American Royalty

Part 27: Dumbledores Army

Reyna and Valerie were walking back from Charms, their voices rising in argument. Reyna, ever the diligent student, was adamant that Professor Flitwick had indeed set them homework. She had been the only one in their group to stay awake during the class, after all.

"I'm telling you, he said we need to practice the Levitation Charm at least ten times before our next class," Reyna insisted, her brow furrowed in frustration.

Valerie, on the other hand, seemed unconvinced. "I don't know, I don't remember him saying anything about homework. And besides, even if he did, do we really need to do it? It's just Levitation Charms."

Reyna sighed, exasperated. "Valerie, we can't afford to fall behind on our assignments. You know how important it is to keep up with our studies, especially with everything else going on."

Valerie rolled her eyes, a playful smile tugging at her lips. "Alright, alright, I'll take your word for it. But if I end up doing extra homework for nothing, I'm blaming you."

Reyna chuckled, relieved that Valerie had relented. "Trust me, it's better to be safe than sorry when it comes to Professor Flitwick's assignments."

The sound of screams and scattered footsteps cut off their argument. Shouts echoed across the hallway, causing Reyna and Valerie to exchange worried glances. Suddenly, a little boy Reyna recognized as Collin Creevey came running straight into Valerie, causing her to clutch her stomach and groan in pain.

Reyna quickly stepped forward, grabbing Collin by the shoulder. "Collin, what's going on? Why are you running?" she asked, her voice filled with concern.

Collin looked up at her, his face pale and panicked. "Umbridge," he gasped, trying to catch his breath. "She busted the DA, someone snitched."

Reyna's heart sank at the news. The DA, or Dumbledore's Army, was a secret organization that had been formed to oppose Dolores Umbridge, the new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher who had imposed strict and unfair rules at Hogwarts. If Umbridge had discovered them, it could mean serious trouble for everyone involved. Harry, Ron and Hermione had apparently formed it last term when they realized they were learning nothing from Umbridge. Nico had accidentally walked into one of their practices after he had left something there during one of Harry's training sessions.

Valerie, still recovering from the impact, looked at Reyna with wide eyes. "What do we do?" she asked, her voice barely above a whisper.

Reyna knew they had to act fast. "We need to find the others and figure out a plan," she said, her voice firm. "Come on, let's go."

Together, they set off down the hallway, the sounds of chaos and fear echoing around them. They had to figure out what was going on find a way to prevent Umbrige form running rampage through this school.

When Reyna and Valerie reached the Room of Requirement, they found Annabeth and Kit already there, deep in conversation with Hermione and Ron. The room was filled with a sense of urgency and tension, everyone's eyes darting around as if expecting trouble at any moment. But one person was noticeably absent—Harry.

"Where's Harry?" Reyna asked, her voice betraying her worry.

Hermione looked up, her expression grim. "He's been taken to Dumbledore," she said. "Umbridge caught us off guard, this is the chance she's been waiting for."

Reyna felt a surge of fear. Dumbledore was their only buffer against Umbridge. Now she had proof to kick him out of the school; that was a big problem. 

"We can't go storming into the office," Reyna said thoughtfully looking at her fellow companions, her eyes lingering on Kit and Valerie, an idea sparking in her head, "but maybe you guys can,"

Kit and Valerie hurried up the stairs, the echoes of shouts growing louder as they approached the room above. Putting on their most authoritative faces, they pushed open the door and entered.

Dumbledore was sitting on his desk, a calm expression on his face. Harry and another girl were being held by a ginger boy, who Kit assumed was a Weasley. Umbridge and a member of the Order, whom Kit recognized as Kingsley Shacklebolt, stood next to a short man with a hat and coat, whom she assumed was the Minister for Magic.

Fudge turned, hearing them enter, and immediately paled. "Your Majesties, to what do we owe the pleasure?" he stuttered, clearly flustered by their unexpected presence.

"Cornelius, it's a pleasure to finally make your acquaintance," Kit said in her most serious tone, her eyes piercing. She knew the power of her royal status here and intended to use it to its full extent. 

"The pleasure is all mine," Fudge stammered, his eyes darting nervously between Kit and Valerie.

"What are you doing here?" Umbridge asked, her voice laced with irritation.

"We are here to ensure that nothing gets out of hand," Valerie spoke up, her voice calm but firm. "Everyone's rights should be respected here, including Harry's."

"We also will not tolerate being spoken to like that, Dolores," Kit added, her aura flaring slightly as she projected a strong sense of power and authority. It was clear that they were not to be trifled with.

Umbridge's expression faltered slightly, fear flashing through her eyes before returning to her usual toad-like smugness as she addressed Kit and Valerie. "Your Majesties, I'm afraid Mr. Potter here has directly gone against the Ministry," she said, her voice dripping with satisfaction. "He has been spreading lies and inciting rebellion among the students, all under the guise of this so-called Dumbledore's Army."

"As you can see Dolores, the parcement clearly says Dumbledores Army, not Potters," Dumbledore pointed out, "I instructed Mr Potter to form this organisation, therefore I alone am responsible,"

"Send word to the Daily Prophet, we may be able to make the morning paper," Fudge started, "Kingley and Dawish, will you please escort Dumbledore to Azkaban,"

"Ah, it seems we've hit a bit of a snag. You see, I do not intend to, what's the phrase, come quietly," Dumbledore said standing up. 

The ministry workers all stepped forward. Dmbledore winked at Harry, then, the phoenix came and Dumbldore disappeared in a flash of light. 

Valerie and Kit exchanged a silent conversation, a shared understanding passing between them. With Dumbledore gone, trouble was just around the corner. They knew that they would need to tread carefully. Sure, they had authority here, but for their sake as well as the sake of the students, they needed to keep their heads down.