In which Ramona Burke makes a big mistake
-October 1995-
Ramona was not-so-pleasantly surprised to see that Umbridge had gotten worse. On the first day of the new month, she'd woken up to see a framed piece of parchment stuck up on the notice board in the common room. It was early enough that not many people were up and about, but those who were, were crowded around this piece of parchment.
She made her way up and gently pushed to the front and read what she'd thought was perhaps the start of a new club of sorts.
BY ORDER OF THE HIGH INQUISITOR OF HOGWARTS
Any student found in possession of a spell-check charmed quill will be severely punished.
The above is in accordance with Educational Decree Number One.
Signed: Dolores Jane Umbridge, High Inquisitor.
"Is she serious?" Ramona reread the statement but none of the words changed. "This is ridiculous! Who cares?"
"This does seem a bit excessive," said Blaise from beside her. "Why'd she need to frame it? Waste of good wood if you ask me."
Ramona drew away from the wall and basically threw herself onto the emerald couch by the fire, Blaise hot on her heels. "It's so unfair, she hasn't taken into account students with dyslexia who already struggle enough as it is!"
"You could talk to her about it," he rested a hand on her shoulder.
Ramona scoffed. "She wouldn't listen or care, this is the start of her slowly stripping power from Dumbledore and the other teachers until the Ministry have control over literally every aspect of our school lives."
His brow furrowed. "When you put it like that it sounds a little fascist."
"Only a little?" Ramona fought to keep her voice level. "Just you wait till she sets up her own private disciplinary force, I can already see it."
Ramona was still seething with anger through breakfast and couldn't even bring herself to read that morning's Daily Prophet, almost fighting with the owl that had brought it so she didn't have to waste a Knut just to get even more furious. But eventually, she was Daily Prophet-free and covered in scratches.
To make matters worse, Umbridge also had Filch hang up her first Educational Decree outside the Great Hall on the empty space around the door. There was enough space for hundreds more but Ramona didn't want to think about something so horrifying.
Not many of her friends seemed as disgruntled about this Education Decree as she was, they didn't seem to understand that this could only get worse, that Umbridge would slowly strip them of all their rights and liberties. When they had a dictator for Headmaster they wouldn't be so nonchalant.
"Mona, wait up!"
Cho Chang skidded to a halt, red-faced and out of breath, taking a moment to regain it as Ramona laughed at her a bit, leading them to sit down in one of the alcoves by the windows, there was still an hour until class and she needed to talk and take her mind off of Umbridge. "What's up?"
"So, I was just talking to Hermione Granger back there and she was telling me about this group they're making in opposition to Umbridge and she said I could invite anyone I thought would be interested so of course you were my first thought."
Ramona shifted uncomfortably under Cho's eager gaze as she tried to process this sudden rush of information, so much for taking a break from Umbridge talk. "I'm guessing Potter is leading this group then?"
"Yeah," Cho only looked embarrassed for a split second, character development in comparison to her usually bright red face whenever he was mentioned, "that's what Hermione said. He'll be teaching us actual defensive magic! The first meeting is this weekend in Hogsmeade."
"It sounds great but you know I can't." Ramona focused her attention on the fraying sleeve of her robes, not wanting to meet Cho's eyes while she explained herself. "People hate me, Potter and his crew definitely do, and they don't want me there, I'd kill the vibe."
Cho took her by the hands, brow furrowed as she carefully thought through her next words. "But this is your chance to show people how cool you really are, to show them what Cedric saw in you, to get some friends who actually appreciate you."
Ramona snatched back her hands as if Cho had burned her. "I already have friends that appreciate me plenty, I've got you and Delilah and when they're not being prats, Blaise, Daphne and Pansy, I don't need to be in with the Potterheads to prove I'm not a bad person, in fact, I don't owe that to anyone."
Cho's face dropped and her eyes grew watery despite her rapid blinking. Those days, tears came quick and easy and often with little notice to Cho Chang. "Sorry, I just wanted to help, I didn't mean to make you upset."
