Chapter 9 Autumn Leaves
That afternoon Harry, Ron and Hermione had Double Charms class. They worked on the Disillusionment Charm and as usual Hermione was the first student to master the incantation. She earned five points for Gryffindor and for the first time that day she smiled a little. As some of the students mastered the spell they began to play a version of hide and seek. While everybody in the class closed their eyes, a student would cast the Disillusionment Charm on their partner. The disillusioned student would hide somewhere in the classroom. Then everyone would open their eyes and try to find the hiding student.
Hermione cast an excellent Disillusionment Spell on Hannah Abbott. No one could see a sign of her until she planted a kiss on Harry's face. Everyone was amused, except Hermione.
Towards the end of the hour Parvati spotted a bamboo wand on Professor Flitwick's desk and she asked him what it was. Professor Flitwick explained how this cheap generic wand could be used to do simple spells. He had Harry demonstrate how to cast a spell accepting charm on the bamboo wand and how to load a charm into the wand. The preloaded charm could be set off with a proper incantation. It took three incantations to set off one spell, but that wasn't too bad considering it was just a bamboo tube with a Flobber Worm heart in it. Harry and Hermione loaded the bamboo wand with Disillusionment Spells and used it to make Ron disappear, sort of. The bamboo wands would never be useful for a complex charm like summoning a Patronus.
By the end of the first day of classes Gryffindor had earned enough house points to eliminate the coal balls. Besides Hermione's five points, Ginny had earned five points in Care of Magical Creatures, Colin had earned five points for providing the picture of Hermione that was on the bulletin board and Winston Whitehead had earned ten points. Dennis Creevy had lost five points and was disappointed that he didn't earn coal balls. Gryffindor was still in last place for house points but there was hope for tomorrow.
At dinner that evening Luna Lovegood wandered over to the Gryffindor table.
"Hi Ronald! Hi Harry!" said Luna, "Have you heard the awful news?"
"News about what?" Ron asked.
"Why there was no Daily Prophet this morning," said Luna. "I got an owl from my dad this afternoon. The office of the Daily Prophet was attacked by Death Eaters. Some of the editors were killed. Dad is helping the survivors to pull together a short paper for tomorrow."
Harry spent the evening studying Charms and Potions in the common room. At a few minutes before nine, Colin and Dennis Creevy came in through the fat lady's door.
"Weren't you patrolling with Hermione?" Harry asked Colin.
"Ron and Ginny are on Prefect duty tonight," Colin answered, "Hermione and I patrol tomorrow."
For the next half hour Harry continued to try to study, but he couldn't concentrate.
At half past nine Ron and Ginny returned
.
"Where's Hermione?" Harry asked in a worried tone.
"We saw her in the library an hour ago," Ginny answered.
"She should be back by now," Ron said. "Has anyone seen Hermione?" he shouted.
"She's not in our room," Lavender responded to Ron's shouting.
"I'm going to look for her." Harry said as he moved towards the door.
"Not without a Prefect," said Ron joining him.
Ron, Ginny and Colin all followed Harry out the door.
"To the library first!" suggested Ron as they ran down the corridor.
The library was closed and dark.
"She must have gone to Gryffindor Tower," Colin said.
"But what route would she have taken?" Ron asked.
"Wait," Harry said, "I hear something."
There was the sound of running water coming from the girl's bathroom.
Ginny opened the door of the bathroom. Hermione was lying on the floor. Her head was covered with a sack.
"Ginny, Harry stay with her!" Ron ordered, "Colin come with me!"
Colin and Ron ran to get Madam Pomfrey as Harry and Ginny dashed over to Hermione's motionless body.
Harry took the sack off Hermione's head as quickly as he could without risking a neck injury while Jenny checked Hermione's wrist for a pulse. Harry couldn't tell if Hermione was breathing or not.
"Does she have a pulse?" Harry asked Ginny desperately.
"I don't know," Ginny said with a hint of panic in her voice.
"Elevate her feet," Harry told Ginny.
Ginny used her wand to summon Hermione's book bag. An alarm bell sounded.
Harry tipped Hermione's head back and tried some artificial respiration. He was glad he had been in the First Aid class during summer camp. He inflated Hermione's lungs twice.
"Does she have a pulse?" Harry asked Ginny again.
"I don't know!" Ginny said with panic in her voice.
Harry pulled out the vial of healing potion that he had stolen from class earlier that day. He placed a few drops on the back of Hermione's tongue and rubbed her throat. Then he used artificial respiration again to inflate Hermione's lungs twice. Then he tried to give her some more potion. Then he repeated the artificial respiration. Then he did it all again.
