A/N: Thanks to all those who have reviewed, followed, and favorited this story. I'm glad that people have been enjoying it. And a special thanks to Bonnie and Mainsail for beta reading this and thus improving on the original. If you have questions or concerns about what's going on, feel free to include them in a review or a PM — I'll try to answer.
Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter, JK Rowling does.
Recommendation: This chapter's recommended fic is "Don't Look Back in Anger" by robst. Hermione has a temper, though in canon she usually kept it controlled. What if she didn't, though? After the Triwizard Tournament, she speaks out and tells Minister Fudge what she really thinks of his refusal to believe Harry about Voldemort's return — and how stupid it is of him to deny that despite the fact that someone killed Cedric. Maybe she should have just kept her big mouth shut...
Final Countdown: 10!
Chapter 41 - Private Eyes
Wednesday, March 1, 1996, Night.
"Jasmine, Hermione, can I ask you something?"
Hermione looked up from where she was getting out her clothes for the next day and saw that Lavender was looking at her with a nervous expression. "Sure, Lav, what's the matter?" she asked.
"It's... it's Ron," she said, after a brief hesitation. "Has he been acting differently lately? More distant?"
Hermione frowned and thought about that, then said, "No, I don't think so."
"We're still not quite as close as we were during the first three years," Jasmine added, "but I think we'd notice any big changes in his behavior."
Lavender sighed heavily. "Then he must be acting differently around me. Has he said anything about me? About breaking up with me?"
Hermione shot Jasmine a look and wondered what they should say. She didn't want to lie, but she also didn't want to get into the middle of someone else's relationship.
"He's never talked about you very much," Jasmine said. "I think he wanted to keep it private — something between the two of you."
Lavender smiled for the first time. "That's sweet of him."
Hermione nodded. "You're his first girlfriend, and I'm sure he's trying hard, but he's bound to make mistakes. Don't assume that he's fully conscious of what he's doing or what messages he may be sending. He's not the most emotionally self-aware boy I've ever met."
"Oh, that much I already know," Lavender said as she rolled her eyes. "I've made plenty of allowances for that. The recent distance, though, has been pretty consistent, and it's been going on for a couple of weeks at least. I keep pushing, but it's not helping."
"Maybe that's part of the problem?" Hermione suggested. "Ron can be pretty stubborn. Pushing a stubborn person too much will make things worse."
"There's also... well, you know, his father," Jasmine said. "He may not be dealing well with that."
Lavender looked thoughtful. "Alright, I'll try giving him some more space. Let's see if that gets a better reaction. Thanks!" With that, she returned to her own bed with a slight skip in her step.
Saturday, March 4, 1996, Evening.
"Say, Sirius, didn't you once mention that Jasmine was getting extra instruction from Professor McGonagall?" Tonks asked, trying as hard as possible to keep her voice sounding casual and curious — but not too curious.
"Yep, that she is," Sirius answered. "She's been helping her a lot, in fact. It's my understanding that she's gotten quite close to her."
"Oh?" Tonks said, not sure if she should be happy or distressed to be learning this. "I've always remembered her as such a stern and forbidding teacher — not the sort that students could get close to. Certainly not while they were still students!"
Sirius chuckled. "Oh, your memory of her is correct. I have the same memories, and she hasn't changed a bit! No, she seems to have taken a shine to my goddaughter. And Hermione as well, as a matter of fact."
"I wonder how that happened?" Tonks asked. "Did McGonagall latch on to her as soon as she entered the castle, going on about how much she looks like Lily?"
"No, actually, they weren't always so close," Sirius said with a slight frown. "Now that you mention it, I think they only got close... last year sometime. I mean, during her fourth year. I'm not sure what caused it, but it was a later development."
"Maybe it was the tournament?" Tonks suggested. "That had to be stressful."
Sirius nodded. "That sounds likely. I should ask how and why things changed. I never gave it much thought — I was too happy to know that she was watching out for them."
"Maybe that will include teaching them some advanced magic," Tonks probed. "She is one of the best, so learning from her would b a great opportunity."
