Chapter 27. Dumbledore's Army

They decided to meet in Hogsmeade at the first opportunity.

"We'll meet at the Hog's Head," Hermione said. "There will be less people there, no one will overhear us."

"Let's go to the Three Broomsticks instead," Jeanne suggested. "The more people around, the less likely someone will specifically pay attention to us."

"But..." Hermione tried to argue with her words. "There will be fewer people..."

"That's exactly why it's bad," Jeanne cut her off. "The Three Broomsticks is a well-known and popular place. When we go there with a group, everyone will think we're celebrating someone's birthday and won't pay any attention to our conversation. The Hog's Head is unsanitary, it has the least visitors and is less popular among Hogwarts students."

Dudley thought for a moment and nodded.

"She has a point in her words."

"Fine..." Hermione reluctantly agreed. "Let's go to the Three Broomsticks."

No matter how much Hermione assured Harry, and later Madam Rosmerta, on the appointed day her words about two or three students turned out to be a mistake. They were peacefully sitting in the Three Broomsticks, and when Dudley blew the foam off his butterbeer, and Harry took the first sip, a crowd appeared at the door. Their expectations were not met, as the more people entered, the more there were. When they finally all entered and gathered around their table, Harry involuntarily froze. Harry didn't know half of their names, because among those who entered were students who had only recently gained magical powers. Fred and George quickly collected money from those who entered and bought a bottle of butterbeer for everyone. Looking at the students surrounding him, Harry couldn't find the right words, so Hermione spoke instead of him.

They discussed for a long time why they had gathered and how important it was for Harry to be the one to train them - a person who had repeatedly defied Voldemort. Harry resisted for a long time, claiming that he was actually helped in everything. His words provoked dissatisfaction among the gathered, but Fred and George quickly quieted the dissatisfied ones, assuring them of the truth of the experience accumulated by Harry.

"Is it true that you can conjure a Patronus?" a girl with long braids asked.

"Yes."

"A corporeal Patronus?"

"That's true," Harry replied. "My Patronus takes the form of a stag."

Interested whispers spread around.

"And did you strike the Dark Lord himself with a sword in the chest?" a dark-haired boy asked Jeanne.

She silently nodded. Another wave of interested whispers almost turned into a buzz.

"It takes a lot of courage to approach him like that," the boy muttered.

In response, Jeanne turned away, rolled her eyes, and her cheeks flushed.

Their conversation continued for a long time while everyone discussed and recalled Harry's exploits. At the end of the meeting, everyone wrote their names on a special sheet provided by Hermione. Later, when Harry looked at the sheet, he couldn't count all the names because there were so many. Only when everyone was leaving the Three Broomsticks, moving among the others, Harry noticed a familiar face nearby. The crowd gradually dispersed, and only this person followed them at a distance, but soon he disappeared too.

"Who was that?" asked Ron, as they were already riding in the carriage pulled by thestrals towards the castle.

"It was Fujimaru," Harry replied.

"Do you think he will expose us?" Ron worried.

"Come up with a good reason for him to snitch on Ambrose for creating a school club," Hermione reprimanded him. "No, he clearly had something else in mind when he followed us."

"But why in Hogsmeade specifically?" Harry pondered.

"Perhaps he had a reason for a conversation in a more informal setting," Jeanne shrugged.

"If only we knew what he wants," Ron pondered.

"We'll talk about it in the castle if it's something important," Harry replied.

The conversation with Fujimaru in the castle caught Harry the next morning. The young Japanese man approached the Gryffindor table personally and bowed before Harry, clasping his hands in front of him.

"Hello, Harry!" Fujimaru greeted him.

"Hello, Mr. Fujimaru," Harry greeted him, wondering how much the man knew about their endeavor.

"I've been wanting to talk to you personally," Fujimaru said, drawing Harry's attention away from his friends. "You are one of the three winners of the recent Triwizard Tournament, famous for your battles with the Darkest Wizard of all time."

"Yes, that's true," Harry modestly replied.

"I've heard many interesting things about you, and I must say your courage and strength are truly remarkable," Fujimaru said, admiringly looking at Harry.

"Thank you, Mr. Fujimaru," Harry answered, feeling a bit embarrassed. He wasn't used to receiving such praise from strangers.

"As you may know, I've been appointed by the International Expert Council to investigate the unexplained phenomenon of Muggles turning into wizards," Fujimaru explained. "It seems that your family has been affected by this as well, since your first cousin had never attended Hogwarts until this year. Can you tell me how this happened?"

"Dementors attacked us in Little Whinging. I used the Lumos spell to get a look around, and that's when Dudley saw the dementor. When we returned home, a letter from Hogwarts arrived addressed to him. That's all I can say. And you...," he hesitated. "Do you already know... Do you have any theories?"

Fujimaru smiled at Harry and replied, "Yes, we have different theories. We have differences of opinion, but no one considers this change to be random."

"Do you think... is it somehow connected to Voldemort?" To Harry's surprise, Fujimaru didn't flinch. The name of the Dark Lord seemed to leave no impression on him.

"It's possible. Voldemort's actions in the past have led to many unpredictable and dangerous consequences. However, other factors could be involved in what happened to the Muggles. We cannot know for sure until we gather more information and analyze it," Fujimaru calmly answered.

"I understand. Please let me know if there's anything I can do to help with your investigation," Harry said, feeling determined to uncover the truth.

"Thank you, Harry. I appreciate your willingness to help, and I will keep you informed," Fujimaru politely bowed and returned to the teacher's table.