"I think she's got a pulse," said Ginny hopefully.
Madam Pomfrey arrived with Ron and Colin.
"What happened to her?" Madam Pomfrey asked.
"We don't know," said Ginny.
Madam Pomfrey passed her wand over Hermione's body and tapped a chart. A picture of Hermione's body appeared on the chart. There were several red zones on the picture of her body with notations in the margins. Madam Pomfrey studied the chart.
"Oh my," Madam Pomfrey gasped. "What have you done?" she asked Harry.
"Artificial respiration and healing potion," he said as he showed her the vial.
"Professor Snape told me what your class prepared today," she said. "Give her the rest of that vial, in small amounts, like you were doing."
Madam Pomfrey began to chant healing spells over Hermione.
Harry heard Professor Fudge outside the bathroom door.
"Ginny Weasley cast a summoning spell," Fudge said.
Professor McGonagall entered the bathroom. "Oh good heavens!" she exclaimed. "What happened?"
"Someone beat up Hermione," Ron replied.
Madam Pomfrey worked on Hermione for ten minutes.
"I think we can risk moving her to the hospital now," she said.
Madam Pomfrey conjured up a stretcher beneath Hermione and began to levitate her towards the hospital. As they left the bathroom she told Ron to seal the door, it was a crime scene. They stopped half way to the hospital wing and Madam Pomfrey repeated her scan of Hermione. Then she worked on her in the corridor for ten minutes before they started moving again. When they reached the hospital, Madam Pomfrey went right to work on Hermione, ignoring Harry and his friends.
Ron and Harry sat down in some chairs and waited. Ginny and Colin went back to Gryffindor Tower.
Hours of doubt later, Harry drifted off into sleep in his chair. He awoke thinking that hours had passed, but he had slept less than thirty minutes.
"Madam Pomfrey says that she will live," Ron reported with relief. "There's nothing we can do for her here."
Harry and Ron left the hospital. They walked through the corridors with their wands in their hands, wary.
"I want to look in the bathroom, where we found her," Ron said. "I can't figure how they were able to sneak up on her."
Since Ron had sealed the bathroom door, he was able to open it. Harry and Ron went in and looked around. There was some blood on the floor where they had found Hermione. Harry's eye was drawn to a splinter near a toilet stall. He examined it closely. It was bamboo.
"They used a Disillusionment Charm to sneak up on her," Harry said.
"Students can't cast spells outside of a class without being detected," said Ron.
"The Disillusionment Spell was cast in Charms class this afternoon," Harry explained. "Hermione and I loaded it into a bamboo wand. Anyone in the class could have stolen it."
"Who beat up Hermione?" Ron asked.
"Who do you think?" Harry asked bitterly.
"Malfoy and his friends," Ron said with certainty. "I'll bet Nott held her while Crabbe and Goyle pounded her. Malfoy wouldn't get his own hands dirty, he was the lookout."
The next morning Harry and Ron went to the hospital before breakfast. Hermione was alive but she was still unconscious. Madam Pomfrey looked tired.
"It was a busy night," Madam Pomfrey said in an exhausted tone. "I had to heal numerous bruises, a fractured skull, a concussion, several broken ribs, a lung that was punctured and collapsed, bruised kidneys and a ruptured spleen with dangerous amounts of internal bleeding. And I had only one patient,” she said looking at Hermione. “No, I had two. Pansy Parkinson burned her nose trying to remove a pimple. Professor Snape brought her in. She was in and out before the real action started."
Harry and Ron sat down to wait, but Madam Pomfrey told them to go get some breakfast and come back tomorrow. Hermione needed rest, but she would probably recover completely thanks to modern magical healing spells.
After breakfast Harry and Ron went to talk to Dumbledore about their discovery of the bamboo splinter. Kingsley Shacklebolt was in Dumbledore's office. The attack on Hermione was being treated as an attempted murder. Officials from the Department of Magical Law Enforcement were investigating.
Hermione was able to talk by Thursday, but her testimony wasn't all that helpful. She didn't see her assailants. She didn't know if she was attacked by two or ten, but she guessed four. She guessed that they were boys because they were so strong. Hearing how they had held her and hit her and hit her and hit her, just made Harry mad. In the end there was no solid evidence to prove that it was Malfoy and his gang.
