I do not own Harry Potter. Charlotte Potter is my OC.

Flight to the Department of Mysteries

'Sis.'

'What?'

'I really don't think this is a good idea.'

The twins were picking their way through the Forbidden Forest, Umbridge following closely behind. They were deep in the forest and Umbridge's nervous murmurs increased the further they went. "Are we almost there?" she demanded, eyes darting about anxiously.

"Almost," replied Charlie airily.

When they reached a fork in the path, she hesitated for a split second and chose the left one. Though she was aware that this happened to be the path she and Ron had taken to find Aragog three years ago, she definitely wasn't going to lead the woman to Grawp.

She shifted her gaze to her brother and spotted the flash of relief that crossed his face. He didn't seem keen on returning to the giant and she figured there was no reason to worry him about the possible danger ahead.

She hoped the centaurs found them before Aragog and his spider clan did.

'Relax,' she responded. 'The centaurs said they didn't hurt the young. We'll be fine.'

She took effort to make a lot of noise as she crashed through any bushes that were in their way and she said loudly, "We're almost there. Just a little bit further."

Pwoof!

An arrow whizzed over their heads and into the bark of a tree, causing Umbridge to yelp and whirl around. Charlie felt a flare of triumph and apprehension, for she knew her plan was extremely risky.

About fifty centaurs emerged from the thicket surrounding them, bows in hand. A chestnut-bodied centaur stepped forwards. "Identify yourself," he ordered. His bow, like all the others, was raised and aimed directly at them.

Charlie figured this question was directed at Umbridge so she stayed silent, eyes darting about. Harry stood beside her. 'Why kind of an idea is this?'

'A Ravenclaw one, mixed with a bit of Gryffindor and a hint of Slytherin,' returned Charlie. 'Just keep still and do nothing to agitate them.'

'Says the one who lured them to us in the first place!'

Managing to find her voice, Umbridge declared shakily, "I am Dolores Umbridge, Senior Undersecretary to the Minster for Magic, as well as the Headmistress and High Inquisitor of Hogwarts!"

"A Ministry worker, Magnorian," muttered one of the centaurs, his distaste clear.

"In case you have forgotten," continued Umbridge, "the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures states that half-breeds can be prosecuted for any attacks—"

"Half-breeds?" roared Magnorian. The other centaurs stamped at the dirt and muttered angrily at the insult. "How dare you address us as such?"

"It is what you are!" cried Umbridge. "Law 15B states that any attack by magical creatures who are deemed to be of near-human intelligence will be considered responsible for their actions!"

"We are fortunate to have an intelligence that you will never be able to possess," said Bane disdainfully. "What are you doing in our forest?"

"It is the Ministry who permits you to have this land," snapped Umbridge. Despite her fear, her desire to uphold and exude authority seemed to be stronger. "This is not your forest!"

Another arrow, from which direction Charlie had no idea, flew straight for Umbridge, missing her by inches. The woman let out a scream of fright and ducked down, though there were no more weapons fired. The centaurs laughed jeeringly, their neigh-like sounds mixing in the evening air. Harry bit down on his bottom lip, unnerved by the display, and edged closer to his sister.

"You disgusting beasts!" screamed Umbridge. "Filthy half-breeds, nasty creatures!"

Charlie caught the movement of the wand and the wild, furious expression in Umbridge's eyes. She did not know what spell would emerge from the tip of the wand, but she knew that whatever it was, she could not let it strike one of the centaurs, especially when it was her fault that they were all here in the first place.

She darted forwards, jumping into the path of the spell just as Umbridge cried, "Incarcerous!"

Thick black ropes appeared out of midair and shot out towards Charlie. The target was intended to be Magnorian, but the raven-haired girl managed to block the blow, hastily twisting on her heel and flinging her arm up. The ropes snaked tightly around her wrist and elbow, squeezing painfully. She gritted her teeth as the pressure increased and glared at Umbridge, who stared with wide eyes.

"I am sick and tired," she hissed, her voice echoing in the now silent clearing, "of you calling them, and any other creature for that matter, half-breeds. You don't have the right to talk to them like they're nothing. You don't have the right to treat people and other living creatures like they're dirt! And you know what? Last I checked, you don't live here. So it sure as heck isn't your forest. Maybe it's not really anybody's. But the Ministry can't claim this as theirs, nor should they have the right to permit centaurs where they can or can't go."

