A/N: The first half of this chapter is seen through the POV of Theo Nott's mum, who I've headcanoned to be called Ophelia. I know in some other fanfics that Theo Nott's mum was actually quite old and died after he was born, but this is my fic and this will be as I want.
This is also a warning: Ophelia's POV will mention and show scenes of domestic abuse, both physical and verbal (and a bit of financial abuse too I think?). If you do not wish to read it, that is totally fine by me as her perspective doesn't add anything directly to the plot. If you are a survivor of domestic abuse: you are so strong and worthy, and my inbox is always a safe space if you wish to get something off your chest. Help is always available.
Faceclaim for Ophelia Nott: Sienna Miller
Faceclaim for Rohan Nott: Diego Luna
Ophelia Nott woke up from her slumber to the daylight pouring into her bedroom. She was relieved that Rohan wasn't beside her - indicating that he was up and about.
After dressing, she made her way downstairs cautiously, for she had no clue what mood her husband would be in today. Low and behold, he was already sitting in the kitchen, drinking a bottle of Firewhisky (with an empty one also there). "Morning," Rohan had said with no indication of having meant it.
"Good morning," she replied back, so that he wouldn't get angry.
It was quiet for a few minutes as she got toast prepared for herself, assuming he'd already eaten. She could feel his eyes on her though. Rohan spoke up. "I need you to go to Gringotts for me today," he announced.
She tried not to show how happy she was, for she was finally getting out of the house, even if it was just for an hour. "Okay," she turned to him, "what for?"
"If you shut up, I'll tell you." He snapped suddenly. Ophelia's eyes went to the floor, her head inclined. "Some distant great-aunt of mine has died, and I want to see what sort of fortune she left behind. She had no children."
"Okay," she cleared her throat, "I'll get them to give me a copy of her will, yes?"
"Yes," Rohan grunted, "and I'll send you back tomorrow with any correspondence. You are not to go anywhere else apart from the bank, is that understood?"
Little do you know, I was already planning to go to Gringotts, she thought to herself, smugly. "Yes, Rohan."
"And you will not meet up with anybody. Not even your sister. Am I clear?" He rattled on.
"Yes."
"Yes, sir." Her husband snapped back, in mock.
"Is there a scheduled appointment?" She asked him.
"No. You will wait there until you can get one. I do not care if you have to wait up to an hour to see one of those goblins, you will wait your turn." Rohan said, as if she was a child. Yet he'll still moan if I come back two hours later, and accuse me of seeing somebody.
As she was eating her toast through in the living room, she suddenly heard his footsteps marching briskly down the hall. Oh gods, what could this be about…
He appeared in the doorway, and marched towards her. He slammed an opened envelope down onto the coffee table. "What is that?"
She froze, and reached for the envelope. When she opened the letter, she realised that it was from St Mungo's, where she had secretly (and stupidly) applied for a job in the children's ward. It was a letter regarding her application.
"WELL?" Rohan barked, making her jump.
"I-it's from St Mungo's.. Rohan, please, I can expl-"
"-I told you, you are not to apply for any jobs. Your role is to be my wife, and bear me children. Though you have failed me in that retrospect." He said viciously.
"W-we have a son, Rohan, Theo-"
"-Don't you remember? He is no son of mine - he has made friends with those Potter's, and spends time with half-bloods and muggleborns!" He cut her off. "You will not be accepting that job, Ophelia, do you hear me? Do you hear me?" He grabbed her blouse and shook her. Terrified, she yelped, and tried not to let the tears in her eyes show.
"Now, I'm going to throw that letter into the fireplace, where it will be gone forever, and you will never think yourself worthy to apply to any jobs ever again." He said, tearing the envelope and the sheet of paper. She flinched a bit, but nodded to keep him satisfied.
When he marched out of the living room, and slammed the door behind him, Ophelia thought it safe to let a few tears roll down her cheek. It was times like this where she missed her son, away at Hogwarts, as he tried ever so hard to protect her from Rohan's wrath. He was the reason she kept fighting every single day, and she had learned to adapt to bearing the brunt of Rohan's anger.
