Chapter 5: A premeditated Sabotage:
Not too far from the Greengrass and Davis dorm, Draco was still restless. He had just finished writing his letter and was anxious to impart Daphne's perspectives - He hoped that this information would be useful to his father. In the morning, he would visit the owlery, to send his message. His letter was obviously filled with complaints. Longbottom, Weasley and Lovegood were cheaters, the teachers liked them, they had gotten Godfather Severus in trouble, and they thought that they owned the place. All of it, if taken at face value could perhaps be considered selective favouritism. Lucius was a man who considered his son's opinion above all others, and it was unlikely that Draco could ever be honest enough to provide his father with an accurate assessment of his enemy's capability.
Draco unlike other students did not possess an owl. He possessed a gyrfalcon, which was the fastest bird in level flight. This bird had been specially trained by Lucius, to deliver mail. Of course, Lucius had a rather unique technique for getting mail promptly. Many of the minor darker houses, acted as point-to-point floo couriers. After Draco had attached the letter to his falcon, he would fly to Warrington Manor where the now widowed Lady Warrington would merely floo into Malfoy residence with the correspondence. This would allow a maximum of four hours lead time for communication. Draco was quite sure that by tomorrow morning, he would have instructions from his father. Draco went to sleep, as he imagined hexing Neville Longbottom, Ronald Weasley and Luna Lovegood.
Severus Snape considered his options, as he realised that even the rumour of the events that had transpired today could have dire consequences. As he entered his study after assigning detentions for the evening, he saw a slip of paper on his desk. When he read it, he boiled with rage.
"Snivellius."
Severus Snape marched directly into Albus Dumbledore's office, as he considered that Sirius Black was the only person who could send him this note. Was Sirius working with Augusta?
The conversation that night continued, as Albus suspected that perhaps the Storm-Lord was probably involved. As Severus recounted his experiences and his legillimency attempts, it seemed that the boy had truly figured out the clue on the fly and that he had no knowledge of Sirius Black or the Storm-Lord. Of course, while Snape had been attempting passive legillimency on the "trio", he had no idea that he was facing the magic of Morgana, the Grand Enchantress herself, as the bracelets provided what was necessary to fool him.
"It seems that he is acting through intermediaries. He is providing anonymous tip-offs to shape the chess game to his liking. I am somewhat concerned if he has a score to settle with you. Perhaps Sirius Black spoke to him, and the comment on the paper was meant to annoy you." Albus explained to the Potions professor.
"Can you find any magical trace?" asked Snape.
"No. There is no magic on this item. And that is concerning. All detective work depends on tracing magical signatures. This means he is a literal ghost. Never have I seen such a skill, in my life. I have considered all the events, and you will speak to Lucius Malfoy and see if he can do something for you. You will continue to work within Hogwarts, but I think I will have to call Slughorn out to teach, Severus. The Storm-Lord is a killer, and do not think for a moment that he would not kill you. I am sorry, but I cannot lose you. You are integral to my war effort.
He managed to get an item into your quarters, and no wards were tripped. Even if an elf had apparated and delivered the item, I would have known - my reasons are justified. And if is not beyond using muggle ideas for weapons, you could have met a bomb or a grenade. I am aware that you aren't too familiar with those weapons, but I can assure you I have seen enough of them. Go and speak to Lucius. We will see how things unfold."
Snape nodded as he prepared to leave Hogwarts, as he prepared to leave the castle. Albus already knew that the Storm-Lord's phoenix had delivered the object, but Fawkes neither nor any tracking spell seemed to be able to locate the Storm-Lord. Harry in the meanwhile listened on as usual, as he continued his experimentation with the piezoelectric polymer. Harry with Hermione's assistance had managed to manufacture the substance within the workshop, as he attempted to "dope" the material with some powdered superconducting materials. Harry was now looking to integrate the polymer fibre bundle into a spare version of the armoured exoskeleton. If the muscle was responsive, then the hard work of building a control system would be the next step. Hermione had offered to take over the project if the prototype worked out – she was quite the chemical expert.
