Chapter 13 – A New Normal
Over the next couple of days Harry tried as hard as he possibly could to ignore the Inquisition and all its irksome meddling. The trouble was that was quite difficult. On Tuesday morning Tracey was summoned for an interview with Inquisitor Arlecchino, and by lunchtime it became clear to Harry that his friends, and not only him, were targets of the High Inquisition.
Tracey had been gone all morning, with her interview ending only because lunch had begun. She slipped into place at the Slytherin Table next to Harry.
"Alright?" Harry asked. "How'd it go?"
"It was—" Tracey said, and then she paused, glancing around. She'd taken a seat in between Harry and Blaise. "It was awful," she said. "Inquisitor Arlecchino was really interested in you, Harry," Tracey said. "He asked about—well, it would be easier to say what he didn't ask about! Just—everything. He asked about you and Dumbledore. He even said about Sirius—and Pettigrew. And he asked loads of questions about the teachers and school and all things like that. He wanted to know about the Circuit in the summer as well. And he even asked about when we met up in Barcelona." Tracey sighed. "God, he must have asked me the same questions about fifty different ways..." She glanced at Blaise. "He's going to have you in next, I think. Or, you're going to be called up by one of the Inquisitors, at least. He kept hinting that all of us are being brought in for questioning."
Harry grimaced. That wasn't on, not at all. Whatever problem the Ministry had, or was looking for, or wanted to create, they could leave his friends out of it.
"Look, I'm sorry—I didn't mean for—"
"Don't be sorry," Tracey said. "It isn't your fault. Honestly, I don't even think it's about you. I think it's all about Dumbledore. I know you weren't really reading the papers this summer, but Skeeter and a couple of other reporters have been writing these hit pieces against Dumbledore. Sometimes your name was in them but mostly, they were about Dumbledore."
"It has to be a bit about Harry or they wouldn't be asking all those questions about him," Blaise said. "Er, not to make you feel bad, or anything."
"Thanks," muttered Harry.
Tracey paused.
"Well, okay, that's fair enough. It's probably a bit about Harry. But I think it's mostly about Dumbledore. Didn't you say Umbridge was asking about the statement he gave to the Ministry? And about whether he was doing enough to keep you safe and all that? Arlecchino asked some of the same questions to me," Tracey said. "So it's not all about you. And some of it might even really be about what the Ministry keeps saying it's about, because he asked me loads of questions about the other teachers as well. He asked loads and loads of questions about Flitwick and Duelling Club; he even asked loads of questions about Professor Snape!"
"Yeah, well," Harry said, "I'm still sorry they had you in there for hours. They wasted your whole morning."
Tracey shrugged.
"They probably won't do it again, though. And if they do I'll owl Mam and tell her they've been unfairly discriminating against me—she'll kick up a fuss at the Ministry. Anyway," Tracey said, "I'm still looking forward to Duelling Club tomorrow. We're still all going, aren't we?"
There was still a lot Harry wanted to say, but he knew a forced topic change when he saw one, so he let it go.
"Yeah, of course," Harry said. "Blaise?"
"Wouldn't miss it," Blaise said. "Rumour has it they've made a few changes to the Arena from last year. Meant to be pretty nice."
"Really? Where'd you hear that?" Harry asked.
"Oh, you know—around. I think Montague said something about it, maybe."
"Oh. Well, okay. Fair enough. It's cool that they didn't just knock it down," Harry said. Conversation stayed away from the Inquisition after that, so Harry did at least get to enjoy his lunch without worrying about Umbridge, the Ministry, and Voldemort too much.
Wednesday night brought with it the very first session of Duelling Club. Harry was happy to see it, as after a day filled with runic alphabets and biting vegetables, he could do with a break. It was only an hour's session just before dinner, but it was certainly a welcome one.
And there would be another one at the weekend, assuming Harry could fit it in.
"I wonder what they've done with the Arena!" said Tracey, practically bouncing as Harry walked out onto the grounds with her and Blaise in a stream of other students.
"Well, we'll see in a minute, won't we?" said Blaise.
"I know, but the anticipation is fun, isn't it?" said Tracey.
"I suppose," said Blaise. "I'm more interested in how Flitwick's arranged it all. I mean, it seems a bit unfair to throw all you lot in with the rest of us, doesn't it? I reckon I'd be alright, you know, but for everyone else…"
"What do you mean?" asked Harry.
"You've fought on the Circuit," Blaise said. "You won the Summer Tournament. Bit unfair to stick you against the rest of the Novices." He paused. "Especially since that includes first years now."
"That's fair, actually," Harry said. "But it's really only a couple of us—me and Tracey, and Granger. Weasley's moved up to the Juniors now... So unless it's just us three duelling non-stop it's going to be a bit boring."
"Oh, Flitwick will have sorted all that," said Tracey. "Let's just get on!"
