Here is the fifth chapter. Do let me know your thoughts, feedback, and any suggestions for improvement. Your support means a lot!

Posted: July 30, 2024

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Chapter 5: Of Invitations to clubs

It was the last weekend of September and coincidentally the first Hogsmeade weekend. The classes had been as usual during the last two weeks, and Defense Against the Dark Arts was definitely pushing the Ministry's agenda. Given how the Ministry had been so critical of Dumbledore all summer, it shouldn't have been a surprise. But Harry had thought Hogwarts was Dumbledore's turf and the Ministry wouldn't try to involve itself here. It seemed he was wrong; the Ministry was hell-bent on owning this turf.

Longbottom had finally succumbed to Umbridge's not-so-subtle taunts and was now serving detention with the said professor. Given what he had seen of her, she seemed to be the type to enjoy inflicting pain on others. Harry, as always, remained under the radar.

But today was the supposed meeting for DADA O.W.L.s that Granger had invited him to. A part of him wanted to skip, but his curious nature won over, so here he was, walking towards the Hog's Head, the shady bar owned by Dumbledore's brother. Yeah, he knew who owned this rundown place; it was mostly Sirius's fault. This was where Sirius had invited him to meet during Hogsmeade weekends from his third year onwards. He was sure his godfather would plan a visit sometime in October for sure.

Clearing his mind, he approached the place. He could already see a lot of students. It was almost all Gryffindors, with Hufflepuffs making up the next largest group. From his year, he could see Terry Boot, Kevin Entwhistle, and the other Patil twin and some others. And, as expected, there were no Slytherins. It made sense; this was set up by a Gryffindor and a Muggle-born at that, so the chances of even neutral Slytherins joining were quite low, even if they were invited. If he had to guess, Granger wouldn't have extended the invitation.

He approached the entrance and paused for a moment, taking in the scene. The shabby exterior of the Hog's Head belied the importance of what was about to take place inside. He took a deep breath and pushed open the door, stepping into the dimly lit pub.

Inside, the atmosphere was a mix of excitement and apprehension. The students were gathered in small groups, talking in hushed tones. Granger was at the front, organizing some notes and preparing to address the group.

"Harry! Over here," Kevin called out when he spotted him. Harry made his way over to him, nodding to a few familiar faces along the way.

"Why didn't you tell us you were coming here too? We could have come along together," Kevin complained.

"Yeah, well, I wasn't planning to, but curiosity got the better of me," Harry replied, giving him a small grin.

"Glad you could make it," Kevin said with a smile.

Harry then took a spot near the back, trying to blend into the crowd. As he settled in, he noticed a few other familiar faces. He could see Longbottom, Granger, and Weasley at the forefront.

"It's about to start. I think you'll find this interesting," Luna whispered, her eyes shining with enthusiasm. Harry was startled by the smaller girl; he almost didn't notice her.

"Oh, hello, Harry," she smiled at him. 'Is she doing this on purpose?' he thought, then shook his head and greeted her. "Hello, Luna."

Before Luna could reply, Granger cleared her throat and began, "Thank you all for coming. As you know, we're not getting the practical defense education we need from Professor Umbridge. Our O.W.L.s are coming up, and more importantly, we need to be prepared for what's out there. That's why we've decided to form this group, to practice and learn from each other."

"What's out there?" Zacharias Smith spoke out. "You truly don't mean He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, right?"

Neville stepped forward, his face flushed with determination. "Yes, Smith. That's exactly who we mean. He's back, and we need to be ready."

Smith scoffed, "You expect us to believe that? Just because Dumbledore and you say so?"

Harry saw Neville's eyes narrow. "It's not just Dumbledore and me. I've faced him, and I know what he's capable of. He's a real threat, and if you're too blind to see that, then maybe you shouldn't be here."

Smith's face twisted in anger. "Oh, so now I'm the blind one? Look, Longbottom, just because you think you're some kind of hero doesn't mean we all have to believe your story."

