AlsethGosia, Hahaha Some people will be aware soon :v And,
Yes, the mystery remains. Let them wonder who the hell is Jean Grey xD
lol Then neither of you fear for your lives! Don't let Bella know that hahaha
She does now ;)
Hope y'all enjoy!
Chapter XXII – The needed insight
Lacklustre. The more people got involved, the less focused was the training. If practicing in the duelling club was already something Bellatrix considered a bit easy, it simply got ineffective now that there were so many pathetic people who didn't show any challenge. Weaklings who slowed down the whole process... She left, by the end of it, feeling like she didn't practice anything at all.
Her mind replayed the only things that caught her attention that day...
Her concentrated look that seemed more focused on finding a way to organize properly the room than the actual spell... The magical energy radiating from her... The effortlessness... Bellatrix would never get over that woman's effortlessness... Few people understood the message behind Jean Grey's show of wordless advanced conjuring. Bellatrix did... and took it as a personal challenge.
Which was why she wasn't done with her training.
"Hey! Don't you want to see Andie's try-out?" Narcisa followed her out, matching her furious march... With a calmness that had no place being around Bellatrix' metaphorical dark cloud.
"Why? So I can applaud her while she joins the squad that steals all the recognition we work hard to achieve?"
Bellatrix walked through the castle's halls like it was a prison she needed to escape from. Trying to outrun the other students who would soon be leaving the room she left behind like a poltergeist after being banished.
That woman's laughter still rang in Bellatrix' ears... How can a person have so much fun teaching incompetent people?
The high ceilings and large corridors did nothing to diminish the feeling that she was going to suffocate if she stayed in that place any longer.
She needed fresh air, to see if the heat that radiated from inside out cooled off. She needed to see the darkening of the sky, so maybe she could calm herself with the reminder that everything overwhelmingly bright could turn serene under the gentle caress of the moonlight.
And above all, she needed to alleviate this building pressure against her chest. And there was only one remedy for that... I'll exercise my willpower until I can't cast spells any longer!
She had to pause at the moving staircase. Cursing the castle for its mischievous sentiency, and the Professors that decided to place the duelling club on the sixth floor instead of the dungeons.
"Bella, they work hard too. Do you know how many hours they put into getting the strength necessary to pull-off the moves they do on that broom? To sharpen their reflexes to make a turn just in the nick of time? To train their minds not to get scared by sudden movement and pain from the bludgers?"
She is spending too much time around Lucius... "And I should be impressed? How much magic is involved in that? They grunt around like common muggles, using their bodily strength to do things a simple spell could do it for them! Forgive me if I do not find logic in enjoying a sport in which no magic courses through my body!"
The stairs connected, and she went down the stairs as fast as she could hoping that she wouldn't be held up any longer...
"You don't, but have you stopped to think that maybe Andie does? So what if she likes the adrenaline of flying high on that broom?"
She could fly on her free time! It doesn't have to be on the quidditch team! She decided to keep these thoughts to herself, knowing that Narcisa would most likely have an argument that would take away her reason.
But she had a right to be upset! Bellatrix took home single-handedly 180 points for Slytherin in her fifth year... Only for the Quidditch team to win the championship, get 150 points and surpass Gryffindor that was winning the house cup by 50 points. They got the glory and people quickly forgot that Bellatrix was the one who took down the reigning champion, seventh-year Gryffindor Fabian Prewett, in a duelling competition. Their duel was something that every professor talked about... How a young witch with incredible talent won against the most skilled and promising future Auror of the school. She made her name... then was forgotten the same year.
So yes, she resented the quidditch sport, the importance it has for the school, how other activities didn't give as much house points as people flying on enchanted brooms... And no one cares about it!
- I don't see how Quidditch would stop you from learning anything you want.
Maybe not Quidditch, but Dumbledore with his plans to forbid dark magic certainly would, and no one would understand the grievance of that decision. As long as there's quidditch every year, to amuse the simpletons who have magic but refuses to use it properly, no one will even care! They'd reduce their power of creation, manipulation of life and matter... to party tricks and simple domestic spells that serves the day-to-day life for a comfortable living.
Where's the ambition? We have the incredible potential to do the unimaginable, so much to explore about our power, so much to discover, and they want to forbid us from diving into it!
And Andie would stop practicing with them... The worst thing was... this is all because of a fucking boy. "She never showed interest in quidditch before. Never. And suddenly, because she enters a relationship with Rabastan Lestrange she wants to follow him around like a lost fucking puppy. I don't believe her bullshit about wanting to get out of my shadow... She never cared about people's opinions!"
