Chapter 76, everybody! Ohh we're doing good on this fic, especially this week—got it so we've got updates for the rest of the month and into November, goal this month is to finish off book 5.
In other news Dumbledore is one of my favorites to write for with this fic. And since Harry spent the summer training with an obstacle course, the Room of Requirement provides one. Also had to go back to Chapter 5 so Harry could properly parrot back what Ron told him back then. XD And Ron is quoting Flik from A Bug's Life.
Also worth mentioning is that since Malfoy had some character development here he doesn't end up driving Harry and the Weasley Twins to starting a fistfight. Saying that, he didn't have that much development.
Lucy Elizabeth Dawson, thanks for the review! Thanks, glad to be back! :D
Pogonia And Medusa, thanks for the review! Good to be back, and glad you liked the owls, and Crabbe and Goyle—they're a little confused, but they got the spirit. XD
Wheresmydoseofinsanity, thanks for the review! Glad you enjoyed it, and I have good news. :D
Thanks for the review, guest! That is very good and I can guarantee a certain group will be bringing that up next meeting.
Harry Potter © 1997 J.K. Rowling
Granted, Harry was bracing for some new wrinkle, had it confirmed when a new educational decree came out announcing that all extracurricular clubs were now banned and would require the approval of the High Inquisitor to be reinstated.
"Well that was fast," Harry observed.
"We talked with Malfoy during the prefects' meeting, he's reasonably sure he can get the Hippogriff Appreciation Club going again," Hermione said. "If all else fails he's prepared to bandy his father's name about."
"'My father will hear about this,'" Ron said in a passable imitation.
Granted Malfoy's father was probably also able to hear the reaction to learning that this also covered Quidditch teams.
"They can't cancel Quidditch!" Harry exclaimed—had to take a moment. "I really need to see how Wood's doing, I think he's haunting me."
"He's still alive last I heard," Angelina told him. "Listen, until I get the Quidditch team reformed, please try not to set off Umbridge."
"Honestly my main goal in life is to avoid her as much as I can."
"Same," Ron agreed. "Think we could just skip her class?"
"Not if you want her in a good mood," Hermione said.
The first chance they got, Harry, Ron, and Hermione slipped off to the seventh floor to track down the tapestry of Barnaby the Barmy and test out the come and go room. Three times back and forth, thinking of what they wanted, and….
"Wicked," Ron gusted when they stepped inside.
Harry was very inclined to agree, head buzzing with the possibilities granted—everything they could want from obstacle courses to test dummies to even a foe-glass that he was reasonably sure used to belong to Moody was in here, including several walls of books that they had to drag Hermione away from.
"I want to see if there's preservation of mass with the items in here," she said, carting a book with her.
"You want what?" Ron asked.
"I want to see if the book stays after the room goes. Ha," she breathed when the book persisted after the door faded.
Harry and Ron had to cart her away to keep her from running back inside, encountered Dumbledore on the way back down to the Great Hall.
"I admit I am curious as to what led to this," Dumbledore said.
"We were investigating certain tapestries," Harry said—he always had the sneaking suspicion that lying to Dumbledore was a waste of time.
"Can't go into detail right now though, very hush-hush," Ron agreed. "Matter of fact, you never saw us, we never saw you."
Dumbledore nodded. "Well, seeing as how I've been accused of going senile in my old age, it's very possible that I in fact didn't see you. Perhaps I should get Poppy to check my eyes, I'll have to schedule an appointment. Fortunately I have you to stave off accusations of talking to no one," he told Quincy as he walked off.
"I'll be honest, sometimes I don't know what to make of Dumbledore," Ron admitted once he was gone. "Saying that, I'm reasonably sure that's my goal when I grow up."
"You could do worse," Harry said amiably.
It took a few days to settle on a proper first day, helped along by the fact that Angelina was willing to cancel practice on account of the grounds doing a good job of imitating a swamp; Fred and George confessed to threatening to build an ark if she insisted.
Hermione, of course, went straight to the books when the trio arrived early, Snips flying up to the rafters to look over everything; Harry ran up a short flight of stairs, Ron following, to see that the scaffolding crisscrossing over the obstacle course would allow them to see the whole of it while someone was running it.
"I've decided this is my favorite room in the castle," Ron announced—started when the obstacle course changed. "What the—"
"Ron, look at this!" Harry said, waving him over to a panel with several buttons on it, different runes on each button. "Watch, I can change the combinations up here so we can run different scenarios in the obstacle course!"
"Oh wicked—yes, definitely, this is my favorite room in the castle."
Indeed, after checking everything over Ron only had one complaint.
"We should have drinks or something, you know how thirsty we got when practicIIE!" he yelped, leaping back at the loud crack.
"Hi Mipsy," Harry greeted.
"Hello Mister Harry Potter sir!" Mipsy greeted brightly, holding up a tray. "One of yous said you were thirsty?"