There were quite a lot more students than there had been at last year's Duelling Club walking down to the Arena. Harry supposed that even without the massive influx of new students – many of whom evidently wanted to participate in Duelling Club – students who hadn't participated the previous year were a bit more interested now that the profile had been raised after the Triwizard Tournament. Indeed, Harry spotted handfuls of students who'd never attended a single Duelling Club session the previous year make their way down to the duelling arena.
Unfortunately he also spotted Draco, flanked by Vince and Greg as he often was since coming back, which did sour the mood a little.
Well, some things can't be helped, Harry thought. Draco was a student at the school and a Slytherin besides. Harry wasn't going to get a Draco-free existence until the summer.
Flitwick had the students enter through the main entrance which was a little strange for Harry, who was much more used to entering through the competitors' doors at the sides. The décor was more or less the same, albeit without some of the crazier statues and portraits, but the interior of the building had changed in layout completely. Gone were the four separate duelling arenas, each with its own sets of seats, enclosed by walls.
Instead the arena had been converted into a single space with four duelling stages with seating all around almost like a coliseum, all in a single – vast – room. Harry thought they'd even done away with the waiting rooms and the lifts.
Not the simplest of renovations, but then Harry supposed Flitwick had managed it all with a neat little swish and flick.
"Come in, come in!" said Flitwick as the Duelling Club members flooded into the room. Flitwick stood at the edge of one of the duelling stages near to the seats. "Take a seat in the stands here and we can get started as soon as possible!"
Harry glanced over at the stands and saw Umbridge sat there, right at the top surveying the room. Also on the stands were several other teachers, including Professors Snape and Lockhart.
That's not a good start, Harry thought. That Flitwick needed assistants was expected given Duelling Club's popularity in addition to the increased student population, but Harry could have done without Umbridge presiding over it all.
But then, that wasn't unexpected either, as Harry didn't doubt the Ministry had strong opinions about the students learning to duel.
The two hundred or so students filed in and took their seats at the edge of the stage as they waited for the session to begin. The atmosphere changed from buoyant and excited to one of trepidation as more and more students noticed Umbridge sat at the back, but Harry was determined to have fun anyway.
It was duelling, and not even Umbridge could ruin that.
"Alright, settle down, everyone!" shouted Flitwick over the din. "We're all keen to get started to let's make the most of our time this evening!" He gestured for the students to quieten down. "Now, welcome back everyone who was a member last year—and welcome to everyone who wasn't! Before we begin I'd like to congratulate, once again, our Triwizard winners from last year! They did a wonderful job! And I would like to congratulate in particular those students who participated in a European Circuit tournament this past summer!" Flitwick looked around at the gathered students. "The European Duelling Circuit's Summer Tournament is a prestigious tournament indeed! We here at Hogwarts are proud of all our participating students! A round of applause please for Mr Weasley, who placed fifth in the Novice Singles tournament; Miss Granger, who placed sixth in the same; Miss Davis and Mr Potter, who won the Novice Doubles tournament—our most successful Novices to date, I should add. Miss Davis and Mr Potter gave us an excellent example of the little-used—"
"Hem, hem," coughed Umbridge. "Perhaps we can begin? I intended to sit in on a proper session of Duelling Club, after all."
"I—yes, of course," said Flitwick. "But I think it's always important to recognise the successes of our members. We will of course start duelling as soon as practically possible, but with several of our own members having achieved such wonderful—"
"Hem, hem," Umbridge coughed again. "I am here to determine whether or not Duelling Club is a suitable extracurricular activity for students as young as thirteen," Umbridge said. "Its role as an important Triwizard sport notwithstanding, it is currently unclear to us in the High Inquisition—and the Ministry more generally—whether Duelling Club should continue. I cannot do this if I do not see its normal operation."
Flitwick nodded.
None of that sounded particularly good news to Harry. Umbridge would use Duelling Club and any other extracurricular activities as a weapon to control the teachers and the students – no doubt she would target her meddling where it would hurt those she worried about the most. What that meant for Harry, he wasn't quite sure, but he was certain if he rocked the boat she would announce some new Educational Decree.
"Of course, High Inquisitor," Flitwick said after a few moments. "Well, let us begin. This year there are a lot more of us so we will have some assistants. Professor Snape has graciously agreed to resume his role in helping us, and we also have—for this year only!—Professor Lockhart as well. Those of you who were with us last year will remember the structure we use—first, second, and third years are Novices; fourth and fifth, Juniors. We follow the European Circuit's rulebook, of course, and—"
"Hem, hem," coughed Umbridge. "I have reviewed the rulebook and found several of the allowed spells are quite dangerous in nature. Offensive, even—is this suitable for use by students as young as these?"
"Er—well," said Flitwick, "duelling is a well-respected sport with a long history in our society, High Inquisitor, and its major European bodies are all agreed on the suitability of these spells for the categories in which they are used. Indeed, the Ministry itself approved of the spellbook we used in the Triwizard Tournament."
