OMG I actually updated within a month this time! I'm so proud of myself! Haha :)

Max POV

By breakfast time the next morning, the rumours about Dumbledore's disappearance had already started. In the short time that it took me to walk from my Common Room to the Great Hall, I must've heard about five completely separate stories about how Dumbledore managed to get out of his office free. None of them correct, of course. In fact, I heard one guy tell his friend that Dumbledore had changed Fudge and Umbridge's heads into pumpkins and now they were both in hysteria at St Mungo's getting fixed up by the 'healers' there. Seriously?

I continued down the hall to breakfast, watching as the kids all around me chattered excitedly about the incident in the office yesterday.

At least not many people knew that the flock had been in the room when it happened, or the students would be all over us with questions. Not exactly something to improve my stress levels.

I reached the hall and thunked down beside Iggy, barely noticing the food in front of me.

Things weren't exactly looking too good for us, and we all knew it. With Dumbledore gone, the Order had lost what little power they had in Hogwarts and the flock and I had almost completely forgotten about the mission they had given us. We were supposed to convince the students here that Voldemort had returned. Yeah, not really going too well at the moment. The flock and I pressed our points whenever we got the chance, but really, we had too much else to deal with to make much of a difference.

For one thing, we were being taken over by a tidal wave of homework and I for one was struggling not to fail all my classes. Never thought I'd worry about something like that, but hey, things change, right?

And then us older kids all had relationships to uphold. Iggy and Luna were actually starting to get pretty serious, and me and Fang, well, we'd always been serious.

And then, on tops of that, thoughts of the creepy little first years were laying total rampage to my brain. I couldn't get them out of my mind. For eleven year olds, they sure were scary. Every time we were around them, they would just – stare at us. Nothing else. Just stare. They didn't even care that we knew they were looking. It was majorly freaky.

And when they would finally turn away, I would spend the rest of the day thinking about them. It sucked, and it put me in a crappy mood. In fact, even thinking about it put me in a crappy mood. Like now, for instance.

'Hey.' Iggy reached out and patted my arm. 'Calm down.'

'What?' I snapped, looking around for the others. Nobody else that we knew was in the hall. Probably still in bed. 'I am calm!'

Iggy smiled at me knowledgably, a piece of toast in his mouth totally ruining the 'smart' effect. Eew. 'Max, you're practically quivering with nerves. What's up?'

I glared at him for a moment, forgetting that he couldn't see. 'Nothing. I'm fine.'

'Yeah, and you're also the world's worst liar...' Iggy muttered before finishing off his toast and walking away. Well I take offence at that. I pride myself over my lying abilities.

I picked up a piece of toast and bit down on it, chewing slowly as my mind turned back to my problems. I wonder when we would be allowed to go for another flight. Soon, I hope.

A few minutes later the Hall started to fill up with people as they got ready for the day ahead and I heard even more snippets of conversation about Dumbledore and his run in with Fudge and Umbridge. Harry and Fang sat down beside me and I tried to smile at them both, managing only a grimace.

'So, Max, I was just telling the others about the DA meeting next week.' Harry said to me. 'I was just telling them that we wouldn't need you to teach anything because we're doing Patronuses tonight and I want to focus the entire lesson on them. Is that alright?'

I nodded. 'Yeah, I guess. I didn't have anything planned for next week anyway, so I guess it's a good thing.' I smiled sheepishly. To tell you the truth, I had completely forgotten that we had a Dumbledore's Army meeting that night at all. Maybe the increasing pressure load that was dropping on me was getting to me.

'Okay, cool.' Harry smiled. 'Now let's go, we're going to be late for Transfiguration and you know how McGonagall is about tardiness...'

I twitched with nervousness as the flock, Harry, Ron and Hermione waited for the other DA members to arrive so that we could start our lesson on Patronuses. This was a big one, one that I doubt I could do. After all, I've pretty much mastered the Shield and Disarming charms by now after all the tutoring that McGonagall had been giving us every week since we came here about half a year ago, and I'm also able to do a few other spells (like the levitation and summoning ones) but according to Hermione, Patronuses weren't simple magic to perform, but us bird-kids might be able to do it.

