~Chapter 5~

A/N: I am incredibly sorry I abandoned this fic. I really am. It has been a really busy year and the next one is going to be even busier, because I will be sitting for my final exams which will determine to which University I go. So, you can see that I won't be having much free time.

This summer is going to be busier as well, because I will be having summer lessons, BUT I think I will devote some time for this fic. Especially in August.

Oh!! And thanks to my lovely new beta, Afifa! She's great!

Angela yawned as she drank her pumpkin juice and opened the newspaper. There had been another mysterious disappearance. Again. The Prophet, however, had made sure to put that important bit of news inside a small square rim where it was difficult to notice. It wasn't even on the cover of the newspaper! Instead, it had a big photo of Harry Potter under the title "Harry Potter: In the brim of madness?"

She scowled at this, threw the paper aside and started playing with her omelette. She was soon joined by two of her fellow Ravenclaws who were chatting happily. Angela greeted them and took the paper again in her hands.

"Have you read the Daily Prophet?" she asked them.

It was the blond haired girl, Annabelle, who replied first. She was a very smart girl, a sixth year, but her head was sometimes up in the sky, thinking too much about boys and little about her studies.

"Oh, yes, I have. They are bashing Potter again, aren't they?" she asked.

"Yes, they are. I think that it is getting out of hand. He seems to be okay though. I mean, either he hasn't read any of this rubbish, or he is handling it well. One way or another, they've got no right to ridicule him and Dumbledore like that. Their job is to bring news to people, important news, mind you. My parents say that the Ministry has taken over the Prophet and that all this is coming from Fudge," she finished.

"And what do your parents know about the Ministry issues? As far as I know, they don't work there," the brown haired girl, Mandy, retorted in a cold voice.

Mandy's father worked in the Ministry in the department of Magical Transportation, while her mother worked in the department of International Magical Cooperation. They were good people as far as she could tell from the few times that she had met them, and she couldn't believe that they could believe all that their dear Fudge served them.

Angela blinked her eyes rapidly a few times, surprised that Mandy would speak to her like that.

"You're right, they don't work there, but that doesn't make them incapable of realising that the Ministry is throwing dust on everybody's faces to cover up the appearance of You-Know-Who! Just look at the Prophet! It says the same things over and over again to brainwash us! And it seems they've achieved what they wanted. You're already persuaded." She replied with the same cold voice, which grew louder with every word she said.

"You are the one being brainwashed, because you believe everything Dumbledore and Potter says without proof." Mandy said calmly, but with a provocative look on her face.

"At least, I don't act the fool when I see people disappear and the Ministry does nothing to deter that. Instead, it agrees with Fudge and assures you everything is okay, when it's not!"

And with that, she picked up her bag and turned on her heel, leaving the two girls behind.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Jane was sitting on the Gryffindor table when she watched the scene between Angela and the two other Ravenclaws. It seemed that it wasn't just her that noticed the incident, but half the students were staring at them. As Angela grabbed her things and stormed out of the Great Hall, Jane decided to leave her alone for a few minutes. She knew how Angela could be when she was angry.

At least, Umbridge wasn't there. Not that she wouldn't hear about the incident…

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

She couldn't see where she was going. Her feet were leading her to the grounds, to that oak tree next to the Black Lake. She threw her bag on the green lawn and sat down on the ground with her hands crossed on her chest.

How could Mandy speak to her like that? They had been sharing the same dormitory since they were eleven! How could she believe everything the Ministry said when the disappearances were right in front of her eyes?

How could all this happen in a matter of seconds? Now one of her friends wouldn't talk to her and probably the other one as well wouldn't either.

"I shouldn't have opened my mouth..."

She was lost in her thoughts when she heard footsteps behind her. She expected Mandy to come, begging for forgiveness when she looked back and saw Fred Weasley approaching her.

"Oh. It's you." She said disappointedly.

"I expected something more romantic. Something like 'Oh, Fred, you're here! Have you come to save me from this cruel existence called life?'" said Fred with a bright smile on his face, and sat down next to her.

"Charming." Angela replied dryly, making room for him to sit.

"Always." Fred said, flashing another smile and then continued, "So, I came to congratulate you."

"For what?"

"For being so brave back there, of course!"

"Oh, that…I wouldn't call it bravery. More like stupidity. Mandy won't talk to me just because I voiced my opinion. Well, not in a very polite way to be quite honest, but she wasn't any good either! Had I known, I would have kept my mouth shut."

"Now, don't be so hard on yourself. She's the one being so bloody irrational, not you. Besides, I'm on your side," he said with a small wink.

"Was that supposed to be a warning?" she asked with a small smile.

"Take it as you like."

Again, Angela heard footsteps behind them. This time it was Jane. She was carrying her school bag and had two toasts in her hand.

When Fred saw Jane approaching them, he stood up and said "I'd better get going. Anyway, my work here is done."

"What do you mean?" Angela inquired.

"I made you smile." And with another wink, Fred left.

Jane watched Fred go with a quizzical look on her face and sat down where he was sitting earlier.

"What was he doing here?" she asked taking a bite of the first toast.

"He said he wanted to make me smile," she replied slowly.

"And you're telling me he doesn't like you…"

"Jane, I'm not in the mood for this talk now…"

"Alright, alright! But don't think you will get away with it, missy! Here, take this toast, I thought you would be hungry, since you barely touched your food."

"Thank you, Jane, you're my angel," she said and took a bite of her toast.

"That, I am."

A/N: Read & Review! Hope you liked it!