The last day at Hogwarts. And Harry got a lot to think about.
HARRY XXXVI
The last day of the term, Harry had no wish to attend the Leaving Feast. In previous years, it had always been an event he looked forward. As much as he loved Hogwarts, the prospect of going home, to be reunited with his mother after a very fine feast was always enticing. Today, however, he felt empty. It was as if there was nothing he wanted to do. Ever since the third task, he had avoided almost everyone. He ate in the Great Hall at hours when there were almost nobody, sat down in isolated corners of the library outside hours of lesson despite the fact they had no homework left to do, came back to the common room late when almost everyone was asleep, and woke up early before anyone could get up. Only Ron and Hermione spent time with him. He also visited Hagrid, who seemed in a much better mood and seemingly reconciled with Madame Maxime.
It wasn't hard to avoid the others. Most people avoided him as well, making steps aside when they saw him in the corridors or even taking different paths. Harry didn't really mind. He didn't wish for much company right now. He was thankful to Dumbledore for telling everyone to leave him in peace. Even Susan didn't seek him.
Ever since the morning following Cedric's death, Harry had not talked to his girlfriend. Anyway, she wasn't saying much when she came to see him. Harry rendered it back, for he was silent most of the time as well. She had been silent when Cedric's parents came, and she also said nothing to Harry's mother when she visited him again after that night. And after Harry went back to the Gryffindor Tower, their paths had not crossed again, except during classes, and they never sat together nor talked at any time. Susan didn't seem to be talking to anybody these times anyway.
Harry felt miserable about Cedric's death. He couldn't stop the feeling that if he had taken the Cup alone, Cedric would still be alive. His parents' grief was beyond tears when he met them. They had not blamed him for his death, but it didn't make Harry feel any better. It was strange, but he thought he would have felt better if people had been shouting at him, accusing him of Cedric's death. Once, he had crossed Cho's path in a corridor. She had looked at him for a moment, then burst into tears and ran away. And that only reminded him of something else that bore on his conscience lately.
Ever since Ron's breakup with Hannah, Harry had felt wrong about his relationship with Susan. And ever since Voldemort returned, he felt even more wrong about that. Cedric had gotten himself killed only for the fact that he stood beside Harry at wrong moment and the wrong time. What if it had happened to Susan instead? What if he had been with her when Voldemort came back? He had also thought about Ron and Hermione and what it would have meant if they were next to him in such a moment. But the difference was that both of them knew what it meant to be his best friends. They had already faced dangerous situations together. Susan didn't. The worst she faced was being kept at the bottom of an icy lake, and she wasn't even in real danger. Harry couldn't help but feel that he was wrong to be with her. He couldn't help but feel wrong about being with Susan while Cedric was dead and Cho lost him. And he couldn't help thinking that he was not in love with Susan. Wasn't the fact that he didn't seek her company in the current circumstances proof that he didn't care enough about her? And seeing what Susan got from dating him, between the rumors, the harassment from other students including some of her own house, finding herself stuck at the bottom of the freezing Black Lake, and seeing Harry come back with a student from her house dead… Harry already doubted their relationship before the third task, and after what happened, he felt like he deserved it even less. It was part of the reasons why he hesitated to tell his mother about them. Sometimes, he thought about going to see Susan and ending things, but he hadn't gotten himself to do it yet. He seldom saw her, anyway.
And he also had lots of other things on his mind. Bartemius Crouch Junior impersonated Moody for the entire year, and Harry had not realized it. He had all the pieces of the puzzle in hand, and he couldn't see through Crouch's disguise. He should have. He knew the effects of the Polyjuice. He, Ron and Hermione spent months preparing some two years ago. He saw Crouch Junior several times next to an unmoving Moody in his own office, and never realized that Moody was always at the same place, where his trunk was, and never moved. He had seen Crouch discussing with Voldemort through his dreams, knew they were preparing something for the end of the year, and never seriously thought that it could concern the Triwizard Tournament. Worse, he had gone straight to the imposter, told him everything he knew, and even handed him the Marauder's Map. Harry had asked Dumbledore whether the map was found, and Dumbledore told him that sadly, they hadn't found the map. Bartemius Crouch Junior most likely brought it with him. Harry lost of the few things his father had left him.
