Chapter 38: Wet ShirtsSummary:Hazel is punished for following orders to the letter.
Notes:(See the end of the chapter for notes.)
Chapter TextLater that evening she held a meeting of The Study Group in the Room of Requirement, or at least the core group she was overseeing personally. There were roughly 30 students here, ranging from firsties like Aria Zabini all the way to seventh-years like Angelina and Roger Davies. She was learning as much from the older students as they were learning from her, especially Fred and George; they were frightfully skilled wizards, well capable of casting a variety of spells, and constantly bemoaned that they couldn't keep their products in stock.
"If it weren't for you lot we'd have struck off on our own a long time ago-"
"-but we couldn't leave you with her, and Mum'd have our hides if we tried."
Hazel giggled. "Even if you're of age now?"
They both shrugged. "Honestly we might leave early this year anyway, we don't need NEWTs-"
"-and we didn't need OWLs either, which is why we didn't take them seriously!"
She sighed. "I wish I could just take it easy, but I can't. And I don't have a Mum hovering over me either, there's something inside me that won't let me slack off."
That brought matching shudders, and she giggled again. "Alright, shove off, go help the others." They saluted and wandered off, and she did the same, focusing especially on Hermione, Cho, Pansy and Hannah; they were leading the other four groups, after all, they had to be up to snuff. She wasn't worried about the first two: Hermione was bossy and confident in herself, and just had to be matched up with equally intelligent students or else her explanations would go over their heads, whereas Cho had experience leading in Quidditch, was patient, and had a surprising ruthless streak when need be.
Hannah, meanwhile, might have been a prefect, but Hazel couldn't help but worry about her being soft; maybe she was biased against Hufflepuffs, or maybe it was just that she knew first-hand how soft she really was. And Pansy was Pansy, she had the pureblood superiority, but without her father pushing her she had lost most of her motivation to excel in school, and it was starting to show. Hazel hoped giving her a project like this would light a fire in her again.
On the other hand, Hannah had been one of the first to sign up for The Study Group, and she could certainly hold her own in a duel. And Pansy wasn't a Slytherin for nothing; maybe she wasn't the most ambitious person here, but she had cunning to spare, and could certainly perform well enough under pressure. Most importantly: she wasn't shy about the Unforgivable Curses.
"Okay, bring it in, you lot." The lot of them gathered around her, excitement and curiosity on their faces. "Just so we're all on the same page, I won't be leading the entire Study Group personally, just you lot; there'll be four other groups led by Pansy, Hannah, Cho, and Hermione. Some of you will be in one of those groups to help them out; the rest of you are probably old enough you don't need my help.
"Now, I want to make something else clear: we're not fucking around. We'll learn Dark Arts alongside school-sanctioned stuff, and I've got a few books of Auror and Hit Wizard level spells I've been studying as well that I'll pass along."
Hannah looked nervous. "Even the Unforgivable Curses?"
"Especially the Unforgivable Curses. All three of them. And before you say it, they're only illegal when used against humans. I've checked, believe me."
Pansy just shrugged, while Hannah seemed vaguely horrified. Hermione was skeptical. "That can't be right. Are you saying we could use them against, say, a centaur or a goblin and we'd face no legal punishment?"
"Or a house-elf." Pansy had unexpectedly stepped forward. "Hazel's right, though. Right or wrong, legal or not, we've got to be ready. Our enemies won't hold back, and we can't either."
"But where does it end? There has to be a limit, or we're no different than the Death Eaters!"
Hazel had no patience for that kind of moralizing. "Enough! Don't you understand, Hermione? We have to deal with reality as it is, not as we want it to be, and until Voldemort and his goons are dealt with, the moral high ground is only gonna be a lynching platform for those who refuse to come down off of it!"
She didn't seem convinced, but apparently decided it wasn't worth arguing over now. "We're not doing it tonight, are we?"
"No, like I said at the first meeting I want everyone at the same level before we get into more intricate stuff. That includes the firsties and second-years." She waved at the younger kids in their group, including Aria and Dennis Creevey; Dennis looked sheepish but Aria glowered at all the taller kids. "So we'll teach our groups, run them through the drills and studying, and when the time comes, you'll pass on what I teach you. Got that?"
Pansy and Cho nodded; Hannah looked troubled but accepted her orders, and after a moment so did Hermione. "Good, and the rest of you?"
"We're with you, Hazel!" "Yeah, down with the Ministry!" "Fuck the Umbitch!"
Later on, after the meeting, Hazel saw Hermione was waiting with the usual gang. "What's up with you?"
"Well, what are you guys still doing here?"
Ginny giggled. "We're about to have sex, Hermione. One big sapphic orgy~"
Hermione was caught off guard, glancing from face to face: Ginny, Luna, Cho, Pansy, Daphne, Hannah and Leanne. "All of you?"
Hazel smirked and started unbuttoning her shirt. "All of us. If you're staying here, you're getting involved."
"Um… well, I guess Viktor said it was okay…"
"Good girl~"
A while later, after Hermione was quite convinced, they all cleaned off and took the secret passages back to their common rooms. Hazel did the same once she was sure everyone else was safe, and went to bed with a smile on her face.
The next day was a Sunday, so she did the last of the week's assignments before heading up to the Room of Requirement, one eye on the Marauder's Map so as to avoid the Umbitch. Once inside she began studying clothing transfiguration magic, so she could ramp up her efforts against Umbridge; spells to make her shirt tighter, her skirt shorter, so she could present a scandalous appearance in the pink hag's class yet still conform to "decorum" everywhere else.
And, she had to admit, it was nice to feel sexy now and then too.
But she had to be careful when she started this new plan. She had to make sure The Study Group could keep going without her, along with the Slytherin Quidditch team; she was confident Draco could lead the team as well as she could, but Cho, Pansy, Hannah and Hermione had to be up to snuff.
Once she had the new spells down she focused on casting them faster, and non-verbally, with a finger on her wand in her pocket. That way she could gaslight Umbridge in the middle of class! Make her look like a nutter, distract her from the others, and look good doing it, all at the same time!
The week that followed brought a great deal of rain and thunder, and though her team cursed and muttered, Hazel was ecstatic. They always played at least one game in god-awful conditions, and it was better to practice in it now and get a sense for what the hell to do later.
