The entire hall was looking between Mr Lovegood and the woman on the throne that he claimed was Hecate, the Goddess of Magic Harry wasn't sure what to believe anymore. On the one hand, he wanted to scoff at the idea of a God or Goddess if there were such a thing, surely they would have learned about it in Hogwarts, but thinking back, the lessons on History of Magic were horrible. Most of the students just went to sleep in that lesson. After all, they can all read the book whenever ever they want, so maybe Binns did talk about Hecate the Goddess of Magic.
Harry looked around and saw that most people didn't believe what Mr Lovegood said, or maybe they just didn't want to believe what he said. After all, if you are called before a Goddess, it can't be good, could it?
The woman on the throne didn't seem to care about all the people staring at her, nor did she react when Mr Lovegood called her Hecate the Goddess of Magic. She seemed aloof from the world and everything that was happening around her.
The woman waved her hand once more. First, everyone found themselves sitting in a place in the makeshift Theater-room, then the wall where the Teachers Table normally was had been covered in a Movie Screen and what seemed to be a video started playing.
An older looking Harry, Ron, and Hermione, along with the bearded man, were all standing in a room looking at a portrait as a girl and a boy walked closer and closer.
Everyone was busy watching the projection that they didn't notice the reaction of Dumbledore or Aberforth flinch when they saw the picture or how Aberforth glared at his brother.
Or the surprised look on his face about a secret passageway into his bar from Hogwarts, he knew there wasn't one there at the moment.
The portrait slowly opened to show a passageway.
"Neville- what the- how-?" Harry spoke in shock while Neville jumped from the hole and laughed when he saw the trio. "I knew you'd come! Kept telling Seamus it was a matter of time!"
"Neville, what's happened to you?"
The longer everyone looked at Neville in the projection, the worse he appeared. One of his eyes was swollen yellow and purple. There were gouge marks on his face.
Harry looked at Neville, who had seemed to pale when looking at the older version of himself, before straightening his back as other people in the room took peaks at him and compared him to the projection.
"This is nothing; Seamus is worse. You'll see. Shall we get going then? Oh," he turned to Aberforth, "Ab, there might be a couple more people to the way."
"Couple more?" repeated Aberforth ominously. "What d'you mean, a couple more, Longbottom? There's a curfew and a Caterwaulding Charm on the whole village!"
"A curfew on Hogsmead what is happening in the future", Madam Bones asked herself aloud. With a few of the adults looking at each other having a silent conversation.
"I know. That's why they'll be Apparating directly into the bar," said Neville. "Just send them down the passage when they get here, will you? Thanks a lot."
Neville held out his hand to Hermione and helped her to climb up onto the mantelpiece and into the tunnel; Ron followed, then Neville. Harry addressed Aberforth.
"I don't know how to thank you. You've saved our lives twice."
"Look after 'em, then," said Aberforth gruffly. "I might not be able to save 'em a third time."
"How long's this been here?" Ron asked as they set off. "It isn't on the Marauder's Map, is it Harry? I thought there were only seven passages in and out of school?"
"The Marauder's Map?" Harry heard some of the other children nearby ask each other while shooting looks at the Golden trio as Remus had a smile on his face and Snape scowled even more than usual.
"What is the Marauder's Map?" Seamus and Deans asked them, leaning over Remus.
"No idea it's the future," Hermione said, saving Ron or Harry from having to come up with a lie.
Harry noticed Lee, Fred and George all giving knowing smiles and looking excited to see where this new passage leads to as well as the teachers paying close attention no doubt in the hopes to block it off so students couldn't sneak out of school.
"They sealed off all of those before the start of the year," said Neville. "There's no chance of getting through any of them now, not with the curses over the entrances and Death Eaters and dementors waiting at the exits."
The entire room fell into an uncomfortable silence. The adults couldn't believe it. They all knew how Dumbledore hated dementors, so why were they at school? Never mind the Death-eaters.
"What is this nonsense" Fudge demanded, jumping up and shouting to the woman on the throne and turning a deeper red by the second as she ignored him. Harry could hear Mr and Mrs Weasley having a hushed talk about death eaters at Hogwarts.