Harry watched him, lost in thought. The idea that Voldemort's actions could still harm innocent people, even after his defeat, filled him with anger and sadness. But he knew he couldn't let these feelings consume him. In that moment, he silently vowed to do everything in his power to uncover the truth and stop Voldemort before it was too late.

A few days passed, and after another training session, Harry sat in front of the fireplace late in the evening. He was writing an essay, Hermione was knitting clothes for house-elves nearby, Jeanne was reading a textbook, Ron was playing chess with Dudley, and in the distant armchair, one of the new girls was dozing off, surrounded by books. A creature resembling a squirrel was quietly perched on her shoulder, snoozing. Harry pondered his scar pain, as it had flared up again after the training. Harry only confided in Ron about being able to sense Voldemort's mood now, and this time he felt his strongest puzzlement. Harry's thoughts merged together, and he could no longer distinguish his own musings from the text in the book. Perhaps he shouldn't attach meaning to these sensations? In front of Harry's eyes, a glowing circle appeared on the ground, with two young people standing beside it, their faces unrecognizable. A bright light flashed, along with a sharp pain in his scar, nearly causing Harry to pass out. Opening his eyes, he realized he was lying on the floor next to the fireplace, with Dobby standing nearby, wearing at least a dozen socks on each foot and an equal number of hats on each ear.

"Is Harry Potter okay?" Dobby asked, looking confused. "Dobby will call for help if Harry Potter..."

"No, there's no need, Dobby," Harry coughed and felt better.

"Then how can Dobby help Harry Potter?"

Harry thought for a moment and then replied, "I think you can help me with something. Do you know of a place in Hogwarts where about a hundred people could practice Defense Against the Dark Arts without the teachers knowing? Especially Professor Umbridge..."

Dobby nodded enthusiastically. "Dobby knows! In Hogwarts, there is the Room of Requirement on the eighth floor..."

Now Harry knew. He just had to notify everyone, gather them together, and hold the first session. They had their first session on the same day in the Room of Requirement, and everyone was amazed by it.

"Umbridge won't like this," Dudley said.

"As if we're asking her," Hermione smiled and affixed her parchment with names to the wall, writing on top in bold letters, "Dumbledore's Army."

On that day, they practiced the Disarming Spell, and many beginners showed progress. Harry had never seen Dudley so happy before, following his successful tenth attempt at disarming his opponent. Jeanne's spells always hit their mark and always worked as intended, and other spells had no effect on her, so at a certain point, she started intentionally dropping her wand and giving her opponent a chance. Despite how obvious her tricks were in these training duels, after defeating a third person and successfully dueling another opponent, she smiled. Looking at her, Harry couldn't bring himself to bring up the issue of her faking her performance, only giving her a thumbs up. Encouraged by a few students, Jeanne left the training with them and began circling the room, observing the others' practice. Sometimes she approached someone to adjust their technique or give them words of encouragement, but for the most part, she tried not to interfere, only nodding her head when she caught someone's excited and puzzled gaze. Watching Jeanne, Harry remembered her from a year ago when she didn't need any special reasons to get into a fight, and he inwardly rejoiced for her.

After the lesson, Harry checked the Marauder's Map and released students from the Room of Requirement in small groups, afraid of attracting too much attention. Although there was still a lot of work to be done in the future, he was more satisfied than ever before.

The next morning, Hermione showed the sleepy friends the newspaper. Waking up from midnight thoughts about preparing potions, Harry looked at the latest edition of the Daily Prophet and was stunned.

Sirius Black has been completely exonerated, and Peter Pettigrew is wanted for crimes against the magical world

As a result of a stunning turn of events at the Ministry of Magic, the infamous criminal Sirius Black has had all charges related to the murder of twelve innocent Muggles and betrayal of the Potters to the Dark Lord dropped. Previously, Black was arrested by Ministry officials and placed in Azkaban prison despite his innocence.

After a thorough investigation conducted by esteemed Auror Alastor Moody, with testimonies from Barty Crouch Jr. and Cedric Diggory, it was established that Black is not responsible for the heinous crimes he was accused of. The true perpetrator of the murders is Peter Pettigrew, who had been hiding under the disguise of a rat for the past fourteen years. Pettigrew was a close friend of the Potters and Black but betrayed the Potters to You-Know-Who.

This revelation has shocked the wizarding community, as Black was believed to be a Death Eater and a murderer. However, now that his innocence has been proven, many question why he was held in prison for so long without a fair trial.

Meanwhile, Pettigrew remains on the run and is considered extremely dangerous. The Ministry has issued a wanted notice for him and urges anyone with information about his whereabouts to come forward. It is believed that he may be hiding in the wizarding village of Hogsmeade, as he has connections there from his time at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

The Daily Prophet will continue to inform the public of this urgent news as more information becomes available. In the meantime, anyone who sees Peter Pettigrew is advised to immediately contact the Ministry of Magic.

After reading this article, Harry sat in shock. He understood that now that Fudge had awakened from his delusions about Voldemort's return, Sirius would be cleared, but he didn't expect it to happen so soon. Mentally praising Moody, he began to think about what gift to give him while also trying to understand why he hadn't felt any pain in his scar for such a long time. Was Voldemort planning something? He was definitely not hiding for no reason. Above all, Harry now feared to hear news about him. He tried to imagine what Voldemort's next move would be. His imagination didn't paint anything for him, it just sucked him into despair, and Harry felt caught between a rock and a hard place. He intended to interpret these feelings unambiguously and therefore had no illusions about the possible future. Whatever Voldemort was planning, he would make a bold statement.