He let Cedric die. Harry never thought anything was amiss. He never suspected, like the fool he was, that someone arranged for him to win, to get to the Cup first, and that this someone could have anything in store for him. He should have suspected that the person who would touch the Cup would suffer, and yet he told Cedric to seize it along with him. And when they faced Crouch, Harry let the burning of his scar overtake him, leaving Cedric vulnerable. He got him killed.
He failed to offer any resistance to Crouch. He let him take his blood as if he offered it, and he let him bring Voldemort back to life. The only reason Harry escaped with his life was that by the greatest luck of all, his wand shared the same core as the wand of Voldemort. Without it, he would be dead right now.
He was angry at himself for letting all these things happen. He should have taken the third task more seriously, for the threat it was. Instead, as he approached the day, he thought more and more of it as an opportunity to win the Tournament. To brandish the Triwizard Cup like he had raised the Quidditch Cup last year. To have all the students of the school applauding him. To have someone else's girlfriend look at him with admiration. He was ashamed. Angry. Ashamed and angry at himself. Because in some way, the description that Rita Skeeter made of him proved to be not so far from reality.
All those thoughts, Harry felt them going through his mind as he stood over the walking bridge. There was only an hour left before the feast. He had come here after packing his trunk in the hope to let his turmoiled mind breathe for a short moment before going to the feast. Instead, he felt even more miserable than before. Tonight, at the feast, someone would be missing. Someone who deserved to attend it. Someone who was dead. Maybe Harry shouldn't attend. He didn't feel like he belonged to it, like he deserved to attend it. He looked on the horizon. Far away, he could make out the towers of the pitch, where he and Cedric faced each other to reach a Cup first. He could see the Forbidden Forest's edge, where they also competed to get a golden egg from a dragon. And he could guess the presence of the lake, hidden by the castle, where they raced to the bottom of freezing waters to find people who were never in danger. All that looked so stupid now.
Hogwarts had always looked like such a marvelous place. There had been dark moments here that Harry went through. Voldemort's attempt to steal the Philospher's Stone. His broomstick, then a Bludger turning mad and trying to kill him. Dementors assaulting him during another match. The Chamber of Secrets and the people who got Petrified because of the Basilisk. His encounters with Pettigrew. The time he almost drowned in the Black Lake. But each time, he and everyone else got out of these situations, sometimes gravely injured, but always alive. This year, things had gone differently. Someone did die. Someone Harry let die. Was the school so beautiful after all? He was no longer sure.
"Harry?"
His heart jumped. He knew this voice. He reluctantly turned his head to the left. Susan was here, a sad expression on her face. It was strange, but despite this, Harry felt better all of a sudden. Seeing her actually made him feel better. Perhaps this was because she took his mind away from the dark thoughts that populated it.
"Hermione told me I could find you here," she said.
Of course, Hermione told her. She asked Harry where he was going so close to the feast, and Harry told her before heading out.
"I needed some time alone," he shortly explained.
"Yes, I guess." She came to stand near the railing, right next to him. "I'm sorry I didn't see you often lately. I… I've been having a hard time with everything that happened."
"And for me, do you think it has been easier?"
He sounded harsh, which was not what he was looking to do.
"No, of course. I never meant the contrary," she answered, not an ounce of anger or reproach in her voice. Susan was extremely patient in general. It took a lot for her to snap at someone, though when she did, it was impressive. "I know you've had a lot to deal with lately. I should have been there for you."
Harry didn't answer. He didn't blame Susan for her absence. She had been next to him almost the entire night and morning that followed Cedric's death, and he had not been looking for company the whole time. The only ones he truly spent time with over this period were Hermione, Ron and Hagrid.
"You don't want to come to the Leaving Feast, aren't you?" she further asked, her voice very soft.