"Dumbledore wouldn't allow it", Harry heard Tonks say to Remus, but Harry thought she was saying it more to herself the Remus.
"I don't understand. Dumbledore would never let those foul creatures back here after last year," Hermione said to Harry.
"Depends if he is still at Hogwarts maybe the Ministry removed him or maybe a Death Eater as Malfoy did like in the second year," Harry said, looking over at Lucius Malfoy, who was looking smug.
"Maybe," Ron said, looking at his parents and seeing how worried they were.
He started walking backwards, beaming, drinking them in. "Never mind that stuff ... Is it true? Did you break into Gringotts? Did you escape on a dragon? It's everywhere; everyone's talking about it. Terry Boot got beaten up by Carrow for yelling about it in the Great Hall at dinner!"
The hushed conversations dropped off as people heard the Golden Trio had broken into Gringotts and somehow escaped on a Dragon. The three of them paled when everyone looked at them, and Harry had to hold back a gulp of fear when he saw the two goblins glaring at the three of them.
"I am sure there is an explanation for our future selves", Harry said, trying to look innocent as Ron and Hermione nodded. Harry could see Fred and George grinning at the three of them and was sure they wouldn't hear the end of this for a very long time.
Harry could see Sirius laughing in dog form, not risking changing into human form. Maybe he wasn't able to change, seeing as magic didn't seem possible in this room from what he had seen when other people had tried. Harry resolved himself to ask the woman that brought them here to change him into his human form.
No sooner had Harry thought that did Sirius's animagus form started to shift, and Harry noticed a few people like Moody and Madam Bones pulling their wands out, making Harry do the same.
"SIRIUS BLACK AURORS, ARREST HIM" Fudge shouted and jumped away in a panic.
Harry heard some of the students scream in fear at the appearance of Sirius black and saw the old Lion looking man draw his wand and cast the stunning charm. Harry, in desperation, slashed his wand in front of him in such a panic he forgot even to say a spell aloud, but to his amazement and many of the others, a bright blue shield covered Sirius.
But no magic ever hit the shield with the Aurors attempts as trying to cast any spell, all failing, making them look at each other in confusion. Unsure what to do next now that they knew they couldn´t use magic. Still, Harry could and was protecting Sirius with Protego Duo, so magical or physical attacks were useless.
All the people shuddered, though when the woman merely said a single sentence in the most threatening voice Harry ever heard.
"No Violence in this room."
All the Aurors looked at the woman in apprehension before slowly putting their wands away. However, they all kept an eye on Sirius, who merely grinned mockingly before sitting down beside Harry.
To the astonishment of practically everyone who knew why Sirius had been imprisoned, they watched as he and Harry hugged each other before peoples attention was drawn back at the screen when they heard it continue.
"But what have you been doing? People have been saying you've just been on the run, Harry, but I don't think so. I think you've been up to something."
"You're right," said Harry, "but tell us about Hogwarts, Neville, we haven't heard anything."
"What do you think we were doing that needed us to break into Gringotts," Hermione asked Harry, wondering if Dumbledore had said anything about doing something after being told about Voldemort.
"Not a clue? It doesn't make any sense for us to be doing it though it sounds like the death eaters seem to be winning," Harry said, looking worried.
Harry could see both Sirius and Remus looking worried.
"It's been ... Well, it's not really like Hogwarts anymore," said Neville, the smile fading from his face as he spoke. "Do you know about the Carrows?"
"Those two Death Eaters who teach here?"
"Death eaters are teaching again. I thought the fake Mad-eye was bad", Ron whispered.
Whispers could be heard all over the hall as people talked about the Carrows teaching at Hogwarts. Some of the Ministry and pureblood families were denying that they were Death Eaters, and they were under the Imperius Curse, making Harry roll his eyes. He was sure that Malfoy could use the torture curse on someone with Fudge watching, and he would deny it.
Some of the Hall looked over at the two twins at the Slytherin table, Hestia and Flora, who were looking annoyed at the mention of their family names. Harry couldn't remember them ever being pro-pure-blood or targeting Muggle-borns, but maybe they were just good Slytherins unline most of the house.