She said that even though we are Muggles (although I'm starting to doubt that – isn't magic impossible for Muggles to perform?) it should be possible for us to perform a successful Patronus charm because, in her words, "Patronuses are not physical and they represent all good memories and your animal spirit, and since everyone has both those things, it is possible for all humans."

I was doubtful of the animal spirit thing – I mean, is there even such thing as an animal spirit? I thought that stuff was just BS – but the rest of it made a little sense to me. It was plausible.

'Soo... When are the others getting here?' Nudge asked after a couple of minutes of silence. 'We've been here for half an hour already an no-one has shown up.'

We ignored her. Instead, Angel got up from where she had been sitting next to Ron and crawled into my lap, worry clear in her big blue eyes.

'What is it sweetie?' I asked her and she looked down again, not meeting my gaze.

'Nothing,' she whispered and I was reminded of the time when Angel was just as totally innocent as she appeared. Now, of course, we knew better than to trust her adorable look. We knew that there was a dark and stubborn side underneath all the cuteness. As the saying goes, 'Never judge a book by its cover'.

'It's just,' Angel continued. 'I have a feeling that something bad is going to happen. Tonight. And it has something to do with the first years, I'm sure of it.' Oh. Crap. Couldn't people just give it a break for once? I'm pretty damn sick of running away from things.

'Look... I'm sure it's nothing to worry about.' I told her in what I hoped was a confident voice. I wasn't sure of course, at all. Angel's hunches were usually correct.

She gave me a sad look. 'I can tell that you're lying, Max.' Mind reader. Right.

'Well, tell me about it after, okay?' I asked as the door opened and our DA members started to form a group in the room. 'You can talk to me about it later, yeah?' I tried to banish all my bad thoughts from my mind. There might not be a later.

Angel gave me a despairing glance, but she didn't press the matter, instead standing up and going to stand next to Gazzy, gripping his hand tightly.

I zoned out as Harry started to explain how to perform a Patronus charm – I already had been taught by him, a couple of days ago. Now the trick was just to do it.

After Angel's concerns that she had shared with me just then, I was unable to concentrate. I was so twitchy that I thought that if someone even tried to say hi to me I would smack them in the face. Yeah. That's how bad it was.

I saw Fang glance at me curiously out of the corner of my eye, obviously wondering what I was so uptight about – not that anyone but him would be able to tell – but I shook my head slightly, saying that I would tell him later.

'Alright!' Harry's voice broke through my consciousness as he finished up explaining how a Patronus worked. 'You got that? Let's get going then!'

The people in the room started to spread out and I found all anxious thoughts disappearing from my mind as the noise started up and bright flashes of light began erupting from people's wands, making me blink in disorientation.

I pulled out my own wand and started searching for a happy memory that I could use to help me with my charm. Oh, jeez. I have a lot of those, don't I?

Eventually, after a few minutes of searching for a good memory from my childhood – my just lovely childhood – I decided on our escape from the School. What can beat finally getting away from all those evil whitecoats at the School after ten years of torture? Not much.

'Expecto Patronum!' Nothing.

I tried again.

And again.

And again...

All around me, people were starting to succeed and I could see silvery shapes bursting from wands that could be vaguely recognised as animals. I think I saw a rat, horse and beaver before they disintegrated. Beside me, Harry was controlling a clear stag, and Hermione had just managed to conjure up an otter. Ron's animal looked vaguely like a dog.

I sighed and tried once more. And... I got something! A large silver animal flowed out of my wand and my eyes widened in astonishment. Whoa. It was beautiful.

The thing was only there for a second before it disappeared, but in the time it existed I saw the animal. Some sort of big cat.

A lioness.

...Cool.

I grinned hugely and looked over at Fang, who was already staring at me and smiling.

For that moment, I really was happy. Too bad it just had to be completely ruined.

So… I wasn't planning on ending it here, I was gonna continue, but… I feel like being evil. :)

IMPORTANT QUESTION. I'm trying to decide whether I should do a sequel to this or not. If I am, then I know exactly how I can end this story, but if not… Well, I'll do something else. So basically, I want you to choose. I don't really know if I want to do one or not.

If you choose a sequel, then this story will end on a cliffhanger, by the way.

So: Sequel? No sequel?

Review please, and answer my question! :D