The Death Eaters Obtain Some Unlikely Allies
The morning of the 6th of September saw the day begin as normal at the Ministry of Magic, with workers flushing through their toilets at precisely nine o'clock and either walking leisurely to their office or running in a hurry to make sure that they had enough time to prepare for meetings or were in simply desperate need of coffee to endure the day. Some even took time to complain about the weather with colleagues. Such a leisurely pace was the case for one Dolores Umbridge and the people who had to work with her or in close proximity to her. The secretaries and typists were on time and already starting the first orders of the day and the people who assisted Madam Umbridge with ensuring that the day-to-day administrative business was completed were already heading to the departments on their inspection list.
Madam Umbridge herself was in her office, enjoying a spot of her ugly pink tea with far too sweet pink sugar in a flowery porcelain china tea cup, listening to a new single by Celestina Warbeck, while going through copies of proposed legislation. All of which made Madam Umbridge's stomach turn, as most were considering giving Dark creatures and 'half-breeds' more rights than she believed they had any right to have.
It was perhaps because of this 'nasty' bit of legislation that the Senior Undersecretary thought she needed something extra in her tea that morning, so she went to her potions cabinet and started going through her bottles. Anti-Headache … no … Peppermint Breath … Pepper-Up … no also not … oooo there was a nice pink one that was very likely her sweetener. Yes, that one would do; Madam Umbridge picked the pink potion off her shelf, as well as the milk, humming to her music happily as she walked back to her desk and put a few droplets of the potion into her tea. She then poured in some milk.
The Senior Undersecretary sat back down and began stirring happily. She would put a stop to the nasty legislation one way or the other. Plus, she was certain Mr. Yaxley and several of his allies would be more than happy to help her, considering the meeting with Mr. Yaxley went rather well. Umbridge did get the distinct expression he had been rather distracted, but then again Mr. Yaxley was a busy man who did not like his time wasted.
Umbridge happily sipped her tea, bobbing her head to the music, not noticing that one of her statues – a lioness – was starting to glow an ominous pinkish-purple colour. It was almost as Celestina Warbeck was hitting one of her impressive high notes, that suddenly there were two loud POOF! sounds and there was purple-pink smoke completely filling the office that very quickly escaped from under the door and into the corridor, and then into other offices. Most were alerted by the sickly sweet strawberry smell in the smoke.
Which resulted in several of the secretaries, typists and advisors hiding under their desks or drawing their wands to quickly dispel the slightly sickly sweet pink smoke from their spaces and nostrils. Only once the smoke was cleared away from them, did someone contemplate to head straight to Madam Umbridge's office.
After all, there was only one person they all knew who was as obsessed with the colour pink as that woman. The issue, was – no one wanted to be the one to knock on the door, thus the four suckers in question – a secretary, a typist and two advisors – ended up playing rock-paper-scissors for the dishonour.
It ended up being the typist who had to do it. She took a fortifying breath, closed her eyes momentarily, forced a smile on her face and rapped her knuckles on the door. "Madam Umbridge, everything all right?"
Silence.
The four people exchanged a look before the typist tried again. "Madam Umbridge?"
"…Everything is fine …" they heard the faint faux-sweet tone from inside. "My sweetener is off I think … Ribbit …"
Once more, the four people outside the office froze. Did they just hear … a frog in there?! Madam Umbridge hated frogs and toads! Immediately, concern arose amongst the civil servants for the poor creature because if Madam Umbridge found it, it would likely meet an untimely end.
Risking a scolding and possible firing, the typist who had been the one to knock and communicate with the Senior Undersecretary cautiously and carefully opened the door, bracing herself. Then she stopped and had a really good look around, and then promptly frowned very deeply to herself.
Madam Umbridge was nowhere to be seen.
The other three poked their heads around the door as well; they too frowned when they saw no Madam Umbridge.
"Now that I think about it," they heard the woman's voice in the room loud and clearly, from the chair behind her desk to be exact, "I do not feel very well. Everything has gotten … bigger. Have I shrunk?! Did someone switch my sweetener for a Shrinking Potion? I will have their jobs for this! Ribbit."
The typist, the secretary and two advisors braced themselves as they cautiously went around the desk. It was safe to say that every pair of eyes bugged right out of their heads when they saw a giant, ugly pink horned toad the size of a house cat, covered from head to toe in pussy boils, with a hideous pink bow on the top of its head sitting on Madam Umbridge's chair. The toad turned to stare at them with a judgemental look.
"What are you four looking at?" it demanded in Madam Umbridge's voice. "And why have you grown? Was it one of you who did this to me?!"
"No, ma'am," the secretary squeaked, also trying not to start laughing in her boss's face.
The Umbridge-toad huffed. "Whatever is the matter with you? Do I have something on my face?"
The toad jumped off her chair and went straight for the standing mirror near her closet, all four civil servants quietly bracing themselves for Umbridge's reaction.
Uproar ensued the moment the Senior Undersecretary gazed at her reflection.
"AAAAAAAAAAGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"
It was safe to say that the shrill, banshee tones of the woman could be heard all the way into the depths of the Wizengamot chamber and the Department of Mysteries. Yaxley, who happened to be in the vicinity of Umbridge's department, happily went to investigate if the Dark's first set of punishments paid off, together with three other Ministry workers.
When Yaxley saw the giant pink toad, wailing away in front of the mirror with four utterly nonplussed and amused civil servants, he knew his day had been made but that Antonin, Bella, Walden, Balthazar and the others would not be happy. The boils had not exploded yet, Umbridge had not touched the dress and apparently, she could still talk.
"WHAT HAPPENED?!" shrieked one of Yaxley's compatriots in shock. "Where is Madam Umbridge?"
"That is Madam Umbridge!" the civil servants chorused, pointing to the toad.
Yaxley really had to bite into his cheeks at this point in order to keep his countenance. "May I ask what in the name of Merlin happened?"
"We haven't the foggiest idea," the typist confessed. "There was smoke and a strange sound, and then she said something about her tea sweetener being off."
Yaxley's companions blinked in stunned silence. Yaxley turned as straight faced as he could manage to the sobbing toad. "Well, we cannot have Madam Umbridge in this state. I think the Minister should be informed-"
It would seem that Yaxley would have something different to report to Antonin after all because right at this point, Umbridge the pink toad started coughing and spluttering, quite forcefully. While that was disgusting enough, by the end, the Senior Undersecretary had coughed up something round and furry onto her ugly pink carpet.
A hairball.
A Merlin-be-damned hairball.
Yaxley almost broke. Antonin's stupid statue had worked!
It was at this point that Umbridge began shrieking again, causing everyone in the room to actually cover their ears this time.
The Death Eater decided to have mercy on the four civil servants. "You four, get the Minister, Madam Bones and Madam Abbott here immediately!"