She came downstairs about half an hour later after retrieving her handbag and coat from their bedroom. At the front door, Rohan was waiting for her. He was struggling to stand straight, she noticed, as he was leaning against the table for support. "Now, remember, you're going there and straight back here." He jabbed a finger at her.
"Yes, Rohan." She nodded.
"I will know if you meet up with anyone." He said, his harsh eyes staring at her.
"I don't plan to." She said innocently.
Once outside, she quickly Apparated away.
Once in London, she felt very content. Like a weight had been lifted from her shoulders. Rohan barely let her meet up with her own sister and mother, much less go out and do business for him. Though she really couldn't stay long, she wanted to get stuff done.
She went towards Gringotts bank, and when she entered, it was surprisingly quite quiet, with only a few customers milling about. It wasn't long before she was beckoned over to a goblins desk.
"Hello, madam." The goblin greeted.
"Hello," she greeted, and she placed her hands in front of her. "I'm here to make an inquiry about a will."
"I see," the goblin looked at her over his small spectacles. "For protection reasons, you can't discuss or ask about its contents out here in this lobby, so we will have to go into my office to discuss it. Is that okay with you, madam?"
"Yes, yes, that will be fine." She replied, smiling.
"Follow me." He instructed.
She was led beyond the desk and entered a spacious office. Does a small goblin really need this much space? She wondered.
"Take a seat," he gestured kindly. She took her seat, and he sat across from her.
"My husband is Mr Rohan Nott, and he sent me here in his stead to ask about the contents of his great-aunts will, as he discovered she recently passed away." She started explaining. The goblin didn't seem to bat an eyelid when she said her husband was a Death Eater.
"Ah yes, we have it here on record - one moment," the goblin flicked through a paper file, and pulled out a slightly beige bit of paper. "He didn't tell you his great-aunt's name, did he?"
"No," she replied, hoping that wouldn't hinder the task.
"That's fine, I can see here on the family tree who he was meaning. Her name was Mrs Irma Nott, who died on Sunday aged 79. No children, and her husband died some five years before." The goblin explained. "Her will should be here somewhere.."
He did some more digging. She patiently waited, and drifted her eyes around the room.
"There aren't many contents of the will, but she did actually leave a few pieces for your husband. Shall I just read out those bits?"
"Yes, but it might be handy to see what other contents there are as well, as I'm sure he'll want to know who's getting what." She answered, trying to sound like she wasn't terrified of the man she married.
Irma's house and most of its contents were going to her younger brother, Rohan's great-uncle, and all his descendants. The woman also had a few investments - mainly in trust bonds and other banks, which provided dividends. The total amount of the dividends were five thousand Galleons; of which two thousand five hundred belonged to Rohan, the other half going to Rohan's brother (who he had severed contact with years ago). The woman had also given Rohan a Nott family ring, which the goblin had to hand. The ring was quite tight - Ophelia thought that maybe she could give it to Theodore as a present if she sneaked it away somewhere…
Ophelia requested a written copy of Irma's will, which the goblin gave her. Satisfied, she folded it away and put it back into her handbag. That seemed to be the end of the appointment. "Is there anything else you wish to ask, Mrs Nott?" The goblin asked kindly as it stowed the folder of paper away.
Yes, I wish to divorce my husband, she thought. However, she willed herself to shake her head in a polite no. However, the goblin's smile was no longer existing. "A divorce?"
Ophelia's heart dropped through the ground. She hadn't realised that she'd actually said that out loud. "I-I'm sorry, I didn't mean to say that.."
The goblin looked concerned. "Are you sure, Mrs Nott?"
She had only met this goblin some ten minutes ago, yet he was looking at her quite sympathetically. "F-forgive me, I don't know why I said that, it just… slipped out." She tried to laugh it off.
