“Which says Umbridge is the only one that can issue punishments and Draco Malfoy is exempt of any punishment whatsoever even if he goes on a killing spree in the middle of breakfast, and Harry will get detention for breathing,” Sirius said annoyed.

Hagrid’s teaching abilities would be tested the following Tuesday in Care of Magical Creatures class. Ron and Hermione were right. He did look like he had been in a fight with giants. His left eye was swollen shut, cuts covered his face and hands that appeared to only have begun healing and he was moving a little on the stiff side, alerting Harry that there were additional injuries under the surface.

The moment Hagrid, who was waiting for everyone at the edge of the Forest with a dead animal that somewhat resembled a cow over his shoulder, saw Harry he smiled brightly and waved. Harry waved back trying desperately not to let his apprehension show. He really didn’t want to know what they could be learning about today that would require the presence of such a large dead animal to serve as a bargaining chip.

“It’s probably to lure the animal and not a bargaining chip. Hagrid may like dangerous animals but I don’t think he would deliberately take them to some creature that would attack them,” Remus said.

“I don’t know. There’s a rumor saying Hagrid raises werewolf cubs under his bed,” Sirius smirked at Remus. “Do you think he hides Harry under his bed?”

Remus shoved Sirius and hit him with a pillow.

As soon as the entire class had arrived, Hagrid could hardly hold back his excitement. “Today we’ll be workin’ in the Forest!” he announced. “They prefer the dark an’ it’s a bit more sheltered! I’ve bin savin’ this trip inter the Forest fer this year. We’re seein’ these creatures in their natural habitat. Just so yeh all know, what we’re studyin’ today is really rare. I’m probably the on’y person in Britain who’s managed ter train these creatures. Stay close and follow me!”

Several students didn’t bother hiding their nervousness as they followed Hagrid into the forest, Malfoy being one of them. Harry could think of quite a few creatures in the forest that preferred the dark and silently prayed that they weren’t visiting the Acromantulas today. He really didn’t think Ron would be able to handle it. It didn’t take long for Harry to realize that they weren’t traveling in the same direction of Aragog’s cave. From the relieved sigh that came from Ron, Harry figured that Ron had been thinking the same thing he had.

“I hate to remind us,” James said faintly, “But I really don’t like the fact that Harry is on a first name basis with an Acromantula.”

They walked for approximately ten minutes until they were surrounded by trees that were so close to each other than no sunlight crept through the branches. There was absolutely no snow on the ground, only mud. Hagrid dropped his load on the ground then stepped away before turning to face the class. Most of the students had never been in the forest and appeared to be one shout away from running for their lives.

“Gather roun’, everyone,” Hagrid said with a smile. “No reason ter be scared.

“Says you,” Lily muttered.

They’ll be attracted to the smell of the meat but I’ll give ‘em a call anyways. Cover yer ears everyone.” The students immediately obeyed as Hagrid let out a strange shrieking cry that echoed throughout the forest. After a few moments Hagrid let out another cry then waited.

It wasn’t long before Harry noticed strange horse-like creatures appearing out of the darkness. They looked almost starved; their black coats apparently the only thing covering their skeletons. Harry was certain he could see every bone. They had heads that resembled ones belonging to dragons. Their eyes were pupil-less which was extremely unnerving. They had black, leathery wings resembling those belonging to bats.

“That’s not that bad,” Remus said thoughtfully and James and Sirius nodded.

“Excuse me?” Lily said waving her hands. “What’s not that bad?”

“Thestrals,” Sirius said.

“Thres- What?” she asked. “And how do you know they won’t hurt them.”

“Because they’ve been around the school children all along,” James said smirking. He was enjoying being the one with the knowledge, “They pull the school coaches.”

“The coaches pull themselves,” she said.

“Nope, they don’t. But only people who have seen someone die can see them,” Remus explained. “I myself can’t but Sirius can and made me touch the Threstal in second year when I didn’t believe him there was an animal there.”

Harry took a nervous step backwards as more creatures arrived. They observed the class for a few seconds before they started attacking the dead animal with their pointed fangs. Glancing around, he saw that no one seemed to notice the creatures. They were all looking up in the trees as if they were expecting something else to come. Harry turned to Hagrid who had his attention on the creatures with a proud smile on his face.

“There’s plenty of them aroun’ now,” Hagrid said proudly. “Now, who can see ‘em? Put yer hands up.” Harry raised his hand along with Neville and a stringy Slytherin boy standing just behind Goyle. “I figured yeh would, Harry,” Hagrid said softly. “Neville, yeh too an’—”

“What are we supposed to be seeing here?” Malfoy sneered.

“Well, if you are too dumb to know-“ Sirius started but Lily cut him off:

“I love abusing Malfoy as much as the next person, but you should at least have a good reason. He can’t see them Sirius! How is he supposed to know?”

Hagrid pointed to the dead animal. “Watch,” he said firmly. After a few seconds several students gasped while others squealed as pieces of the carcass disappeared. “These are Thestrals,” he informed the class. “Hogwarts has an entire heard o’ ‘em in the Forest. “Now—”

“But they’re extremely unlucky!” cried a frightened Parvati. “They bring horrible misfortune to those who seem them. Professor Trelawney said—”

“Oh please,” James moaned with a hand covering his eye, “Whatever she said is utter rubbish.”

