He could hear girls' voices screaming, Malfoy yelling, George swearing, a whistle blowing and the bellowing of the crowd around him, but he did not care. Not until somebody in the vicinity yelled 'Impedimenta!' and he was knocked over backwards by the force of the spell, did he abandon the attempt to punch every inch of Malfoy he could reach.

"What do you think you're doing?" screamed Madam Hooch, as they leapt to his feet. It seemed to have been her who had hit him with the Impediment Jinx; she was holding her whistle in one hand and a wand in the other; her broom lay abandoned several feet away. Malfoy was curled up on the ground, whimpering and moaning, his nose bloody, and bearing two black eyes, (a gift from a certain son of Hades Nico would not like to mention); George was sporting a swollen lip; Fred was still being forcibly restrained by the three Chasers, and Crabbe was cackling in the background. "I've never seen behaviour like it - back up to the castle, both of you, and straight to your Head of House's office! Go! Now.''

They had barely reached the door of Professor McGonagalls office when she came marching along the corridor behind them. She was wearing a Gryffindor scarf, but tore it from her throat with shaking hands as she strode towards them, looking livid.

"In!" she said furiously, pointing to the door.

She strode around behind her desk and faced them, quivering with rage as she threw the Gryffindor scarf aside on to the floor.

"Well?' she said. 'I have never seen such a disgraceful exhibition. Three on one! Explain yourselves!"

"Malfoy provoked us," Harry muttered.

"Provoked you?" shouted Professor McGonagall, slamming a fist on to her desk so that her tartan tin slid sideways off it and burst open, littering the floor with Ginger Newts. "He'd just lost, hadn't he? Of course he wanted to provoke you! But what on earth he can have said that justified what you three - "

"He insulted my parents," snarled George. "And Harry's mother." George turned to Nico, as if wondering for the first time why he'd joined in the Let's-Beat-Up-Malfoy parade.

"And you, Mr. Di Angelo?" McGonagall snapped. "I trust this had nothing to do with extreme loyalty to your two house-mates?"

Nico frowned. "No, Professor." he said, a bit too quickly for his own good. Professor McGonagall stared at him for a few seconds. She must have been one of the staff members who knew about Nico because she satisified herself with a disappointed look in his direction. Nico had to admit how good it felt beating that blond brat up, but immediately felt a little guilty. A little. He still didn't completely regret what he did. In fact, he would have done it again.

"But instead of leaving it to Madam Hooch to sort out, you two decided to give an exhibition of Muggle duelling, did you?'' bellowed Professor McGonagall. "Have you any idea what you've - ?"

"Hem, hem."

The trio wheeled around to be met with an especialy pink Dolores Umbridge.

"May I help, Professor McGonagall?"

Nico secretly thought that the words 'Dolores Umbridge' and 'help' wouldn't likely fit in a sentence.

Nico clearly saw that Professor McGonagall disliked her judging by the redness of her face. Nico took one look at Umbridge and saw just how happy she was. Well, more like sensed, really. Pure hapiness practically radiated off of her. So apparently, she was waiting for the three of them to do something wrong.

"Help?" McGonagall repeated, in a constricted voice. "What do you mean, help?"

Professor Umbridge moved forwards into the office, still smiling her sickly smile.

"Why, I thought you might be grateful for a little extra authority."

I'd be more grateful if you left the room, Nico thought. He had come to hate pink and anyone in it because of that lady. Suddenly, Piper's threat about dying Nico's hair pink seemed horrible and cruel, and not silly anymore.

"You thought wrong,"' she said, turning her back on Umbridge.

How can she stay so calm when she's so clearly pissed at her? Nico wondered.

"Now, you three had better listen closely. I do not care what provocation Malfoy offered you, I do not care if he insulted every family member you possess, your behaviour was disgusting and I am giving each of you a week's worth of detentions! Do not look at me like that, Potter, you deserve it! And Mr. Di Angelo, I expect you to make eye contact with me while I speak to you. And if either of you ever - "

"Hem, hem."

Professor McGonagall closed her eyes as though praying for patience as she turned her face towards Professor Umbridge again.

"Yes?"

"I think they deserve rather more than detentions," said Umbridge, smiling still more broadly.

And I think if you smile any more, that too-wrinkled face of yours will crack.

Professor McGonagall's eyes flew open.

"But unfortunately," she said, with an attempt at a reciprocal smile that made her look as though she had lockjaw, "it is what I think that counts, as they are in my House, Dolores."

"Well, actually, Minerva," simpered Professor Umbridge, "I think you'll find that what I think does count. Now, where is it? Cornelius just sent it . . . I mean,' she gave a false little laugh as she rummaged in her handbag, 'the Minister just sent it . . . ah yes . . ."

She had pulled out a piece of parchment which she now unfurled, clearing her throat fussily before starting to read what it said.

"Hem, hem . . . "Educational Decree Number Twenty-five."

"Not another one!" exclaimed Professor McGonagall violently. Professor McGonagall was so thinking along the same lines as Nico.

"Well, yes,' said Umbridge, still smiling. "As a matter of fact, Minerva, it was you who made me see that we needed a further amendment . . . you remember how you overrode me, when I was unwilling to allow the Gryffindor Quidditch team to re-form? How you took the case to Dumbledore, who insisted that the team be allowed to play? Well, now, I couldn't have that. I contacted the Minister at once, and he quite agreed with me that the High Inquisitor has to have the power to strip pupils of privileges, or she - that is to say, I - would have less authority than common teachers! And you see now, don't you, Minerva, how right I was in attempting to stop the Gryffindor team re-forming? Dreadful tempers . . . anyway, I was reading out our amendment . . . hem, hem . . . "the High Inquisitor will henceforth have supreme authority over all punishments, sanctions and removal of privileges pertaining to the students of Hogwarts, and the power to alter such punishments, sanctions and removals of privileges as may have been ordered by other staff members. Signed, Cornelius Fudge, Minister for Magic, Order of Merlin First Class, etc., etc.""