"She always cared, Bella." Without her conscious effort, her feet halted in their motion. They froze, like Bellatrix' heart when she took notice of Narcisa's tone of voice. Pleading... She wanted Bella to listen. But there was something about the certainty with which she spoke that led Bellatrix to believe that Narcisa knew something she didn't. "She is her own person! But people constantly expect her to be like you... It's not just about father, you know..."
Bellatrix knew that there were somethings her sisters talked about in her absence that they kept it to themselves - not out of secrecy, but - because they knew it was something Bellatrix would most likely not care to know about...
But this is something she wanted to know about. She needed to know about. How come I never heard this before? "She never told me anything..."
"She didn't want you to think that it's because she is ashamed of you. She admires you, but it doesn't mean that she wants to be like you. I guess that she finally got too fed up with it, to throw in your face like that... I never seen her so angry before..." I have... And I thought it was because she was being insecure about her skills. "I guess that you two do have something in common."
Narcisa's small smile was fond, and her hands were soft as they took Bella's right hand and held it between them above her heart. "You're both scared."
"I'm not-"
"Listen to me. Nothing can take away the love we share for one another. No one can get in between us. You don't have to be scared of losing her."
And this was the crux of the matter, wasn't it? To think that Andromeda would give priority to some boy she just started to date over her own sisters. Bellatrix had to admit that the betrayal she felt wasn't because Andromeda was going to join the quidditch team... not entirely... It was because she felt as though her sister was turning her back on their relationship. Bellatrix felt like she was slowly losing her. First to that traitor. Now... To Lestrange number two.
"And she isn't dating Rabastan. Just so you know. You never really asked."
Oh... "Why didn't she just tell me so?"
They started walking again, slowly this time. Narcisa hugged her sister's right arm as they made their way to the exit.
"Again, you didn't ask. You just came throwing accusations... You really should talk to her, Bella. She can explain everything if you just listen..."
Once they stepped outside, the cool wind made Bella feel like the air was finally filling her lungs. The infusion of oxygen to her brain and Narcisa's gentle words brought her the much-needed clarity. Something still bothered her, in a way that made her stomach not quite settle inside her, but it wasn't the centre of her attention once the calmness of the moment washed over her. She closed her eyes and threw her head back to appreciate the sensation of almost peace.
In its farewell, it's like the sun apologized for hurting people's eyes during the day. The warm glow of the sunset brightened the world around with a soft light that was almost as gentle as the moon... She imagined how her sister would feel, flying in that nice weather, high above ground...
When she opened her eyes again, she dared look in the direction of the Quidditch pitch. Out of sight, but not out of mind. Narcisa hugged her from the side, resting her temple on Bellatrix shoulder, uncaring if she immobilized both arms that now couldn't retribute that gesture.
One forgotten memory came suddenly, unbidden.
Bellatrix was flying, but not at school... It was summer, and she escaped home with Andromeda to have fun in a forest, live the adventures of the werewolf hunters they heard tales of... Narcisa was too young to accompany them, so she stayed at home. She would run and hug them when they came back, but until then, Bella and Andie played around for hours, flying on their brooms, throwing spells on imaginary werewolves and protecting themselves from evil wizards...
By the end of their play pretend, they decided to chase a Raven. Laughing and competing to see who could touch its black feathers first... Bella was too competitive and did her best to keep up with the bird, cutting through the threes, making daring dips, quick dodges through branches. Of course, she was the one to get caught in a large branch she miscalculated the distance... Andie quit chasing the bird to help her...
She grabbed Bellatrix' left arm with both of her hands... the weight turned Andie upside down, and the speed of the fall was much too fast... but she didn't lose control. No, she locked her legs, and pressed her knees against the broom, with a strength unknown to her little body... She controlled the enchanted object with her legs only, while both of her arms held Bellatrix'. Eventually, Andie managed to control their speed... slowly guiding them to the ground, where Bella felt her feet safely connect to it, and her sister finally flip around to hover properly...
It was then, before any of them knew arrest momentum, when panic overwhelmed them at possibly of dying because of a fall, that they discovered the magic of defying gravity.
And Andie was incredibly good at it...
Like Bella was good at duelling.
How could I ever forget about this? She frowned, bothered for not knowing why this memory had been blocked from her mind. "Let's go." Bella said, taping Narcisa lightly on the arm so her sister would release her. If Quidditch is what Andie wanted... Well... At least now I have a reason not to hate it.
