Chapter 30:
Alicia was rather ecstatic over the next two weeks, so much so that even Umbridge's classes could not remove her mood. She and Harry had been using their free moments to discuss lessons and idea on which spells to teach when and in what order. Alicia kept track by crossing them off her original list from the end of September. The fact that they were doing exactly what the ministry didn't want right under Dolores Umbridge's nose made her more happy as she spent her classes thinking more about the D.A. lessons than the class in which all were simply reading the text book.
Already they managed to teach the group a few spells though they exceeded at different spells at different rates. Neville had successfully disarmed Hermione, Colin Creevey had mastered the Impediment Jinx after three meetings' hard effort, Parvati Patil had produced such a good Reductor Curse that she had reduced the table carrying all the Sneakoscopes to dust.
Despite this, regular meeting times were hard to fix to a specific night what with three separate Quidditch teams' practices, which were often rearranged depending on the weather conditions. Harry had decided this was for the better, as it was probably better to keep the timing of their meetings unpredictable. If anyone was watching them, it would be hard to make out a pattern.
Because of this Hermione and Alicia sat down to think of a way to communicate the meeting times and dates without having to keep running around and telling everyone. This way, if the meetings were changed, everyone could tell within the instant.
"There's obviously a way, after all V-Voldemort does it, with his Death Eaters." Hermione believed
"With Voldemort being at the centre of it." Alicia mumbled, thinking.
"We could connect it to something that you and Harry have as you're the leaders."
"Well it'd have to be something inconspicuous. An object… instead of…" the girl looked at her hands "And if it's something normal, it wont seem odd to be hanging onto it."
"Like what?" Hermione wondered
"What do people always hold onto?" Alicia asked and Hermione thought for a second.
"What about coins?" Hermione offered. Alicia grinned at her.
So Hermione and Alicia created a bucket of coins before placing a charm on them within the common room to take to the next meeting, creating fake galleons as the object. When Ron saw the bucket of money at the next meeting he got very excited.
"You see the numerals around the edge of the coins?" Hermione said, holding one up for examination at the end of their fourth meeting. The coin gleamed fat and yellow in the light from the torches. "On real Galleons that's just a serial number referring to the goblin who cast the coin. On these fake coins, though, the numbers will change to reflect the time and date of the next meeting. The coins will grow hot when the date changes, so if you're carrying them in a pocket you'll be able to feel them. We take one each, and when Harry or Alicia sets the date of the next meeting they'll change the numbers on their coins, and because Alicia and I have put a Protean Charm on them, they'll all change to mimic theirs."
"After all we cannot keep running to one another in the Great Hall or it'll begin to look suspicious." Alicia said "This way it's conspicuous. And the coins wont look out of place in our pockets."
A blank silence greeted the girls' words. Hermione looked around at all the faces upturned to her, rather disconcerted as Alicia rose an eyebrow waiting for a response.
"Well — I thought it was a good idea," she said uncertainly, "I mean, even if Umbridge asked us to turn out our pockets, there's nothing fishy about carrying a Galleon, is there? But… well, if you don't want to use them…"
"You can do a Protean Charm?" said Terry Boot.
"Yes," said Hermione and Alicia.
"But that's… that's N.E.W.T. standard, that is," he said weakly.
"Oh," said Hermione, trying to look modest. "Oh… well… yes, I suppose it is…"
"Hermione and I like to read." Alicia said
"And Alicia has a knack for spells." Hermione admitted
"How come neither of you are in Ravenclaw?" he demanded, staring at Hermione and Alicia with something close to wonder. "With brains like yours?"
"Well, the Sorting Hat did seriously consider putting me in Ravenclaw during my Sorting," said Hermione brightly, "but it decided on Gryffindor in the end."
"I'm too adventurous I guess." Alicia shrugged "But like Hermione the Sorting Hat debated on Ravenclaw for me as well." she smiled
"So does that mean we're using the Galleons?" Hermione wondered
There was a murmur of assent and everybody moved forward to collect one from the basket. Harry looked sideways at Hermione.
"You know what these remind me of?"
"No, what's that?"
"The Death Eaters' scars. Voldemort touches one of them, and all their scars burn, and they know they've got to join him."
"Well… yes," said Hermione quietly. "That is where I got the idea… but you'll notice Alicia and I decided to engrave the date on bits of metal rather than on our members' skin…"
"Yeah… I prefer your way," said Harry, grinning, as he slipped his Galleon into his pocket. "I suppose the only danger with these is that we might accidentally spend them."
"Fat chance," said Ron, who was examining his own fake Galleon with a slightly mournful air. "I haven't got any real Galleons to confuse it with."
Alicia moved through the wooden bookcases, looking over the spines, her fingers brushing over the different colours. The books on the shelves all held a few words in common, 'Connections' and 'mind'.
If Dumbledore did lie, then there has to be a real explanation… Alicia mumbled There is clearly a deeper branch of magic that's causing this or Harry wouldn't be connected to a wizard who was less than human for fourteen years. she seemed as though she was trying to convince herself.
If that's the case, how would they gain such a connection?
Alicia looked annoyed at the books before her as her mind caused her confusion.
This isn't helping… Alicia mumbled, shaking her head and refocusing on the book titles written down the spines.
"The only times they could have established anything would've been…" Alicia pursed her lips and a flash of green flashed over her mind. But Voldemort tried to kill Harry? How could that have done anything? Alicia shook her head again before she gave up at looking at the spines of the books and turned to move towards Madam Pince.
"Miss Potter," the librarian acknowledged her.
