A/N: I actually broke up one big chapter into two shorter ones, so the next chapter should be out soon, as well. That's the reason for this chapter being shorter than usual.

Disclaimer: See Prologue.

Chapter 11

Harry, Ron and Hermione came back at the beginning of January, the day before classes were due to start. Harry seemed much more cheerful after having spent some time at his godfather's house. The mood dampened noticeably after the Daily Prophet revealed a mass breakout at Azkaban, which meant that about ten of Voldemort's most dangerous Death Eaters were now on the loose.

It seemed to be the final straw for Harry because, on their February Hogsmeade weekend, he finally gave an interview describing Voldemort's return that was published in the Wizarding World's most unreliable magazine: The Quibbler. Despite the unhealthy reputation of the paper in which the story was published, Dante was happy to see that nearly everyone in Hogwarts now seemed to believe Harry; a fact that Umbridge was definitely not happy about, judging by the fact that she banned the magazine immediately.

At the end of February, Trelawney, the Divination professor, was sacked by Umbridge on account of being an incompetent teacher. Her replacement turned out to be a centaur named Firenze, one Dante was very familiar with. He had been the one to awaken his Trigger, after all.

The arrival of a centaur in the school certainly made some waves. For one thing, most of the girls were infatuated. An annoyed Hermione confided in Dante that Firenze was all the girls in her dormitory were talking about.

Firenze didn't seem as interested in girls, however, as he was in giving cryptic warnings. On the centaur's first day at Hogwarts, Dante went to meet him to offer congratulations on his employment. On seeing him, however, Firenze drew him aside.

"You would do well to confide in the Headmaster," he said.

"About what?" Dante felt thrown.

"Anything or anyone that jeopardizes or has jeopardized your well-being," said the centaur. "It is not only your welfare that is at stake."

Immediately, Umbridge's detentions popped into his head. "Yeah?" he said. "I guess..."

"Dante Sparda," Firenze said firmly, "You would do well to heed me. Your safety is linked to many others', including your friends and your sister."

"Trish?" Dante couldn't quite keep the alarm out of his voice. Out of all his acquaintances, she and Snape were the ones living the most dangerous lives. "Okay, relax," he said. "I'll tell the old man if something happens."

But there was nothing to tell Dumbledore about. There were no detentions and no demons through the entirety of February and March. He kept a close eye on Trish during that time. There were a few times when she had to leave to report to Mundus, but other than that, it was uneventful.

That was, except for another Decree being passed.

Educational Decree Number Twenty-Seven

"All Student 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 found to have formed, or to belong to, an Organisation, Society, Team, Group, or Club that has not been approved by the High Inquisitor will be expelled."

"Someone must've told on us," said Ron.

"We'd have known if they did," said Hermione. "I put a jinx on the parchment we all signed on. Trust me, if anyone said anything, they wouldn't be able to hide."

"What's going to happen to them?" asked Trish.

"More importantly," said Dante, "Why didn't you tell everyone that? Y'know, prevention before punishment, or something like that."

Hermione looked a little embarrassed. "Er... I don't really think so many people would've joined if I did."

"That's... actually a pretty good point," said Ron.

"Yeah," Dante pressed, "but what's stopping you from telling them now?"

"Fine," said Hermione, looking slightly flushed, "I'll tell them when we hold the next meeting."

Said next proved to be the most eventful meeting they'd had so far. Instead of Harry giving everyone a task for the day, Dante stepped up to speak.

"Today, my fellow members," he said dramatically, "you'll be fighting your very first demon."

A fifth-year girl - Marietta, her name probably was, gasped loudly and turned on her heel to leave, but Harry's crush grabbed her and whispered something in her ear. Scowling, the girl stopped.

"He's pretty high-class-" Marietta shrugged off the other girl's grip and ran from the room. Dante watched her go with a smirk; then he turned back to the others. "-but we're on pretty good terms. He won't kill or seriously injure any of you."

He saw Harry, Ron and Hermione exchange puzzled glances.

"So," Dante went on, "I can promise you no one will be hurt more than you can be from... say, a Quidditch game. If that's too scary for you," he narrowed his eyes slightly, "Back out. Right now."

He couldn't see a single set of eyes completely devoid of fear. The younger Creevy brother and Lavender Brown, in particular, looked terrified. And yet, no one moved from their positions.

Dante clapped his hands once. "Alright, I'll send it in."

In Harry's opinion, the concept of one of those hideous, monstrous-looking demons being 'friendly' was, frankly, a little hard to take in. Maybe he was biased from the other demons he had seen. After all, there were nice creatures that looked menacing... like Buckbeak.

