Chapter 1036: Omen
Chapter 1036: Omen
"Instead of coming to me with these complaints, you should pay attention to the educational decrees posted on the notice board. Even if you come to me, I can't help you solve your problems. If you have any issues, go directly to the Senior Investigator; she's the one with the authority. If you want to plead with our Senior Investigator to lift the ban on Potter and the Weasley brothers, I suggest you take the time to reconsider your choice of new team members."
Professor McGonagall remained calm in the face of Angelina, the Quidditch captain's pleas. She understood Angelina's dilemma, but there was nothing she could do. Even though Umbridge was going through a rough patch, she was still the Senior Investigator, and no one would openly defy the Ministry of Magic's laws.
So Angelina's attempts were destined to be futile.
"See you!" Fred called out to Albert before rushing off to catch up with Angelina, disappearing at the end of the corridor.
"Albert, wait a moment."
As Albert turned away from the end of the corridor, intending to head to the Ancient Rune classroom, Cedric appeared from behind and walked alongside him in the hallway, attracting the attention of many young ladies.
"What's up?" asked Albert.
"I've been having some trouble lately," said Cedric.
Cedric gestured with his hand to the right, and the two of them turned into an empty classroom nearby.
"What, is Cho breaking up with you?" Albert teased.
"No, our relationship is great," Cedric quickly shook his head.
"So when are you two getting married?" Albert continued.
"Mar...ried?" Cedric was a bit embarrassed.
"Or are you just planning to play the dating game?" Albert teased the flustered Cedric further.
"Of course not," Cedric said, puzzled. "But... isn't it a bit early to be thinking about marriage?"
"It's not too early. If you find someone you like, cherish them," Albert advised.
"You're right," Cedric agreed.
Cedric seemed to be seriously considering the possibility of marrying Cho Chang, completely sidetracked by Albert's comments.
"Come on, tell me what's going on," Albert urged.
"Ahem, you almost got me off track there. It's about Umbridge. I think you know about DA, right?" Cedric looked around cautiously and, making sure they were alone, lowered his voice. "I suspect Umbridge already knows about DA and is preparing to take action."
"Hasn't the Dumbledore's Army incident already caused quite a stir?" Albert wasn't too concerned about DA being exposed.
"No, you know what I mean," Cedric shook his head.
"You think she suspects you?" Albert raised an eyebrow, guessing what this was about.
"I don't know, but I received a letter from home, basically telling me to be careful, not to confront Umbridge head-on, and to avoid getting expelled and ruining my future," Cedric explained. He had guessed the reason for the letter—Umbridge must have pressured his father.
"But how did Umbridge become suspicious of you? I'm confused. You don't seem to have anything to do with DA," Albert said, perplexed.
"Maybe a Slytherin student saw the Self-Defense Guide you gave me and told Umbridge about it," Cedric said, a bit annoyed. He hadn't expected that to happen. "I'm worried..."
Cedric didn't finish his sentence, but his meaning was clear.
"Worried that Umbridge will cause you trouble?" Albert clarified.
"Yes, that woman can be ruthless when it comes to certain things," Cedric agreed.
Cedric really disliked Umbridge, but like the other professors, he felt helpless in certain situations, which was why he sought Albert's help.
Otherwise, if his involvement with DA was exposed, he would have to face the consequences of betraying the group.
"If Umbridge sets her sights on you, it will indeed be troublesome," Albert nodded, understanding Cedric's concern. "That woman can be unscrupulous when it comes to achieving her goals."
"What should I do?" Cedric asked, concerned.
"Be very careful if Umbridge invites you for tea someday. Who knows if she'll slip a few drops of... potion into your drink," Albert warned.
"No way!" Cedric exclaimed, his mouth hanging open in shock. "Using Veritaserum on someone else is illegal. She's the Deputy Minister; she shouldn't..."
"Who knows?" Albert reminded him. "There's a saying in the wizarding world—as long as it's not discovered, it's not illegal."
"Moreover, she's the Deputy Minister, Fudge's right-hand woman," Cedric added.
"To achieve certain goals, some illegal actions may be taken as long as they go unmentioned. Don't forget those damn educational decrees. Do you think Fudge would rather seize Dumbledore by the handle or cause trouble for Umbridge, who's trying to curry favor with him?" Albert pointed out.
"You're right," Cedric whispered, looking around cautiously. "How did you deal with this problem when you were invited for tea by Umbridge?"
He hadn't forgotten that Albert had also been invited for tea by Umbridge a few times.