She didn't see the glint in Narcisa's eyes, nor her large smile. But it was a moment the youngest of the Black sisters promised to never forget. Narcisa had to admit, – after witnessing so many fights caused by Bella's pride – she was starting to doubt that her oldest sister could get over her ego to support the people she loved.
Bella didn't seem to realize that Andie was always the one to concede. To swallow her opinions in favour of ending fights or avoiding them. There was only so much a person could take of that before blowing it up. Bella didn't see that her stubbornness was slowly deteriorating their relationship.
Narcisa hoped... really hoped that she could keep mending things between them... because her worst fear was having to pick a side.
"Are you alright?" Rabastan's deep voice was mature for his age. If they were to have a conversation blind-folded, Andromeda would swear that he was a full grown man.
Usually, that fact coupled by his serious, cold and impersonal manner of speech kept people at bay. As was his intention, she learned. Right now, though, he sounded friendly, and warm. A side of his that Andie only started to get to know and get used to. She smiled back at him, to acknowledge his presence beside her – at the entrance of the quidditch pit – and nodded her consent.
She was grateful he took the initiative for her... She had no idea how she could explain things to Ted, but Rabastan simply ignored all the risks of associating himself with a muggleborn and invited him to his duelling team. He explained to Ted – in his own words and point of view – that he and Andromeda were just feeding the Slytherin's rumour mill.
Ted seemed more amused than anything that their lives were reason for speculation. Like movie stars, he said. Whatever that meant. Andie couldn't watch muggle studies to discover what that was, but she could guess that they were famous. And she can say with certainty that it really wasn't amusing to have her life so closely watched. Still, she was happy he took it all with good humour, instead of blaming her for not having the freedom they deserved.
If only there wasn't the risk of losing her family... She could tell everyone to go to hell with their prejudice.
"What's on your mind?"
She sighed, leaning her left shoulder against the structure that held the stands, staring at dozens of students as they adjusted their equipment... Some were already flying, warming up. Others looked at the bludgers and the beater's bats, giving experimental swings in the air... "Shouldn't you be out there already?"
Rodolphus, the captain, was talking to the prospects that were on the ground while Francine stood closely behind, staring at the list with names... Emily Rosier was at the stands, on the other side of the field, directly across from the place Andromeda stood. It was far, she looked like a miniature person, but they could see when she waved at Rabastan, as if calling him over. The boy made a sign that he would be going soon, but then turned his full attention towards his fake girlfriend. "Shouldn't you too?"
"I'm giving it time. It's not like they'll begin immediately..."
"So, I don't need to be there either. Maybe we should go together."
She chuckled "Sure..."
Andie wasn't at peace. Not when she still had to settle things with Bella, and her older sister didn't even spare her a glance when she left the duelling club like she was being chased by hundreds of boggarts. If she reacted this badly over a stupid tradition they came up with two years ago... Andie could only imagine what would happen when Bella found out about Ted.
...if she told her about it.
"Now, want to tell me what got you looking so sad?"
Andromeda's lips formed a smile she felt from the bottom of her heart. His genuine concern was sort of reassuring.
"Thinking about living with secrets." She turned to look at him, pointedly. Her smile held a hint of amusement, but he still looked away embarrassedly as if she had directed him with an accusatory stare.
Her secret holder was pulling all the steps to be as helpful as he could be, it made Andromeda curious to know what friend of his owed her so much. She really could not recall doing any favour that would warrant this kind of treatment from someone almost as anti-social as Bella. Regardless, she was grateful for having found in Rabastan an unexpected partner in crime.
"Well... You got me covering for you now." His strong arms puffed out as he crossed them over his chest to bump his shoulder lightly against hers.
"Thanks. Really. I just..." I'd really feel better if you'd trust me with your reasons as well. She smiled to herself, sadly, then turned her gaze towards the field again. "I just can't help but wonder why you're actually helping me. I know I have no right to ask... I mean I wouldn't have told you anything if-"
"-I'm gay."
Her surprised gaze immediately snaped to his embarrassed face. The rumours! The resident abstinent was the talk of every girl who wanted to have a go with him. He was that kind of good-looking guy who wouldn't have trouble dating anyone he chose... Yet, he ran from girls like a few kisses came attached to marriage papers. She always assumed that it was because he was already dating someone... either way it really wasn't any of her business, so she never pondered too much.
