Chapter Forty Nine

The first few hours back at Hogwarts were not amusing for Ginny. She travelled to the castle with Neville, Seamus, and a group of seventh year Hufflepuff students from the DA in a carriage filled with posters and other propaganda. At first the students amused themselves by removing these from the walls and burning them, but the enjoyment was short-lived in comparison to the disquiet caused by reading the slogans. Some were anti-muggle, others pro-Ministry, and all were highly political. Ginny did her best not to read anything, but the headlines were usually very short and she found herself processing the words without meaning to.

Once Ginny reached the school grounds she joined a queue outside the front doors leading down halfway to the boundary of the walls and protective enchantments surrounding the premises. As she approached the reason became obvious. Standing either side of the doors, wide smiles on their faces, stood the two Carrows. One door was open, the other closed; in front of this Argus Filch was having one of the best days of his career.

Probity Probes and Secrecy Sensors were not something Ginny wanted to endure, so she turned to Neville and Seamus. "Are you with me?" she asked. "If I curse her, will you guys do the other two?"

"Yes," Neville said, and Seamus nodded his agreement.

"Alright, wait for me then," Ginny said. She wanted a clear aim, and some time to think about what curse to use. "What about an Imperious curse?" Ginny asked. "Say no if you don't want to." She herself was willing, but she also knew that the consequences could be severe. It wasn't her place to get other people into trouble over something this serious, if they weren't certain.

"What shall we make them do?" Neville asked. Ginny thought a moment, but she hadn't come up with an answer when Seamus offered a suggestion.

"We could make them walk into the Forest, or at least away from the castle," he said, his tone making it more of a question than a statement. "That way everyone else can just walk into school without this hassle," he pointed surreptitiously at Filch, "and it won't last when they get too far away. They'll come back before Snape realises they've gone."

"Nice," Ginny admitted, trying not to begrudge Neville this idea. "Wands out, but hide them." She drew her wand from her back pocket and slipped it up her sleeve. She could feel it against the inside of her wrist, and knew she could use it in less than a second if necessary.

The line of students moved slowly but continuously until at last Ginny, Neville and Luna were at the front. Filch turned to indicate that the first-year Ravenclaw he had just examined was free to enter the castle; seeing that both Carrows were looking out over the crowd, Ginny whispered, "Now!"

The three spoke quietly but firmly. It was the first time Ginny had attempted the Imperious curse, and it was more effective than she had expected it to be. Both Carrows and Filch stepped meekly from their posts and headed purposefully towards the Forbidden Forest. Ginny waited just long enough to be sure that they weren't immediately going to turn back then, ignoring the warm tingle down her arm that the curse had caused, she led the queue of students into the school.

Ginny had scheduled a DA meeting for that evening, and with fifteen minutes to go she left the Gryffindor common room. She had crossed several passageways and climbed three staircases when she turned a corner and came face to face with Amycus Carrow.

"What're you doing here?" he asked.

"I go to school here," Ginny said coolly. "I have to, it's the law. Believe me, I don't do it for fun."

"Shut up and tell me why you're in this corridor," Carrow snapped.

"Because I can be," Ginny said, thinking quickly. There was nothing nearby that she could use as an excuse, not the library, her common room nor the Hospital Wing. With no better idea, she simply Confunded the teacher, whose questions immediately changed.

"Who am I?" Amycus Carrow asked.

"Gwenog Jones," Ginny told him, her face straight. The captain of the Holyhead Harpies was the first person who had come to mind, and she realised belatedly that it was usually a female name.

"Alright, why am I here?" Carrow tried.

"You were on your way to take tea with Professor McGonagall," Ginny told him. "She has cream cakes. Her office is just down there." She pointed, and gave simple directions.

"But who was I? Do I like tea?" Carrow asked.

"Just go down that corridor, it's the last door on the right," Ginny repeated. Obediently Professor Carrow walked off, humming tunelessly. This reminded Ginny strongly of Luna, who could so often be found wandering without purpose, humming to herself, and she took a few deep breaths to calm herself.

Ginny watched as Professor Carrow knocked on the door to McGonagall's office and asked if she was going to give him tea and cake, torn between laughter and concern. She was calm enough, just, to dart out of sight before McGonagall herself emerged to deal with the situation, and in a way she was sorry she'd inflicted it upon the teacher. Still, Ginny had the impression that McGonagall too might find amusement in Amycus Carrow's confusion.

From there Ginny hurried to the Room of Requirement. It was already open, the door that appeared in the wall swinging silently out of her way to show her Neville already seated in an armchair near to a blazing log fire. She approached and took the next chair along.

"This is more cosy than when I make it," Ginny said, waving her hand to indicate her surroundings.

"Well, I didn't do it on purpose," Neville said. "I just thought of a place that the DA could meet safely and this is what the Room did."

"I'm not complaining," Ginny said. "Listen, I just Confunded Carrow. You know, him," she added, seeing Neville's questioning look and correctly interpreting it. "I sent him to McGonagall for tea and cream cakes."

"Brilliant," Neville laughed. "But what if the female Carrow's also wandering around? Or Snape? Not everyone would just charm a teacher in the middle of the corridor."

Ginny said something very rude.