pinksparklez – it won't leave you guessing for much longer! Until

Chapter VII to be precise!

VI: Harry and Minerva

Harry had stuffed his clothes, presents etc. into a giant suitcase. He hooked the loop on the top of Hedwig's cage onto the back of his Firebolt, tied the case to the twigs at the end, and hopped on.

He opened his bedroom window as far as it could go, and leapt out, scraping the side with the suitcase. He dropped immediately, but managed to swerve back up just as his legs skimmed the acacia bush under his room. He regained his breath, and swooped onwards and upwards into the night sky.

It was barely five seconds before he heard something behind him. He risked turning around to see what it was, and that was his first mistake. The second was that, as he gasped to see Nymphadora Tonks rushing towards him on a Cleansweep Seven, he ducked down, only to see Mundungus Fletcher looking up to greet him. He tried jerking to the right, but Arthur Weasley smiled at him, as if appearing out of the darkness of the night. He swivelled one hundred and eighty degrees to see Alastor "Mad-eye" Moody sitting on his Nimbus Two Thousand, drinking soup from his infamous hipflask.

"I suggest you give yourself up now, Potter," he growled, in a slightly amused way, "or it might get quite embarrassing on your behalf. Remus!" he turned to his left, and Remus Lupin emerged from the gloomy haze, "go and tell Rubeus to inform Minerva that Potter's going nowhere."

At this, Harry was engulfed by the four members of the Order, and escorted back to number four, Privet Drive.

The five of them stepped into the house, after Moody had opened the back door with the 'Alohomora' enchantment.

"Well, well Potter," sighed Moody, looking at Harry with normal and magical eye alike, "you've got yourself in quite a fix this time. Minerva doesn't approve of 'bunking off school' as they say these days."

"I…I…well," Harry stammered, purposely looking away from Moody, especially his magical eye, "Ron and Hermione were planning on it too. Why didn't they get this security?"

Moody barked with mirth, "Weasley is surrounded by wizards who could easily stop him, and Granger is sensible enough not to run away anyway."

Harry sighed. "I suppose you know that my Aunt Petunia is a Half-Blood Squib?"

Moody nodded roughly, "Yes, I knew that."

"And," Harry started; he was going to ask something that he had recently been wondering about, "did your informant, you know, the person who told you about my plans for this year, did they mention why I wasn't intending to go back to Hogwarts?"

Mr Weasley came forward, "Fred took care of that. She…I mean the informant didn't know that he was going to tell us why straight afterwards. What I didn't realise, is that Fred would tell George, and George would tell Charlie, who would tell Bill, who would tell Fleur, who would accidentally mention to her mother-in-law-to-be, and now Molly is fretting that you, Ron and Hermione are going to do something that will lead to your death, and consequently everyone else's," he took a sharp intake of breath, and whispered to Harry, "you couldn't tell me what that does could you?" He pointed to the microwave sitting on the work surface, "Is it a kind of television?"

Harry had to laugh at this, "No Mr Weasley, it's a microwave. It's like a cooker for a certain type of food."

Mr Weasley gasped in admiration and strolled over to it, picking it up in wonder.

Pop! Minerva McGonagall stood in the middle of the kitchen, looking straight at Harry with her piercing eyes.

"Mr Potter, I think you'll agree when I say you have some serious explaining to do."

"Professor, I…I…I don't know what to say."

McGonagall laughed mirthlessly, "That certainly is a first, Potter. You usually seem to have at least three different excuses and comebacks to absolutely everything I say, even if I just say hello! But anyway, I hope you're feeling mightily guilty, as you are in serious trouble, no matter what you can (or in this case can't) say to defend yourself!"

"Professor," Harry pleaded, "you have to see why I was planning what I was planning!"
McGonagall frowned gently, yet with a hint of finality in her stare, "I know exactly why you were planning what you were planning, and believe me, I totally approve of your bravery, yet I sincerely disapprove of your choice of time to be brave in!" she looked at him firmly, and then sighed, "Harry, what we see to be bravery can look a lot different to say, people like Rita Skeeter, who, by the way is back at large and eager to discover an interesting secret of yours. Now think how unbearably triumphant she'll be when she unearths the fact that Harry Potter has scrapped school with his long term best friend and girlfriend to go and act the hero! I can see it now: 'POTTER DITCHES OLD WITCH Headmistress McGonagall left in ruin.'

She'll jump at the chance – as will your other less corrupt enemies: Dolores Umbridge, Kreacher the House-elf, Percy Weasley and Marietta Edgecombe to name a few. You'll be in a lot less danger at Hogwarts."

"But I don't care!" shouted Harry, back into his old routine of yelling at McGonagall, "Ron, Hermione and I are ready for this. We have planned this, it isn't as if we aren't organised."

McGonagall pursed her lips as annoyingly as Aunt Petunia, "Well explain this to me – why were you planning to leave without them, earlier than was planned, and not even going to go to the wedding of your best friend's brother?"

Harry sniffed, "I panicked. Somebody had found out about our plan and had told everyone whom I care about that we were going on a dangerous mission that could easily end in our deaths."

Minerva frowned for a second, and then moved closer to Harry. Sensing that she was going to tell Harry a secret, Tonks, Arthur, Mundungus and Moody stepped back a few paces so as not to invade on their privacy.

McGonagall looked at Harry seriously and said, "Potter, I have a daughter. You'll most definitely meet her tomorrow. Now she was there all the time when Albus told you about the Horcruxes and the history of Vol…Volde…Tom Riddle," she saw Harry's horrified look, "oh no, she wasn't my spy. Dumbledore knew that she was there. But she heard everything, and could tell by her knowledge of you that you would do something rash, like leave school and go and chase after a psychopath who plots to kill you."

"What do you mean, 'her knowledge of me''?"

"Oh, she's known you ever since your second year, but you haven't known her, well, not as she really is."

Harry was about to question her further, when there were noises from upstairs. The Dursleys had woken.