No, indeed, Harry didn't want to go there. He would probably still go, but it would be without any desire to do so. And the reason was simple.
"It's my fault that Cedric died."
His words hung in the air for a while.
"Harry, it's not your fault," Susan told him. How could she say that? She knew what happened. She had been in the hospital wing at his side the whole time. She heard everything. She knew he was responsible.
"I told him to grab the Triwizard Cup with me. If I hadn't done it, if I had taken the Cup alone, he would still be alive."
Susan took some time to answer. "You couldn't know that the Cup would bring you to… him." She swallowed while saying the last word. People in general struggled to say Voldemort's name, but for Susan, even talking about him was hard, given her family history.
"I should have known. I… I saw Crouch Junior discuss with Voldemort in my dreams." Susan shivered next to him. "I knew he had come to Hogwarts several times. My mother was chasing him, and yet…"
"You could never have guessed it was Moody," Susan said, her voice still at the same level. "No one knew before it was too late, Harry. Even Dumbledore was fooled by that man. He never suspected that he could be an imposter."
"I should have known," Harry still muttered, as if there was nothing else to say.
"You're not responsible, Harry. The only one who's responsible of this… it's him." Again, Harry didn't need a long explanation to know who she was referring to.
Harry's hands were on the railing of the bridge as he kept looking right in front of him. He then felt something warm enveloping his left hand and noticed that Susan had placed hers over his. It was comforting. She now looked straight in his eyes.
"Everyone knows it's not your fault, Harry. Even in Hufflepuff. You saw Cedric's parents when they visited you. They didn't hold you responsible either."
He looked away from her. "I wouldn't blame them if they blamed me."
"But they don't. No one does." She didn't say a word for a time, then something unexpected came out of her mouth. "It's also our fault, Harry."
"What do you mean?" Did she lose her mind?
"When your name came out of the Goblet of Fire in October, no one cared about you. No one cared that someone might be trying to kill you, or even that people could die in this Tournament. The only thing everyone cared about was that they wanted Cedric to win. Even after the first task, even after we saw how dangerous this competition was, all people could think about was that Cedric had to win. We all put pressure on him to win, and we didn't worry for an instant that someone might be manipulating the Tournament to get you killed and that it could also endanger Cedric and the others. Instead, all people saw was that Hufflepuff was robbed of its glory." She said the latter as if she was disgusted. "We also got Cedric killed. We failed to realize he was putting his life at risk, and mainly because we wanted him to win at all costs. Only because for once, we wanted to win something."
Harry was taken aback. He didn't expect someone to say that. "You couldn't have guessed that Voldemort would be using the Tournament to kill me."
"We could have suspected something at the very least." She sighed and closed her eyes. Her hand gripped that of Harry. "Last summer, after the Quidditch World Cup, my aunt… She told me… That she could feel he was coming back… Soon… And I refused to believe her… I didn't really want to believe her… But… The Death Eaters at the World Cup… The murder with the Dark Mark appearing over… Then your name getting out of the Goblet… We all knew that he had tried to kill you in the past. People knew that it wasn't only Quirrell three years ago. We should at least have considered the possibility, and we didn't. Instead, all we cared about was that we wanted a Hufflepuff to win a stupid tournament."
Harry remained silent the whole time she spoke. He wanted to tell her that it wasn't her fault, but he felt that she would simply rebuff his attempts. So they remained in silence, holding hands, staring right in front of them. Harry remembered the time at the end of the Yule Ball when they sat at a table, saying nothing until the end of the evening. He felt awkward at the time. Today, being in a similar position, he felt comfortable. He found it soothing for his mind.
"What do you think you will do this summer?" Susan asked him after quite a while.
"No idea," he replied. He had not thought much about summer. Summer activities were far from being a major concern to him now that Voldemort was back. It seemed like a futile consideration given that Cedric was dead.
"Will you and your mother move?" He looked at her, frowning. "I mean, with his return… Do you think you will hide?"
