Chapter 56:
Ron's euphoria at helping Gryffindor scrape the Quidditch Cup was such that he could not settle to anything next day. All he wanted to do was talk over the match and Harry and Hermione found it very difficult to find an opening in which to mention Grawp — not that either of them tried very hard; neither was keen to be the one to bring Ron back to reality in quite such a brutal fashion. Alicia however made the decision that it was not her responsibility, still irritated at Hermione and Harry being so gullible as to give in to Hagrid so soon.
As it was another fine, warm day, the two persuaded him, and asked Alicia, to join them in studying under the beech tree on the edge of the lake, where they stood less chance of being overheard than in the common room. Ron was not particularly keen on this idea at first; he was thoroughly enjoying being patted on the back by Gryffindors walking past his chair, not to mention the occasional outbursts of "Weasley Is Our King," but agreed after a while that some fresh air might do him good.
They spread their books out in the shade of the beech tree and sat down while Ron talked them through his first save of the match for what felt like the dozenth time.
"Well, I mean, I'd already let in that one of Davies's, so I wasn't feeling that confident, but I dunno, when Bradley came toward me, just out of nowhere, I thought — you can do this! And I had about a second to decide which way to fly, you know, because he looked like he was aiming for the right goal hoop — my right, obviously, his left — but I had a funny feeling that he was feinting, and so I took the chance and flew left — his right, I mean — and — well — you saw what happened," he concluded modestly, sweeping his hair back quite unnecessarily so that it looked interestingly windswept and glancing around to see whether the people nearest to them — a bunch of gossiping third-year Hufflepuffs — had heard him.
Alicia stared at Ron for his actions as it reminded her so strongly of another Gryffindor who'd sat under this tree, hoping to be praised by fellow peers and had the habit of making his hair even more untidy than it naturally was. Harry beside her was grinning at Ron, probably remembering the same thing.
"And then, when Chambers came at me about five minutes later — what?" Ron said, stopping mid-sentence at the look on Harry's face. "Why are you grinning?"
"I'm not," said Harry quickly, looking down at his Transfiguration notes and attempting to straighten his face.
"Alicia, you're staring?" Ron told her
"Yeah…" she mumbled before smiling "Sorry you just did something that reminded me of someone else." she chuckled and Ron asked her who.
"Don't worry, you don't know him." she looked at Harry who smirked before turning back to Ron.
"I'm just glad we won." he said putting Ron back onto the original topic.
"Yeah," said Ron slowly, savouring the words, "we won. Did you see the look on Chang's face when Ginny got the Snitch right out from under her nose?"
"I suppose she cried, did she?" said Harry bitterly.
"Well, yeah — more out of temper than anything, though…" Ron frowned slightly. "But you saw her chuck her broom away when she got back to the ground, didn't you?"
"Er —" said Harry.
"Well, actually… no, Ron," said Hermione with a heavy sigh, putting down her book and looking at him apologetically. "As a matter of fact, the only bit of the match Harry and I saw was Davies's first goal."
Ron's carefully ruffled hair seemed to wilt with disappointment.
"You didn't watch?" he said faintly, looking from one to the other. "You didn't see me make any of those saves?"
"Well — no," said Hermione, stretching out a placatory hand toward him. "But Ron, we didn't want to leave — we had to!"
"Yeah?" said Ron, whose face was growing rather red. "How come?"
"It was Hagrid," said Harry. "He decided to tell us why he's been covered in injuries ever since he got back from the giants. He wanted us to go into the forest with him, we had no choice, you know how he gets… Anyway…"
The story was told in five minutes, by the end of which Ron's indignation had been replaced by a look of total incredulity.
"He brought one back and hid it in the forest?"
"Yep," said Harry grimly.
"No," said Ron, as though by saying this he could make it untrue. "No, he can't have…"
"Well, he has," said Hermione firmly. "Grawp's about sixteen feet tall, enjoys ripping up twenty-foot pine trees, and knows me," she snorted, "as Hermy." Ron gave a nervous laugh before looking at Alicia as though looking for her surprise to this story. She was reading her transfiguration notes.
"You're not surprised?" he asked her and she looked up.
"Ron they were covered in scratches and had twigs and leaves everywhere, I noticed they'd been anywhere but the stands the second I saw them. They told me yesterday." she shot the two a look.
"Why am I only finding out now?" Ron questioned
"You've been too hyped about your amazing saves to give them the chance." Alicia chuckled and he smirked slightly before shaking his head.
"But how could he…"
"He was worried about him, said Grawp was being bullied." Harry sighed
"And Hagrid wants us to…?"
"Teach him English, yeah," said Harry.
