Chapter Twenty Eight: DADA Disaster

Raiden and the rest of the Avengers met in front of the DADA classroom after lunch on the third day of classes. They had all just come from Arithmancy and Daphne and Hermione were arguing good naturedly over a concept that had been introduced that day. The boys were rolling their eyes and staying out of it, preferring to let the concepts sink into their memories without discussing them forever. They all were slightly shocked at how much work they were being given so far, it seemed that OWL year was the busiest year at Hogwarts with the exception of their seventh year. A silent agreement was made that they would do their study together, and study came before fun, even Quidditch took a back seat to work this year.

The door opened and the class filed in, Slytherins and Ravenclaws together. They got out their books, parchment and quills, and laid their wands on their desks as well. A few minutes later Umbridge walked in and the class was strongly reminded of a toad once more.

"Good afternoon class," she said in what she thought was a sweet tone.

The students fought not to retch, and managed it with difficulty. They muttered back "Good afternoon Professor Umbridge," and lapsed back into silence. Umbridge frowned.

"Now now, this won't do. When I say good afternoon I expect you all to say it back clearly and all together understood" she said.

The students looked at each other in disbelief before chanting back "Good afternoon Professor Umbridge."

"Much better," Umbridge said in satisfaction. She noticed the wands on the tables and frowned again. "You won't need your wands, class, this is a theory based course. Wands away please." She turned and wrote the course aims on the board with a wave of her own wand, which was short and thick, just like her.

Over the muttering of the rest of the students, the Avengers stared at each other in shock, before Raiden put his hand up. "Yes, Mr Potter," Umbridge said.

Raiden shook his head before saying "Um, Professor, you said this is a theory based course right. Well, isn't there a practical portion of the OWLs?"

"Yes there is, Mr Potter but if you study the theory hard enough then there is no reason that you should not be able to do the spells in the exam," Umbridge replied determinedly.

Hermione scowled and put up her hand as well. "Professor," she said when Umbridge called on her, "I read a book on magical theory in the library here and it said that it takes several weeks of practice for most students to master any spell, whether it be Charms, Transfiguration or Defence. If we aren't allowed to practice the spells then most of us will fail the practical portion because the spells won't work the first time. Surely in a controlled class setting such as this we can practice them and be safe while doing so."

Umbridge scowled. "The Ministry has deemed it prudent that the spells be studied in theory only until the time comes to use them in the exams. After all, there is nothing that would require you to use them out in the real world."

Raiden had heard enough. To hell with keeping quiet, he wasn't going to let this toad ruin his exam results in one of his best subjects. Not bothering with putting his hand up he stood and snarled out, "So there's nothing out there that might attack us is there? What about the Death Eaters at the Quidditch World Cup last year huh? Or the Dark Mark that's been seen since? Voldemort is out there you stupid bitch, we need to be able to use these spells!"

Half the class screamed at the mention of the Dark Lord's name while the Avengers stared at Raiden in stunned disbelief. Never had he talked to a teacher this way before. Raiden was beyond caring though; the idea that the Ministry was deliberately sabotaging students' learning was infuriating him. He stared challengingly at Umbridge, meeting her pale eyes squarely. The eyes narrowed before Umbridge said sweetly, "Sit down, Mr Potter, you have a book to read." Turning to the rest of the class she said, "All of you turn to the first chapter and begin reading."

The class looked between her and Raiden, before they opened their books with a rustling of paper and began to read. Within moments they had sunk into a stupor more reminiscent of History of Magic than DADA. The Avengers kept sneaking glances at Raiden who had flicked through his book, snorting at the utter bullshit that the Ministry was trying to get them to learn. Umbridge kept an eye on him, but he didn't care. He spent the lesson doodling in the margins, writing rude notes about the Ministry's competence and trustworthiness, as well as his opinion on the general public for believing the tripe they were fed without bothering to question it.

At the end of the period Umbridge stood again. "Mr Potter, would you come up here please," she called. Raiden stopped packing his things away and walked up to her desk, stopping a good foot away, fingering his wand and wishing that he could throw a wandless, silent Crucio curse. Under ordinary circumstances he wouldn't have even considered tossing an Unforgivable at a teacher but this toad wasn't a teacher she was a Ministry moron that was attempting to take over Hogwarts and ruin the students' education, all with the support of the Minister of Magic himself.