Simultaneously, Sirius and Remus were now checking the inventory for the new Quidditch armour, Stormbolt performance module, enhanced clothing and the beater bats. They needed to have enough raw materials to meet demand. While most of the manufacturing could be multitasked by Invictus with his connection to the CNC machines, Sirius liked relaxing around the shop to provide Remus company – he had taken a great liking to business management and often read books on business and product development. Sirius had every intention to manage the logistics end of the business ventures, and he assisted Lorna with the sourcing of materials and tools.
The construction of the scaled down StarFury frame was now underway. Soon enough, Harry would trial his next innovation – he had developed highly efficient superconducting motors and the idea was to "copycat" known commercial jet engine designs and merely eliminate the turbine stage, as the energy to drive the compression stage would come from the motor. While the design of the internal geometry required complicated mathematics, Harry had decided that controllable Protego fields would allow him to quickly prototype geometries without heavy manufacturing costs. The forcefield would hold the pressure and gasses, instead of using a traditional metal structure.
Professor Sprout was impressed with Neville's knowledge of magical plants. He had developed personal methods to harvest them for potion ingredients. Pomona upon observing Neville's competence assigned him as an informal class helper. As he passed around he assisted various students with shovelling soil, the fire-making charm and the severing charm. The trio had once again interacted with everyone, except Malfoy and his gang. The result was that Tracey, Daphne, Ismelda and Merula had all managed to score points in the class, while the other darker Slytherins had merely frowned.
Later in the day, the Slytherins experienced their first shock. According to Draco, Professor Snape had been "imperiused" and his father would "set the situation straight." Upon entry to the class, the three missing students became the source of many whispers. Those who were ill-informed, believed that the Professor had removed the troublemakers. Then, Vincent Crabbe and Gregory Goyle lost points for throwing items into the cauldrons of other students. Pansy Parkinson followed, by losing points for gossiping with Millicent Bulstrode. People began to suspect that Augusta Longbottom had been the victor of yesterday's confrontation. The Slytherins realised that Severus Snape was being fair to everyone, although the distaste could be seen on his face. Daphne and Tracey who had no love for Severus Snape smiled. No, this was an appropriate punishment for those who believed that they were untouchable.
The snakes were generally the most incapable group of students, under fair treatment.
At the kitchen, Amba and Molly were working with Hermione as Harry was busy at the workshop. Harry had designed some innovative "magical kitchen appliances" and they were being tested today. The true highlight was the "Vege-master", which was a name that Sirius had jokingly suggested for Harry's latest innovation. The unassuming box was made from scraps of other current and unused projects. Vegetables were washed with a conjured Aguamenti, sorted and peeled based on similarity. A vanishing charm did away with any contaminants and then Protego summoned blades provided any type of chop and dice from preselected options in the floating holographic menu. The result was a moron could load any number of random vegetables into the tray and the machine would spit out groups of sliced or diced vegetables, in separate organised piles.
The other two appliances included a storage device that when clipped to any standard container, generated an internal Protego shield that was airtight. Then a vanishing charm allowed the contents to be vacuum sealed, as air and any other contaminants were vanished. Very soon, (under Hermione's suggestion) the implement was also being used to perform vacuum marination, and Hermione was now thinking about the possible application of this device as a makeshift pressure cooker. Finally, were just plain "spell recorders" that allowed Molly to program any spell into a set of wands, and this allowed Amba to execute complex tasks by pointing and pressing a button. Molly found herself perplexed as all the hard work had been taken out of the cooking and all the preparation or 'Mise en place' was now a matter of just having bowls ready. Even Amba was left scratching her head, as it seemed that cutting vegetables were no big deal, and pots and pans could be washed with Molly's recorded spells.
"Well, Ms Weasley? What do you think? Everything still needs some minor improvement, but these kitchen devices are all yours." Hermione explained. She was surprised at the large hug that she received from Molly.
"Oh Hermione, this is the greatest thing both of you and Harry have ever built. And I mean that after seeing the impressive weapon collection you have at the Manor. And no dishes to wash either? I honestly feel a bit confused. I always had to refresh the spell and guide the intent of it, while it was being done, now they can clean themselves."
"Would you laugh if I told you I am trying to develop a vegetarian meat substitute, that will be delicious and be reproducible with a spell? I am using the Grape Juice to Wine transforming spell as inspiration?" replied Hermione.