Granted, she had to do a little of her usual cajoling first, when the time came to lead practice during a torrential downpour. The entire team was huddled in the center of the changing rooms, wincing at the pounding of the rain. Hazel, standing before them, was not impressed. "Jesus Christ, am I training kindergartners or Quidditch players? What's a little rain! I guarantee you a real match is gonna go on, rain or shine, and we're not Hufflepuff! We're not gonna fucking forfeit just because we can't see!"
Draco looked mutinous. "Come off it, we can't play at all if we can't see!"
"Then wear your damn goggles, they've got the Impervius Charm on them and you'll see better! If you left them behind just cast the spell on you right now, I'll show you." She whipped out her wand and showed them how to cast the spell. "There, ready?"
If they'd been wearing the old uniforms it would've been truly miserable; all that wet, heavy cloth dragging them down and all. But the new ones were waterproof, and the goggles really did help see in the pouring rain; they were wet, sure, but at least they could practice. And practice they did!
Afterward, Hazel felt remarkably smug. "See? What did I tell you? It worked out just fine!"
Blaise scoffed. "These uniforms would be a great advantage if we were the only ones who had them. But everyone will have new uniforms."
"That doesn't mean they'll practice in the rain like we do, so they might not even find out they're waterproof until game day. Anyway! It's getting too dark to play in, so check in your brooms and fuck off to bed!"
The team cheered and laughed, and trooped off to the changing rooms. Hazel took a moment to make sure the balls were gathered and locked up, and went to the changing rooms herself, where she put her broom away and did some cool-down stretching. "Who am I gonna shag tonight? Daphne, Pansy? Someone else?"
She finished up and went out into the rain, trudging back up to the castle in the darkness. She was quickly soaked through to the bone, now that she had her regular clothes on instead of the fancy uniform, but the cold and wet only invigorated her as she thought of the warm fires in the common room.
She made it to the front door and slipped inside, and was about to-
"Hem, hem."
-cast a few drying charms on herself when the Umbitch appeared. Hazel grit her teeth and put her wand back. "Yes, Professor?"
"Out late and out of dress code again, I see~"
"We had practice, Professor, and as captain it's my duty to be first on the pitch and last off of it. I had to make sure everything was put away properly. And I was just about to dry myself off when you showed up."
Umbridge narrowed her eyes, trying to find something to get her on. "Prefects are expected to maintain decorum at all times, Miss Potter, as I have warned you several times. I suggest you change immediately."
"Immediately? Well, if you insist." She reached down to start taking her wet shirt off.
Umbridge's reaction was predictably hysterical. "N-Not out here! Back in your dorm!" She fumbled her wand out and flicked it awkwardly. "Adherentia!"
Hazel's shirt immediately stuck to her torso, and to her hands as well. She glared at Umbridge. "Really? A Sticking Charm?"
The pink hag was enraged, wand shaking in her grasp as she glared back. "I shall escort you to your common room, Miss Potter, and ensure you do not engage in any further lascivious behavior tonight! Fifty points from Slytherin and a week of detentions!"
"You will do no such thing, Professor Umbridge." Sinistra appeared from the direction of the stairs and approached them. "Punishing a student for following orders is not how we do things at Hogwarts."
"Miss Potter is intelligent enough to realize I certainly did not mean her to change right here in the entrance hall!"
Sinistra tilted her head to one side. "Indeed? If I recall, your exact words were, 'I suggest you change immediately.' Phrased as a suggestion or not, it was clearly an order, and she was merely obeying."
"I'm also stuck."
The professor nodded and waved her wand, banishing the Sticking Charm and drying her out in one movement. "I will see those detentions canceled, you should head back to the common room for tonight."
"Thank you, Professor." Hazel bowed quickly and left the entrance hall, figuring Sinistra could handle Umbridge better than she could right then. Raised voices echoed behind her, but she didn't stop.
Back in the common room, she found the others and sat down heavily. Pansy took her hand. "Where've you been? The others got back already."
"I ran into the Umbitch just as I was getting inside. She got onto me for my shirt being wet and me not having a bra on, then she told me to 'change immediately.' Her exact words."
Daphne giggled. "And did you?"
"Of course I did! But she freaked out and threw a Sticking Charm at me, took a bunch of points and tried to give me detention, all for following orders! Good thing Sinistra came along."
Draco nodded. "She's a good sort, Slytherin's been in a good place since she took over."
Daphne sighed. "I wonder where Snape is now? Do you think it's true, what they've been saying about him?"
"Of course it's true, everyone knows he was a Death Eater back in the day." Pansy sniffed. "But I heard Dumbledore say more than once that he was convinced he was on our side, through and through. So either he's really gone back, or he's still working for Dumbledore as a spy."
"Probably a bad idea to talk too loudly about that stuff." Hazel looked around to make sure no one was eavesdropping. "But yeah, those are the only two options. Who can say which is which?"
Draco looked away, and the others gave her a long look, which she blandly gave back to them. "Right, well, I'm about done for the night. See you dorks later." There was a chorus of goodnights as she got up and went for the dorms, where she did her nightly routine and went to bed with a smile on her face.
Later on, a pressure in her forehead woke her partway up. Frowning, she focused inward, finding her mental fortress, went for the dream trap…
A dark chamber, cloaked figures… in the corner of sight, pale fingers gripped arm rests…
A high cold voice… "Tell us again, Severus, what you have thus far discovered~"
One of the cloaked figures spoke up quickly, his voice familiar… "My Lord, it is as I have said. The ritual was fouled by the girl's actions, you are not at your full strength."
The pale fingers squeezed down… "And you have found no means of reversing this?"
"Regrettably not, my Lord."
Another cloaked figure stirred… "Why do you tolerate his failure, my Lord? You have killed others for far less!"
"So I have, Lucius, but they were not Severus Snape. And the failure is not his; you are more culpable in this than he. You were at the ritual, you were in charge, you should have foreseen."
The figure recoiled slightly... "My Lord, it was that charlatan Lockhart, it was his task to collect-"
"Cease your bleating." The high, cold voice laughed cruelly… "Be glad of your Lord's mercy, Lucius, that we do not demand your own life. Gilderoy paid for his failings already."
The first figure spoke up... "What would you have us do now, my Lord?"
"You, Severus, shall continue your research. Lucius, begone from our sight, and send Avery in your stead. We desire an update on our efforts at the Ministry~"
One figure bowed lower, the second bowed and backed away, not daring to turn his back on his master… The pale hands relaxed their grip… "What of our connection to the girl, Severus? We have sensed it several times since our return."