Umbridge was writing a note on a piece of parchment. When she was finished she handed it to him and said, "You are dismissed, Mr Potter. Take that to Professor Snape, it is a note informing him that you have detention tonight at eight pm. I daresay he will not be pleased with you, getting a detention on the third day of classes and all. It's your own fault though."

Raiden snorted. "How typical, you're giving me detention for telling the truth. Then again, the Minister has never been one to listen to reason has he? I'll serve that detention, Professor but I promise you, when I'm proven right, I'll be telling everyone how the Ministry attempted to ruin our education."

Raiden took the note and left the classroom, too angry to say anything more. He didn't have another class after DADA; it was the last class of the day for him. With that in mind, and knowing that he'd find Professor Snape in his office, he headed for the dungeons.

Snape was grading essays when a knock on the door alerted him to someone's presence. Pushing away the essays he called out "Enter." Raiden walked in and threw a note down on his desk before dropping into the other chair, breathing deeply to get his anger under control.

Raising an eyebrow, Snape picked up the note and read it. He put it down and frowned, he didn't approve of his students' antagonizing Professors the way Raiden had but he had to agree with him, Umbridge was a menace.

"I suppose you want me to get you out of this detention, Potter," he said slowly.

Raiden shook his head. "Actually sir I don't. I'll serve the detention, but I want you to know that I wasn't telling lies I was actually trying to get the fact that Voldemort is back through to that bitch."

"Language, Potter. You know who she's serving; you know who she reports to. She won't change her mind so getting yourself landed in detention for telling her that the Dark Lord is back is not worth the trouble. Serve this detention and then in future classes just bite your tongue and stay silent no matter how angry she makes you. You know our plans for real DADA lessons; they'll be set up in a week or so. Just hang on till then alright."

Raiden nodded moodily. "Sorry sir, I'm just so frustrated, did you know that she expects us to be able to do the spells perfectly first time in front of the examiners, even though the magical theory books in the library say that it takes a few weeks for students to master spells, almost no one gets them perfect first time. It's impossible for us to pass our practical OWL in DADA with what she's teaching us."

Snape rubbed his eyes and sighed. "I know, Mr Potter, the staff isn't any happier I assure you but at the moment we can't do anything about it. In a few weeks we can start doing something but for now we have to remain silent and watchful."

Raiden shook his head. "Fine sir. I can promise you though that if things get worse then the Avengers will take action against Umbridge, with the help of the Marauders."

He looked up in time to see a strange gleam in Snape's eyes before the man said softly, "A rebellion. If it comes to that, you can count on my support, not openly of course, but I will support you."

Raiden nodded and got up again. "Thank you sir, I'll get ready for that detention then."

Snape nodded and pulled the essays back towards him again, looking up only to say, "Don't forget about dinner Mr Potter."

Raiden headed up for dinner after putting his books back in his dormitory. He was still annoyed but his anger had cooled enough for him to think rationally. He kicked himself mentally, he should have waited a few days but knowing that the Ministry was turning his favorite subject into a useless hell was infuriating for him. He closed his eyes and worked on his Occlumency, feeling calmer the longer he worked on it, the brief meditation he used for Occlumency always had a calming effect on him. He barely noticed what he had for dinner, being too busy glaring at the smug toad at the staff table who was annoying her colleagues if the glares on McGonagall's and Flitwick's faces were anything to go by. After dinner he headed down to the common room to do some of his homework before the detention. At quarter to eight he put his books away and headed to the DADA classroom for his eight pm detention.

Walking into the classroom, he stopped short at the sight that met his eyes. Umbridge was waiting for him, smiling in a way that made his instincts scream DANGER! at him. Shaking his head, Raiden sat down at the nearest desk, which held a piece of parchment.

"What do you want me to do, Professor?" he said, stopping just short of sneering at her.

Umbridge smiled widely at him, and said, "You'll be writing lines, Mr Potter, and the message is "I will not tell lies." Understood?"