"You two, are a never ending set of ideas all day. These items alone will change cooking for magicals. Many people who do not have elves will love these items. I wonder what we should do next?" asked Molly
"Molly, I have an idea. Most of your spells are used for cooking British things? I would like to teach you some of my dishes. Let me see if your spell work can manage with my paratha. And perhaps we can experiment? Noodles and other things would be handy. I learnt some Chinese recipes for Priya, she always wanted takeout much too regularly as a child." Amba suggested.
"I think that is great. I am happy I came by! I have some new ideas as to new appliances that we can build. Imagine if the bowls could identify what item was present and they could levitate towards you when called. While it isn't necessary, Harry and I might build it just for the challenge. We will stop by tomorrow and Friday, to keep you company."
Hermione disappeared, as Amba decided to acquaint Molly with all the unhealthy but delicious snacks that Priya had eaten as a child. Some of them included Buffalo Wings, Onion Rings, and Mozzarella Sticks. Priya, like any immigrant child, was always curious to try what was considered foreign to her. However, she also had never given up her personal favourites. Amba had decided to offer everything. After some shopping down the road, Molly and Amba spent the rest of the evening plotting and experimenting to give the Goblins a gastronomical experience, that would eventually filter out into the magical and mundane public.
It was Wednesday night. The Astronomy class had just finished.
Shortly after everyone had returned to their respective common rooms, Draco anxiously read the missive that his father had sent. He was surprised to find out that Snape's sudden behaviour was to embed deeply into the Muggle culture of the school, for the return of the Dark Lord. He would collect information, and present his reports. This intelligence gathering would aid in breaking those who opposed the rightful owners of the system. Draco had also been informed that the Wizengamot session would be postponed to Sunday, as "certain plans" were in motion. These plans were to punish the Muggleborns, and they would be ratified into law. Additionally, a spell had been sent for Draco – it caused Quidditch equipment to malfunction randomly, and he would apply the spell to sabotage the school brooms. Draco had a private meeting late into the night with Jade Ethro, as she promised to help him get access to the school's broom cupboard. The plan was to carry out the sabotage tomorrow night, as Draco would get an opportunity for "Lungbuttum, Luvgud and Weasel to fall their fat asses off, and possibly die."
The poor plebians had no idea that their conversation was being recorded, and that Harry and Hermione were already planning to bust into Hogwarts to take care of the issue themselves, as they had planned for some late-night exploration of the castle in any case.
Thursday had been an uneventful day at Hogwarts, as the trio continued with their Transfiguration and Charms classes during the day. However, the History of Magic class for the evening session was terrible. Luna, Ronald and Neville sat at the back of the class as Binns the ghost, droned on. It was quite unusual that Hogwarts had left a ghost to teach in a position that was better served by a far more appropriate candidate. It was not surprising, however - Hogwarts was certainly a place that valued their quirks. Binns did not attempt to ask questions nor did he care much, about what his students did. There were no points to be awarded within his class, so most students did whatever amused them. Draco spent much of the time signalling Neville with a finger being dragged under his neck. Pansy, Vincent and Gregory were also laughing, but Neville was too busy catching up on assignments. Through the disguised earbuds, Neville and Luna were able to guide Ronald towards quickly ascertaining what was important.
Neville messaged Harry, in the middle of the class:
"Ron knows that we speak to you privately. He doesn't ask, but he already figured out who your mother is, so I say we bring him in. He is responsible, hell he is studying harder than any of us."
"Mione and I will discuss it. It is bloody acrobatics to keep him out of the loop! I see Daphne and Tracey are reaching out. I did leave a breadcrumb with her mother, just for entertainment. I want to see how resourceful she is?"
"If she was friends with your mother Lilly, she probably will figure things out quickly. I think Daphne wants to communicate with us, and I often see her looking at her housemates, in order not to be noticed. She never finds the right time."
"I will organise something for you to communicate with them. After all, it is beneficial to have the right snakes in your corner. Lorna is responsible for engineering everything, and she did most of it according to her, on her throne in the bathroom."
"She is a nutcase - but a good nutcase. We confirmed for tomorrow? Fast food for the professors?"
"Yes. See you later Nev."
