Harry Potter and Big Sister

Chapter 11: Dumbledore's Army

Most of the weekend rolls around without any incidents, as students who got assignments from teachers tried to finish their work before the next Monday come by and they receive punishments or House point reductions, some do their homework, some don't, and those who had free time at hand tended to hang around their own respective House's common room, only gathering at the castle's main hall for meal, since they were not allowed to leave for Hogsmeade until two weeks later.

As for the assignment from Aisha, however, most students were still confused as to where and when to practice their own wand work, because of the rules and orders of the school, practicing magic in the hallways was prohibited, and most cannot work up the courage to ask their teachers to borrow a room for practice.

Yes, most of them… but not Harry and his friends, though.

It is Sunday morning when Harry, who had just changed his clothes into the student uniform, headed down to Gryffindor's common room, to be greeted by the sight of many fellow fifth year students, some in sleepwear, some in Hogwarts robes, whispering to one another, some have their wands out, pointing at the empty wall next to the fireplace, muttering spells under their breath. Red bolts of light surged forward from their wands, colliding with the wall with absolutely no effect once in a while, as most of the students failed to cast the spell entirely. One of the casters, who Harry identified as Seamus, raged in frustration after another failed attempt to cast the Disarming Charm.

"It's just a simple Disarming Charm! Why is it so hard to cast? Expelliarmus!"

Seamus yelled out while waving his wand, a soft red glow emanated from the tip of the wand before dissipating like his earlier attempt, much to his embarrassment, as his peers start to mock him, but the mocking stopped abruptly when they noticed a certain 'Boy Who Lived' staring at them from the staircase with an unimpressed look in his eyes.

Unfortunately for Harry, Seamus decided he need to vent out his frustration on someone, and so he rounded on the latest 'acceptable target' of the wizarding world today and snarled at him. "What do you want Potter, laughing at my failure aren't you?"

Other people whispered amongst themselves, pointing at Harry once in a while as the Boy Who Lived crossed his arms and shot back a curt reply at his classmate in angry tone. "I'm trying to decide whether to help correct your botched Disarming Charm or not, but it seem I'm worry for naught, you don't need my help anyway."

"Don't talk big Potter; we all know you're all about attention!" Seamus barked back. "As if you can cast a Disarming Charm, for all we know, you might just have had Cedric clear the path while you backstabbed him to get that damn Cup last year!"

Harry ground his teeth together, his mind seething with rage at such ridiculous accusations, which likely stemmed from another stupid article in today's Daily Prophet that he has yet to read, because he can't recall any article like that before. And thus, before anyone could react, or before Harry realized what he's doing, a wand was in his hand and a red bolt of light, characteristic of a Disarming Charm, flew right past Seamus's right cheek, close enough that the boy felt the heat of it, and exploded harmlessly on a wall behind them.

"Don't try my patience, Finnigan…" Harry spat out, slowly lowering his wand but not putting it back as of yet. "…as you see, I know how to cast said spell, so I'm not bragging an empty air like you, or what the Daily Prophet might have thought."

The rest of the group gulped at the sight of Harry's wand, backing away from him instinctively, as if he was some kind of monster, while Seamus stuttered "I… I… you're crazy Potter! You hear me… just like Dumbledore, you two are going to bring shame to Hogwarts!"

Harry's eyebrow twitched, as the attempt to shut Seamus up has produced the opposite result. He chuckled darkly while his emerald eyes glared at the offending boy, sneering back. "At least I'm still lucid enough to cast spells properly, Finnigan… you and everyone else who believes in those lies should've performed an IQ check… oh, I think that isn't possible…" He grinned at the sight of confusion running through the eyes of everyone present, as all of them are pureblood wizards who probably never lift their heads out of the Haven that's the Wizarding community and check the outside world, so he didn't pass this opportunity up, heedless that he's up against a group of students, not just Finnigan. "It seems you don't even know what IQ checks are… truly, your heads are stuck under a rock."

"What did you say!?" Cries of rage echoed throughout the common room as everyone in Seamus' group did not take the insult well. It was then that Harry realized just what transpired, as everyone have their wands out and pointed at him, so he did the same, bringing his wand out and pointing back. In his mind, he prays it never comes to a brawl, as he knows that it'll guaranteed end in detention once McGonagall finds out.

Luckily he was saved by a timely intervention of their Prefects, who just woke up and see what's going on, thus they shouts orders immediately in unison. "All of you, drop your wands, now!"

Harry's heart leapt as he saw one redhead and one brunette in uniform, prefect badges pinned on their shirts, descending down the stairs from both the boys and girls dorms, both with their wands drawn, pointing at the opposing parties. Hermione huffed, shouting loudly. "Casting spells or brawling in the common room is prohibited! Now cease this action before we are forced to punish you all!"

Gritting their teeth, both sides realized that their quarrel has drawn the attention of practically everyone in the Gryffindor dorm and that they'll be punish if nothing is done. So, Harry withdraws his wand as well as Seamus and others, barely averting the conflict between them.

Seeing that the entire room was now silent, Harry took the chance to escape, moving toward the entrance while shooting a thankful glance at Hermione and Ron seconds before he exited.

Once the Boy Who Lived left, the whispers return, most of the crowds dispersing to attend to their own problems, some staying, waiting for their friends so they could get breakfast together. The two prefects glared at those who started the commotion one last time, with Hermione giving advice to Seamus, who tried to practice spells in common room. "If you really want to practice spellcraft and wandworks, you should ask Professor McGonagall to borrow her classroom, practicing in common room is not allowed as well."

After she was done, the duo then headed out of the dorm, following their friends…

It was well after breakfast that the trio finally reunited at the main hall, although Harry was still in a sour mood, he was nowhere near as mad as he was at the dorm, and so their discussion ventured towards more pressing matters that they had to do on Sunday… Homework…

But, since they already did the essay part of every subject's homework the other day because Hermione had insisted it, all that was left was to prepare for the test Aisha was going to give them the next period.