Sirius' brow furrowed. "I think she might be, though I don't know the specifics. It might be both her and Flitwick, now that I think of it. I know that they are spending a lot of time doing extra study and training. They have to, what with Voldemort after them."
Tonks filed all of that information away, then deftly changed the subject. "So, did you have that second date with your Italian goddess yet?"
Sirius' eyes lit up, and he was more than happy to regale her with details of his dinner with Alessandra.
Monday, March 6, 1996, Evening.
"Aren't you worried about the kids?" one of the most recent Death Eater recruits asked his trainer. "I mean, they aren't all blood traitors and mudbloods, are they?"
The trainer shrugged. "If we go at night, they won't be at too much risk. Besides, we have an insider who can ensure that those loyal to the Dark Lord will be safe. Don't let anyone else hear you expressing doubt like that, though. You won't last a day if you can't keep that sort of thing to yourself."
The recruit nodded but still looked troubled.
"I'm more worried about the defenses," another recent recruit said. "Even inside, there are dark, narrow corridors, shifting staircases, and other obstacles. If you practically grew up there, it might not seem daunting, but those of us who have been brought in from the continent regard it differently."
The trainer looked at the second recruit with a thoughtful expression. "That... is a good point. You're right: to some of us the place will seem normal, but the rest of you will have problems. Congratulations — you just got a promotion, and your first assignment will be to help me come up with ways to help get our forces ready."
Up on the wall, one of the portraits listened to the discussion with great interest.
Tuesday, March 7, 1996, Evening.
"Things with Nott are getting worse," Daphne told the others once their study session was over.
"I've noticed that he's looking rather haggard at meal times," Hermione said. "At least, when he's at meals."
Tracey nodded. "He's missing more classes, too. He's sneaking off more and more, but we can't figure out where. He's too good at losing us."
"We need someone better at following others," Daphne lamented.
"Of course!" Jasmine said, brightening up. "Dobby! Winky!" Two house elves appeared with a pop, looking expectantly up at their mistress. "Yes, Missy Jazzy?" they asked.
"We've got a bit of a problem," Jasmine explained. "We're sure that Theodore Nott of Slytherin is up to something, but we don't know what. We think Voldemort personally gave him some sort of mission to accomplish here in Hogwarts."
Both elves shivered slightly at the mention of Voldemort, and Jasmine nodded in sympathy. "Yeah, whatever he wants to happen here can't be good. Unfortunately, Daphne, Tracey, and Blaise have been unable to follow Nott long enough to find out where he's even going, much less what he's doing. I was hoping, though, that you might be able to help."
Dobby and Winky nodded vigorously. "Yes, Missy Jazzy! We can be doing!" Dobby exclaimed.
"Great," Jasmine responded. "Don't exhaust yourselves or anything like that. But more importantly, don't let yourselves be seen. The top priority here is secrecy. Got it?"
"Yes, Missy Jazzy! We will be following nasty snakey boy without anyone knowing it!" Without another word, they popped away.
Friday, March 10, 1996, Evening.
"Minister Fudge? Minister Fudge?"
"Yes, what is it, Weatherby?" Fudge asked as he looked out from several piles of parchment on his desk. "Can't you see I'm busy?"
"I'm sorry, Minister," Percy said, "but I'm heading home for the night and wanted to see if there was anything I could do for you before I left."
"No, no, just leave me in... no! Wait!" Fudge cried out even as Percy was closing the door. "There is something you can do. Come in, sit down. I've been trying to figure out a way to take Potter into custody. I can't do it at Hogwarts, she has too much support there. Even if Dumbledore weren't there, it would be a problem. Instead, I'd like to get her out of the school. I thought about luring her to the Ministry where we can be in control of the situation, but I haven't been able to think of any way to do that. You knew the girl — what do you think would work?"
Percy considered that. "Well, as an orphan she's never known much about her family. If you had anything relating to her parents or even grandparents, whether information or personal items, that would surely get her attention."
"Yes, yes, that's an excellent idea," Fudge said as he started writing. "I can't imagine that we'd have anything like that, but I'll have a search done. What else?"
"There isn't much about the Ministry itself that would interest her," Percy continued. "She's never been one for the order and security that is provided here. However, the Department of Mysteries might be something she'd find attractive. They do so many unusual and dangerous things there."