"I can see you look fearful," the goblin pointed out, "are you definitely sure you didn't mean that? If you did, there is help available-"
She didn't even comprehend speaking, yet everything spilled out like water breaking out of a dam. "-To tell you the truth, yes, I did mean it. 100%. He's hateful, spiteful, horrible. He's not said a nice word in sixteen years to me, nor my son. It seems that happiness and laughter in that house is forbidden, outlawed, illegal. He doesn't even allow me to get a job. See, the other day, he found out that our son is friends with kids that aren't pure-blood, and you know what he does? Forbids him to ever return to the house. Yeah, you heard that correctly. He's banished him. He'd probably kill my Theodore with no remorse if he ever came within the perimeter of the manor. And don't even get me started on the fact that he's a Death Eater - he's in Voldemort's inner circle if you must know, and I can expose all of this to the damned Ministry itself if I desired…"
Ophelia found herself drifting off, for a wave of emotion came over her. She furiously swiped her oncoming tears away, determined not to break down. The goblin looked a bit speechless. "So… On which grounds do you wish to divorce your husband on-"
"-On every ground there bloody is. But I can't discuss this here today. He'll send me back tomorrow with correspondence regarding the will. I would prefer to discuss it then, when I'm.. hopefully more prepared." Ophelia said, not believing herself that she was actually going through with this.
The goblin nodded slowly. "I know this must be tough, but I can see you are very strong and determined, and that your son means the world to you. For both of your sakes, I do hope you will eventually find peace."
That meant the world to Ophelia. When she eventually had to go back, she begged them not to send any letters to her address, which the goblin said they wouldn't.
When she got back, Rohan was falling asleep in his chair. He cursed her for giving him a fright as she entered the house again. "Well? Give me the will, dammit!" He snapped.
As soon as she produced the copy, he snatched it out of her hands like a child with no manners. His hand had partly crumpled the paper, but he skimmed his eyes over it nonetheless. "Tight bitch she was," he muttered, "only two and a half thousand for me? And that scummy brother of mine gets the same amount?! This will be contested."
Ophelia shuffled out of the room to go and make herself a cup of tea, for her throat was drying up. As Rohan was busy rambling to himself about the will's contents and who was getting what, she couldn't help but grin with watery eyes. Who knows, within the next week or so, she could be a happily divorced woman no longer living in fear of the man who was once a kind soul. He could be out of her life completely, and her and Theo would live happily as mother and son, with her sister and mother also by their sides.
At times, she pretended that she was in fact living in that scenario - in her imagination, where Rohan couldn't hurt her, as he didn't exist in there. It seemed sad for a grown woman to still imagine herself in different scenarios, but for Ophelia it was her safe haven, a sanctuary, that only she understood.
Back at Hogwarts, Umbridge for some reason seemed ever more determined to have every aspect of Hogwarts way of life under her own personal control. She brought out Educational Decree Number 26, which banned teachers from giving students any information not strictly related to the subjects they were paid to teach. By far the most ridiculous and old-fashioned one yet prohibited boys and girls from being within eight inches of each other; which meant couples could barely kiss before being forced apart. Hagrid had been put on probation like Trelawney, to the fury of the five of them and half the school, and every Divination and Care of Magical Creatures lesson was conducted with Umbridge lurking nearby with her clipboard, and Ron claimed that Trelawney was as batty as ever regarding her cooking sherry and predictions.
The DA was going fluently, with the Senior group spending half of their Saturday sessions learning new jinxes and counter-jinxes, and the other half was dedicated to working by themselves on their Patronus Charms, which still hadn't been mastered by anybody. The Junior group were working steadily on more offensive and defensive spells, and Harry decided he could probably start teaching them about duels as soon as next week.