Later in the evening, Harry and Hermione were strapped into their armour as they prepared for Hermione's first extended flight. While she had flown the jetpack within Diagon alley and other places around Granger manor, today both of them would be going to a small rural place in the countryside. There, they would find the Hogwarts Express parked, as it had reported for maintenance. Harry and Hermione were carrying enough audio and video transmitters to bug every seat in every carriage, and nothing that was discussed on the Hogwarts express would be sacred or private. Invictus was also tracking Jade Ethro with a small micro drone. As soon as Harry and Hermione were finished, their next task was to fly to Hogwarts to deal with the broom sabotage.
Of course, this implied some type of mad idea was being tested. When Harry had finished with his initial explanations, Hermione found herself impressed at the next level of engineering insanity that had come about.
In comparison to Harry's first operation at Azkaban, the jetpack had been improved. An afterburner had been added to the primary main thrusters, which had been doubled in size. JP-7 jet fuel was now stored in a tank that offered five times its normal capacity, with an extension charm. A small modification allowed water (conjured by a trusty Aguamenti) to be sprayed into the thruster inlet to provide additional cooling and to increase the mass of the thrust. Finally, unlike most afterburners that used a flame holder, the final piece of ingenuity was a FiendFyre combustion system, that would offer far better and complete ignition of the JP-7 jet fuel.
At the theoretical maximum speed of 720 kph, another ongoing goal was to probe air traffic control and see if the mystery wizards or algorithms would intercede on their behalf, to tag them merely as high-speed brooms. Harry wanted to get at the bottom of how flying wizards were never reported by air traffic control, as it suggested that the collaboration between both words was far deeper than the Ministry of Magic. Generally, air resistance was the biggest issue with flying at great speed, and the journey would occur at an altitude of about five kilometres, which was half the typical height of a commercial airliner. It was also an opportunity to test the primitive Heads Up Display that they had both developed, as they had found a way to conjure a "micro-illusions". It would the basis of an entire battlefield awareness suite. For now speed, directions and text messages were possible. As they launched towards their first location three hundred kilometres away, they gradually increased their speeds. Harry realised that he had converted Hermione – as she became more confident, she freely experimented with orienting her body as she screamed in excitement through the test flight. Sirius and Remus looked on through the remote cameras, as they realised that they were for all their childhood pranks, very reserved.
"Padfoot, how are they going? I know they made improvements to the thruster pack. Is everything alright?" asked Remus.
"Moony, both of them are raving lunatics, they are cruising at 600 kph. So, 370 mph in wizarding measurements. And I thought James liked to fly fast!"
"Wait until they are finished with that monstrosity that they are building in the corner of the shop. I have to admit, I can't wait for its first maiden flight when it is completed. We had to make some changes to the frame, as we need enough surface area on the wings for atmospheric flight. Harry has been crunching those aerospace textbooks like his morning cereal."
"We are the children in this relationship, aren't we Moony?" Sirus grinned. Remus laughed and nodded, as he continued with the manufacture of the Quidditch armour, the beater bats and the Stormbolt module. He would create the physical pieces, and the charms and runes would be done by Harry and Hermione separately.
Jade Ethro had silently passed off a handwritten note to Warrington, as she proceeded to take Draco, Vincent and Gregory to the broom storage room in the castle. Here, Draco applied his custom hex to all twenty Cleansweep III brooms in the room. He hoped that some students would at least, end up with broken bones. And if some of them could die, that would not be unwelcome. He and the rest of his clique laughed - The brooms were only going to be used for a single flying class tomorrow evening, and they were guaranteed some good entertainment. As the group left the broom room, Harry and Hermione merely walked in and replaced all of the sabotaged brooms, with Stormbolts from his inventory. Then, they spent the next two hours flying around the castle under invisibility. They also placed transmitters at assigned location pins for various parts of the castle. Simultaneously while Harry and Hermione were flying around the castle, Fred and George were experimenting with the Marauder's map, as they were exploring an unused passage. That was when they saw two unusual things.
Firstly, was a "Peter Pettigrew" who was skipping through walls, that did not seem connected. In reality, Peter Pettigrew was using some of the drains that he was familiar with – he had determined that he did not want to stay in Wizarding England, as the Storm-Lord had killed so many other Death Eaters. He planned to find the Dark Lord and help him return before the Storm-Lord murdered him. Never, could anyone have guessed that Percy Weasley's pet rat was an animagus. The traitor that had given the Potters to the Dark Lord had been residing at the Weasley residence, all along in a cage.