"So… Someone please tell me," Harry said, while the three of them were walking down an empty hallway on the third floor, with no one else in sight. "What are we doing here, anyway?"

Hermione did not slow down at all; instead she went faster, prompting the two boys to hasten their own speed, listening to her mutter with annoyance. "Well, we need to borrow a classroom for practice, and since she's the one who gave us those instructions, we should go ask her to borrow one." She then stopped abruptly, making both boys nearly crash into her.

Harry adjusted his glasses. "You mean Sis? But where should we… oh…" His words faded out once he realized that they were in front of a closed door, one of the many in the hallway.

Ron, however, was not convinced, as he peered around them and saw many more identical doors lining up the hallway. Turning to Hermione, he asked, "Are you sure her quarters are really here? Also, did you know where her room was in the first place?"

The smartest of fifth year Gryffindor stiffened her lips, glaring at the redhead as if she's unable to believe his idiocy, before face palming. "Ron, did you even listen to what Dumbledore explained to us on the first night of patrol duty? He told us all of this."

Ron blinked in confusion, which was enough of an answer. Hermione ignored her friend, proceeding to knock on the door a few time, getting a response almost immediately, telling them to come in.

"Please excuse us…" The trio said simultaneously and entered the room.

The first thing that Harry saw in Aisha's room was that his sister, clad in her usual dress, was sitting behind her desk at the end of the room, her eyes seemingly radiating with displeasure, her frosty gazed fixed on another occupant of the room who seemed to radiate 'ugly pink' in every direction from her seat. It was a woman Harry wished to never be alone in the same room with since meeting her in the Ministry's Courtroom… Dolores Umbridge.

The toad lady, who was sitting opposite of his sister, had her hands on a parchment that's currently on Aisha's desk. She turned to see who just entered the room, grinning like a shark when she spotted the trio. Umbridge greeted them in a very fake, irritatingly cheerful manner. "Oh, Mr. Potter and his friends. Do you have something to discuss with Professor Aisha? I think you'll have to wait outside, you see… ahem… I have business to…"

"What you're discussing with me at the moment is not a secret to be kept from students, Madam Umbridge…" Aisha interrupts Umbridge with a growl of barely contained annoyance. "You're going to announce it tomorrow anyway, so why not? And you three…" She then motioned at a couch. "…sit down, there's no need to stand up."

Umbridge, taken aback by Aisha's statement, glared at the diminutive young girl for a second before replying. "Ah, yes, yes,… Ai… Professor Aisha…"

After they were all seated, it was Hermione who decided to show them her prefect badge, proclaiming her authority, and went straight to the point. "Excuse me, Madam Umbridge, but what is going to be announced tomorrow? Does it impact the students? Also, why did you have to visit Professor Aisha about this specifically?"

Hermione's observation wasn't untrue, because if the Ministry were to announce new laws and decrees to pass upon the school, it should be Dumbledore, the current headmaster, who had to be informed of the new law or decree. So why did Aisha have to deal with it?

Umbrige let out a giggle before speaking in a false, sugar-coated voice. "My, I doubt that a child like you'd have enough knowledge to question Ministry's actions…"

"Can you politicians tell us anything straight out for once, Madam Umbridge…?" Aisha cut Umbridge off mid-sentence, answering Hermione's question herself with hands clasped in from of her, her eyes narrowed in displeasure. "The Ministry's new decree will not allow students to form a group of more than three people, regardless of its purpose, without permission from a senior staff member of Hogwarts acknowledging it."

"Ahem, you forget to mention that they need permission from the Ministry Education Inquisitor, or ME, as well." Umbridge added her part in with self-importance, all the while grinning a shark-like grin at the trio, as if she was promising to make their life a living hell if they tried to form a self defense self-study group.

"Ah, yes, you must have permission from the Ministry Education Inquisitor, or Madam Umbridge here, too… This law will take effect tomorrow, resulting in the disbanding of all clubs, groups, and student organizations of all kinds, including the House's Quidditch teams." Aisha explained in boorish tone.

"What!?" Harry and Ron shouted in matching disbelieving voices, before they promptly shut up as a pair of purple eyes glared at them.

"If you want someone to blame for this decree, it is Professor Aisha's fault." Umbridge didn't pass up the opportunity to insult the girl who happened to snatch her initial post, albeit it being Umbridge's fault (She would never admit it), before explaining further. "Thanks to… ahem… her assigning students to self-study defense spells. It has come to the Ministry's attention that if children were to group up to learn spells together, like a self-study group, without a teacher's guidance, it may lead to uncontrollable spellcasting when they teach each other incorrectly, or cause children to have traumatizing experiences brought by uncontrolled violence,but still… ahem… her assigning self-study is justified by the Ministry Decree issued before the start of the semester for the wellbeing of Hogwarts students. Therefore, we cannot take back that decree, as it would endanger many more students. So, Professor Aisha, we have decided to pass this decree to control the damage instead."

The toad lady's logic had so many flaws, and was crazy on so many levels that even a bookworm, like Hermione, didn't know where to begin. She only stared at the Ministry official, slack-jawed and speechless. Harry and Ron could only blink and look at each other, while Aisha simply gave Umbridge a death glare and muttered something under her breath, which Harry, being able to read her lips, identified as, "Politics…" She did not, however, make a move against said toad lady, as she's not so stupid that she would lose her position and put Harry in more danger because of an outburst on this 'petty' matter.

Seeing that no one objected or contradicted her in any way, Umbridge, who was oblivious to Aisha's death glare coming from behind, stood up, her seat fading away to nothingness as it was conjured, and summarized what was to come. "So, as I said, all clubs and Quidditch teams will be disbanded starting tomorrow, and to create any groups, you must gain approval from me, the Ministry Education Inquisitor, along with one other teacher first."

Then she turned to address Aisha. "As for you and the other staff members, you will be subjects of evaluation by me in the upcoming class as well, to maintain 'standard quality' of our education system."