Those four did not need to be told twice; they bolted out of the room as though they were trying to escape a raging fire. Umbridge coughed up another hairball just as the door closed behind them, and then continued sobbing.
One of Yaxley's companions shook his head in disbelief. "How … how did this happen?"
"No idea, but we cannot simply allow people to see the Senior Undersecretary like this," the other stated, looking extremely pale. Indeed, the man looked set to faint.
"Quite," Yaxley concurred readily.
"Will I be stuck like this forever?" Umbridge sniffled once she had managed to gather enough breath to.
"No clue, madam, but I doubt Finite Incantatem or even the Animagus Revelation spell will undo this," Yaxley responded crisply, doing his level best to keep the sneer off his lips. "We may even need to take you to St. Mungo's."
There were some sad ribbiting noises coming from Madam Umbridge at this point. These noises continued for another two minutes when the civil servants returned with the new Minister – who already looked done with life – Madam Bones and Madam Abbott, both of whom who were in utter disbelief. True, both witches were also trying not to laugh, but that was beside the point.
"My, my," the Minister commented dryly, shaking his head at his Senior Undersecretary. "You really have gotten yourself into a bit of pickle this morning, Dolores."
"It is not my fault, Minister – ribbit – something happened – ribbit – my sweetener was tampered with," the toad moped.
It was right at this moment that another hairball wanted to escape from the pink demon toad's maw – right onto the nicely polished shoes of the Minister. Yaxley had to use every ounce of self-restraint not to start breaking down into peals of laughter; he was going to show everyone the memory of this moment as soon as he got back to Malfoy Manor.
Madam Bones and Madam Abbott were both biting into their cheeks and the other two gentlemen had to put both hands over their mouths and their eyes closed, desperately to contain their own urge to laugh. Especially since the Minister's face was now red – with embarrassment or annoyance, one could only guess.
The Minister huffed exasperatedly and turned to the two witches. "Amelia, Elizabeth, I do apologise, but can I leave this sensitive matter in your hands, please? I have a meeting to get to, and frankly do not have time to get to the bottom of this."
Madam Bones and Madam Abbott both bowed their heads.
"Of course, sir," Elizabeth Abbott answered as serenely as she could manage as the Minister breezed out of the room.
"I think I am going to get a cup of coffee," added one of Yaxley's companions, shaking his head, "and then find a way to get back to doing some actual work."
"Indeed," the other concurred readily.
That soon left Yaxley alone with four gorgonised civil servants, Madam Bones, Madam Abbott and the weeping demon toad, with Celestina Warbeck still playing on the background. Madam Abbott was the first one to speak. "I think the best cause of action we can take is to take Madam Umbridge to St. Mungo's for a diagnosis, because I have no idea how this could have happened."
"Agreed," Madam Bones nodded her head in affirmation. "Do you have the honours or shall I, Liza?"
"I have got nothing better to do until the next Wizengamot meeting this afternoon. I will do it," Madam Abbott reassured with a sigh. She was clearly gathering her strength as she walked towards the crying-cough-up-hairballs toad. "Come on, Dolores. We will see what can be done. In the meantime, we say the Senior Undersecretary has unexpectedly taken ill."
Yaxley could not help but smirk a little at this point, especially as he watched Madam Abbott be tailed by a giant pink toad. The four civil servants followed closely behind, all the while explaining what had happened.
It was as soon as the group was out of earshot that Madam Bones rounded on him.
"Did you have something to do with this, Corban?" she demanded.
Yaxley raised a challenging eyebrow. "You and I both know you should be careful when throwing baseless accusations around, Amelia."
"Not likely in your case," Madam Bones fired back. "You may think I am a fool, but I know whose side you stand on."
"I never once considered you a fool, no one did," Yaxley responded easily.
The witch looked momentarily surprised but soon composed herself. "What plot are you executing to get rid of the Senior Undersecretary?"
"Get rid of her?" Yaxley repeated with a tone of amusement. "Amelia, really. If we wanted to be rid of her, there are other … easier methods. No, no, we simply want to punish the Senior Undersecretary."
This took the Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement by surprise once again. "What? Punish?" she almost spluttered. "Punish her for what? Wearing too much pink? For having some unsavoury opinions? A little hypocritical of you, don't you think?"
Yaxley scoffed at that. "Her opinions matter little in this regard," he answered coldly. He glared at the witch. "That you even have to ask me that question tells me you have not been keeping a closer eye on your darling niece, Amelia."
"What?" Amelia Bones' eyes started blazing. "What has Susan got to do with this?"
"Everything," was Yaxley's easy answer. "And you should ask Elizabeth to check her daughter's hands better too."
"Hannah? What are you on about?" Madam Bones was unusually pale at this point. "Corban, what is going on?" It seemed to dawn on her a little as to why the Dark wizard in front of her looked so unusually angry. "You know something, don't you? You did this for a reason?"
"Obviously," Yaxley drawled in a manner Snape would have been very proud of. "I would be more than happy to send you the reason why, if you wish. Later, though – I do have a lot of work to get done before the day is out."
Madam Bones stood stunned, looking at him unblinkingly, as though she was looking at a total stranger who had just appeared in front of her. Yaxley took this opportunity to make his escape; he did not want to be inside that nasty pink room longer than necessary. It was on his way to his own office, to do some paperwork, that he caught sight of Nymphadora Tonks, who was smirking in a manner that told Yaxley that she had seen the pink Umbridge toad and had figured out that it hadn't really been an accident.
Clearly she also figured Yaxley and his allies were also behind it.
When the Metamorphagus met his eyes, the smirk only grew and Yaxley could have sworn that the young woman had lifted a finger to her lips and gave him a subtle wink before going on her merry way, leaving Yaxley in disbelief.
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Draco, Blaise, Daphne, Pansy, Millicent, Theo, Vincent and Gregory had spent a great deal proportion of their morning recuperating from the shock of last night and mulling over the near-Howlers they had received from their parents about the photos Potter and his friends had sent to the Dark Side. The group had, frankly, not believed a word of what they had been hearing, until Hestia, Flora and several of the Slytherins who had been scarred practically shoved their scarred hands into their faces.
Blaise, Theo, Millie and Daphne had looked set to faint, while Vincent and Gregory basically stopped functioning for around five minutes. Pansy had effectively mentally shut down as well, and Draco – he was mentally kicking himself. He had witnessed Harry and his friends almost being tortured by Professor Umbridge the year before, and the fact that there were rumours about the detentions being highly unorthodox, just flew over his head.
Merlin, he and the rest of the school had witnessed McGonagall publicly tear into Umbridge about her 'medieval methods'! That should have told him that there was something very wrong going on. But Draco could readily admit that all he cared about, was staying in Umbridge's good books in the hope she would sing his praises to the Minister. Draco had the Malfoy name to uphold, after all.