The second unusual thing for the twins, was that Hermione Granger and Hadrian Peverell were zooming around Hogwarts. As they waited behind a little alcove, they saw nothing as the two people supposedly passed in the same corridor. There was a small noise, but nothing could be observed. They continued to track the dots on the map, as suddenly they left the school grounds, at a speed that made even the Rudra that Charlie possessed, look like a snail. As they squinted their eyes, they could see some coloured lights that rapidly ascended to the sky, as "they" disappeared into nothing.
"Forge, we need to figure out who are the mystery people. What do you think we should do?"
"Gred, we can take one of the Puking Pastilles. Better to give it a test? Then we can spend all day hospitalised in a corner and check the map. You take the first eight hours, I can do the second shift?"
"Bottoms up, first thing in the morning. I think they are our kitchen visitors, but we need to make sure. Hadrian cannot be a coincidence, right Forge?"
"Maybe Singh is the adopted name. Maybe his family carries the title Peverell. This map has never lied?" George suggested.
The next morning, Neville was already pushing the entire group, hard. As the group finished up with their endurance run, Neville worked through the squats, push-ups and the infamous burpees. Charlie was right behind Neville. Percy took a rest and Ronald deliberately soldiered through the pain. The rest were gasping for breath. Meanwhile, Harry and Hermione were invisible, as they ran on a separate pathway that was a bit further from the Quidditch pitch. As the pair finished their exercise, Invictus via the drone informed the group of their visitors.
"Harry! For the one mile distance I did 3: 40 this morning. That is three seconds faster than the Men's world record! With no magic assisting me! And I did the rest of the run in twenty nine minutes. That is Olympic performance!" Hermione beamed.
"I owe you a hug, as soon as we aren't under the cloak. Invictus just told me that Daphne and Tracey are waiting for Neville. Two other girls came out to admire our boys. Oh, I want to see what happens!" Harry laughed.
"Hmm, let us go and see then?" Hermione suggested.
As Neville walked toward Daphne and Tracey, he was surprised to find them in their pyjamas. Their coats were fairly thick and long – perhaps they were charmed. Daphne began the conversation as Luna and Ronald looked on. The others broke off and went their separate ways.
"Good morning Mr Longbottom. I can see you and your friends are out for a morning run."
"We certainly are? How can I help you, Ms Greengrass?" Neville replied.
"I want to offer a temporary alliance, for a mutually beneficial goal?" Daphne insisted.
"Hmmm, interesting. What do you want and what are you offering?" he asked.
"I am impressed with your magical capability. House Slytherin generally makes its points by blatant favouritism. Sadly, the morons who are in denial don't seem to understand that it no longer works. Tracey and I want to study with you secretly. In return, I am willing to offer information about in-house Slytherin discussions."
Luna leaned over and whispered something into Neville's ear.
"Hmmm…..the problem with that Ms Greengrass is that we already know what the set of edge lords plan to do. Inquisitorial Squad led by Draco? Check. Revenge against the Storm-Lord? Check. Hell, we even know that Blaise is generally the first person up, and you will have to leave in the next twenty five minutes to not be seen by anybody" he said casually.
Daphne was now flabbergasted. Longbottom already knew their business? But how was that….
"By the way, does your Legatus want a book on the Roman Empire to read? All those terms have been used out of context. I suppose they think the Latin makes them sound cool. Dux Jade Ethro? Ha! What a bunch of donkeys. No deal."
Daphne was now disappointed and prepared to bid Neville a good day. Maybe he didn't like Slytherins? He merely continued:
"However…."
Daphne was wondering what was the punch line now.
"I would love to be your friend? No politics. Only a promise to have your back, if you will have mine, on the condition that you bring Tracey along. Your plus one, for my plus two. You see, Luna has detected an absence of Nargles and Umgubular Slashkilters, which means you are capable of feeling happy and you aren't too manipulative if it isn't necessary."
Tracey was confused as she yelled "What?"