"Charlotte Potter," spat Umbridge spitefully. "Of course you'd be the one to stand up for the beasts. You're just as disgusting as they are."

"Enough of your slander," bellowed Magnorian and the centaurs came alive with noise once more. They started stampeding towards them and Charlie hastily dropped to the ground with Harry following her lead. The dirt rumbled and rocks scattered as the hooves pounded into the soil.

"Get off of me!" screamed Umbridge. Charlie peeked up to see the woman being wrangled by Bane. He lifted her high into the air and Umbridge's wand fell from her grasp. A sharp sense of satisfaction went through Charlie as Bane stepped on it, snapping it clean in half. "Let go of me!"

She continued screaming as she was carried off into the forest and into the shadows. Charlie could not feel any triumph just yet, for a centaur grabbed her by the shoulders and dragged her to her feet. "What shall we do with these ones?" he asked roughly.

"Please don't hurt us," pleaded Harry.

"They are young," said Ronan in a slow voice. "We do not harm foals."

"You led them to us, didn't you?" demanded a grey centaur, onyx eyes accusing.

"We were just hoping you could help us!" said Harry desperately.

Charlie flinched as anger crossed the centaur's face. Not the thing to say, bro.

"So you thought you would manipulate us?" roared the grey centaur. "Thought you could use us to do your dirty work like obedient mules?"

"No!" said Harry quickly. "It's not like that, I swear!"

"We do not help humans! We are not like Firenze, who betrayed us by sharing our ancient teachings. We are a proud race, apart from you! We will not let you treat us like servants!"

The centaurs roared their approval, but before they could attack, a great rumbling came from the trees. Everyone tensed and looked at the trembling pines and soon Grawp appeared beneath the canopy of leaves.

Oh, I do not need this right now.

The centaurs pressed close together, hands tightening on her bows. With slow movements, Grawp stared at them before focussing on the two teens standing in the middle of the centaur ring. "Charlie," he rumbled in a deep voice. "Where Hagger?"

"I don't know," said Charlie helplessly, knowing what the giant was asking. "I don't know where Hagrid is."

But this did not pacify Grawp. "WANT HAGGER!" he bellowed. A long arm extended downwards, accidentally knocking down a snow-white centaur as he attempted to grab onto Charlie.

This was enough to send the centaurs into action. Dozens of arrows sailed into the giant's face and brown-green eyes twisted in pain and anger. Shouting out, Grawp tried pulling out the arrows, but only succeeded in snapping off the wooden shafts. He started swinging blindly and the centaurs scattered, some falling to the ground and some reloading their bows. Charlie felt sick as pebble-sized drops of blood rained down on her and Harry.

"What do we do?" asked Harry frantically.

"Only one thing we can do," said Charlie grimly. "You might want to run."

"No way. I'm staying here with you," he said strongly.

"Then stand back. This might get ugly."

Charlie strode a few steps forwards and screamed, "STOOOOP!"

Her voice managed to penetrate the stamping of hooves, Grawp's enraged shouts and war cries. Whether it was because they were stunned by her audacity of commanding them, the centaurs stopped and stared at her. Grawp, surprised by the high-pitched noise, also stopped his thrashing.

Standing straight-backed, Charlie stared at Grawp and said sharply, "I'm sorry, Grawp, I don't know where Hagger is. I'm sure he'll be back. Wait for him at your spot."

Grawp stared at her long and hard. Then, to her utter shock, he complied. He turned around and made his way through the trees, his great footfalls causing tremors in the earth. Though she was uncertain if he understood her or had simply gotten bored, Charlie still felt a flare of pride.

Which was immediately extinguished as she turned to meet the sharp, distrusting glares of the centaur herd. Slowly raising her arms in a show of surrender, Charlie said, "We were wrong to bring Umbridge here. We were wrong and arrogant to hope you would help us. But we had no intentions to manipulate you, to disrespect you. I'm sorry for causing so much trouble, for all the insults you suffered and for disregarding your wishes. I was given a warning once before. But I came here anyway. I crossed a line tonight. I'm sorry."