Draco also knew that there was no excuse for the kind of blind eye he had turned to what happened to his fellow Snakes; Morgana, to his fellow students! The young Malfoy heir was kicking himself mentally all the way through Potions and Charms for it – he knew Alecto and Amycus Carrow would never let him, or the others, live this down. Draco would be lucky to get off with a simple scolding; Alecto and Amycus were famous for their cruel and inventive torture methods beyond the Cruciatus.
They made his Auntie Bella look nice on occasion!
"We should be glad that Granger has a good head on her shoulders and made everyone put their hands into Essence of Dittany or the damage would have been more extensive," Theo commented darkly after Charms.
"I think I might actually forgo lunch today," Vincent was still green in the face. "Merlin, Morgana and all the fairies of Avalon …"
"I'll stick to one muffin," Gregory agreed readily.
"I still can't believe that we didn't see it," Daphne put in quietly, head shaking in disbelief.
"Yes, well, most of us were in the Inquisitorial Squad, so I doubt Flora, Hestia or any of the others felt like they could come to us in the first place," Pansy sighed as they headed for Defence.
"Which is the worst part," Millicent huffed.
"To be honest, none of you would have had enough power to stop the pink demon toad," Blaise pointed out as lightly as he could manage. "I think if you tried to question her, you would have just been another victim to her Blood Quill."
"None of us should be a victim to a stupid Blood Quill in the first place!" Theo wailed, arms flapping wildly.
A few passing students shot him concerned glances. Draco pinched the bridge of his nose. "Theo, you're making a scene."
"Good!" Theo exploded. Steam was coming out of his ears at this point. "I hope whatever plans the Dark Lord has sanctioned succeed! I want that woman's soul to feel like it's on fire."
Blaise blinked at his friend in surprise. "Wow … Theo's turning savage."
"Even docile bookworms can break given the correct circumstances," Daphne pointed out.
"Nah, Theo has always been like this," Vincent contradicted with a small smile. "Issue is, he has never had much reason to go ham."
"Yeah, well, I do now!" the young Nott's eyes were flashing dangerously as they drew closer to the Defence class; their Gryffindor, Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw classmates were already outside, chatting away. "And the Dark Lord is right: Snape, McGonagall and Dumbledore have failed us by letting that frilly poisonous marshmallow anywhere near their students! I might just get my own back."
"Uh-oh," Gregory commented dryly.
"Theo's being corrupted by Potter's influence," Pansy added.
"Hey, Theo, mate, I get you're angry but I suggested you simmer down before Snape hears you and decide to take points away from us for you insulting him," Blaise advised, lightly, noticing that Granger, Boot, Finch-Fletchley and several others eyeing Theo with assessing eyes.
Theo started grumbling incoherently but started doing some breathing exercises.
Draco quietly hoped it would be enough as the door opened and the students filed into the classroom. Theo's eyes were still dark with fury but at least his friend was no longer physically vibrating with anger, and not shooting overt death glares at their professor, who was fortunately distracted with handing out work sheets. The Nott heir actually managed to thank Professor Snape without snapping or sounding too cold.
There was still an icy undertone that got an eyebrow raise from their Head of House but that was about it. As usual, Professor Snape was primarily focusing his wrath – justified and not – for the Lions, Badgers and Eagles. Mostly using his remote, but the Defence professor also verbally cut down his students.
Draco shut off mentally for most of the lesson, preferring to start worrying about his task set to him by the Dark Lord to fix the Vanishing Cabinet in the Room of Hidden Things. It was a good thing he had decided to sit next to Theo for the lesson, because he could subtly copy off Theo for some of the most important points mentioned. Theo, for once, didn't make a comment about it, knowing that Draco had a lot on his mind.
Unfortunately, the Malfoy heir stayed inside his head even during his free period, when he headed once more for the Room of Hidden Things, and then again at lunch, when he did the exact same thing. The issue was, Draco didn't notice that he was being followed on both occasions.
Ginny and Luna, despite being under O.W.L exams pressures, dogged Draco to the Room of Hidden Things on both occasions. While the girls had lurked in a nearby alcove, out of sight, waiting to see how long it took Draco to remerge from the Room, the pair had boldly followed Draco into the Room, carefully keeping hidden by darkness and by some of the taller hoards of useless items and bookcases and piles of chairs.
Ginny and Luna carefully crept every closer to where they spied the silver hair, but still made sure that they were out of any line of sight of Draco. Ginny frowned at the cabinet.
"What is he doing with an old Vanishing Cabinet?" she whispered in a tone of suspicion.
"Trying to fix it," Luna whispered back whimsically. "To allow it to once again connect to its friend."
"Its friend?" Ginny repeated incredulously in a quiet voice.
"Did you not know? Most Vanishing Cabinets are made with twins," Luna answered lowly. "Because one has to be in a different location to the other."
Ginny nodded. "Makes sense … so where is the friend of this cabinet?"
"In a black market antique shop," was Luna's startlingly simple answer, which made Ginny slightly uneasy.
As if they didn't have enough to worry about! But why would Draco want to fix this Vanishing Cabinet? Fixing something like that was not just something one did because it was a hobby. Plus, fixing magical objects didn't seem like something Draco could easily enjoy, given how snobby he was.
Unless, of course, the Slytherin was up to no good, and that Vanishing Cabinet was part of it. This thought made Ginny frown and ignited a spark of determination in her to discover what kind of scheme Draco Malfoy was trying to execute.
Next to her, Luna was smiling knowingly.
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"Thanks for coming early, everyone! Ashley and I will now confirm that the winner of the last competition is indeed the Symbiot Tower, despite the fact the teachers caught wind of what happened to it," Ferrars announced at the latest meeting of the underground street art club, a beaming grin on his face. "Now, don't worry – you still stand a chance to win some good old Galleons, because Ashley and I have agreed that it's time to put the gas up on the cooker."
The purebloods and wizard-raised amongst the group looked confused while the half-bloods, Muggleborns and Muggle-raised looked excited. Blaise and Millicent simply exchanged a look. Ferrars continued, eyes shining. "This competition will be between the Houses – each House will work together to create a giant public artwork. You can pick where, but it has to be completed within one night!"
"ONE NIGHT?!"
Jaws dropped to the floor instantly; Blaise and Millicent's eyes widened too. Oh boy – they would all be playing cat and mouse with Filch and Mrs. Norris!
"Yes," Kingsley continued with a smirk. "Now, we realise that we have a few issues to contend with, such as the grumpy caretaker, his cat and the patrolling Prefects – Ben and I are in full agreement that, if you need to, you're allowed to put all mortals under a Sleeping Spell and we advise to make sure you find good hiding spots in case Peeves is in the vicinity." Kingsley's eyes shone. "So, with that being said – get planning everyone!"