"One day my young grasshopper, one day" Luna giggled, dreamily. Daphne who was not accustomed to a genuine offer of anything without conditions, found herself like a fish out of water.
"Er…uh…okay? Yes, I would like that?"
Suddenly there was a bout of laughter as the usually eloquent and articulate Daphne Greengrass seemed unable to find words. After the giggling of the group was over, she continued:
"How will we communicate?"
Harry and Hermione who were cloaked, found Neville's blatant and confident negotiation to be excellent. It seemed a lot of the mock roleplay and debate sessions had paid off. They continued to observe the transaction, as Neville continued.
"I will have something for you soon. It will be an item that will allow us to chat discreetly."
"Why are you exercising this early in the morning? It is very cold. That stuff looks brutal!" asked Tracey. Ronald decided to explain.
"Exercise has the benefit of making your magical core much more efficient. Your magical core never gets bigger, rather it becomes more efficient as you use magic regularly. Why do you think Neville and Luna's spells are powerful? On the other hand, I think maybe by November, I will see minor improvements. They had a two month headstart."
"That is interesting to know. My mother always believed that magical strength was discipline. After all, she knew a Muggleborn witch who was easily the most talented person she had met, and as she always reminds me, talent is talent. And yes my mother was a snake, just like me." Daphne replied.
"I think you and Tracey are perfectly alright. Who are those two girls staring at us, from the west wing?" asked Ronald.
"Oh, they are your admirers! Ismelda and Merula came out to watch you and Neville respectively, I think. They think you guys are hot stuff. So I heard yesterday?" Tracey insisted. Harry and Hermione, who were watching the whole spectacle, were quite surprised as Neville and Ronald did not seem to care. Luna seemed a bit possessive and somewhat pissed, and Ronald had a far-off look on his face.
"Yikes, Daffy, they are both taken. Too bad for them, they are nice witches. Not an inch of pureblood mania in them. Anyway, see you guys later." Tracey replied.
"This was enjoyable? I can see why bravery is important to you. Slytherins don't do unconditional friendship. My mother was the recipient of such an arrangement, and it was one of the most cherished things that she had in her life. And yes, my Slytherin mother had a Gryffindor friend. I did not want to be left behind - Lions are supposed to be entertaining?" answered Daphne, as she could have never predicted the little nugget of information that would come her way.
"You know, I like her already. Her mother was good friends with my mother. Maybe we will have to see where our friendship goes?" Harry whispered to Hermione, as she smiled. Neville then dropped his favourite ton of bricks.
"That is incorrect. Salazar Slytherin was Godric's best buddy, and they never had any quarrels. We are aware that someone distorted the story, to serve political ends. Don't ask me how I know that, as I am under oath. He would have fought for talented muggleborns to be in his house. What I can say is that we are looking to obtain the evidence. Ambition is Ambition. Hang around us long enough, and one day we will tell you the how and the why of that," answered Neville Longbottom.
Daphne nodded as she realised that Neville was sitting on a big secret, that could upturn the entire wizarding world – his face had seemed so ironclad sure of his claim, that Daphne realised that there was no need for deception. His face almost seemed like her father, when he often revealed something profound. As both girls walked back to the Slytherin Dorm, Ismelda and Merula were only too curious to know if they were also interested in the boys. They accosted Daphne and Tracey.
"Hello Daphne, did you talk to Neville?" asked Merula, with some jealousy on her face.
"I did. I wanted to find out why they exercise. They are training for Quidditch. We were there on House business. Let us say the Greengrasses want to trade plants with the Longbottoms."
"You could be lying?" replied Ismelda.
"I tried to introduce both of you to them, but the boys didn't seem interested. We aren't there for romantic reasons, they aren't our type. I think it is an excellent thing for neutrals like ourselves to not be aligned to the darker houses, they are dying off rather quickly." Daphne explained. Ismelda and Merula considered that such an open display of friendship would help them get by also. However, they still seemed a bit jealous, so Tracey butted in with her lewd but highly effective perversion and misdirection tactics.
"You can ask both of them yourself about Daphne's valiant attempt before she was put down quickly. I need a girl, not into guys. Hannah Abbott is my type, and I want to slither inside that robe maybe in about four years. We should have a nice rack under that shirt! Hmm, yes she will be delicious!"
