~Chapter 15- Hermione's Idea~

If Umbridge's classes were bad enough, her appointment as High Inquisitor to Hogwarts could surely only make things ten times worse. The Ministry had passed a decree that gave Umbridge the power to inspect other teachers.

The Order didn't appear to be having much luck, either. Not only had Sirius been spotted, but Sturgis Podmore had been arrested for trying to break through a door in the Ministry. I had no idea why he was trying to break through in the first place. I hadn't heard from any of the Order since I'd talked to Dora over our journals.

As the days went on, more and more classes were being inspected, like Transfiguration and Care of Magical Creatures. Umbridge was obviously enjoying her power as well. She was probably preparing to sack as many teachers as she could, and soon.

Finally, the first Hogsmeade weekend was approaching. At least it was something to look forward to and a way to get away from Umbridge. I sat around one night in the common room supposedly doing my homework, but I was actually daydreaming about the number of sugar quills I was going to buy that weekend. I planned my day out in my head as I stared at the single paragraph I'd written for my Charms essay, deciding I'd go to the Three Broomsticks before heading to Honeydukes. That's when Hermione approached me with some news.

"Hey, Lindsey..." she said.

I looked up from my essay. "What is it?"

"Well...I hate to bother you right now, considering you're doing your homework, but...well, you know how Umbridge is about teaching us Defense Against the Dark Arts, and I have an idea. I've...well, I've sort of, in a way, convinced Harry to teach anyone who wants to learn real defense. You know what he's done, what he's fought. Would you be interested in learning? I'm trying to recruit people."

There was that insane solution that appeared out of nowhere!

"Of course I'd be interested," I answered. "Voldemort's at large and all the Ministry's doing is having us learn from a stupid textbook! Count me in."

"Okay!" she said, smiling. "We're meeting in Hogsmeade this weekend. Just so that we don't attract attention, we're meeting in...well, the Hog's Head. You know, that pub that's kind of out of the way?"

"All right," I told her. "I'll be there."

"Great!" And with that said, she went to talk to Dean and Neville, surely about the same topic.

When the weekend arrived and everyone went to Hogsmeade, I went straight to the Hog's Head. It wasn't very welcoming; the floor was blanketed in a layer of dust, the windows were covered in grime, and the place smelled like goats. Nonetheless, I found Harry, Ron, and Hermione sitting at a table in a corner, each with a dusty bottle of butterbeer.

"Hi," I said as I approached.

"Hi!" Hermione said. "You're the first one here, obviously. Why not get a drink and have a seat?"

I nodded and walked over to the barman to order a butterbeer. As I walked, I took my time noticing the people in the pub. One was a man with his head wrapped in gray bandages, another a large-nosed witch in a long black veil. Their appearance certainly went along with the pub's atmosphere.

I took a seat at the table with the other three. I decided to ask Hermione how she came up with the idea, and her response was somewhat shocking and even irritating to me...

"Well, we were talking to Sirius in the fire the other night," she said, causing me to slap my hand on the table and say, "You talked to-"

"Shhhhh!"

"Sirius?" I finished in a whisper.

"Yes," she said quietly. "Actually, he talked to us; he'd been waiting for us..."

"Why didn't you get me?" I asked. "I haven't heard from him since school started and if I'd known he was in the common room the other night I would've-"

"Lindsey, I'm sorry," Hermione told me. "We didn't think to get you; didn't want to draw attention. Point is, he gave me the idea."

Several minutes later, the other people Hermione had invited began to come in. First was Neville, Dean, and Lavender; followed by Parvati and her Ravenclaw twin sister Padma; then Cho Chang and one of her friends (I think her name was Marietta Edgecombe); Luna Lovegood; Angelina Johnson, Alicia Spinnet, and Katie Bell from the Gryffindor Quidditch team; two younger Gryffindors, Colin and Dennis Creevey; four Hufflepuffs, Ernie Macmillan, Justin Finch-Fletchley, Hannah Abbott, and Susan Bones; three Ravenclaw boys, Anthony Goldstein, Michael Corner, and Terry Boot; Ginny; a Hufflepuff Quidditch player named Zacharias Smith; and lastly, Fred and George with their friend, Lee Jordan.

By the end, we all agreed to swear to keep it secret from everyone who wasn't in the group. Fred was the first to sign Hermione's sheet of paper. Several people were uncertain, such as Zacharias and Marietta, but they eventually signed. When the parchment reached me, I scribbled my name without hesitation and handed to the next person, Zacharias Smith, who decided to sign in the end.