For someone who wants to see Duelling Club work, Harry thought, Umbridge interrupts rather a lot.
Harry glanced over at Tracey, who bore a grimace much like Harry's own.
"She'll be at this all year," Tracey whispered. "I don't think she even cares about the duelling. It's just so she can stick her wand in."
"Do you not think it irresponsible—perhaps even dangerous—to be teaching school children offensive spells?" continued Umbridge. "It is, after all, unlikely that they will ever need to use them—we have a safe country here. What, then, is the necessity of learning how to fight?"
"I—Madam High Inquisitor, respectfully, that is the point of duelling," said Flitwick after a brief pause. "The European Duelling Circuit's governing body has been quite diligent in ensuring that the spellbooks in use at each of the levels of scholastic competition are wholly appropriate for students—this has been agreed across all Ministries within the region's purview, including our own. And, without wanting to sound self-aggrandising, I have quite a significant experience with both duelling and teaching and am more than capable of guiding sessions such as these. Indeed, our success at the Triwizard Tournament—"
"Hem, hem," coughed Umbridge. "Policies can—and often do—change. What was considered appropriate once may not always be—"
"Well, that's all well and good," said Lockhart, standing up from his seat on the benches, "but are we here to natter on like a bunch of jarveys, or are we here to duel? It's nearly dinnertime and we've not got off a single spell! High Inquisitor, I understand your concerns—really, you'd be right to worry on any other day—but between the lot of us I daresay we have the experience and expertise to deal with anything that could come up. Even good old Severus here! So, let's get on, shall we?" he said, flashing his dazzling white smile at the toady little witch.
Umbridge near enough melted at the sight, which made Harry feel queasy.
Lockhart didn't wait for a response. Instead, he made his way down to the arena floor.
"Severus, you take the first years—you'll do fine with them, I'm sure," declared Lockhart.
Snape wouldn't have been very happy with that, Harry knew, not least because he didn't seem to like Lockhart at all. But Lockhart still didn't pause.
"I'll take half the Novices here," he continued, "as I'm sure Filius will want the Juniors under him. Harry, my lad—no, not you, Fawley, I meant Potter—come this way with me."
Harry fought the urge to groan. Could he simply refuse, and go with the other half of the Novices? He probably could, but it would look churlish, and in front of so many other students and Umbridge too... Harry sighed.
"You're both coming with me," he muttered to Tracey and Blaise, and got up to join Lockhart's half of the Novices. As the largest group there were enough of them that Harry thought he could just sink into the background a bit. "No arguments."
They made their way to Lockhart's stage, and by the time everyone got into place, Harry was ready to do some duelling ... even under Lockhart's supervision. Unfortunately, Lockhart seemed to have other ideas.
"Harry, lad—come up here with me," Lockhart said. "And... let's see... yes, Malfoy, that's a good choice—we can recreate that duel you missed at the end of last year! Come along then, we've not got long!"
Harry groaned inwardly. Lockhart was really shaping up to be Harry's least favourite teacher, and one of his older ones had kidnapped him. Draco showed no real response, instead simply making his way onto the stage. Not one to be outdone, Harry followed.
Despite Harry – and Draco's – lack of reaction to Lockhart's words, the other people around their little bit of the arena didn't have quite that level of nonchalance. Harry ignored them – he already knew the kinds of things people were saying about the end of the previous year, and he didn't care. There had been a very public trial, although fortunately the actual events of the Wizengamot session hadn't yet leaked to the public. But even so, Lockhart's decision to put the two boys together seemed designed to court intrigue… which was probably why Lockhart had made it.
"Right, so the both of you know the etiquette well enough I should think," Lockhart said. "Harry perhaps a little better, as he did recently complete a summer on the Circuit, but young Draco here certainly got far enough through the Triwizard to have it down. Now, this is just a little demonstration of what's possible at the upper end of the Novitiate category," explained Lockhart, "so we don't need a full duel. Just a little taster for the second years, who've never actually duelled before, after all."
Harry paid little attention to Lockhart. The man could – and would – waffle on forever, as he apparently loved the sound of his own voice. Instead, Harry took the opportunity to give Draco a look over. He bore the angry red scars from his run-in with the horcrux Diadem of Ravenclaw, of course. Other than his scars, though, Draco seemed expressionless. Without emotion, almost. He simply stood there on the stage opposite Harry, almost bored.
It was the first time Harry had been so close to him since the previous year. They had Arithmancy together, but they never sat close, and Diggory – or more probably, Shafiq and Farley – hadn't yet scheduled them to do prefect work together. And Harry had mostly avoided him in the Common Room, and since Draco had chosen a different collection of subjects to Harry, they weren't in many lessons together either.
"So I'll just count you down, then let's get right to it, shall we?" said Lockhart. "Three, two, one—go!"
Almost by instinct Harry dipped into a bow and readied himself for a Mirror Charm.
He didn't need one.