Both of the girls were surprised, as Tracey continued to be cantankerously descriptive:
"Daphne's needs as the Ice Princess could have only been satisfied by hot steamy studmuffin like Harry Potter himself, as she always had a thing for him. Too bad he kicked the bucket. Didn't you hear, he was tall and shredded. His family were Gryffindors, so just imagine him and Daffy in a relationship. It would be the talk of the town! A snake and a lion in lurve….Oui la la!"
Suddenly the other girls giggled, as Daphne looked at Tracey with a rather pissed expression. The girls took the annoyance to mean that some great secret had been let out into the public. Tracey continued:
"Seriously, ask the guys yourself, we tried hard to be your wing girls. Ask them? We promise we don't want them for ourselves. I need another woman, and Daffy needs a Harry Potter replacement and a nice, lonely wall somewhere?"
Daphne punched Tracey, and suddenly the other girls did not feel so wary. They mistook her general annoyance to mean that Daphne liked her men big and strong. In reality, she just wanted a guy who wasn't a psychopath – she had received many marriage offers, and those boys were the last people she wanted to have conversations with, daily. She was also academic, and she wanted time to research and continue her studies. She was not interested in being a doormat for any Noble Lord. Soon enough, all four girls found themselves in their dormitories. Tracey stood at the slightly ajar door in their dormitory, as she looked on. Then, she saw Blaise tumble out of his dorm. As he yawned, she quietly closed her door, as she confirmed that besides Ismelda and Merula, nobody was none the wiser.
Little did both of them know that today was going to be a crazy day.
Friday's timetable was unusual – it was the only known case of a double session for a subject. Today, it was Defence Against the Dark Arts from mid-morning right until lunch. Professor Quirrell seemed to spend a lot of time discussing theoretical aspects of magical combat and did not seem too keen on any demonstrations. As he walked around the class, Neville sat in his chair as he carefully paid attention to the stuttering and unsure man.
Something was wrong. Something was terribly wrong. As Neville considered his instincts, he received a message from Harry.
"Hi Nev, we were in the castle last night. We came by to explore but more importantly, Draco tried to sabotage the school brooms last. We replaced the twenty brooms, with Stormbolts, but keep an eye out for anything suspicious. We should have the food ready soon. Mipsy has been ordered to keep tabs on the Minnie Mouse, Lil Fil and Shouty Sprouty."
"Okay. I have a bad feeling about Quirrel. Something just feels wrong. There is something that is utterly evil about him. What should I do?" Neville asked.
"Ask Luna to check him? I will take look at him myself, eventually. As for your suggestion, tonight we will fetch Ronald and bring him into the fold. Going off to the kitchen now. I have A-Level classes later and then some work in the shop."
"Have fun, Harry!" Neville replied before he messaged Luna.
"Can you check Quirrell? See if any unusual critters are floating about?" Neville suggested.
Luna then engaged her veil sight, as she examined the stuttering, turban wearing professor. Ronald and Neville did not fail to notice the trickle of perspiration that suddenly dripped from her oily temple. What she had seen was terrible enough to make her somewhat pale complexion, even more white. She even seemed to close her eyes occasionally, as she squinted and shook her head. It was beneficial that the trio generally took the last row in their classes, as this guaranteed that nobody could see them, as they utilised their data slates.
Luna replied:
"Nargles? Check. Slashkilter? Check. Giant freakish centipede eel thing that I have never seen before? Check. The new creature is sucking some kind of mist out of his body. Looks like magic. This man has…health issues."
Neville and Ronald had to bite down on their laughter, but at least his intuition had panned out. Something was unnatural about the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor. He could sense the magic coming off of the man, as the exercise had left his magical core and sensitivity buzzing. The trio continued to take their notes quietly, as Draco watched back often at Neville with anticipation.
Today, the Mudbloods would pay. During the broom flying class, he and the Slytherins would not attempt to fly any of the brooms. They would pretend that they were having problems with levitating the broom, while the others fell to their deaths.
Professor McGonagall had just finished with her class and was off to the Great Hall. Mipsy had made it her business to track the Professor. She apparated Neville close by and he took a short sprint.
