A/N: Disclaimer- familiar dialogue belongs to The Order of the Phoenix aka Harry Potter-JKR, as well as you know, everything else.
Concerning the dialogue, I'm sorry the entire beginning is practically an excerpt from the book with a few additives here and there.
Chapter 14: More Brave Than a Gryffindor
I was shaking. Harry had informed me earlier that day that we were supposed to have our first defense practice. It was getting nearer and nearer to when I had to be there. I couldn't do it; I couldn't face all of those people. Not one of them were Slytherins… well besides me. I had a bad feeling I would be unwanted. Just because I had made a truce with Hermione and Ron didn't mean we were all buddy-buddy. I was quite certain in fact, they still didn't trust me one bit, but being Harry's friends they had to accept it.
I looked at the time: 7:38. The meeting was at 8:00, I needed to leave. I got up, and almost stumbled from nerves and made my way to the common room door, but was stopped. "Where do you think you're going?"
I spun around so fast, I was shocked I hadn't gotten whip lash, and looked around to see Daphne standing near me.
"I-erm- have a detention with McGonagall at 8:00; I can't miss it."
She didn't look convinced, but rolled her eyed dismissively then said; "Whatever," and went back up to the girls dorm.
I sighed and turned around to go, but was stopped again, "Where are you really going?" Draco appeared out of nowhere.
"None of your-" I started, but he cut me off.
"It is my business Pansy, I always make my friends my business." He said.
"Draco, I don't have time for this. Look, I'm going to the library to get some books, I didn't want Daphne to know because she doesn't know I read…" I lied.
"I'll find out what you're doing Pansy," He smiled then, "You're a terrible liar."
I smiled and shrugged, "So much of a Slytherin I am," and finally, left the common room.
I looked down at the time. 7:48. Ten minutes passed? I had 12 minutes to get to the opposite end of the castle; I would be late.
When I finally reached the corridor, I slowed down. I took a few deep breaths and made my way to the door, they would lock it soon if I didn't hurry up. So I grabbed the handle, took another deep breath, pulled open the door, and stepped into the room.
Immediately, I wanted to turn around. As soon as I walked in, almost everyone turned to look at me, and they all started whispering;
"Why is she here?"
"I thought Slytherins were on Umbridge's side."
"Isn't she friends with Draco Malfoy?"
"It's pug-face!"
"I think I saw her at the Hog's Head, but she was lurking in the corners like the snake that she is."
I froze and started to panic. I decided this wasn't such a good idea, and turned to leave, but was saved. Harry came up to me and smiled, "Glad you could make it," and locked the door behind me.
He turned back and looped my arm in his. He led me back to a chair and went to where Ron and Hermione were standing; ready to begin the meeting.
"Well," began Harry nervously, "This it the place we've found for practices, and you've - er – obviously found it okay-"
"It's fantastic!" said Cho Chang. I glared at her, but everyone murmured their agreements. Don't ask me why I don't like her, I have no idea.
There was a few moments when people questioned the room and it's objects, then Harry began again, "Well, I've been thinking about the sort of stuff we ought to do first and - er-" He noticed a hand raised, "What, Hermione."
I rolled my eyes, it's not that I couldn't stand her, it was just typical Hermione.
"I think we ought to elect a leader." said Hermione.
"Harry's leader," said Cho at once, looking at Hermione as though she were mad. I silently agreed, but it didn't mean I liked her any more.
Hermione called a vote to elect Harry as leader, of course all of us, myself included; voted for him.
"Er- right, thanks," Harry blushed, I grinned. "And- what, Hermione?" I chuckled. It didn't go unnoticed.
"I also think we ought to have a name," she said brightly, her hand still in the air, "It would promote a feeling of team spirit and unity, don't you think?" I rolled my eyes, but agreed.
"Can we be the Anti-Umbridge League?" asked Angelina hopefully. I smiled. Some people nodded.
"Or the Ministry of Magic Are Morons Group?" suggested one of the Weasely twins.