On Tuesday evening, Harry, Amelia and Dorea made their way to Dolores Umbridge's office once again, as she had given them a week's worth of detention after their poor marks in the recent Defence essay's (though she had marked them down on purpose just to be able to punish them). They had no clue if another week's worth of detentions would ever allow their carved hands to properly heal up, as they'd used the Blood Quill so many times now it was probably so deep a wound. When the detention was done, they came back to the common room earlier than Ron and Hermione did - as they two of them were with the other Prefects helping the teachers get the castle decorated for Christmas (Ron claimed that Peeves tried to strangle him with the other end of tinsel as he was trying to pin it up).
On Wednesday after Astronomy last period, Dorea, Harry and Amelia stayed behind to speak to Sirius - they were going to ask him if Theo could stay with them (they were that busy they hadn't had the chance to even spend time with him). Ron and Hermione were going to wait for them outside (they also supported the idea).
"I feel like we barely get time to talk!" Sirius said as he turned to them, "You fifth years must be sick of homework, and I'm having to spend most of my time marking and getting my sleep schedule to not be all over the place."
"Homework is pretty desperate, but at least the deadlines are a bit longer," Amelia said, her twin and godsister nodding vigorously.
"I think the next weekend is a Hogsmeade weekend, and there's another one two weeks from now, the week before Christmas holidays - how about we all spend some time together in the Three Broomsticks this weekend? I know you all have tonnes of friends now, but I'll only take up half an hour of your time." Sirius said, smiling. They nodded their heads in agreement.
"There's something else," Amelia said, and Sirius perked up. "One of our friends - Theo Nott, - has been kicked out of his house permanently by his father for stupid reasons. He can't go home at all, he's practically homeless. It is our wish that he come and live with us at Black Manor."
Sirius's eyes twinkled. He looked between the three of them. "That's a really kind thing to do, you know." He said softly, then looked in particular at Amelia and Harry. "It's something your father did to me; welcomed me into his home after I was kicked out. It's like he's reincarnated into you… Amazing. Of course Mr Nott can stay with us."
Theo was simply relieved when they told him he now had a place to stay. He even hugged the three of them joyously. Amelia couldn't help but feel fuzzy when he hugged her; his hands felt soft on her back, and his smile was so big he looked like the Cheshire cat. She was also sure his eyes softened when they made eye contact. It was an odd feeling, like no other, and something that weirdly only happened when she was around him...
The week passed quite quickly, though the three of them had detention every night still, they passed as usual - well, as normally as any detention under Umbridge's torture could go. On Thursday evening, Harry, Amelia and Dorea made their way to Umbridge's office, where another few hours of certain hell awaited them.
Harry entered rather reluctantly, his sister and godsister following suit, and Dolores Jane Umbridge was sat expectantly at her desk, a toad-like smile on her face and her cat portraits making noise behind her. "Good evening, Mr Potter, Miss Potter, and Miss Black."
"Evening, Professor." The three of them said in unison, with certain reluctance due to the fact they sounded like primary school children reciting their teacher.
"Take your usual seats and get started. You know what to do. I have to mark tonnes of essays, so I'd prefer it if none of you disturbed me." Umbridge told them and smiled at them as if they really were just writing normal lines.
With a shuddering look at the Blood Quill, Harry sat down and got started, but not before he remembered what he had to ask her. "Professor?" At that, Umbridge looked up, slightly aggravated.
"Yes, Mr Potter?"
"We were wondering; could we only spend a few hours with you tonight, as we really need to finish off a star cluster chart for Astronomy, and they're only present in the sky tonight. So can we only spend, say, two hours in detention tonight and make up the lost time in the rest of the week's detentions?" Harry asked, knowing that he could have simplified his wording, but yet he knew Professor Umbridge's answer right away.
"I'm afraid not, Mr Potter. You will stay full time tonight."
"But don't you see? We can't do a star clusters chart any other day - they're only visible in the sky tonight!" Amelia argued.
"That's quite enough, Miss Potter. The answer is no, and that is final." Umbridge said sharply, but then immediately relaxed. "Now do your lines."
With a collective readiness, the three of them started doing their lines. It didn't take long before they were silently hissing and their hands were bright red with blood again. Dorea looked as though she wanted to cry.