"The Department of Mysteries," Cornelius Fudge whispered to himself. "Why didn't I think of it before?"
"In fact," Percy continued, now sounding a bit more confident, "the prophecies kept down there might be a good choice. They aren't dangerous, but the idea that there is a prophecy about her would appeal to her attention-seeking character."
"Prophecies, you say?" Fudge asked, suddenly remembering something important. He dug through one of the tall piles of parchment swaying dangerously next to his desk and pulled out a report on the addition of several new security measures in the Department of Mysteries — and specifically the Prophecy Room. "Yes, this would work nicely. I can lure her in, then capture her in the act!"
Percy cleared his throat. "Sir, given how violent she is, do we want to risk a fight in the middle of all those prophecies?"
"A fight?" Fudge asked. "No, no, we can't have that. Quite right... but we can capture her on her way out! Yes, that's it! We'll be waiting for her when she leaves!"
Fudge and Weatherby worked long into the night trying to come up with ways to convince Jasmine Potter that there was a prophecy she urgently needed to see.
Saturday, March 11, 1996, Late Morning.
"Good morning, Miss Potter! Miss Granger! I'm so delighted to finally make your acquaintance!"
Jasmine and Hermione hadn't known what to expect when they learned that Xenophilius Lovegood wanted to personally interview them for the April issue of The Quibbler, but the man who opened the door of the private meeting room in the Three Broomsticks was unlike anyone they'd ever seen... except for perhaps Luna, which explained oh-so-much about the little blonde witch.
Tall and thin, Xenophilius was dressed so garishly that his outfit probably would have given even Albus Dumbledore pause. His eyes, though, conveyed both intelligence and curiosity, two of the characteristics they liked most about Luna herself.
"I've already ordered a selection of food and drink for lunch, and... oh, who's this, then?" Xeno said as Gabrielle walked in behind the other two.
"This is Gabrielle Delacour," Jasmine said. "She entered Hogwarts this year as a fourth-year student. She, uh, tends to stick close to me and Hermione."
Gabrielle fixed the older wizard with an indecipherable look before declaring, "I am zeir protector. I am here to ensure zat nothing happens to zem."
Xeno raised one eyebrow at her, then said calmly, "I'm impressed that they earned such loyalty from one such as you. I can promise them and you that I bear none of you any ill will."
Gabrielle nodded once, then moved to stand by the door after casting a number of silencing and anti-eavesdropping charms on it.
"Before we begin," Xeno said as he motioned for the other two witches to sit at a table where he'd already arranged some parchment and quills, "I'd like to thank you for taking my Luna under your wings and helping her. She wrote to me several times before the summer holidays about how much she enjoyed spending time with you and your friends, and then during the summer there was little else she would talk about."
"It was our pleasure," Jasmine assured him. "We learned that she wasn't being treated as well as she deserved and wanted to do something about it. Since we didn't know who was doing what, we couldn't go after them directly, but we could offer her sanctuary with us and make it publicly known that she was our friend."
"Well, it definitely helped," Xeno said. "After her mother's death she withdrew into herself, and it got worse after she started at Hogwarts. It was only after joining you and your friends that the vivacious little girl I remember appeared once again. I'm also pleased that you've been including her in what you've been teaching others. She's become so much more self-confident and assertive."
After a few moments of shuffling parchment, he continued, "Now, this interview won't appear until next month, and I'm sure that it will result in all sorts of trouble for all of us."
"Would you rather not do it?" Hermione asked with a frown.
"Oh, no," Xeno replied. "That wasn't a complaint at all — I'm looking forward to it! Since I'm not breaking any laws, they can't do anything to me directly. Instead they have to waste a lot of time finding ways to harass me, all of which I include in following issues as proof that the Ministry is scared of the truth, thus increasing sales. It's wonderful! I only wish they'd started coming after me years ago. You'd think they would have once I started exposing the Rotfang Conspiracy, but maybe they never noticed. Oh, well — better late than never!"
Jasmine and Hermione looked at each other and shrugged. They still hadn't figured out how to respond to Luna when she went on about such things and certainly didn't want to get on Xeno's bad side. Quite apart from how helpful he'd been, he seemed like too nice of a man.