Ron instituted a strict regime of self defense. No one was allowed out of Gryffindor Tower alone, groups of four or more being preferred. Ernie MacMillan ordered a similar policy for Hufflepuff. Since magic outside the classroom was strictly controlled, every book on Muggle methods of fighting was checked out of the library.
The Daily Prophet did not report the attack on Hermione. They devoted most of their space to the story of the attack on the Daily Prophet offices. Four staff members had been killed and a lot of damage done. They were using the facilities of the Quibbler to put out a one page paper each day. There was a term for this style of warfare that the wizard community had not experienced in many years, terrorism.
On Saturday morning Harry and Ron went to the hospital to escort Hermione back to Gryffindor Tower.
“Come back for me at lunch time,” she told them. “I have to talk to Madam Pomfrey and take a written test.”
That afternoon Hermione told Harry that she had joined the Nurse Training Program. This was an important first step towards a career as a Healer.
"When did you decide that you wanted to be a Healer instead of an Auror?" Harry asked her.
"I'm not sure that I do want to be a Healer," Hermione answered. "But I want to keep that option open. The important thing is the book."
"What book?" asked Harry.
Hermione whispered into his ears, "Madam Pomfrey has a personal copy of The Complete Guide to Sympathetic Magic by Amours and Lovelynn."
She gave Harry a big smile.
"She keeps it in a cabinet with a bunch of trashy novels and it's not locked!"
Hermione had a great pile of homework to catch up on but by Saturday evening Harry and Ron were bored with studying.
"Let's go visit Hagrid," Harry suggested.
"I would love to Harry," Hermione said, "but I'm so far behind in my class work."
Ron walked across the common room and spoke to Colin and Dennis Creevy and some third year boys in low tones.
"It's alright Harry," Ron said. "You and I can visit Hagrid."
Then he turned to Hermione. "Colin and Dennis will look out for you this evening. Don't leave Gryffindor Tower," he ordered.
Ron's sudden bossy attitude took both Harry and Hermione by surprise. Hermione's flashed with anger and she opened her mouth to argue, but she looked at Harry.
Harry silently mouthed "Yes Ron."
Hermione took a slow deep breath. She quietly said, "Yes Ron."
"Right," Ron said in surprise.
He seemed stunned.
"You're not going to argue with me?" asked Ron disbelieving.
Harry shook his head.
"No Ronald, I'll stay here tonight." Hermione answered. "I won't leave Gryffindor Tower. Say hello to Hagrid for me. Please tell him I'm sorry that I lost my temper."
"Right," Ron said, clearly stunned by Hermione's unexpected acquiescence.
Harry and Ron left the castle and crossed the darkening grounds to Hagrid's hut.
"I'm worried about Hermione," Ron told Harry.
"Aren't we all," Harry replied.
"I mean, it's not like her to give up like that," Ron said.
"She just got out of hospital. She's tired. Your precautions are sensible," Harry stated.
"That's never stopped her from arguing before," Ron said. "Maybe the pressure is getting to her."
Harry and Ron had a nice visit with Hagrid. He told the boys that he had indeed spent the summer in an attempt to communicate with the giants. He was optimistic that most of the giants wouldn't get involved in the fight between the Ministry of Magic and Lord Voldemort, but discouraged by the way they seemed to spend all of their time fighting each other.
"What do you make of Dumbledore hiring Cornelius Fudge to be the new Defense Against the Dark Arts instructor?" Ron asked.
"You know Dumbledore, he gives second chances," Hagrid reminded them. "Ol' Fudge isn't a bad chap, he jes liked power. When them Death Eaters all escaped agin, he was out of a job. Reckon it made 'im a bit more ‘umble. Is he a good teacher?"
"He's not bad," Harry said, "but it's a bit early to tell."
On Sunday Ron talked Ginny and Katie into a little extra Quidditch practice. He wanted to be well prepared to keep against the Slytherins. Harry stayed in Gryffindor Tower with Hermione. By mid afternoon Hermione was ready to take a break from studying.
"Harry," she whispered, "take me to the kitchen. I need to visit the house-elves."
"I thought you would be sick of the house-elves," Harry said.
"Oh no!" Hermione said, "I've barely gotten started with them. The work was hard. But in the last two weeks of summer I had something of a breakthrough."
So Harry reluctantly left Gryffindor Tower with Hermione and they walked down to the kitchen. Hermione talked all of the time they were walking so neither one of them noticed that they were being followed by four boys.
"We spent the last two weeks cleaning up the castle for fall term," Hermione babbled.
"It was a lot of hard work, but the house-elves talk to me now."