Half an hour in and their blood was running freely, and Umbridge looked gleeful.
"I can't do this," Dorea whimpered very quietly with glassy eyes, determined not to show weakness in front of that horrible woman.
"If we told Sirius, he'd have her reported-" Amelia whispered, putting her free arm on her godsister's shoulder to comfort her.
"-Fudge wouldn't let that happen, and we know he'd sack Sirius instead." Harry grumbled. He was very thankful that The Toad couldn't hear them.
Harry could have sworn that he heard muffled voices outside the office, but shrugged it off and carried on with the task.
Everyone got the fright of their lives when the office door was blasted off its hinges, sending dust all over the place, and Harry could have rejoiced there and then. Kingsley Shacklebolt, Hestia Jones and Emmeline Vance stood in the doorway, wands drawn, whilst Lupin and Tonks stepped forward to grab Umbridge by her arms.
"Miss Dolores Umbridge," Kingsley's calm voice had a ring of hatred through it. "You are under arrest until further notice for the use of an illegal Blood Quill on Hogwarts students, and for countless breaching of teaching rules. You will be escorted to the Ministry's holding cells to await further questioning to determine your sentence."
Harry looked at Amelia and Dorea, who looked as though they were about to cry of happiness. Tonks and Remus started dragging Umbridge away - there wasn't a more satisfying sound than Umbridge screeching bloody murder.
Dorea did burst out crying, and Hestia, along with Emmeline, stepped forward and comforted her. "Don't worry, dear, she won't be teaching at this school ever again." Hestia offered her a handkerchief.
Harry turned to Kingsley. "On behalf of the whole population of Hogwarts excluding some of Slytherin House, thank bloody Merlin for that."
The man smirked at that. "We alerted Amelia Bones of accounts given in secret by various students, saying that they were sometimes being physically as well as verbally assaulted by that vile woman. She gave us the all clear to arrest her."
"Wait, so Fudge-"
"-Is about to know." Kingsley looked very pleased with himself.
"He won't be very happy."
"He won't be happy anyway, because people have voted him out of office."
"Am I dreaming?" Amelia grinned as Emmeline wrapped her hand to stop the bleeding. "That cow gone, Fudge hopefully gone, today couldn't get any better."
Harry as well felt as though he was on cloud nine.
They could also hear Umbridge's shouting as she was escorted down the staircase, and nothing gave them more joy than hearing her reaction to being exposed.
"Who will become our new Professor? And who's favourite to be Minister for Magic?" Dorea had calmed down now, but her face was still slightly wet.
"Your new Professor will be me."
They all turned, and Lupin was stood grinning.
Harry pinched himself. This was all too good to be true.
"As for Minister, well, the polls do suggest Amelia Bones."
Harry had encountered Madam Bones at his Ministry hearing that summer, and whilst she was quite sharp with him, almost intimidating, her eyes held a kindness to them, and he could tell that she despised Fudge. He knew her niece, Susan, very well too, and she spoke highly of her aunt, so he was delighted at the prospect that they were hopefully getting a fair but to-the-point new Minister, who would actually prepare them for the inevitable public return of Voldemort.
Once the three of them were patched up, Kingsley and co walked them downstairs, specifically to Dumbledore's office. When they entered, the Headmaster was sitting at his desk, and also there was Moody and a furious Fudge, along with Percy Weasley. "Oh no, not them. Everyone's least favourite cursed, lying children." Cornelius growled with a look of hatred similar to Uncle Vernon's.
"Nip it, Cornelius!" Moody barked, which instantly had Fudge quivering.
"I wonder what lies they'll tell this time about poor Dolores-"
"-they'll tell no lies, Cornelius." Dumbledore said calmly, although Harry glanced a look of hatred in his eyes.
"Oh ho, and how will you know that Albus? What story have you prepared for them to tell in advance?" Fudge said arrogantly, and Percy let out a laugh.