"Hah. People really don't know how to live their own lives, do they?" She joked.
He shrugged, with a small smile. If Andie had to guess she'd say that he looked relieved. But she still doesn't know him enough to be sure of anything. "Feeling better now?" He asked, still humorously, making her laugh.
"Honestly? Yeah. Yes, I am. Thanks for trusting me with this." It certainly changed the way she viewed their whole partnership... Now she didn't worry he would hold her secret relationship like blackmail material.
His smile reached his eyes now, and with a mischievousness that was reserved for people he considered friends, he bent down and laid a kiss on her forehead. Andie could smell eucalyptus on his freshly washed hair. "Thank you for agreeing with this madness. I promise I'll do my best to make your life easier."
"Me too, Rabs." She extended her hand, palm up, and nodded towards the field with her head. "Ready to play pretend?"
He took it with his left one, grasping like a proper boyfriend would. "I couldn't ask for a better fake girlfriend."
She smiled at him, laying a kiss on his high cheekbone. "Do you think we're fooling anyone with this chaste kind of romance?"
His booming laughter was contagious. They walked towards the others still laughing out loud, earning a bright smile from the upper years that welcomed them with hellos and words of encouragement for Andromeda.
"You got this, sweetheart." He kissed her hand like a prince from a storybook and winked, making his way towards the stands, where Emily waited for him.
She blowed him a kiss and winked back.
On the excuse of analysing the weather, she looked around subtly. Finding pleasure in the way the girls seemed jealous of her and the boys talked quietly between themselves... Obviously she and Rabastan made enough of a scene to fool people. She smiled to herself and summoned a broom to test it out its weight, and how it reacted to her command once she sat on it.
It's been two years, but once she settled on top of that enchanted piece of wood, it's like she could feel again... that instinct that guided her actions more than rational thought. She fired off, feeling the broom's resistance against the wind, how long it took to make a sharp curve, how much strength she needed to make those turns depending on the speed...
Merlin, I forgot how good it feels to fly like this...
She would have lost herself to the sensation, if she wasn't being called over by Rodolphus, who was now calling everyone to hear the instructions, and start the try-outs in truth.
"Ok everyone! Here's how it's going to work... I'll be at the goal. Chasers, try to get past me. Hopeful seekers... try to catch the snitch. Beaters... Try to take the chasers out of their broom. Sounds good?"
What? This is going to be a mess! She looked around, expecting someone to point out that maybe the try outs should be made individually so that people's performances could be properly analysed... How could they pay attention to so many people at the same time?
People nodded and went to do what they were told. She stared at Francine like she grew a second head, she only winked and pointed up. Andie interpreted the gesture as 'get going'. So, she did. Shaking her head all the while.
According to Rabastan, the initiative of getting a second-string seeker was Francine's idea to train her successor. It wasn't against the rules, but the person wouldn't have an active part in the team until the next year. When they'd basically have the position of seeker guaranteed. That was perfect because it wouldn't change her routine, and on the next year, Bellatrix would have graduated, so it wouldn't influence anything...
It was relatively easy. She was confident enough in her skills to know that she could be fast. The only thing she had to do was to keep her eyes peeled, always flying around, trying to get as much vision of the field, always at the edges... Searching for that glint of gold...
But it was so dull... Boredom couldn't begin to describe what Andie felt with the task of trying to look for a ball that was smaller than her fist. Her attention kept slipping, her eyes always went to the action happening around the hoops.
It looked more fun, the chasers were constantly being taken down by the fourth-years Crabe and Goyle, who laughed their heads off every time they managed to take someone by surprise. She smiled, imagining herself flying rounds around those bludgers. Dodging with ease. Making sharp turns to fake shots...
But no. She brought her gaze to the field again... Andie wouldn't turn her back on her sister. Bellatrix' strong reaction – Andie knew – was because she and Narcisa were the only ones the closed off girl cared to spend time with... Andromeda expected that reaction. Which was why she only accepted the idea because as a second string seeker she wouldn't have real obligations to the team, she would still spend time with her sisters. Nothing would change... Except for the part where she would be in a fake relationship.