"It is a consequence of your mastery of Legilimency, my Lord, and of the manifold ties binding you to her. But it may go both ways; just as you can see through her eyes, so too could she see through yours."
"You are being vague, Severus. Speak plainly!"
"I cannot, my Lord. Without examining your mind directly, I can only make assumptions, form theories."
The pale hands squeezed again, then relaxed... "We are not so desperate yet as to allow even a trusted acolyte like yourself into our fastness, Severus. Now go. Nagini needs to be milked, and we need our potions."
"Right away, my Lord." The figure bowed and backed away, leaving the room in haste…
The high, cold voice sighed, and the owner turned aside, gazed at a cracked mirror on the stone wall… a bald, pale head, slitted nostrils, gleaming red eyes… "Are you lurking in there, Hazel Potter? Are you in my head even now?" The high, cold voice chuckled… "Lurk away, little spy, lurk away…"
The connection severed, the pressure eased…
Notes:I mentioned my grandfather last week, well, he passed away on Tuesday. It was peaceful, and we got to say goodbye. I'm working through things, however.
Chapter 39: October Speed RunSummary:October is boring so Hazel mainlines most of it, and there's really a lot going on.
Notes:(See the end of the chapter for notes.)
Chapter TextHazel opened her eyes, staring up at the darkness above her. She had been inside Voldemort's head! She had seen what he saw, spoken in his voice. Did Snape know? Voldemort himself seemed not to regard it with the seriousness it deserved.
This wasn't, of course, the first time she had been in his head. But it was the first time he seemed aware of her presence. Seemed to be. He hadn't been certain, or perhaps he was having a private joke.
She had to tell someone, but who? Snape and Dumbledore were both gone, and she wasn't sure which of the professors still around could be trusted. McGonagall? Murk?
Then she remembered the mirror. Of course, she had a conduit to the world outside Hogwarts! She dug it out straight away, pulled the curtains of her bed and cast a few muffling and silencing charms before holding it before her. "Sirius? Sirius Black?"
The mirror flickered, and for a moment nothing happened. "Sirius? Remus? One of you answer me!"
Finally the view shifted, and Sirius' face appeared, groggy with sleep. "Whuzgwan?"
"Sirius, wake up, something happened! I just had a vision of Voldemort!"
That seemed to shock him, and he turned away for a moment. "Remus, it's Hazel!" Turning back to her, he wiped the sleep from his eyes. "What happened, kiddo? Tell me everything."
Hazel waited for Remus to appear in the mirror, then told them about the conversation between Voldemort and his followers. Predictably, they scowled at the mention of Snape and sneered when Lucius' dismissal was described. Afterwards, Remus seemed thoughtful. "Voldemort is aware of your connection?"
"Yeah, and he didn't seem to take it very seriously, either. Maybe he thinks that having access to me is worth me having access to him?"
"Or the botched ritual messed him up even deeper than they think." Sirius frowned in thought. "And what was that about Avery and the Ministry?"
Hazel thought back to that part of the vision. "No idea, they didn't elaborate. Who's Avery?"
Remus shook his head. "One of the Death Eaters, but if he has a way into the Ministry we need to act."
"What's going on at the Ministry anyway? The papers are useless because of that blackout."
Sirius chuckled darkly. "Don't worry, the Wizengamot almost have the votes to override that. So long as Fudge doesn't do anything drastic, and he hasn't got the nerve for that so long as Umbridge is at Hogwarts."
That made sense, she realized. "Alright, well, I've got a long day ahead of me, so I should get back to sleep. G'night."
"G'night." The mirror went dark. Hazel put it away and lay back down, using Occlumency to wall off her mind and shove everything to one side so she could sleep.
The next day, at breakfast, Sinistra intercepted her. "I understand you have led the Samhain rituals for a few years now?"
"Yes, Professor, I have."
The woman nodded. "I will not deign to tell you what to do; I will only warn that Professor Umbridge will be especially keen on enforcing conformity that night, and the absence of so many Slytherins will stand out. You may wish to hold the celebrations on a different evening."
"Understood, Professor." They shared a nod, and Hazel went onto the Slytherin table, where she sat down and put her breakfast together. "Samhain is still on, guys, don't think we're avoiding it. But Sinistra suggested we hold it on a night other than Halloween, since the Umbitch is liable to be on high alert that night."
The others nodded in agreement. "We're with you, Hazel." "We won't let that hag push us around."
"Good. Halloween is a Tuesday this year, so we'll do our stuff on the Saturday before." Hazel finished putting her breakfast together, and after glancing around to make sure Umbridge was otherwise occupied, snaked a hand beneath the table to tease Pansy beneath her skirt.
A few weeks went by, and Hazel kept her head down and avoided Umbridge's wrath. She kept the meetings of The Study Group going, teaching her own lot while Hermione, Pansy, Cho and Hannah taught theirs; October brought the added stress of Quidditch, which she had to juggle alongside Angelina, Roger & Cho, Zacharias, and their teams.
A few days before Halloween, Umbridge had her stay after class. She sat and waited for the other students to file out before approaching the desk. "Yes, Professor?"
"Miss Potter, I understand that Slytherin has its own ways of honoring the upcoming holiday."
"That is correct, Professor. As a Slytherin alumnus yourself, I'm certain you were already aware."
"Quite. It is important, however, that we show unity in these uncertain times, and I shall be expecting the entire school to be in the Great Hall next Tuesday for the feast."
Hazel closed her eyes for a moment. "And the consequences for not attending?"
Umbridge smiled one of her stretchy, insincere smiles. "Why, Miss Potter, would anyone wish to avoid a cherished and time honored holiday celebration?"
Hazel frowned. "Speaking for myself, I've never felt a need to celebrate Halloween. To me, it's nothing but the anniversary of my family being murdered, and I have no wish to celebrate a murder."
Umbridge's smile didn't waver, and her eyes glittered malevolently. "Surely it is healthier to handle such memories in the company of your peers and with the faculty looking on, is it not? Attendance at the feast is mandatory, Potter, and that is final."
Hazel thought for a moment. Would it really be so bad to play along? Surely she could put up with crass celebrations and orange food for one night. Besides, she had already planned on doing Samhain things beforehand.
Well, so be it. She could tolerate this bullshit for one night. But she wouldn't make it easy for the Umbitch. "Is this what the Ministry wants, Professor?"