His traits soothed. Now he understood what she meant. "I don't know. I didn't ask her," he replied sincerely. "And you?"
Susan looked away. "During the last war, my parents went into hiding after my uncle and his family were murdered." She paused. Then she looked to Harry with a determination he seldom saw with her. Oddly enough, this look reminded him of someone… "But I don't want to hide. I don't want to hide while other people risk their lives and die around me."
They looked into each other's eyes for some time. Harry wasn't sure who took the initiative, but they hugged. And then they kissed. It wasn't a passionate kiss. It was one made of regret, tenderness, comfort, caring. And while they shared it, Harry felt there was someone who could understand him, someone with who he could share how he felt about that night.
Harry arrived at the last minute for the Leaving Feast. He and Susan had walked together back to the castle, hand in hand. However, they let each other go before getting into the Entrance Hall. Harry felt it would have been wrong to hold the hand of his girlfriend while entering the Great Hall, given the circumstances. He also didn't want to attract too much attention, either on him or on Susan. Despite this, many pairs of eyes turned to him when he walked into the Great Hall.
Harry ignored the stares thrown at him as he made his way to the table of Gryffindor where he sat between Ron and Ginny. Hermione was on the other side of Ron.
"You're just in time," Ron said. "I think it's about to begin. Though I don't think it's going to be very merry."
"You surprise me," Ginny said sarcastically.
Indeed, the ambiance was far from a party. The banners of the winning house for this year were not hung to the ceiling. Instead, black drapes were positioned all around the Great Hall, to pay respect to Cedric. People talked, but without enthusiasm. This was definitely not an occasion to celebrate like previous years. Hogwarts had changed. Someone died.
But some things never changed. When Dumbledore stood up, the Great Hall fell into silence.
"The end of another year," he declared, solemnly, with gravity. He looked all across the Great Hall, and stopped particularly at the Hufflepuff table, offering a gaze of condolences to the pale and contrite faces of students in the house. Harry's eyes found Susan, who was looking at her feet.
"There is much that I would like to say to you all tonight," Dumbledore resumed. "But I must first acknowledge the loss of a very fine person, who should be sitting here." Harry couldn't have agreed more with Dumbledore than right now. He kept looking at the table of Hufflepuff just like the headmaster did. "A person who should be enjoying this feast with us. I would like you all, please, to stand, and raise your glasses, to Cedric Diggory."
Everyone, without exception, stood up and raised their goblet. Every Hufflepuff, from Heidi Macavoy to Sally-Anne Perks. Every Ravenclaw, from a crying Cho Chang to Roger Davies. Every Gryffindor, from Harry himself to Colin Creevey who for once didn't bring his camera with him. Every Slytherin, from Daphne Greengrass to Draco Malfoy. The students of Hogwarts had never looked so united. The people from Durmstrang and Beauxbatons, including Krum and Fleur, didn't hesitate to raise their cups either and said Cedric's name like everyone else.
"Cedric," Dumbledore went on, "was a person who exemplified many of the qualities which distinguish Hufflepuff house. He was a good and loyal friend, a hard worker, he valued fair play. His death has affected you all, whether you knew him well or not. I think that you have the right, therefore, to know exactly how it came about."
Dumbledore paused before saying the fateful words.
"Cedric Diggory was murdered by Lord Voldemort."
The reactions were instantaneous. Gaps, sounds that mimicked strangling, and even screams were heard across the Great Hall. Horror, disbelief, fear, all the range of emotions went through people's faces. Though this was not the only reaction. At the Slytherin table, Harry noticed a few students, Malfoy first, plunged into deep stupor. Their parents probably didn't tell them yet that their master was back.
"The Ministry of Magic," Dumbledore declared, "does not wish me to tell you this. It is possible that some of your parents will be horrified that I have done so, either because they will not believe that Lord Voldemort has returned, or because they think I should not tell you so, young as you are. It is my belief, however, that the truth is generally preferable to lies, and that any attempt to pretend that Cedric died as a result of an accident or some sort of blunder of his own is an insult to his memory."