"Serpensortia!" said Draco. A big, fat snake slithered into existence on the duelling stage in front of Draco. Once, Harry would have worried about that, but he'd prepared for Draco to use a snake last year.
Don't speak Parseltongue, he reminded himself. He knew he could manage it, even while looking right at the snake, since he'd practised it over and over with Tracey the previous year. He wasn't quite ready to reveal his secret to the world. Not yet, anyway.
"Evanesco," Harry said. The snake vanished back into nonexistence. Harry conjured a swarm of bees around Draco, then prepared a Stickfast for the other boy's feet. He dodged Draco's Knockback Hex, raised his wand and started to form the incantation—
"Hem, hem," coughed Umbridge. She'd taken a spot right next to the duelling stage, was practically ignoring the rest of Duelling Club in favour of Lockhart's little group.
Harry stopped mid-cast, while Draco continued to vanish Harry's bees.
"This is altogether too much for a demonstration," she declared. "It is my understanding that disarmament is key to the Novice category of duelling—why have the students perform such dangerous and complex magic as this when there is a safer, more school-appropriate, alternative?" Umbridge nodded. "Yes, yes—disarmament. You shall demonstrate the proper way to disarm an opponent. Disarmament—if all else fails, including flight from danger—is an appropriate response."
"Well, you heard her boys—Harry, why don't you try relieving Draco there of his—" said Lockhart.
"No," said Umbridge. "Mr Malfoy will disarm Mr Potter," Umbridge said.
Harry fought the urge to snort. There was no way on Earth that was going to happen. Draco could try as hard as he wanted, but Harry had no intention of giving up his wand. Whatever little game Umbridge was playing, whatever effect she wanted Harry's disarmament to have, simply wasn't going to happen.
Not if Harry could help it.
"Well, this is shaping up to be a little more exciting than I'd thought," said Lockhart. "Harry, Draco—you've got your marching orders! Let's see a disarmament, then. On my count—three, two, one, go!"
Harry steeled himself for the attempt. He'd managed to keep his wand more often than not during practises, and even in the actual duels he'd completed both in the Triwizard and on the Circuit, so he knew he could.
"Expelliarmus!"
The jet of scarlet light hit Harry square in the chest, sending him staggering backwards at the impact. He gripped his wand tighter to prevent it flying from his hand at the spell's urging. Then Harry fought the urge to drop his wand.
Not a fucking chance, he thought.
The Disarming Charm nearly always worked – when cast correctly – on an unsuspecting or otherwise distracted opponent. On someone better prepared, though, it often came down to a contest of wills, even when the Charm had been expertly cast. Draco's Disarming Charm had been powerful, but Harry had faced stronger at the Summer Tournament.
He kept a solid hold of his wand.
Some in the arena muttered and whispered, but Harry ignored them. He was well known for his ability to resist Disarming Charms already – it shouldn't have surprised anyone.
"Well, not worry, Draco," said Lockhart. "Happens to the best of us—well, not to me, but I am rather exceptional. Why don't we swap over and have Harry try and disarm Draco here—"
"Mr Malfoy will try again," Umbridge said. "Then we will swap."
Harry glanced over at her. She clearly wanted him disarmed, and in front of half of the Novices – and no doubt a good portion of the others in the arena, who would be surreptitiously watching the exchange.
Why? Harry wondered. Did she think he would be humiliated, perhaps? Upset? It would have stung, of course, but it was nothing that would cause a meltdown. No reason to cause a scene. That was simply the nature of sparring, and Harry was prepared to potentially lose his wand every time he stepped into the arena.
Or was she trying to recreate something of the duel between the two of them at the end of the previous year? To gauge… something, perhaps? Test some sort of hypothesis she'd been holding since the trial?
Harry shrugged. Best to look magnanimous.
"Righto, then!" Lockhart said, smiling. He seemed unconcerned by Umbridge's interventions. "Let's try again, shall we? On my count—three, two, one, go!"
Harry braced himself for the impact.
"Expelliarmus!" said Draco again. The jet of scarlet light hit Harry, who once again staggered backwards, but he kept a firm grip on his wand. The spell pulled against his wand, and Harry felt the urge to simply ... drop it.
But he didn't.
Harry was not going to give up his wand to Draco. He'd lasted in a duel against the Draco-Voldemort, so mere Draco shouldn't be a problem at all. Wasn't a problem, although Harry found it a bit more difficult to keep hold of his wand than he'd have liked.
"Well, that's that, then," said Lockhart. "Let's have a go the other way now—Harry, your turn. I'll count you in again... Three, two, one—go!"
Harry didn't move immediately. Instead he focused and readied himself for one of the more powerful Disarming Charms he'd ever cast. In theory, anyway.
"Expelliarmus!" said Harry. Scarlet light shot from the end of his wand and hit Draco, sending him lurching backwards. Draco stumbled, had trouble righting himself... but kept hold of his wand the whole time.
Harry frowned.