"They do more than teaching," said Neville. "They're in charge of all discipline."
"Like Umbridge?"
"Nah, they make her look tame. The other teachers are all supposed to refer us to the Carrows if we do anything wrong. They don't, though, if they can avoid it. You can tell they all hate them as much as we do. Amycus, the bloke, teaches what used to be Defense Against the Dark Arts, except now it's just the Dark Arts. We're supposed to practice the Cruciatus Curse on people who've earned detentions-"
Pandemonium erupted in the Hall with the different factions, the largest crying out in outrage and disgust demanding a trial with truth potion to see if they were really death eaters. To Harry's enjoyment, he was that Fudge had paled and looked very uncomfortable.
And the people like Lucius not commenting at all with Millicent sneering at people looking at her Harry noticed the masked man seemed unconcerned about the whole thing and was spending most of his time looking at the so-called goddess of magic.
"What?"
Harry, Ron, and Hermione's united voices echoed up and down the passage.
"Yeah," said Neville. "That's how I got this one," he pointed at a particularly deep gash in his cheek, "I refused to do it. Some people are into it, though; Crabbe and Goyle love it. The first time they've ever been top in anything, I expect."
Everyone in the Hall turned and glared at Crabbe and Goyle, who, to Harry's surprise, seemed to notice that what Neville said was terrible for them and started spluttering out about how this could all be a lie, but no one seemed to believe them at all.
Harry could overhear some of the Aurors talking about how they wished they could arrest them. Still, they had not actually committed any crime yet as this was in the future, and one of them pointed out that they just have to keep a close watch on them and arrest them in the future.
Harry wasn't sure that would work. After all, he knew Dumbledore would use this to try and get an edge over Tom so that it didn't come to pass either way.
"Alecto, Amycus's sister, teaches Muggle Studies, which is compulsory for everyone. We've all got to listen to her explain how Muggles are like animals, stupid and dirty, and how they drive wizards into hiding by being vicious toward them, and how the natural order is being reestablished.
I got this one," he indicated another slash to his face, "for asking her how much Muggle blood she and her brother have got."
Harry looked at Neville, and he wasn't the only one and was surprised about how brave he was being. Harry didn't think that Neville wasn't a brave person but had a hard time putting the current one with the one they were seeing in the video.
Harry could see that his Grandmother was looking proud of Neville as well, and some of the people nearby were also encouraging him and saw that Hannah Abbot was looking at Neville in a new light. Harry was sure that they both had feelings for each other, and they both just needed a bit of courage to try dating for them to work out. Maybe this would be the push they needed.
From his pocket, he pulled a golden coin which he showed Harry, Ron and Hermione.
"These have been great," said Neville, beaming at Hermione. "The Carrows never caught on to how we were communicating, and it drove them mad. We used to sneak out at night and put graffiti on the walls: Dumbledore's Army, Still Recruiting, stuff like that. Snape hated it."
"You used to?" said Harry.
Harry noticed the look of outrage and glee in Fudge's face after hearing Neville talking about Dumbledore's Army. No doubt, Fudge would think that he was the target like the fool he was. Harry had seen that he was becoming paranoid and scared of Dumbledore.
They turned a corner, and there ahead of them was the end of the passage. Another short flight of steps led to a door just like the one hidden behind Ariana's portrait. Neville pushed it open and climbed through. As Harry followed, he heard Neville call out for unseen people:
"Look who it is! Didn't I tell you?"
As Harry emerged into the room behind the passage, there were several screams and yells: "HARRY!"
"It's Potter. It's POTTER!"
The Hall was gobsmacked. They had all spent many years at Hogwarts but had never seen a room like it. The room was enormous and was filled with hammocks hanging from the ceiling with the three house banners on proud display.
Harry could hear some of the people that were shown in the room talking excitedly, no doubt not knowing the danger their future selves were in. After all, they had never seen death eaters and had never been placed under the torture curse. Just remembering it sent a shiver through Harry's spine.
"Where are we?"