Raiden nodded tersely and pulled a quill from his pocket. "Yes, Professor. I have a quill but there's no ink. How am I supposed to write?"

Umbridge smirked at him and replied, "You won't be using your quill, Mr Potter, I expect you to use mine. Here." She handed him a black quill with a wickedly sharp point after casting a spell on it, which Raiden identified as a spell that was designed to enhance the natural function of an object. Raiden took it, and then looked between it and his teacher. It looked familiar to him but he couldn't remember why. Shrugging he put it to the parchment and began to write.

Immediately he felt a sharp pain in the back of his hand. The words he was writing were being written in a thick red fluid which smelled coppery to Raiden. He wrote more lines, and felt another burst of pain. Looking at his hand he saw the words being carved deep into the back of it. In shock he suddenly understood what the fluid he was writing in was. He was writing the words in his own blood! Then he remembered why the quill looked familiar – he'd read about quills like this in his history of magic book last year. They were known as blood quills and were classified as torture implements. They were only used now for certain legal contracts that had to be signed in blood – any other use was deemed illegal and was heavily punished by law.

Throwing down the quill, he stood up. In a tight voice he said, "I believe torture was outlawed several hundred years or so ago Professor and I refuse to be tortured over simply telling the truth. I'm leaving!"

He turned and walked out of the room, heading for Snape's office, wrapping his hand in his handkerchief to stop the bleeding. Giving a sharp knock on the door he entered, and put his hand flat on the table in front of his Head of House.

"She wasn't giving me detention, she was torturing me! She made me write lines with a blood quill!" he snarled at the surprised look that Snape was giving him. Snape looked at Raiden's hand closely, noting the fresh cuts on the back, cuts deep enough that he could clearly read the words that Raiden had had to write.

"Why did it cut so deep on the first use?" Snape queried.

Raiden growled. "She cast a spell on it to enhance its natural function. That would have made it cut deeper than normal. Ouch!"

"Sorry" Snape apologised, having been carefully examining Raiden's hand from every angle and had accidentally pressed on a tender spot. Growling to himself he stood, pulling Raiden up with him.

"We're going to see the Headmaster, Potter; he won't condone students being tortured by a Professor of this school, no matter who they answer to."

Taking his life in his hands, Raiden said, "Then why hasn't he fired you over your treatment of Gryffindors sir?"

Snape glared at him. "He tolerates it because I actually do teach them Potter; the fact that I insult and belittle them isn't the same as what Umbridge is doing to you. Has she done it to anyone else yet?"

Raiden shook his head. "I don't know sir. I know the Gryffindor seventh years had their class with her today, along with our seventh years but I don't know anyone in that house well enough to be able to enquire about something like that."

Snape nodded. "Alright. I'll inquire about it with Minerva, she ought to know. For now let's go and show the Headmaster." Raiden could do nothing but stay with Snape, the man had hold of his arm and was walking fast, leaving Raiden no option but to walk as fast as he could to keep up. Soon they reached the gargoyle and were soon in Dumbledore's office. The old wizard looked up at the unannounced entrance.

"Severus, Harry, what brings you here at this time" he said. Snape growled and led Raiden forward, putting his hand down on Dumbledore's desk. "The Defence professor feels it is her duty to bring students into line via torture, Headmaster. Mr Potter here spoke out against the Ministry's version of Defence against the Dark Arts and got himself detention because of it. He was told to write lines with a blood quill."

Dumbledore frowned, and inspected Raiden's hand closely. "I see. Do you mind if I call an Auror here to take pictures Mr Potter? None of us are happy with Ms Umbridge's presence here, and if we have hard evidence we can use it later if things get worse."

Raiden looked at Snape who gave a slight nod. Looking back at Dumbledore, Raiden nodded. "No I don't mind Professor. Do you think I could get the Ministry to change their mind if I owled Voldemort and asked if he would show up in DADA for one lesson?"

"What do you mean, Mr Potter?" Dumbledore asked with a scowl.

Raiden shrugged. "Voldemort doesn't like it when people think he doesn't exist, he'd probably love to show up Umbridge."

Snape was struggling to hold back laughter, the Dark Lord showing up in a DADA lesson would be a sight to behold. Imagining Umbridge calling him an imposter and attempting to give him detention almost broke his control and he choked silently.

