"Mr. Potter. I want you to stay after class for a moment."
"Lucky." Ron muttered to him, grinning, before punching him in the shoulder. Hermione rolled her eyes and gave Harry an exasperated look. Makima was smiling at him. She was sitting at the front of the class, as was her custom, on her desk with her legs crossed.
"Mr. Potter." She said, beckoning him closer. He did so, as the remainder of the class slowly filtered their way out. Harry had the distinct impression that a lot of the students were waiting around to see what Makima had to say. However, upon fear of being called out for being too suspicious, finished gathering their things and left the room.
The instant the door closed Makima slid off the table.
"I have been wanting to speak with you alone for quite some time." Makima said, as the door to the room locked itself. Harry felt his throat dry as he gave a curt nod.
"I, of course, did not wish to interrupt your daily school life." Makima said. "I was concerned that you would not want to be cornered by a teacher immediately after the term started… and for that, I apologize. This conversation is long overdue."
"And what do you want to talk about, Professor?"
She leaned in close to him. Harry almost pulled away from her. They stared at each other for a bit.
"Your Mother must have had very pretty eyes." Makima commented. Harry felt his cheeks go red. "I wanted to talk to about what happened last summer. I wanted to know if you had any further thoughts or concerns about that whole situation."
"You mean that bit with the dementors?"
Makima tilted her head.
"Unless there is some other trouble I am not aware of."
"There is, actually." Harry said. "Voldemort has returned."
He was expecting some kind of reaction, some kind of pushback, but Makima said and did nothing. The utterance of Voldemort's name did not phase her at all.
"I did know that, actually." Makima hummed. "And several members of the Ministry do as well. However, that isn't a good thing. Voldemort has plenty of people of influence in his corner. And there is, of course, the problem of Cornelius Fudge."
Harry found himself smiling. He felt somehow comfortable talking about his concerns with Makima. "You don't like Fudge either?"
"Of course not." Makima said gently. "Fudge rose to power following a tense period of civil war. He has only remained in office because his reign is seen by the general public as being relatively stable. When, in reality, he has nothing to do with why things the way things are now."
"Who is responsible?"
"Why, you are." Makima said, sounding surprised that he even asked. "When you defeated Voldemort, his entire empire crumbled. He was, in essence, a fascist. And without a strong, universally accepted leader fascist governments crumble."
"Plenty of people still support him today. The Malfoys, for instance."
Harry was honestly expecting to be reprimanded for acknowledging a classmate's relationship with the Death Eaters, but Makima again took it in stride. "Yes, when it benefits them. But you have to understand, Harry… although Voldemort's supporters still exist, although they still have some influence, it has been waning these past fourteen years. Voldemort's beliefs are simply not popular among the masses anymore."
"What do you believe?"
"I?"
She placed a finger on her cheek. "I would like a world where there are no bad movies."
Harry couldn't help it. He laughed. It was so strange to see a Hogwarts Professor of all people say something like that.
She dismissed him, leaving him alone with her thoughts running through his mind.
…
"Mr. Malfoy, if you could stay behind in class for a moment?"
Crabbe and Goyle shot him looks as he rolled his eyes.
"Actually, Professor, I can't. I have to get to my next class."
"Oh, I'll be sure to let Professor Snape know that I needed to speak with you." Makima said, her tone indicating that her request was a command.
Crabbe and Goyle snickered at him as Malfoy shot them dark looks.
"Let Snape know that Makima wanted to speak with me." He told them. They nodded stupidly, and when they stepped through the door it locked behind them.
"Well, Draco." Makima said, evenly. "Thank you for stopping to speak with me."
"Not like I had much of a choice." Malfoy sneered. He recoiled a bit at the dead expression on Makima's face. He fell silent almost immediately. He could tell at a glance that despite her inexperience as a teacher she was not one to fool around with.
"Is everything going well at home, Draco?"
Draco's sneer fell away in an instant. In its place was guarded suspicion.
"Why do you ask?"
"I just thought found it curious." Makima said idly. "Why such a major advocate for pure blood supremacy only has one child."
Malfoy flushed.
"We aren't breeders." He sneered. "We're not the Weasleys."
"Their family outnumbers yours seven to one." Makima said, amused. "This war hasn't even started and you're already at a massive disadvantage. I daresay that-"
"I don't care what you have to say." Malfoy sneered.
Makima leaned in.
"You are not fighting for pure the good of society." She said. "What your family is fighting for is to preserve the privileges that they alone have enjoyed for generations. They don't truly care about Voldemort's cause, they simply want to maintain their power and influence."
"You don't know anything." Malfoy sneered.
"On the contrary, Draco, I know very much." Makima said. "I am not the Headmaster… I will not sit idly by and allow you to openly condemn muggles. If push comes to shove… I will hurt you."
"My father will hear about this." Malfoy said, as he got to his feet.
Makima's eyes sparkled.
"He will hear… but will he listen?"
…
"Cho Chang, could you please stay behind in class for a moment?"