"Room of Requirement, of course!" said Neville. "Surpassed itself, hasn't it? The Carrows were chasing me, and I knew I had just one chance for a hideout: I managed to get through the door, and this is what I found! Well, it wasn't exactly like this when I arrived. It was a load smaller. There was only one hammock and just Gryffindor hangings. But it's expanded as more and more of the D.A. have arrived."
Harry could see everyone confused. No one had ever heard of the room of requirement, and they had over 80 years worth of people that had been at Hogwarts. Harry could see everyone looking at Ron, Hermione and him as if they would know before looking at the other people they had seen in the room with questioning looks.
But none one was able to say where this room was or what the room even was. Harry heard Remus and Sirius talking and complaining that they had missed a secret room when exploring the castle. Harry knew they had also missed the Chamber of Secrets. Maybe he should talk to them about adding it to the map if nothing more than to have a full and complete map.
"Tell us what you've been up to, though," said Ernie. "There've been so many rumours, and we've been trying to keep up with you on Potterwatch." He pointed at the wireless. "You didn't break into Gringotts?"
What the hell was PotterWatch Harry thought to himself and was reminded how much he hated his so call fame. Why people didn't get that he hated being reminded about his parents being killed always boggled Harry's mind.
"They did!" said Neville. "And the dragon's true too!"
There was a smattering of applause and a few whoops; Ron took a bow.
"What were you after?" asked Seamus eagerly.
Everyone leaned in excited to learn what was so important that they would need to break into Gringotts. The Goblins were still glaring at them, and some of the Aurors were giving them interesting looks, no doubt wondering how they managed to break in. Harry also noticed that some were looking annoyed, and Harry guessed that the paperwork for the dragon would be a nightmare.
Harry couldn't imagine how much work would need to be done to remove that from the muggle population and wondered if they had a wide area spell or ward or something as that was the only way Harry could see that working.
Before any of them could parry the question with one of their own, Harry felt a terrible, scorching pain in the lightning scar. As he turned his back hastily on the curious and delighted faces, the Room of Requirement vanished, and he was standing inside a ruined stone shack, and the rotting floorboards were ripped apart at his feet, a disinterred golden box lay open and empty beside the hole, and Voldemort's scream of fury vibrated inside his head.
Many of the people in the hall gasped, and some of the kids screamed in fear and were comforted being comforted by the old student's Harry couldn't tell if it was fear or revulsion on how Voldemort looked that bothered people the most.
With an enormous effort, he pulled out of Voldemort's mind again, back to where he stood, swaying, in the Room of Requirement, sweat pouring from his face and Ron holding him up.
"Are you all right, Harry?" Neville was saying. "What to sit down? I expect you're tired, aren't-?"
Harry could see that everyone was looking at him. Then Minister had a look of glee on his face and jumped up and pointed at Harry. "See, he is clearly mentally damaged, maybe from the killing curse as a baby. He was never checked out after all," Fudge shouted.
Harry could see that some (Mainly the Slytherins were nodding). Harry saw that most of the hall, thankfully we're not buying what the Minister was saying, but they face the screen was actually showed Voldemort.
"You can see in his mind?" Hermione asked next to me.
"I have never been able to before," Harry said, looking back at the screen worried. "And Lady Hectate placed the seal thing, so I doubt I have to worry about it happening in this world.
"No," said Harry. He looked at Ron and Hermione.
"We need to get going," he said.
"What are we going to do, then, Harry?" asked Seamus. "What's the plan?"
"Plan?" repeated Harry. "Well, there's something we: Ron, Hermione, and I need to do, and then we'll get out of here."
Nobody was laughing or whooping anymore. Neville looked confused.
"What d'you mean, 'get out of here?"
"What do you think that we need to do," Ron asked Harry thinking what they would need to come back to Hogwarts for instead of doing it before leaving Hogwarts. Both Harry and Hermione were also confused as going back to Hogwarts would have been a risky thing to do without people there to support them, and they clearly didn't know about Dumbledores Army.
"We haven't come back to stay," said Harry, rubbing his scar, trying to soothe the pain. "There's something important we need to do-"
"What is it?"
"I- I can't tell you."
"Why can't you tell me?" Neville asked, looking at Harry.