"A whole summer of hard labor to get house-elves to talk to you," Harry said skeptically.
"I did more than that!" Hermione exclaimed. "I think they trust me now. I started reading to them."
"Reading to the house-elves?" Harry said incredulously, "Do they like books?"
"They've never been exposed to books!" Hermione said. "I started with recipes, during the week I was cooking. They thought it was useful! I could use books to expand the menu! Then I started reading children's books, mostly The Heroic Deeds of Young Godric Gryffindor."
They arrived at the painting of the fruit bowl and tickled the pear to open the kitchen door. When they entered the kitchen the house-elves were busy at work but they stopped very quickly.
The word spread through the kitchen like fire. "Miss Hermione is back!"
Dozens of smiling house-elves gathered around Harry and Hermione.
"Miss Hermione and Harry Potter!" Dobby greeted them. "We are so glad to see that you are alive and have come back to see us again!"
Hermione greeted the house-elves warmly, there were more than a few hugs.
"I'm sorry I haven't been back to see you in a whole week," she apologized. "It's been a very rough week. I brought the book I was reading. Where were we?"
"Godric had rescued the princess," said a little elf boy, "but he had to get out of the cave. There was a dragon waiting at the entrance!"
"Oh yes! Now I remember," Hermione said. "We're on Chapter 20."
The door of the kitchen opened again and Dennis Creevy and three other third year Gryffindor boys entered.
"What are you doing here?" Harry asked Dennis.
"We're following you," Dennis said simply.
"Why?" Harry demanded to know.
"Uh-" Dennis began, "because Ron told us to."
"What? Why?" Harry exclaimed.
"He's bigger than us," Dennis explained, "and he wanted to play Quidditch. What are you doing in the kitchen?"
"Hermione is going to read to the house-elves," Harry said in an irritated voice.
"OK," Dennis said as he and his friends found some chairs. "Can we get some tea and cakes while we wait?"
A half dozen house-elves scrambled to get snacks for Harry and Hermione's body guards while Hermione began to read.
After Hermione had read for about five minutes, Harry felt a tug on his arm. He turned around to see one of the biggest and strongest looking house-elves that he had ever seen. The elf gestured for Harry to follow him to Old George's pantry.
"Hello Harry Potter," Old George said in a flat tone of voice. "The house-elves want to know who beat up Miss Hermione."
"There's not enough proof for an official arrest to be made, but we believe it was four sixth year Slytherin boys," Harry answered. "Their names are Malfoy, Nott, Crabbe and Goyle. Their motive is that their fathers were all either killed or humiliated in a battle that occurred at Hermione's house."
"But no proof?" George asked.
"Right," Harry said, "they are still free to roam around the school."
"They'll be watched," Old George said.
As Harry moved to the door to leave the pantry, he turned back towards Old George.
"Who else are you watching?" Harry asked George.
"Harry Potter doesn't need to know the whole lot," George replied. "But we doesn't follow little witches into the bathroom!" he added defensively.
Shortly after Harry and Hermione and their bodyguards returned to Gryffindor tower,
Ron came in from the Quidditch pitch. Harry followed Ron up to their room.
"You had us followed," Harry said angrily. "Don't you trust me with her?"
"What? Trust you with her?" Ron said in surprise. "Dennis and the boys were to protect you from Malfoy's gang, that's all. They're not spies! I'm just being cautious."
"I can take care of myself and I can watch out for Hermione too," Harry said.
"We're at war," said Ron. "You two are both major targets, especially you. It's like chess. Our best pieces have to be covered."
"And who's watching you?" Harry asked.
"I forgot about that!" Ron said in surprise. "I am assigning that job to you."
On Monday evening as Harry was eating dinner with Ron, he saw Hermione enter the great hall with Susan Bones. Both girls were wearing white capes and caps that matched Madam Pomfrey's. Hermione waved to them but sat down at the Hufflepuff table with Susan. As they were leaving the great hall after dinner they heard Hermione call to them.
"Harry! Ron! You can't leave yet! Come over here!" ordered Hermione.
"Since when did you join Hufflepuff?" Ron asked Hermione.
"We'll be at the Gryffindor table on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays," Hermione replied. "Susan and I are going to eat together so we can talk about Healing Class. On Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays we'll eat at the Hufflepuff table but you two will need to escort Susan to the hospital after dinner."
"Why are we escorting Susan to the hospital?" Ron asked.
"Because Ernie MacMillan and some Hufflepuff boys are going to escort me to the hospital on Tuesdays Thursdays and Saturdays," Hermione explained.
