seat, Lily Pad?" Fred asked me.
"Only if you want to blow one up for me," I told him.
"It looks like we're good, open?" George said, scanning over the space that we turned into a joke shop rather than a loo and the entrance to the Chamber of Secrets.
"Open," Fred agreed with a nod and soon enough kids poured in. I have no idea how they let these kids know when they are open and when they are not, but they know somehow. In the past years that I have known these two I've just learned not to question how they do some of the stuff they do.
If Fred and George ever did open up a shop, which I didn't have a doubt in my mind that they wouldn't, they were going to be successful. They're doing so well when they're just secretly running a business in a girl's toilet.
Then one student happened to wander in who I didn't particularly ever want to see. He had bronze hair. There was only one possibility, because really, who has bronze hair? It was Edward Cullen of course. He was accompanied by no other than his Gryffindor brother, Emmett. I suppose it would make sense that Emmett would be here. I mean, he's Emmett. Do we need any more explanation?
"Isn't this awesome?" I heard him ask his brother.
"Uh huh," he said in a monotone voice. "Emmett, why on Earth did you have to drag me here?"
"You've got to lighten up, man! Have some fun. I know you miss…" Emmett was then silenced, cut off, for some unknown reason. By the pair came up to me and Emmett tapped me on the shoulder.
I turned around and looked at both of them. "What are you doing here?"
"Are we not allowed to be here?" Edward asked as he sneered at me. We have come to hate each other really. I don't know why he hated me, but I hate him.
"Doesn't seem like the kind of place you're type would be," I said simply.
"What do you mean by 'our type'?" Edward asked me.
"It's just you. You're stuck-up, obnoxious, grumpy, and not a person people really want to be around," I said simply."You're not really a person, who wants to have fun, are you? You don't like any risk."
"I like risk plenty," he scoffed at me.
"Yeah, that's why you were placed in Ravenclaw. Not that Ravenclaw's are bad or anything, but they are kind of cautious aren't they?"
"If by cautious you mean smart, then yes."
"Would you two shut up," Emmett said sharply. "I need more stuff to prank with."
"It's a good thing you came to a joke shop then," I said. "We have a ton of that stuff. What did you need me for anyway?"
"Do you have whoopee cushions?"
"No."
"Not one?"
"Not one," I told him. "This is a magic joke shop, like real magic. I'm sure you'll be able to find something somewhere to fill your pranking needs. Now go, shoo, before I flip out at you two."
"Would you really do that to us?" Edward asked. I tried to ignore him. I tried to ignore everything he used to be to me. But now, he hates me. I need to get him to not hate me…
"Yes," I said. They got out of my way quickly then.
"Hey Lily," a voice came before me and I gasped and jumped slightly. My hair must have turned bright blue.
"What do you want Fred?" I snapped at him.
"Well calm it down, Lily Pad. Hey, are you okay?"
I wasn't. I really, really, wasn't. But I sure as hell wasn't going to let anybody know that. "I'm fine," I lied. "I'm really fine." Then I left Fred standing there as I stormed out of the makeshift joke shop of the Weasley twins and headed to a different toilet so I could be miserable in peace.
Tears were threatening to spill in my eyes but I kept on walking. "Lily!" I heard someone call after me but I kept on walking. Just ignore them. Just ignore them.
"Lily!" The same person said again, I could tell who it was, but I wasn't going to listen to them. I can't hear them. I'm just going to keep on walking. It isn't that far away. And once I'm in there they can't bother me.
"Lily," they said again but I could no longer ignore him because he had caught up with me.
"I said I was fine Fred," I snapped at him.
"Well you don't look fine," Fred said as he stopped a tear that just so happened to be rolling down my cheek.
"I am," I still insisted though.
"Lily—" Fred started but I cut him off.
"Look Fred, it's nice that you care and all, but right now, I don't want to talk to anyone, okay?" Then without a response from him I stormed off to the bathroom. I just wished all the Cullen's would die, but that's not entirely possible, is it? Damn them.
xXx
It was the first weekend for a Hogsmeade trip and Umbridge was getting no better. She was getting worse in fact, as was her authority. What the hell was a High Inquisitor anyway? I'm pretty sure none of the other schools have one, and we don't need one either. We needed to do something. And Hermione always had a plan, so no surprise she already made one up.
She somehow convinced Harry to start up a Defense Against the Dark Arts club, Hermione told all of us to meet up at Hog's Head that weekend. So after our trip to Zonko's Fred, George, Lee, and I made our way to the Hog's Head. We were the last there and Harry seemed to be freaking out.
"Hi," Fred said to the bartender there. He looked shocked, not much of a surprise; I doubt he saw his bar full that often and now there were a whole lot of Hogwarts students in it. He counted all of the people present and said "Could we have… twenty-six butterbeers please?"
The man looked very irritated. He threw his rag down before handing out the butterbeers that were covered in dust. I wiped the dust off mine with my hand before taking a gulp of it.