Dumbledore pulled a bottle out of his drawer, and in it was a queer looking liquid. "Veritaserum, Cornelius. Works wonders, as you know yourself."
Cornelius Fudge started blabbering. He knew himself that he'd lost this battle. "T-there are ways to overcome Veritaserum, o-oh yes there is, and surely those tyrants know of those m-methods-"
-For god's sake, Cornelius, they're fifth years! They haven't even discussed Veritaserum in Potions yet!" Moody barked again, sending his electric blue eye haywire.
"Enough, gentlemen, let's get this over with." Albus then turned to them. "Dorea, do you consent to being questioned under this truth potion?"
Dorea nodded, although was hesitant in stepping forward. In the reflection of a glass cabinet, Harry could see that she shot a dirty look at the Minister and Percy. Dumbledore put three drops of the liquid in a pre-prepared cup of tea, and Dorea drank eagerly. She clearly couldn't wait to expose the truth of Umbridge to her beloved Fudge. "Dorea Andromeda Black, did Professor Dolores Umbridge make you use a Blood Quill?" Dumbledore asked with a glint in his eye.
"Yes, sir."
"How many times?"
"For every detention that she put us in."
"How long did these detentions last?"
"They varied. They could last anywhere between two to six hours."
"What else did she say or do in these detentions?"
"In one of them she verbally abused me, saying that I wasn't worthy to be a Black and that my mother deserved the fate she got." Harry and Amelia tensed, as they had been there when Umbridge said that. Dorea continued, "She also grabbed me by the shoulders and shook me, saying how I was nothing but a thick and worthless excuse of a human and made threats about my father."
Harry dared a glance at Fudge and Percy, and was not disappointed. They had their mouths hanging open, and he couldn't wait to hear their excuses for this. Harry and Amelia shared a triumphant glance with Kingsley.
"Do you know of any other students that experienced what you and your god siblings went through?"
"Yes. Lee Jordan, Tulip Karasu, Fred Weasley and George Weasley have been forced to use a Blood Quill in their detentions with Professor Umbridge, though they had far less detentions with her than we did."
Dumbledore concluded her questioning and relieved her of the potion before calling Harry forward. He was asked mostly the same questions and answered them truthfully, as he was naturally bid. When Amelia's questioning was finished, everyone turned to look at Fudge, who was slightly sweating.
"B-but Dolores.. She's a lovely woman.. These students are just far too arrogant for their own good! Kids these days have no respect for their superiors!" He ranted, blubbering and stammering. Percy still stood with his head held high, although he was lost for words and defeated.
"The Daily Prophet has been informed of Dolores's treachery, Cornelius, and also of your schemes. You might want to say a final goodbye to your office, as the Ancient and Noble families, along with the Wizengamot, have casted a vote - you've been voted out of office by a majority of 58% to 42%. I dare say that your time in office was.. What everyone expected of you." Dumbledore said. Fudge paled, and stormed to the fireplace to Floo back to the Ministry, Percy following.
"What's to be done now, Albus?" Moody asked after the now ex-Minister and his ex-Junior Personal Assistant had left.
"Well, first things first, there's an assembly to be held. Kingsley, round up Minerva, Pomona and Filius, and tell them to get their students assembled downstairs in the Great Hall. I'll alert Severus just now." Dumbledore then pulled out his wand and sent a Patronus message to Snape. "You three can head down to the Great Hall now." Albus smiled at them.
Word seemed to spread unnaturally fast, as when Harry, Dorea and Amelia were walking down the staircase, the whole school seemed to be stampeding down the stairs behind them, eager to know why they were being summoned at this hour. Some of the members of the DA caught up with them.
"Guys, what's going on?' Justin Finch-Fletchley looked curious.
"Oh, a miracle has happened." Amelia replied, looking very gleeful, which made Justin ever more curious.
Within ten minutes, the whole school was sat in the Great Hall, everyone asking what on earth had happened. Harry saw that Sirius was at the staff table, and was in a conversation with Professor Vector. He looked a bit concerned.