"He's lost his mind," said Ron in an almost awed voice.
"Yes," said Hermione irritably, turning a page of Intermediate Transfiguration and glaring at a series of diagrams showing an owl turning into a pair of opera glasses. "Yes, I'm starting to think he has. But unfortunately, he made Harry and me promise."
"Well, you're just going to have to break your promise, that's all," said Ron firmly. "I mean, come on… We've got exams and we're about that far," he held up his hand to show thumb and forefinger a millimetre apart, "from being chucked out as it is. And anyway… remember Norbert? Remember Aragog? Have we ever come off better for mixing with any of Hagrid's monster mates?"
"I know, it's just that — we promised," said Hermione in a small voice.
"You know you should also consult people before you promise for them too!" Alicia said to then irritatedly. Harry and Hermione gave her a guilty look.
Ron smoothed his hair flat again, looking preoccupied.
"Well," he sighed, "Hagrid hasn't been sacked yet, has he? He's hung on this long, maybe he'll hang on till the end of term and we won't have to go near Grawp at all."
"There's the spirit!" Alicia grinned.
None of them had much hope in the idea though.
The castle grounds were gleaming in the sunlight as though freshly painted; the cloudless sky smiled at itself in the smoothly sparkling lake, the satin-green lawns rippled occasionally in a gentle breeze: June had arrived, but to the fifth years this meant only one thing: Their O.W.L.s were upon them at last.
Their teachers were no longer setting them homework; lessons were devoted to reviewing those topics their teachers thought most likely to come up in the exams. The purposeful, feverish atmosphere drove nearly everything but the O.W.L.s from Alicia's mind, which thankfully included Harry's dreams as Snape had not given either of them Occlumency lessons again. Much to both the twins relief, Hermione was much too preoccupied these days to badger Harry about Occlumency, giving them one less thing to worry about, though Harry also didn't need to worry about Snape harping on him, as the potions master continued to ignore the boy. Hermione did still annoy the boys at least, as Alicia wasn't sure how she felt about it, by spending a lot of time muttering to herself. She hadn't even laid out any elf clothes for days.
She was not the only person acting oddly as the O.W.L.s drew steadily nearer. Ernie Macmillan had developed an irritating habit of interrogating people about their study habits.
"How many hours d'you think you're doing a day?" he demanded of Harry and Ron as they queued outside Herbology, a manic gleam in his eyes.
"I dunno," said Ron. "A few…"
"More or less than eight?"
"Less, I s'pose," said Ron, looking slightly alarmed.
"I'm doing eight," said Ernie, puffing out his chest. "Eight or nine. I'm getting an hour in before breakfast every day. Eight's my average. I can do ten on a good weekend day. I did nine and a half on Monday. Not so good on Tuesday — only seven and a quarter. Then on Wednesday —"
Alicia just raised an eyebrow as Professor Sprout ushered them into greenhouse three, forcing Ernie to abandon his recital.
Meanwhile Draco Malfoy had found a different way to induce panic.
"Of course, it's not what you know," he was heard telling Crabbe and Goyle loudly outside Potions a few days before the exams were to start, "it's who you know. Now, Father's been friendly with the head of the Wizarding Examinations Authority for years — old Griselda Marchbanks — we've had her round for dinner and everything…"
"Do you think that's true?" Hermione whispered to Harry and Ron, looking frightened.
"Nothing we can do about it if it is," said Ron gloomily.
"I don't think an examiner would be an examiner if they're that easily swayed." Alicia believed.
"I don't think it's true," said Neville quietly from behind them. "Because Griselda Marchbanks is a friend of my gran's, and she's never mentioned the Malfoys."
"What's she like, Neville?" asked Hermione at once. "Is she strict?"
"Bit like Gran, really," said Neville in a subdued voice.
"Knowing her won't hurt your chances though, will it?" Ron told him encouragingly.
"Oh, I don't think it will make any difference," said Neville, still more miserably. "Gran's always telling Professor Marchbanks I'm not as good as my dad… Well… you saw what she's like at St. Mungo's…"
Neville looked fixedly at the floor. Harry, Ron, and Hermione glanced at one another, but didn't know what to say. It was the first time that Neville had acknowledged that they had met at the Wizarding hospital. Alicia however hummed.
"She does have a strong air about her, proud and doesn't take crap from people. I feel like you wouldn't want to mess with her." Harry, Ron and Hermione looked at her surprised. Alicia grinned "If that's the case, she wont be swayed even if Malfoy did have her around for dinner."