Another pause followed, during which students talked between themselves, probably still under the shock of the revelation that Voldemort was back.
"But there is somebody else who must be mentioned in connection with Cedric's death. I am talking, of course, about Harry Potter."
This was the moment Harry dreaded. He didn't want Dumbledore to talk about him. And yet he did. As a result, a few people turned their heads in his direction. Most of those who did looked back to Dumbledore fairly quickly though, to Harry's relief. However, he noticed that Cho was still looking in his direction. He averted his gaze. Her boyfriend died because Harry told him to seize the Cup with him.
"Harry Potter managed to escape Lord Voldemort. He risked his own life to return Cedric's body to Hogwarts. He showed, in every respect, the sort of bravery that few wizards have ever shown in facing Lord Voldemort. And for this, I honour him."
Harry did his best to ignore the others as they raised their goblets and pronounced his name, and he was relieved when they finally sat back.
"The Triwizard Tournament's aim was to further and promote magical understanding," Dumbledore continued. "In the light of what has happened, of Lord Voldemort's return, such ties are more important then ever before. Every guest in this Hall will be welcomed back here, at any time, should they wish to come. I say to you all, once again. In the light of Lord Voldemort's return, we are only as strong as we are united, as weak as we are divided. Lord Voldemort's gift for spreading discord and enmity is very great. We can fight it only by showing an equally strong bond of friendship and trust. Differences of habit and language are nothing at all if our aims are identical and our hearts are open. It is my belief… Never have I so hoped that I am mistaken… That we are all facing dark and difficult times. Some of you, in this Hall, have already suffered directly at the hands of Lord Voldemort. Many of your families have been torn asunder."
Harry looked straight in Susan's direction. She was looking down again. Harry knew there were other people at Hogwarts whose family suffered from Voldemort. Ron himself lost two uncles, although he never talked about it. But he knew no one who lost as much as Susan did. Two grandparents, an uncle, an aunt, four cousins, and her mother who almost got killed on the same occasion, while she was pregnant with Susan. If Voldemort had killed her that day, Harry would never have met Susan.
"A week ago, a student was taken from our midst. Remember Cedric," Dumbledore calmly said. "Remember, if the time should come when you have to make a choice between what is right, and what is easy, remember what happened to a boy who was good, and kind, and brave, because he strayed across the path of Lord Voldemort. Remember Cedric Diggory. And in his memory, I invite you all to share, for one last time this year, a dinner."
The plates on the tables filled on the spot.
The feast was a… decent affair, to say the least. No excitement could be felt as people got to eat. Many didn't seem to have much appetite, especially in the beginning, as if they would feel ashamed to feast when Cedric was gone. But in the end, hunger and the presence of so much food got the better of everybody. Across the evening, some people stood up to propose toasts. Most of them were for Cedric. The first was Fleur Delacour. She spoke at length about how, despite being opponents, she and Cedric got along well from the beginning of the Tournament, and how she would miss him dearly. She also thanked Harry for bringing his body back to his parents, affirming she may probably not have the courage to do so in his place, had her life depended on it. Krum then stood up. He didn't say much. He only raised his goblet, loudly said Cedric's name, and everyone imitated him. Harry felt some people pressure him to say a few words, but he refused. Anyway, others took care of that. Roger Davies toasted to a fair opponent on the Quidditch pitch. Heidi Macavoy toasted for a great captain, and an even greater friend. The Head Boy toasted to a fellow Prefect. Professor Sprout toasted to one of the best students her house and the school ever welcomed. Cho said nothing. She was crying in silence, surrounded by friends.
Night followed the feast after the students went back to their dormitories. Harry slept relatively well that night. It was probably his first night without nightmares since Cedric died. The next morning, his trunk all ready, he went down in the park to head for Hogsmeade Station where the Hogwarts Express would bring him and all the other students to London. He got to say goodbye to both Fleur and Krum who came to say farewell. Both said they regretted Cedric's death and hoped they would meet again. Ron even asked an autograph to Krum. Finally.