"Im not sure it's the future," Harry said, rolling his eyes as if he knew what his future self was thinking or why he was doing what he was doing.
There was a ripple of muttering at this, and Neville's brows contracted.
"Why can't you tell us? It's something to do with fighting You-Know-Who, right?"
"Well, yeah-"
"Then we'll help you."
The other members of Dumbledore's Army were nodding, some enthusiastically, others solemnly. A couple of them rose from their chairs to demonstrate their willingness for immediate action.
Harry wondered if they had any idea what it would be like to actually fight Deatheaters and Voldemort or how evil the Torture curse really was. It really was the worse pain he had ever felt, and he was bitten by the most poisonous snake in the entire world.
Some of the people in the Hall that were shown on the screen were nodding along, and Harry was sure that they had no clue what a true fight was the fear of knowing that one missed placed spell would be your death. The pressure that came with a duel for your life.
"You don't understand," Harry. "We, we can't tell you. We've got to do it alone."
"Why?" asked Neville.
"Because ..." Harry stopped talking for a moment before continuing. "Dumbledore left the three of us a job," he said carefully, "and we weren't supposed to tell-I mean, he wanted us to do it, just the three of us."
"We're his army," said Neville. "Dumbledore's Army. We were all in it together, we've been keeping it going while you three have been off on your own-"
"It hasn't exactly been a picnic, mate," said Ron.
"Ya, I bet hiding from Voldemort hasn't been any fun. In fact, im surprised that we have been able to do it for a long time," Harry said to Hermione and Ron.
"Maybe we have been hiding at a house with the Fidelius Charm," Hermione said.
That was maybe one of the only advanced charms that Harry knew about and perhaps even knew more than Hermione about once he learned that his parents used it and where it went wrong, and how it could have been fixed.
The projection faded, and the Hall quietened as everyone was coming to terms with what they saw. Some of the adults were whispering that You-Know-Who had really returned, and Harry wished the press was here even if they answered to the Ministry. Harry could hear others talking about leaving the country, with many of the Muggle-borns noddings along with that idea. Something that Harry couldn't blame them for if it were an option for him, he would be tempted to take it, but Harry knew that Voldemort would never stop hunting him down after surviving three encounters with him.
This brought up the question of why his parents didn't leave if they had to go into hiding with the Fidelius Charm. They should have just left the country, but who knows, maybe they couldn't due to death eaters being in the Ministry.
Madam Bones was talking to Moody about what they should do now that Voldemort was back, and Lucius was talking to the Minister about how this is all a stupid joke set up by Dumbledore to try and trick the Minister into believing his stupid story and take over the position of Minister of Magic.
Harry wasn't sure how Fudge was so stupid he bribed his way out of a trial, so Fudge must know that he is a Death Eater or that he bribed his way out of a trial, and Harry was sure that Hermione said that he was in the office of magical law enforcement before becoming Minister so would have seen Lucius file at some point.
Harry was somewhat surprised to see that Malfoys wife didn't look very happy about Voldemort being back and kept taking glances at her son, maybe worried that he was going to be made into a Jr Death Eater.
"I never said it was, but I don't see why you can't trust us. Everyone in this room's been fighting, and they've been driven in here because the Carrows were hunting them down. Everyone in here's proven they're loyal to Dumbledore, loyal to you."
"Look," Harry began but stopped as the tunnel door had just opened behind him.
"We got your message, Neville! Hello you three, I thought you must be here!"
Luna and Dean walked into the room. Seamus gave a great roar of delight and ran to hug his best friend.
"Hi, everyone!" said Luna happily. "Oh, it's great to be back!"
Harry heard some of the girls in Ravenclaw groan when Luna said it was good to be back and narrowed his eyes. Harry always hated bullies reminding him of his cousin and how powerless he was against them. Harry never really got why bullying was allowed at Hogwarts when everyone was armed with a weapon.
"Luna," said Harry distractedly, "what are you doing here? How did you-?"
The moment where Luna and Dean stepped through the Tunnel, Luna felt her Fathers hand in her own as he squeezed it comfortingly. She squeezed his hand back. She knew her Daddy was worried about what might happen to her on that screen.