She paused to see the reaction of the young professor, but all she received was a large yawn, which was delicately covered by a hand, signifying how boring her speech was. "Is that all?"

Avoiding eye contact with those piercing purple orbs, Umbridge nodded. "Yes, that will be all. See you on Monday, Miss Aisha…" She then left the room, but not before sending a chilling glare, promising pain and torture, at Harry one more time.

Aisha closed her eyes, listening to Umbridge's footsteps echoing doing the hallway getting weaker and weaker, until there was silence. Opening her eyes, she looked at the trio, who seemed to have just woken up from their own shock at what had transpired before their eyes earlier. "Alright, what brings you three here?"

Hermione was the first one to reply, speaking solemnly. "Professor Aisha…"

"Called me Aisha, like I said before, I don't mind."

"Alright, Miss Aisha…" The resident genius of the fifth year students complied, before speaking again. "At first, we wished to borrow your DADA classroom to practice the spells that you assigned us, but as Madam Umbridge just said…" She looked back at the closed door, as if to send a glare through it and reach the woman in question. "…It's now illegal to study in groups without permission now."

"What, Hermione…" Ron exclaimed in disbelief. "You're going to give in to that toad just like that?"

"It's not like we have a choice if we're to stay in this school." Hermione argued "That Umbridge woman now has a power to expel us, or even Miss Aisha, through that law."

Aisha decided to give them some ideas. "It's only illegal if that woman finds out. You have to do it in secret, but by the way…" It seemed like she noticed that something was odd, as she glanced suspiciously at the trio as realization hit her before voicing her thoughts. "As long as the members don't go over three, it's still legal, isn't it? Don't tell me you're planning to…"

All three of them nodded, Hermione speaking first. "I'm sorry Professor, but we want to prepare against V… Voldemort…" (Ron nearly jumped out of his seat, while Harry looked both surprised and impressed at the girl) "I doubt that only Aurors will suffice, and from what I've read, he also targets family members of those who oppose him, as well as those who opposed him in the last war. This is more than just good grades or passing exams now, I hope you understand."

Purple eyes narrowed down, her body tensing up a little, before Aisha speaks in a serious tone. "I see, then I won't stop you three. Just be careful, because I can't bail you out of this one if you get caught." Her shoulders then sagged, as if to voice her disappointment and feeling of uselessness. "I'm just a teacher here, a warrior and scholar, maybe, but not a politician; that should be Eve's expertise…" She said the last part to no one in particular, but loud enough for the trio to pick up.

"Huh?"

Aisha simply waved her hand while explaining her statement with a mischievous smile on her face. "It's nothing; just a friend of mine who has a knack in politics."

Then she added more of her thoughts on the matter Hermione stated earlier. "So, if you want a secret place to meet with your soon-to-be members of this Defense Club, I suggest you ask a House Elf. Speaking of which…" She trailed off before shouting with a magic-reinforced voice. "Dobby!"

A loud crack sounded, paired with an explosion in the center of the room, as a House Elf in the most ridiculous outfit Harry ever saw appeared out of thin air, its large, yellow eyes glancing around the room, before settling on Aisha. She stood up from her desk as the House Elf began to speak. "Dobby has come as Mistress has asked. How can Dobby serve you?"

Aisha rubbed her eyebrow with one hand before motioning to the students with the other. "I called you here because I want you to help out these kids in their quest to study, this is…"

"Harry Potter…" Dobby interrupted, surprise crossing his face as he became aware of the other occupants of the room. "Mistress asks Dobby to help Harry Potter?"

Aisha raised an eyebrow, granted, she's not surprised that Dobby knows of her little brother or was very fond of him as he already told her the story of what happened during Harry's second year, but still, this reaction was a little too much. "Yes…" She said. "Just be careful; he's my little brother after all. And stop calling me 'Mistress,' it's embarrassing!"

And so, the meeting and plans went on as Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Aisha discussed the details about what they were going to – and willing to – do to prepare themselves and the others against the Dark Lord, while keeping it low-key as to not alert the ignorant Ministry of what they're trying to do.

Not a single member of Harry's group noticed something wrong, for example, a certain high-tech decoration, within Aisha's room at all…

As Umbridge has said – and made herself clear on – beforehand, the news of her new position, along with the new Ministry's Decree on Hogwarts, hit on Monday, much to the protest of students who just wanted to enjoy their free-time hobbies with each other, or just wanted help from their smarter friends on their homework and subjects at school, and much to the displeasure of the teaching staff, save Professor Binns, as he's already dead thus exempt from being watched by the Inquisition.

The good thing was Umbridge didn't hold any grudges against students as long as they weren't requesting to form a group to study the self-defence spells with more than three members, and let them pass immediately. On the other hand, as long as Harry Potter was on the list of membership, she'd try her hardest to delay the approval, or demand removing him from said club or organization, as he found out when Angelina, the new Quidditch captain of Gryffindor, came back to the common room and told them that Umbridge required him to be removed from the team, or she wouldn't approve of the Gryffindor team!

Luckily for the Boy Who Lived, Angelina Johnson did everything but comply to the Ministry blindly…

The Hogsmeade's weekend came too slowly for Harry's taste, as he had many things to worry about, from the House's Quidditch team finally getting officially reformed, thanks to the help of Professor McGonagall and after an amount of postponing from Umbridge (Who saw it as a form of comfort for him, one that must be taken away no matter what suffering it would cause innocent people), but they were still in dire need of new members to replace those who already graduated. Harry was run ragged at the testing ground to qualify many new members in one day, and tried to convince Ron, who hesitated to be on the team, to take the test, along with withstanding many glares and whispers directed at him once in a while. It was tiring, but the end result was that they got Ron to be Keeper and all the other positions filled out, ready for the first match three weeks from now.