"This sounds rather complicated," Harry said.
"You don't want me walking around the castle alone do you? And isn't Quidditch practice on Tuesday and Thursday evenings?" she asked.
"Right and right, but…" Ron said.
"Hufflepuff Quidditch practice is on Monday and Wednesday," Hermione went on. "Oh and you two will need to come to the hospital early on Wednesday, Friday and Sunday mornings to escort me back to Gryffindor Tower.
"You say you're working in the hospital on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday nights?" Ron said in a confused tone.
"Now you've got it!" Hermione said smiling.
"But you've got Prefect duties on those nights," Ron said.
"Oh no!" Hermione said closing her eyes and slouching. "This is complicated."
Parvati Patil had picked up Hermione's Prefect duties while she was in the hospital. Fortunately she agreed to help out until Hermione could get her schedule straight.
The following evening they practiced Quidditch until the twilight was fading. As they entered the castle they heard Dennis Creevy.
"Mr. Fudge, someone has messed with the picture of the naked lady," Dennis said.
"What naked lady?" Fudge asked.
"The one on the horse, she's got long blond hair that covers her tits, except when the wind's blowing," explained Dennis.
"Oh yes! Lady Godiva,” Fudge said with a smile. "That painting's always popular with the boys. But the spell alarm didn't go off," he added thoughtfully.
Harry glanced up as Professor Fudge climbed the stairs to examine the painting of Lady Godiva. He wondered what Dennis was up to, and he hoped it didn't cost them too many house points.
"Oh good heavens!" he heard Fudge exclaim. "It's outrageous! Who…?"
Then Harry heard a swish, and a thud, and a clunk clunk clunk as something rolled down the steps.
"Oh Shit!" Dennis shouted.
Harry and Ron ran back to see what had happened. Dennis and his friends ran part way up the stairs.
"Professor Fudge!" one of the boys shouted.
"Oh wow!" Dennis exclaimed, "he moved his eyes!"
Harry looked up. Dennis was holding Mr. Fudge's severed head.
At the top of the stairs near the painting, a mannequin of a medieval executioner moved back to its normal position. His axe was covered with blood. Harry pulled out his wand and cautiously moved up the stairs. The mannequin was immobile, the spell that had animated it having run its course. He stepped over Fudge's headless body and looked down the corridor. He saw no one. Teachers were climbing the stairs. Professor Snape was the first to the top.
"Potter!" Snape snarled. "Did you see anything?"
"No," Harry answered.
Then he saw the painting. The naked figure on the horse was Cornelius Fudge.
"It couldn't have been a student," Professor McGonagall said.
"I'll notify the Ministry of Magic," Dumbledore said.
Hermione was wearing her nurse's cap and cape over her tea towel bikini.
"Oh Harry," she said, "you're bleeding. You need a bandage."
She began to untie her tea towels.
AR AR AR AR!
Harry was jolted from the dream by the loud cawing of the rooster that was sitting on the windowsill next to his bed.
"What?" he said stunned.
"Wake up sleepy head," said the rooster, "it's time to get the girl."
"I thought Crookshanks was going to wake me," Harry mumbled.
"Oh, you wouldn't like that," the rooster said.
"Come on Ron," said Harry as he pulled on his clothes," We've got to fetch Hermione from the hospital."
"What?" Ron mumbled.
"Never mind," Harry said, "I'll get her myself."
"No wait," said Ron yawning, "I'm coming."
Harry and Ron walked through the sleeping castle in silence. By the time they got to the hospital they were almost awake.
"So who do you reckon bumped off Fudge?" Ron asked.
"It couldn't be a student, all of our wands are monitored," Harry said. "You can't animate a mannequin and have it recognize a specific target using one of those bamboo wands. It has to be an adult wizard."
"Good morning Harry! Good morning Ron." Hermione said smiling. "I'm exhausted, take me to bed."
"It's got to be a teacher," Ron reasoned.
"Harry, could Ginny or Ron switch nights for Prefect duty with me?" Hermione asked.
Harry was the captain of the Quidditch team and was expecting this question.
"We need both Ron and Ginny at Quidditch practice," Harry said flatly. "What teacher would want to murder Fudge?"
"I think it was Snape," Ron said.
"But the weather forecast is for rain this evening," Hermione argued.
"How do you figure that?" Harry asked.
"Snape has always wanted the Defense Against the Dark Arts job," Ron explained.
"It was in the Daily Prophet," Hermione said.
