second//bill weasley

fourteen

After classes end for the day I start towards the Great Hall. I spot Harry walking by himself. I smile at him.

"Hello, Mr Potter," I greet.

Harry barely acknowledges me. "Hello."

I notice he is holding his left hand in his right. I grab Harry's hand. Carved into it are the words "I must not tell lies".

"What is this?" I ask.

Harry pulls his hand from my grip. "It's nothing."

"Nothing?" I shake my head. "Harry this is not nothing. You need to tell me who did this."

"As if you don't know," Harry says.

"If you don't tell Dumbledore I will," I tell him.

Harry shakes his head. "No. Dumbledore's got enough on his mind right now. And I don't want to give Umbridge the satisfaction."

"Bloody hell, Harry. The woman's torturing you," I state.

"You sound like Maddie and Hermione," Harry tells me.

I shake my head. "You don't have to let this happen. You can report her."

"No," Harry states.

I sigh. "You're putting me in a tough spot, Harry. I won't tell Dumbledore but this is only going to get worse if no one stands up to her. This year has barely started."

I sit in front of the fireplace in my office.

"Have you heard from Harry lately, Pads," I ask.

"Just the odd letter," Sirius tells me. "Why has something happened?"

"I'm worried about him," I confess. "Dolores Umbridge has made it her personal mission to make Harry suffer."

"What has she done?" Sirius asks.

"She practically tortures the poor boy. She has these awful quills she uses for detention. When you use them to write the words are carved into your skin," I tell him.

"That's barbaric," Sirius states.

"I know. Harry being Harry he doesn't want me to tell anyone," I state. I shake my head. "He doesn't want the other students to get mad at him or anything. He already feels alienated. They believe what their parents and the Daily Prophet are saying."

"The Daily Prophet is a bunch of..." Sirius starts.

I cut him off. "Don't need to finish that sentence."

Sirius sighs. "Being a mother has made you soft."

I scoff. "And being a godfather has made you even more insane."

Sirius smiles. "Maddie was asking about Rowan."

"Did you tell her all about the pranks we would pull?" Sirius asks.

I shake my head. "She asked about how we met. And she got upset that he's not here. I just felt so bad for her."

"I can't imagine what you've gone through, Annie. Losing Rowan and raising Maddie on your own," Sirius tells me. "But I know one thing. You've raised Maddie into a beautiful smart sarcastic young girl." I laugh lightly. "There's that smile."

I hear a knock on my office door. "I've got to go, Pads, but thank you for making me feel better," I tell Sirius. I get up from the floor and sit at my desk. "Come in!" I shout.

Hermione opens the door and Maddie walks in after her. I smile.

"What are you two doing here?" I ask.