"We may need some extra help," Blaise commented to Millie as soon as they were out of earshot from everyone else.
Millie nodded in agreement. "Yes, but I doubt we have enough gold between us to bribe any of our friends-"
"I wasn't thinking about any of them," Blaise cut across immediately with a grin, eyes shining with mischief. "I was thinking we could put our new alliance with Potter and his friends to good use."
Millicent blinked at that. "Seriously?" she asked, utterly deadpan. "You think that Potter could help us sneak out at night and somehow not get caught, considering the fact that all the teachers and Filch know that there are street artists running about."
"We both know that Potter and his friends have been sneaking out at night and getting up to shit without anyone ever catching them red-handed," Blaise huffed with jealousy at that. "I say we use their little tricks to our advantage."
"I doubt Potter or his friends would be willing to help for nothing. We already asked them to help us keep an eye on Draco," Millicent reminded him. "We need to make Potter an offer he cannot refuse."
Blaise exhaled with a short laugh. "It's like we're dealing with a fellow Snake at times."
"It wouldn't surprise me if he almost was one," Millie responded quickly. "I do not think anyone else could pull off pranking the Malfoys, the Dark Lord and his followers for the entirety of the summer holidays, and then somehow come out alive."
"And not being found," Blaise added with a grin. He sobered quickly. "So, what do we offer Potter in return for his help?"
"You could offer up information Potter wants," Millie suggested. "But you can also simply leave it at an 'I owe you' that can be cashed in at a later date. Something tells me Potter rather likes those."
The grin on Blaise's countenance only grew. "I can live with both options. Now, what shall we paint and where shall we paint it?"
Millie too grinned. "Well, I was thinking some of the spires were looking a little dull, and I did buy some more fun paints, secretly. I have no idea how I managed to smuggle them past Snape but I will not look a gift horse in the mouth."
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Mr. Mupples spent the best part of his morning and afternoon babysitting Teddy Ruxpin – who had been dumped with him because everyone found his rendition of Power Rangers too creepy to listen to – and happily building a nice town and castle from the Play-Doh sets his Papa had sent on the advice of Auntie Hermione. He had gotten a letter than morning from his papa about school updates, and it had put Mr. Mupples in a good and creative mood. The plushie had even made a nice oubliette, a torture chamber and a place for the gallows in the middle of the town. Some of the kittens and young werewolves had popped in to look now and again, or to help, in case of the children. Bellatrix had kept vigil nearby, reading some of Basti's books and Augustus' magazines.
Nagini and Thalia were in the room too but they were too absorbed with trying to set up Tom with a suitable mate. So far, the snakes had ruled out twenty candidates – they were either too fat, too old, too young looking, too hairy, or had some other defect; one smiled too much, one looked like a clown, another was a dog person, one hated snakes (immediate no), and another liked to drink. Rabastan and Reed had watched the two snakes in amusement while sharing some popcorn.
Apparently Lucius' habit was rubbing Nagini and Thalia the wrong way, so extensive alcohol consumption was also an immediate no. Speaking of Lord Malfoy, he had spent the majority of his day, weeping away because Mr. Mupples was building his little civilisation on top of a rug that had belonged to Armand Malfoy I, who had followed William the Conqueror to England in 1066. The weeping was only made worse when Lord Malfoy discovered that, apparently, his spirits all tasted 'cheap'.
This had made Mr. Mupples chuckle to himself. Dobby, Winky and Kreacher really had outdone themselves. Though the plushie was not best pleased Dobby and Winky had hit his papa with pillows. The photos would make Mr. Mupples' friends and family smile, though, which was always a good thing.
The good mood lasted until a little after lunch when Yaxley returned from the Ministry; apparently no one had really bothered with him taking the afternoon of. The reason why, the Death Eater would not say but instead made everyone – Mr. Mupples included – look into the Pensieve to see for themselves why no one had cared if Yaxley took the afternoon off or not.
Macnair and Dolohov's 'gifts' had worked perfectly in tandem; Bella, however, was pouting heavily. "Awwwww, that filthy, ungrateful pink half-blood did not even once try on my dress!" she protested.
Mr. Mupples patted his mama's hand in an effort to be comforting.
"My potion didn't make enough boils!" Mulciber sulked. "They were meant to explode too!"
"Ewww," Avery Senior pulled a face.
Travers smirked. "That would have been something to behold!"
"I am still not satisfied how long the statue took to activate," Dolohov grumbled, shaking his head to himself. "I hope my next idea works a little better and that Potter will still allow me to pick an Order target."
"Antonin, your statue worked perfectly!" Rowle huffed. "You're being too hard on yourself."
"Yes, well, none of your tricks made her scream in pain," Alecto stated icily. "All three ideas were failures in my book."
Mulciber, Dolohov and Macnair did not like that comment at all. They narrowed their eyes at their friends.
"I would like to see you do better then, Alecto," Macnair sneered.
"Maybe I will!" Alecto shot back.
Thalia had tittered at the memory, meanwhile. *Oh dear, that toad was hopping mad!*
*I still think that the creature needs to be taught another lesson,* Nagini insisted.
*Oh absolutely,* Voldemort agreed readily, red eyes gleaming. *St. Mungo's trips may be far more frequent for the dear Undersecretary than she would like!*
*Speaking of which,* Thalia slithered up to the presents Mr. Mupples' Papa had sent her, which consisted of a cute miniature stage, microphone and several joke and pun books Voldemort had been tempted to set alight when he saw them. The young ball python cleared her throat and then hissed into the mic. *What will the doctor say to Madam Umbridge when she tells him what happened?*
Nagini lit up. *No idea, Thalia, tell me!*
*What a ribbiting story, Madam Umbridge! Hop onto the bed and let's see what can be done.*
While Nagini hissed with laughter, Voldemort had conjured yet another pillow and had his head in it. Mr. Mupples bobbed with laughter too; Teddy Ruxpin giggled quietly. Unfortunately, Thalia was not finished yet.
*Why did the gardener get banned from the hospital?*
*No clue! Tell us!*
*Because he was watering the vegetables!*
That got Voldemort to snort into his pillow with laughter, causing some of his followers to look at him with some undisguised concern. Thalia had just one more joke lined up.
*A witch was booked into the hospital after being hit with a Tempest Jinx. Shockingly, she was discharged after a day.*
Nagini and Voldemort continued to laugh.
It was Lysander who brought the topic back to their fledgling campaign of torment on Dolores Umbridge. "So Bella's dress is still there – Balthazar, Antonin and Walden's plans went off without a hitch. Has anyone else got some more ideas?"
"I am designing something, but it isn't finished yet," Rowle informed, eyes shining menacingly.
"Alecto and I want to do something too, but we have no idea yet what to do," Amycus added.
"I think we should make her nightmares come a reality," Rookwood suggested, eyes gleaming with a dark tint.