The classes during this period wasn't any easier either, between the homework, preparation for the O.W.L. exam, and Umbridge, who seemed to have memorized his schedule and decided to perform her duty regarding evaluating every teaching staff member the moment they had to teach him. She tried to catch him in his non-existent wrongdoing while trying to interview the teacher in question, resulting in some hilarious moments, like spacing out while listening to Flitwick's answer as she watched him practicing the wandwork of the day, or when McGonagall seemed to scold at the toad lady as she interviewed the students about subjects that didn't concern her teaching in the slightest because she had mixed the subjects up. He still had to watch his back all the time, however, least he land in detention, which she could easily give by abusing the authority she had.

Still, Harry allowed himself to smirk a little while thinking about his Sister Aisha, and what had transpired during her class on Monday, as she completely ignored the Inquisitor by telling her straight in the face with a strict attitude, telling her to "Talk after the class is over." Aisha then proceeded to leave with the students running a lap around the castle to make sure that they didn't slack off.

However, it seemed that Umbridge was, ironically, attention-seeking, as much as she accused Harry of being, and could not take well that a girl half her age bossed her around, so she furiously followed the diminutive professor around the castle, forgetting about a broom or summoning charm entirely, only to quickly give up as she exhausted herself trying to catch the girl on the lap. Once they finished, Aisha found Umbridge sitting near the castle wall, panting heavily, while squeezing out incoherent words every now and then while the smaller professor carried her to the infirmary, this ending the evaluation without any interview or questions.

But that came with a price, as Umbridge came back a week later with vengeance, putting Aisha on a close watch regarding teaching capabilities, the same as Professor Trelawney of Divination, but it had more to do with Aisha pissing Umbridge off by ignoring her during the class more than her incapability of teaching, unlike Trelawney. Harry, Ron, and Hermione all agreed that if Aisha didn't change her teaching to more indoor activity like the other subjects soon, it won't only be Umbridge against her, but the whole student body as well, if the complains he heard in the common room nowadays regarding DADA was any indication.

His musings was cut short once the Hog's Head sign was in sight, Hermione quickly leading them inside without caring about Ron's protest or Aisha's warning when they went to see her earlier that morning and told her that they were going to hold a meeting with the other students there.

Harry's mind then wandered back to an hour before, recalling their conversation with Aisha…

"So…" His sister stated without looking at them from the corner of her room, where she's fixing the old-looking cardboard by waves her hands around and pouring magic into it – well, that's what they thought, as it was clear that the dents and bruises on the object began fading, the nails floating with hammers knocking them into the cracking wooden frame without anyone holding them. "What brings you here today, aren't you kids going out to that village and enjoy yourself?"

"We're going to hold a meeting with potential students who wish to join our little defense club today at the Hog's Head inn in Hogsmeade." Hermione quickly filled her in on the details, while Aisha clearly wasn't in the right mood to listen, as she waved her hand one more time, making the dust fly off of the repaired object, before settling back down on her seat behind her desk.

Once she was finished whatever she was doing, Aisha rubbed her forehead and repeated what Hermione had just said. "Hog's Head… That old, dirty excuse of an inn?"

A look of surprise plastered itself on the trio's faces, as if they didn't expect her to know this, considering that she should've been too busy with teaching and such to go out and explore. "How did you know where we're going to go?" Ron blurted out.

Aisha narrowed her eyes and glared at the redhead as if he had just asked something stupid, causing him to avert his gaze before she decided to explain, albeit after a pause where that odd, calculating look crossed her face. "To tell the truth, with the options of teaching this limited, there's not much to prepare for my next class, so I decided to take a day off last weekend and take a look, as Dumbledore generously offered me."

"Speaking of class, Sis…" Harry spoke quickly as a memory of the common room stirred in his head, recalling the gossip between fifth year students that he overheard during the two weeks. "…How long are you going to make us run laps around the school and test the spells which you cannot teach? The students are complaining more that before that they're too tired to think after your class. It won't be long before one of them tells their parents about you and your class."

Aisha sighed. "Let them try, as if they can go against what the Ministry decided. But, if you're concerned that you won't improve in more than your muscles, don't worry…" She smirked mischievously, sending a chill down their spines. "As I stated during the first class, there is still a matter of mental focus I plan on teaching you. It doesn't involve any exercise like I put you through during the last two weeks, but is equally important, so don't think I'll go easy on you."

The trio looked at each other nervously while Aisha chuckled at their reactions, before returning to the original question with an inquisitive look. "So, you kids are going to hold an illegal meeting with other students, who share the same interest in learning Defense Spells properly, in that inn?" All three nodded, causing Aisha to warn them. "That place is the easiest for others to eavesdrop, if you wish for privacy, go to the usual Three Broomsticks, the masses of people there will make it impossible to hear who's saying what."

Hermione looked like she didn't believe what Aisha said, but she was still polite enough to not outright disagree with her, Ron having the same reaction, while Harry seemed a bit more thoughtful, before they took their leave as to not be late for the Filch's check out to Hogsmeade.

Unknown to them, when their backs were turned, Aisha shook her head while muttering in a tired tone to someone who wasn't there. "It seems you have a job to do, TK-421…"

…The sound of an old, rugged door opening brought Harry back to the present, as the trio stepped into the dirt looking bar at the farthest end of Hogsmeade. He couldn't help but agree with his sister, the place was too suspicious… Even though there aren't many people in the bar – just a witch in a hood sitting at one of the many dirty tables, a man at the equally dirty bar, the bartender himself, an old man with a rugged and unclean look, further complimented by a dirty beard and robes (Harry wasn't quite sure if he saw him somewhere else before or not). The first impression he got from this man wasn't a good one, and that they should get out of here before something bad happened.

"Hermione…" The raven-haired boy called out to his friend, still gazing around the dirty inn warily. "Are you sure we should hold a meeting here?"

The bushy haired girl didn't answer; instead, she pinched her nose as if she smelled a particularly foul odour, before glancing back at Harry and replying carefully in a low voice. "I know that you hold… Professor's advice and teaching in high regard, but trust me, this is the best way to do it."

