Chapter 13: The Welcoming Feast
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This was supposed to be a short story, but my muse has gotten away from me. Then she goes walkabout. She is so fickle.
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The group went to the Great Hall and went to sit at their appropriate tables. Harry, Hermione and Neville were sitting together at the Gryffindor table, and Ron and Ginny were sitting further down from them. Everyone was wondering why they were not sitting together. The rumors were rampant. Some were saying that it was because Harry disappeared and that it was Ron's fault somehow. How that would have happened wasn't specified, but there it was.
Ginny did her best to curb that rumor, but no one listened to her, she was not a popular person. Her behavior in her first year had not led her to be well liked. She had been mean to quite a few people that year, very standoffish. Tom had done a really good job of making her a pariah. She had made it up to many of them, but without telling them why she had been so withdrawn in her first year, it was hard to come back from that first impression.
The Sorting Hat was doing its song, and everyone was watching. It was a depressing song, and Harry thought it was quite appropriate. What with him and Ron going their separate ways this year. The song itself was about the friendship of the Founders and how it was broken when Slytherin left due to the disagreement of who should be taught here at Hogwarts. They used to be such strong friends, but it ended so bitterly. The irony.
While the song was being sung, Harry looked at the Head Table and noted that all the teachers were tense. Even Dumbledore was stiff and formal. Snape was sitting next to Umbridge, and it looked like he would break if anyone hit him with a strong stick. It was quite unnerving to see them all so anxious. It made the student body nervous and jittery. He had to wonder if it was because of the Hat's warning, or the pink menace.
Harry thought they might need to be loosened up some. So, he waited for the right moment to do that.
After the Hat sang and the students were sorted, Dumbledore got up and introduced the new teachers. Professor Grubbly-Plank was taking over, temporarily, for Hagrid. Who was away on a mission for the Order, not that the headmaster announced that part. Harry wondered if the half-giant knew that the Order had broken up for the most part. He would have to tell the man when he came back. He was sure the old man would not.
Hagrid was Dumbledore's man through and through, but he was still Harry's friend. Harry would just not be teaching him any magic or telling him any secrets. He would be that uncle that you went to when you needed cheering up, or when you wanted to know about girls, or some such.
Then Dumbledore introduced Umbridge.
She got up and started her speech with a "Hem, hem."
Which cause Harry to chuckle and say, "Give her a cough drop." And it went downhill from there. When she got up to make her way to the podium, glaring at Harry, he smiled at her and waved.
She smiled and stood there like a proper schoolmarm, and said, "Thank you, Headmaster, for those kind words of welcome." She looked at the students and smiled at them like they were small children. "And how lovely it is to see all your bright happy faces smiling up at me. I'm sure we're all going to be very good friends." She was the picture of innocence in her pink suit and pill hat. The fact that she said that to a bunch of blank faced teenagers made her look stupid.
"Not going to happen," Harry said, loud enough for everyone to hear. He didn't want her to think that anyone there was taking her at face value. She might try to come off as harmless, but she wasn't and half the teenagers in the Great Hall knew that. They all had parents or guardians that knew this woman.
She glared at him again, and then she schooled her face. She smiled at the rest of the school and said, "No matter what one child thinks, I am sure the rest of us will get along well." She smiled at them in a condescending way, like they were simple. She really didn't know teenagers well.
"Not likely," the Weasley twins said, almost as loud as Harry had. They too had heard about this woman from their father. She was not liked by him. She had been trying to close his department for some time. It was because of her that he was on limited funds.
The students snickered at the antics of Harry and the Weasley twins. They didn't like the way the woman was talking to them. It was as if she was addressing a class of five-year-olds.
"Children," Dumbledore stated, looking over his half-moon glasses, though it looked like he was trying not to laugh. There was a twinkle in his eyes and a smirk on the side of his mouth.
"Sorry," said Fred and George, but not Harry. He just smiled at the toad and waved at her again.
Umbridge got her composure back on track and said, "As I was saying, the Ministry of Magic has always considered the education of young witches and wizard of vital importance. Although each Headmaster has brought something new to this historic school..." she nodded at Dumbledore with some sarcasm, then turned back to the students and continued, "progress for the sake of progress must be discouraged. Let us preserve what must be preserved, perfect what can be perfected and prune practices that ought to be prohibited." She smiled at them like she had just given them words of wisdom and that her word was final.