Next to Remus, both Seamus and Dean breathed a sigh of relief when they saw Dean enter the room. Both had been worried when they had seen Seamus alone on the screen.
"I sent for her," said Neville, holding up the fake Galleon. "I promised her and Ginny that if you turned up, I'd let them know. We all thought that if you came back, it would mean revolution. That we were going to overthrow Snape and the Carrows."
"Of course, that's what it means," said Luna brightly. "Isn't it, Harry? We're going to fight them out of Hogwarts?"
Harry saw Hermione shaking her head, no doubt thinking that it was a stupid plan, and while Harry was not the most forward planning person, he knew that removing the Carrows would only bring more trouble to Hogwarts, either more death eaters or Voldemort himself if someone was to mention seeing Harry Potter there.
Harry also saw Tonk shaking her head with her hair going a pale blue, something Harry would have to ask about and hoped that wouldn't happen to him he had enough people staring at him already.
"Listen," said Harry in a panicked voice, "I'm sorry, but that's not what we came back for. There's something we've got to do, and then-"
"You're going to leave us in this mess?" demanded Michael Corner.
"No!" said Ron. "What we're doing will benefit everyone in the end, it's all about trying to get rid of You-Know-Who-"
"Then let us help!" said Neville angrily. "We want to be a part of it!"
"They have no idea what they are getting themselves into", Harry whispered to himself, thinking they all thought that it was fun and games as none of them on the projection seemed scared that they were going to fight death eaters. That Voldemort would find out and send more to punish them, or maybe they thought the room could keep them hidden forever, which Harry wasn't so sure about.
There was another noise behind them, and Harry turned. Ginny was now climbing through the hole in the wall, closely followed by Fred, George, and Lee Jordan. Ginny gave Harry a radiant smile.
"Aberforth's getting a bit annoyed," said Fred, raising his hand in answer to several cries of greeting. "He wants a kip, and his bar's turned into a railway station."
Harry's mouth fell open. Right behind Lee Jordan came Cho Chang. She smiled at him.
"I got the message," she said, holding up her own fake Galleon, and she walked over to sit beside Michael Corner.
When Fred, George and Ginny stepped through the Tunnel, Molly almost sobbed in relief. Arthur pressed her hand comfortingly as they looked at three more of their Children being alive.
Molly wasn´t sure how much in the future these events were, but she desperately hoped that nothing bad had and would happen to their children in what was shown to them.
Harry got some knowing looks and noticed that Ginny seemed angry for some reason that he wasn't sure about. He hadn't even said anything to her.
"So what's the plan, Harry?" said George.
"There isn't one," said Harry.
"Just going to make it up as we go along, are we? My favourite kind," said Fred.
"You've got to stop this!" Harry told Neville. "What did you call them all back for? This is insane-"
"We're fighting, aren't we?" said Dean, taking out his fake Galleon. "The message said Harry was back, and we were going to fight! I'll have to get a wand, though-"
"You haven't got a wand-?" began Seamus.
"How can you not have a wand," Sirius asked, looking at the kid who seemed to shrink back with Sirius looking at him.
Harry privately thought that if anyone lost a wand, it would be Neville as he is constantly losing things like his robe, which is where Harry guessed Neville would keep his wand as most people do.
Harry could see that most of the adults in the room were giving disapproving looks to Dean.
Ron turned suddenly to Harry.
"Why can't they help?"
"What?"
"They can help." He dropped his voice and said so that none of them could hear but Hermione, who stood between them. "We don't know where it is. We've got to find it fast. We don't have to tell them it's a Horcrux."
Harry looked from Ron to Hermione, who murmured, "I think Ron's right. We don't even know what we're looking for. We need them." And when Harry looked unconvinced, "You don't have to do everything alone, Harry."
"STOP! You can't spread such magic to other people." Dumbledore said, jumping to his feet far faster than his age would lead you to believe. Harry also thought that it was either brave or stupid to try and tell a goddess what to do.
Harry also saw that most people didn't even have a clue what a Horcrux was if it was such a rare piece of magic, then did it even matter if people knew what it was called.