He'd been certain he could get Draco's wand off him. He'd faced tougher opponents on the Circuit, and that had been a flawless Disarming Charm. With any luck Lockhart would give him another chance at it and he'd make sure to really put some oomph into it.
"It's only fair the lad gets another go," said Lockhart, "so get ready for another round, Draco my lad!"
Draco simply nodded.
"There you go, Harry lad—take another crack at it!"
Harry nodded. Aware that everyone in the arena was watching him – even those who should have been more focused on Snape or Flitwick or one of the others – Harry braced himself. Draco had endured the last Disarming Charm, but Harry wasn't at all keen to let him do so with the next.
"Expelliarmus!" Harry said, throwing a good deal more force behind the spell than before. The spell struck Draco and sent his wand flying from his hand.
Harry let out a breath. It had been closer than he'd have liked, but it had worked.
"Oho, good show, Harry!" said Lockhart. "Could have done with a bit more flair but it's good work from a beginner."
Harry stayed silent. He was hardly a beginner, not with two international tournament wins under his belt, but engaging directly with Lockhart seemed a poor idea. No need to fuel his nonsense further.
"I think next we'll have you two demonstrate Mirror Charms," Lockhart said, "since you seem to be good sparring partners! Draco, I'd like you to—"
"No," said Umbridge. "We will move on. We've seen enough demonstration—give everyone else a chance to participate now that we've settled on an appropriate way forward. There isn't much time left, after all." She smiled.
There'd be more time left if you didn't keep interrupting us, Harry thought. Harry got down from the stage anyway without being told – he didn't want to stick around in case Lockhart had him doing something else while on show despite Umbridge's words.
While Harry retreated to the relative safety off the stage, he considered what Umbridge was up to. She was more aggressive than she had been during his interview, where she'd been at pains to appear conciliatory and even friendly. Had she learned something to change her approach? Or was she trying to make Draco look bad?
Some way to get at Lucius Malfoy?
Or simply grabbing an opportunity Lockhart had unwittingly presented her with by forcing Harry and Draco together for a demonstration?
Impossible to say.
Ugh. Too many variables… Harry thought.
"A round of applause for our demonstrators, please!" said Lockhart. "Never let it be said I don't know the value of a good bit of public recognition! After that I want you all to try out the Disarming Charm. Some of you will have done it already, but I think it's new to the second years. Word of advice—the Disarming Charm is categorically—"
Harry ignored Lockhart. He didn't need to listen, anyway, having already mastered the charm. He wanted to whisper something to Tracey and Blaise instead.
"That was the one of the strongest Disarming Charms I've ever done," Harry said once he'd taken his spot next to his friends again, "and I don't think his wand even twitched."
"Mate, you sent him sprawling backwards—he nearly fell," Blaise said. "I don't know what you're complaining about."
"I just think it's weird, that's all," Harry said. "I could manage it last year when he had—well, you know. I think something's up with him."
"You always think something's up with Draco," said Blaise.
"Well, he was right last year," Tracey said. "So... in fairness..."
Blaise considered it.
"Yeah, alright. Still, it's not like you didn't manage to do anything. I reckon he's just been practising over the summer. And you got his wand off him in the end, didn't you? So I wouldn't worry about it—even if he is stronger than he used to be, so are you."
"You're probably right," said Harry. "Still..."
Harry wanted to talk more about it, but Lockhart had them all pair up to practise. Tracey and Blaise managed to get each other, but Harry ended up stuck with a random Ravenclaw second year he'd never spoken with before. Fortunately, there wasn't too much time left in the Duelling Club session, so Harry didn't have to spend too long utterly embarrassing the poor lad with repeated disarmings.
When Flitwick dismissed Duelling Club the students streamed out, a bit more subdued than when they'd came in, given that Umbridge followed along after them.
Harry got through the rest of the week without being called for another interview with Umbridge, although he knew she was still conducting them, and that he wouldn't be spared for too much longer. Still, by the time the weekend came, Harry was glad for Flight Club. OWL year was rough, and with his prefect duties, even harder – but a regular bit of flying did wonders for the soul.
Harry firmly believed that, anyway.
After the awkwardness of the first session Harry arranged to walk down to the Pitch with Ernie and Justin – as well as the Happenstance girl and her shy friend.
"I was just saying to Vi this morning—wasn't I Vi?—that it's a bit boring having to be put in the complete beginner's section since we can both ride brooms already," said Cordelia. "But I suppose because we don't have our Flying cert—you know, we haven't formally learned, have we, Vi? We never had an official instructor—it is fair. At least we're actually going to be allowed in the air—can you imagine being a first year and coming along to Flight Club and then you get told it's going to be weeks before you're allowed to fly? Honestly, it must be terrible."
"I'm sure Hooch will—" Ernie started to say, but Cordelia was off again.
"But all of you lot get to do the really fun stuff," she said. "Of course, that's fair enough, since Harry's a better flyer than Viktor Krum—we read in the papers this summer, didn't we, Vi? It was all over them—and you two have your Flying certs. But I just keep thinking to myself, 'Cordelia, at least you'll get to be up in the air!'"