"It's simple," Albert said, offering three solutions.
"You can find someone to mess with her, make her forget about it, or carry an antidote for Veritaserum with you at all times."
Cedric guessed how Albert had dealt with the troublesome Umbridge.
However, he had never used the Forgetfulness Charm before, and who knew what would happen if it was used on Umbridge?
"Do you have an antidote for Veritaserum?" Cedric asked hesitantly after a moment's pause.
"I have half a bottle left. I can give you some." Albert didn't refuse, knowing that if Cedric ever encountered Veritaserum, he would most likely stir up big trouble.
"What do you think about stopping the activities of the D.A.?" Cedric frowned and asked, "If Umbridge wants to cause trouble for Dumbledore, she'll definitely continue her investigation."
"I don't mind if you can convince them," Albert replied nonchalantly, though he didn't think Cedric would succeed.
"That woman is so detestable. If you ever find a way to drive her out someday, remember to let me know." Cedric balled his hands into fists and took a few swings, as if he wanted to punch Umbridge's toad-like face.
Before leaving, Cedric added, "Could you please tell this to the Weasley twins and ask them to remind Potter as well? Ask them all to be more vigilant."
"I will," Albert agreed.
He then checked his pocket watch and realized he was running late.
...
"Where have you been? I didn't see you the entire afternoon."
That evening, as Albert returned to the common room, he saw Lee Jordan greeting him with a smile. Fred and George were sitting in the corner, fiddling with their boxes filled with joke items.
George was holding a piece of parchment while Fred distributed Dungbombs and Stink Pellets. The items in the boxes were meant for their pranks on Umbridge, including some new joke items they had developed themselves, such as Howlers and Screaming Yo-yos.
Of course, many students liked to stock up on Skiving Snackboxes from the twins, as no one enjoyed Umbridge's lessons. If they could skip class, that would be fantastic.
"You forgot about Luna," Albert reminded George with a raised eyebrow. He had spent some time in the library answering Luna's questions about maintaining the Wizard Card Club.
"If you want her to become a suitable successor, you'll need to invest more time and energy in her."
"There have been too many things to take care of lately, and I completely forgot about it." Lee Jordan had indeed been very busy. Apart from providing cover for the Weasley twins, he had also been spreading various rumors and rallying more students who disliked Umbridge to join their cause.
The Anti-Toad League was quite popular in school, as no one wanted Umbridge to become the Headmaster; that would be a nightmare.
"It's a pity that we still haven't been able to drive Umbridge out of Hogwarts," Fred said regretfully.
"You'll never be able to drive her out."
Albert acknowledged their efforts but didn't think they would succeed. Umbridge obviously wasn't going to be scared away unless she was badly injured and hospitalized.
"Last time, Harry even suggested turning Umbridge into a toad," George said as he walked over. "Then she'd completely disappear, and all our problems would be solved."
"That's not a good idea." Albert shook his head, vetoing the proposal. To be honest, he was quite averse to killing or asking others to kill.
In a desperate situation, he would rather have Umbridge accidentally become the next Gilderoy Lockhart, letting her live on "happily" forever instead of killing her.
"You can spread a rumor that Dumbledore has a training base in the Forbidden Forest, where he trains his army." Albert suggested without hesitation, "Let the toad go mess with the Acromantulas! "Do you think Umbridge will believe it?"
Lee Jordan felt that the plan was unreliable, as Umbridge was unlikely to believe such a rumor.
"Isn't there Dumbledore's Army in the school?" Albert reminded them, "Those Acromantulas are Hagrid's pets, and Dumbledore can indirectly order them through Hagrid. There's nothing wrong with that."
"This rumor doesn't sound very reliable," Lee Jordan frowned again.
"Rumors are supposed to be unreliable," George agreed with Albert, "It doesn't matter if Umbridge doesn't believe it, as long as others do. Fudge might even send someone to check it out. Whatever happens next is none of our business, and even if they don't believe it, we haven't lost anything."
"Having the Ministry deal with those giant spiders would be doing Hogwarts students a favor," Fred also supported Albert's suggestion. He hadn't forgotten how he had almost been eaten by the spiders, and this plan was actually quite simple—all they needed to do was spread some rumors.
As for how to spread the rumors, the three of them were quite skilled at it, and they had been doing it a lot in recent months.
The more rumors were spread, the more doubts would arise, even if they weren't believed. And that would be enough, especially for Umbridge, who was eager to catch Dumbledore in the act. She would definitely pay attention and take the bait.
