"Good morning. Would all of you please line up here in the front?" Remus addressed the third year class that day: Gryffindor and Slytherin.
The students did as told and made a single horizontal line. The classroom had been cleared away and the only piece of furniture inside was an old, large wardrobe. It was locked, but there was something inside that kept making a noise and banging from the inside.
Some of the students looked at the wardrobe with anticipation while others seemed a bit apprehensive of whatever monster lurked inside it.
"Can anyone tell me what's a boggart?"
One hand was quick to shoot up. Hermione Granger.
"Miss Granger?"
"A boggart is an amortal shape-shifting non-being that takes on the form of the viewer's worst fear."
"Very good. Now, what does a boggart look like?"
Hermione answered almost immediately.
"Because of their shape-shifting ability, no one knows what a boggart looks like when it is alone, as it instantly changes into one's worst fears when one first sees it."
"Precisely. Twenty points to Gryffindor."
"Know it all," Draco leaned forward and whispered the words in Hermione's ear. She turned around and glared at him.
"Shut it."
Harry would never stop being amused by their banter.
He'd been released from the Hospital Wing that morning itself, right in time for Defence Against the Dark Arts.
He'd heard of boggarts before. Sirius had mentioned it to him before, saying that one of those creatures was present in that vile house, Grimmauld Place. He'd never actually seen one, so he was a bit concerned.
What would his boggart be?
"Getting rid of a boggart is incredibly easy. One word is all that's required: Riddikulus! Repeat it please."
"Riddikulus." The entire class chorused the word, stifling giggles.
They said the word a couple more times before Remus went on to explain how the spell would work. While Harry did try and pay attention, his mind was far too busy thinking about what his boggart would be.
Voldemort? Maybe. But then a more recent fear would probably be a Dementor. He'd felt truly terrified that day, during the Quidditch game.
He only hoped that he'd handle it and not freak out like he had the last time. That would be majorly embarrassing.
"Now, I'll call out your name and you will step forward and stand in front of the wardrobe. Be ready with your wands. The rest of you, please move behind. Mr. Weasley."
The other students moved away, leaving Ron standing by himself. The redhead looked rather uncomfortable with all the attention.
"Ron, are you ready?"
"Er... I suppose so, Professor."
Remus pointed his wand at the lock on the wardrobe and it unlocked with a click.
The door opened and out came the most enormous spider Harry had ever seen. It was nearly seven feet tall, hairy and gross.
Poor Ron looked like he was going to pass out, but he managed to say the spell.
"Riddikulus!"
Roller skates appeared under the spider's legs and it slipped quite ridiculously indeed.
The entire class burst into laughter.
"Mr. Thomas, you're next."
That's how the class went on while Harry awaited his turn. A student would come, tackle the boggart and finish their turn.
Unsurprisingly, all of them did a great job in dealing with their boggarts.
"Mr. Potter."
Come on, you got this. Harry steeled himself and took his position, wand at the ready.
The boggart, upon sensing a new opponent, began to change form.
Five seconds later, the dementor appeared. He didn't feel that familiar chill in his bones at the sight of the creature and that's what he focused on.
It's not real.
It was just a stupid boggart. "Riddikulus!" The creature changed into a long black robe with a pointy hat, kind of like a muggle's cheap Halloween witch costume and fell to the ground.
"Very good, Harry. Neville, get ready."
As the chubby boy stepped forward nervously, the cheap Halloween costume began to change.
The black robe changed into a worn, tattered robe with grey and white stripes on it while the pointy hat fashioned itself into a face and dark, frizzy hair, greying at the roots.
There stood Bellatrix Lestrange.
Or at least her boggart.
All the good cheer was sucked out from the classroom at the sight of the escaped prisoner. Some seemed to freeze fearfully, momentarily forgetting that it was an illusion and not reality.
Harry watched Neville's face turn as white as a sheet. The boy's hand was shaking as he pointed his wand at 'Bellatrix.'
The escapee smiled cruelly at Neville. "Aww. Wittle baby Longbottom is all grown up now."
"Shut up." Neville sounded angry and afraid. Sure, Harry had seen the other boy scared, but never angry.
Angry are we? I'm here to finish the job now. I'm going to take care of you, just the way I did dear Mummy and Da-"
"I said shut up!"
"Neville, she's not real." Remus' calm voice cut through the tension in the class. "Just focus on that and do the spell. You can do it Neville."
"Rid-Riddikulus!"
Nothing happened.
"Calm down, Neville. Take a deep breath and repeat the spell. Go on."
"Riddikulus! RIDDIKULUS!"
The spell hit the boggart right in the chest and 'Bellatrix' turned into a life sized Barbie doll, only with dark curly hair and an Azkaban suit.
The doll fell to the ground with a thud and the tension in the atmosphere eased away.
"Well that was pretty intense." Seamus Finnigan said that.
The lesson came to an end after that and Remus announced that the rest of the students would have their turn next week.
No one noticed Draco's pained expression.
"This is preposterous! I'm the Minister! I demand to be answered! You cannot possibly do this. I insist that you give me an explanation!"