It didn't take a rocket scientist to figure out what she said, but Harry was still unsure about it. On one hand, eavesdropping in the Hog's Head was so easy that Harry worried that some of the customers would be spies for the Ministry to keep an eye on him, or even the bartender himself! On the other hand, doing the thing your enemies don't expect was also a viable option, because Umbridge may think that this place made eavesdropping so easy that the student wouldn't pick it to hold a meeting of questionable legality.

And so, without him knowing it, he and the rest of his group had already sat down at one of the dusty tables, with Hermione ordering butter beers for them, twiddling her thumbs, glancing at the entrance, waiting for the others to show up.

Seeing that they're already past the point of no return, with no Umbridge in sight – since all the people there didn't have a body shape that resembled Umbridge at all, Harry decided to ask Hermione about the upcoming event. "Hermione, how many people agreed to meet us here?"

Taking a sip of the warm liquid in her glass, Hermione looked up and casually replied. "Oh, a couple of people…" She then gestured towards the door that was slowly opening. "…I guess they're arriving now."

A mixed feeling of dread and horror crept up on Harry once the people came in, starting with Dean Thomas, Colin Creevy, Fred, George, and Ginny Weasly, Lee Jordan, followed by his Quidditch team captain and members – well, most of them. And it's not restricted to Gryffindor, either, as the students of fifth and fourth year still pouring in, including Cho Chang and Luna Lovegood from Ravenclaw, and Justin Finch Fletchley and Susan Bones from Hufflepuff, to name a few whose faces and names he knew.

"Just a couple of people?" Harry said hoarsely. "This's just a couple of people, Hermione?"

"Well, it seems the idea is quite popular, despite being against the rules." Hermione said happily while the group dragged chairs from other empty tables to sit around them, Fred ordering butter beers from the stunned bartender for everyone.

Once all of them have their drinks and are seated properly, Hermione glanced at Harry and, seeing that he is still unsure of how to act, decided to speak first. "Er, well, hello everyone, you know why you're here. Um…" She glanced at Harry again, this time a hesitant look spreading across her face, as if she's about to offend him, before continuing. "I have an idea… It might be good if we can really learn Defense Against the Dark Arts, not just the fitness course Professor Aisha is running…" She then immediately defended her claim. "I… I mean, she's not a bad teacher, but…"

"No need to say more, Hermione…" Fred cut her speech short, before voicing his own thoughts. "We all know that she had been restricted on what she can teach is by the many ridiculous 'Ministry orders and laws' they passed up on a whim."

Harry looked at all the people gathered, seeing the skeptical or outright unbelieving looks on their faces. It was obvious that the lessons Aisha put them through were not well-received by the students, just like what he had observed and told Aisha that morning.

Hermione saw the looks too, and seeing that Harry's fists were shaking, she knew that she had to do something quickly, so she provided them facts that could not be denied. "Think about it, if she really didn't want to teach us spells, why order us to self-study? Why test us every class before making us run a lap around the school grounds? It was obvious that something was holding her back." She tried not to use the word 'Ministry,' as some of the students were still oblivious to what's going on between Fudge and Dumbledore, and won't believe her if she said it out loud.

Dean Thomas spoke first, looking at his fellow Gryffindor as if to accuse them for not taking action, or rather, for not remembering what had transpired in class. "You have a point… Hermione, we all saw what she did during our first DADA class with her, haven't we? She can cancel out opposing spells before it is even casted, said spell being casted by Hermione of all people! If that's not telling us how capable she really is, was she not restricted, I don't know what is! To me, she probably sees that if she can't teach us how to defend ourselves with magic, she might as well teach us how to defend without it."

A murmur rises through the students gathered there, as another rumor running around their school has been confirmed by eyewitnesses, and when the other fifth year students of the House of Lion, who were all present when it happened, told the other that it was true, all the students looked a bit more relaxed at the thought that their teacher isn't some nutcase who wanted to make them suffer, but a teacher who did really care for them, albeit a little too strict and serious about her job to the point of making sure that students did get something from her class, even if it's something they don't like and deem useless, like physical training.

Then a boy named Michael Corner from Ravenclaw spoke up. "As good as it is to hear that Professor Aisha is not running us ragged without a purpose, we still have a problem – she cannot teach us the real Defend Against the Dark Arts." He then looked at the genius girl of fifth year Gryffindor. "I'm guessing that you want to pass the O.W.L. as well, if you're willing to break the Ministry's Decree by forming a self-study group this large, so we can help each other out and correct our mistakes before the O.W.L. … Am I right?"

"Well, that's one thing…" Hermione reluctantly answered. "But that's not the only reason I wanted to do this. You see…" She glanced around nervously, before gathering up the courage to speak. "Becauses… V… Lord Voldemort is back..."

As expected, everyone at the table let out a gasp of horror as if she just spoke the name of the devil himself, some even falling off of their chairs. However, once the initial shock passed, all of them fixed their eyes on one person… The Boy Who Lived…

Harry did not flinch under the attention he receive, instead he swiftly silenced any attempts to question his sanity be pre-emptively stopping them. "If you're here to listen to how Voldemort murdered people, or ask if I'm telling you the truth or ask for any proof that he's back, I suggest you leave now."

No one did as he said, but one of them spoke up, a girl named Susan Bones, if Harry wasn't mistaken, asking him with interest. "Were you able to cast a Patronus charm? As in it having a corporeal form?"

Harry was taken aback by this, blinking and looking back at the girl in confusion, before giving her an answer, although he didn't know why she would want to know that yet. "Um, yes, I can…"

"Where's the proof that You-Know-Who is back?" A blonde Hufflepuff boy suddenly asked in an aggressive tone out of nowhere, cutting off Susan's answer mid-sentence, much to the ire of the girl and Harry, who had grown tired of this kind of question already.