"Yes, but—how did you know?" Ron asked, pointing at the tray.
"We is in the come-and-go room, correct?" she asked, looking around as Hermione came over. "This room can do many things, but it cannot make food or drink; therefore, when someone inside asks for such, it reaches out so that it can fill those needs. Yous asked for a drink, and we house elves were notified. Tea?"
"Thanks," Harry said, taking the tray. "Let me put it on the table here."
"This is definitely my new favorite room," Ron said. "Hey, Mipsy—the tea is great but could you maybe bring some cold drinks by later? We're probably going to be doing a lot of running over there and we'll need something like that."
"Mipsy could," she said, looking around. "Mipsy will also get Tanith to make snacks."
"You don't have to—" Harry started, but she was gone before he could get any more out. "Okay then."
Mipsy came back after a few people had come in, assured them that snacks were forthcoming before popping off again, leaving Harry to focus on outlining what they were doing and how they'd be starting off with refreshers of basic spells and pairing up those who were good at the spell with those who needed work, was pretty far into the revision work for the disarming charm when there was a loud crack and then a whump of displaced air.
"What the!?" Ron blurted as everyone looked around—had a double-take at a table loaded down with snacks.
"Tanith has made snacks!" a house elf said brightly.
"You're going to have to accept Dumbledore's raise for this one," Ron said, staring at the spread.
"Master Dumbledore did make a good argument this year," Tanith mused. "Will the young masters be needing anything else?"
"Er, no," Harry noised. "This is…really more than enough."
"Possibly, but Tanith has had to learn how to account for teenage appetites." Smiled brightly at them. "Enjoy your teenage rebellion, young masters!"
And with that, she was gone.
"So I don't think I've ever actually been told that before," Dean said.
Ron shrugged, tipped a sandwich at him. "To teenage rebellion."
As for the matter of the younger students and those Slytherins playing both sides, the prefects and a few others made it a point to arrange tutor sessions in their respective common rooms, discussing how best to perform spells and practicing frequently. Umbridge of course took umbrage, but as the heads of house pointed out, there were no rules against older students tutoring younger ones, they were covering multiple subjects as opposed to focusing on defense, and they were all behaving themselves under the supervision of their heads of houses, prefects, and head boys and girls.
"Look at her fuming," Harry said to Hermione, grinning at her steaming at breakfast. "Ron—Ron quit worrying about the game you're missing a thing of beauty."
"At least eat something," Hermione told him.
"I can't eat," Ron said. "I think I'm going to be sick—what was I thinking?"
"You're going to throw up anyway," Harry said, recalling Ron's advice to him. "Might as well have something in there so it's not dry heaves."
"Harry!" Hermione scolded.
"How am I supposed to handle this!?" Ron asked, burying his face in his hands. "I'm going to make a fool of myself in front of the whole school! My children's children will be attending and people will point and say look! The spawn of the worst Keeper Gryffindor ever saw!"
"Nobody's going to say that—Harry, tell him."
"You're going to feel really panicky right up until you get on your broom and start playing," Harry said. "After that, you're going to be too busy to care. Besides, if you want to be technical you played against Viktor Krum—after that Slytherin's small potatoes."
"I guess that's a fair point," Ron said, staring blearily as Snips dragged a sausage over to his plate. "Except those games didn't really count."
"You're still playing against a bunch of rank amateurs."
Said bunch of rank amateurs had little badges pinned on their uniforms when they went to the pitch after breakfast.
"Do I dare ask?" Harry said, looking at the little crowns that read Weasley is our king.
"Let's just say the Slytherins appreciate Weasley's playing," Malfoy said, grinning nastily.
"Do not let them get to you," Angelina hissed at Ron before going to shake hands with the Slytherin captain.
"What she said," Harry told him, rocketing into the air—glanced at the Gryffindor goals to see Ron there, started scanning for the Snitch, glancing at Luna's ostentatious lion hat—at the Slytherin stands when they started singing—
Was up next to Malfoy when what they were singing registered. "Seriously!?"
"I can't help my musical genius," Malfoy said smugly, preening a little before circling off in search of the Snitch. Harry rolled his eyes, went back to hunting for the little gold ball himself—got just a tad more desperate when Ron started missing goals, already-nervous disposition getting aggravated the longer the singing went on.
It was a good fifteen minutes in before Harry spotted the flicker of gold, Malfoy zooming after him a split-second later—neck and neck, elbowing and jostling each other as they focused on the goal—
Harry got there first, fingers closing around the snitch right as a bludger nailed him from behind and sent him tumbling. Fortunately he was only a few feet from the pitch, the Snitch had been hovering near the base of one of the goals, but it was enough to knock the wind out of him for a few good beats.
"Harry!" Alicia said, coming in for a hover right above him as Malfoy recovered and circled around. "Are you okay!?"
Harry's response was to hold up the hand holding the snitch. "We win."