Regret surged through Ramona as she watched her friend struggle to fight back tears. She really had to learn to filter her words because all her fat mouth ever seemed to do was get her in trouble. She was really about to regret her next words. "No, I'm sorry, I shouldn't have snapped like that...I'll go."
Cho's head snapped back up, eyes growing a bit brighter.
"The first meeting only, if they don't want me there, I'm not hanging around and you're not allowed to advocate for me, okay?"
Cho leapt up and was all but bouncing. "Oh this is going to be so fun! You, me and Marietta fighting against injustice and censorship!"
Ramona's stomach dropped. "You never said Marietta was coming..."
Cho was already halfway down the corridor and pretending she couldn't hear Ramona's protests.
~~
It was only the first weekend in October yet there was already a thin layer of frost and snow blanketing the ground and the sky was that steely grey that warned of biting winds. Ramona could feel the chill even in the warmth of the castle, anxiously poking at her eggs, already questioning all her life choices that led up to this moment. Pansy sat opposite her, babbling away about something she'd long since stopped listening to and Delilah was still asleep, having stayed up late in detention with Flitwick after being caught terrorising some poor third years.
"Earth to Mona!" Pansy's fingers snapped in her face. "What is with you today? You haven't even made a snarky comment about Draco yet and you haven't said a word all morning about Educational Decree Number Nine. Did I accidentally piss you off again? You should be telling me when I do that, remember that talk we had about communication?"
Ramona blinked a few times. "No, I'm just tired, nightmares."
Pansy nodded, her bob swishing as she did so, which was about as sympathetic as she ever really got. "I'd have nightmares if I had to hang out with Edgecombe too."
"She's not that bad," Ramona defended weakly. "She's been one of the only ones still there for Cho after everything with Cedric last year, she's been really supportive."
"She's also a spineless coward and a total suck-up, remember that time she got you landed in detention for a month?"
She grimaced, memories of scrubbing the floor of the Owlery flooding back and hitting her like a hammer to the skull. "All too well, but you can't say I didn't deserve it, I literally destroyed the bathroom."
"Sneaks get stitches as the Muggles say...I think."
~~
Ramona's head swirled with thoughts of turning tail and running, any ounce of confidence sapped from her body long before. The only thing stopping her from doing just that was Cho's grip on her hand, leading her down to the Hog's Head Inn, a shady pub at the far end of Hogsmeade with a broken sign and windows so dirty you couldn't see through them. It also happened to be her sister's favourite place in Hogsmeade, for reasons Ramona never dared ask. The odd thing that helped settle her nerves was Marietta's constant stream of talk about nothing, rattling on about different types of quills, uncaring if either of the other girls were listening or not.
Cho was off in her own head, probably fantasising about Harry Potter holding her gently as he gave her private defence lessons, whispering sweet words in her ear, the dazed smile on her face telling all to the world. Lovesick idiot or recently confunded, most would never know.
"Does anybody actually know I'm coming?" Ramona asked quietly as they approached the inn. "Or is this a lovely little surprise? I'm sure they all missed their favourite person."
Cho was momentarily knocked out of her stupor and looked a little bit embarrassed. "I didn't tell anybody, no, I kinda forgot...but Hermione said to bring anyone I thought would be interested, she didn't mention anything about it being limited to certain people."
"Because nobody else would think to bring a Slytherin," Marietta added in unhelpfully, her reddish-blonde curls getting tangled around the buttons of her coat with a sudden gust of icy wind.
Ramona said nothing in retaliation, knowing it would do nothing but cause more problems, and she'd rather save her nastier insults for Umbridge instead of wasting them on Marietta.
"Mona has just as much of a right as anybody else to be here, her House shouldn't dictate stuff like that," Cho squeezed her hand a little bit tighter and Ramona felt her pulse slow a little. What was the worst that could really happen?
