Harry glanced at Orli with mild surprise, but instinctively heeded her silent counsel. He drew a steadying breath, allowing his temper to cool several degrees before finally speaking:
"I think Orli and Cedric have already explained things clearly enough. They both witnessed Avery and Peter Pettigrew with their own eyes, exactly as I did. I'll say it once more—Voldemort has returned. I could describe in vivid detail the scene of his resurrection and that revolting face of his, if anyone's interested. But if you don't believe it, we're certainly not going to force you. You're free to leave right now."
His voice still carried undertones of anger, but the delivery was considerably more measured than Orli's deliberately confrontational approach.
Every person remained firmly planted in their seats. Not a single soul departed—not even the argumentative Ravenclaw boy, though he continued glaring at Orli with stubborn defiance.
"Right, so," Hermione said, her voice climbing to that familiar high, thin register that betrayed her nervousness, "as we were discussing, if you're genuinely interested in learning defensive magic, we need to sort out the practical details—how frequently we'll meet, where we'll gather—"
"Is it actually true?" a earnest-faced Hufflepuff girl suddenly interrupted, her curious gaze fixed on Harry and Orli. "Can you both really produce a corporeal Patronus?"
This revelation sparked an immediate buzz of fascinated whispers throughout the assembled group. Orli strongly suspected Hermione had used this impressive credential as her primary recruitment tool.
"Yes," Harry confirmed, studying the girl with cautious wariness before quickly adding with characteristic modesty, "Though Orli managed it as early as Christmas of our third year."
"A fully corporeal one?" she pressed eagerly. "An actual moving animal Patronus?"
"Hold on—what's your name?" Ron interjected with obvious irritation. "We don't even know who you are." The endless barrage of skeptical questions and challenges was clearly wearing on his patience.
"I'm Susan. Susan Bones," the girl replied promptly, her tone suggesting no malicious intent whatsoever.
"Mrs. Bones?" Orli asked with sudden recognition, remembering the stern but fair judge from the previous year's hearing.
"She's my aunt," Susan explained with a genuinely warm smile. "She specifically told me to trust Dumbledore, and she mentioned Harry Potter's appearance at that Ministry hearing last summer." Her expression grew more animated. "So it's really true then? You both have your own Patronuses?"
"Yes," Harry confirmed simply.
"That's absolutely brilliant, Harry!" Lee Jordan exclaimed, practically vibrating with excitement. "I had no idea! Even plenty of fully qualified adult wizards can't manage that level of magic!"
"Mum specifically instructed Ron not to broadcast it," Fred said with his trademark mischievous grin. "You two attract quite enough attention without advertising advanced magical abilities."
"Mrs. Weasley demonstrates remarkable wisdom," Harry murmured quietly, earning appreciative chuckles from several listeners.
"Did you actually slay the basilisk with a sword that materialized from the Sorting Hat?" another Hufflepuff boy asked with barely contained awe. "One of the castle portraits told me that story last year."
"Well—but it was really a team effort..." Harry began hesitantly.
"Wow," Lavender Brown breathed in hushed amazement. The Creevey brothers exchanged looks of pure shock.
"Don't forget," Neville announced proudly to the entire gathering, "when we were first-years, Harry single-handedly protected the Philosopher's Stone—from You-Know-Who himself!" Hannah Abbott's eyes widened to the approximate size of Galleons.
"Not to mention last term's performance in the Triwizard Tournament," Ginny added with an admiring smile directed at Harry. "Dragons, merpeople, navigating that impossible maze..." Orli could swear she detected Harry's ears reddening slightly at the praise, though he still attempted to deflect:
"But none of those achievements would have been remotely possible without Orli's help... and Cedric also contributed significantly—"
Orli applied gentle but firm pressure to his arm, silently signaling him to cease his protestations. The current dynamic was working perfectly in their favor—if Harry continued deflecting credit so persistently, it would begin appearing either falsely modest or outright rude to their potential recruits.
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