After that, we all left. As I exited the bar and walked down the street to Honeydukes, I felt that this was really what we needed. Harry, who had actually been there and had to fight the Dark Arts, was going to teach us. I knew that if Umbridge caught us, we could get in trouble, but there wasn't a rule against forming a society like this one. It was, if anything, a kind of study group.

Unfortunately for us, however, when Monday arrived, a new notice had been put up that caused a slight flaw in the plan.

Hanging in the Gryffindor common room the next day was a new educational decree. Umbridge had banned any unauthorized organizations. As soon as I saw this, I felt the color drain from my face. Did she know about the society we'd formed in Hogsmeade? If so, how?

I approached Harry about it later, but didn't get any answers.

"Harry, the sign-" I asked.

"I know."

"So are we still-"

"Yes, but I don't know where..." he said. "I'll...I'll get back to you if...if the answer comes."

"Oh...all right."

Apparently the answer came, because Hermione ran up to me in the common room one day and said, "Lindsey, Harry says he's found a place for everyone to meet tonight."

"Great, where is it?" I asked, slamming my Herbology book shut in excitement.

"It's the Room of Requirement. It's on the seventh floor across from that tapestry of Barnabas the Barmy getting attacked by trolls. It should appear if you concentrate hard enough."

"All right. Thanks, Hermione."

At half past seven I left the common room and went to the place Hermione had described. At first there was just a stretch of blank stone wall, but after thinking hard enough about what was inside, a door appeared.

Inside was a dungeon-like room with a shelf of defense-related books, silk cushions, and several Dark Detectors. Harry, Ron, Hermione, Ginny, Neville, Lavender, Parvati, and Dean were already there.

"Hi, Lindsey," Hermione said. "I see you found us."

"Yeah, it was easy."

The door opened and several other people flowed in. I took a seat on a cushion in the back near the bookcase. Within the next few minutes, everyone else had arrived and taken their seats. Harry explained a few things, like what the room was and what the Dark Detectors did. We even came up with a name: Dumbledore's Army, named because it was the Ministry's worst fear.

Hermione got out the piece of paper with everyone's names on it and wrote ‘Dumbledore's Army' in giant letters across the top. Then, after she sat down, Harry got ready to teach the Disarming Charm.

"Okay. I reckon we should all divide into pairs and practice." [*]

My heart sank. Of course, the first thing everyone did was pair up as quick as they could. I noticed we had an odd number. I would undoubtedly be the one left alone.

I was right. Everyone I considered for a partner was chosen quickly. The last four-Luna, Zacharias, Neville, and Harry-divided into pairs: Luna with Zacharias and Neville with Harry. Nobody noticed me in the corner, so I decided to sit on the cushion and watch, trying to blend in with the wall.

Luna noticed me, however, and said, "Harry, we'll have one group of three. Lindsey can join us."

"Oh-right," Harry said, noticing I was in the corner. Slightly embarrassed, I joined Luna and Zacharias. I was partially grateful that Luna had wanted me to join her, but also disappointed because Zacharias was bound to be extremely critical.

Harry counted us off and ‘Expelliarmus' chorused through the room. Luna faced Zacharias and said the incantation. His wand gave a feeble twitch but didn't leave his hand.

"Is that the best you can do?" he snarled to her.

"Give her a break, it's the first meeting," I told him.

"Like you could do any better?" he asked, turning to me. "Let's see you try."

I pointed my wand at him, and with all my might, shouted, "Expelliarmus!"

A jet of red light hit him and his wand flew out of his hand, hitting the ground with a clatter. He stared at me, flabbergasted. To my right, I heard Harry say, "Wow, Lindsey. That was great!"

I looked over and noticed he'd left Neville to observe the other groups. He had a satisfied smile on his face and knew it was because Zacharias had been dumbfounded. I smiled at him as thanks and he walked away to check on the other groups.

By the end of the meeting, Zacharias had successfully Disarmed Luna and me several times; Luna had done her best, but hadn't quite got the hang of it. Honestly, I felt I'd been the best out of us three, and was about to rub it in Zacharias's face but then Harry dismissed us and Zacharias hurried off.

As I left, I felt I'd finally achieved what I'd wanted. Though we were starting simple, true Defense Against the Dark Arts was being taught. There was a satisfying feeling that came with casting spells of any kind. For once I remembered that power I'd felt surging through my wand when I'd learned about the Unforgivable Curses. Now, I would be learning about how to fight that kind of magic. I gripped my wand tightly in my hand. It was almost too easy.