She rolled up the parchment and put it back into her handbag still smiling.

"So . . . I really think I will have to ban these two from playing Quidditch ever again," she said, looking from Harry to George and back again.

"Ban us...from playing ever again?" Harry choked out. Umbridge smiled sweetly at him and reconfirmired.

Umbridge then turned to face Nico. "As for you, Mr. Di Angelo," she said, drawing out his last name. "I believe detention with Mr. Filch for the rest of everyday in the term, excluding the weekends, for those shall be saved for me. You would also not be allowed to be on the Hogwarts grounds for the same amount of time, and of course, all your Hogsmeade privelages as well." Every word Umbridge said, Nico fumed. "And of course," she added. "Temporary suspension from the school. I believe two months will be enough?"

"You can't do that!" George Weasly protested. "We did nothing worse than he did!" he said, pointing at Nico, who was trying to mentain a normal breathing rate. Harry looked dumbfounded. "You can't just-"

"Oh, I can Mr. Potter, and I did."

"Professor Umbridge," growled McGonagall. "I believe this punishment is a bit too...harsh."

"Oh, not at all, Minerva!" Umbridge said, chuckling slightly.

Nico felt something inside him crack. His anger did nothing but open the door to everything he'd been going through the last weeks. The pressure he was under, the anger, the feeling of responsiblity. His concerns, the unnerving lines of the Prophecy. It broke open something inside him. Hopefully, that was explaintion enough to what he did. Well, at least he thought so.

Nico stepped up to Umbridge. He was almost as tall as that toad despite being fourteen. Nico wouldn't leave. Not because of her. He had a quest to complete, friends to help, and he wouldn't stop.

"Do you have any objection, Mr. Di Angelo?"

Nico snorted. "I object to your presence, Professor Umbridge." Professor McGonagall opened her mouth to say something, but closed it, and pursed her lips.

Suddenly, Nico felt dizzy, It was that wave of rage radiating from Umbridge again.

Then, it clicked. That's why he had always felt so dizzy around her. Beneath those layers of pink, Umbridge hid her anger, infact, all her emotions. Nico didn't know why he could sense this, but he suspected strongly that it had something to do with a certain goddess of magic.

But this time, Nico didn't give in. He concentrated, and mentally shoved Umbridge's untamed emotions back to her.

It was sort of like when you get fed up with someone, you shove a packet of skittles to their face and say "Eat the rainbow!"

"Mr. Di Angelo!" Umbridge announced loudly. Then she said in a whisper, "I don't believe you half-breeds have any authority over-"

"I have just enough authority over myself!" Nico yelled. The shadows in the room flickered visibly.

"Now," Umbridge said, looking taken aback. "You are to serve your punishments-"

"I will serve nothing Dolores Jane Umbridge." he whispered dangerously, after trying to calm himself down, having noticed his out burst.

"You are not aware of the things I can do, Umbridge." he whispered. "Right now, you and your dear Ministry don't control me. I'm here to assist you in the uprising war, and please spare me your denial, Professor. I will not leave this school, not by your orders, and not by the 'Minister's'." Maybe he had said that a little too loudly for his own good.

For good measure Nico added, "Us half-breeds have methods of persuasion, you see. I don't care if you're High Inquistor or Grandma Gracie, Umbridge. You have never controlled us." he sucked in a deep breath. "and as long as anyone in this school has sense, you can't and won't control them either." Nico said this part out aloud, and proudly.

Nico stepped away from Umbridge. "By all means," Nico said, satisified. "Expel me if you want. But I will not lie when I say this: no matter how much you try to make us weaker and break us, someday, you'll see how wrong you were. When the inevitable happens, you and your dear Ministry won't be able to stop it. Until then, I stand by all I've said so far, and if the Wizarding Community had any sense, they will, too."

Leaving four gaping people behind, Nico walked out of the room without dismissal. He would not listen to Dumbridge. Eat the rainbow indeed! He honestly didn't care what happened next, and he knew it didn't matter as long as he was still at Hogwarts and doing his quest. And he would, for the love of anyone who cared, not back out of this. Not because of Umbridge, and not because of anything else. Nico would complete this quest, even if it killed him. And according to the prophecy, it probably would.

Poision shall flow through the blessed one's soul.

Posion? What poison? If I remember correctly, Nico was dying from the AK last I saw him in the future, huh? So what is this stuff about poisions? :P. So, sorry for not updating yesterday. My bro's 8th birthday and all that. So, we've got Lou-Ellen and trouble with Mera next chapter! Of course, tid bits of Nico (cause my fanfic won't be fun without him at all!) and maybe Briana and Damien. We'll uncover a bit of the prophecy, and see some Annabeth for the first time with Reyna in new Rome about the Lares! Woah, I just realized how much I promised you to write...So maybe if I get a hundred reviews for this chap. (which I'm almost certain I will) then I'll give you our promised 4/5 K word chapter, huh? Make sure you know that I've read all your reviews, taken your suggestions seriously, and will try to make them happen if I can squeeze them in with the plot! For any questions, suggestions, and comments, please review or IM me.

-Ambie