So, he adopted what he saw his sister Aisha do when one of her students complained too many times in class, crossing his arms and glaring at the boy sternly, before replying in a cold voice. "As I said, I saw him come back before my very eyes, that's all I have to say, if what Professor Dumbledore told us in the hall last year couldn't convince you, I won't bother either. To be frank, if you really want someone to teach you defense spells, why not ask a sixth or seventh year about it? They should have more knowledge than me… and you're…" He trailed off, as he didn't know the boy's name.

"Zacharias Smith," The boy replied quite arrogantly, before continuing. "So you have no proof to show us that You-Know-Who is back… Why are we even here?"

"And when did I say I want you to believe that?" Harry interrupted. "I said that if Dumbledore cannot convince you, then I won't bother. But we're straying from the main topic here, so can you all give me a reason to teach defense at all?"

"Well, you can cast a real Patronus charm…" Susan Bones started again. "That's a sixth year spell, and you were only a third year when you performed it, if what I heard is correct. That has something to say about your ability."

Everyone looked perplexed at the girl's words, but once she said that her aunt, Amelia Bones, questioned Harry at the Ministry to help out with a certain case that happened in his neighborhood (She had enough sense to not spill what case it was, Harry was quite grateful for that) who told her this, everyone decided that it's the truth and moved on, with Neville telling them how he protected the Philosopher's stone in year one, and killed the basilisk in year two, to name a few, and the doubt in each one's mind about Harry's teaching capabilities diminished as one achievement after another was listed. Finally, mostly everyone agreed, to Harry's surprise, that he should be the one teaching DADA spells to them, and thus the unnamed club was formed.

And so, after the meeting was over, the gathered students decided to sign a piece of parchment Hermione conjured, swearing to secrecy. At first, everyone hesitated, until Hermione told them that it was enchanted to be blank to anyone but those in their group, and told them the first meeting schedule and location, before all of them went their separate ways for the rest of the day.

No one noticed a pair of eyes from one of the customers staring intently at the back of the Boy Who Lived, before taking one last gulp from his drink and left the inn long after they left, or a small green dot of light at the center of an odd ripple the size of a small table in the background that followed the man while the green dot of light faded away…

On the following Tuesday, Harry came to regret the decision to follow Hermione's plan, as Aisha's words came back to bite their little group with a vengeance…

A new announcement from the Ministry of Magic forced the re-evaluation of the student organizations once again, this time with even more pressure during the 'inquisition,' causing Umbridge to delve more into the minds of the person who's the leader (or seemingly the leader) of each group, seeing if they'll act suspicious under the pressure of a tiring, hour-long questioning, and this continues from weeks as she scours the list of clubs she had on hand since that day!

It was obvious to Harry and Hermione that Umbridge did catch wind of what had transpired at Hog's Head, although from the way she acted he could at least feel a little comfort that she didn't know all the details. Hermione assured him that there were no spies among their members, as she jinxed the parchment they signed to react, in her own words, 'in a way that everyone else will know who the traitor is right away.'

But still, with some members of their little group tried walking across the tables to speak with him about it, it was quite worrying. Hermione had shooed them away quietly, because he was sure as hell that Umbridge was looking and eavesdropping on him from her newly acquired seat, preparing to catch any signs of his misdeeds, thus he ought to relay a message via the Weasly twins, who know the ins and outs of the castle, to deliver it without no one noticing, to their members that the meeting will proceed as planned.

And of course, when Umbridge failed to get anything, the interrogation came next… with detention orders for no reason other than 'acting suspicious' placed upon him all of the sudden, forcing him to miss Quidditch practice that evening to go to the toad lady's room, decorated in all the high-class glory befitting a noble, unlike the Spartan room his sister Aisha resided in.

There, she ordered him to write 'I must not tell a lie' on a piece of parchment repeatedly with an enchanted quill that cut open the back of his writing hand whenever he wrote anything on the parchment with the same shape and letters he wrote with the quill. Although the wound healed as quickly as it came, it still left a noticeable red mark and intense pain, all while Umbridge is asking him in a false sweet tone whether he has tried to do anything that is illegal according to the newly applied Ministry Decree or not, as if the pain will somehow force him to speak.

Yet he endured and Umbridge gained nothing, but she didn't give up and ordered him for more detention for the whole week! That whole week he tried to hide the scar on the back of his right hand from Aisha, who still had them running around the castle and doing various exercises, stating that they cannot expect muscles to begin growing just by doing this once or twice, and that you have to do it constantly for it to take effect.

Of course, he didn't feel the need to tell about this particular punishment to Dumbledore or Aisha yet, as it is now, they're in an even tighter spot than before, and Harry didn't want to bother them even more.

The only good thing in all those weeks was that Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw, at least those who met him at the Hog's Head meeting, were no longer looking at Aisha with contempt, but with sympathy, maybe because Hermione's reason got to them, reinforced even more when one of them caught her sighing sadly while watching them run and assumed that it was a sign that she was also frustrated with not being able to teach them due to the laws tying her hands.

Finally, after another two weeks of torture at the hands of Umbrige, running himself ragged around the school in DADA class, tolerating Potions class and trying to perfect every assignment Snape gave him (Harry was surprised that he didn't get punishment from him anymore, but didn't gain any House points, either), the Saturday night, the first official meeting of their Defense study group, had come.

Harry, along with Ron and Hermione, were walking in silence under the safety of his father's invisibility cloak down the seventh floor hallway, his eyes glued to the small parchment containing the map of the castle with a special enchantment to show the position of whoever was inside the castle in real time,to check if any uninvited guests were making a more towards this particular floor and discovered what they're about to do… The treasure and invention of his father and friends, the Marauder Map…

Luckily, no one was on the seventh floor's left wing this late, so they decided to drop their cramped cloak of invisibility and walk normally until they're next to a section of empty wall opposite to the tapestry of Barnabas the Barmy attempting to teach trolls ballet, which they didn't pay attention to until now…

"So, here's where Dobby told us…" Harry muttered to himself, while pacing back and forth in front of said section of wall, thinking about the place they needed for their members to study and practice Defense Against the Dark Arts without anyone outside of their group finding out, which they were told about by Dobby, and confirmed by the Weasley twins that there was something here.