"I was thinking," said Hermione, frowning at the twin, "More of a name that didn't tell people what we were up to, so we can refer to it safely outside meetings." I fully agreed with that.
"The Defense Association?" said Cho, "The D.A. for short, so nobody knows what we're talking about." I could feel my face getting hot the more she spoke.
"Yeah, the D.A.'s good," said Ginny. "Only let's make it stand for Dumbledor's Army," I wrinkled my nose at that, even though it had a nice ring to it, I was taught not to like Dumbledor- even though I did anyway, "Because that's the ministry's worst fear isn't it?"
"Psh-ministry, more like my father and his snake-worshipping pals…" I murmured.
"What was that Parkinson?" Lavender Brown asked me. I froze, everyone turned to look at me again.
"I-nothing- it's just that it's true, not only is the ministry afraid of it, but all the death eaters are too." I stammered, ending though, on a more confident note.
"And you would know that how?" Someone else asked, attempting at insinuating I was one or something.
"I'm in Slytherin, remember?" I scoffed, "one thing you've all got right- a lot of the parents are… not good wizards. You can ask Harry, he knows."
Everyone turned expectantly to Harry, "Er-" he looked uncomfortable, I felt bad, "Yeah, she's right… but I'm not going to name names." Everyone looked disappointed, but Hermione took her advantage;
"All in favor of the D.A.?" she counted the hands, "that's a majority- motion passed!" For some reason, I had an inkling she had been waiting to say that.
"Right," said Harry, "shall we get practicing then? I was thinking, the first thing we should do is Expelliarmus,you know, the Disarming Charm. I know it's pretty basic but I've found it really useful-"
"Oh please," said Zacharias Smith, rolling his eyes and folding his arms. "I don't think Expelliarmus is exactly going to help us against You-Know-Who, do you?" Wrong question Smith.
"I've used it against him," said Harry quietly. "It saved my life last June."
Smith opened his mouth stupidly and we all stared at them in anxious silence.
"But if you think it's beneath you, you can leave," Harry said.
Nobody moved. I inwardly smiled at Harry's remark but I knew what Smith said had hurt him. I couldn't stand Smith, one day he would pay for being a pain in the-
"Okay," said Harry, "I recon we should all divide into pairs and start practicing."
My stomach dropped and my heart skipped a beat in anxiety. No one would want to be paired with me. I looked around, and saw that Lavender Brown was with Parvarti, who gave me a sympathetic look. Everyone else had a partner, besides Neville Longbottom, who slowly edged his way towards Harry. That left me alone; again. But no sooner had I had the thought than the Weasley twins decided to take pity on me, "We noticed that you're not everyone's favorite Slytherin."
"And you're being avoided like the plague,"
"So we decided to take pity on you," I was alarmed at how well they could just finish each other's sentences. I looked back and forth between them with cartoonish big eyes. They smiled at me triumphantly.
I smirked and said; "I appreciate the gesture boys, shall we?" They smiled and divided. We would take turns rotating in and out.
I faced the one named George first; I learned to identify which was which quickly. "Ready?" he asked, appearing as though he thought this would be easy.
I nodded, more than ready. As soon as he opened his mouth, I yelled; "Expelliarmus!" and his wand went flying. He looked me in awe. I just smirked, and he went to retrieve his wand.
"Great job!" Fred cheered, "it's nearly impossible to get ole' Georgie off guard- almost no one can… well- except for me. " He smiled.
"Thanks, I'm sure it was just beginners luck," I blushed.
"Beginner's luck?" He opened his mouth in shock, "You're not saying-"
"That was the first time I did that? Yes, but I pick up on things fast." He just stared at me awestruck, before I felt a presence behind me.
"What's up Fred?" George asked.
"That-she said that was the first time she ever used that spell." He said still in awe.
"You guys look so surprised. It doesn't mean I haven't used defensive spells before… "
"Well Fred, I must say; looks like we've got ourselves a keeper."