"I was going to suggest to Corban to try and find a good moment to curse those quills of hers," Avery Senior suggested with a tone of malice. "Or better, curse her normal quills to begin to write what she made those poor children write every single time she even thinks about needing to write!"
"That could work," Jugson smirked.
"I would prefer those words to carve themselves into her own skin," Rabastan put in icily.
"Issue is, we cannot make this too obvious yet," Lysander told him with a sigh of deep regret. "Plus, if we have an opportunity to get Amelia Bones, of all people, on side, I don't think we should be doing something that could potentially jeopardise that."
"Do you even think that jumped-up old do-gooder will want to help us?" Goyle Senior, who rarely put anything in, sneered.
"I am pretty certain that Corban only needs to show her five of these photos, and Madam Bones will be hexing Umbridge black and blue," Macnair answered with a malicious smirk.
"And what of Elizabeth Abbott?" Fenrir demanded.
"Considering her daughter is involved, I doubt we will have to worry about her much longer," Avery Senior's eyes flashed ominously. "If it had been Lysander, death would have been the least of that woman's worries!"
"I am half tempted to turn that damn toad into the thing she most hates!" Hannah seethed.
"Or maybe we should make her hate something she likes!" Izzy suggested happily. "Maybe we could make her hate the colour pink!"
"Well, she is a pink toad right now – that could help," Sebastian pointed out.
Fenrir, Reed, Hannah and several of the older werewolves chuckled.
It was at this point that Mr. Mupples got a good idea about something that could work as a good revenge plan. He nudged Mama Bella a few times to get her attention and then began using his etch-a-sketch to try and communicate to her what he was thinking. Teddy Ruxpin continued to giggle away; everyone tried their best to ignore him. Bella, Voldemort, the snakes, the Death Munchers and the werewolves watched the drawings take form.
Mr. Mupples hoped that they would understand what he meant; this drawing was not his finest work.
Fortunately, Mama Bella knew him quite well by now, and thus knew exactly what he was trying to say. "Oooooo, that is a good idea, Mr. Mupples! Everyone, Mr. Mupples suggests that we turn her favourite animal against her!"
"What, cats?" Dolohov stated out loud and then realisation hit him. His eyes widened. "Oh no. No, no, no, no, no, no, Bella! We are not involving Tsar in this!"
"We are going to involve all the kitties, Tsar included," Bella stated happily.
Dolohov blanched at this. "No!" he protested.
"Antonin, come on!" Macnair huffed. "We will make sure all the kitties are protected; besides, we do have someone who knows how to communicate with animals, which is why the kitties and falcon babies have been behaving."
The Death Munchers all smirked in unison. They all had the very same person in mind.
Charlotte Higgs.
Charlotte Higgs was officially neutral but she was friends with many of the lower rank Death Munchers so was around a lot. Charlotte was a Magizoologist and had the rare innate ability to communicate with all manner of creatures, from frogs to thunderbirds. As it happened, Charlotte was currently staying at the Manor, looking after the Malfoy owls, who had unexpectedly taken ill.
"Plus, we will make sure that the kitties are fully trained for their mission, Antonin, so don't fret," Avery Senior added. "Tsar will not be put into unnecessary danger."
Dolohov huffed. "Very well."
"Well, then," Voldemort spoke up. "We have more work to do. Corban, ssssend a few photossss to both Madam Bonesss and Madam Abbott. Bella, Mr. Mupplesss, Walden – get Charlotte onsssside. Sssshow her photossss if necesssssary."
The Death Munchers sprang into action. The werewolves immediately jumped up to help; Thalia and Nagini, however, went back to the television in the parlour to continue to find a proper candidate to be Voldemort's mate.
###########################################################################
Augustus Rookwood knew it was a miracle that Voldemort had given him permission to visit Knockturn Alley, but he knew better than to look a gift horse in the mouth. His friends and colleagues were all busy with revenge 'gifts' for the Umbridge woman, but Rookwood found that he wasn't as much use at home, so he decided to try and find a good retaliation prank for Harry Potter instead.
Rookwood, unlike Rodolphus or Fenrir or Amycus or Yaxley or Lucius, did not have a deep seated dislike or hatred for the boy. The Unspeakable had a respect for his Lord's most hated nemesis – dare he admit, he liked the little shit. This prank was not because Rookwood had to get rid of anger or resentment; he didn't want to be left out of the fun. Perhaps the Dark Lord had sensed that, which is why he had let Augustus out on his own.
The disguised Unspeakable, keeping his hood up due to the rain but also to make sure no one could see his face fully, walked by store after store, mulling over what he could send Harry. Cursed or poisonous candles and full griffin skeletons were a little much and Rookwood didn't fancy leaving a paper trail with Mr. Borgin. It was already bad enough they were going to try and invade Hogwarts using a Vanishing Cabinet that was hidden somewhere in the Room of Hidden Things. He did not fancy giving Mr. Borgin another potentially compromising memory.
Rookwood window-browsed as he passed by the businesses. Shrunken heads could be a fun idea … or a mask? A little ironic – a Death Eater gifting the so-called Chosen One, a mask. Or perhaps a giant spider! Most of the children likely did not really like spiders. Maybe Rookwood could even find an extra sweet-natured one to make it all the worse?
But then again, Dolph already sent Harry Morpheus, which made Rookwood deflate a little. He doubted McGonagall, Snape or Dumbledore would allow the boy to start building is own bloody menagerie within the school! Plus, there was also the risk that one of the kids could try and kill the spider out of fear – that would not do at all.
Rookwood had been tempted to go into Cobb & Webb's and The Coffin House for something fun but Dark Arts related, when he passed Mr. Mulpepper's Apothecary and saw that the shop owner, for once, had a new delivery of live plants, given the Fanged Geraniums outside the store.
A plant! Now that could be fun. It was also less likely to incur Minerva McGonagall's famous wrath, which was always a bonus. So, Rookwood entered the dark and dingy looking shop that – once inside – was vibrant with colour due to different potions, their crystal vials twinkling in the light. Mr. Mulpepper himself, a gentleman in his sixties who looked like he was in his mid-forties, was busy feeding fertiliser to a collection of odd looking lilies that caught Rookwood's attention immediately.
Eventually, Mr. Mulpepper looked up to see that he had a customer and began beaming. "Good afternoon, my good sir! How may I be of assistance?" he asked with a beaming smile as he began to wash his hands in the water basin close to the odd lilies.
Rookwood smiled. "I was hoping you could assist me in picking a plant. I saw that you recently got a new stock of live plants in and I thought that one could be the answer to my problems."
"Oh? And what problem is that?" Mr. Mulpepper lit up. "Are you trying to woo a young lady, sir?"
Rookwood was redder than a Gryffindor tie within seconds. "No, sir. It is for … my nephew. He has been … a bit difficult as of late, and I was thinking taking care of a sentient plant could help simmer him down a little."