Once he turned around for the third time, gasps escaped his two friends before Hermione called out. "Harry, look!"

Harry looked towards the source of her voice, and found that said section of empty wall next to Hermione indeed changed into a door! Walking towards it and pushing it open, Harry moved inside the room that was lit up by many torches arrayed on the wall, finding, to his surprise, a room large enough to accommodate dozens of people and still have enough space for duels or practicing spells, moreover, there was a bookshelf lining one wall filled to the brim with tomes of various subjects regarding Defense Against the Dark Arts, the opposite side holding a long table housing a Sneakoscope, Secrecy Sensor, and various things he suspected to be Dark Detector contraptions, a stack of pillows next to it, perfect to cushion a fall or target practice, or even a replacement for non-existent seats.

"This's incredible!" Hermione exclaimed while examining the bookshelf. "There's everything we need here, both theory and practice!" She then picked up on of the books and a pillow, sitting down and beginning to read, while Harry picked up a pillow, dropped it on the ground and sitting down. Ron also looked around excitedly, muttering something that Harry couldn't completely hear.

They didn't have to wait too long, as around five minutes later, the door opened. Many members from the houses, save Slytherin, began to flood in, most astounded at the sight of this incredible room hiding in Hogwarts, some Ravenclaw looking interested in the many books lining up the shelves, while some made themselves at home and went to pick up their own pillow to serve as their seat in the middle of the clearing.

When all of them settled down and every cushion was occupied, Harry walked towards the door and turned the key protruding from the lock. It clicked loudly, making everyone fall silent and look at him.

"Well…" He began. "This's the place Ron, Hermione, and I were talking about at the meeting."

"It's fantastic!" Cho Chang is the first one to speak up, speaking excitedly, while everyone else nodded in agreement – well, most of them, as Dean seems to be more interested in the contraptions sitting on the table to the side, moving closer to take a look.

"Hey, Harry, what is this stuff?" He pointed at an object that Harry recognized from the fake Moody's room last year as the Foe Glass, and saw various unrecognizable shadows moving inside it.

Adjusting his glasses a little, he moved over towards the devices and explained what they were to everyone. "These are called 'Dark Detectors,' basically it'll detect a dark wizard or anyone with ill intentions towards the user in its working range, but don't rely on them too much…" He shuddered a little when he thought back to the day he was nearly murdered by the fake Moody, as the device did nothing to warn him at all that the teacher he and his friends interacted with for a year had been a dark wizard in disguise. "They can be fooled easily. Now, moving on… Hermione, what is it?"

When he turned back to look at the group, he found Hermione, hand raised in the air, pretty much like when she wished to answer a teacher's question, before speaking. "I think we ought to elect a leader…"

"Harry's the leader!" Everyone called out in unison, much to Harry's irritation. He could already feel a headache coming.

Before he can say anything, however, Hermione beat him to the punch. "Well, we should vote on it properly, making it official. So, who agrees to let Harry be our leader?"

All hands rose instantly, so Hermione wrote on the parchment they signed before that Harry was the leader, before said leader moved on to the next topic to discuss – the upcoming Disarming Charm test, only for Hermione to raise her hand again, this time saying, "We should have a name for out group, too."

And so the chaos began, each student giving their thoughts, ranging from mundane like 'Study Group' to outright open defiance against the Ministry, like 'Minstry are Morons' or so, but in the end, Ginny won the contest with 'Dumbledore's Army,' as everyone agreed that it was what Minister Fudge feared most right now.

Thus, Hermione quickly wrote down the name of their little club at the head of the parchment before pasting it on the wall next to the door, and Harry was finally able to speak without any interruptions. "Okay, now we're going to have to find a schedule for our practiced here…"

"Without interfering with out clubs…" Ernie Macmillan, a prefect of Hufflepuff, stated, along with others nodding in agreement.

"Or our Quidditch practice." Angelina added, this time with most of the players from all the Houses agreeing with her.

"Yes, that's what I was going to say…" Harry was trying to say something else, but then he caught Dean Thomas staring at the Foe Mirror in the corner of his eyes, without paying attention to their group at all. "Dean, what's wrong?" He asked, turning his attention towards his housemate.

"Harry, do you see what I'm seeing?" Dean pointed at the mirror, which interested more of his peers, except Harry, and made them move out of their seats for closer examine.

Harry glanced at the Mirror along with the others, after he got a clear look at it, saying, "Dean, that's a Foe Mirror, it will only show 'enemies' of the individual user, unless you have the list of those you deem as such like mine. I'll be unable to see the same as you, and to me, there's not a single shadow moving closer at all…"

"I'm seeing one shadow growing bigger…" Cho murmured, along with Hannah, Dean, and everyone else but Luna Lovegood or the trio, much to their confusion, who's coming close to this place now? Harry even silently brought out the Marauder Map to check if anyone is wandering around here or not, but it shows nothing, making it even stranger.

The answer comes with a chill crawling down their backs. Ron was the first one to turn around and look behind all of them, before exclaiming out. "Look! Behind us!"

Everyone turned around and was met with the most bizarre sight they've ever seen… Some blink their eyes or shake their head to make sure they're not hallucinating, but what they see is still the same as before…

At the center of the room, about half a meter above ground, was a small, circular sheet of a solid, colorless, transparent material about the size of a football hovering vertically, water vapor condensing around it signifying the extreme coldness of the substance, an obvious sign of magic at work.

'What is that?' is the question that plagues their minds at the moment, some taking a step back fearfully, while some, like Harry, Ron, and Hermione, draw their wands and point at it, albeit in the case of his two friends, they have a look of fear in their eyes, but steel themselves nonetheless, they're not going to let Harry face whatever it was alone.

