The Story of Jessica Black
Chapter Thirteen: The Order Shrinks
As Ron, Hermione, Harry, and Jessica sat in the Great Hall eating lunch, Lavender lay up in Professor Dumbledore's office as he tried to work out the countercurse. The four friends downstairs couldn't concentrate on their food, knowing one of their housemates was upstairs, and that their intruder was now attacking students.
"Who do you think it is, though?" asked Ron quietly. Since Lavender's attack most of the other students had given them a clear space.
"I told you," said Harry, who slipped his arm around Jessica's waist as he spoke, "I think it's Voldemort."
Neither Ron or Hermione noticed Harry's arm, as it was under the table where no one could see. "Can you not say his name?" Ron hissed, "It was bad enough when he wasn't around, now that he's back," he shivered, "It gives me more than the creeps. It really scares me."
"Well, whoever it is, we've got to keep a sharp eye out," said Jessica, "We have to make a pact. Anything suspicious and we go straight to each other before we go to Dumbledore. If we publicize it, it could make things worse." She put her hand over the table in a fist. Harry let go of her waist to clasp his hand over hers. Ron and Hermione put their hands in, too.
"Repeat after me: I solemnly swear I am up to no good," said Harry, slightly laughing.
The other three looked at Harry.
"All right, all right. I swear to go to you first. Agreed?"
"Agreed," chorused the others.
"All right then," Harry said as they pulled their hands back, "We've promised."
"It seems so strange to be doing detective work without having to worry about breaking
rules," Hermione said.
The rest of lunch passed quickly. Ron, Harry, Hermione, and Jessica headed back up to the dormitory. Jessica and Harry played a few rounds of Spinks, then Harry beat Ron at chess.
"At this rate," Ron declared, sweeping his remaining pieces off the board, "I'll have been beaten by everyone in Gryffindor!"
"Oh, that's not true, Ron," said Hermione, "I'll never be able to beat you."
They exchanged a look that, had Harry and Jessica seen it, would have made them raise their eyebrows. Harry and Jessica, however, were back to playing Spinks. When they finished (Jessica won, again), Harry tried to convince Hermione to learn the game.
"Jessica's tried, Harry," Hermione said, "It's kind of confusing."
"Oh, come on, Hermione, it's just a card game."
"Fine."
So Harry and Hermione spent the next few hours trying to play Spinks. Finally they gave up and trooped down to the feast with the other Gryffindors.
"I do hope Lavender's okay," said Hermione as Parvati Patil passed by them, nearly in tears.
"She'll be all right," said Harry, "Dumbledore'll figure out the countercurse in no time."
"I hope so," said Jessica as they sat down in their usual places at the Gryffindor table. Professor McGonagall began the feast, as Professor Dumbledore was still up in his office with Lavender.
"One thing I don't understand," said Jessica, digging into a Yorkshire pudding, "Is why Dumbledore didn't cancel the feast and have us all stay in our common rooms."
"Probably didn't want to make too easy of targets for the house the intruder is staying in," said Harry.
"But don't you think that this person would be posing as a Slytherin?" said Hermione, "Then the people in the house wouldn't be in danger."
"Exactly. That's what they'd want us to think," said Harry.
"What do you mean?" asked Ron.
"I think the intruder is in the house of someone they want to kill. Someone they've wanted to kill for a very long time. Someone they nearly did kill four times."
"You don't think . . ."
"That's exactly what I think. I think the intruder," he lowered his voice even more so the other people at the table couldn't hear him, "Is posing as a Gryffindor. That's why Dumbledore doesn't want us in our common rooms. He thinks the same thing. He doesn't want to put us in danger."
A bolt of lightning streaked across the enchanted ceiling. Dark purple clouds swirled across it, and thunder clapped from out-of-doors.
"I didn't even know it was raining," said Hermione.
"That certainly was a sudden storm."
"Seems a bit fitting, though, doesn't it?"
Harry glanced over his shoulder at the Slytherin table. Malfoy was whispering something to Crabbe and Goyle. A searing pain shot through his scar when Malfoy looked up at him.
"What's wrong, Harry?" asked Jessica, glancing toward the direction Harry was gazing. She saw Malfoy staring at Harry with a sinister grin on his face.
"My scar," he said. Ron and Hermione looked worried, but Jessica was confused.
"What about it?"
"His scar only hurts when You-Know-Who's around," said Ron in a barely audible whisper.
"Then our suspicions are confirmed," said Hermione. She began to get up from the table. "We have to tell Dumbledore."