Cho rubbed her eyes as she looked up at Professor Makima looming over her. The rest of the class left her behind, some of her friends were giggling about something or other. She hadn't laughed like that since Cedric had died.
The door locked shut behind them as Makima and Cho were left alone together in the room.
"Professor." Cho said, her voice stiff. "I-"
Makima lowered herself down to her and to Cho's very great surprise wrapped her arms around her in a tender hug.
"It still hurts, doesn't it?" Makima whispered.
Cho couldn't help it. She burst into tears. Makima held her for a good five minutes or so, her expression stony and expressionless, as Cho sobbed into her robe. Eventually she got a hold of herself and pulled away.
"I'm-I'm sorry." Cho said, as she wiped at her eyes. "I… I can't… I still can't believe he's d-dead…"
Makima nodded sympathetically, as she patted Cho on the shoulder.
"Neither do I." Makima said softly. "It should never have happened."
"I wish… I wish I could see him again." Cho confessed. "I'd do anything… to bring him back?"
"Anything?" Makima whispered.
Cho froze, giving a small start as Makima squeezed her hand.
"It may not be impossible."
…
"Luna Lovegood, could you stay behind and speak to me for a moment?"
"Why, certainly." Luna said, very graciously. Without even bothering to gather her things, she stood up and walked to the front of the classroom. Makima had to wait until the rest of the room emptied out before they could speak.
The instant the lock clicked on the door Makima turned to her.
"I know what you are."
Luna smiled.
"Beating me to the punch, are you Control Devil?" She asked. She brushed her hair behind her ear and stared up at her. "You are doing quite well for yourself, I'm told."
"Why are you here?" Makima asked, her voice cold. "I imagine that Dumbledore's endless schemes drew you to him."
"Oh, no, I quite enjoy the company of humans." Luna said, her eyes wide. "As do you, as I understand it."
"Does anyone know what you are?"
"To the school at large, I'm nothing more than the school oddball." Luna said. "But nothing gets past Dumbledore. He's impossible to fool."
"We will see about that." Makima said. "So he is aware of your true nature?"
"Oh, he thinks having me around will do him favors in the long run." Luna said casually. "After all, he isn't the only one in this world aspiring for absolute control."
Luna Lovegood had another name, a name that was unknown to nearly everyone around her. She was the Conspiracy Devil, a creature of unfathomable power that drew its strength from speculations of wrongdoing from the government and shadowy, influential organizations. Her presence at Hogwarts was an incredible wild card that could side with or against any of the factions vying for absolute control of the wizarding world.
"I wanted to give you a warning." Makima said. "I possess Chainsaw Man himself at my beck and call. If you dare get in my way… I will crush you. And your name will be forgotten to history."
"You may certainly try." Luna said airily, completely unperturbed by her threat. "But I daresay that would cause you more problems in the long run."
She leapt upward, rather like a ballerina, and floated in midair for a second before landing gracefully on the desk behind her.
"Please forgive me if I forget to turn in my homework, Professor." Luna said. "I have much more important things to focus on than schoolwork."
She leapt out the window and flew out of sight. Makima watched the place where she disappeared in silence, contemplating her options.
….
"Hey Professor can I stay after class!"
Makima gave a look towards a grinning Ron Weasley.
"And why would I do that?"
"Because I'm thinking about becoming a Devil Hunter." Ron said. "And I wanted to ask."
Makima leaned in over the table.
"Don't." She said. "You don't have what it takes."
She pulled away and moved ahead. Ron scowled after her.
"She won't even let me ask!" He hissed to Harry and Hermione. Hermione shrugged.
"Being a Devil Hunter is crazy demanding." Hermione said. "Don't take it so personally!"
Ron slumped. "But it sounds sooooo cool!"
"I wonder what it would take to become one." Harry said. He seemed to take the idea of Ron becoming a Devil Hunter more seriously than Hermione had. "We should look into it."
"Oh, not you too…" Hermione sighed, shaking her head.
The three of them left Makima's classroom in high spirits. Despite reprimanding Ron, in general the fifth years were in near universal agreement that Makima was an extraordinarily good teacher. And she was, in the boy's minds at least, by far the most attractive as well.
"She's got these great big-"
"Excuse me, there is a GIRL present." Hermione said, annoyed.
The three of them had lunch, and Hermione marveled at the high spirits that Harry had seemed to be in. He seemed a lot more relaxed and carefree. She wondered whether or not that was purely Makima's doing.
"Being a devil hunter can't be that hard." Ron said, in between bites. "That guy she has working for her is about our age, and he's a fully qualified devil hunter."
"Japanese work culture is different." Hermione stressed. "He's probably been training to become a Devil Hunter since he was young. He's probably had some kind of specialized education… he very may well be a prodigy,"
"You're a prodigy and you're still going to school here."
"I am not!" Hermione snapped, blushing furiously, as she bit into a potato. "Still there, I do wonder about him. Do you think Makima will tell us anything if we ask?"
"It's worth a shot." Ron said. "She might not like us butting into her private affairs, though. He could be a fiend."
Hermione shuddered.
"Oh, I hope not."