Mr. Mulpepper's face dropped. "Oh, forgive me for being presumptuous, sir, I am an old man. I have some funny notions! Anyway, I think I can definitely be of assistance. But first, how old is your nephew, if I may ask, sir?"
"Sixteen," Rookwood answered smoothly.
"Ah. He's in the funny phase of his life, as my mother always said! Now, how good is your nephew at Herbology and with his familiar?" Mr. Mulpepper asked, brow furrowing as he surveyed his shop.
Rookwood blanched a little; he had no idea just how good or bad Harry was at Herbology! The Unspeakable decided to try and take a gamble. "He's not the best with plants, but he's also not the worst. As for his familiar, he's absolutely dedicated to her."
The Unspeakable did not need to second guess himself regarding Hedwig. The owl would not show the boy as much loyalty as she did if he was an abusive little toerag.
"Hmmm," Mr. Mulpepper hummed musingly, brow still furrowed. "Fanged Geranium is likely not a good bet … Flutterby Bush could be an option … could be a little awkward with his dorm mates though … Chinese Chomping Cabbages need way too many carrots regularly in a day so that is not a good idea … oh, I know! Maybe your nephew would like one of my new little beauties?"
"Oh?" Rookwood raised an eyebrow.
Mr. Mulpepper's face lit up further and he beckoned the disguised Death Eater to follow him. Rookwood did not need to be told twice; curiosity did kill the cat, after all. The plants in question were the odd lilies the apothecary had been feeding with Rookwood entered the shop. The Unspeakable watched in awe as the lilies began to move; their petals opened to reveal adorable serpentine heads, some still asleep but some half asleep and watching his curiously.
"Cobra Lilies," Rookwood recognised them instantly.
"Very good, sir!" Mr. Mulpepper beamed. "Yes, one would not say it but Cobra Lilies are some of the easiest plants to take care of, especially if you know that they like music. They're also some of the smartest plants known to wizard kind. Will this do for your nephew?"
"Hmmm? Oh! Yes," Rookwood shook himself out of his stupor. "Yes, I think a Cobra Lily would do wonderfully, Mr. Mulpepper. Thank you."
The apothecary beamed. "Not a problem, sir. Shall I also make a care package for the Cobra Lily, just in case?"
Rookwood smiled back. "Yes, I think that is a good idea. Thank you."
"Not at all, sir. You may pick a Lily that you think looks nice," Mr. Mulpepper stated as he got to work on the care package for the plant.
The disguised Unspeakable studied each of the Cobra Lilies closely to assess their character. A good few of them were still asleep so the task was a little difficult, except when it became clear that one of the Cobra Lilies was wide awake and watching him curiously. The eyes were intelligent, somehow, Rookwood noted. The plant cocked its head once or twice at him, as though studying him back.
The Unspeakable smiled to himself. Yes, this would be the Lily gifted to the boy. Rookwood was even willing to bet the Cobra Lily would be giving the Chosen One as much of a headache as Nagini and Thalia were giving his Lord.
"This one," Rookwood nodded towards the curious Cobra Lily.
Mr. Mulpepper grinned. "Excellent choice, sir! Now, that will be ten Galleons in total please."
Very soon, Rookwood left the apothecary with a new plant and care package in tow.
#########################################################################
That evening, Harry and his friends were playing games and reading in the Gryffindor common room – occasionally laughing at the people who forgot that the tea set in the common room enjoyed insulting people's tea choices and decided to make a cup of tea using it – when here was tapping at the window.
Jehoshaphat was back again!
Colin and Dennis had raced to open the window, allowing the malevolent owl in. Macnair's owl flew in and landed on the red and gold carpet, in front of Harry. Jehoshaphat eyed Harry sassily as he stuck out his leg, hooting quietly as though he were complaining to himself, which made the Boy-Who-Found-The-Petulant-Owl-Rather-Amusing untied the letter. The owl took off, presumably to the Owlery, to see Hedwig and Morpheus.
"Oh boy," Seamus commented with a smirk. "Just how bad is this news going to be?"
"I didn't see anything in the Daily Prophet about any untimely deaths, so we have to assume the toad is still alive," Ron stated.
Harry broke the seal on the back of Macnair's latest letter, unfolded it and began to read. Ginny fished out a small vial from the envelope as well, with a frown.
Potter,
I said I would keep you updated, and I don't mean to boast, but I have some rather fun news to share with you. Our little 'gifts' did what they were supposed to, but as someone whose scheme was executed, I think it could have been a whole lot more effective! I sent you a copy of Corban's memory to you so you can decide for yourself. Our Lord has sanctioned further pranks to the woman, so we are not giving up. Corban is also sending the photos to Amelia Bones and Elizabeth Abbott, so hopefully we may gain some unlikely allies.
Also, Mr. Mupples has been making Lucy cry by building a giant clay castle and town on one of his historic rugs! Thalia and Nagini have been hogging the TV a little in order to get a good mate for this Tom person, which has made the young werewolves a little pouty. Speaking of pouting, Rodolphus is still sulky that he has not made you upset or has made Hedwig lose feathers with jealousy. I mean, you don't need to know Divination to know that was just not going to work! Plus, Bella has been using his anti-stress bath sets, especially the hibiscus ones, so I think your prank to him was half a flop.
Anyway, I have to get back to work before I risk a Boglin and a Cruciatus.
Civil regards,
Walden Macnair
P.S. Antonin would like to know if he can still pick an Order target, despite the fact he isn't satisfied about how well his cursed statue worked. Look at the memory – you will see for yourself!
P.P.S. Those tapes you sent for Teddy Ruxpin have not made the situation better; he is somehow much creepier now! Oh by the way, Augustus has a prank for you, which should arrive at breakfast tomorrow.
Harry could not wipe the grin off his face as he finished Macnair's letter, and handed it to his friends for them to read. Ginny, having read the letter too, then held up the vial with a look of realisation. "This must be the memory then!"
"We will have to find a Pensieve to look at it though," Neville commented.
"Pensieve?" Dean repeated with a small frown.
"It's this magical water basin that you can put memories into to look at them again," Ron explained. "They're really useful, but also really rare. Damn expensive too."
"So, we need to find a Pensieve, or bribe someone who has one," Harry stated with a small smirk. "But I do think that we need to send our dear Death Munchers some more presents as a form of encouragement. We cannot have them become disheartened now, can we?"
The Council of Pranks grinned in agreement. Hermione dialled Dudley's number, Ginny called Luna and Neville called Justin. While Luna and Justin picked up fairly quickly, the group of wizards had to wait for a bit before their Muggle ally picked up the phone.
"Evening, magicians! You're lucky I just saved my game," Dudley greeted jovially. "So, how did the pranks of last time go?"