"What kind of twattle is that?" Harry said, standing up and pointing at her. "This is a place of learning. How are we supposed to do that if progress is discouraged? That's straight up bullshit," he stated, making those around him nod in agreement and start talking among themselves.
"Hear, hear," Fred said, George nodding beside him.
"I agree," proclaimed Hermione, standing next to Harry.
Many more were making protesting noises and were standing to be heard. They didn't like what she said either.
"What do you know of education, young man?" Umbridge asked, once more glaring at the teen boy that she had done her best to find all summer long. She couldn't, and it irked her something fierce. She had intended on killing him, but the blasted boy was behind some powerful wards.
She was sure he was with Black, and that man had ruined some of her plans for him as well. How dare he get a solicitor. He should have died like a normal man or at least remained in prison so that Mr. Malfoy could continue to use the Black money to contribute to Cornelius's campaign funds.
"I know more than you do, that's for sure. I know to learn you must progress. You can't do one without the other," Harry stated as Hermione and the Weasley twins came to his side. They were glaring at the toad and nodding their heads with Harry's words.
"That is not true. If you progress too far, you will do things that the ministry does not want you to do," she protested, making the students and some of the teachers grumble.
"I hear what you are saying, and I don't agree with you," Harry said, lifting his chin. "The ministry doesn't have the right to dictate what I learn." He was sure of that.
"Yes, it does. That is why there is a Department of Education," Dolores stated, getting a smug air about her.
"They are there to make sure that I am provided the best education, not to hamper it," Harry stated, folding his arms in protestation. "I read your book that you assigned for the class and it's bogus. I'll bet the Department of Education didn't approve it. It's pure theory and we can't learn on theory alone. You're as big a fraud as Lockhart was. I won't be taking your class. I'll be owling my guardian and he'll be demanding something be done about you," he finished, looking self-assured. He sniffed in her direction, like some kind of snobbish pureblood.
He motioned for his friends to reseat themselves. He didn't want them to get into trouble on the first day. He could handle it, but they weren't quite there yet.
"You will sit down, and do as you are told, young man, or I'll see you in the first detention this year," Umbridge stated, like that would scare Harry. She had special plans for detentions, and she would love to carry them out on this particular young man.
"I'd like to see you try to pin me down," Harry said as he turned to walk out of the Great Hall.
Everyone sat and watched him walk to the doors, all the while doing nothing. They couldn't believe what was happening. Not one of the teachers was stopping this. Not even Snape, who was usually more than willing to take points away from Potter. What was going on?
"Sit down I said," Dolores said, all but stamping her foot. She wasn't used to being denied and not by a stupid child. He would rue the day that he embarrassed her.
"No," Harry said as he continued walking. He was enjoying this. He might pay for it later, but right now, yeah this was fun.
"Detention!" she shouted, finally losing her temper. "You will be in my office tomorrow at six in the evening," she said in a much softer tone, though it did carry throughout the silent room.
"No, I will not," Harry said, getting to the large double doors and opening them. "I'm not scared of you, bitch," he stated, walking out and closing the doors with a resounding thud.
The Great Hall exploded in noise, and Umbridge stood there fuming. "Why didn't you stop him?" she shrieked at Dumbledore, who looked bemused at her. That little bastard called her a bitch, and everyone let him do it.
"Just how was I supposed to do that, Dolores?" he asked her. He found the whole thing quite amusing. Though he really didn't like how independent Harry was. It was quite entertaining to see him come down on someone other than Molly and himself. He had been on the other end of that tongue many times this summer and he had no desire to be there again.
"Pull him back with a spell," she said as if it were obvious. She had seen mothers do that to their children in Diagon Alley, surely the teachers did that here. How else did they keep the miscreants under control?
"We do not do that to our students, Dolores," the old man said in a chastising manner. "We are not their parents, we are their educators," he reminded her. He would love to use that spell on a few of his teachers and students, but it was unethical to do so.
"Argh," she said as she stomped away.