Before anyone can do anything, the sheet of ice expanded upwards, rapidly becoming an oval shaped icy liquid sheet standing about two meters high, seemingly engraved with runic inscriptions of an unknown language, even to those who take Ancient Rune class, glowing along the edges, then a second later, the center of the sheet begins to glow a bluish color and bulge, as if something is trying to get out from the other side…

The surface bursts open, as if a fish has jumped out of water, a female figure flying out from the ice sheet, while the cold vapor wrapping around her form quickly dissipated, revealing who the newcomer was for all the students there to see.

The newly formed Dumbledore's Army members stared in horror as their DADA professor, in her usual wear with a metal staff they saw at the opening ceremony in her right hand, hovering in mid-air without a broomstick or carpet, slowly descending towards the floor, her sharp purple eyes gazing at the students, who felt like they were lambs being gazed at by a wolf, too shocked at what happened to react, including the trio, as when they were discussing things at Aisha's personal quarters, they never told her when the meeting will take place at all!

Aisha's feet touched the floor gently as the sheet of liquid behind her vanished without a trace in the same moment, her eyes never once looking away from the students, her facial expression unreadable, before she let out a sigh and started the conversation first.

"You kids really caused me a lot of trouble…" Aisha said in an annoyed tone while glaring at the gathered members of Dumbledore's Army, particularly Harry and his friends. "…do you know how hard it is to cover the tracks you left behind when you were forming this little group of yours?"

Her words made some students who thought that the best option out of this situation is to use a memory charm on he paused whatever they were planning instantly, not that they'd succeed anyway, as Aisha already deployed her Spell Breaking technique since the moment her entered the room, and even if it wasn't deployed, her reflexes and sheer magical resistance will keep her from harm's way.

"What do you mean, cover our tracks?" Harry found himself suddenly blurting out in surprise, while the others still glance at each other, only to stop when they felt Aisha's gaze upon them.

Aisha narrowed her eyes, frowning, her right foot tapping the floor. Her gloved hands seeming to glow a faint blue for a second, making the entire group, Harry included, instinctively take a step backwards. "At that sad excuse of an inn, of course! Someone was eavesdropping on you lot! Willy or something if I remember correctly. While you kids went shopping after that meeting, I had to spend the whole afternoon tracking that guy down and wiping his memory!"

"Wait! So Professor overheard all of our conversation?" Neville, surprising even himself, asked her.

"It's… a familiar I sent to follow you." Aisha elaborated a bit, revealing the true nature of TK-421 as little as possible. "…When it reported back to me, it was nearly too late, just a minute later and you kids would have landed in front of that toad Inquisitor, with your hands tied and expelled from Hogwarts."

All of the student's faces went white at the revelation and the thought that they had just barely passed thin ice without knowing. Then Hermione noticed something amiss in Aisha's story. "Wait, then why did Umbridge still issue orders to re-evaluate student clubs last week? If you wiped the spy's memory, wouldn't nothing have happened?"

Aisha took a step forward and scolded them "I interrogated him and it's clear that Umbridge did send him to spy on you. If I wiped his memory clean, as if he never attempted it, or that he never been at Hog's Head, then Umbridge would notice it right away because she ordered him to do so, or if she came to visit Hogsmeades herself, there are still plenty of witnesses in the village who can tell her that they saw this guy, and you kids, enter Hog's Head!"

Seeing that Harry, Ron and Hermione looked down at their feet in regret of their own carelessness, Aisha's facial expression softened a little before she spoke again. "But seeing how many people gathered here like this, even if you held a meeting at the Three Broomsticks, it would still be quite noticeable anyway…"

"I… see…"

Hermione let out a sigh, while the rest of the students, minus Ron and Harry, still on edge, still unsure of their DADA professor's intention of appearing in front of them here are, even though it's clear that she wouldn't sell them out to the Ministry just yet.

It seems Aisha noticed their wary glances as well, so she put her staff away, before let out a small smile that was rarely seen when they're in class and said, "At ease, kids, I'm not here to sell you out, quite the opposite, I approve of your decision."

A long pause… then everyone exclaimed loudly. "What?!"

Nodding her head, Aisha repeated her words. "I said I approve of this Defense Study club of yours…"

Suddenly, Luna Lovegood, who's hidden among the crowd of students interrupted and corrected her. "It's Dumbledore Army, Professor Aisha…"

Aisha chuckled at the blonde's statement. "Just don't get caught then kid, you're guarantee to drag Professor Dumbledore down with you if that happened."

"The only leak left now is you, Professor Aisha…" Luna replies nonchalantly, slightly dispersing the heavy atmosphere somehow at how carefree she was.

"You can count on me to not spill out your little secret, kids…" Aisha stated "…I have a responsibility to teach you, and it seems that with so many shackles forcing me down… this maybe the best way to remedy it…"

"So, you can finally teach us your spells?" Hermione asked, as she, the Weasleys, and Harry, who were curious about the many spells Aisha used in front of them since they met at No.12 Grimmauld Place, seemed excited at the prospect of Aisha teaching this new type of spells, while the rest of students there didn't know as much as them, and thought that at last they can learn the DADA spells that is needed to pass the O.W.L. this coming year.

Aisha also gets the hidden meaning of Hermione's words and replies with a smile. "I'll see what I can do, I grew up far away from Wizarding World remember? Even if I read the books before accepted this position, it hardly a substitute of real practice, but I'll try my best…"

The entire room nearly shook with a loud cheer that echoed from all the Dumbledore's Army members that instant, before the first real Defense Spell lesson finally began…

Author Note

Same as before, thanks to Rosamanelle for Beta Reading my Fic.

The teleportation spell Aisha used isn't quite the same as Teleport in Elsword or Apparition of HP's verse we know of, but hey, Rule of Cool isn't it?

Well, this chapter has only this much to say, to be continue then, the next chapter will be the continuation of the first meeting of DA, as you may already know.

Rate and Review as you see fit, the next chapter will be out 'when it's finished' there're no schedule when it'll finish though, depend on if I'm really creative at time or having time to write or not.