They entered with a creak from the old wooden door, the handle half-rusted and falling off. A good few people were already there, talking in low voices, all of whom seemed to be staring straight at Mona, as if she was the oddest thing they'd ever laid eyes upon. Resisting the urge to collapse in on herself, Ramona flashed Potter a smile and awkward wave as they met eyes and shifted a bit closer to Cho. More people came in after them, some people from the Gryffindor Quidditch team, a few Potter fan club members, Luna Lovegood (who had dreamily smiled at Ramona and took the empty seat beside her), a few Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws she vaguely recognised, three more Weasley siblings and the Quidditch commentator.
The barman was watching this eclectic group of children in bewilderment, having stopped halfway through polishing a dirty glass with an even dirtier cloth. This was probably more business than he got all year. Twenty-nine kids didn't seem like very much of a secret, underground group but she also doubted that this was everybody in the school unhappy with Umbridge's teaching, just those well-known to Potter and stupid enough.
One of the Weasley twins (she wasn't sure which one) did a quick head count and ordered drinks for everyone. He handed them out, only sparing an extra second of a look at Ramona before moving on. "Cheers, cough up everyone, I haven't got enough gold for all of these..."
Everyone rooted through pockets in search of money, coins clinking together as each person dropped their share on the counter in front of the thoroughly displeased looking barman who seemed vaguely familiar before they moved back to sit around an uncomfortably fidgety Harry Potter.
"Er-" said Hermione Granger in a weird, high-pitched voice. "Well-er-hi."
The focus shifted from Potter to her in one unanimous wave.
"Well...erm...well, you know why you're here. Erm...well, Harry here had the idea-I mean I had the idea-that it might be good if people who wanted to study Defence Against the Dark Arts-and I mean, really study it, you know, not the rubbish that Umbridge is doing with us-" her voice cracked a bit, "-because nobody could call that Defence Against the Dark Arts."
"Hear, hear!" Anthony Goldstein raised his Butterbeer proudly.
Granger smiled dimly. "Well, I thought it would be good if we, well, took matters into our own hands," there were a few small choruses of agreement and she continued, slightly more heartened. "And by that I mean learning how to defend ourselves properly, not just in theory but doing the real spells-"
"You want to pass your Defence Against the Dark Arts O.W.L. too, though, I bet?" Michael Corner (she thought that was his name) piped up, ever the little swot.
"Of course I do," she said without missing a beat. "But more than that, I want to be properly trained in defence because...because...because Lord Voldemort is back."
Marietta let out a shriek and spilled Butterbeer all down her front, multiple people flinched, Neville Longbottom let out a weird sort of yelp that he unconvincingly tried to turn into a cough. Even Ramona's eyebrows shot up on her forehead, she'd never thought she'd hear that name out of Granger's mouth, she was so used to the venomous spit that accompanied it when on her sister's lips.
"Well, that's the plan anyways," she fumbled a bit with the sleeves of her jumper. "If you want to join us, we need to decide how we're going to-"
"Where's the proof You-Know-Who's back?" A blonde Hufflepuff with a nose so upturned it was almost remarkable said rather aggressively.
"Well, Dumbledore believes it-" Granger began to explain.
"You mean, Dumbledore believes him," he nudged his head at Potter.
"I'm sorry, who are you?" Both Ramona and Ron Weasley had said rudely in unison, flashing each other briefly surprised looks.
"Zacharias Smith, and I think we've got the right to know exactly what makes him say You-Know-Who's back."
She should've guessed it would turn into something like this, it would be a miracle if she could hold her tongue. She decided to focus on her Butterbeer as an attempt to hold back her temper which only lasted about half a second.
"Was Cedric's corpse not enough proof for you, then?" Her glass clattered loudly as she slammed it a bit too hard against a tabletop, Butterbeer sloshing over the brim.
"It's okay, Burke," Harry said softly, all eyes now on him. "What makes me say You-Know-Who's back? I saw him. But Dumbledore told the whole school what happened last year, and if you didn't believe him, you won't believe me, and I'm not wasting an afternoon trying to convince anyone."