He kept these thoughts to himself. The same could not be said for Ron, who was getting an earful from Hermione about 'speciesism'.

"It's like the house-elves all over again!" she exclaimed. "Not all full-blooded demons are evil, Ron."

"Yeah? Name one," Ron challenged.

"Sparda," Hermione said promptly.

"He was plenty evil once," the redhead snorted.

"You ought to at least trust Tony!" she snapped.

"He isn't even here," Ron retorted.

"Exactly! He wouldn't have left if he didn't think it-"

Hermione's words trailed off into a cry of alarm. It wasn't only her; nearly everyone had screamed as what could only be described as a whirlwind flew in through the passage. Harry grabbed Ron and Colin Creevy and threw all three of them onto the floor as the thing passed only a foot or two over their heads, coming to a stop in the middle of the room.

At first, Harry thought it was a hippogriff. But as it flapped its brown wings, beady eyes sweeping over them, he caught a glimpse of its rear end; the hind legs and tail were clearly that of a lion's.

"A Griffin," Hermione whispered in amazement. "But... they're not demons!"

The creature turned towards her at those words. Harry watched, horror coiling in his stomach, as its eyes began to glow an electric red.

"Hermione, MOVE!" he yelled.

But she seemed to have frozen. Ginny seized her and pulled her back as a beam of lightning impacted the floor about a meter from where she had been standing, spreading cracks all around the spot. The attack, which would have clearly been lethal had it hit, finally spurred everyone into action. Despite earlier bravery, Lavender Brown ran for the door, only to squeak and run the other way when another beam impacted just above the exit. Alicia shouted, "KILL IT!" and two Impedimenta and a stunner shot towards the demon. It took to the air to dodge them and made a downward sweep toward the seventh year. She jumped to the side, but one of the wings still found her and knocked her to the ground.

"Reductor Curse!" cried Harry, "All together... aim for its wings! REDUCTO!"

About half a dozen jets of blue light joined his own. Only one managed to hit it... and only a talon at that. The demon curled the limb close to itself but otherwise gave no reaction that it had even noticed the injury. The creature's speed was unreal; in such a closed space, with such an enormous body, it should have been harder to miss a spell than to land a hit, but the Griffin was nimbly dodging spells while still taking the DA members out one by one. Ginny went down to a swipe of its talons across her arm; it didn't look serious, but the force had knocked her wand to the far end of the room. Terry Boot's wand had been thrown into the passage. Hermione's wand had been swatted out of her hand by a powerful sweep of a wing.

The creature was protecting its vital parts very well. The spells that did hit never found any important area of its body. They would have to cast something that would have the same effect no matter which body part it impacted, Harry thought. Now came the question of how to get the demon in a position where the spell would actually hit. The answer was simple - they needed a bait.

"Fred, George, throw fireworks at it!" he called.

The twins didn't throw one. More than a dozen of them exploded around the demon. It turned its head, pinpointed Fred and George, and dived towards them.

"Stunner all together!" yelled Harry.

Only about fifteen still had their wands, but they all lifted them at Harry's words.

The demon seemed to realize that something was wrong - it suddenly whirled and made a beeline for Harry.

Immediately, the room was bathed in red lights. The Griffin was thrown out of the air mid-dive and landed heavily on the floor, still twitching slightly. The room went silent, until-

"Confringo!" screamed Anthony Goldstein and Ernie McMillian, together, pointing their wands at its now unprotected neck.

"NO!" shrieked Hermione.

Instead of the neck, the spells impacted one of its wings that the demon had raised to protect itself. The resulting blast of heat charred most of the feathers of the tip of that wing. A low groan came from the creature, a sound that raised the hairs on Harry's arms. It almost sounded human...

Then it struggled up to a standing position, surprisingly quickly considering the fact that it hadn't even tried to dodge the Blasting Curses, and somehow balanced itself on its hind legs to hop into the passage and disappear from view.

A second of stunned silence, and then the room erupted in joyous celebrations. Members thumped one another on the back or high-fived - Cho and Hannah actually hugged each other.

"Great plan, Harry!" Ron said happily. Harry grinned in response.

His grin faded soon. It seemed not everyone was celebrating. Hermione was standing in a corner, her brows furrowed, her face solemn.

"What's wrong with her?" he asked Ron quietly.

"Probably just annoyed that she got disarmed," Ron smirked.

