Chapter 15
The exams were officially over, but Daisy, as well as many others, could not rejoice at the event. They were all concerned about the condition of Professor McGonagall, who had been thrown four Spells while trying to defend Hagrid.
With the stress of exams and concern for the health of the head of his house, Harry for the first time in a long time had a vision from Voldemort. Frightening everyone when he fainted in the middle of the Great Hall, Daisy had to ward off the idiots who had surrounded him by intimating them to return to their history of magic exam even though time was almost up.
Daisy tried to ignore her brother's protests as she tried to take him to the infirmary but had to stop on his tracks as soon as he told her that Sirius was in danger. Ron was ready to follow Harry anywhere but Hermione, ever the voice of reason, wanted to make sure it wasn't all a trap set up to attract him to the Ministry.
Harry seemed unwilling to listen to anyone but himself so Daisy, who agreed with Hermione, caught his attention by crowding in front of him.
" Harry James Potter. " she scolded him, pointing her finger at his face. " If you don't stop thinking that you are the only one reasoning among us, I will slap you. "
"Well, let's go check it out. " he muttered. " And how exactly will we know if he's at home? "
" Kreacher! " she shouted, nodding proudly as the elf materialized in front of the four of them. " Sorry to call you but I wanted to know if Remus and Sirius were home. "
" Yes, Miss. " said the elf. " Should I say something to them? "
" Make sure they don't leave the house for any reason, please. " she said, ignoring the shocked look the three Gryffindors were giving her. When the elf left, she turned back to her brother, waiting for an apology.
" All right, you and Hermione were right. " he admitted, embarrassed.
" Why would he want you there? " Ron asked.
" He needs something from the mystery office and only you can deliver it to him. " said Hermione, amazed at the discovery. " Why else would the order take turns to guard? They are protecting something. "
" Let's give them what they want. " said Daisy, ignoring the boys' protests and explaining that there was no better way to show the world Voldemort's return than to have him appear in the middle of the ministry.
" He broke several people out of Azkaban and no one questioned it, so why now? " Hermione asked, still not at all quiet.
" Because the minister and all the other officials will not be able to deny his return if they see him in person. " said Harry, looking at her with his mouth wide open. " Well, I'm in. "
" But we can't make decisions like that without consulting the order or Dumbledore. " complained Hermione, shocked.
" Hermione, no offense, but has anyone ever pointed out to you your serious problems dealing with authority figures? " Hufflepuff told her, smiling sweetly at her so she knew she didn't want to fight. " Guys, I don't force you to do anything, but Harry and I are working on something, and in order to have you by our side, we need to make sure that you're open-minded enough to hear what we have to say. "
" Are you hiding something from us? " Ron frowned, looking hurt at the very prospect.
" I would never abandon Harry. " Hermione nodded, placing a hand on Ron's arm in an attempt to calm him down. " But we can't show up alone in the ministry. We will be surrounded by death eaters. "
" But we're not alone, are we? " Harry smiled, explaining the plan to them.
So it was that the four teenagers, along with Ginny, Neville, Luna, and Cedric, used the Thestrals to get to the ministry. Of course, not without encountering some problems along the way, in the form of Umbridge and his team of henchmen, convinced they were hiding a weapon for Dumbledore. To be fair, Daisy was convinced that Umbridge had gotten a quarter of what she deserved, but she was still happy to know that the centaurs had taken it easy on her. And in the meantime, Hermione had shown her that when it came to her friends, she would take on the whole world to defend them.
Arriving at the ministry, the group found themselves in a room filled with crystal balls, containing prophecies, one of them about Harry. Daisy didn't hold back and turned her eyes when she realized that all the mess was due to a prophecy. It was indeed true that those who wanted to rule the world were the most idiotic.
" Prophecies can only be taken from the people who are about them. " Hermione informed them, dissuading Harry from grabbing the orb.
Daisy took a step toward her brother, believing she had heard the train of a cloak. Judging by Harry's face, they had both done it.
" We have to be fast, we can't waste a single second. " she whispered in his ear before adding aloud, " Harry do you remember when we used to play football, trying to pull off the moves we saw on television? "
" I mean, do you think it's a time for a trip down memory lane? " Ron said exasperatedly.
" You're right. " Harry nodded, grabbing the orb and throwing it across the ground, breaking it into a thousand pieces. " Those were 6 points, wasn't it? "
If they weren't in such a critical situation, Daisy would surely have laughed at the way her brother was strutting his stuff about that ridiculous joke. However, the Hufflepuff could do nothing but tell the others to run. They walked down the corridor as they cast all the offensive spells that crossed their minds behind them in an attempt to reduce the death eaters' advance. From what they could see, there were at least a dozen.
Cedric, having a very good sense of direction, led them to what seemed to be the exit. The eight guys trudged out of the mystery office, battered and bleeding, followed by the Death Eaters who were in better condition but just as exhausted.
" You broke the prophecy, how dare you? " growled Bellatrix, pointing her wand at Harry. The boy began to feel a sharp pain in the scar but ignored it as he turned a burning look of hatred towards the woman in front of him.
" Don't waste your breath! " Harry cried, narrowing his eyes, struggling to resist the stabbing pain. If there was one thing the Potters didn't do, it was to show weakness unlike this horrible, crazy woman who kept apologizing to her master, as if he were there. " He can't hear you here. "
" Can't I, Potter? " said a high-pitched, icy voice. Lord Voldemort had appeared in the hall, his wand pointed at Harry, who was paralyzed. As well as all their friends who were surrounded by death eaters.