"Silence!" Albus Dumbledore spoke as he strode into the hall to take his place at the podium, and the voices died down immediately. "All of you are probably wondering why you all have been summoned at this hour from your common rooms. An hour ago, the Ministry of Magic were alerted to a certain teacher in this school who, it's fair to say, was abusing her position of power quite severely. Some of you will know exactly who I'm referring to, others may not. Dolores Jane Umbridge is no longer in employment here at Hogwarts-"
Dumbledore was cut off by a massive uproar of cheers and whoops of delight from most of the Hall. Even some Slytherin's were elated. It took almost five minutes before the celebrations died down. "Professor Umbridge was sacked tonight for having in her possession a Blood Quill, which a good few of you know what it does. For those that don't know, Blood Quills are special quills designed to not need ink, - but instead of ink, you simply write with it, and it absorbs your blood and writes with it instead. On top of that, it carves whatever you're writing into the back of your hand, and leaves scars that can take up to ten years to heal, depending on how many times you've written it." Gasps of horror then came from the students, and the DA members were now looking at Harry's hand as an example as he'd shown them Umbridge's treachery. Some of the first and second years looked as though they were about to faint or vomit or both.
"Umbridge also, as a lot of you guessed, was employed here by the Ministry to change the way we live here, - and to spy. A few of you found yourselves being banned from Quidditch for a lifetime" (a lot of the Gryffindor's turned to look at Harry, Fred and George sympathetically) "-and I'm pleased to say, that ban is now lifted."
Harry lit up then. He was finally allowed to play Quidditch again! This night couldn't get any better. He couldn't wait to get back out and play again, although he felt bad as it meant that Amelia would be back to being a reserve Seeker.
"It may also come as a surprise to some of you that our Minister for Magic, Cornelius Fudge, has been sacked from office in this last half hour." Dumbledore spoke with a grin at that.
"My mum voted for him to be sacked!" Hannah Abbot whispered to Harry, making him smile.
Harry glanced around the Hall then. A good few of the Slytherin's belonging to pure-blood families were looking murderous. He could see that Malfoy was angrily ranting to Crabbe, Goyle and Pansy, - clearly their mothers and fathers voted to keep Fudge in office. Other Slytherin's - including Daphne and Astoria Greengrass, looked like kids on Christmas morning. They smiled at Harry and gave him the thumbs up.
"We do not yet have a confirmed new Minister for Magic - the Wizengamot, along with the Ancient and Noble Houses, haven't cast a vote yet, but I'm delighted to announce that as of tomorrow, you will all have a new Defence Against the Dark Arts professor - a very capable one who will bring you up to scratch in no time and will actually teach you theory and practical. A lot of you will have met him already, and without further ado, please welcome back Professor Remus Lupin!"
The cheers for Lupin's return were twice as loud as the cheers commencing a few minutes ago when Umbridge's sacking was announced. Almost all of the Gryffindor, Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw tables were on their feet, as well as half of Slytherin, whistling and cheering alike as Remus emerged from the door behind the staff table, very touched by the reception he was receiving. Everybody cheering didn't seem to mind nor care that Lupin was discovered as a werewolf almost two years ago.
Harry could see that Sirius was very proud and happy - not only was he teaching, but he'd now be a colleague to his best friend. He too was on his feet and Harry saw him give a murderous grin to Snape, who was sat at the opposite end of the staff table and was very pale and angry.
To Harry, Hogwarts had never felt more warm nor safe.
The speech now finished, Dumbledore then sent them all back up to their common rooms, and the atmosphere never felt more bubbly.
The Gryffindor fifth years had Defence sixth period on Friday's, which they were all excited about as it would be their first lesson back having Lupin.
"How exactly do you think he'll bring us all back up to scratch? We're basically three months behind, and our exam is in June, we've got so much to learn!" Dean Thomas pondered at breakfast.