"I don't know if I'm a better flyer than Krum," muttered Harry. "It was just, you know, luck on the day..." Luck and Krum's professional contracts making him a bit more careful than Harry, anyway.
But Cordelia didn't seem to care. She appeared to simply like talking and said whatever came into her head at any given moment.
"Isn't it funny how us three grew up with brooms, but you only got on one a couple of years ago and you're already one of the best flyers in the world!" Cordelia said. "Some people would say it's all in the blood but I think that's silly, since how could that make you better on a broom? Honestly, it's like Mummy says, isn't it? 'Blood prejudice is the refuge of a weak wizard'. Don't you think?"
"I really don't think—" Harry protested, but Cordelia was already moving on.
"Some people just have all the talents, I suppose. I was just saying to Vi yesterday—"
"Oh, look," Ernie said. "We're here. And I think Hooch has something to say."
Flight Club and all its members had walked down to the Pitch more or less together, as nobody wanted to waste time waiting around. Hooch and all her assistants were ready and waiting – Hooch even on her broom and up in the air.
"Same groups as last time," she shouted at the waiting students. "Except the Triwizard veterans—we're folding you into the regular groupings. Quickly now, sort yourselves out!"
"Ooh, well, I guess this is tata for now!" said Cordelia. "Come on, Vi, let's get going!"
The students shuffled around into their separate groups, each with their own assigned supervisor. Hooch took the bulk of the students this time, and fortunately this time, Harry didn't have to specifically avoid Draco by hanging out with the other Triwizard vets because he could stick along with Ernie and Justin.
Hooch shouted out at the remaining students near to her.
"Up in the air, now! I've put on a whole programme this morning and I want to get through this all properly!" she said. "Come on!"
Harry didn't waste any time. He mounted his broom and kicked off, rising into the skies to join Hooch in the air.
"This morning I've put up a basic hazard course," Hooch said as the more advanced students joined her. "Nothing quite so exciting as the K-stacks we had in the Tournament, mind, but it should be enough for you all to be getting on with. So I'm going to want you to sort yourselves into three little groups here—one group stick with me for the hazards, I'd say no more than twenty of you. The rest of you make two groups, one to the left for agility with Mr—"
"We're here on the orders of the High Inquisitor," called out Inquisitor Arlecchino, broom in hand, interrupting Hooch. He gestured to the other Inquisitors flanking him. "On the orders of the High Inquisitor we are to supervise this session of Flight Club to ascertain its suitability as an extracurricular activity going forward from today." He kicked off his broom and rose into the air, followed by his fellow Inquisitors.
For fuck's sake, Harry thought. He'd have enjoyed at least one thing free from the Inquisition and its long reach. What could there possibly have been about Flight Club with Hooch that was in any way subversive or dangerous? Even the hazard courses she'd put on couldn't possibly approach the danger there'd been during the Triwizard Tournament, hazards Harry had personally tackled.
Ones which the Ministry had signed off on and approved of. Likely multiple times at any number of different levels.
For the Inquisition to suddenly take offence at that seemed… petty.
Of course, some of the hazards had been specially bred by Hagrid, and Harry didn't think Umbridge at all fond of the half-giant Magizoology teacher, so maybe that was why.
I doubt I'll ever see another helicoptopus again, Harry thought as he watched the Inquisitors take to the air. Most of them weren't especially skilled on the broom, although they all looked competent enough to keep up with novice students. Arlecchino seemed more skilled than the others, taking to the air with a smooth motion, flying a wide arc around Hooch and her group.
Of course, Harry assumed Umbridge had sent them there to watch him. To show off her power, Harry supposed. It didn't surprise him that Umbridge herself hadn't come – Harry personally doubted she could fly well. But to send an army of Inquisitors...
Maybe I'm overreacting and it's not all about me, Harry thought.
Whatever the case, Harry didn't have time to think on it as Hooch had recovered. He stuck with the hazard group, which ended up being smaller than the twenty Hooch had planned – people were a bit worried about losing a hand or getting knocked out of the air, Harry supposed. Harry had wanted to spend a bit of time flying with Ernie and Justin, but neither boy seemed overly interested in tackling the hazards, so Harry ended up flying with an assortment of other students instead.
He had a good time, anyway. A bit more troubling was Arlecchino and his fellow Inquisitors flying loops around the edges of the groups... but that was, Harry was starting to realise, the new normal.
Harry didn't get much respite from Umbridge and her High Inquisition in classes, either. Various different Inquisitors sat in on lessons, some of them more interventionist than others. Harry's next Alchemy lesson with Mr Flamel – as with the last one – featured High Inquisitor Umbridge sat at the back of the classroom sniping at the centuries-old philosopher.
