Harry Potter and the Order Of the Phoenix [60]
“Yeah, he said he didn’t know anything about it,” said Harry. Mrs. Figg contorted her face into an expression of non-belief. “And… well… I believe him.”
“Well, we’d like to believe him Harry, but as for now, he is our only suspect, and we must treat him as such.”
“Can’t you just do a… oh… what’s it called? A… Grapholo Charm on the note to see who wrote it?” asked Harry. Mrs. Figg gave him a smile, and a weak laugh.
“Harry, the Grapholo Charm is one of the hardest charms there is. The only way I could do it is to learn it from Professor Flitwick, who would want to know my reasons behind learning it. I’m sorry Harry. That would be a nice solution, but it is an impossible one as well.”
“Well, what should we do then?”
“Just stay on the lookout Harry. If you get any more notes like these, show it to me. I don’t know if this person is serious about his threats, though. He would obviously want something in return for him not telling, and he hasn’t made any demands yet. So yes, Harry, just be on guard… and keep an eye on Tci.”
“Alright professor,” said Harry, walking out the door.
“Arabella, Harry! Arabella! You’re not in class!” yelled Mrs. Figg as Harry ran out, and back to the great hall. He caught Ron and Hermione just before they were about to leave, and he walked back to the common room with them, telling them what Mrs. Figg had said.
“So she reckons Tci did it, eh?” said Ron.
“Yeah, but… I don’t know. He just doesn’t seem like that type of person,” said Hermione.
“Oh Hermione!” said Ron. “You just like him because he’s handsome! You know, with his special Durmstrang training thing. Yeah, give me a break! He’s in Slytherin after all! This is just the kind of thing one of them would do!”
“Well, he did say he wanted to be in Gryffindor, and he seemed pretty devastated when he found out he was in Slytherin,” said Harry, turning the conversation to Tci’s favor.
“Yeah, well… we gotta go to Animagus class you guys,” said Ron, changing the subject. However, he was right. They were supposed to meet Professor McGonagall early today, so they could spend the entire day practicing. The three of them walked to their Transfiguration classroom, and met Professor McGonagall there, already talking with Malfoy.
“-so I was thinking maybe a dragon, or a hydra of some sort. A powerful, magical beast!” said Malfoy to McGonagall.
“Well, with some practice, you may be able to do all of those Malfoy!” said Professor McGonagall, smiling. It was sickening, a teacher praising Malfoy…. Harry shuddered at the sight. He pushed the door fully open, and the three of them walked in.
“Hello you three! I was just helping Mr. Malfoy here decide which animal to transform into. Have you been thinking about it?” asked Professor McGonagall to them. Each of them nodded. Harry wondered which animals Hormone and Ron were thinking of utilizing.
“Excellent, excellent. I hope each of you have a good idea in mind, because that is what were are going to be doing today, researching animals!” said Professor McGonagall. Hermione smiled excitedly, but Harry and Ron rolled their eyes and sighed. They wanted to get on with transformation, not do research.
“Now, I now you all want to get on with transformation practice,” said Professor McGonagall. Wow, could she read minds? Harry thought, “but you need to decide which animal you will be copying before we go any further. So, hit the books!” she pointed to a large stack of books in the corner of the room that reached the ceiling. The three of them walked over, picked out a book (except for Hermione, who took five) and then walked back to a table, and opened them up. Malfoy walked over to the stack of books after Harry, Ron, and Hermione were settled in at a table. He grabbed a particularly large black book, and returned to his secluded table in the corner.
As Harry looked through the book (A Guide To Almost All Animals), he saw many creatures he’d never even knew existed before. There were dragons, snakes, and lions, but there were also things called Zyrexes,