"Of course it is, Miss Potter. The Ministry's greatest concern in this time of chaos and uncertainty is to see our country through to peace and prosperity once more. And there is no better bulwark against uncertainty than unified confidence~"
The hag wasn't wrong, but somehow she doubted that particular wisdom was meant to apply in this fashion. Well, whatever. As long as they got Samhain, she could handle Halloween for one night. "I'll be there, Professor, but I won't enjoy it."
Umbridge's eyes glittered again. "Very well, Miss Potter. You are dismissed."
No doubt there would be some sort of propaganda value in Hazel sitting with the rest of the school. Hazel plotted how to nullify that while leaving Umbridge's office.
Lucky for her, someone else already had plans, as she would find out soon enough. "Hazel looks tired, doesn't she, bro?"
"She sure does, bro! And look where she's walking away from!"
Hazel smirked. There were Fred and George, bracketing her in on either side as usual. "What's up, fellas?"
"You tell us!"
"You're the one who looks like she's carrying the world on her shoulders."
She heaved a sigh. "Halloween, guys. She's making it mandatory for everyone to show up at the feast that night. And that's one night I'd really rather hide beneath my covers, you know?"
Both boys nodded solemnly. "We know exactly what you mean."
"We wouldn't wanna celebrate either."
"But we've got the solution to your problems!"
George handed her a wrapped candy chew. "Puking Pastilles!"
"One of your Skiving Snackboxes, I presume?" Hazel peeled the wrapper back and saw an orange-purple chew. "Which side makes me chunder and which cures me?"
"Orange for output-"
"-and purple for preservation!"
"Clever." She wrapped it back up and pocketed it. "Are they expensive? Can you make enough for the whole school in time for the feast?"
The twins shared a look. "We could, but it won't be cheap."
"Why? You think the Umbitch has something planned?"
"I don't know for sure, but she wouldn't be pushing so hard for everyone to attend the feast if she didn't. How much for the chews?"
The boys shared another look, then shrugged. "Eh, forget it, you've helped us out plenty already."
"Consider it one of the perks of early investment, young Potter!"
She grinned and shook their hands. "Glad to hear it. I'm sure we'll know about her plans on Monday, so we'll figure out some signal before then to fuck things up."
With her plans set, Hazel went on with her day, feeling good about Halloween for the first time in a long time. She thought she might even enjoy it, as she didn't feel trapped by her parents' legacies so strongly anymore. She was starting to make her own legacy, even if it was a bit dodgy.
Saturday came, and Hazel made sure things were ready for Samhain. The Slytherins gathered in fellowship with mementos of their dead loved ones, and when the time was right Hazel summoned a rat, killed it, chanted the words, and threw the rat in the fire. Then she rearranged the tables with the other prefects for a small feast. "Another year down."
Hazel spent the night with Daphne, and got up bright and early as she always did. But on the way upstairs to breakfast she was intercepted by the Headmistress. "Miss Potter, your presence is required upstairs."
"Uh, can I get breakfast first?"
"I apologize, your presence is required immediately,upstairs."
Feeling nonplussed, and confused at why McGonagall was apologizing, Hazel followed her up, and her confusion deepened when she realized they were approaching Umbridge's office. "Professor…?"
Thankfully they weren't alone with the pink hag. Sirius and Griphook stood there as well, ignoring the hag's disapproving glare. "Heir Potter, good. We have much to discuss."
"Griphook." Hazel wondered why this was happening around Umbridge, but decided to ignore her too for the moment. "What's going on?"
It was Sirius who answered. "Barty passed away last week."
What's that got to do with- wait, I was his heir. "I'm sorry to hear that. I assume we're here about his last will and testament?"
"Hem, hem. Per Ministry protocol, will readings of senior personnel must be witnessed by a Ministry representative, as well as wizards or witches of good standing in our community."
Hazel didn't like the way she phrased that, and judging by the way he bared his teeth, Griphook didn't like it either. But he moved on quickly. "So then! The last will and testament of Bartemius Crouch Senior…"
Hazel tuned out most of the legalese; the gist of it, so far as she could tell, was that she inherited the Crouch vaults and manor, along with their seats on the Wizengamot. "Is there any interest in preserving the Crouch name going forward?"
Sirius shook his head. "Considering how the last full-blooded members of the family turned out, I'd say the world is better off without them."
Umbridge didn't take that very well. "Lord Black! The very idea of discarding a long-standing family of the Sacred Twenty-Eight is-!"
Hazel cut the pink hag off. "-exactly what I'm gonna do! Griphook, transfer the contents of the Crouch vaults to the main Potter vault, and reopen them to be used by other families. Sirius, as my agent and representative I'm giving you the keys to the manor and full access to the Crouch estate; take Winky to survey the manor itself and ascertain whether it is fit for continued human habitation. Don't discard anything until I have time to personally review it. As for the seats, appoint proxies and absorb them under your own voting authority."
Umbridge smiled one of her stretchy, insincere smiles. "Bold of you to assume you'll find that kind of time, Miss Potter, what with your… schedule."
She just smiled back. "We have breaks for a reason, Professor. Was that everything, Griphook?"
"There is one other matter, yes. Your ring." The goblin produced a ring with the Crouch family crest; Hazel took it and slid it onto her finger, next to the Black and Gaunt rings. With that taken care of, Griphook rolled up the scrolls, nodded to Hazel, Sirius and the Headmistress, and strode from the room.
"Sirius, if you'll follow me to my office, you can use the Floo to return home. Miss Potter, you have missed breakfast, but I can arrange for something to be sent to your common room if you do not wish to wait for lunch."
"That's fine, Headmistress, I know how to get into the kitchens." She shrugged at that, so Hazel hugged her godfather, nodded to McGonagall, and left the room, leaving Umbridge stewing in her resentment.
Downstairs she slipped through the fruit bowl portrait and entered the kitchen, and the usual flurry of house-elves came bustling over to attend to her. She asked for a fruit bowl and some milk and sat talking to Moxy while eating. She reported that Regina (the Serpent of Slytherin) was getting slow and somnolent and that it would be a good idea for Hazel to visit soon before she went into hibernation.
Technically it was brumation, but Hazel didn't think the little elf would get it. But she went and spoke with Regina anyway, which wasn't very interesting because the big baby was more concerned about finding warmth and making sure her water source stayed pure. Silly omnicidal queen, anyway.