"Well, Rodolphus hated his, his wife uses his bath sets, Thalia is making good use of the comedy stuff, she and Nagini have been using the tapes extensively, Mr. Mupples has been ruining Lucius Malfoy's rugs and Teddy Ruxpin is apparently now creepier than ever because of the tapes," Harry informed happily.
"So, a good round overall," Dudley deduced with a grin. "I take it this call is because you have cause to do another round."
"You can say that again, Dudley," Hermione commented darkly. "We can't go into it now, but we went to the Death Munchers for help with something that happened at school last year. Concerning a teacher who, literally, tortured her students. We sent them some evidence and they are now hellbent on taking this woman down a peg or two."
"Jesus," Dudley exhaled sharply. "The bad guys taking on another bad guy – you don't hear that often!"
"Yep," Colin agreed. "They did a first round and to them at least, it didn't go very well. Which is why we want to send them a few things to cheer them up and to just give them a bit of a boost."
"Ah, OK. So what kind of pepper-up pranks are we thinking of?" Dudley wanted to know.
Dennis had an idea immediately. "I think we should send them some sci-fi stuff! Dr. Who, Star Wars – that kind of thing! It might even give them some excuse to make some more popcorn and allow the young werewolves to watch TV again. Apparently Nagini and Thalia have been hogging the thing."
"Sounds good to me!" Dean grinned.
"Oh Merlin, they'll either love or hate the light sabres," Hermione added, shaking her head.
"Light sabres?" Ron frowned in confusion, as did Neville and Ginny.
"We'll explain later," Justin laughed.
"OK … a few box sets … light sabres for the kids … what's next?" Dudley asked happily.
"I think we should just give them the classic prank," Seamus put in, eyes shining with mischief. "Send one of the Death Munchers we haven't targeted yet a bunch of whoopee cushions!"
"Ooooo yes!" the Muggle-raised and Muggleborn wizards cheered.
"Whoopee cushions? That sounds like something Fred and George could come up with," Ginny commented.
"They could have done," Luna agreed, giggling.
"All right, so who is the sucker getting the whoopee cushions?" Dudley wanted to know.
"I say Jugson," Harry smirked.
"OK, so what's the guy's first name?"
"Ralston."
"Oh for God's sake. Another mother who couldn't name her child something normal," Dudley huffed.
Harry snorted. "As if your name is any better!"
"Fair enough!" Dudley laughed shortly. "What else are we thinking about doing?"
"I was hoping we could bully Rodolphus some more," Neville's eyes shone. "Send Bellatrix another weird toy to adopt to make him even more jealous!"
"Oooo a Cabbage Patch kid could work!" Justin put in happily.
"And call it Tom Riddle!" Ginny added, sounding way too excited at that prospect.
Hermione pinched the bridge of her nose but still could not stop herself from laughing. "Oh Merlin, none of us are going to come out of this alive!"
"We'll all be fine," Luna reassured serenely. "Well, Rodolphus is going to get a few more silver hairs, but that is beside the point."
Dudley was clearly smirking on the other end of the line, judging by his tone. "I am loving the Cabbage Patch kid idea. Cousin?"
"Do it! And Dud, I think dear old Voldie has been left out for too long. Could you buy him one or two canes for me?" the Boy-Who-Was-Going-To-Just-Keep-Pushing-Voldemort's-Buttons asked casually.
"Canes?!" everyone chorused.
"Yes, the kind used by grandpas," Harry clarified happily. "You see I call Voldie Grandpa now since he is old enough to be our grandfather-"
"To his face?!" Ron, Hermione, Ginny, Neville, Justin and Dean chorused in shock.
"Via our Link, but yes – it's the same principle," the son of Prongs confirmed jovially.
"Oh boy," Seamus commented.
"Bet he did not like that!" the Creevey brothers chorused, slightly pale.
"He doesn't, but I don't particularly care," Harry informed bluntly, eyes shining with mischief.
"Very well. Too many grandpa canes coming up," Dudley sighed. "Anything else, or is this going to be enough madness?"
"Oh no, that reminds me! Hey, Dud. Could you, Piers or one of your mates try and get in touch with an upper class Muggle establishment in London and see how much it costs for a family birthday outing?" Harry asked, taking everyone by surprise once again. "I want to thank Narcissa and Andromeda for that shopping trip and it's Andromeda's birthday soon, and I wanted to see if I can get a table for the three sisters, Draco, Tonks and Mr. Mupples."
"What? Bellatrix included?!" Neville blanched. "That entire restaurant will be Crucio-ed in seconds, Harry!"
"Not with Mr. Mupples there," Ginny felt herself saying.
"How can you be so sure?" Dean wanted to know.
Ginny looked at him frostily, which made her friends double-take. "I just am! Did you not see how Bellatrix interacted with Harry because of Mr. Mupples? She had enough opportunity to kidnap or kill him, but she didn't."
Dudley seemed to sense a row about to emerge so he cut in. "I will see what I can do and get back to you, cousin. Have a good evening, everyone!"
"Bye, Dudley!" the wizards chorused as the Muggle hung up.
Justin was the first to speak up. "Well, this round should prove to be interesting to say the least!"
"I don't know how the Death Munchers will react to having yet another house mate, but it should be good," Ron agreed.
Dean got to his feet. "I am going to bed," he stated lazily and already began to walk off before anyone could say anything, which made his friends frown in confusion. Apart from Ginny; she looked genuinely like she could not care less.
"Are we missing something?" Colin asked curiously.
Seamus flushed. "No, it's nothing to worry about." The Irish wizard got up too. "You know, I am going to take a shower and then I am going to get an early night as well."
"Suit yourself. Night Seamus!" Ron stated as his dorm mate left.
It was at this precise moment that there was a knock on the Fat Lady's portrait; the questionable opera singer opened herself up, while complaining madly. "Harry Potter, your Slytherin friends are back again! See what they want, if you please!"
Standing once more in the portrait frame, were Blaise Zabini and Millicent Bulstrode, smiling awkwardly. Ginny and Neville smiled smally at seeing them; Ron and Hermione eyed them with suspicion. Colin and Dennis simply cocked their heads at them. Harry smirked to himself.
"Good evening you two," he stated silkily. "To what do we owe the pleasure this time?"
"We need your help with something," Blaise answered with a huff.
Harry's eyes began glinting at hearing this. "I am already helping you with your Draco situation-"
"We will owe you," Millicent cut across, folding her arms.
"Oooo, careful what you say," Harry grinned. "I take debts very seriously."
"We thought as much," Blaise reassured. "But we wouldn't be here if we didn't have any other option."
"Awww, how flattering," Harry sighed dramatically as he got to his feet and joined them just outside Gryffindor Tower, the Fat Lady putting herself ajar, still looking extremely disgruntled. "So, what can I help you with?"
