Hiya! Welcome to chapter 4!
Thanks to: Rowellylovesgryffindor and the Anon who reviewed
Disclaimer: I only own Mia and blah, blah, blah… and I got the Aconite plant from the Harry Potter Wikia… and I made up the Curatio Sero…
Oh, and this is probably set during the second week of term…
Chapter 4: Weird
Mia, Angelina, George, Katie, Alicia and Fred all sat at the Gryffindor table. They had managed to get onto the subject of Ron's Keeping skills for the sixth time since the first Quidditch practice.
"-And the Slytherins weren't helping at all!" Angelina was saying, "and neither are you two!" she pointed at Fred and George.
"What've we done?" Fred exclaimed, with a spoonful of porridge halfway to his mouth.
"You're taking the mick out of him at every possible moment!" Angelina told him, then sighed and shook her head. Fred scoffed.
"It's not really gunna boost his confidence, though, is-" Mia cut off as a third year just down the table put down a copy of the Daily Prophet.
"Is… what?" Fred said. Mia ignored him and snatched up the paper, the third year looked at her astounded, but Mia ignored him too. She just read the article under the massive picture of Umbridge and her pink cardigan and too-sweet smile.
"What is it?" Katie asked, reading over Mia's shoulder, "WHAT?" she almost yelled.
"What does it say?" asked Fred, who was just faced with the back-page news.
Mia read:
"MINISTRY SEEKS EDUCATIONAL REFORM, DOLORES UMBRIDGE APPOINTED FIRST EVER HIGH INQUISITOR
"The Minister has been growing uneasy about goings-on at Hogwarts for some time," said junior Assistant to the Minister, Percy Weasley-"
She glanced up at Fred and George, who had narrowed their eyes slightly. She read on:
"He is now responding to concerns voiced by anxious parents, who feel the school may be moving in a direction they do not approve of."
This is not the first time in recent weeks that the Minister, Cornelius Fudge, has used new laws to effect improvements at the Wizarding School. As recently as 30th August, Educational Decree Number Twenty-two was passed, to ensure that, in the event of the current Headmaster being unable to provide a candidate for a teaching post, the Ministry should select an appropriate person. "That's how Dolores Umbridge came to be appointed to the teaching staff at Hogwarts," said Weasley last night. "Dumbledore couldn't find anyone so the Minister put in Umbridge, and of course, she's been an immediate success, totally revolutionising the teaching of Defence Against the Dark Arts and providing the Minister with on-the-ground feedback about what's really happening at Hogwarts."
It is this last function that the Ministry has now formalised with the passing of Educational Decree Number Twenty-three, which creates the new position of Hogwarts High Inquisitor.
"This is an exciting new phase in the Minister's plan to get to grips with what some are calling the falling standards at Hogwarts," said Weasley. The Inquisitor will have powers to inspect her fellow educators and make sure that they are coming up to scratch. Professor Umbridge has been offered this position in addition to her own teaching post and we are delighted to say that she has accepted.
"It goes on to slag off half of our other teachers," Mia finished.
"Umbridge is going to be inspecting our lessons?" Alicia asked as Mia slapped the paper down back in front of the third year.
"Apparently so."
When Mia walked into her Herbology class, she spotted Umbridge standing just behind the spot Mia usually used. Her wide eyes flicked around quickly, trying to see an empty space she could use instead, there were none. She blew a strand of hair out her face and walked over to her spot, where there was a small tray with a large plant growing out of it and a bucket.
As Sprout walked into the greenhouse, Umbridge moved around Mia and said, "good morning, Professor Sprout."
"Ah, Dolores! I assume you are here for my inspection?" Sprout asked cheerily.
"Yes, I am," Umbridge smiled.
"Very well. May I start my lesson or…?"
"No, no, please. Act as if I am not here," Umbridge moved to another corner by a tall Hufflepuff girl, who edged away ever so slowly.
As they trimmed the flowers from the Aconite (while trying to avoid the toxic leaves), Umbridge walked around the class, asking people questions. She asked the tall Hufflepuff girl weather they often worked with toxic plants, to which she gave a short, stuttered reply to.
At the end of the lesson, Mia walked quickly out if the greenhouse, shoving her book in her bag and stepping around Umbridge, who was telling Sprout when she'd get the 'results of her inspection'.
Mia trotted into the Entrance Hall and up to Gryffindor tower. "Mimbulus Mimbletonia," she muttered to the Fat Lady, who was looking over her finger nails.