There was silence. Magnorian stepped forwards, expression unreadable. He removed an arrow from his quiver and Charlie lowered her arms, screwing her eyes shut in preparation for what might come.

Swish!

She opened her eyes to see the ropes, which had been wrapped tightly around her right arm, laying on the ground. She flexed her stiff limb and said softly, "Thank you."

Magnorian regarded her intently for a moment before saying curtly, "We are not happy with your intentions. But your apology is sincere, that we cannot deny. This is your last warning, Charlotte Potter. Leave. Do not come back."

Bowing her head in gratitude, she said, "Yes sir. Thank you very much."

She hurried to her brother, grabbed his hand and dragged him into the dense leaves, heart pounding in her chest. Harry, who had been frozen through her entire spiel, rasped, "You're crazy."

"A little bit," said Charlie wearily, her scar giving a painful throb. "We better find the others. I don't know how much time we have left."

"We've still got a problem," said Harry. "How the heck are we going to get to London?"

"Fair question," a voice said from the trees.

The twins stumbled to a stop and stared in awe as Ron, Hermione, Ginny, Luna and Neville emerged from the thicket. Each of them carried some sort of facial injury, but they all seemed to be rather pleased with themselves.

"How'd you get out of the office?" asked Harry as Hermione handed him his wand.

"We landed a few jinxes and curses," replied Ron, rubbing some blood off his lip. "We grabbed our wands, spotted you guys heading into the Forbidden Forest from the window and followed."

"What happened?" asked Hermione in concern.

"Long story, but the centaurs carried off Umbridge and then Grawp appeared. They attacked him and that's where this is from," said Charlie, gesturing towards her stained robes.

"Grawp?" asked Luna in puzzlement.

"Hagrid's half-brother," answered Ron dismissively.

"How'd you get away?" asked Ginny in disbelief.

Harry could not help but grin. "Charlie's very good at peaceful negotiation. Say, Neville, how'd you get here?"

"I saw Ginny in Millicent's stranglehold and tried to help," muttered Neville.

"Is Sirius okay?" asked Ron.

"Yeah. I would have felt it if he wasn't." Charlie rubbed her scar, prickles of unease going through her. "But I don't know how I'm going to get to London."

Hermione set her hands on her hips. "You mean we."

"No way," denied Charlie. "You guys are already in enough trouble. Besides, it's a trap for me, set by Voldemort. This is dangerous."

"Which is why we're not letting you go alone," said Ron strongly.

"We're the DA, aren't we?" added Neville. "This is what you've been training us for."

Charlie could not argue that, though she still felt extreme apprehension about bringing her friends with her. Harry set a hand on her shoulder and whispered, "You're not leaving without us. Arguing about it is only going to waste more time."

Heaving a sigh, Charlie gave a defeated nod. "Fine. But listen to what I say."

Her friends nodded in understanding.

"Okay. So how are we getting to London?"

"We can fly," said Luna simply, pointing over Charlie's shoulder.

Glancing behind her, Charlie stared at the two Thestrals watching them from between two trees, white eyes gleaming. "Right," she muttered, recalling that Thestrals were attracted by the scent of blood, and she and Harry were coated in it. "But there's only two of them."

"More will come," said Luna confidently. "You really have a lot of blood on you."

"Thestrals?" said Ron dubiously.

"Hagrid said they're very good at bringing the riders to where they want to go," said Luna seriously.

"But we can't see them!" exclaimed Ron.

"I'll help," said Charlie distractedly as her scar gave another fierce pound. "There's some more Thestrals approaching. Luna, Neville, help me get the others onto a Thestral. We need to head out as soon as we can."

It took a few minutes, but soon they were all seated upon a Thestral. Ron stared down in dismay, for all he could see was the ground and not the creature that was supporting him. "I don't like this!"

"You'll just have to ignore it," said Hermione, who felt slightly nauseated by the distance between her and the ground and they weren't even in the air yet.

Once everyone was seated on a Thestral, Charlie took a deep breath and said strongly, "Visitor's entrance to the Ministry of Magic, London."

Her Thestral unfurled its wings and took off into the air, her friends soon following after as they soared through the twilight sky.