Dante bent down to pick up Boot's wand from the floor of the tunnel. He grimaced slightly as the movement caused his shirt to brush against the burn on his back. It would heal in a few minutes, though. Magical injuries never bothered him for long. Had it been demonic energy, it would have taken longer.

The Stunners had been something else. He had been hit by one Stupefy before, but thirteen was... rather a lot. It hadn't hurt, exactly, but it had made him pretty damn sluggish. Dante couldn't help but feel a little pleased about having found a new weapon against demons; if it affected him this way, then a bunch of Stunners would definitely bring down a Scarecrow or two. This technique wouldn't be of much use to him, but it could come in handy for wizards.

He wouldn't have been hurt at all if it weren't for those two morons, Dante thought in annoyance. If they hadn't cast Confringo, of all things...

Overall, the performance was definitely better than expected, but would they perform this well against demons that didn't hold back?

"That was awesome!" cried Dean as Dante re-entered the room.

"Let's go again!" said Neville. Dante grinned in approval; he remembered Neville as the only member of the group to have landed two hits on him - a Reductor Curse that had temporarily damaged his talon(now his left foot) and a Stunner.

"About that," he said, "I was thinking about letting you all take on a group of the uglies. Minor demons, nothing to worry too much about."

"Are you going to help take them down?" said Zacharias Smith. His question didn't seem to be hostile; on the contrary, it almost looked as though he would enjoy it more if Dante didn't intervene. That was quite a turn-around from his attitude before facing Dante's animagus form, the half-demon thought happily. The fight had apparently done wonders for everyone's spirits.

"Not if you don't need it," Dante said offhandedly. He smirked at the eager look on most members' faces. "Not tonight, though, it's already pretty late. Next session, I guess. Oh, and one other thing - don't use Confringo in closed spaces. It rebounds 'till it finds a target, so you can accidentally take out yourself or one of your friends."

"How'd you know we cast that?" Goldstein asked, frowning.

"The demon picked up on it," said Dante, grinning. "Yeah, it understood you. Not all demons are dumb, trust me. The high-classes usually understand human languages. So don't yell strategies to each other."

He barely suppressed a laugh as Harry, Fred and George exchanged guilty looks.

"Okay," he said, "I'm out of lesson plans. Harry?"

They spent the rest of the time practicing the Patronus Charm. By the end of the class, four members, including Hermione, had managed to produce silver wisps that were apparently called non-corporeal Patronus. Dante, needless to say, hadn't been one of them. Strangely, neither had been Trish.

"What'd you think about?" he asked her as they were wrapping things up.

"Isn't that... what do you people call it... private?" she smiled.

Dante laughed. "Whatever."

"Hi." He turned to see Luna Lovegood staring at a point above his head.

"Yeah?" he said, not sure if it was him she was talking to.

"Did you get the demon from the Ministry?" she asked.

Dante blinked, now uncertain whether he had heard her right. "The Ministry of Magic?"

"Yes." She was now looking him in the eye. Her gaze was surprisingly intense. "You don't have to hide it from me. I know all about it."

"About what?" He was entirely lost.

"That Cornelius Fudge is summoning demons," she said.

Dante swallowed thickly to prevent an explosion of laughter. "Is that right?"

She must have had heard the mirth in his voice because she full-on glared at him. "There have been sightings in the Ministry," she said. "No one has died, so I think they're friendly demons. I was just wondering if you brought one from there. It's alright if you didn't, but you don't have to laugh about it."

But his mirth had long since faded. "Sightings?"

"Several Ministry workers have admitted to it, but the Prophet won't publish anything - like they didn't want to publish Harry's interview. My father published it, of course."

Dante took a quick look around the room. Hermione wasn't nearby. "Can you get me a copy of that Quibbler edition?"

On Friday night, Dante reclined against a pillow on his bed and opened the issue of the Quibbler Luna had lent him.

The story he was looking for was on the third page, sandwiched between a report of Nargles sighting in England and an article on how to recognize a Crumple-Horned Snorkack.

Cornelius Fudge Summoning Demons to Wipe Out All Goblins

The vicious creatures roam the corridors at night, according to workers

Long thought to have vanished from the human world, demons have passed into myths and legends. However, the Minister of Magic Cornelius Fudge, in his latest attempt to crush goblins before they can rebel once again, has decided to bring them back into our world.

On assurances that their names would not be mentioned, several Unspeakables have stated that demons have been seen coming out of a specific room in the Department of Mysteries. They refused to mention which room, as it is against their oaths to disclose anything in relation to the department's functions.