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Harry didn't go far, only to the owlery to send a message to Sirius. The only reason he did that, was so the man had written proof to give to Waters. It took a minute to get it all written down with the ink and parchment that was provided in the owlery, but he got the gist of what transpired in the Great Hall in writing and sent it off with Hedwig. When he was done, he whipped out his mirror and called his godfather. "Sirius Black," he said into the mirror and waited until he could see the face of the man.
"What's up, pup?" Sirius said when he came on. He looked like he had been waiting for the call. He knew that Harry was going to do something to get up the toad's nose. He thought it would be tonight, but he wasn't sure.
"I just gave Umbridge a hard time. I told her she was an idiot and that I wasn't taking her class. I sent you a letter with more information," Harry informed him, looking for all the world like he was pleased with what he had done. He was.
"Great," Sirius said, knowing that was what they had planned on doing anyway. "Did you get in trouble?"
"Yeah, I'm supposed to have detention with her tomorrow. I won't show up, so expect a floo call from Dumbledore," he said, looking around the owlery to make sure there was no one there. He didn't think anyone had followed him, but it was better to be safe than sorry.
He didn't want anyone to know about the mirrors yet. They were planning on marketing them after the war. They were better than the cellphones coming out on the muggle market. Sure, Harry was investing heavily in those companies, but he was going to be a partner in this one. He was going to be the first wizarding billionaire; he was sure of it.
"Damn, Harry, are you sure you want to cause that much trouble so soon?" Sirius asked, looking at his godson with a tilted head.
Harry hesitated for a moment, his mind racing through all the possible repercussions of his actions. "I don't know, Sirius. It's not like I have much of a choice. She's been out to get me since day one, and I can't just sit back and let her win." He didn't know what crawled up her arse and died, but she was the one who had been behind the slander in the Daily Prophet. She had done it in Fudge's name, but it had been all her.
Sirius nodded, his face was serious. "Well, just remember that you're not alone in this. You've got me, and you've got all your friends. We'll figure something out together." He was worried about Harry. Sure, the kid had new magic, but he was still just a kid. He was glad he decided to let the adults take care of the horcruxes. They only had to get the snake and that one was proving to be tricky. She was with Voldemort, and they couldn't get to him.
Harry felt a bit of relief wash over him at his godfather's words. "Thanks, Sirius. I know I can count on you." As much as he wanted to stand alone, having one's family by their side meant a lot. They didn't even have to do anything, just stand there. It was the support that counted.
"No problem, pup. Just remember, stay smart and stay safe," Sirius said, giving him a supportive grin. "Give that bitch hell though. Don't take any guff from her. If she gives you hell, give it back tenfold. I'll be there to support you in any way you need. If you want me to pull you from the school, I will. If you want me to make someone disappear, all you have to do is ask," he said, only half joking.
Harry nodded, feeling a renewed sense of determination. "I will. And I'll keep you updated on everything that happens." He was going to cause as much trouble as possible but also try to keep it to a minimum at the same time. If that made sense. He didn't want to get kicked out of school just yet, but he wasn't going to let that woman walk all over him. So, if she started it, he was going to finish it. But he wasn't going to go out of his way to start anything.
"Good. Take care, Harry," his godfather said, giving him a warm smile.
"Good night, Sirius." With that, Harry ended the call and put the mirror back into his pocket. Taking a deep breath, he made his way back down the stairs, his mind already planning his next move. He wasn't going to go back to the Great Hall, so he had to eat. He went to the kitchens to get his meal, then he'd go to the dorms, and start his passive rebellion there.
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Later that night, Hermione and Neville both wanted to know what happened to Harry after he left the Great Hall. He told them 'nothing important'. They bought it and the night went on with nothing of great importance being discussed. Well, Hermione didn't 'buy it' but she dropped it. She was getting much better at not pressing into his business when he didn't want her to. She even only chastised him for a few minutes about calling Umbridge a bitch. He just shrugged her off and ignored her.
After that lecture, they spent a great evening just talking about mundane things and had a good time hanging around with people they hadn't seen for three months.
Harry thought it was going to be a nice quiet evening. However, when he went to his room, Ron decided that that was a good time to start a fight. The other boy was standing in the middle of the room with his fists at his sides like he was ready to throw down. His face was red, and his eyes were burning with anger.