Sudden movement to her right made her pay attention again. Lucius was going full speed towards the ground. Andie didn't see the glint of gold, but if Malfoy was that desperate, she assumed that he was onto something. She flew after him, and just as he extended his hand, reaching for something... He suddenly pulled up, ninety degrees. Andromeda's reflexes kept her from breaking her broom, and neck. Since it was a reactive movement, rather than a calculated one, she didn't go up smoothly like Malfoy. She threw her body to the right using her weight, while directing her broom to the left, using her strength. All the momentum she gained from that fast descent made her touch her shoulder on the ground as she made that turn. Basically, flying sideways. Thank goodness for adrenaline, because she needed all the strength she had to keep herself from losing control of the broom.
When she felt that the force working against her movement passed, she straightened herself out, and glared at Malfoy who had a self-satisfied smirk on his face. You little shit...
His eyes widened when she flew full speed towards him. He desperately tried to fly away, but she kept chasing him... "This broom looks expensive... Can't you go faster?"
She flew loops around him... He glared at her, obviously annoyed by the disturbance, but not able to get away from her because – as much as he had the fastest broom – she predicted where he would go and got there sooner. She intercepted him... and he was quickly getting fed up with it.
This was much more fun than simply looking for the snitch. Andie laughed whenever she managed to stop just in front of the boy who groaned and flew away to go to the other side of the field. She didn't give him a break. If he truly saw the snitch – or even if he faked, it made no difference – she'd be nearby to give chase.
She knew that Malfoy was a promising player, with the way he held himself on that broom, never losing balance, fast enough to make some good turns to avoid her... But she was better. There was no way he'd get the position.
She just had to make sure to catch the snitch... And the snitch she would catch... If she didn't see two very familiar faces in the stands. Smiling at her, encouragingly. Narcisa had a big happy smile on her face, Bella raised her eyebrows at her, and pointed at the hoops, as if she was saying: what are you doing chasing this fool? GO THERE!
She smiled brightly and approached them. To hell with the try-out, Francine must have seen enough already... "Cissa... Bella... What are you doing here?"
"Watching you teach these simpletons that the Black sisters are the absolute best at everything they do. Now why aren't you over there making Rodolphus look like the idiot he is?"
Andie laughed "But... If I join as a chaser, I'll miss the unavoidable Black sister's day..."
"Andie. Give them hell." Bella nodded, with that side smile that held so much pride it made Andie feel loved by her sister in a way she hadn't felt in long while...
"Got it." She smiled showing her full set of teeth, before flying right to the place where the chasers were making passes at one another...
She snatched one quaffle in the air, and immediately flew towards Rodolphus' well-guarded hoops.
"Andromeda?! What-" She flew to the right, faking a shot in that direction, but before she let the quaffle leave her hand, she turned her whole body to the left – as if she'd jump – flying sideways, guiding the broom – locked between her knees – only with her legs, she threw the ball through the middle hoop that was unguarded as Rodolphus flew to protect the one where she faked the shot.
She did a little spin as she went to catch the quaffle again. She dodged bludgers as if they were in slow motion, zipping around, spinning, making unpredictable moves that kept other chasers from even getting close to disarming her...
She flew, back towards the hoops, and once more, left Rodolphus catching wind on the place she fainted another shot.
Rodolphus had an impressed look on his face as he looked at her... "Where have you been all this time?"
She shrugged flying around, ready to confuse him with all the moves she used to pull with Bellatrix around branches, all those summers ago... "Studying... Figured I could do with a hobby. Mind if I join you?" She didn't know if Rabastan told his older brother that she only ever joined them to keep their reputations intact... so she pretended it was her intention all along.
She fainted a shot, this time he didn't move, waiting for her to release the quaffle... she switched hands and managed to score even through the hoop he was protecting, sending it behind him before he had the reaction to turn around.
"TAKE THAT YOU SLOWBRAINED IDIOT!" Bellatrix voice rang loudly around the field, amplified by the sonorus spell.
He and Andie let out a loud laugh; She waved in the direction of her sisters... Narcisa waved back gracefuly, probably also trying to get Lucius attention, Bellatrix had her arms crossed, but she nodded her approval. It was the greatest show of support her sister could have shown her.
"FRAAAAN, WE GOT OUR CHASER!" Rodolphus pointed at Andie with both hands, receiving two thumbs-up from his second-in-command.
With her heart filled with happiness, Andie finally allowed herself to enjoy completely the exhilarating experience of flying. In that moment... it was like she could taste freedom.
"You called, Headmaster?"
"It's just us, please call me Albus."