"He might do lots of lessons with us but I bet he'll give out lots of homework to catch us up." Ron said after swallowing a mouthful of fried egg.
On Friday's, they had Herbology straight after lunch, which in today's case meant that they'd have Remus for Defence next. The whole class seemed to notice that Professor Sprout was a lot more cheery and chirpier than usual. She also shared with them her delight of having Umbridge gone and with no shame at all berated the woman, causing the class to clap wildly. She even let them finish twenty minutes early (after everyone had cared for their Chinese Chomping Cabbages, of course) and said that their only homework was to write two paragraphs on its uses in Herbology as well as in Potions.
When the bell rang to signal the end of the fifth period, they practically burst out of the greenhouse and sprinted back to the castle. They then all stood eagerly outside the Defence classroom and were bouncing on the balls of their feet practically - none of them could hardly wait to have a proper Defence lesson.
They didn't have long to wait, as within a minute, Professor Lupin opened the door and stood aside to let the students in. Most of the class said "Welcome back, Professor" as they entered, which Harry could tell touched his honorary uncle quite a lot.
"Thank you everyone, for your kind words as you all entered. Now, it's a shame I wasn't reunited with you all sooner than this, as you practically have to learn the whole OWL curriculum that has been officially reinstated. We've got a lot to cover before June, and ideally I want us to be finished with the course before Easter so we have plenty of time to do revision. That being said, all of you will have to cooperate and be prepared to master a lot of spells, some of which you may need to practise outside this classroom - not on each other of course, mind. So with that, let's get started." Lupin then paused. "I suspect you all are sick and tired of theory work?"
The class murmured a yes.
"Up on your feet, then. Today will be a practical." Lupin said, and the class started cheering. This would be their first practical lesson since the end of fourth year.
Lupin banished the desks to the sides of the classroom, and even people like Malfoy were looking eager to not be sat reading a dumbed-down textbook. "Now, I know that Professor Umbridge didn't have you learning any magic at all, so I think we should start today with a spell normally taught at OWL Defence that is quite simple to master: the Smokescreen Spell."
Remus was right: for an OWL spell, it was almost too easy, and the class managed to master it easily by the end of the period. Harry learned it was one of the few spells that didn't take into account your stance or wand movement - so long as you just said "Fumos!" clearly enough it would be cast regardless, though the smoke came out in various degrees of grey depending how long it was cast for.
At the end of the class, Remus talked to them for a minute. "Hope I wasn't too easy on you lot - the other spells in the curriculum are only going to get harder." He grinned, and Harry noticed the man's scars had faded significantly.
"You were brilliant!" Ron praised.
"Yeah, we're definitely on course to pass our OWL in Defence now that you're back!" Hermione said brightly.
Remus turned to Harry as the others started walking off for last period - which was Ancient Runes for Harry, Hermione, Amelia and Dorea, but Ron had Divination. "How's the DA going then?"
"Well, Umbridge didn't let it reform after she brought out Educational Decree Number 24." Harry said.
"What?" This was clearly news to Remus.
Harry decided to come clean. "Do you promise not to tell anyone?" At Remus's nod, he carried on. "I've carried on teaching the DA regardless; in a secret room, right under her nose, and she never found out."
Remus looked at him sharply. "Harry, that would have got you and your friends expelled had she discovered your plotting!"
He put his hands up. "I know, I know, but I took every precaution. Dobby helped me out too, and she never found us, so she couldn't expel us!"
Remus sighed. "Did Sirius know about this? Hell, he probably encouraged it."
"No, I didn't even tell him, nor anyone else except the DA members." Harry said. "It was all for good reason - both groups would have fallen dramatically behind if I hadn't."
Remus didn't look convinced. Eventually, Harry had to go to Runes, but before he left Remus called out, "What secret room are you holding the meetings in?"
Harry turned to his honorary uncle and simply said, "A room on the seventh floor." before grinning at his confused expression before hurrying away to Ancient Runes.