No one paid him any heed at all. The Aurors mercilessly upturned his office, searching for any sort of clue, evidence or anything that would help with the investigation that had been opened up against the Minister.
He waved the warrant that had been thrust into his hand, demanding an explanation. But, all the Aurors were under strict orders from not one, but two Heads of Departments.
Drawers and cupboards were being sifted through, some papers were seized, along with a couple of other items. Fudge could only stand helplessly and watch was his precious office was being torn apart.
When he thought things couldn't get any worse, there was a loud click and the sound of a shutter opening and closing, like a camera.
He whirled around and saw that blasted reporter Rita Skeeter standing at the threshold of his office with a camera in her hand and that stupid quill of hers whizzing around.
"What are you doing here? Get out!"
"Sorry, Minister, no can do. I've have orders from higher up." She rapidly took notes before snapping a couple more pictures.
"I'm the Minister, you foolish woman! There is no higher up."
Rita scoffed and even some of the Aurors who were searching snorted loudly. "I wouldn't be so sure if I were you."
"We'll be needing a list of your contacts, Minister. Everyone your secretaries, advisors, even those whom you associate with outside the office."
"That's nonsense, Auror! What I do outside of work is none of your business. You go and tell that to your boss."
The Auror, Hestia Jones scoffed. "Minister, I asked nicely. I'll repeat myself once again, nicely: hand over the list or things will get ugly. We Aurors are only doing our job, as is the DMLE. You know how stubborn my boss is and I also know that you wouldn't want him to come down here. You give the requisite documents to me and the team and we can do this the easy way. It's either him or us. Your choice."
Mentally cursing every decision in his life that led to this horrible day, Fudge nodded meekly. The last thing he needed was another visit from Sirius Black.
"You'll have the list within an hour."
"Now there's a good boy." Auror Jones smirked at him and walked away. The bloody bitch!
Only last week, all the people in this room had been his subordinates and inferiors even. Now, his trial hadn't even arrived and they were already talking down to him.
How he hated his life right now. But, things were only just starting to get bad. Soon, they were going to get much, much worse.
"Alright, out with it!" Regulus finally couldn't take it anymore.
As promised, Regulus had dropped by on Saturday for their familial magic lessons and he'd instantly picked up on Draco's demeanor. Something was obviously bothering the boy a lot.
Draco had been quiet all through the hour and his spellwork almost poor. The latter had never happened before.
When Draco only gave him a confused eyebrow, he sighed.
"Look, something is on your mind and it seems to me that it's troubling you a lot. You want to try and get it out of your system? You'll feel better."
He jerked his head towards the many empty benches in the classroom in which they were training. Dumbledore had given them three hours every week.
"Let's sit down for a bit alright? We'll take five."
Draco complied and sat down. Regulus leaned against it and crossed his arms.
"What's on your mind, kiddo? Talk to me." He thought he sounded a bit like Sirius at that moment.
Draco for his part was having a hard time. The lesson involving the boggarts was still at the forefront of his mind. He remembered Longbottom's expression; it had been one of pure fear and horror, not to mention the anger too.
He'd never seen the other boy so strongly emotional ever before. Bellatrix Lestrange, his deranged aunt had done something horrible to Neville's parents. They probably weren't even alive.
And what had he, Draco done? He had spent the last two years bullying the chubby boy as frequently as possible. He'd made him feel miserable!
He felt terrible.
"Something happened in class a few days ago."
"I'm listening."
He narrated the entire incident to the man while simultaneously wondering why he was saying anything in the first place. He wasn't the sort of person who talked about any personal issues with anyone at all, not even his own mother.
But somehow, he found it incredibly easy to talk to Regulus. Maybe it was the fact that they were similar in several aspects which made it easier.
The man listened carefully. He didn't interrupt him or react. But, his eyes were attentive.
When he was done, he looked at Regulus expectantly.
"Guilt, Draco is the worst kind of pain, capable of bringing even the most powerful men and women down to their knees. It screws with your head and messes up your emotions."
Draco had a feeling Regulus was talking from experience. He didn't ask about it because it wasn't his place.
"You don't have to feel guilty about what happened to Neville's parents."
When Draco didn't respond, Regulus continued. "Look, I'm not suggesting that all the things you've said to him are okay because they're absolutely not. They were downright disgusting."
Draco felt his face and ears burn with shame at Regulus' reprimand.
"But that's not you, not anymore. Our family has done some terrible things, Draco. That's how it's been for centuries. There's a reason the Blacks are the most feared pureblood family in Britain. But, it's not alright to blame ourselves for our family's crimes."
"My father, mother, cousins and ancestors have all done unforgivable deeds. But, it's up to us to choose our own path. We can be better than them."
Regulus' words made sense. "How do you deal with it, Regulus?"
"I had a hard time when I was younger, trust me. I used to blindly follow my father as a child. I've done some things that I'm not proud of, we all have. But, you carve your way. Not the past, not your family, you. Sirius taught me that."
Minister or Monster?