"Are you alright Professor?" Raiden asked. Snape nodded and when he told Dumbledore and Raiden what he'd been imagining, they too started chuckling. "I don't think that's a viable option Mr Potter although I do admit that Severus' idea is amusing," Dumbledore finally said, his eyes twinkling brightly. Raiden grinned and submitted to having his hand photographed by the Auror that had come through the fire while they'd been talking. Introducing himself as Kingsley Shacklebolt, the bald Auror quickly took photographs with an Auror issued camera, which took the photos and transmitted them to a secure file in the Ministry Auror Headquarters. With the photos secure, Snape led Raiden back to the Slytherin common room, giving him a salve which would heal the cuts. The spell cast on the blood quill had made it cut deep enough for the scars to be lasting, they would never fade completely. Raiden's only hope was that enough time spent in the sun would give him enough of a tan to partially hide the marks.

That night, he contacted Voldemort through their diaries. Voldemort looked up when his diary gave a soft ping and he opened it.

Master, are you there? Raiden wrote.

Voldemort picked up a quill and wrote back, Yes. What is it?

I want to give you an update on the school year so far.

So get on with it.

Right. I had my first DADA lesson today, and it's every bit as awful as we supposed. The Ministry isn't letting us practice the spells at all, they expect us to learn the theory and then do the spells perfectly for the first time in the exams. It's ridiculous.

I agree Raiden but I sense there's something you're not telling me.

(sigh). You're right Master. I did what you told me, I spoke out against this as well as insulting her. I told Umbridge, who's the Undersecretary to the Minister and our DADA professor, and she gave me detention.

So why are you complaining to me?

I'm complaining to you because she had me write "I must not tell lies" with a blood quill.

She had you do WHAT!

You heard. I showed Snape and he took me to Dumbledore. There are now photographic records at the Ministry Auror office showing what she did to me. If she does it to anyone else at Hogwarts more photos will be taken.

Did Dumbledore find out anything about our connection?

No. He wasn't interested in me or you; I came to him as a student complaining about a teacher. I did suggest that as you don't like people thinking you don't exist that you ought to show up at a DADA lesson and show up Umbridge.

Voldemort chuckled at this; his apprentice really was quite creative with his idea to get back at the toad. He knew who Umbridge was, Lucius kept him well informed on the Ministry personnel and it was with regret that he picked up his quill again.

That's an amusing idea Raiden however it might cause a panic. While I enjoy causing mass panic on occasion, it might make Dumbledore suspicious of you. Did he ask how you would ask me to come?

No he didn't. That was because when I asked the question, I said that I would owl you. He seemed amused at the concept. Professor Snape also was amused at the thought of you showing up, although he took it a step further.

Oh?

Yes. He thought that Umbridge would call you an imposter, and think that you were a student trying to impersonate you to scare her. She might have tried to give you detention.

Here Raiden broke into muffled chuckles once more, thankful for the silencing charms on his bed curtains which hid his mirth from his peacefully sleeping dorm mates. He shook his head and read what his master had written.

Ha ha very funny. You may tell Severus that I appreciate his sense of humor and that I will be expressing my displeasure towards Umbridge within the next few days, in a way that will be amusing for the school and hellishly painful for the toad. Now, it's far too late for you to still be awake so kindly go to sleep.

Fine. Goodnight Master.

Goodnight my apprentice. I do appreciate the report.

Thank you Master.

Raiden and Voldemort both closed their journals, Raiden went to sleep, dreaming of possible ways that his master might show his displeasure to the toad, while Voldemort sat for a while turning over possible ideas in his mind. The idea that he went after the toad's family in revenge was discarded immediately, it would bring up questions about Raiden's loyalties that he didn't want asked, as it would be suspicious for the Dark Lord to target someone that had directly hurt him. Plus it wasn't quite personal enough. Finally he decided on a special form of Howler. It would be delivered at breakfast the next morning. Voldemort smirked, pulling a piece of parchment towards him and picking up a quill. Thinking for a few minutes he began to write. Once he was finished he cast a few spells on it. Umbridge would think twice before torturing his apprentice again, he would see to that.