Hecate looked at Dumbledore, and the moment stretched on for what. "No one that doesn't need to know will remember, of course, you being the secretive man who fell into the pit trap of power, would never trust anyone with the knowledge after all, if the great Albus Dumbledore was ensnared, then no one can be trusted," Hecate said in a sarcastic tone before looking back at the rest of the hall.
"There's something we need to find," Harry said. "Something- something that'll help us overthrow You-Know-Who. It's here at Hogwarts, but we don't know where. It might have belonged to Ravenclaw. Has anyone heard of an object like that? Has anyone come across something with her eagle on it, for instance?"
Harry looked hopefully toward the little group of Ravenclaws, to Padma, Michael, Terry, and Cho, but it was Luna who answered, perched on the arm of Ginny's chair.
"Well, there's her lost diadem. I told you about it, remember, Harry? The lost diadem of Ravenclaw? Daddy's trying to duplicate it."
"Yeah, but the lost diadem," said Michael Corner, rolling his eyes, "is lost, Luna. That's sort of the point."
"I make a valid point it is the LOST Diadem. What are the chances it is just lying around in a room in Hogwarts," Michael said.
"Or maybe now is when we find it we know Slytherin had a secret Room maybe Ravenclaw has one" Harry heard someone shoutout whose name he didn't know.
When was it lost?" asked Harry.
"Centuries ago, they say," said Cho, and Harry's heart sank. "Professor Flitwick says the diadem vanished with Ravenclaw herself. People have looked, but," she appealed to her fellow Ravenclaws. "Nobody's ever found a trace of it, have they?"
They all shook their heads.
"Sorry, but what is a diadem?" asked Ron.
"It's like a crown, but less crown-like and more tiara like," Hermione said.
"So which is it a crown or Tiara? It has to look more like one of them than the other," Harry asked, more confused than before.
"And none of you have ever seen anything that looks like it?"
They all shook their heads again. Harry looked at Ron and Hermione, and his own disappointment was mirrored back at him. Before Harry could formulate a new question, however, Cho spoke again.
"If you'd like to see what the diadem's supposed to look like, I could take you up to our common room and show you, Harry. Ravenclaw's wearing it in her statue."
Harry's scar scorched again: For a moment, the Room of Requirement swam before him, and he saw instead the dark earth soaring beneath him and felt the great snake wrapped around his shoulders. Voldemort was flying again.
"Do you think Voldemort knows where you are?" Sirius asked.
"How could he?" Ron asked, confused to which no one had any answer. They hadn't seen anything that would tip him off.
"Maybe the death eater called him if the alarm charm was set off," Remus said.
"Given I have seen how he treats people, I doubt they would call him over an alarm charm being set off," Harry said, remembering the graveyard.
"He's on the move," he said quietly to Ron and Hermione. He glanced at Cho and then back at them. "Listen, I know it's not much of a lead, but I'm going to go look at this statue, at least find out what the diadem looks like. Wait for me here and keep, you know- the other one- safe."
Cho had got to her feet, but Ginny said rather fiercely, "No, Luna will take Harry, won't you, Luna?"
"Oooh, yes, I'd like to," said Luna happily, as Cho sat down again, looking disappointed.
"Does it matter who takes me to look at a statue as long as we see the statue?" Harry asked more to himself as Sirius laughed to himself
"How do we get out?" Harry asked Neville.
"Over here."
He led Harry and Luna to a corner, where a small cupboard opened onto a steep staircase. "It comes out somewhere different every day, so they've never been able to find it," he said. "Only trouble is, we never know exactly where we're going to end up when we go out. Be careful, Harry. They're always patrolling the corridors at night."
"Good planning", Moody commented, and Neville's grandmother seemed to sit a bit straighter at that comment.
No problem," said Harry. "See you in a bit."
He and Luna hurried up the staircase, which was long, lit by torches, and turned corners in unexpected places. At last, they reached what appeared to be a solid wall.
"Get under here," Harry told Luna, pulling out the Invisibility Cloak and throwing it over both of them. He gave the wall a little push. Harry pulled Luna back into the shadows, fumbled in the pouch around his neck, and took out the Marauder's Map. Holding it close to his nose he searched, and located his and Luna's dots at last.