"Ferrars and Kingsley's new street art competition," Millicent answered. "We have to pick a place and paint in one night! We managed to do our Symbiot Tower by the skin of our teeth and I have no idea if we can pull it off again without some serious help."
"We won the last time, but Mill and I refuse to be outdone by the Lions, Badgers and Eagles, just because we're the only Snakes involved," Blaise added with a look of determination. "We even have picked the perfect place! We just need someone to keep an eye on Peeves, Filch, Mrs. Norris and any meddling prefects."
The son of Prongs and godson of Padfoot's verdant eyes suddenly were neon with excitement. He had just the plan in mind. "Consider it done," he stated. "Wait here a moment."
The strange Gryffindor darted back into the common room for a moment, Blaise and Millicent exchanging a hopeful look that the new Lord Black fortunately did not see. Very quickly, the Boy-Who-Lived-To-Make-A-lot-of-Things-Interesting came back with a strange, small device.
"This is a mobile phone. It's been enchanted to run on magic," Harry informed them as he handed it to Blaise. "It belongs to Ginny so just be careful with it. My number is in there under Scarhead – when you are ready, call me and I will help guide you and tell the locations of your potential adversaries."
"Tell us their locations?" Millicent repeated incredulously. "How?"
The Gryffindor Golden Boy smirked menacingly, sending a chill down both Slytherins' spines. "Telling you a secret like that is no fun! Just go and prepare; I will await your call."
With that, Harry Potter turned on his heel and went back into Gryffindor Tower, the Fat Lady shutting herself firmly behind him, glaring at the two Snakes. Blaise audibly gulped. "Well, consider me more than a little worried."
"You should already be that," Millicent shuddered. "It's no wonder people believed that he is the next Dark Lord."
Blaise snorted. "You mean, Shit Lord!"
Millicent laughed as they began to make their way back to their House. "Fair enough!"
#########################################################################
The last thing Amelia Bones or Elizabeth Abbott expected in the late evening was for Corban Yaxley to actually follow through on his promise he made to Amelia that morning. Both women happened to be working late together in Amelia's office – surrounded by empty vials of Pepper-Up Potions and coffee cups – when there had been a tapping at the window.
"Oh no, not another mail owl!" Elizabeth had protested, not looking up from her paper work, looking a little frazzled. "I don't want to deal with yet another 'major issue that needs urgent attention'. Madam Umbridge's transfiguration is already causing enough issues."
Amelia turned to the window, already dreading the letter as well. What made her frown immediately, was the fact the owl she saw outside her window was one she did not recognise at all. It looked elegant but also had a cold beauty to it, with glowing yellow eyes and wings that were formed in such a way that it reminded Amelia of a cape. The owl was regarding her unblinkingly and with a sassy look. Intrigued, Amelia waved her hand, opening the window.
The strange owl flew in, carrying a letter and two small cardboard boxes, landing right on top of the pile of paperwork that she and Elizabeth were working on, and stuck out its leg.
Elizabeth blinked. "Well, that's just rude!"
"Hooot!" the owl snapped. Clearly it did not share that opinion at all.
Amelia placatingly untied the letter, while Elizabeth got to work on the boxes. The Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement turned the letter over, frowned at the Yaxley Seal, broke it, unfolded the letter and began to read.
Dear Madam Bones,
I for once hope that Lilith finds you well. She is one of the few well owls I have access to at the moment, so I hope she behaved herself. As I promised this morning, there is a very good reason for the actions being taken against Madam Umbridge that I could not explain without possibly sounding like a madman. Yes, I know, the irony is not lost on me with that statement. However, I am warning you in good faith – do not eat before looking at the photos I have sent to you. They are, frankly, stomach turning.
Yours sincerely,
Corban Yaxley
Amelia blinked a total of ten times in disbelief at the letter. She was only broken out of her stupor by the sound of glass beginning to crack. She looked up to see that several of her windows had split almost neatly in half.
Sensing the volatile magic next to her, Amelia turned to her lifelong friend. Madam Abbott had already gone and opened the boxes Jehoshaphat had been carrying. Now, Elizabeth's eyes were bathed with her own magic and righteous fury. Amelia carefully looked to see what had her friend so angry.
Sprayed on the floor were polaroid-shaped photographs of hands. Hands with different messages embedded in the skin; Amelia knew immediately what had done this. A Blood Quill – over use of a Blood Quill. How?! Amelia picked one or two of them up.
I must not tell lies.
I must not engage in unauthorised clubs.
I must not spread nonsense.
Amelia turned the photos over to see the names of the owners: Harry Potter, Neville Longbottom and Luna Lovegood. This made her eyes widen.
"Amelia, look at these," Elizabeth hissed, shoving two more in front of her friends' nose.
The hands in question had the same message as Neville's hand. Fearing the worst, Amelia turned the photos over.
Susan Bones and Hannah Abbott.
You should ask Elizabeth to check her daughter's hands better too, Yaxley's words suddenly began dancing around Madam Bones' head.
It was safe to say that the windows cracked even more at this point. It was in this moment that Amelia knew that whatever was going on now went beyond ideology and politics. This was personal! She did not agree with more than half of the things the Dark were spewing, but even they knew this was wrong!
"I say we tell the Minister," Elizabeth stated in a dangerously quiet voice.
"No, that will do no good," Amelia contradicted immediately. "The man is not interested in this matter, even if we show him the evidence. He will – correctly – point out that we both have a bias in this matter. No, I say we turn a blind eye to anything and everything strange that goes on around Madam Umbridge from now on."
Elizabeth frowned. "Amelia, do you know who sent this?"
"I do, Liza, and you're going to have to trust me in this matter," Amelia responded firmly. "Because what we are going to do isn't going to be pretty."
Elizabeth Abbott frowned for one more millisecond before it was replaced by a look of determination, and she gave a curt nod in affirmation.
It was in this moment, the Death Eaters had made their most unlikely allies yet.
###########################################################################
Oh boy! Amelia Bones and Elizabeth Abbott have joined the fray! Will the demon toad stand a chance now? Which target will Antonin Dolohov pick for Harry from the Order? What will Blaise and Millicent's latest design be? How will the new pranks be received? Will Harry like his Cobra Lily? What will Dumbledore teach him about his enemies? Stay tuned to find out!
Holy Hermes, Hekate and the Nine Muses, my schedule is still all over the place! The museum I work at works on seasonal business so now everything has been thrown up into the air again because it is the start of the autumn season, since everyone is now back at school and work. Thank you everyone again for your patience and all your awesome suggestions and reviews. They truly make my day.
I want to thank the reviewers who suggested the cane for Voldie, the Cabbage Patch kid idea, the classic whoopee cushions and of course the dinner for Narcissa and Andromeda! I love your diabolical minds!
Till the next time!
Kingmaker'sUmbreon