"Hmm?" she glanced up, "Oh, yes, yes…" she swung open and went back to her nails.
"Alright, Mia!" Fred called from a chair, his back facing her.
"How'd ya know it was me?" she asked, making her way over to them.
"He didn't," George replied, "he's been doing that to the last six people that came in. They looked at him like he was a right weirdo."
"They wouldn't be wrong," Mia sat down, then said, "We just had Umbridge inspecting our lesson." she said, grimly.
"How'd it go?"
"She stood in the corner, wrote on a clipboard, asked a couple of people some questions. But Sprout picked the wrong day to get us to study Aconite," she replied as she pulled her Transfiguration book out of her bag.
"Why?" Fred asked vaguely, he didn't have a clue what an Aconite was.
"Well, the leaves are toxic, ain't they?"
"Are they?" George asked. Mia sighed and rolled her eyes.
"Yes. We were cutting off all the flowers- which are used in potions. But the leaves are toxic- not much, but still…" she trailed off.
"Sprout'll be fine," Fred told her.
"She'd better be," Mia replied, opening her Transfiguration book, "'cause I don't know who else'd be able to teach Herbology." She started absentmindedly scribbling down notes for her homework.
A few days later, Mia, Angelina, Alicia and Katie sat around a table in to common room.
"What's a Curatio Sero?" Mia asked, pausing as she did her Potions homework.
"Dunno. I left that bit out," Angelina replied. Mia flicked through her book for a second, but couldn't find any reference to the Curatio Sero.
"HERMIONE!" she yelled across the common room.
"Mia!" Katie hissed.
"What?" Mia asked, before turning around again. "WHAT'S A CURATIO SERO?" on the other side of the room, Hermione sighed and stood up, walking over to her.
"What's a what?" she asked.
"A Curatio Sero."
"It's a plant. It's really rare and if you rub the leaves over an open wound it numbs it and clears up any infection that might have set in. But you can only find it in really hot, wet climates, like the rain forest," Hermione finished.
"Cheers," Mia said as she finished copying down what Hermione had said. Hermione rolled her eyes and went back to sitting with Ron.
"Hello, ladies," Fred said as he and George pulled up a couple of chairs and sat down.
"Where've you been?" Alicia asked.
"Now that, Alicia, is our own little secr-"
"They've been testing their stuff out of first years," Mia cut him off, not taking her eyes off her parchment
"Damn, you know us too well!" Fred complained.
Five minutes later, Mia cocked her head and said, "and I think…" she dotted a full stop "that I am done!" she looked up and stretched.
"Me too," Angelina said, "what's the time?"
"Half ten," George said, glancing at his watch.
"Right, well, I'm shattered, so I'm going to bed." Angelina stood up, bid them goodnight, and left.
Over the next half hour, the common room emptied. A group of giggling sixth year girls went first, followed by some third years and then two fifth year boys. Katie went to bed after she finished her astronomy homework, Ginny walked past them on her way upstairs with one of her friends, and Ron soon followed. Hermione and Alicia started packing up their things at the same time, and headed upstairs together. A sixth year boy stormed off to bed after he lost a game of Gobstones, and his friend followed seconds after, smirking and muttering something about a bad looser. When Mia decided George's lap would be comfier then her chair, Fred rolled his eyes and left too.
George started twisting Mia's hair around his fingers and slipped the other arm around her waist. She sighed and leaned back into him and closing her eyes. "This is… weird…" she said.
"What?"
"Just a bit."
"How so?" George asked. Under her eyelids, he could see her eyes flicker a bit as she thought of what to say.
"Well," her eyes opened and she sat up, twisting round so she was facing him, "it was around this time last year… that we were standing in a broom cupboard hiding from Filch… and… it was all kinda… awkward back then… and now…" she trailed off, shrugging, looking back to him.
"It's different?" he supplied.
"Yeah," she smiled and he smiled back.
With one hand, George laced his fingers through hers, and with the other, trailed his fingertips down from her temple to her jaw. They stayed like that for a second, before they both leaned in and pressed their lips together. She slowly brought her free hand up, brushing it along his arm, and rested it lightly on his shoulder.
When they parted, Mia smiled slightly. "It's weird…" she said, "but in a good way."
"Yeah, I know how you feel…"
Oooooooo, Mia's just said its weird… where will that lead us? Well, you ain't gunna find out… yet! Hehehe! So, if you want to find out:
Please review!