"You think you're better than me now, Potter," the redhead stated. He was furious, he had been humiliated all summer and had had to endure questions all throughout supper over why Harry wasn't sitting with him. Everyone thought it was his fault for some reason. No one blamed Harry this time, and nothing he said would dissuade them of this fact.
"Yes," Harry said, smirking like he did think that, which he did.
"What?" Ron said not expecting that answer. He expected Harry to deny it, or protest that they were equals. That is what he would have said less than a month ago. He had changed so much since he disappeared. He didn't like this new Harry at all.
"I do think I'm better than you," Harry said, coming closer to his ex-friend. "I have better manners. I'm better looking. I'm better at schoolwork. I'm a better friend, and I'm richer. Not that that's important, but it seems to be to you," he stated, punctuating each point with a tick mark in the air. He added the last one because he knew it would piss the other boy off the most.
"You are not better at schoolwork than I am," Ron said, grabbing the first thing he could think of. Potter just had to mention how much better off he was than the Weasleys. How the twins could tolerate the arsehole he didn't know.
"Oh, yes, I am. I could pass my NEWTs right now if I wanted to," Harry said, lifting his chin in pride. He had worked hard to get the smarts he now sported. He didn't come by them naturally or magically. He studied for a long time, in the grey space, and had Rowena drum the facts in his head.
"Prove it," Seamus said, taking Ron's side. He didn't like Harry very much right now, even with what Bones had told his mother. He thought Harry was getting too big for his britches. He needed to be brought down a peg or two. Now that he had an Order of Merlin: First Class, he was sure the other boy was going to hold it over their heads. Like Lockhart did in their second year.
"Sure, grab any book and quiz me," Harry said smugly. He wasn't worried about it; Rowena had done this constantly. He could pass any exam on the fly.
Seamus grabbed the hardest book in the room, which was a sixth year Arithmancy book. Whose it was, he had no idea, probably Hermione's. What it was doing in their room, well who knew. He flipped it to the back and asked the last question in the book.
Harry answered it after thinking about it for a minute. He had to do the figures in his head. He would have gotten it quicker if he had ink and quill, but there it was. He got the answer correct, and that was enough for Seamus, after he compared the answer to the one in the back of the book, but not for Ron. The redhead grabbed the book and drilled him a few more times. He got all the answers correct, and that pissed the other boy off.
"How? How did you get so smart? You didn't even take this class," Ron said, throwing the book across the room. It hit the wall and made a loud thumping noise, then it fluttered to the floor with its pages going everywhere. He was going to have to buy whomever that belongs to a new book. However, he was so angry that Harry had improved in the brains department that he didn't care at the moment.
It had to be magic. There was no other explanation. Something happened to him when he was away. What? Ron had no idea, but someone cast a spell on Harry to make him smarter. No other reason was plausible.
"None of your business," Harry said, laughing at him. "If you hadn't been such a berk, you would know," he added, going to his bed and getting his bed clothes. He put them on, opting to take a shower in the morning. "You blew it, now you get nothing. None of you do. If you want to know about me, you need to earn that right. Seamus and Ron have just proven they will never earn that right," he said, laughing his arse off. Seamus might have at one point in time, but after tonight, not bloody likely.
"What about me?" Dean asked, looking at his friend Seamus. He couldn't believe the Irish boy was still harboring such discontent over Harry. He thought he had gotten over that this summer after they stopped slandering him in the newspaper.
"Don't know. You strike me as a straight bloke. You might get some of my trust, but…" he said with a shrug. Dean was always a wild card. Never going on one side or the other.
"I get it," Dean said, going to his bed and getting ready to sleep. He would just remain neutral.
"I know where I stand," Neville said, already knowing where his friendship was going. They had talked about it on the train. He was going to learn the new magic. That's all he needed to know.
"Yup," Harry said, winking at the boy.
"Wait, why Neville?" Ron asked, pointing at the normally shy boy. "He's a squib," he stated.
"And you're a prat," Harry said, sneering at him. "Like I said, none of your business. Good night, all," he said, pulling the curtains around his bed.
"Good night, Harry," Neville said, pulling his own curtains.
With that everyone went to bed knowing where they stood with Harry Potter. Or at least they thought they did. They didn't have to like it, but that's the way it was. One thing was for sure, the Boy-Who-Lived wasn't taking shite from anyone.