"Are you alright?"
Albert didn't join in their discussion but instead turned to the exhausted-looking Angelina.
"No, I'm not. I'm really not," Angelina said listlessly as she took off her cloak. Her eyes accused Fred and George.
"We've found substitutes," said Alicia glumly.
"But... they're only barely passable," Katie muttered.
"They're just inexperienced; you can't expect everyone to be a Quidditch prodigy," Albert consoled them.
"You're the least qualified to say that," Angelina snapped at Albert, exasperated. "If you were willing, we could've saved ourselves a lot of trouble, and at least we'd have a higher chance of winning in the upcoming matches."
"You know I'm busy and don't have time for training," Albert said nonchalantly.
"Who are the substitutes?" Fred asked curiously.
"The new Seeker is your sister, Ginny," Angelina said disapprovingly. "She flies well, and was originally a reserve Chaser, but since we couldn't find a more suitable Seeker, we had to make do with her for now."
Angelina suspected that Albert had recommended Ginny to her earlier, anticipating that she would ask him to play.
That had to be it! "Andrew Kirk and Jack Sloper are the new Beaters," Alicia said glumly. "They're a bit slow, but better than the other lumps of wood. They're the best Beaters we could find at the moment."
"Ron's condition hasn't been great, and the last match really shook his confidence," Angelina said as she sat down on a chair, complaining. "I'm not sure how I'm supposed to lead the team to victory in the Quidditch matches."
The Gryffindor team was on the verge of collapse, which was why Angelina had gone to see Professor McGonagall.
Initially, Ron had been a handful, and now they had three new players. Angelina couldn't imagine how she was supposed to lead this team of deadweights to victory.
"Why don't we just discuss dropping out of the Quidditch tournament with the other teams?" Lee Jordan suggested quietly as he stole a glance at the exhausted-looking Angelina.
Not just him, but the others didn't hold high hopes for the current team either.
Everyone knew how terrible Ron's performance had been, but Angelina patiently coached him because they understood that if they could help Ron overcome his nerves and rebuild his confidence, they would have a passable Keeper.
Now, they had two more Beaters who would hold them back, and as for Ginny, she could only be considered as not dragging the team down further.
Angelina fell silent.
To be honest, she didn't want to give up, even if it meant that Gryffindor would suffer a crushing defeat. If she didn't play Quidditch for an entire semester, she couldn't imagine how she would join a team after graduation.
However, today's training had pushed her to the brink of a breakdown, and Angelina could almost see their second match ending in disaster.
"Let me calm down. Oh, right, Albert, I have something to ask you. Let's go chat over there."
"You want me to prophesize if you can join a Quidditch club?"
"Yes."
Albert was a bit surprised that Angelina wanted him to prophesize for her, but it also seemed within expectations.
"If you want to join a Quidditch club, I think it shouldn't be a problem. After all, there are too many Quidditch teams in Britain and Ireland. The number of new students from Hogwarts each year is not enough to replenish their ranks, so they always need new members, at least as reserves. But..."
"You haven't prophesized yet," Angelina said, looking at Albert. "This is just your guess."
"Yes, some things don't need to be prophesized. I'm more curious if you will join a Quidditch team. After we graduate, the British wizarding world won't be peaceful, and I can't guarantee that you'll be able to join a team that satisfies you."
"Okay, thank you, Albert," Angelina said as she turned and walked away.
"What did she want from you?" Fred, George, and Lee Jordan suddenly appeared, asking.
"Angelina wanted me to prophesize for her to see if she could join a Quidditch club and become a professional Quidditch player after graduation," Albert explained to the trio.
"And?"
"I think it's possible. If she really wants to play Quidditch, there will definitely be a team that will let her join. Your sister Ginny will probably choose to become a professional Quidditch player too, but girls usually don't have long careers as players."
"Why?" Lee Jordan asked curiously.
"Why? Because they'll get married eventually!" Albert said matter-of-factly. "They'll have to choose between family and career; it's a problem many girls will face."
"That's a problem," Fred muttered.
"Oh, right, Cedric asked me to tell you guys something."
"What is it?"
"Umbridge seems to have her eyes on DA."
"We know," the three said in unison.
"No, you don't know," Albert said, looking at the nonchalant trio and reminding them, "If she really wants to find clues, she'll definitely use unscrupulous means."
"Like what?" Lee Jordan asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Veritaserum."
"So, you think the toad might...?"
"Not might, she definitely will if she sets her mind to it."
(End of Chapter)
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