"Snape wouldn't kill Fudge just for the job, he'd have to prepare for new classes," Harry replied, "and the Daily Prophet is never right about their forecasts."
"Snape was the first one up the stairs," Ron said. "Who does the forecasting for the Daily Prophet anyway?"
"Couldn't you reschedule Quiddith practice to Monday and Wednesday and share the pitch with Hufflepuff," Hermione pleaded.
"The mannequin could have been enchanted hours before the murder. I think Madam Trelawny does the forecasting, it's so bad. And no, we can't reschedule practice," Harry said. "Did you have any patients for your first night on the job?" he asked Hermione.
"Maybe it was Trelawney!" Ron suggested.
"We had a couple of first year boys that collided on their brooms yesterday afternoon, they just slept all night," Hermione said. "It was so creepy seeing Fudge's head lying next to his body. We put him in the back corner, behind a screen. The Ministry of Magic officials will come to take him away today."
"Trelawney?" Harry said in disbelief. "What gives you that idea," he said to Ron. And to Hermione, "what did you do all night while your patients were sleeping?"
"She'd be the perfect assassin. No one could possibly suspect her," Ron argued. "She's such a bubble head."
"I got all of my class work done and I managed to spend a little time reading some spells in a certain purple book," she said smiling at Harry as she touched his chest with her finger.
"I don't think it was Trelawney," Harry said. "I'd believe Filch did it before her."
"Filch is an evil creep," Hermione said. "He came to look at Fudge's body last night."
"Filch is a squib, he couldn't animate a mannequin," Ron stated. "Are you making fun of me?"
"Maybe you could have Quidditch practice before breakfast!" suggested Hermione. "There's this rooster…"
"No!" Harry said.
Later that day Remus Lupin arrived at the castle. Most of the students from the fourth year on up were glad to see him. He had been the best Defense Against the Dark Arts instructor that any of them could remember. Unfortunately Professor Lupin was a werewolf and there were several days each month when he could not teach. He was there as temporary help until Dumbledore found a permanent replacement for Mr. Fudge or the moon became full.
On Thursday Hermione and Susan came over to the Gryffindor table to eat dinner.
"Here comes Florence Nightengale," Harry said to Ron who had his back turned to Hermione.
"Florence Nightengale?" Ron exclaimed. "You always have girls flirting with you! I don't know Florence, is she in Ravenclaw?"
Hermione told Harry that she had switched nights with Susan Bones so she could go on Prefect patrol that evening. It meant that she would be on duty in the hospital on both Friday and Saturday nights and that Harry and Ron would have to pick her up on both Saturday and Sunday mornings. ("Sorry about the weekend.") She didn't know what she would do about Saturday night's Prefect patrol. Professor McGonagall had hinted that she might make Parvati the full time sixth year female Prefect if Hermione couldn't do her duties. Would Harry please reschedule Quidditch practice?
"I would if I could, but I can't. The field is reserved every night," Harry explained. "Do you really want to be in the Nursing Program?" Harry asked Hermione.
"Yes definitely," Hermione stated emphatically. "The most important thing I can do is to help you find this power that you have that Lord Voldemort knows nothing about," she whispered to Harry. "I think that power is Love. And I hope that Sympathetic Magic spells can give you an advantage."
She took Harry's hand under the table.
"This is about the book," she whispered. "I'm doing this for you Harry."
"You do look cute in you nurse's cap and cape," Harry said with a smile.
On Sunday morning, the Daily Prophet reported that Death Eaters had attacked the home of Amos Diggory, the Minister of Magic. Mr. Diggory was injured and his wife was killed. Some neighboring wizards had rushed to the Diggorys’ to help. Percy and Arthur Weasley had suffered minor injuries.
On the following morning, the Daily Prophet announced that Amos Diggory had signed a decree that allowed law enforcement officials to use Veritas serum when questioning suspected terrorists or terrorist sympathizers. Another decree banned the publication of divisive material such as calls by the followers of You-Know-Who and his allies to revolt against the Ministry of Magic.
Hermione and Ron got into an argument about civil rights.
“I can’t figure her out,” Ron said to Harry later. “You-Know-Who kills her family. Diggory takes strong steps against him. But she thinks it’s a bad idea.”
“She looks at things in a complicated way,” Harry said.
“I asked her to the Halloween Ball,” Ron said.
“That’s weeks away,” Harry said in surprise.
“She turned me down, kissed me on the cheek and ran away. What’s with her?” Ron asked.
“I think she’s in love with some guy who’s not good for her,” Harry said sadly.