After lunch was Quidditch practice, and Hazel pushed her team even harder than usual, with the first match of the season in less than a week. Against Gryffindor too. And she knew just how to neutralize their best advantages.
After practice, she waved everyone in. "Good job, you lot. We're gonna trounce those Gryffindor assholes, count on that!"
Draco sounded dubious. "Are you sure? They've got a strong squad, Johnson's as hard on her team as you are on us."
She glanced around, and gestured them in closer. "But they're not gonna have their squad, because we're gonna get them all in trouble with pranks and dares and things. They can't play if they're in detention, or the hospital wing! Leave Ronald in charge of their reserves and it'll be a cake walk!"
Millicent chuckled meanly. "He still gets a bad case of nerves when he's in the spotlight too. You're right, we've got this in the bag."
"How do you know they'll fall for it?"
"They're Gryffindors, Blaise, they can't resist a challenge or an insult. So be creative, and don't get caught! Everyone clear?" They were clear, and she grinned. "Good! Now fuck off to bed!"
That brought a cheer, and as they changed and got ready to head back, Hazel sighed. This had been a very productive weekend, and she hoped she could keep this up through Halloween in two days.
Notes:I appreciate everyone who left a message last week, even if I didn't take the time to personally reply to all of you. Normally I do try and reply to every comment, but sometimes I'm not feeling very eloquent. Last week was just such a time.
I'm feeling better this week, however, and work is picking up so I don't have time to sit around and mope. For now, I hope you enjoyed the chapter~
Chapter 40: HalloweenSummary:Umbridge is worse than anyone thought, even Hazel.
Notes:This is a real banger of a chapter, I've been eager to put it out there. And it probably needs a trigger warning, but I'm not sure what to tag? Other than Umbridge being even more of a sexist hag than usual. So, you know, take heed.
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter TextThe day before Halloween dawned bright and cold, and Hazel had butterflies in her stomach all morning. Breakfast was interrupted when Umbridge stood up and tried to address the school. "Hem, hem! As you are all aware, the Halloween feast is tomorrow night! This will be a very important evening for Hogwarts, and as such, attendance at the feast will be mandatory for all students and faculty. I assure you, the food will be carefully selected and prepared in accordance with the latest nutritional guidelines. I look forward to seeing everyone's smiling faces again tomorrow night!"
Carefully selected, eh? "And how's it gonna look when your carefully selected feast leaves everyone retching, you miserable old bint."
Draco caught her eye and smirked. "Got something planned, Hazel?"
"Oh, you bet I do. If the Weasley twins hand you some candy today, take it and keep it ready."
"I'll spread the word." She nodded and went back to her breakfast, though the butterflies didn't let her eat much.
The day went by, and Hazel was certain there were more Skiving Snackboxes going around than she had ever seen before, and as a prefect she liked to think she was aware of this stuff. Even the teachers were getting in on it, except for Umbridge of course, but she seemed unaware. Hopefully she was unaware.
She had to be, if she wasn't unaware she'd do something extreme to put a stop to it. She'd made a whole Thing out of demanding attendance at the feast!
Though, maybe Umbridge wasn't completely unaware, as she stood up again at lunch the next day. "Hem, hem!Just a little reminder, children, that the feast tonight is quite mandatory! Nothing short of grave illness will get you out of attendance!"
Hazel hid a snort. Grave illness, indeed!
The last class was Defense, of course, and Hazel grit her teeth to be on her best behavior the entire class. As usual she pretended to read the whole time, while making notes about what to teach The Study Group in the next meeting.
The bell rang, and she put the book and her notes away. But she sensed someone approaching, and turned to see Umbridge looming over her. "Yes, Professor?"
Umbridge looked quite suspicious. "I must reiterate once again how imperative tonight's feast is, Miss Potter. I know you're scheming something, and I implore you to put it aside for the sake of Hogwarts."
Hazel giggled innocently. "Scheming, Professor? I've no idea what you mean~"
"This is your final warning, Potter! If the feast is disturbed and I find proof you were involved, detention will be the least of your worries!"
"Save your threats, Professor, I'm not scheming anything for tonight."
For a moment, she thought Umbridge would draw her wand, instead she schooled her expression and stepped back. "How silly of me to worry, of course. Do run along, my dear, and I'll see you at the feast~"
"Yes, Professor." She finished putting her things away, swung her bag onto her shoulder and left the room at last. Her friends were waiting, and she shook her head in silent warning not to start gossiping so soon.
Once they were around the corner, Draco grimaced. "What did the Umbitch want?"
"Just to interrogate me one more time about any possible schemes I might have for tonight." She rolled her eyes. "The schemes aren't mine, of course, Fred and George came up with the whole thing."
Hermione smirked. "As a prefect I'm supposed to try and stop them, but I wouldn't get anywhere this time. Besides, I want to see her go down as much as anyone else."
"Oh, right! Prefect, I suppose we should have stopped them. Oh well!" That got a laugh from her friends, and she smirked.
They parted ways at the stairs, and the Slytherins went down to get ready for the feast; even if they weren't going to attend the whole thing they had to keep up appearances. Hazel brushed her hair and touched up her makeup. "Everyone's got a Puking Pastille?"
Daphne nodded. "Everyone except Pansy. She's done enough self-inflicted vomiting for one life."
Hazel grimaced, she hadn't thought of that. What if other students had eating disorders? Would the Pastilles make them regress? Hopefully Fred and George had that much sensitivity…
She was nervous as the hour of the feast approached, and it seemed to her that Umbridge was also nervous. She had to know something was going on. Hazel got cold feet and nearly went to call the whole thing off, but got a grip on herself; whatever propaganda value this feast would have was worth messing with.
They all went upstairs, and Fred and George sidled over as they came out into the entrance hall. "Give it a few minutes, let everyone get some food down before kicking off."
Hazel nodded. "Right, that'll give the Umbitch time to make her speech and let her guard down."
Finally, with everyone gathered in the Great Hall, Umbridge stood up to give an address. "Hem, hem! Well! It is lovely seeing so many eager young faces, here to give thanks to our betters!" She gestured to the side, and with a start Hazel realized Minister Fudge was seated among the teachers and faculty. More shocking yet was the sight of reporters from the Daily Prophet, among whom she also noticed Rita Skeeter. Wasn't she on the outs with the current administration?
Luna's father Xenophilius was there too, probably representing independent media. Hazel wondered how he had gotten an invitation to this event.