'They don't hurt anyone,' one Unspeakable said. This leads one to conclude that their target is not humanity in general. The target may be Mr. Fudge's worst fear, Albus Dumbledore, but more likely it is yet another of his savage schemes to-

"Hem, hem."

Dante was not one to startle, but this time he almost jumped out of his skin. "What are you doing here?" he snarled at the pink-clad woman standing in front of him. At the Gryffindor Tower. In the Boy's Dormitory.

"May I see what you were reading, Mr. Sparda?" she said with a sickly sweet smile, ignoring the full-blown commotion around them as everyone else realized just who had gotten into their room. "Funny, I could have sworn the Ministry has passed a Decree considering that magazine. One that specifically stated that anyone in possession of the Quibbler-" her smile widened, "will be expelled."

"No!" cried Neville. A second later, Dante was surrounded by all of his roommates. They stood protectively on either side of him, glaring daggers at Umbridge. Dante glanced at them once; he had to keep his cool now, or they'd lose it, too.

"Really?" he snorted. "You can't expect me to remember all the one thousand and one Decree you've passed, can you?"

Unsurprisingly, that didn't break the tension.

"Are you denying your knowledge of it, Mr. Sparda?" Umbridge still hadn't lost her smile.

"So what if I am?"

"Can you prove it?"

She had him there. Dante looked away.

"So!" she cried triumphantly. "I'll have that tabloid... that's it... I shall send for you shortly, Mr. Sparda! As soon as I can arrange the appointment with Cornelius... yes, he ought to hear of it. I rather think you will be banned from using magic altogether this time around... he was so lenient the last time..."

She disappeared down the stairs.

"Impossible..." Ron breathed.

"How?" whispered Seamus. "How'd she know...?"

Harry only stood in stunned disbelief. It all seemed surreal to Dante, too. He was going to be expelled...? Over something so minor as reading a magazine?

Sudden anger overtook him, and he jumped up from his bed. Seamus and Dean hastily moved out of striking range. That fueled his rage.

"You're happy, aren't you?" he hissed at Seamus, who took a step back in shock. "I know you wanted me gone the first time!"

"T-that was before!" said the boy. "I don't want-" he took a steadying breath. "You fight demons," he said quietly. "Everyone knows that now. I don't want you to be expelled."

"Yeah..." Dante deflated; the rage leaving him just as suddenly as it had come. "I know."

"Tony!"

Hermione came running up the stairs, Neville in tow. They hadn't even noticed when he'd left. "Tony," she said in a rush, "you can't let them expel you."

"Let-?" Dante began, incredulous.

"If you go, demons will wrack the school, and Fudge can't allow that, it's going to destroy his reputation, so you'll have to tell them, and they can't expel you for this, you're too valuable, they'll have to see that!"

She said this all in one breath. Dante stared at her for a moment, allowing all that she said to sink in.

"Alright," he said slowly, "You think that'll work?"

"It has to work," she said firmly. She turned on Harry. "Go see Professor Dumbledore and tell him what happened - he can help! I'll go to Professor Flitwick."

"I'll bring Sprout," said Ron, and he took off running.

"McGonagall," said Seamus, and he left, too.

"Madame Pomfrey," said Dean.

Neville looked down at the floor, gulping once. Then he looked up with a determined expression. "I'll tell Professor Snape."

Dante sat in silence as the room emptied. His heart was hammering in his chest. There hadn't been a demon attack in so long... what if that excuse no longer applied?

"Don't worry."

Even in the shadow of the doorway, the glint of light in Trish's waist-long hair was unmistakable, as difficult to miss as the smile in her voice. The latter grated on Dante's nerves; he bit back a retort, opting to stay silent.

"I know someone who can help, too," she said when it became clear Dante wasn't going to respond. "You're not getting thrown out on my watch." She didn't wait for an answer. There was the telltale crackle of electricity, a flash of golden light, and she was gone.

The waiting was torture in itself. Dante stayed still for about a few minutes before he couldn't take it anymore. He got off the bed, nodding decisively to himself. If he had to go, might as well face his fate head-on.

So... yeah. I ended it there. Thoughts? Any ideas about what Firenze's warning was about, perhaps?

Reply to unsigned review:

Guest: Thanks for reviewing. I usually update when I am satisfied with my writing. If I try to hurry too much, there is a possibility the reading material will not be up to standard! But surely you're happy with how fast I updated this time?

You have every right to be annoyed at the cliffie, but please review anyway! It might get the next chapter out faster *winks*