"If I do say so, I must agree with you George."
I smiled at their exchange, "So, who's my next victim?"
"Hah! Anthony! Got you there! This stuff is so easy, Potter should be teaching us real defense spells." We all turned to look at Smith and his partner Anthony Goldstein having a duel near us. I looked back at the twins who had devilish glints in their eyes.
"Are you-"
"Thinking,"
"What I'm-"
"Thinking?" They switched off mechanically. I was still alarmed at their twin-telepathy skills.
"Of course Georgie, after you." Fred said with a huge grin on his face. I stood back and watched as the twins took turn pointing their wands at Smiths and performing Expelliarmus each time he opened his mouth to produce said charm. I had to keep from bursting out in laughter, so my face was beet red the whole time. Suddenly, I felt a presence next to me. I turned to see Harry with a similar expression.
I smiled, "He deserves it for being a git."
"Yeah- I wish he wasn't here. Anyway, how is it going? With the spellwork and all, I see you're with Fred and George, do you know them well?" He asked looking confused.
I shook my head, "No, they took pity on me seeing that I was alone, but I don't mind, I like them. I'm not exactly the most popular person in the room."
He put his hand on my shoulder sympathetically, sending a jolt through my body; but I ignored it. "It'll take time, but they'll come around."
I smiled back but didn't say anything. We watched Fred and George until they noticed Harry was standing with me, "Sorry Harry," George said, "couldn't resist." But Harry smiled, and left to continue around the room.
"By the way Pansy, how are you friends with Harry?" I turned back to the twins, one of which had just addressed me.
"Well, before third year we were both staying at the Leaky Cauldron. So, we talked a lot and such, and explored Diagon Alley together," I explained.
"Explored?" asked Fred.
"Well, yeah. Neither of us had really been there a lot, so we wanted to check it all out." I replied simply.
"You mean to say that you're a Pureblood and you don't go to Diagon that much?" George asked confusedly.
"Oh, well… my parents thought I was a squib so they didn't let on we were magical," I continued grudgingly, " Kind of strange at first, but then you look at my dad and you know."
"Know what?" asked George.
"That the moment I didn't get my Hogwarts letter, I would have been obliviated and thrown in a orphanage." I answered with a touch of bitterness.
"That's horrible!" They chorused.
"That's the life of a Slytherin," I said sarcastically. I looked over at Harry who was by Chang. He was blushing. I glared at her, before turning back, "Shall we?"
"What was that?" asked Fred.
"What was what?" I asked confused.
"That look. You just glared at Harry and- oh," A look of realization lit up Fred's face. He smiled mischievously.
"Oh? Oh what?" I asked nervously. I looked from Fred to George who also wore that terrifying grin.
"Nothin," They replied, then Fred added, "Come on, it's my turn disarm you,"
I smiled wickedly, "You're on."
We switched off dueling for a while until Harry blew a whistle that got everyone's attention, "Well, that was pretty good," he said, "but we've overrun, we'd better leave it here. Same time, same place next week?"
"Sooner!" said Dean Thomas eagerly, many people nodding their heads in agreement.
Then Angelina Johnson chimed in, "The Quidditch season's about to start, we need team practices too!" as soon as she said that, my heart skipped a beat, and I began to fill with dread at that task I had to accomplish.
"Let's say next Wednesday night, then," said Harry, "and we can decide on additional meetings then… Come one, we'd better get going…"
He then pulled out a strange looking piece of paper, and let everyone out in threes and fours, making sure to avoid getting caught by any teachers.
Finally, I was left in there with a few people, including Harry, Ron, and Hermione. "Er- Harry, that was really good. I'm glad you all thought of this, and I'm happy to be a part of it. It really is a wonderful thing, and it's a great way to ban the students together," I smiled at them, thinking how truly grateful I was with Harry having such nice friends.
"Thanks Pansy, I'm really glad you came, don't be afraid to speak up really, I'm sure you have great ideas. And don't worry about everyone else, they have to get used to it somehow, and it's time they learned not all Slytherins are bad." He encouraged.