Hermione smiled at the old man who gestured her to sit across from him. It was a good thing he called her over, because she had an idea that could set Voldemort back a few months... Possibly. What Bellatrix said about the quality of education reminded her that Voldemort's main argument was that Dumbledore wanted the new generation to be weak, and gullible. If Dumbledore beat him to the punch and made the dark arts something to be studied along defence against the dark arts... Voldemort would have one less argument against his political enemy. "I don't think I'll ever get used to this, sir." She relaxed in the chair, crossing one leg over the other, leaning back comfortably.
He chuckled "You got used to Minerva, and Fillius. My name is not something so outlandish now, is it?"
Silently, and through her nose, she let out a short laugh. His good humour never failed to amuse her. "Alright, Albus. Is there something you need me for?"
"Yes. There is. But first, I want to know... If you were to re-write that book in which you traced parallels between muggle history and our own... Do you think you could use your own experiments as foundation for it?"
"You mean... You want me to recreate my experiments and add to the book as if it was the whole inspiration for it?"
"Precisely. You see, I need a good counterattack for Voldemort's advances... One that doesn't involve direct confrontation yet." Of course, they couldn't do anything unless they were completely sure that Voldemort was done with his horcruxes...
A bit of a re-write will be needed. "I can do that. But I also had an idea, I just need you to open your mind to it. Really, just... don't completely discard it. Think logically."
"Very well, what's your idea? The more the better." He was all ears, smiling patiently. Hermione knew, though, that as soon as the words dark arts left her lips, he'd be inflexible.
She opened her mouth... closed it. Opened again... and closed again. She needed to say it right... "You remember Viktor Krum? The one from my memories?"
"Oh, your first romantic interest..." He teased her, playfully.
"More like the first guy who flattered me." She chuckled "But yes, him."
"What about him?"
"He was one of the sweetest guys I ever met. I would never try to keep that friendship with him if he were less than the kind, good hearted man he was."
"I'm sure..."
Hermione could see that he was starting to wonder what was her point, so she took a deep breath and bit the bullet.
"And you know that they teach the dark arts at Durmstrang, right?"
He sighed, closing his eyes and shaking his head in disappointment, when he faced her again, his expression was one of explaining something for a stubborn child. "So you knew Krum. How many others from that school can you guarantee it didn't fall for the temptation of evil intent?"
"I can't speak for the others, I admit. But sir, the dark arts are unavoidable. These kids learn at home from their parents who have their distorted view about how it should be used. If we taught them, gave them a different perspective... maybe we could properly instruct them on the dangers of the dark arts."
"Or we could simply banish it from practice... I'm working on a law project... Nothing finished yet, some spy leaked my plans to Voldemort, I'm holding off until we finish the war..."
Hermione paused... I thought that this was propaganda... She could understand now, how Voldemort amassed so much support for himself... "You can't do this, sir."
"The dark arts bring nothing but pain and misery to the world we live in. We have no use for destructive magic."
Hermione respected him. His great sense of justice was inspiring, and she knew that all this came from his intention to do something good... But she could not agree with this. She'd never agree to forbidding something that was essentially just another part of magic like her arm was a part of herself.
"You know that it's intent that dictates how magic flows from us."
"The most selfish intentions feeds dark magic."
His serene voice held conviction, and she knew that nothing she said could ever convince him otherwise. She was tired of repeating this same argument over and over, but it seemed that his mind simply refused to accept that: "Light magic can be fed by evil intent too! Nothing will stop magic from being dangerous, don't you see it?"
"But forbiding the dark arts will certainly make the world safer."
"Sir. This world will never be safe."
"We can certainly try."
"Don't you see that this is precisely one of the arguments that validates Voldemort's cause?" By the look on his face... he didn't consider it to be one of the main reasons. "Please, consider my plan. Even if we just allow it until we end this war in truth... Is better than having Voldemort with this advantage against you." She didn't see the problem of keeping it up even after, but she had to make concessions... Like he would have to trust her judgement.
He sighed "Very well, I'll... think about it."
"Please, do."
"This was all... Minerva is trying to find the muggles you need to participate in the experiment. You should talk to her about it..."
The idea of talking to Minerva without having to pretend not to know her made Hermione forget the tense feelings she carried from this discussion. The same comforting feeling she got from being recognized by Fillius made its way to her chest. She couldn't wait to go after her mentor. Her friend. "I'll go see her. Thank you for letting them know, Albus. Really... I... You have no idea how much this means to me."
"I have some idea." He smiled kindly at her.
When Hermione left his office, her feet automatically lead the way to the well-known office of the Head of Gryffindor house... The smile on her face was uncontainable.