Meanwhile a flourishing black-market trade in aids to concentration, mental agility, and wakefulness had sprung up among the fifth and seventh years. Harry and Ron were much tempted by the bottle of Baruffio's Brain Elixir offered to them by Ravenclaw sixth year Eddie Carmichael, who swore it was solely responsible for the nine "Outstanding" O.W.L.s he had gained the previous summer and was offering the whole pint for a mere twelve Galleons. Ron assured Harry he would reimburse him for his half the moment he left Hogwarts and got a job, but before they could close the deal, Hermione had confiscated the bottle from Carmichael and poured the contents down a toilet.
"Good riddance." Alicia said
"Hermione, we wanted to buy that!" shouted Ron.
"Don't be stupid," she snarled. "You might as well take Harold Dingle's powdered dragon claw and have done with it."
"Dingle's got powdered dragon claw?" said Ron eagerly.
"Not anymore," said Hermione. "I confiscated that too. None of these things actually works you know —"
"Dragon claw does work!" said Ron. "It's supposed to be incredible, really gives your brain a boost, you come over all cunning for a few hours — Hermione, let me have a pinch, go on, it can't hurt —"
"This stuff can," said Hermione grimly. "I've had a look at it, and it's actually dried doxy droppings."
This information took the edge off Harry and Ron's desire for brain stimulants.
"You guys don't need it anyway." Alicia said "You've been working hard and you can't do worse than Fred and George. And even if you do, look where they're at." Alicia smirked "It's not the end of the world."
They received their examination schedules and details of the procedure for O.W.L.s during their next Transfiguration lesson.
"As you can see," Professor McGonagall told the class while they copied down the dates and times of their exams from the blackboard, "your O.W.L.s are spread over two successive weeks. You will sit the theory exams in the mornings and the practice in the afternoons. Your practical Astronomy examination will, of course, take place at night.
"Now, I must warn you that the most stringent Anti-Cheating Charms have been applied to your examination papers. Auto-Answer Quills are banned from the examination hall, as are Remembralls, Detachable Cribbing Cuffs, and Self-Correcting Ink."
"I don't understand why rememballs are banned… they tell you nothing other than you've forgotten something, and how's that useful once you're already in the exam?" Alicia asked quietly. Ron and Harry shrugged.
"Every year," McGonagall continued "I am afraid to say, seems to harbour at least one student who thinks that he or she can get around the Wizarding Examinations Authority's rules. I can only hope that it is nobody in Gryffindor. Our new — headmistress" — Professor McGonagall pronounced the word with the same look on her face that Aunt Petunia had whenever she was contemplating a particularly stubborn bit of dirt — "has asked the Heads of House to tell their students that cheating will be punished most severely — because, of course, your examination results will reflect upon the headmistress's new regime at the school. …"
Professor McGonagall gave a tiny sigh and the nostrils of her sharp nose flare.
"Too bad we can't fail just to get to Umbridge." Alicia mumbled and Hermione looked at her alarmed she'd even think such a thing.
"However, that is no reason not to do your very best. You have your own futures to think about." The Professor clearly agreed with Alicia.
"Please, Professor," said Hermione, her hand in the air, "when will we find out our results?"
"An owl will be sent to you some time in July," said Professor McGonagall.
"Excellent," said Dean Thomas in an audible whisper, "so we don't have to worry about it till the holidays…"
"At least I'll have people to console me if something goes wrong." Alicia mumbled and Ron and Harry looked at her. "I said 'if'." she reminded them.
Their first exam, Theory of Charms, was scheduled for Monday morning. Harry agreed to test Hermione after lunch on Sunday but regretted it almost at once. She was very agitated and kept snatching the book back from him to check that she had gotten the answer completely right, finally hitting him hard on the nose with the sharp edge of Achievements in Charming.
"Why don't you just do it yourself?" he said firmly, handing the book back to her, his eyes watering.
"Oh give it here!" Alicia demanded and she snatched the book, moving it away when Hermione tried to grab it. Alicia quizzed her and she didn't let Hermione see the book at all until she could get the answers completely right, by herself.
Meanwhile Ron was reading two years of Charms notes with his fingers in his ears, his lips moving soundlessly; Seamus was lying flat on his back on the floor, reciting the definition of a Substantive Charm, while Dean checked it against The Standard Book of Spells, Grade 5; and Parvati and Lavender, who were practicing basic locomotion charms, were making their pencil cases race each other around the edge of the table.
Dinner was a subdued affair that night. Harry and Ron did not talk much, but ate with gusto, having studied hard all day. Alicia had her book in front of her as she ate, reading and eating, an impervious charm on the book in case it got dirty. Hermione on the other hand kept putting down her knife and fork and diving under the table for her bag, from which she would seize a book to check some fact or figure. Ron was just telling her that she ought to eat a decent meal or she would not sleep that night, when her fork slid from her limp fingers and landed with a loud tinkle on her plate.