Neville took a step forward, his fists clenched. "This isn't about being a hero, Smith. It's about being prepared. It's about not letting what happened in the past happen again."

Smith opened his mouth to retort, but Hermione intervened. "That's enough, both of you! We're here to prepare ourselves, not to fight each other. If you can't handle that, then you can leave."

The room fell silent. Smith looked around, his face red, but he didn't say anything more. He simply crossed his arms and leaned back against the wall, glaring at Neville.

Hermione took a deep breath and continued, "We need to focus on learning and practicing. This group is about unity and strength. We can't afford to be divided."

She went on to outline their goals and plans. "We'll be meeting here regularly to practice defensive spells and tactics. Each session will cover different spells and techniques. We'll start with the basics and gradually move on to more advanced magic. It's important that everyone participates and takes this seriously."

Hermione's voice grew firmer as she continued, "One of the key aspects of this group is secrecy. We can't afford for anyone to know what we're doing here. If anyone is interested in joining, they will have to agree to keep everything we do a secret. This means no talking about it outside of our meetings, not even to your closest friends if they aren't part of the group."

Harry felt a bit disturbed by the idea of signing a secrecy agreement. 'She wants all of them to sign secrecy. I get the need for it, but still,' he thought.

He was disturbed from his thoughts as Luna spoke again, "You will join, right?" she asked, her wide eyes expectant.

"It seems interesting, but I will decide how it goes after attending the first few sessions. If it's a waste of time, then I would rather be doing something else," he replied honestly.

"Well, you can always come and look for Crumple-Horned Snorkacks if you find it boring," she added, her dreamy tone making Harry smile.

Harry shook his head in amusement.

As students started to scatter off, Harry also made his way to the door, following his Ravenclaw yearmates.

"Potter," Granger called from behind. He shook his head, stopped, and turned.

He saw Granger coming towards him, followed by Longbottom and Weasley on her sides. Weasley scowled at him while Longbottom had an uneasy smile on his face.

"I'm glad you came. So, do you plan on joining?" she asked.

"I will decide after the first sessions," he answered honestly. Seeing the question mark on her face, he continued, "If it's good, I will stay. If not, then I have other things—"

"Why you? What do you mean by good? You think you are better than Neville at defense?" Weasley cut in angrily.

"I'm not implying anything. Besides, there's a difference between being good at something and teaching it," Harry replied. He didn't give them time to reply and made his way out of the shady pub.


"So, you decided to join Gryffindor's exclusive club?" Greengrass asked him that evening. They were in the library, working on their runes project. They had decided to meet twice a week for this subject.

"I don't know what you mean," he lied plainly.

"Come on. Granger is many things, but subtle she is not," Greengrass added with a smirk. "Even Malfoy, the simpleton he is, knows there was a gathering at the Hog's Head today."

Before he could reply, she continued, "Smith wasn't happy after the meeting, and he was ranting to some sixth-year Puffs, paying no heed to who was listening." She laughed.

Harry shook his head. 'So much for secrecy on Granger's part.' He was sure even Umbridge would have received news by now.

Sighing, he replied, "Well, you already know then. I went there as I was curious. I will see if I join the sessions or not," he replied, not adding anything extra.

"Oh, well, that's good then. It's your decision anyway," she added, flipping a page in her book.

Soon after, as they walked out of the library, she spoke again, "By the way, Granger's idea isn't bad."

He raised his eyebrow in confusion.

Seeing his reaction, she replied, "Well, forming study groups is not new, and it would definitely help with O.W.L.s. But rather than such a large group, a smaller group would have been better. If you're interested, I'm making a small study group." She walked away without waiting for his reply.

'What's her angle?' he thought, wondering why she was inviting him to her small 'study group.'

'But her idea has merit. A large group means it can be chaotic. And given Longbottom will lead it, it would certainly clash with Umbridge for sure,' he thought.

'Ah, who cares? It's not like I'm joining it anyway. I will see how their session goes. Same with Greengrass's as well,' he thought as he marched to the Astronomy Tower to meet his favorite ghost.


So, this was for the fifth chapter.

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