Umbridge was speaking again, though, leaving her no time to worry at the issue of Skeeter. "As you can see, the Minister himself is in attendance! So it is imperative that we show loyalty and solidarity tonight!" She started clapping, and moments later the rest of the hall caught on and reluctantly clapped as well.
Draco leaned in. "Surprised he's got time for a school feast with the Ministry falling apart around his ears."
Hazel snorted. "Yeah well, Hogwarts is the last place in England where his word has any real weight."
At the staff table, Umbridge beamed around at the applause, and waved her hand for everyone to settle down. "And of course, we have members of the press, here to document this moment of unity and discipline! So without further ado, let the feast begin! There will be no need to talk!"
The food appeared on the golden tableware, but the usual assortment of sauces and spices was missing, and Hazel gagged at the watered-down pumpkin juice. If this was the latest in nutritional guidance from the Ministry, she wanted nothing to-
-her rings tightened on her fingers. Alarmed, she lowered her first forkful of food, glancing aside at Draco and the other heirs in their House. All their rings had also reacted.
Thoughts of subtlety and punishment went out the window; she couldn't let Hogwarts eat poisoned food! She pushed her plate aside and rose to her feet, putting her wand to her throat. "Professor Umbridge! The food is poisoned!"
Everything in the Great Hall came to a grinding halt as her amplified voice echoed. Umbridge looked comically alarmed for a fleeting moment before marshaling her expression into something vague. "Why, whatever gave you that impression, Miss Potter? I assure you, tonight's feast is-"
"And I assure you that it is indeed poisoned! My rings went off, as did those of other Heirs in the Hall, I'm sure!"
"One moment!" Professor Haywood pulled out a small potions kit and tested her own food, found nothing, then strode over to the Hufflepuff table. "Any Heirs? Did your rings go off?"
Susan Bones raised her hand, and Penny tested her food instead. The results came back quickly. "Not poison, exactly, but drugs designed to counteract birth control."
Umbridge was unrepentant. "Students shouldn't be on birth control anyway! All it does is encourage immoral behavior!"
A storm of mutinous muttering broke out across the hall, and Hazel couldn't believe her ears. But Penny plowed ahead anyway. "If that was all these drugs did it would be bad enough, Professor, but-"
"Enough! I'm sure you mean well, Professor Haywood, but we have a feast to attend to. Please resume your seat!"
"She will do no such thing." Headmistress McGonagall stood and banished all the food with a single sweep of her wand, save Susan Bones' plate. "Go on, Penny, what else would the drugs have done?"
Penny did a few more tests. "I can't get full results with this test kit, but the drugs I can detect are commonly used by couples attempting to conceive children." The grim expression on her face suggested that was the polite explanation.
McGonagall's lips thinned. "Dolores, you will remove yourself to my office immediately to account for this behavior. Pomona, head down to the kitchens and determine how these substances evaded the notice of our house-elves. Minister Fudge, I must ask you to retreat to the Three Broomsticks for now, I will update you when we have concluded our internal investigation of these matters." She turned to the rest of the school. "Those of you who ate the feast before Miss Potter could intervene, please partake of the Puking Pastilles Misters Weasley had been handing out, then proceed to the Hospital Wing so Madam Pomfrey can administer antidotes for the substances you imbibed."
Umbridge was furious when the Pastilles were mentioned, but there was nothing she could do. Those students who had eaten quickly shoved the orange half of their chews into their mouths, vomited the tainted food, and just as quickly forced the purple half down their throats before heading to the Hospital Wing, where Penny and Madam Pomfrey were hurrying to conduct more thorough tests on the food to determine exactly what Umbridge had tried to make everyone eat.
"Now hold on a minute, Minerva, I'm certain there's a reasonable explanation for what happened here." Fudge was on his feet and doing his best to defend his Senior Undersecretary. "This food was sourced from new suppliers, perhaps they-"
"Is the Ministry so negligent as to forgo basic food safety testing when deciding on alternative food supplies? No, Cornelius, Dolores will account for these events, and she will account to Hogwarts and to myself!"
Fudge turned an unpleasant shade of puce, but he knew when to back down. "The Ministry will be watching closely, Headmistress, to ensure our Senior Undersecretary is not unduly hindered in her duties. Ensure your thirst for justice does not overstep your authority!"
"Quite." McGonagall stared down the much shorter politician until he harrumphed and left the hall, jamming his lime-green bowler back on his head as he went.
Roger Davies and Patricia Stimpson hurried up to McGonagall. "We got lucky, Headmistress, the rings warned the students in time to keep more than a few bites from being eaten. Madam Pomfrey and Professor Haywood are testing the food further and figuring out how to treat the ones who did eat the food."
"And Professor Sprout is down in the kitchens as we speak." Stimpson looked especially troubled at what had almost happened.
"Very good, you both do your badges proud tonight." McGonagall nodded at the Head badges they each wore.
Hazel shook her head. "Umbridge surely didn't expect this scheme to work, did she? She had to have known anyone with an Heir ring would have been warned."
"Dolores has never been very forward-thinking, unfortunately, even when she was a student." McGonagall sighed. "Perhaps she thought you would assume it was a false alarm, those rings are quite old and prone to such, after all."
"Hardly, I've got enough going on to dismiss a warning. I'm gonna check on the kitchens on my way back to the dungeons." McGonagall nodded, and Hazel bowed and turned to leave.
Down in the kitchens, she found Sprout surrounded by anxious house-elves. "Professor, is everything alright?"
"It most certainly is not!" Sprout had a grim expression, which seemed out of place on her usually cheerful countenance. "I've been told the food for tonight's feast came already prepared, and they had merely to heat it up and send it to the students! And they were under strict orders not to test it!"
Moxy looked miserable. "Moxy tested it anyway and found nasty things! But wasn't allowed to say anything!"
Hazel reached down and patted her on the head. "You're not to blame, Moxy. None of you are to blame for what that pink hag tried to pull."
"Quite right! You are all bound to obey the professors, after all." Sprout clapped her hands briskly. "Now, why don't the lot of you get to work preparing a new feast for the common rooms? Our students will need something new to eat after the disappointment of the first feast."
The elves cheered and got to work, and Hazel took that as her cue to head back to her own common room. The others were down there as well, discussing what had happened. Pansy was beside herself. "Did she have any idea what this could have done to us? The futures she could have ruined?!"