The silence was thick and heavy, only broken by Smith's disdainful voice cutting through again, "All Dumbledore told us last year was the Cedric Diggory got killed by You-Know-Who and that you brought Diggory's body back to Hogwarts. He didn't give us details, he didn't tell us how Diggory got murdered, I think we'd all like to know-"
"If you've come to hear exactly what it looks like when Voldemort murders someone, I can't help you," Harry said, eyes blazing, the tips of his ears faintly red. "I don't want to talk about Cedric Diggory all right? So if that's what you're here for, you might as well clear out."
Nobody moved and it seemed as if the whole room was holding one collective breath, waiting to see what would happen next. Ramona's hand found Cho's again, giving it a small squeeze, and Marietta had slung her arm around her back, in silent support.
Granger cleared her throat, "So...like I was saying...if you want to learn some defence then we need to work out how we're going to do it, how often we're going to meet, and where we're going to-"
"Is it true," a girl with a long thick plait interrupted, (Ramona was starting to feel sorry for Granger), "That you can produce a Patronus?"
A few interested murmurs swept through the group, even Ramona sat up a little straighter.
"Yeah."
"A corporeal Patronus?"
"Er-you don't know Madam Bones, do you?" He asked as a smile split her face.
"She's my auntie, I'm Susan Bones. She told me about your hearing. So-is it really true? You make a stag Patronus?"
"Yes."
Ramona couldn't help but be a little bit impressed, there was many an adult wizard unable to cast the Patronus Charm, the fact that a fifteen year old boy could without having been officially taught it in school, was pretty astounding. The group rang with praises of Potter's capability, to which he looked mortified.
"And didn't you kill a Basilisk with that sword in Dumbledore's office?" Terry Boot, a Ravenclaw who'd had a very brief relationship with Delilah back in second year, said. "That's what one of the portraits on the wall told me when I was in there last year..."
"Er-yeah, I did, yeah."
Cho was beaming at him, awestruck, two young boys who must have been brothers were almost bouncing in excitement, and there were a few impressed whistles.
"And in our first year," Longbottom said quite loudly to Ramona's surprise, she didn't think she'd ever known what his voice actually sounded like. "He saved that Philological Stone-" ("Philosopher's," hissed Granger) "Yes, that-from You-Know-Who."
"And not to mention all the tasks he had to get through in the Triwizard Tournament last year-getting past dragons and merpeople and Acromantula and things..." Cho added in, still smiling at him, he only looked a little bit chuffed to be praised by her.
"Look," he said, and silence descended upon the group, "I...I don't want to sound like I'm trying to be modest or anything, but...I had a lot of help with all that stuff..."
"Not with the dragon," Ramona said. "Or with those Dementors."
He looked a bit embarrassed. "No, no, okay, I know I did bits of it without help, but the point I'm trying to make is-"
"Are you trying to weasel out of showing us any of this stuff?" Zacharias Smith had made a grandiose and moronic return.
"Here's an idea," Ron Weasley said loudly, "why don't you shut your mouth?"
Smith was now red in the face. "Well, we've all turned up to learn from him and now he's telling us he can't really do any of it."
"That's not what he said," snarled one of the Weasley twins, the one that had bought the Butterbeers.
"Would you like us to clean out your ears for you?" The other pulled out a long and sharp looking metal instrument from one of their many Zonko's bags.
"Or any part of your body, really, we're not fussy where we stick this."
Smith eyed it warily, paper-white, and shrunk back a bit in his seat.
"Yes, well, moving on," Granger looked a bit disturbed. "The point is, are we agreed we want to take lessons from Harry?" Sounds of agreement bubbled up from the group, even from the more reluctant of those in attendance. "Right, well, next question is how often we do it. I really don't think there's any point in meeting less than once a week-"
"Hang on," said Angelina Johnson. "We need to make sure this doesn't clash with out Quidditch practice."
"No, nor with ours," said Cho.
"Nor ours," said Smith, some colour having returned to his face.
"I'm sure we can find a night that suits everyone," she said, clearly getting a bit fed up with the constant interruptions. "But, you know, this is rather important, we're talking about learning to defend ourselves against V-Voldemort's Death Eaters-"
Ramona felt a few pairs of eyes dart to her and soured a bit. Honestly, she was just thankful nobody had kicked her out yet. Ernie MacMillan drew away any attention on her, rattling on about exams and how ridiculous it was that the Ministry would employ Umbridge to teach them defence.