"Let's start with some basic background," Xeno said next as he set up a couple of auto-dictation quills to record everything that would be said. "Why don't you each tell me a little bit about yourselves, where you come from, and where you see yourselves going in the future."
They spent the next four hours, with only a short break as lunch was delivered, going over everything that the two witches felt comfortable disclosing. This included all of the details of her various "adventures" in Hogwarts over the years, from her confrontation with Quirrell, to her epic fight with the basilisk, to her driving off all the dementors, and finally to her perspective on everything that had happened to her during the Triwizard Tournament.
Jasmine had never wanted to publicize all of that — not simply because of her innate reluctance to talk about herself, but because she didn't want to sound like a braggart. The recent articles in the Daily Prophet had forced her to change her mind, however, since wizards and witches in Britain were now reading a narrow and twisted version of her life. She needed to get the truth out there somehow, and that meant giving near to full disclosure to a trusted reporter.
Both girls knew that they were lucky to have found someone like Xeno, who not only believed them, but who wanted to print their stories. Of course, when they remembered that he also believed in something called a Rotfang Conspiracy and in magical creatures called snorkacks, they were less sure how advantageous it was that he was one of their primary supporters. As Hermione had once said, "If the man will believe pretty much anything, the fact that he believes us doesn't say much about him, does it?"
Yet, as Jasmine had pointed out at the time, "Strange help is better than no help," so they refrained from expressing such doubts aloud and simply thanked the odd wizard for what he was doing. He of course waved their gratitude away and insisted on thanking them, noting that they'd given him enough material to write two or three interesting articles that could be published over the course of several issues.
He then promptly ignored them as he began writing said articles.
Albus Dumbledore watched from a darkened corner in the back of the tavern as the three witches left the Three Broomsticks. He'd arrived under glamours, having followed the witches as closely as possible during their time in Hogsmeade, but he still kept to the shadows as much as possible. While they had shopped earlier in the day, he was sure that Miss Delacour had looked at him suspiciously more than once, and he wasn't sure if there was anything about veela magic which might let them see through concealment spells.
Now I have proof of a connection with Xeno, Dumbledore thought with satisfaction. This certainly can't be their first meeting in Hogsmeade — when I got Rosmerta to tell me who had rented the room, she let slip that he'd rented it quite often. So he's here regularly, probably to meet and plan with Miss Potter and Miss Granger. He's involved with the rituals, as demonstrated by the articles he publishes; Miss Potter and Miss Granger are also involved somehow, as demonstrated by their connection to Xeno and their reaction to learning about when the horcruxes exploded.
The question is, who else is involved? he wondered as he sipped his drink. One fringe journalist and two underaged witches would not be enough to accomplish all that's been done — though hopefully my students haven't participated in any of the rituals. It seems unlikely, given the fact that they have occurred during the school term when they've been in the castle. The presence of Miss Delacour at this meeting forces me to reconsider how deeply involved the French and the veela still are. I had thought that perhaps they had merely introduced some British wizards and witches to these rituals, and then Miss Potter and Miss Granger had gotten involved after that — perhaps through Miss Lovegood. But maybe the connection is more direct? If so, it's likely that my new Defense professor is involved as well, and came here with an agenda of her own. That might fit what I've heard about how skilled they are in combat, and how quickly they move to follow Miss Potter and Miss Granger into a fight.
After a while, the disguised headmaster dropped some coins on the table to pay for his drink and wandered back up to the castle, lost in thought as he tried to examine all the different possibilities and permutations. Above all, he was worried that Jasmine and Hermione might have participated in one or more rituals, introducing them to behavior that had long been suppressed for the good of the community, as well as to power that would surely corrupt them if allowed to continue unchecked.
I do hope that I'm not too late to protect them, he thought as he entered his office.
After disillusioning themselves and scaring away a small group of younger students who had been daring each other to get close to the Shrieking Shack, Jasmine, Hermione, and Gabrielle soon found themselves inside "the most haunted building in Britain," resting on comfortable furniture which Apolline, Adrienne, and Fleur had transfigured while waiting for them.