They were on their way.

…

She was not sure how long they flew, but the journey to London certainly did not seem to be very long. She had spent most of the time thinking, wondering what she would do when she encountered Voldemort, how she would protect her friends, how she would rescue Sirius…and the uneasy weight in the bottom of her stomach refused to leave her alone.

They arrived at their destination and Charlie thanked the Thestrals before crowding into the telephone booth with her friends. "Ron—you're the closest to the receiver, dial 6-2-4-4-2."

Ron managed to twist his arm and punch in the numbers. The same female voice that had greeted her in the summer spoke. "Thank you for visiting the Ministry of Magic. Please state your name and reason for visitation."

Charlie rattled off their names and added, "We're here for…uh…a rescue mission?"

To her surprise, name badges appeared in the metal chute and Hermione scooped them up. They soon made their descent and the bushy-haired girl shoved the badges into the pockets of her robes. The Atrium was completely silent. The only sound was that of rushing water from the golden fountain. There was no security personal at the security booth. The place was completely empty.

Charlie held her wand out, eyes darting back and forth, the unease turning into a sense of foreboding. Something's not right.

"Now what?" asked Ginny.

"Just follow me."

After all her dreams, all her speculation, she knew the way to the Department of Mysteries like the back of her hand. They entered the lift, went to level nine and hurried down the corridor to the lone black door. Charlie briefly considered leaving two of her friends behind as lookouts, but she immediately dismissed the idea. She wanted them by her side at all times.

They reached the door and Charlie pushed against it. It opened without any problems, leading them into the circular room with all the black, unmarked doors. Neville closed the door behind them, plunging the room into darkness, leaving only small orbs of shimmering blue flames.

"There are a lot of doors," said Luna in awe. "Which one do we go through?"

Before Charlie could answer, there was a great rumbling sound and the wall began to turn. When everything settled, she could not figure out which door would be their exit and she realized that was the point.

"Did it do that in your dream?" whispered Harry.

"No," she muttered. "I got it right on the first try." In a louder tone so the others could hear, she said, "Don't worry about it. We'll find the exit when we need it. Right now, we need to find the room that glitters. I'll know it when I see it."

Selecting a door, Charlie raised her wand and shoved through it. They all stumbled into a room which looked rather like a classroom, with desks and chairs. There were lamps hanging from the golden ceiling, and the most dominating feature of the room was the massive glass tank filled with deep green liquid.

"What's in there?" asked Ron, squinting at the contents floating in the liquid.

Charlie felt nauseous. Hermione was the one who answered. "Brains," she whispered. "But I can't imagine what they're using them for."

"Let's not stick around to find out," said Charlie with a slight shudder. "We have to try another door."

"But there are doors in here too," said Neville, pointing at the wall.

"No, it's one of the doors from the room we just left. That I'm sure of," said Charlie confidently.

They exited the brain chamber and Hermione marked the door with a fiery 'X' so that they would know which doors they already tried. The wall moved again and when it stopped Charlie strode to the door that faced her.

They stepped inside the room, where the floor was sunken in a stone pit, tiers of stone benches steeping downwards. It reminded Charlie of an amphitheater, though there was an odd feature to this chamber as well. A stone dais in the middle of the pit. An ancient archway sat on the dais, a black curtain flapping gently, though there was no draft.

"Hello?" she called hesitantly. "Sirius?"

She had the strangest feeling someone was on the other side of the archway…there was something intriguing about it that she could not explain. When she got closer, she could hear whispers coming from the other side. She walked around the dais, but all she could see was the other side of the black veil.

"Does anyone else hear those whispers?"

"What whispers?" asked Hermione in a frightened voice. "I don't hear anything. We should go!"

"I hear them too," said Luna in a dreamy voice. "There are people in there."

"It's just an archway! We need to get out of here and look for Sirius! Charlie!"

Charlie blinked, realizing that her foot was on the edge of the dais. She hastily scrambled back a few paces, heart pounding in her chest. No…it's not just an archway. It's something dangerous.

"Hermione's right, let's go!" she commanded.

Ginny and Neville were also staring at the archway, looking rather mesmerized. Anxious to get out, she grabbed Ginny's arm while Ron took Neville's and they all went back into the chamber of doors.