Draco looked angry. "How did she plan on getting away with it, is what I want to know. Did she assume anyone with a ring would just brush the warnings off as a false alarm?"
"I hope this will be enough to get rid of her. The press saw everything, as did that Skeeter woman."
Hazel shook her head. "I don't think so, Daph. Fudge will make them spin it as an overreaction on our part, and he'll use every political trick he has left to make sure Umbridge stays right here. As for what she was trying to accomplish, well, how would it look if there was a sudden rash of teen pregnancies? It'd be the perfect excuse for her to clamp down with more of her traditionalist bullshit."
"And our parents would probably go along with it too." Draco sighed. "Well, at least we stopped her plans for now."
In the center of the common room, some tables rearranged themselves, and several platters of food appeared. Everyone gathered around, and Hazel made sure it was safe before starting to eat. As she ate, she was surprised at herself. "With everything going on, I haven't had time to get lost in my own head about what today really means."
Pansy nodded. "That's a good thing, right? It means you're starting to move on?"
"Maybe, I dunno." She shrugged and kept eating, wondering if eating so much before bed would make her sleep worse. Just in case she paced herself a bit, drank lots of milk, and did some studying before her nightly workout routine.
Notes:My grandpa's funeral was this morning. Some Naval people played taps and presented grandma with a flag, everyone except grandma cried. Even I sniffled a little. Maybe grandma did cry, she was facing away from me and I showed up a few minutes late (only cemetery in town, my ass!) anyway. But in all my years I've never seen her cry, so maybe she's just real good at keeping a lid on it.
Anyway, I'm gonna get hammered tonight. If any of you are the drinking types too, pour one out for the old man. He'll appreciate it, wherever he is.
Chapter 41: Quidditch & Other MattersSummary:Hazel doesn't slow down, and she doesn't have time to linger on political bullshit.
Notes:(See the end of the chapter for notes.)
Chapter TextNovember brought a renewed focus on Quidditch, with the first big game of the season set to take place on Saturday. Hazel and her snakes had three days to sabotage Gryffindor's chances, and to enhance their own. She wasn't the only schemer here; she knew Fred and George would have tricks up their sleeves to return the favor and even the odds.
So that evening before practice, she brought the team in for a pep talk. "Listen up, fuckers. We're not the only ones with an eye for playing dirty, Gryffindor knows how to give as good as they get. Especially Fred and George."
Draco looked unconcerned. "Aren't you best mates with those two? And shagging half the girls on their team anyway?"
"I'm shagging all of them, Malfoy, but that's beside the point." The team snickered, and she shot them a glare. "But that doesn't matter! They won't hold back, and we won't either. But they're hotheaded morons and we're not, so keep your wits about you this week and make sure they take a dive instead, got it?"
Hazel wanted to practice every evening, but Gryffindor managed to schedule in too, so she held a meeting of The Study Group instead. Everyone was solid on the basics, and catching up athletically to boot, so she thought it would be a good time to introduce serious Dark Arts spells at last.
"Alright then, I think we're finally ready for the real shit." The group fell silent, and gathered around in a circle. "Not the Unforgivable Curses just yet. We'll start with something a little less illegal: the Entrail-Expelling Curse."
Hermione giggled. "The same one you used on Ron before the Hogsmeade visit?"
"So that's what happened!" Ron scowled, but Hermione just giggled harder, and he subsided after a moment.
Hazel nodded. "Exactly. As Ronald can attest, it doesn't necessarily expel your entrails. Used at a weaker level it just… forces bowel movements."
Ron muttered about how he nearly shat himself, but everyone was too busy laughing to pay him much heed. From there, Hazel ran through the warm-up exercises, then had the Room conjure a bunch of critters for everyone to practice on after she showed them the incantation and wand movements.
As she had explained, the spell could be cast at varying levels of potency. The critters showed various levels of gastrointestinal distress, ranging from mild discomfort to explosive diarrhea; some of them laughed at this, the rest seemed to take the spell seriously, perhaps imagining it used on them. Hazel went from student to student, correcting wand movements and incantations as necessary.
As the week went by, her team focused on the Gryffindors. Fred and George were removed from the field early, thanks to a well-timed dare from an innocent Ravenclaw that Umbridge happened to catch wind of. The others sabotaged themselves in their efforts to sabotage Slytherin; Hazel took particular glee in deflecting Angelina's Entrail-Expelling Curse the morning of the match, and watched her get detention for her trouble.
Hazel almost felt bad the day of the match. Ron was left to rally the reserves, who despite Angelina's high-pressure training simply didn't have the exposure necessary to counter Slytherin's main squad. Just to rub it in, Hazel stepped back and allowed Draco to manage the game in her stead, and they still won by a landslide.
Ron had a betrayed look in his eyes after the match was over. "You couldn't give it a rest even here? I know you were behind our squad being taken out of commission."
Hazel shook her head. "Sorry, you know I can't go easy on you lot. Not with everything else going on." She patted him on the shoulder. "There's more important things going on right now, Ronald, you know that."
"Yeah, yeah." He shrugged it off, and Hazel wondered if he really understood or if he was just playing along. She had no time to consider it, however.
Angelina and the other Gryffindor girls were a bit resentful when they got out of detention, but they understood that what happened on the pitch, stayed on the pitch. Besides, they had an interesting way of taking their frustrations out on Hazel, inspired by Ginny's example, and afterwards Hazel couldn't say she didn't enjoy it.
Hazel felt like a queen for the next few weeks, with the Slytherins firmly rallied behind her after trouncing the lions. Ravenclaw and most of Hufflepuff were on her side too, and while most of Gryffindor was sour, the ones that mattered still supported her. She continued with her secret plans too, while Cho, Hannah, Pansy and Hermione taught their groups. Her command of wandless magic was almost complete, she reckoned she could get started in December.
She couldn't wait to see the look on Umbridge's face when she started her gaslighting campaign. She would mess with her surroundings; break chalk, knock plates off walls, raise or lower the temperature. With everyone bundled up against the cold and snow, sudden spikes of heat would be especially noticeable. And that wasn't even getting into her real plans, to use the dress code against Umbridge; she would mess with her uniform so it seemed as if she was out of line, then fix it immediately, leaving her questioning her perceptions and everyone else questioning her sanity.
She had to be ready. She knew this would cause the hag to fixate on her, leaving the others free to operate in the shadows. But who knew how she would react? More flunkies, more decrees and restrictions? How awful would the detentions become?