"He already knows," said Harry as Ron pulled Hermione back down. The others looked at him. "I mean, he tells us that there's an intruder at Hogwarts, right? But he doesn't tell us how he knows. If he knew there was an intruder, wouldn't he know who was intruding? And why wouldn't he tell us who it is?"
"Then he must know something about this we don't," said Hermione.
"Of course he does," said Ron, "But what?"
"I don't know," said Hermione quietly.
The rest of the feast went off without a hitch. The students of the Order kept flicking their eyes up and down the table, watching for suspicious behavior. Neville didn't want a part of it.
"You can do your detective work," he said, "I don't want it. I shouldn't be in this Order anyway. I'm only here because my dad was. I just wish I'd never heard of it."
The feast ended quickly. Everyone filed back to their dormitories, but as Gryffindor was climbing up to their tower, another scream was heard.
Ron, Hermione, Harry, and Jessica looked at each other. "Oh, no," said Hermione.
"Not again," said Ron.
They rushed back down the stairs. Jessica looked around her, not seeing the person she had just been standing beside.
"Wait," she said, "Where's Neville?"
As they reached the end of the stairs, they saw a trail of blood. It led off down the hallway, then stopped, suddenly. It was as if someone had been dragged along the ground, then picked up and carried off. Harry took one look at the blood then ran down the corridor it disappeared in. Jessica began questioning the people around the stain.
"Did you see anyone?" she asked Parvati and a second year girl. They both shook their heads.
"All we heard was a thunk, then saw Neville being carried off," said Parvati.
"Neville?"
"Yeah. It was Neville Longbottom. Neville got taken away."
Ron, Hermione, and Jessica looked at each other. They ran down the corridor after Harry, only to find him just around the corner, staring at blank wall.
"This isn't possible," he said, leaning against the wall. "There's got to be a secret passage here or something."
"We need Dumbledore," said Hermione. Harry shook his head.
"This is what happens. It's someone in Gryffindor. And they're taking away the students. One by one. If we go to Dumbledore with this . . ."
"What are we going to tell him?" demanded Jessica, "That Neville took an unexpected holiday?"
"We tell him all we know," said Harry, "That Neville was apparently knocked out, dragged a few feet, then carried off somewhere. We just don't tell him the where."
"He's going to find out," said Hermione.
"Then we let him find out. On his own."
"This is ridiculous," said Jessica, but she let Harry rub the stone on his amulet.
When Professor Dumbledore came they told him the story that they had agreed on, leaving out what they thought happened. He seemed to know that there was something they weren't letting on, but he didn't question them.
"Is that all?" he asked, his eyes twinkling a bit.
"Yes, sir," said Harry.
"All right, then." He then turned to the four adults and shaggy black dog behind him.
"Announce to all teachers that security has been tightened. I want sentries in every house, as well as the halls. Minerva, I suppose you can take care of that?" McGonagall nodded. "And Filius, I believe you can help. Severus, please do tell Professor Sprout the Heads of Houses are to address their students. Minerva, Filius, you already know. I want no one to leave their dormitories tonight. Remus, Sirius, if you will accompany these four young Gryffindors back to their dormitory, I would be very much obliged. Remus, you may stay either in the Gryffindor common room, if you so wish, or in my office, as you have been. I expect you four," he added to Harry, Jessica, Ron, and Hermione, "To return to Gryffindor Tower immediately. No snooping about." He added the last comment with a distinct twinkle in his eye. Then he turned with the other professors and left. The students allowed themselves to be led back to their dormitory by Sirius and Remus. Harry had his first proper conversation with Lupin since his third year.
They reached the tower quickly, to find that their fellow Gryffindors were waiting a bit anxiously for Professor McGonagall. They greeted Lupin with cheer, or as much cheer as could be expected, with their numbers down by two. He had, after all, been one of their favorite Defense Against the Dark Arts professors.
McGonagall arrived quickly, addressed them promptly, then hurried them off to bed. Harry, Ron, Jessica, and Hermione hung back. They didn't say anything until Professor McGonagall had left, taking Remus with her.
"Invisibility cloak?" he asked. Ron and Hermione nodded. They knew what he wanted to do. However, Jessica spotted a problem.
"With all of this extra security, wouldn't it be a little difficult to slip past the precautions? I mean, even right now, we're in danger of being caught. I think we should wait. If it is a secret passage, it will still be there when we can investigate."
The other agreed, and so it was rather reluctantly that they said goodnight on the stairs and went into their respective dormitories. Not a one of them found much sleep, however, so they sat awake into the night, trying to piece together clues about their intruder.