"Thank you for coming," Jasmine said. "We didn't want to be a bother, but—"
"You are never a bother," Apolline insisted firmly. "If you say it's important, then it's important and we want to hear about it."
"Well, we think it's important," Hermione said. "We... we're honestly not sure what's going on, or if any of this is related. The only other person we could talk to about this is the Headmaster, but it would require telling him some secrets of ours that we're simply not willing to trust him with. We're not as angry with him as we used to be, but we're not telling anyone else about our bond or about the veela prophecy unless we absolutely have to."
"And we may have to, in this case," Jasmine added. "But we have more trust in you than in him, so we're going to share with you a secret he told us rather than the other way around. And this is a big secret. Basically, if Voldemort even suspected that anyone was discussing this topic, he would probably take steps that might make it impossible to defeat him. OK?"
The grave looks from all four veela made it clear that the message had been driven home, and they all agreed to not tell anyone about this conversation unless Jasmine or Hermione authorized it.
"Do any of you know anything about horcruxes?" Jasmine asked. When they all shook their heads, Hermione recounted what she'd learned at Grimmauld Place about what they were and how they were made, and none of the listeners could hide just how disgusted they were with even the thought of such vile magic.
"Let me guess," Adrienne said once Hermione was done. "Your dark lord made one?"
"Several," Jasmine answered, horrifying the others even more.
"So you need to track them down and destroy them."
"Yes," Jasmine confirmed. "Or, maybe not. I don't know... we haven't gotten to the problem yet. The problem is that his horcruxes have been exploding."
"Problem?" Fleur asked incredulously. "I'd call it a blessing!"
"Well, it's a problem for anyone nearby," Hermione said, "because apparently the explosions are rather violent."
"But more than that is when they've been exploding," Jasmine added. "Dumbledore informed us about them going all explody when he first told us that they existed, but last month he finally told us when the explosions happened."
"Wait," Hermione said, holding up a hand. "Explody?"
Jasmine grimaced. "Sorry... I think I might have picked that up from Dobby and Winky at some point."
Hermione shook her head in exasperation. "Just when I thought their grasp of the Queen's English couldn't get any worse. I'll bet they got that from that American bloke, didn't they?"
"As I was saying," Jasmine continued, trying to ignore the amused expressions on the others' faces, "April 30, 1996. Beltane. September 22, 1996. The Autumnal Equinox. October 31, 1996. Samhain."
"Our rituals." Apolline whispered.
"Two of them were the first two rituals in which we believe you acted as vessels of the goddesses," Adrienne said, her brow furrowed in thought. "The third took place in between and was the most powerful of the other rituals since Beltane."
"Nothing on Yule or Imbolc?" Apolline asked.
"Maybe, maybe not," Jasmine said with a shrug. "There might have been horcruxes that exploded on Yule and Imbolc, but unless and until someone stumbles across the places where they were hidden and can do the right tests, we'll never know for sure."
"It was mostly luck that Dumbledore was able to put the pieces together and notice the pattern in the first place," Hermione pointed out, "and even bigger luck that he has no idea that there might be a connection to the rituals we're participating in."
"But is there a connection?" Adrienne asked. "That's the question, yes?"
"That, and whether our soul bond might be involved," Jasmine responded. "I have, or maybe had, some sort of connection to him in the past. My scar hurt when he was around, and a few times I got dreams or visions that might have been linked to what he was doing. None of that has happened since shortly before fourth year, and even my scar started healing up some time after Samhain."
The three older veela looked at Jasmine with much greater interest, making her squirm a bit under their scrutiny.
"It might all be a coincidence," Hermione said at last. "It's definitely true that rituals occurred — including big ones — without certain horcruxes reacting. The one that exploded on Samhain, for example, didn't explode on Beltane."
"You assume that they didn't react," Adrienne corrected. "Unless someone was there watching, we don't know what was happening. It could well be that the ones that survived until Samhain did so because they were stronger, or had stronger protections, and so didn't explode until they had been weakened. But otherwise, you're right: it might be a coincidence."
"Unfortunately, we can't afford to simply presume that it is," Apolline added. "You need to eliminate these horcruxes in order to eliminate your dark lord."