"We think the reason that Umbridge doesn't want us trained in Defence Against the Dark Arts," said Granger tentatively, "is that she's got some mad idea that Dumbledore could use the students in the school as a kind of private army. She thinks he'd mobilise us against the Ministry."
Mouths dropped open in astonishment and Ramona almost laughed at the thought of Dumbledore leading an army of kids to attack the Ministry, marching in formation.
"Well, that makes sense," piper up Luna Lovegood, not looking remotely surprised. "After all, Cornelius Fudge has got his own private army."
Ramona did chuckle a bit at that, disguising it as a cough.
"What?"
"Yes, he's got an army of Heliopaths," she said solemnly.
"No, he hasn't," snapped Granger.
"Yes, he has."
"What are Heliopaths?" Longbottom asked blankly.
"They're spirits of fire," her eyes widened even more, looking like misty crystal balls, "great, tall flaming creatures that gallop across the ground burning everything in front of-"
"They don't exist, Neville."
"Oh, yes, they do!"
"I'm sorry but where's the proof of that?"
"There's plenty of eye-witness accounts. Just because you're too narrow-minded you need to have everything shoved under your nose before you-"
"Hem, hem."
Ramona whipped around in alarm, wondering how on earth Umbridge had managed to slip in unseen, only to realise it had been Ginny Weasley in an impeccable imitation of Umbridge, now laughing to herself. "Weren't we trying to decide how often we're going to meet and have defence lessons?"
"Yes," said Granger, regaining her composure. "Yes, we were, you're right, Ginny."
"Well, once a week sounds cool," said the Quidditch commentator, Lee Jordan.
"As long as-"
"Yes, yes, we know about the Quidditch," said Granger tensely. "Well, the other thing to decide is where we're going to meet..."
Everyone fell into deep thought, wracking their brains for any place that could suit a large group of kids meeting up in secret rebellion. Ramona thought first of the Forbidden Forest but quickly dismissed the idea, few would willingly enter the forest, they would definitely get in even more trouble if caught going there seeing as it was off limits and loud noises tended to attract unsavoury creatures that would love to snack on some little kids.
"Library?" suggested Katie Bell.
"I can't see Madam Pince being too chuffed with us doing jinxes in the library."
"Maybe an unused classroom?" suggested Dean Thomas.
"Yeah," Ron Weasley perked up, "McGonagall might let us have hers, she did when Harry was practicing for the Triwizard Tournament."
Ramona didn't interact with the Gryffindor Head of House much outside Transfiguration class but she couldn't see her allowing them to so blatantly go against Umbridge, especially considering she was now evaluating the professors and essentially held their jobs in her pudgy little fists.
"Right, well, we'll try to find somewhere. We'll send a message round to everybody when we've got a time and place for the first meeting," she dug through the contents of her bag and pulled out a long piece of parchment and a quill. "I-I think everybody should write their name down, just so we know who was here. But I also think that we ought to agree not to shout about what we're doing. So if you sign, you're agreeing not to tell Umbridge or anybody else what we're up to."
Several people exchanged dubious and less-than-happy looks at this prospect. Ramona practically leapt to her feet and cheerily scribbled down her name at the top of the page, before passing it behind her to one of the Weasley twins. Sneakily, she watched which name he signed, okay so the taller one was Fred...or was he actually taller or was George slouching? She supposed she'd never truly know.
"Er..." Zacharias Smith eyed the parchment the slouching twin was trying to hand him, "well, I'm sure Ernie will tell me where the meeting is."
However, Ernie Macmillan also looked to have his own reservations about signing. "I-well, we are prefects," she resisted the urge to mock him in a high-pitched voice, "and if this list was to be found...well, I mean to say...you said yourself, if Umbridge finds out-"
"You just said this group was the most important thing you'd do this year," said Potter dryly.