The lesson was a bit more practical than the first, though, which meant Umbridge had far fewer opportunities to interject than she had before. Instead, Mr Flamel had the budding alchemists setting up their equipment and adjusting the various bits and pieces before use.
"Ah, Mr Potter," said Mr Flamel as he passed by Harry's setup, "I would advise you never twist that particular part of the equipment quite so tightly. It won't give you any difficulty here, true, but once we start working with increased pressures the glassware will smash. It's unenchantable, you see."
Harry turned the piece, relaxing the clasp.
"I learned that one the hard way—as a novice myself I set my lab on fire. Ah, the folly of youth—I nearly burned down a whole—"
"Hem, hem," coughed Umbridge. "It is not the role of a teacher to share personal anecdotes."
"Ah, forgive me, lass," Flamel said. "I am quite forgetful in my dotage." He shrugged. "Do try and remember that, though, Mr Potter. Miss Granger," Flamel said next, "you may use more heat here—the bottom is quite fire-resistant..." Flamel moved on to help Granger.
Harry chanced a glance back at Umbridge. She was ruining quite possibly the only opportunity Harry would have to learn from Nicolas Flamel himself. What was the point of a centuries old, world-renowned alchemist as a teacher if he wasn't allowed to tell any stories? Quite apart from that, Umbridge seemed to have little knowledge of alchemy, and often interrupted Flamel while he was in the middle of important explanations. Even if Harry could forgive her for stopping his stories dead, she was also messing up his basic instruction in alchemy.
Harry returned to his work. Flamel had them working on creating a basic alchemical solvent. Nothing quite so complex as alkahest, but it was still difficult enough that Harry didn't want Umbridge interrupting every few minutes. Harry rather doubted she'd taken Alchemy to the OWL, and he didn't want her failures to become his.
"In your opinion—based on what you've experienced so far—do you think alchemy as a subject is appropriate for OWL students?" Umbridge said suddenly from next to Harry.
Harry nearly jumped out of his skin, almost knocked over his alembic. He scrambled to fix everything before he mucked up his solvent, while at the same time answering the meddling High Inquisitor.
"High Inquisitor!" Harry said. "Sorry, I, er, I didn't expect you..."
Harry had expected Umbridge to have stayed sat at the back of the laboratory sniping at Flamel all lesson. She hadn't got up to lurk and stick her wand in during any of Harry's other lessons, anyway, although some of the Inquisitors did sometimes.
"That is quite alright," said Umbridge. "And my question?"
"I—er-well, yeah," Harry said, unsure how to answer. "Mr Flamel and Professor Dee are explaining things really well and I honestly don't think that, um, if we were supposed to start doing it for NEWTs it would be any easier, really. And if we didn't do it at all then we'd be missing the opportunity to train loads of alchemists, wouldn't we?"
"Hmm," said Umbridge. "You do not think it is perhaps overly complicated or lacking in practical applications for the ordinary wizard?"
Harry couldn't truthfully say no to that question, he supposed. Alchemy was a more niche topic, a subject in which even most of the people interested in it failed to progress, but even so he felt that it was worth learning.
And it wasn't as if anyone could learn it without being exposed to it first. So there had to be a first exposure, and earlier seemed better to Harry.
"I don't think so," Harry said. "My friend's mum—er, Mrs Macmillan, she works here now, actually—she said that it's important to learn the higher mysteries, you know, the esoteric arts, and alchemy is one of those... I think it's just the right amount of complicated."
Umbridge was fishing for some sort of negative opinion, Harry supposed. That, or she just wanted to lead the conversation in a particular direction. Perhaps she wanted to provoke Mr Flamel into saying something, or maybe she just wanted an opportunity to monitor Harry...
Just be polite and pretend you don't know anything strange is happening, Harry thought to himself. If Umbridge thought Harry knew she had a particular interest in him she might become – or try to be, at least – more subtle in her manoeuvres, and Harry was busy enough without having to watch out for that.
"And you do not think the time would be better spent on other topics? Wizarding culture and traditions, perhaps? Or more time spent on the core curriculum which is, after all, the most useful and applicable to your life after school?" asked Umbridge.
Is that what they're after? Harry wondered. Some sort of 'wizard studies' class, a vehicle for propaganda? No doubt the Ministry would see the value in that, even without it being infiltrated by Voldemort through Lucius Malfoy.
"Honestly?" Harry said. "No. You pick up culture by living it, don't you? And we learn about things like that in Foundational Studies, a bit. You know, just the basics, but it's enough to start with. If we only did the core curriculum I think we'd all be worse off for it—I know I said about the higher mysteries before, but it really is important to give them a go. Magic is about more than, you know, cheering charms and boil cure potions, isn't it?"
"An interesting perspective," Umbridge said. She scribbled something down on her parchment, although Harry couldn't see what, since she had her clipboard angled away. Of course, Harry couldn't take all the credit for his answers – he'd cobbled it together from a combination of chats he'd had with Mairi and Tracey's nan – but it had the benefit of all being things he thought were true.