"More than that," Jasmine said, "I don't want to fight him again until his horcruxes are destroyed because if I defeat him then, he'll still come back, sooner or later. But once they are destroyed, I need to fight him as soon as it's reasonable to do so because I want to strike while he's still mortal — before he has a chance to do something else that might protect him."
"You have a plan, then?" Apolline asked.
Jasmine shrugged. "Not so much a plan as a guiding principle. Hit him when he's most vulnerable and do it when we can control the circumstances."
"I can see then how this issue throws that into disarray," Adrienne said. "You may be closer to destroying his horcruxes than you realize. You may in fact have already destroyed them all, for all you know, in which case your desired window of opportunity opened without you realizing it and may already be closing."
"One of the elders of our people may be able to help," Apolline said. "Catherine-Rosalie is the oldest living veela ever. In her youth, she spied for us at the French royal court; after she faked her death and returned to us, she became one of our foremost experts on soul magics. She lives mostly in seclusion these days, but I think she will consent to see me about this — providing you give me your permission to share all of this with her?"
Jasmine and Hermione looked at each other briefly, then Hermione said, "Yes, just so long as she understands how sensitive this information is. But if she has any ideas or suggestions that might help, we'll be eager to hear them."
Thursday, March 16, 1996. Evening.
"Missy Hermy?" came a whispered voice from behind her. When Hermione turned, she saw Dobby peeking out from behind her trunk. And if she wasn't mistaken, he looked like he was wearing a dark trench coat... and was that—?
"Dobby?" she said softly. "Are you wearing a fedora?"
"Yes, Missy Hermy," said Winky, whose head came up from behind Dobby, wearing the same style hat.
Hermione's eyes narrowed in suspicion. "I probably don't really want to know the answer to this, but... where did you get those getups?"
"Missy Jazzy be saying that these be uniforms for being sneaky!" Dobby replied earnestly.
"Did we do wrong?" Winky asked, her eyes going wide in worry.
"No, no!" Hermione said quickly, not wanting the elves to get upset when they had clearly been following Jasmine's guidance. Or misguidance. "What is it you wanted to tell me?"
"We be having information," Dobby said. "We be following snakey boy!"
"Oh, great!" Hermione exclaimed, only to have the house elf shush her. "Sorry!" she whispered, then said, "Why are we whispering?"
"Because this be secret assignment!" Dobby answered, as if it had been obvious all along. That reminded Hermione about how she and Jasmine had stressed secrecy. Apparently they had taken the instructions to heart.
"Alright," she said, kneeling down and whispering as low as she could. "What did you learn about Nott?"
"Dobby and Winky be following snakey boy all day and all night," the elf explained, "and we be finding that snakey boy be using Come and Go Room!"
"Huh," Hermione mused. "That's interesting... do you know what he was doing in there?"
Dobby's wide eyes grew remorseful. "No, Missy Jazzy, we not be learning that."
"That's fine, Dobby," she assured him. "See if you can find any patterns to when he goes to the room — days of the week, times of day, that sort of thing."
Dobby nodded vigorously, then disappeared with a soft pop.
"Oh, Jasmine," Hermione called out. "We need to talk..."
Saturday, March 18, 1996, Morning.
"I've got some good news, and I've got some bad news," Jasmine told the DA leaders before they could start their practice session. "The good news is that we're going to start working on some new stuff — specifically, how to fight effectively in pairs and larger groups. The bad news is that there's intelligence suggesting that Voldemort may send people to invade the castle. So the new focus in training will be how to work in groups to defend the castle."
"I didn't think anyone had ever successfully invaded Hogwarts," Susan objected. "Do you really think he'll succeed?"
"I honestly don't know," Jasmine admitted, "but we can't take the chance that he will. He has a habit of doing things others have failed at. Given his history, in fact, I'm going to assume that he will use some sneaky way of getting past all of the heavy outer defenses and appear right in the Great Hall or something. There are multiple hidden passages out of the castle — maybe there's one that's been lost for a long time and he's discovered it? Who knows."