"What was that?" asked Neville in a nervous voice.

"I don't know and I don't want to know," said Charlie firmly.

The wall spun again and she selected a door at random. She pushed her shoulder against it but it would not budge—it was locked tight.

"That's it!" exclaimed Ron. "This must be the one!"

Charlie stared at the firmly-shut door, mindful of Sirius' knife in her pocket. But despite the lack of security this night, she sincerely doubted a magical object from Sirius would be enough to get through a door in the most secretive department in the entire Ministry.

Sirius isn't going to be in a locked room. Voldemort wants me here. He wants me to find him. Besides, when I was dreaming, the door I entered was open. I never encountered a locked door.

"No," she decided. "It's not." She swivelled around and approached another door instead, which opened without problem. She felt both relief and apprehension at the glittering brightness of the chamber she stepped into. "This one, however, is."

The room was filled with a diamond-sparkling light. Clocks covered every available surface, of all types and sizes, hung between bookcases and lined across desks. The source of the glittery light was crystal bell jar at the far end of the room. There was a jewel-bright egg inside, along with a sparkling current of wind. When the egg reached the top of the jar a humming bird hatched, but as it fell back to the bottom it once more became an egg.

"We're here," she said in a grim voice. "Be ready."

Her friends held out their wands and they moved forwards through the door. They appeared in the room Charlie knew very well, though this was her first visit. A high-ceilinged room with towering shelves filled with dusty spheres.

"He's at the end of row ninety-seven," said Charlie softly.

They rushed down the aisles, looking at the number plaques mounted to the shelves. They reached the correct row, but Charlie did not hear anything, nor see anything. Her heart hammered in her chest and when they reached the end of the row and found nothing, no Voldemort and no Sirius, her heart fell in complete dread.

She'd been tricked, like a complete and utter moron.

You wear your heart on your sleeve, Potter…that's the problem. With wary green eyes, she looked around, ignoring the nervous and tentative expressions of her friends. Voldemort definitely wants me here for something. He wouldn't have forged that vision if he didn't. But he's not here…so what the heck does he want? For me to be arrested?

Though possible, she figured if that was the case someone should have caught them before they even stepped foot into the Department of Mysteries. No, he did not want her in Azkaban. He wanted her dead. But why wait? Why not strike the moment she appeared?

All those dreams of this place…if he's been feeding them to me, then whatever he wants me for, it's for something in here.

She figured their best bet was to leave. Sirius was nowhere in sight and the longer they stayed the more danger they put themselves in. Whether or not they actually made it out was something Charlie was not sure of. Voldemort would not let her leave so easily, but she had to try.

"All right, we—"

"Hey!" said Harry suddenly, squinting up at one of the glass spheres. "Look at this!"

"What?" asked Charlie.

"This one has your name on it!"

Eyes wide, Charlie stepped beside her brother and stared at the faded yellow label underneath the glass sphere that glowed with a dull light. She brushed away some dust and felt her heart jolt at what she found, written in loopy handwriting, dated sixteen years ago.

S.P.T. to A.P.W.B.D.
Dark Lord
and (?) Charlotte Potter

This is it.

Whatever this thing was, it's what Voldemort wanted her for. It's what he tried to use Sturgis Podmore for. It was what he tried to use Broderick Bode for. She was his final plan. She was his tool in getting the weapon he'd been desiring throughout the year.

Oh, no. I don't think so.

"Let's go," she commanded.

Harry frowned. "But it's yours! Don't you want it?"

"No, she shouldn't!" said Hermione forcefully.

"None of us are here," said Ron in confusion, glancing at the other labels. "Why is she?"

"Maybe we can find out," offered Harry. He reached out to touch the sphere and his fingertips just ghosted across the surface before Charlie practically body-slammed him out of the way, knocking into the shelf as she did so. Her sphere fell forwards and, on instinct, she lunged forwards and seized it out of the air.

It felt warm, though it did not do anything. Her friends crowded around her and stared at it. But before anyone could say anything, a familiar, drawling voice came from the end of the row, and caused Charlie's spine to stiffen.

"I must say, that was a close one, Potter. But you got it in the end and that's what matters. Turn around, slowly, and hand it over."