Minister for Magic, Cornelius Fudge subpoenaed for malfeasance in office! Fudge, 57, stands for trial on 5th November, Wednesday.
Last week, at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft, the students received some unexpected and uninvited guests during the first Quidditch match of the academic year.
Dementors!
That's correct. Cornelius Fudge authorised the entry of Dementors around hundreds of children! The entirety of the Wizengamot and the Ministry as a whole are left shocked by this decision of his.
On that fateful day, one of the students nearly fell to his death because of Fudge's folly. Needless to say, that child's father is furious with the minister. Countless things could have gone wrong and any of those innocent children out there could have been seriously injured.
Is this the kind of behaviour that we look forward to in our leader? Parents, how do you feel about sending your precious children to the one place where they're supposed to be safe but are not?
With a man like this at the front, is any place really safe? What Fudge is doing isn't leadership. It's tyranny. He's a man who doesn't hesitate to abuse his power and has been doing so for the last so many years.
It's high time that we wake up and speak up against this bully! That's what he is, nothing more.
An investigation has been opened against this vile man and his entire term of office is being looked into and his personal residence. His office has been sealed off as well.
What other crimes has Fudge committed that have gone unpunished? How many innocent lives have suffered at his cost?
All those who work under him: advisors, base employees, secretaries and even the House-elves are being questioned. Slowly but steadily, every bit of his dirty laundry is being exposed.
The Auror Department and the DMLE have their plates full with Fudge's upcoming trial and the case of Azkaban escapee Bellatrix Lestrange.
What will be the verdict of this trail? Will a guilty man receive the punishment that he deserves or not?
-Rita Skeeter, Reporter for the Daily Prophet.
"Remind me to hire her if I ever need this kind of work done."
"Will do, Amelia."
The two of them were sitting in his office, going through the latest reports of the whereabouts and activities of Bellatrix Lestrange.
She'd been spotted in a muggle town not far from the one which led to Hogsmeade. There was a blurred photograph of her which had been captured by one of the muggle security cameras.
"She's getting closer, isn't she?"
"We need to find her fast, Amelia. I know my vile, sadistic cousin rather well and I can confidently say that she's planning something."
"What could she be planning and how is it that she's managed stay hidden when my people and yours are practically combing the city in their search?"
"Hell if I know."
"And why would she want to get to Hogsmeade? There are Aurors everywhere, Sirius. She'll be caught the moment she sets foot there."
They'd been at this for a couple of hours now. All Aurors now reported early for work plus they worked well past their normal schedule.
Nowadays, it was well over midnight by the time they all left for the day. It was gruelling for everyone but none of them complained. Why? Because they had no choice.
It was either work your arse off and make sure Bellatrix Lestrange was back in her cell or helplessly watch as she terrorised the city.
"Harder, Malfoy!"
Draco swore he was going to jump off the owlery if the damn potions lesson didn't end in the next ten minutes. He'd been paired up with Granger for the class and that girl was most certainly the definition of bossy.
"That's not how it works, Granger," Draco replied as he stirred the potion. "You've got to be slow and gentle. Otherwise, the potion won't turn blue."
"Are you s-"
"Yes I'm sure, Granger. Why don't you sit back a bit and let me take over?" The two of them had bickered a good deal but had somehow managed to get the potion right.
Harry had been put with Blaise and the duo seemed to be found a decent job. Ron on the other hand hadn't made much progress with his partner, Pansy Parkinson.
At the end, Snape came around inspecting everyone's potions. He gave Hermione and Draco's potion an approving nod and moved away. He then went to Harry's table and mumbled something to the raven haired boy.
Judging by Harry's face, Draco noted that it wasn't anything pleasant.
As the students filed out of the class once the lesson was over, Draco shuffled over to Harry who was shoving his books inside without much care.
"What'd he say to you?"
"Just some bull about me being an idiot and incompetent."
"Well he was right about one of those."
On their way out, the two boys stopped at Snape's desk to turn in their homework.
Harry had to hand over "You're already late with this. Potter, I'm sure you have other pressing appointments to deal with but if you could be kind enough to wait here while I grade the essay, I'll be most grateful."
Harry mentally rolled his eyes at the bat. Trust him to lose absolutely no opportunity to taunt Harry.
As Snape pulled out a quill from one of his several drawers to check meaning ridicule Harry's essay, something flashy caught Harry's eye.
There, partially dangling from one of the drawers was a thin golden chain like a necklace. It had clearly been shoved inside hastily.
Any further thought was stopped as Snape thrust the now graded essay into Harry's hand.
"Potter, out."
He was all but thrown out of the classroom when Snape got up from his desk and shooed him away and slammed the door shut.
Harry stood outside the classroom, still thinking about what he'd seen.
An insanely strong gut feeling told him that the he'd just accidentally found the very necklace that Sirius and the entire Auror Department had been looking for.
He had to tell Sirius.
That's an update, people! Next chapter, Fudge gets his trial. R&R!
Also, if there are any Merlin fans reading this, do check out my Merlin stories: Lessom To All and A Brother's Instinct. God, I'm in love with that show! The finale shattered my heart.