"Oh, er—I don't want to be rude," Harry said, glancing at his alchemical apparatus, "but the instructions say this bit is really hard, and I don't want to have to start again..."
Umbridge looked over the equipment briefly.
"Of course," she said. "As High Inquisitor, my number one priority is students' success. I shall leave you to your ... work." Umbridge walked off through the lab, stopping at the other students' desks, presumably to ask them the same annoying questions she'd asked Harry. Umbridge didn't bother Harry again that lesson, although she was still a general annoyance whenever Mr Flamel so much as hinted he might stray from his job description as a teacher. By the end of the lesson Harry was just glad to go and couldn't even take some time to appreciate his success in creating his first alchemical solvent.
Instead, he could hope for was a lesson without the Inquisition or its meddling.
Unfortunately for Harry, that didn't seem to be an option. Various different Inquisitors were sat in his lessons, always watching, always ready with a comment... and always with an interest in Harry. During Potions Inquisitor Arlecchino kept asking Harry questions, so much so that he nearly mucked up his potion – and even in Transfiguration Umbridge couldn't seem to just let him get on with his conjuration.
When the next session of Duelling Club arrived, attended by Umbridge, Inquisitor Arlecchino, and yet another Inquisitor, Harry was just about ready to pack it in.
"I think I might just quit," Harry said to Blaise and Tracey as they waited for Lockhart to get things ready. "Honestly, they're everywhere, and they won't leave me alone. They're ruining Flight Club, and Duelling Club, and Alchemy with Mr Flamel... If I quit my clubs at least I'd have more time for my alchemical projects. I did say how big of a deal they are, didn't I? So at least it wouldn't be for nothing..."
Blaise shrugged.
"Yeah, you said. But you quitting the only fun things you're doing this year isn't going to help, is it?" He paused. "I mean, alright, we've got Inquisitors everywhere we go, but that's going to happen anyway. So why put yourself out?"
"Well, you never know," Harry said. He lowered his voice. "Umbridge is definitely watching me for something—if I dropped Duelling or Flight Club, at least everyone else would get to—"
"Oh, don't even say it!" interrupted Tracey. "None of this is your fault! It's all—well, we know whose fault it is," she said. She glanced around. "Still, I think we should... I don't know... do something."
"Like what?" Harry asked. He didn't want to cause any trouble. He still remembered what Dumbledore had said at the end of the previous year, that Harry's meddling in things he didn't fully understand had made everything worse. Worse in a way even Dumbledore seemed flummoxed by.
What if that happened again?
"Well, I don't know," Tracey admitted. "But not dropping your clubs is a start!"
"She's got no reason to publicly move against you, anyway," Blaise said. "Okay, so there's the stuff that's been in the papers recently—which you really need to pay more attention to, by the way, but we've had this discussion before—but otherwise, you're actually pretty popular. You know, there was the Triwizard stuff, and you defeated—well, there's all that, too." He shrugged. "Even the trial didn't really make a dent in it. And I don't know if you've noticed, but this Inquisition bollocks is definitely about more than just you. There's Dumbledore to consider, and I bet Umbridge isn't pleased with Malfoy—Lucius, I mean. There's a lot going on."
Blaise shrugged.
"So, you know, you're actually in a pretty good place with all this. It's not like you've got parents or relatives who work at the Ministry who might—"
"Blaise!" hissed Tracey. "I said not to mention anything!"
"I—wait," said Harry. "What happened?"
Tracey sighed and glanced around. Lockhart was still faffing about with his explanations, and most people were either paying rapt attention or talking amongst themselves.
"I didn't want you to worry," she said, "but when I had an interview with Umbridge the other day—my second one—she did sort of imply that... well, she hinted about having friends at the Ministry and she mentioned Mam's job. So it wasn't... well, it wasn't hard to imagine what she was talking about, was it?" Tracey said. "But, honestly, Harry—it's fine. Mam's really good at her job and she has friends at the Ministry too. I just answered her questions honestly and pretended not to notice."
Harry glowered at Umbridge where she sat in the stands, watching.
What's your game? he wondered. Perhaps Dumbledore would know. If Harry could find the time maybe it would best to visit the headmaster's office. Certainly, if he'd done that at the start of last year things might have been very different...
"I'm going to talk to Dumbledore," Harry decided. "I probably won't drop my clubs. But I can't... I don't want to mess anything up for your mum," Harry said to Tracey. "And Blaise, I know there's nothing going on with your mum, but the Ministry loves to find 'new evidence', and I just... look, I've got to be careful. It's not just me who can get in trouble, is it?" Harry muttered.
"Fair enough," Blaise said. "Don't do anything rash, though—we're not Gryffindors, are we?"
By then Lockhart was just about ready to start actually doing something, so there wasn't any time to talk it out further. Harry spent the rest of the session trying to enjoy himself, although he couldn't help but notice watchful eye of the Inquisition whenever he had to look up at the stands.