Ari missed a nice amount of school in October because of yom tov. When the Carrows objected, Oma taught Ari how to make a portkey, and Ari was able to portkey in and out for class. Pranks like they did the night of the sword were becoming more common, although it wasn't really worth the risk of being caught. The Carrows liked to crucio students, and Ari didn't see how a few pranks could justify torture. The DA graffiti continued in the hope that new members would join. Snape questioned each student separately before holding Ginny responsible and banning her from all future Hogsmeade weekends.
Strict rules affected the entire wizarding Britain. There was curfew on the whole village of Hogsmeade. Ari was no longer allowed to go home for Shabbos, but he did anyway, using portkeys.
Dementors were guarding every exit to the school. Ari was never aware of a secret tunnel to Honeydukes, but found out from others who were no longer able to use it.
Detentions involved different kinds of torture. While the Cruciatus curse was the favorite, students were also chained up if they really annoyed the Carrows, which wasn't so hard to do. The DA worked hard, untying students without getting caught themselves.
Ari sat nervously in his Dark Arts class. Ever since the first class, he was wary of Professor Carrow.
"Today, I expect all of you to do the Cruciatus curse," Carrow said. "I brought in a student who received detention to practice on."
"Isn't that illegal?" Neville asked. "As a professor, you should be encouraging us to keep the laws."
Neville found himself under the cruciatus curse during the first minute of class.
Carrow opened the door and led Ginny Weasley in. First, the professor eagerly demonstrated the curse on poor Ginny. He explained that you really have to mean it for it to work.
Crabbe and Goyle were the first two to volunteer to do the curse. After that, one student at a time was called forward. Anyone who refused was cursed themselves. When it was Ari's turn, he asked if he could talk to Ginny first.
"What are you going to do, apologize in advance?" Carrow teased.
"I want her opinion on the best course of action," Ari said mildly.
"She's not going to want you to curse her," Carrow scorned. "Why would she want to suffer?"
"She wouldn't want others to get cursed for her either," Ari retorted. "That's why I want to talk to her first."
Carrow agreed.
"How good of an actress are you?" Ari whispered.
"Very good," Ginny said, catching on quick. "If you can fake the cursing part, I'll pretend to be cursed."
"Crucio!" Ari said, without moving his wand.
Ginny pretended to be suffering from the curse. When Ari returned to his seat, he whispered to his friends that they only pretended. Others did that too, but Neville stubbornly refused to even pretend.
At the next DA meeting, they discussed whether it's better to pretend or refuse.
"I don't want anyone to even think I would consider cursing someone like that," Neville said forcefully.
"I respect that," Ari said. "There's actually a famous Jewish story about a man who pretended something in order to avoid being killed, and then asked if he could have his tongue cut off as a punishment. At the same time, I don't like being tortured myself. If we fake it, nobody gets hurt."
They agreed to disagree with each person deciding to make their own decision.
Ari managed to control his mouth during Muggle Studies by writing his silly essays. He did an essay on why muggles aren't animals explaining that animals don't speak and muggles do. He also explained that biologically, there is no difference in wizards and muggles other than the gene that affects magic. Not to mention, that it's illegal to marry an animal, but it's not illegal to marry a muggle. Of course, he also included that muggles wear clothes, live in houses, and have their own government. He waited impatiently for the reaction to his paper. Of course, Albus Dumbledore wrote that paper, so Ari never found out his grade. Terry asked Ari to rewrite "Why Muggles are Superior to Wizards" and used a permanent sticking charm to hang it to the door of the Muggle Studies Classroom.
At the next DA meeting, Ginny said that her class was now assigned the essay of why wizards are superior to muggles. She requested permission to copy Dumbledore's essay from the classroom door. Ari advised her that it may not have good consequences.
Muggle Studies was often interesting despite the fact that Ari held his tongue. Other students, especially Seamus, had trouble keeping quiet, and Ari often found their comments entertaining, even if the reactions weren't.
"Does you-know-who keep up with you?" Seamus asked during one lesson.
"Of course," Carrow said.
"And he knows how we all talk back to you?" Seamus continued.
"Crucio!" Carrow cursed, instead of answering the question.
As Ari watched Seamus suffer, he found himself wondering why Gryffindors could be so stupid.
"You can never trust a muggle," Professor Carrow began her next lesson.
"I haven't met a muggle less trustworthy than you yet," Seamus called out.
"Detention!" Carrow barked. "Tonight at six!"
Stupid Gryffindors, Ari thought.
"Wizards should never marry muggles," Carrow began her next lesson. "The result would be children who are physically and mentally deformed."
"That explains it," Seamus called out. "Which of your parents are muggles?"
Ari watched as Seamus was crucio'd for what seemed to be the hundredth time. He wondered when he would learn to keep his mouth shut.
"I have lots of great pictures of Harry!" Luna told everyone at one meeting. "Colin sent them."
"I thought all our mail is searched," Ginny commented.
"He gave them to my father to use for The Quibbler," Luna explained. "My father sent them to me in a box labeled sanitary materials. I doubt that anyone wants to open that."
"We could hang them all around the great hall with permanent sticking charms!" Seamus suggested.
That night, the disillusioned DA redecorated the great hall again. Seamus didn't notice his charm wore off and started hanging pictures in the entrance hall after everyone else left.
The next morning, Seamus was chained up in the front of the great hall. Ari covered his face and cried when Seamus was whipped in front of the whole school.
The first term eventually ended, and Ari joined the others heading home on the Hogwarts Express. Everyone was surprised when death eaters boarded the train in the middle, and kidnapped Luna Lovegood.