The journey on the Hogwarts Express proved light and quite pleasant, in the end. Dumbledore's speech had given back some hope to Harry. The good weather of the day helped as well. Harry seldom spoke about Cedric's death and the return of Voldemort, even with Ron and Hermione. This morning, however, in the train, he found it much easier to talk about it with them, and to discuss what Dumbledore might do next.
"Surely Dumbledore will find You-Know-Who," Ron said. "After all, with the way he looks, he should have a hard time hiding."
"He did manage to hide quite well during the last war, Ron," Hermione reminded him.
"I know, but this time… I mean, most of his Death Eaters are in Azkaban. And those he has… Well, Dumbledore would probably just have to follow Lucius Malfoy to get to Voldemort. Draco's father is not really a genius."
"I don't think it will be that easy. With what we heard, I think Dumbledore will probably try to destroy Voldemort's support. By getting the giants on our side, for example."
"Good luck with that," Ron commented. "It will surely be as easy as to get trolls on our side."
"You think this is what he asked Hagrid and Madame Maxime to do?" Harry asked them.
"Maybe," Hermione said. "I hope they will succeed. I would rather have the giants with us than against us. What I worry the most about are the Dementors."
Harry worried about that as well.
"You think that Dumbledore is right?" Ron asked. "That they will join You-Know-Who?"
"That's what Voldemort said in the graveyard. He was sure they were going to join him," Harry said. "And I don't see how he could be wrong. I don't think the Dementors care about who they serve. They only care about how many people they can feed on."
"Maybe we should have learned the Patronus like you did last year," Ron muttered. "Although you didn't have to use it in the end."
"Maybe I will have to use it sooner than I thought," Harry reflected aloud.
It had been some time now that he used successfully the Patronus Charm, and he did it without the presence of Dementors. In fact, he never used the Charm on real Dementors. Maybe he should ask Lupin to help him train again, although Harry wondered how it would be possible. He wasn't authorized to use magic outside the school.
"Hey, Harry… I've been wondering," Ron then said. "When you were in the graveyard and all these people… These spirits, whatever they are… When they came out… Do you think you saw my uncles? My mother had two brothers, Fabian and Gideon, and they died during the last war. Did you see them?"
Harry thought about it for a moment. "I don't know. How did they look like?"
Ron seemed at a loss of words. "I don't know."
Harry sighed in powerlessness. "Maybe they were there. There are many… echoes that came of Voldemort's wand. Most of them surrounded him. I couldn't make out all of them. Only two of them really talked to me. My father… and another man."
"An idea about who he could be?"
"No. He looked familiar, but… But there were so many echoes. Men, women. Old and young. There were even children."
"How can someone murder so many people?" Hermione asked, both horrified and disgusted.
"Well, at least, we have Dumbledore," Ron said on a positive tone. "He's going to protect us, even if Fudge is too dumb to understand that You-Know-Who is back."
The door of their compartment opened at this moment. Susan stood in the doorway.
"Excuse me. Harry, can I talk to you for a second? Alone?" She looked embarrassed while asking it.
"Ron, let's take a stroll in the wagon," Hermione said instantly.
"No need, Hermione. Harry can talk right outside. It won't be long."
Harry stood up and followed Susan outside the compartment. She had arranged her hair into a plait today. It was back to the smooth state she usually had. Susan brought him a few steps away from the compartment.
"Harry, excuse me, but there's something we need to discuss." She looked even more embarrassed. "I still haven't told my parents about us."
"Oh."
He thought it was something more serious. More grave. If she had told him that yesterday in the morning, he wouldn't have minded the problem much. He had been very close to deciding to break up with her. Maybe even closer than he realized. But since their conversation on the bridge before the Leaving Feast, Harry had changed his mind. Susan was one of the few good things that happened to him this year. He couldn't bring himself to let her go after their discussion.
"Look, I'm going to tell them. Today, once I'm home. I just… need to tell them at the right moment. I only want us to leave the train separately. I don't want them to find out about us when we get off the train. Especially now that… he is back."