"Afternoon professor. This is a menu from the kitchen. Pick what you want and I will get my elf to get it to Hogwarts. And yes, Ron and Luna will be taking care of Professor Flitwick, and Professor Sprout. No cost attached, as Ms Weasley is treating you guys today"
"Oh, this is a pleasant surprise, but I suppose that today the kitchen is now open? Charlie did mention it to me, but I forgot. Yes, I would like to try…."
Professor McGonagall proceeded to pick out all the items that seemed to be unfamiliar to her, while across the castle Luna and Ronald made arrangements for their Head of House. Ronald personally delivered a lunch with Albus Dumbledore's personal favourites to his office, as this would add to the legitimacy of the Weasley business operations.
"Afternoon Ronald, I see you have a package for me?" Albus Dumbledore asked as he smiled.
"I do. Mum knows your favourites and decided to prepare those items for you. We do however have some extra finger foods you can try. Please, help yourself. Neville has been a great help with the delivery, as his house elf doesn't mind making the deliveries."
"Ah yes, our little friends can be handy indeed. Thank you for the pleasant surprise, my boy. I have been paying attention to your efforts, and I am pleased that all of you are working together. It is good for inter-house unity. It is too much for an old man to hope that a Slytherin will come into the fold?"
"Sir, I don't subscribe to the idea that Slytherins are all terrible people. Some of them, the older pureblood families that believe in blood supremacy? Sure. However, there are lots of good ones, I think. If you keep your ear planted to the ground, we might have a surprise for you." Ronald smiled, with his new charming personality on display.
"I will say nothing then if your group has truly made a new friend. That is something that should truly be congratulated. Off you go, Mr Weasley" the Headmaster replied. Albus Dumbledore, who had travelled the world was pleasantly surprised by the quality of the Chai tea and the samosas. After all, he had these items many years ago when he was in India, as he hunted for the "True Cloak of Invisibility". Albus was quite determined to visit Molly's new business if only to see how they operated. After all, many of these new items were Indian, which suggested that Molly had found another family to partner with - the label had been a dead giveaway.
Weasley-Singh Kitchen.
Hermione and Harry had quickly set up the spell recorders with an improvised runic array that would automatically package the food. The elves had learnt the recipes, and the kitchen had multiple stations where only cooking occurred, as all the other functions has been automated. This eliminated a lot of wasted time, and Ved's job was merely to keep an eye on things. Harry had sent a video of the magical kitchen in operation to his mother in France. Invictus sent a video to Clementine after he informed her of the business venture.
Clementine asked, "Think Grace might be up for a trip to France?"
"Sending a menu to you?" he replied.
"Excellent" the french woman replied, as she continued to work away at restoring many of the Beauxbatons portraits. A plethora of jobs was coming into her new business. One hundred bezants were her starting price to retouch a portrait, and there were only about one thousand of them staring at her. She hoped that Luna could learn quickly enough, and then she would take over that portfolio. Apolline had her hands full with selling Harry's ink, and Clementine was more interested in becoming the creative director for her media studio.
Business was good.
Priya who was on a break looked at the video and found herself surprised at the utter volume of food being prepared. Truthfully, she was impressed as it seemed that Harry and Hermione had developed highly useful products. As a woman, she would enjoy cooking like that. Automatic vegetable preparation? Automatic cleaning of pots and pans? Standing at a pot, and merely calling the ingredients to you? She immediately concluded that Harry and Hermione's kitchen utensils and appliances were easily the most ingenious things they had developed. She went off to her coworkers, who she had become rather close with, to show them the spectacle.
"Gris, Otto, Camilla?" she asked.
"Yes?" Otto answered as Gris and Camilla came over, out of curiosity.
"He and the other one, are up to mischief again. Take a look at my mother's kitchen."
The small group huddled around and observed the new implements. Otto who enjoyed the display of magic asked, "You sure they aren't German? They are very efficient? Does your son's phoenix do deliveries?"
"That can be arranged. She loves to go places?" Priya laughed.
Grace who was quite active, considered today to be very enjoyable, as she zapped around Gringotts, Delacour Manor and the I.C.U unit of the French Hospital, dropping off lunches and snacks everywhere. She found such trips to be good apparition practice, and she did not want to be left behind. After all her wizard was training himself recklessly, and she wanted to keep up.