"So that is the map, then it seems like it would have some amazing Charms work when you get it in the future. I would love a look," Professor Flitwick.
Harry could see the twins panicking at the idea of showing a teacher, and the golden trio didn't say anything.
"We're up on the fifth floor," he whispered, watching filch moving away from them, a corridor ahead. "Come on, this way."
They crept off.
"This way, Harry." breathed Luna after a while, plucking his sleeve and pulling him toward a spiral staircase.
They climbed in tight, dizzying circles. At last, they reached a door. There was no handle and no keyhole: nothing but a plain expanse of aged wood and a bronze knocker in the shape of an eagle.
"Well, everyone knows where the common room is now", Harry heard one of the Ravenclaws as if the location of the Common rooms is a great secret. You can just follow any of the students in that house to find out where the room is. Something Harry thought they should have done in the 2nd year when they nearly got lost.
Luna reached out a pale hand, which looked eerie floating in midair, unconnected to arm or body. She knocked once, and in the silence, it sounded to Harry like a cannon blast. At once, the beak of the eagle opened, but instead of a bird's called, a soft, musical voice said, "Which came first, the phoenix or the flame?"
"Hmm ... What do you think, Harry?" said Luna, looking thoughtful.
"What? Isn't there a password?"
"Oh no, you've got to answer a question," said Luna.
"Wait, that is all the security. The dorm has no password or anything. Even the Slytherins have a password," Ron shouted out in shock.
"How would you know that Weasley," Mr Malfoy asked Harry wondered if he forgot that he isn't on the school board anymore and has no power over Hogwarts.
What if you get it wrong?"
"Well, you have to wait for somebody who gets it right," said Luna. "That way, you learn, you see?"
"Yeah ... Trouble is, we can't really afford to wait for anyone else, Luna."
"No, I see what you mean," said Luna seriously. "Well then, I think the answer is that a circle has no beginning."
"Well reasoned," said the voice, and the door swung open.
"That seems stupid and negligent," Hermione said, "and that isn't going to make you learn not everyone is good at riddles. What just a tough look." Hermione said, annoyed.
Harry noticed that none of the Ravenclaws seemed to be annoyed. He was glad that he didn't end up in that house word puzzles were not something that he was very good at, as the first year showed when he had to rely on Hermione to solve Snape's puzzle.
The deserted Ravenclaw common room was a wide, circular room. Graceful arched windows punctuated the walls, which were hung with blue-and-bronze silks. By day, the Ravenclaws would have a spectacular view of the surrounding mountains. The ceiling was domed and painted with stars, which were echoed in the midnight-blue carpet. There were tables, chairs, and bookcases, and in a niche opposite the door stood a tall statue of white marble.
The statue stood beside a door that led, he guessed, to dormitories above. Harry strode right up to the marble woman. A delicate-looking circlet had been reproduced in marble on top of her head. There were tiny words etched into it. Harry stepped out from under the Cloak and climbed up onto Ravenclaw's plinth to read them.
"The common room looks nice if a bit too much like a library," Harry said to Ron.
"I like it," Hermione said, looking at all the books.
"'Wit beyond measure is man's greatest treasure.'"
"Which makes you pretty skint, witless," said a crackling voice.
Harry whirled around, slipped off the plinth, and landed on the floor. The sloping-shouldered figure of Alecto Carrow was standing before him, and even as Harry raised his wand, she pressed a stubby forefinger to the skull and snake branded on her forearm.
"CONSTANT VIGILANCE", Moody shouted out, scaring everyone making them jump.
"You know the fake Moody could have been an actor with how well he played his part," Harry said to Hermione. Harry could see some of the students glaring at Moody and noticed Lucius doing everything he could not to be noticed by Moody given that he knew that Voldemort was back and that Moody didn't always bring his target back alive Harry thought it made sense.
"He's summoning Voldemort," Tonks said, her hair turning pale at the thought.
"The question is where was Voldemort going before then, and why did he have to fly when he can apperate," Harry asked aloud.