"First we'll practice splitting defense and offense," Hermione said, reading from a parchment. "That's what you'll need to start teaching other students in your houses immediately. Second will be how to combine spells for greater effect, like one person casting a blasting hex and another following up with a strong wind charm to send the shrapnel at the enemy. Third will be how one person can cast spells to distract or confuse the enemy while the other casts the real attacks."
"And zat is just ze start," Fleur chimed in. "All of zat is basic tactics for a pair of you working together. Once you do well with zat, we'll increase ze size of your teams and zereby increase ze complexity of your tactics — such as one person attacking, one defending, and a third providing support to whichever of ze other two needs it ze most."
"Based on the information gathered by Susan last summer," Jasmine said, "the Death Eaters don't use what muggles call 'small unit tactics.' That refers to individuals with different specializations working together as a team. Instead, Death Eaters fight as individuals and focus on their own targets or goals without much regard for what other Death Eaters are doing. They're older, stronger, more skilled, and more experienced than you, never mind the rest of the students in the castle. So fighting as units may be our only way to stop them."
Once they had divided up into pairs, the students spent the next three hours practicing different tactics against each other and against Jasmine and Hermione as individuals. They weren't good yet, but by the end they were picking up the basics and showing improvement.
That afternoon, when they went to the secret training cavern with Flitwick, they had him begin instructing them on how to best combine their talents so they could fight as a team. They, too, made progress, and when they held their monthly duel with him, they lasted almost half a minute before their Charms Professor took them down. They were depressed at their persistently poor showing, but he was pleased at how much better they were getting and assured them that as they learned to work together, they'd find themselves improving by leaps and bounds.
Sunday, March 19, 1996, Afternoon.
"The Headmaster has informed me that he's taking you out of the castle this evening," Minerva said as she offered Jasmine the pot of tea. "He wouldn't tell me why, just that I needed to distract Dolores if she starts getting too curious. I don't suppose you'd be willing to tell me what this is all about?"
"I'm sorry, I can't," Jasmine said, looking genuinely embarrassed at having to keep the information from her favorite professor and now close confidante. "He made me promise not to talk about it with anyone who didn't already know."
"I don't suppose you're aware of what's going on, Miss Granger?" Minerva asked.
"I am, but I'm not allowed to go," Hermione said with a scowl. "That was something else he insisted on."
Minerva pursed her lips. "I don't like being kept in the dark like this. I can't help you or him if I don't know what's going on." Then she sighed in resignation. "I suppose I should be used to it by now, though." The girls nodded in sympathy.
The discussion wended its way through other topics, and eventually it was time for them to leave. "Before we go," Hermione said as they were cleaning up, "Jasmine and I learned recently that your birthday was earlier this month."
"And you never told us!" Jasmine added with a pout.
Minerva rolled her eyes, "I haven't done anything about my birthday in ages."
"Well, that's why we have," Hermione said triumphantly as she pulled a wrapped package from her bag.
"But... you... you shouldn't have," Minerva said, clearly surprised.
"We wanted to," Jasmine said with a look of anticipation as the older witch accepted the gift. Minerva looked back and forth at the two for a moment before sighing and pulling off the wrapping. She was soon holding a photo album, and when she opened it she found that it was filled with pictures of her and her students.
"Some of these we got by writing to others, some we got with the help of other professors," Hermione explained. "And some we took ourselves over this past year with a magical camera we bought during the summer."
"This... this is lovely," Minerva said thickly, working hard to hold back tears.
"It just needs one more addition," Jasmine said as she pulled the camera out of her own bag. "There aren't any pictures in there of the three of us, and we'd like to take one." Minerva was speechless, and simply allowed herself to be maneuvered to the couch in her private quarters where Jasmine and Hermione sat on either side of her. One levitated the camera while the other activated the shutter remotely.
Then they had to do it a second time because at the last instant, Jasmine shouted, "Say Haggis!" causing the other two to suddenly turn and scowl at her. Jasmine thought that picture was hilarious and absolutely refused to let Hermione destroy it.
Minerva didn't get a copy of the second photo for a few days, but when she did she chose to display it on the coffee table of her quarters rather than keep it hidden away in an album.
It was easily the nicest and most meaningful birthday gift she'd received in decades.