"You think they're not going to agree about us?"
She pursed her lips. "I don't know. I didn't tell them before because… I never had a boyfriend before, and I didn't know how to announce them the news. But now… It will be more complicated. My parents are very private people. They hid the whole time at the end of the war. I just need to break them the news at home. To make sure it goes well."
Harry sighed, discouraged. He was hoping to spend more time with Susan this summer. Would her parents prevent them from seeing each other?
"I'm sorry, really. It's my fault. I should have told them," she said, really looking sorry.
"It's fine," Harry said. "I didn't tell my mother either the whole time. How did she react when you told her?"
Susan looked even more embarrassed. "She… didn't say much."
Harry nodded. Would he really have to deal with two sets of parents between him and Susan this summer, on top of Voldemort's return?
"It will not be a problem, Harry," Susan said, on a different tone. "I'll get them to accept. I promise."
She looked very serious and determined. And this time, Harry knew. He knew where that familiar look from the man in the graveyard came from. Susan had exactly the same facial expression right now. But it was gone in an instant.
"Is there a problem?" she asked worried.
Harry must have a strange expression on his face himself. "No. No, it's fine. It's okay. I understand."
She nodded, a thin smile on her lips.
"Well, look at that. Isn't that lovely?"
Harry's eyes snapped over Susan's shoulder. While they discussed, Malfoy had approached, flanked by Crabbe and Goyle, like always. They looked more confident and arrogant than ever. Susan turned swiftly on herself to face them.
"So," Malfoy said with a smirk. "Preparing your honeymoon with your fiancée, Potter? I suggest you do it quickly. She's not going to live long, after all."
Crabbe and Goyle laughed behind.
Harry said something to Malfoy. Something he would probably never say in front of teachers or parents, but he was done with him. He had no patience for that.
"You should be careful with what you say now, Potter," Malfoy said, still smirking, but also looking angry. "You might be Dumbledore's favourite boy, but this is the end for you now. However, if you show respect to your superiors, maybe your loved ones will not die. Like this one here." He pointed at Susan derisively.
"And if your father surrenders to the Ministry, perhaps his master will not get the chance to kill him," Susan retorted.
Malfoy burst into hard laughter, like the two idiots behind him. But Susan continued. "I wonder how he's going to react when he finds out what your father did to his diary." Malfoy stopped laughing all of a sudden. Crabbe and Goyle kept going on for a while, but slowly stopped when they realized that Malfoy did not laugh anymore. "Yes, you know, his master's diary, that your father got inside Hogwarts to open the Chamber of Secrets. You really thought no one knew about it. The diary that he got destroyed, without a single person dying from it. I wonder what…" Susan seemed to gather her forces before she pronounced the name. "… Voldemort will do to your family when he hears about it."
The name had an instantaneous effect on the three Slytherins. None of them laughed. It was the first time Harry heard Susan saying Voldemort's name aloud. Malfoy, who first looked doubtful, turned furious and pointed his index on her.
"Do you really think you're special? Just because your aunt is in the Ministry? My father knows Fudge. He can have her fired in an instant."
"I'm not afraid of your father. I'm not afraid of you either. I'm not afraid of cowards."
"Really? Well, you should be. Because you picked the wrong side." He pointed Harry and returned his attention on him. "I warned you, Potter. I told you ought to choose your company more carefully, remember? When we met on the train, first day at Hogwarts?"
"Yes, I remember," Harry replied. "Does Goyle still have that scar on his finger?"
Goyle didn't look happy that Harry reminded him of that day Scabbers bit deeply his finger.
"I warned you!" Malfoy repeated. "I warned you to not hang around with riff-raff like that!" He pointed Susan.
"And I remember very well what I told you back then. I can tell who the wrong sort are by myself," Harry stated. He seized Susan's hand by the same occasion.
"She's going to die, Potter. And your friends too. Not to mention your mother." Harry made to take his wand, but Susan stopped him. Malfoy laughed hard again. "At least, your Muggle-lover girlfriend knows her place."