"I-yes, yes I do believe that, it's just-"
"You're a coward," Ramona finished for him, unable to help herself, "and a hypocrite."
"I-no-"
"Do you honestly think they'd just leave this lying around?" she said, suddenly aware that everyone was looking at her. "Either way, it doesn't specify anything, just a list of names for our study group."
He opened his mouth before quickly closing it again and mulling over his words, "No, of course not. I-yes, of course, I'll sign."
After that, nobody argued about signing their names, though Marietta hesitated and shot Cho a reproachful look. When finally, all twenty-nine names had been signed, Granger snatched up the parchment and slipped it back into her bag
"Well, time's ticking on," non-slouchy twin stretched and got to his feet. "George, Lee and I have got items of a sensitive nature to purchase, we'll be seeing you all later."
The rest of the group began to gather their stuff and leave in the twos or threes they came in, braving the biting cold outside. Ramona planned on making a beeline to the Three Broomsticks for a Butterbeer that didn't taste like a goblin had pissed in it and to meet her sister who she hadn't seen in months.
"Burke?" Potter's voice sounded from behind her. "Can we...talk a second?"
Ramona glanced at Cho who lingered in the process of putting on her cloak, clearly wanting to stay, but Marietta's incessant foot-tapping seemed to be winning her over. She motioned for them to go on without her and closed the few feet of distance between her and the Chosen One. "You're not going to kick me out before the first meeting, are you? Because I'd have preferred you just told me straight off the bat."
"I-no," he squinted at her as if he was trying to figure her out, Granger and Weasley standing a bit behind him on either side, like sentries. "Why'd you come?"
"Simple," she said, mentally preparing herself for a cross-examination, "I hate Umbridge, you hate Umbridge, and I want to be ready to protect myself and my loved ones when Voldemort strikes back."
"So you believe me then?"
Ramona scoffed, sounding a little more condescending than she would've liked. "Obviously, he murdered my best friend and my parents tend to run with several of his acquaintances. Also, I don't believe everything the Ministry tries to shove down our throats, just because they're in charge, doesn't mean they're right."
None of them said a word for a few seconds, the only noise being the steady squeaking of the bartender still scrubbing the glass which only seemed to be getting dirtier.
"Right...thanks then."
"Eloquent and articulate as always, Potter," she smiled faintly. "See you three round."
With a lazy wave over her shoulder, Ramona set back out into the chilly autumn air, jogging to try and catch up with the others and trying not to over-analyse whatever had just happened and convincing herself that this wasn't a mistake.
~~
Regina Burke was almost identical to her sister, the same dark skin and frizzy curls and the same dimple in her left cheek, but she was taller and more gaunt-looking, her face hollowed and carved out where Ramona still had some baby fat. But, the most distinctive thing about Regina was the scarred over, burnt flesh stretched tight across her right side, crawling up her neck and just tipping over her jaw. It aged her tremendously, the scar, and when she wasn't smiling, it made her look haunted. But when she caught sight of her little sister, arms hugged close to her sides, her face split into the brightest smile ever seen.
"Mona," she held her close to her chest, tightly, as if she were afraid Ramona might disappear, "Merlin, I've missed you."
"Whose fault is that?" They slid into a booth, still beaming.
"Mine, I know, I've been so busy."
Ramona took the Butterbeer already laid out before her and wrapped her hands around the mug to warm her frigid fingers. "With what, Gina? Your letters are so vague it sometimes makes me think you're hiding something."
Regina had never been very good at lying, especially when things were sprung upon her, emotions tended to rise up on her face, which meant she was terrible at card games. "I-well-I...promise you won't tell?" She leaned forwards over the table and lowered her voice.
"Cross my heart."
"I'm...I'm sort of, kind of, maybe working with a secret group of rebels trying to stop the Big Arsehole."
Ramona's eyebrows shot up an inch on her forehead though she was not particularly surprised, Regina was known for being reckless and stubborn and where Ramona was all words, Regina was all fists. "Well that's a coincidence, I just joined a secret group to stop our own local tyrant in a pink cardigan not thirty minutes ago."
"What a coincidence."