Everyone was watching Harry and he wasn't saying anything, he looked quite nervous in fact. Hermione ended up being the one who was speaking.
"Er," her voice was higher than usual. "Well—er—hi." What a lovely opening.
"Well… erm… well, you know why you're here. Erm… well, Harry here had the idea, I mean, I had the idea—that it might be good if people who wanted to study Defense Against the Dark Arts—and I mean, really study it, you know, not the rubbish that Umbridge is doing with us because nobody could call that Defense Against the Dark Arts."
"Hear, hear," Anthony Goldstein said.
"Well, I thought it would be good if we well, took matters into our own hands." She paused, looked at Harry, and then continued on with her speech. "And by that I mean learning how to defend ourselves properly, not just theory but the real spells—"
"You want to pass your Defense Against the Dark Arts O.W.L. too though, I bet?" said Michael Corner.
"Of course I do," said Hermione. This is Hermione we are talking about. She wants nothing more. "But I want more than that, I want to be properly trained in Defense because… because… because Lord Voldemort is back." Everyone freaked out over her saying the name, but in my mind I was thinking, 'Go Hermione!'
"Well, that's the plan anyway," Hermione continued. "If you want to join us, we need to decide how we're going to—"
"Where's the proof You-Know-Who's back?" said a blonde Hufflepuff by the name of Zacharias Smith. He bothered me and I would often call him Zach just to get on his nerves.
"Well, Dumbledore believes it," Hermione started before she was cut off by the boy again.
"You mean, Dumbledore believes him," he said and nodded his head towards Harry.
"Who are you?" Ron asked the boy.
"Zacharias Smith and I think we've got the right to know exactly what makes him say You-Know-Who is back."
"Look," Hermione said, breaking up the almost-fight quickly. "That's really not what this meeting was supposed to be about."
"It's okay, Hermione," Harry said.
"What makes me say You-Know-Who is back?" Harry asked rhetorically. "I saw him. But Dumbledore told the whole school what happened last year, and if you didn't believe him, you don't believe me, and I'm not wasting an afternoon trying to convince anyone."
"All Dumbledore told us last year was that Cedric Diggory got killed by You-Know-Who and that you brought Diggory's body back to Hogwarts. He didn't give us details, he didn't tell us exactly how Diggory got murdered, I think we'd all like to know." I was the lucky person who didn't get to know any of this. He thinks he's got it bad… I come back and find out my ex-boyfriend is dead.
"If you've come here to exactly what it looks like when Voldemort murders someone I can't help you." His temper was rising, as usual nowadays. I'm pretty sure he's got a period. "I don't want to talk about Cedric Diggory, all right? So if that's what you're here for, you might as well clear out."
No one moved.
"So," Hermione said again. "So… like I was saying… if you want to learn some defense, then we need to work out how we're going to do it, how often we're going to meet, and where we're going to—"
"Is it true," interrupted some girl, "That you can produce a Patronus?"
"Yeah," said Harry after a murmur of interest spread through the group. I already knew that.
"A corporeal Patronus?"
"Er—you don't know Madam Bones, do you?"
"She's my auntie," the girl smiled. "I'm Susan Bones. She told me about your hearing. So—is it really true? You make a stag Patronus?"
"Yes," said Harry. Well I guess no one cares that I can make a frog. I guess it's just a frog after all.
"Blimey Harry!" Lee said next to me. "I never knew that!"
"Mum told Ron not to spread it around," said Fred. "She said you get enough attention as it is."
"And did you kill a basilisk with that sword in Dumbledore's office? That's what one of the portraits on the wall told me when I was in there last year…" said Terry Boot, a Ravenclaw in my year.
There were more mutters of Harry's great achievements where I help out but never get credited for before Harry got to the point. He isn't really one for the attention he gets; I have to give him that.
"Look, I… I don't want to sound like I'm trying to be modest or anything but… I had a lot of help with all that stuff…"
"Not with the dragon you didn't," Michael Corner insisted at once. "That was seriously a cool bit of flying."
"Yeah, well—"
"And nobody helped you get rid of those dementors this summer," Susan added.
"No, no, okay, I know I did bits of it without help, but the point I'm trying to make is—"
"Are you trying to weasel out of showing us any of this stuff?" Zacharias asked.
"Here's an idea," Ron snapped loudly and rudely. "Why don't you shut your mouth?"
"Well, we've all turned up to learn from him, and now he's telling us he can't really do any of it," he said.
"That's not what he said," Fred snapped at the boy irritably.
"Would you like us to clean out your ears for you?" George asked as he pulled out one of the joke shop items out of the bag. It was the thing I tried to convince Fred and George they would never need but they insisted on getting it anyway. They're just odd like that. They need to compare their competition and all…
"Or any part of your body, really, we're not fussy where we stick this," said Fred.
"Yes, well," Hermione said hurriedly. "Moving on, the point is, are we agreed we want to take lessons from Harry?"
We all agreed, except Zacharias who kept giving George and his object glances.