"Madam Pince, I need some information, obviously." Alicia began "I'm not sure of the exact topic I need but, I'm looking for something that involves…" Alicia thought "A connection between two people's minds." she said. Madam Pincers an eyebrow at the girl. "Or… maybe…" Alicia paused "Seeing through another's… No it might be more like invading another's mind." she said before she began to nod. Madam Pince continued to survey the girl as she stood waiting. The more the librarian stared at her as though trying to figure out Alicia's angle, the more Alicia wondered if perhaps this was a topic of the redistricted section…
If that's the case I'm not getting the information without a signed note.
What's worse is you might need an excuse as to why you want this information. Alicia bit her lip and continued to watch the women before her, hoping to high hell that she wouldn't ask. She couldn't admit she could see what her twin brother saw and that the Headmaster said it was because of the curse both of them miraculously survived because their mother refused to step aside and died for them.
Nor can you say you want to learn about it because let's face it, invading people's minds as you put it does not exactly sound legal.
Why did I ever choose to say it like that? Alicia questioned
"You say you don't know the correct term for such a thing?" Madam Pince finally asked. Her voice was stern and she looked down at Alicia as though wondering whether to believe this or not. Madam Pince was rather like Professor McGonagall in Alicia's opinion.
"No. Or I'd know what book to look for." Alicia sighed as she indicated to the rows of books behind them. "And I'd know whether to ask you or not about it seeing as you're looking at me like I'm trying to break into the restricted section…" she confessed looking back at the women slightly nervously.
"Well, from what you've described that's because you are searching for a topic that is indeed kept in the restricted section." Madam Pince admitted and Alicia sighed.
"What is it?" Alicia chanced
"Why do you need to know?" Madam Pince asked
"I don't need to, it's just…" Alicia pursed her lips as she looked down at her hands, knowing no matter what she said it was a lost cause without a signed note "Personal." she mumbled and Madam Pince rose an eyebrow.
"Miss Potter…"
"Never mind. Sorry." Alicia said, rather put out about this information and turning to leave the library.
Why is it when I need something that's important and personal like this it happens to be information I can't get to? Alicia complained. "I need something and it's not provided…" And we don't have stupid Lockhart to sign another slip for me as we did in our second year and Dumbledore's ignoring Harry and probably me too so I can't ask him. "Could ask McGonagall, she might know about our connection but what's the luck of her agreeing?" Alicia grumbled as she moved down the corridors. "For once I'd like to just ask for something I require and it be as simple as it being provided like…" Alicia stopped walking and looked at the blank wall before her.
"Like the Room of Requirement." she whispered with a grin.
Alicia reached into her bag and pulled out the old piece of parchment on which the Marauders Map secretly inhabited and pulled out her wand.
"I solemnly swear that I am up to no good." she whispered, tapping the parchment with her wand. The usual thin ink lines began to spread like a spider's web from the tip of Alicia's wand, joining each other to crisscross and fan into every corner of the parchment. The words began to blossom across the top, great, curly green words, that proclaimed:
Messrs. Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs
Purveyors of Aids to Magical Mischief-Makers are proud to present
THE MARAUDER'S MAP
Alicia smiled before opening the parchment to find the seventh floor. A few students were walking along it, mostly Gryffindors moving to and from the common room. Noticing that Filch, Mrs Norris and no teacher was likely to see her, Alicia set off through the corridors. As the room was being used for the D.A. meetings the last thing they needed was Alicia leading someone towards it on a day off. Hardly anyone knew of the room and that was the best way for it to stay.
Alicia reached the spot and began to walk in front of the blank wall three times.
I need information about connected minds. I need to know why I'm psychically connected to Harry. I need information. I need books. She thought.
The door appeared and with a glance up the corridor in either direction Alicia opened the door and stood surprised.
She'd stepped into a library. Quickly closing the door behind her, Alicia looked around shocked. She couldn't work out if there were more books than the library or not. Either way she moved to a shelf and looked over the spines.
One by one she began to grab the books and read the backs, flicking through to random pages. Very soon there was a large pile of books around the couch she had nestled into and the hours were flashing past. It wasn't until she noticed the several dots moving over the open Marauders Map beside her that she realised it must have been dinner time.
"Already?" she mumbled as she checked the time. It hadn't just been dinner time, dinner had ended.
Alicia looked at the book she had been reading, of all the ones she'd picked up this was the one that had grasped her attention the most. Right on the cover was the word Legilimency. Immediately the branch of magic reminded her of the sorting hat, which delved into the mind to find the properties of the new students and decide which house they belonged into. Legilimency was the act of navigating through the many layers of a person's mind and correctly interpreting one's findings. It was like mind reading, though that term was not appreciated by wizards and witches as it was a muggle who coined it that.
Alicia could understand why these books weren't in the library, the school probably didn't want students learning how to invade other's mind. But this seemed, in a way, exactly what she did the Harry and what Harry did in turn to Voldemort.
"Although," Alicia thought to herself as she put the book in her bag and, after checking the map, left the room. "He's not reading his mind, he's feeling his emotions…" she mumbled. Which, so far, doesn't seem to be legilimency.
"I don't know if a person can do it without knowing though and Harry doesn't seem to be able to do it back? Though he can't block me either." she mumbled as she moved off to the common room, reaching the Fat Lady's portrait. The portrait swung open to reveal the porthole after she gave the password and entered the common room. Tonight was a rare night as Angelina had not called a team quidditch practice, which is what allowed Alicia to sit and read for so long. As the first match between Slytherin and Gryffindor quickly approached she had insisted on almost daily practices. Because of this as well as the practices of Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw, the D.A. meetings had become most infrequent.
"Where have you been?" Harry asked when he, Hermione and Ron spotted her entering the common room.
"Yeah you missed dinner?" Ron admitted
"I got carried away, sorry." she shrugged as she sat down to join them with their homework. Alicia didn't see the point in telling the three her theories when there was no proof behind it, she needed more information and research first.