A few nights later, Zacharias approached her after a meeting of The Study Group. "Oi, Potter, got something you'll wanna hear."
"What's up, Smith?"
He stepped closer and lowered his voice. "The Umbitch is putting an Inquisitorial Squad together, of students who either believe the Ministry's bullshit or don't like you. She wants a more direct way of enforcing her will when she's not around."
Children of Ministry employees, she suspected. "Did she approach you?"
"Yeah, but I turned her down. Crabbe and Goyle signed on though, and I'm pretty sure Edgecombe is at least interested. She has to toe the line, you know, because of her mother."
"Right. We can't ask people to put their families at risk. " She hoped the secret jinx on Hermione's paper held up.
The next morning, she pretended to have trouble with an assignment and went to sit next to Cho, who was seated by Marietta. "I heard about the Inquisitorial Squad."
Cho shrugged. "It's nothing to do with us. We're on your side, Hazel, both of us."
"Y-Yeah, both of us." But there was hesitation in Marietta's eyes as she spoke, and Hazel suspected it was because of her mother.
"I hope so." Hazel leaned in closer. "Listen, Edgecombe, if you have to protect your family, it might be best if you stepped back from the Study Group. I'm not so heartless as to make you choose."
Marietta shook her head slowly. "No, I'm in, I signed that parchment like everyone else. But maybe I can play both sides? Pretend to report to her to keep my mum safe, while snitching her out to you guys?"
Hazel smiled; her lessons on Slytherin-ing were sinking in better than she had hoped. "A very Slytherin attitude. I approve."
Cho looked up, her eyes went wide and she raised her voice. "So, Potter, about that Arithmancy essay?"
Hazel caught on immediately and waved her essay around. "Ah, right, I think I've got everything I-"
"Hem, hem. What brings you so far from your housemates, Miss Potter~?"
She fluttered her lashes innocently. "I needed Chang's help with an essay, Professor, no big deal."
"Hm." She narrowed her eyes, but could find nothing to push. "Return to your table, Potter, and leave Miss Chang and Miss Edgecombe to their own breakfast."
"Yes, Professor." One good thing about fighting an enemy bound by rules; she couldn't do anything so long as one outwardly obeyed those same rules.
She glanced back as she returned to her seat; Umbridge was looming over Cho and Marietta, with Cho looking calmly defiant and Marietta looking a bit nervous. Hazel huffed a sigh; she was a weak link, no matter what she said.
At least the stream of Educational Decrees had stopped. Umbridge and Fudge didn't have the political capital left to force more through, not after the Halloween farce. Hazel was relieved at that, at least. The Daily Prophet and the Quibbler had reported on the incident, and she knew Luna still had her father's article pinned to her headboard, but apart from that the press blackout on developments at the Ministry was still in force.
Hazel went through most of the day in an impenetrable fugue, doing her classwork on autopilot while she fumed about injustice. How long did it take to get rid of a Minister for Magic anyway? Maybe she should have him killed!
…no, that would just make him a martyr. She couldn't have Umbridge killed for the same reasons. Why was it so hard being an anti-hero? At least she wasn't a hero, she couldn't imagine being bound by ethics and morality.
Come to think of it, villains had it easy. They could simply murder whoever got in their way and fuck anyone who spoke out against them. Wouldn't that be nice? To be so completely unfettered that nothing was off the table. There was definitely some merit to that approach.
That evening, she closed the curtains around her bed, throwing up muffling and silencing charms, and used the mirror to contact her godfather. "Sirius Black?"
The mirror flickered, and Sirius appeared. "Hey, kiddo. Everything okay?"
"As okay as it can be. We don't have any reliable way of getting news from outside, what's the mood like outside Hogwarts?"
His face darkened. "Pretty grim, to be honest. Loyalty to the Ministry is at an all-time low, and the Order is gaining ground every day. We've got Voldemort on the ropes, but Dumbledore won't let us attack. None of us are quite certain what he's waiting for, either."
Hazel knew. The old man was waiting for the Horcruxes to be destroyed. There were a maximum of two left, after they had destroyed the diary and purged the ring and locket. And Hazel had a sneaking suspicion she was one of them. A suspicion that had been percolating in the back of her mind ever since they purged the locket and she felt that presence in her mind.
At the time, she had assumed it was Voldemort, but the presence hadn't been felt since then. But what if it had been the piece of soul from the Horcrux? Was it possible that the searing headaches she had felt off and on were bits of that madman's soul latching onto her, or else acting up and trying to push out?
She remembered the hellscape that had been her third year, the darkness and insanity. She certainly had done her part, messing around with Unforgivable Curses and everything. Had the bits of soul been influencing her? It certainly felt that way now, with hindsight. But if that was so, why hadn't she ever encountered those pieces of soul during her Occlumency excursions?
"Hazel? Earth to Hazel, are you there?"
"Oh! Shit, sorry Sirius. I was… following a train of thought. What were you saying?"
"I was saying about how we're taking Death Eaters down. The Ministry still isn't officially recognizing them so Madam Bones deputized all of us, and Kreacher and I expanded the basement of Grimmauld Place for holding cells."
Hazel wondered how forcing someone who wasn't in on a Fidelius secret through the boundary of said secret even worked; clearly it did work, or they wouldn't be doing it. Not something to get sidetracked over, however. "Oh, cool! Captured anyone important yet?"
"Avery. Crabbe and Goyle Senior. Macnair. A few others. We've basically been holding onto anyone Amelia suspects of spying within the Ministry for Voldemort, and those we've caught ourselves. Well, the ones who let themselves be taken alive anyway."
That sent a thrill down Hazel's spine, and she grinned. "They fight pretty hard, then? I can't imagine they'd survive long after heading back to their boss in defeat."
"Eh, he can't be too merciless, he doesn't have many competent goons left."
"Right, well, I'd better get to bed. Good night, Sirius."
He cocked an eyebrow at the abrupt dismissal, but didn't challenge it. "Sure, kiddo. Love you."
The mirror went dark, and Hazel put it away. She decided tonight she would relax her defenses, try and spy on Voldemort deliberately by focusing on Legilimency instead of Occlumency. So she did her usual routine, and went to bed feeling rather out of sorts for not having her defenses up. Nevertheless, sleep came quickly…
Notes:I almost didn't post this week, still reeling from the election results. But Hazel wouldn't let it get her down, so neither can I. The show must go on!