"Thanks Harry," I smiled at him, "but I really must be going now. I'll see you all later." Then left.
When I returned to the common room Draco was still up, "Back so soon?" he joked.
I rolled my eyes, "Yep, goodnight Draco."
"Wait! Aren't you gonna tell me-"
"Nope," I smiled, "see ya in the morning."
A couple weeks later, and I found myself eating my toast eagerly, excited about the events later to come that day. The first week's meeting had been okay, but as the days went on, I ran into some of the people from the D.A. Most of them still didn't like me, but they didn't act so bitterly to me. Some even smiled at me. Fred and George actually walked with me in the halls, and I found myself getting like them quite a lot, and enjoyed their company, I had a feeling we would be good friends. It got harder and hrder though to make excuses every time there was a meeting, and each time, they believed me less and less. I could tell that Draco wanted to help, even though it really bothered him that he didn't know what I was doing, but he did what he could to draw the attention from me.
Suddenly, my breakfast was interrupted by a dreadfully familiar looking owl, and I groaned knowing that whatever it had to give me; I wouldn't like it. So, I gave the owl a bit of toast and unwrapped the letter from its claws. I tore open the dreaded note and began reading:
Pansy, it has come to my attention that perhaps Potter's banning from the Quidditch team will not be in the hands of the headmaster- concerning they are so close. So, I have made it easier for you- Lucius and I have spoken to Ms. Umbridge, we expressed our concern about the power of the staff. She will be speaking to the minister about the matter, and I trust fully that she will soon entail power higher than the petty teachers.
Also, I have suggested to her the need for a student organization to help enforce her rules. She loved the idea, and I feel that it will be created in due time. This, I feel is a sufficient way of punishment for your actions against her. You have no choice, you must join it if it commences.
Good Luck, P. Parkinson.
I growled and threw the note at Draco. He picked it up from across the table and read it. After a minute, he looked up and handed it back to me.
"You've got to be kidding me!" I yelled furiously.
"Somehow I don't think he's kidding," he sympathized, "I'm really sorry Pan, that's horrible. I hate Umbridge as much as you; I don't blame you for being upset. I don't want to do this either, but we have to- I hate to think what father would do if I disobeyed him…" He gave me a sad half-smile.
Suddenly, I got up. "Where are you going?" He asked.
"Erm- library," I lied and made my way over to the Gryffindor table.
When I reached my destination, I noticed many people giving me weird looks, I didn't care; I was on a mission. "Harry?" I asked hesitantly from behind him.
He jumped and turned around, "Pansy?"
"Yeah, erm- could you come with me , like- now?" I said hurriedly.
He gave me a confused look but followed.
We walked in silence for a while. I lead him down to the dungeons where I knew nobody would be lurking, and pulled him into an unused classroom. We sat down at some desks and I sighed before I turned to him.
"I need to talk to you about something," I said quietly, clutching the note in my pocket.
"What's wrong Pansy?" He asked concerned.
"I- well, you see… my father…" I stumbled over my words and took a deep breath, attempting to hold back tears.
"Pan?" He asked, then grabbed my hand."You can tell me."
"I just- I don't know how, it's a hard thing to say…" I looked down.
"Hey, whatever it is, I'm sure it's not that bad," He assured me.
"No, it really is that bad." My heart was pounding, this was the moment of truth. The moment where Harry would finally toss me as a friend, I wasn't ready for that just yet.
"Go on," He said encouragingly.
"Harry… my- myfather'sadeatheater!" I jumped up and pulled my hands from his grasp, standing there watching for him, heart almost bursting out of my chest, waiting for him to yell at me and leave, but it didn't happen. I watched his face change in emotions. First, caring curiosity, then horror, then shock, finally to sympathetic compassion. "Pan…" I let out a few shaky breaths and fell back into my chair, and pulled my head into my hands.