Susan stepped forward, but Harry could see that her lips were quivering. "Voldemort is going to kill you, Malfoy."
Again, the effect of the name resulted in Malfoy not laughing anymore. He stopped, but only for an instant, because he resumed laughing. But Susan kept talking.
"One day, your father will disappoint him. Or he will consider your father useless. Or he will ask something that your father will refuse to do. And that day, he will kill your father. He will kill your mother. He will kill your whole family!
Malfoy kept laughing. Then he clapped his hands. "Good. Good. Very good, Bones. Very convincing," he ironized. "I bet this is what your aunt is going to say if she arrests someone. Well, she'll probably die before she can arrest anybody."
"In your place, I would pray that she lives. She is one of the few who could protect your family. And who would be willing to protect you, despite everything you've done."
"Well, we'll make it without her help. She was in Hufflepuff as well, wasn't she?"
"Yes, she was," Susan stated.
"Well, we all know how Hufflepuffs end. Maybe she'll be the first one to go. Well, second one. Diggory was the firs…"
Explosions followed. An instant later, Malfoy, Crabbe and Goyle were lying on the floor of the corridor, unconscious, and in a physical state and appearance that could barely be described. Harry and Susan both drew their wands, but on the other side of the corridor, Ron, Hermione, Ernie, Hannah and Justin also drew their wands. They came on Malfoy's back while he was busy mocking Cedric's death. Mocking his death seemed to have been his greatest mistake, the one thing to not do. They stared at each other, surprised at what they all just did.
"I guess…" Hannah began, "… we are going to have problems."
"The hell we're going to have problems!" Ernie exploded. "They got what they deserved." He put his wand back into his pocket. "Everything is alright, you two?"
"Yes," Harry answered. He put back his wand into his robes as well, and so did most of them. Susan kept it raised for a little while longer before she put it down. "What are you doing here?"
"Well, Susan was gone for some time, so Hannah went to see what she was doing. When she saw that Malfoy and those two idiots were causing problems, she came back to see us, and we decided to follow her here. Ron and Hermione were already out there."
"Malfoy should have made his scene right in front of our compartment," Ron said, a huge satisfied smile on his lips. "So, what do we do with them?"
"Let's hide them in an empty compartment," Hermione said. "I don't think anyone will miss them."
They grabbed their unconscious bodies and carried them to a nearby empty compartment. Crabbe and Goyle were particularly hard to move. At least, they got rid of them for the rest of the journey in the train. And the rest of this journey was indeed eventless. Susan spent part of it with Harry, but she had to go back to the compartment occupied by the other Hufflepuffs of their year since her luggage was there. Fred and George joined them a little while later, in the afternoon, laughing very good when they were told about the accident with Malfoy. Hermione also revealed that she caught Rita Skeeter, and showed them a beetle in a jar, who was her. Skeeter was an Animagus. That was how she could listen to so many conversations without being located. Fred and George, on their side, told them, to everyone's surprise, that Bagman stole their money at the Quidditch World Cup, and they tried to get him to reimburse them the whole year. But he disappeared after the third task because he bet a lot on Harry and lost everything. Now Harry understood why Bagman seemed eager to help him throughout the whole Tournament.
The time to get out of the train arrived too soon for Harry, even though it was in the evening. He would have liked to spend more time playing Exploding Snap with Ron, Hermione, Fred and George. He would also have liked that Malfoy and his two friends remained locked up in a compartment for the rest of the summer. However, all good things seemed condemned to come to an end, and Harry had to carry his trunk out with the others. On the platform, he looked for his mother, but instead he only saw Sirius. And Remus by his side.
"Hey, here," his godfather said, and Harry walked in his direction.
"Glad to see you again, Harry," Remus said.
"Hi. Where is Mom?" Harry asked.
"Your mother couldn't make it, Harry. She had something important to take care of."
"She'll be back tonight. In the meantime, you're stuck with us," Sirius said with a wicked smile.
What could his mother be doing?
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