"Oh, my goodness," she said faintly, staring into the entrance hall. "Is that them? Is that the examiners?"
Alicia looked up so quickly her neck clicked and Harry and Ron whipped around on their bench. Through the doors to the Great Hall they could see Umbridge standing with a small group of ancient-looking witches and wizards. Umbridge looked rather nervous.
"Shall we go and have a closer look?" said Ron.
The three nodded and and they hastened toward the double doors into the entrance hall, slowing down as they stepped over the threshold to walk sedately past the examiners. Harry thought Professor Marchbanks must be the tiny, stooped witch with a face so lined it looked as though it had been draped in cobwebs; Umbridge was speaking to her very deferentially. Professor Marchbanks seemed to be a little deaf; she was answering Umbridge very loudly considering that they were only a foot apart.
"Journey was fine, journey was fine, we've made it plenty of times before!" she said impatiently. "Now, I haven't heard from Dumbledore lately!" she added, peering around the hall as though hopeful he might suddenly emerge from a broom cupboard. "No idea where he is, I suppose?"
"None at all," said Umbridge, shooting a malevolent look at Harry, Alicia, Ron, and Hermione, who were now dawdling around the foot of the stairs as Ron pretended to do up his shoelace. "But I daresay the Ministry of Magic will track him down soon enough…"
Alicia scoffed lowly.
"I doubt it," shouted tiny Professor Marchbanks, "not if Dumbledore doesn't want to be found! I should know… Examined him personally in Transfiguration and Charms when he did N.E.W.T.s… Did things with a wand I'd never seen before…"
Alicia was surprised to think this women was that old, though she did look it.
"Yes… well…" said Professor Umbridge as Harry, Alicia, Ron, and Hermione dragged their feet up the marble staircase as slowly as they dared, "let me show you to the staffroom… I daresay you'd like a cup of tea after your journey…"
"And I'm feeling nervous." Alicia said as they reached the top of the stairs. The three looked at her and she took a deep breath. She remembered how her father had been while doing his O.W.L and how chilled Sirius was, leaning back in his seat at the table. Even Lupin was calm.
Did she know as much as them? she wondered. She definitely knew she knew a lot.
Hermione patted her back and Harry placed his arm around her to move her with them towards the Gryffindor tower as she consoled herself and reminded herself everything was fine.
It was an uncomfortable sort of an evening. Everyone was trying to do some last-minute studying but nobody seemed to be getting very far. Harry went to bed early and Alicia was slightly disappointed, she had sort of been planning on stealing his mirror again to have Sirius comfort her. She didn't want to ask him for it as he didn't need the distraction.
"I don't see why he's worried, he's got a connection with you and can just use your answers." Ron grumbled to Alicia. Hermione looked disappointed.
"Ron that's cheating!"
"No point worrying, Harry never learnt how to get into my head anyway." Alicia shrugged
"But this may be when he really needs to." Ron pointed out "Nothing better than motivation, worked for you didn't it?" Alicia rolled her eyes.
"That was slightly more different." she thought.
When she did go to bed though her mind reeled with information and kept her awake for hours. Finally she managed to drift off to sleep by thinking of what the Weasley twins' new premises in Diagon Alley might look like and her visits on the Knight Bus to see it.
None of the fifth years talked very much at breakfast the next day either. Parvati was practicing incantations under her breath while the salt cellar in front of her twitched, Hermione was rereading Achievement in Charming so fast that her eyes appeared blurred, and Neville kept dropping his knife and fork and knocking over the marmalade.
Once breakfast was over, the fifth and seventh years milled around in the entrance hall while the other students went off to lessons. Then, at half-past nine, they were called forward class by class to reenter the Great Hall, which was now arranged exactly as Harry and Alicia had seen it in the Pensieve when their father, Sirius, and Snape had been taking their O.W.L.s. The four House tables had been removed and replaced instead with many tables for one, all facing the staff-table end of the Hall where Professor McGonagall stood facing them.
"Where to you reckon they put the tables?" Alicia whispered ever so softly.
When they were all seated and quiet Professor McGonagall said, "You may begin," and turned over an enormous hourglass on the desk beside her, on which were also spare quills, ink bottles, and rolls of parchment.
Alicia took a deep breath to calm her acing heart and turned over the paper. She read the first question, a) Give the incantation, and b) describe the wand movement required to make objects fly… Alicia didn't even need to think about that one. They'd learnt it their first year and it had stuck by Ron using it to bash a troll over the head with it's own club. Smirking, she answered the question and moved on.