"Oh Pan-" he came over to me, "oh Pan, it's-it's okay…" he then pulled my into his arms and I sobbed into his chest.
"It's-it's not o-okay H-Harry," I sobbed, "He's a terrible, terrible person Harry. He makes me do things- things I don't want to do Harry… and I can't stop him." I cried.
"What kinds of things?" I looked away, but he pulled my face to him, "Tell me Pansy, what kinds of things?"
I took a shaky breath, "I- you…" I couldn't think of what to say so I pulled out the note and instructed him to read it.
He sat down to read it, and I followed suit across from him. I watched him reading the note, with about the same sequence of emotions that had been on his face earlier. I winced when I saw that he read the part about Quidditch. After reading it, he looked up at me in awe. "Harry I- Harry I have no choice. This isn't the only one. There have been others, and I fear worse to come. Harry, I'm so- so sorry. I wish it didn't have to be like this. Draco and I… Draco and I are trying to fight it, but what good is it really?" I looked down again and let the tears fall freely. "Harry, it's not just our fathers, these are indirect tasks from- from You-Know-Who. It scares me so much Harry, I don't want to meet him- or ever see him for that matter, but I know I'll have to- and I'll have to… Dr-Draco and I- we don't want to do this. We're not the only ones in the buisniness either… but they- they want to do it. You see Harry, by- by kicking you off the Quidditch team, it makes you weaker I guess… but you have friends and he- he doesn't…" I looked away, tears still falling freely from my cheeks.
"Pansy, I- I may not be happy about this," He pulled me back into a tight embrace, "but I understand. Voldemort is evil, and whatever he says goes… I know this is terrifying, I'm-I'm really scared for you Pansy," His voiced quivered, "but I know you can fight this. You're a good person Pan. I'll help you get through this, we'll do whatever it takes. I can't let that happen to you. I'll make it easier for you; I'll get myself kicked off, okay?" He pulled me back and wiped tears from my cheeks.
"Harry, no!" I exclaimed, "no, I can't let you do that- that's too awful! I can't make you do that, I don't want you to have to-"
He shook his head, "Better I let them think you two did it, then you two actually doing that. I don't want you to have to suffer from that. Don't worry Pan, I can handle it. I'm not happy, I'm really upset actually, but I can handle it." He reassured, "I still have the D.A. after all."
"That's right, and we're all behind you Harry, you're our leader." I smiled.
He blushed, "I wouldn't say-"
I quickly cut him off, "Don't you even try to say that. You really don't know the effect you have on them, do you? They look up to you Harry; you're their father, their older brother, their… mentor, and they will stay with you through thick and thin. I look up to you, you're a great person Harry."
By the time I finished, is face was Gyrffindor red. "Er- I-"
"No need to thank me," I smiled, "It's true."
At this point I noticed the close proximity, and quickly got up, wiping away the tears that were still on my cheeks. "I'm sorry this had to happen, I didn't really know how to tell you- I didn't think- I didn't think I would cry…" I looked away.
He grabbed my shoulders, and lightly turned me to face him, "It's not bad to cry Pansy."
"It show's weakness, I'm a coward. I can't- I can't even follow simple orders without getting upset-" I started to work myself up again.
"You are not a coward Pansy, you're more brave than some Gryffindors I know. They couldn't deal with this the way you are. You get upset because you know it's wrong. You have good morals, and you care about other people. That doesn't make you weak."
I sighed and whispered, "I'm so scared Harry, I don't want to be one of them. I can't be a- a death-"
"You won't be," he promised, "I won't let that happen."
A/N: Well, that was a very long chapter, but I'm satisfied with it. Finally, poor Pansy has told Harry her little secret. I wonder what will happen next… not I really, I know what will happen next but you don't. So, how are you feeling? I think this story has changed dramatically from the beginning, as far as writing style goes. As far as the plot goes, I think I like it. Perhaps someday I'll re-write the beginning. I did make some minor changes though. Well, enough with my blabbing- feel free to review or critique.