While Ginny held a sprained Neville with a sprained ankle, Ron protectively held in his arms a Hermione who had fainted after being hit in the chest by a curse from Dolohov. But none of them lowered their heads. They showed themselves confident in front of their enemies, showing their faces as if to challenge them to do the same.
" You broke my prophecy. " said the wizard, who looked more like a reptile than a human being, as he coldly scanned the bizarre assortment that their group was to make. " Well, my Death Eaters have been defeated by this bunch of kids? "
" I would advise you to change your followers. " Harry commented, much to the dismay of his friends. It's okay to show confidence, but that was too much.
" You've bothered me too much, and for too long. " Voldemort said coldly. " AVADA KEDAVRA! "
As Daisy watched helplessly as the jets of light advanced toward her twin, a statue came to life, preventing the curse from struck.
Right in front of them, Dumbledore had come to save them. Knowing how he had found out where they were was a puzzle to be solved in the future, for the time being he had to work to protect his friends along with those who could still fight.
Driven by the commotion, the minister and some aurors descended to their floor, their eyes widening at the scene in front of them.
" Let me understand. " Alastor Moody said, joining the fray with other members of the order. Casting a glance at the chief auror who took his place when he retired, he said, " Do you want to do your job, or are you too soft to fight? "
" Someone want to tell me why my damn elf refused to let me out of my house? " Sirius yelled furiously, showing up with Remus. Both men, back to back, began casting spells at anyone wearing a mask. The teens, now forgotten, looked at their complicity with awe.
" Show your faces, you cowards! " shouted Moody, having a great deal of fun subduing the Death Eater he was fighting against. When he pinned him down, he pushed him against one of the aurors, ordering him to throw him into a cell and throw away the key.
Daisy was in love with the man's attitude. It was her distraction that prevented her from seeing the man approaching behind her, taking her hostage and drawing the attention of many of the men when he pointed his wand at her throat.
" You will let us go, we and all those you have caught, or the little Hufflepuff will perish. "
Looking at the man's hand, she noticed the seal belonging to the Nott family on his finger, and her heart quickened. She hated the man, but she didn't want to tell Theo that she was the cause of his father's incarceration. She closed her eyes and weighed her choices as she listened to Sirius scream in despair for her. Of course she was going to fight, she just had to figure out what was the best way to annoy the Death Eater who was holding her hostage. She needed a distraction, and what could be better than to show the most prejudiced people how wrong they were?
" I don't understand why you all underestimate us Hufflepuffs. " smiled fiercely as she opened her eyes and winked at his horrified looking brother. People couldn't stop fighting because of her, she was aware of that. She was alone and she would get away with it because if there was one thing wizards overrated, it was magic.
" The problem with you Death Eaters is that you put too much faith in magic. " she said, ignoring the man's hand that was clenching around her throat in an attempt to shut her up. " Aurors also train their minds and bodies in case they run out of wands, you don't do it because you think it's a sign of weakness not to use magic. "
" Daisy, shut up. " Harry pleaded her, tears streaming down his eyes as he noticed the way her words were spoken with difficulty from the lack of air.
" But you're nothing without magic, are you? " she growled, reaching out and grabbing the tip of the man's wand, breaking it in front of his eyes.
" Oh my God. " Harry gasped, horrified. The boy was afraid that the man would kill her for doing such an act.
" Potter, girl, hit him in the face! " screamed Mad Eye as if he were one of her aurors. Following orders, she moved far enough away from the man so that Ginny could hurl her famous Bat-Bogey Hex at him. A simple-looking but really annoying spell that led the man to run away.
" Magnificent. " said Cedric, struck by the speed with which the Weasley girl acted.
Harry pulled his sister into his arms as he watched most of the Death Eaters retreat along with Voldemort. The only ones to have been captured were Malfoy, Dolohov, Rookwood and Crabbe. All that work and they still managed to get most of the enemies out.
While Dumbledore requested a passport so that all his fugitive students could return to the infirmary, Minister Fudge began to demand an explanation of what had happened.
" As I've been saying for a year, you know who's back. " Dumbledore said, mildly. " You'll have your explanation tonight, once the guys are safe. "
" But... "
" Minister, how about sacking Umbridge? You know, it's not a good thing that the minister currently in charge has put the lives of children in the hands of a psychopath with a vein for torture. " Daisy said, unable to bite her tongue. Even the principal was astonished.
" Currently? " stammered the man, shocked. " Who do you think you are to speak like that to your superior? I am the Minister of Magic. "
" And I'm Daisy Potter, a 15-year-old girl who fought a dozen Death Eaters with her friends while he hid behind the pillars. " the Hufflepuff smiled fiercely, watching as all her friends (the conscious ones) nodded in agreement. " I respect the people who deserve it, not those who demand it without doing anything. "
" It's a pity I'm retired, I would have let her into the auror right away. " heard Alastor say to Sirius, impressed as Remus looked horrified. " The little girl has balls. "
" As Miss Potter was saying. " said Dumbledore, immensely amused. " You'll give orders to remove Dolores Umbridge from Hogwarts and tell your Aurors to stop hunting down my Magical Creature Care teacher so he can get back to work. Tonight I'll give you... " took a twelve-hand watch out of his pocket and studied it for a moment. " ...half an hour of my time: it will be more than enough to inform you about what has happened here. After that I will have to go back to my school. Of course, if you still need help, you can get in touch with me at Hogwarts. Any letter addressed to the Principal will reach me. "
Everyone looked up to him for the way he had just shown the minister that he was able to do his job better than he did. Ignoring Fudge stammering, too shocked to formulate a coherent sentence, Dumbledore motioned for his students to grab the portkeys. He counted to three, and the guys felt the sensation of a hook tugging at his navel as everything became a whirlwind of indistinct colors and noises.