"Right," said Hermione. "Well, then, the next question is how often do we do it. I really don't think there's any point in meeting less than once a week—"
"Hang on," said Angelina. "We need to make sure this doesn't clash with our Quidditch practice."
"No, nor with ours," Cho said.
"Nor ours," Zacharias said. It seemed like this boy never shut up.
"I'm sure we can find a night that suits everyone, but you know, this is rather important, we're talking about learning to defend ourselves against V-Voldemort's Death Eaters—" Hermione will never understand how important Quidditch is…
"Well said!" Ernie barked. He talked a lot as well. It must be some sort of Hufflepuff trait, because really, it doesn't seem like they have many. Hufflepuff just said she'd 'take the rest.' Do they have any redeeming traits? "Personally I think this is really important, possibly more important than anything else we'll do this year, even with our O.W.L.'s coming up!" He looked around as if waiting for someone to disagree with him. "I, personally, am at a loss to see why the Ministry has foisted such a useless teacher upon us at this critical period. Obviously they are in denial about the return of You-Know-Who, but to give us a teacher who is trying to actively prevent us from using defensive spells—"
Does he ever shut up? I swear it's all Hufflepuffs. Cedric even talked a lot, you know, when he was alive.
"We think the reason Umbridge doesn't want us trained in Defense Against the Dark Arts is that she's got some… some mad idea that Dumbledore could use the students in the school as a kind of private army. She thinks he'd mobilize us against the Ministry."
Everyone looked shocked, besides Luna, who's just Luna, and said, "Well, that makes sense. After all, Cornelius Fudge has his own private army."
"What?" said Harry. Don't listen to her Harry…
"Yes, he's got an army of heliopaths," said Luna. I have no idea what that is.
"No, he hasn't," Hermione snapped at Luna.
"Yes he has," Luna said.
"What are heliopaths?" Neville asked.
"They're spirits of fire," Luna explained seriously. "Great tall flaming creatures that gallop across the ground burning everything in front of—"
"They don't exist, Neville," Hermione said.
"Oh yes they do!" Luna said angrily
"I'm sorry, but where's the proof of that?" Hermione snapped at the girl.
"There are plenty of eye-witness accounts, just because you're so narrow-minded you need to have everything shoved under your nose before you—"
"Hem, hem," Ginny coughed, startling the lot of us with her very good Umbridge impression. Once we all realized it was Ginny we laughed. "Weren't we trying to decide how often we're going to meet and get Defense lessons?"
"Yes," Hermione said. "Yes, we were, you're right."
"Well, once a week sounds cool," Lee piped up.
"As long as—" Angelina began to say.
"Yes, yes, we know about the Quidditch. Well, the other thing to decide is where we're going to meet…"
No one really had an answer for that.
"Library?" Katie Bell suggested after a moment.
"I can't see Madam Pince being too chuffed with us doing jinxes in the library," Harry said.
"Maybe an unused classroom?" said Dean.
"Yeah," said Ron. "McGonagall might let us have hers; she did when Harry was practicing for the Twiwizard…"
"Or how about Moaning Myrtle's toilet?" I asked the group. Fred and George glared at me.
"What?" I whispered to them. "We can clear up if we need too."
"Right, well, we'll try to find somewhere," Hermione said. "We'll send a message round to everybody when we've got a time and a place for the first meeting."
She searched for parchment and a quill in her bag and took a deep breath before continuing. "I—I think everybody should write their name down, just so we know who was here. But I also think that we all ought to agree not to shout about what we're doing. So if you sign, you're agreeing not to tell Umbridge—or anybody else—what we're up to."
Fred reached out and put his name on the list first. Then I signed, Lee, George, and George tried passing it too Zacharias.
"Er… Well… I'm sure Ernie will tell me when the first meeting is." There are so many improper words I could use to describe that kid, but I'll refrain.
Ernie didn't look like he wanted to sign either; Hermione raised her eyebrows at him.
"I—well, we're prefects," he said. Prefects made me want to puke. No offense to Ron and Hermione. Harry might be disappointed that he didn't get made one, but I sure as hell wasn't. Hermione deserved it anyway. "And if this list was found… well, I mean to say… you said yourself, if Umbridge finds out…"
"You just said this group was the most important thing you'd do all year," Harry reminded the kid.
"I—yes, yes, I do believe that, it's just…"
"Ernie, do you really think I'd leave that list lying around?" said Hermione. This was Hermione, she wouldn't.
"No. No, of course not, I—yes, of course I'll sign." After that everyone had signed the list, ending with Zacharias. You have to be careful. Those Hufflepuffs aren't as innocent as they look.
"Well, time's ticking on," Fred said as he got to his feet. "George, Lee, Lily, and I had got items of a sensitive nature to purchase; we'll be seeing you all later."
And by that he meant materials for Weasley Wizard Wheezes.
Another chapter! Oh, and I think you should all review, because two days ago was my birthday! July seventh… 7-7, that's like, awesome.