Hagrid let out a chuckle. “Tha’s jus’ a superstition, Parvati,” he said. “They aren’ unlucky at all. They’re very clever an’ very useful! How do yeh think yer carriages get ter Hogwarts? The Thestrals pull ‘em. They won’ hurt yeh. Who can tell my why some o’ yeh can see ‘em an’ some can’t?”

Hermione’s hand instantly went in the air. Hagrid nodded at her to answer. “The only people who can see Thestrals are those who have seen death,” Hermione said confidently.

“Tha’s right,” Hagrid said with a nod. “Ten points ter Gryffindor. Now, Threstrals—”

“Hem, hem.”

Harry suppressed a groan. Professor Umbridge had arrived and was standing not to far from Harry, wearing a green hat and cloak with her clipboard ready. This certainly was not the day for a review. Harry just had a feeling that Umbridge would find some way to make Hagrid incriminate himself, something that really wasn’t that hard to do. Harry had managed it when he was a first year.

“Thestrals are not a bad subject. She can’t use it against him,” Sirius said confidently.

“Wanna bet?” James asked frowning grimly.

“Oh, hello, Professor Umbridge,” Hagrid said with a smile. “Glad yeh found the place! We’re doin’ Thestrals today.”

Professor Umbridge simply blinked at him before she started scribbling on her clipboard while muttering to herself similar to what she had done in Professor McGonagall’s class. The problem was Hagrid wasn’t as confident in his teaching abilities as Professor McGonagall was. Harry looked directly at Hagrid and mouthed ‘just ignore her’, earning a nod from Hagrid in return, who returned his attention to the class.

“We started off with a male an’ five females,” Hagrid said, his voice clearly not as confident as before. “This one’s,” he patted the first horse that arrived, “named Tenebrus. He’s the first one born here in the Forest—”

“Are you aware, Professor,” Umbridge interrupted loudly, “that the Ministry of Magic classifies Thestrals as ‘dangerous’?”

“Well, the Ministry of Magic should classify you as deranged but they don’t do they?” James sneered.

Hagrid chuckled at the comment. “Anything’s dangerous if yeh don’ know how ter handle it,” he said to Umbridge then returned to the class. “Thestrals have a bad reputation because o’ the whole death thing. People used ter think they were bad omens but they didn’ understand Thestrals’ll leave yeh alone as long as yeh don’ attack ‘em or get in their way.”

Professor Umbridge started walking around; asking questions to the students in a loud enough voice that made it difficult for Hagrid to ignore her. Of course Umbridge only questioned the Slytherin students who seemed to think it was their mission to think up whatever lies they could about Hagrid. Pansy claimed that Hagrid was impossible to understand and had several Slytherins agreeing with her.

Growls were heard and Sirius was twisting the pillow case of one of the pillows that he was practically strangling.

Umbridge didn’t stick around much longer after informing Hagrid that he would receive his results soon. Harry didn’t miss the look of disgust on Professor Umbridge’s face while she spoke to Hagrid. It was clear that Umbridge had already made her mind up about Hagrid which didn’t ease Harry’s mind. Hagrid may be a little unorthodox but he knew quite a bit about magical creatures and was certainly enjoyed his teaching position which was more than what Harry could say about Umbridge.

Harry had to admit that the inspection hadn’t gone as bad as it could have but it had gone bad enough. Hagrid never had much for self confidence. He needed to be reassured that he was doing something right and Umbridge’s attitude and constant questioning had only damaged what had taken so long for Hagrid to build.

---

For the next few days life at Hogwarts was as normal as it could be, at least for Harry. With the Gryffindor versus Slytherin Quidditch game over, the intense rivalry between houses had shifted back to normal. So far all students had obeyed the warning Professor Dumbledore had given about improper actions against apposing houses, even the Slytherins. Other than some harmless pranking by the twins on other Gryffindors, no one had really done anything.

Harry had managed to avoid attention until Potions class on Thursday where they were brewing an extremely difficult potion. As with all of his potions, Harry was extremely careful in following the instructions. He had been determined not to destroy a cauldron this year and was so far had followed through with the vow. His potions had all been given at least an ‘Acceptable’ grade, something that seemed to annoy Professor Snape endlessly.

As the end of class approached, Professor Snape started examining the cauldrons. The usual comments of ‘dismal’ and ‘pitiful’ were muttered except when Snape took a sniff from Hermione’s cauldron before moving on to Harry’s. The color of Harry’s cauldron was nearly an identical shade of blue to Hermione’s, something that Professor Snape would never admit. Knowing the routine by now, Harry moved out of the way and let Professor Snape sniff his potion then watched as the Potions Master examined the texture.

“Too dark and too thick, Potter,” Professor Snape said coldly. “Detention tonight at six with your Head of House for your incompetence.”

“WHAT?” the four spluttered at once.

Harry tried to ignore the snickers from the Slytherin students as his shoulders hunched forward and head bowed in disappointment. He had done everything correctly but it just wasn’t enough for Professor Snape. After dropping off a corked flask full of his potion on Snape’s desk, Harry left with the rest of the class without even daring a look at the overly biased, greasy-haired hook-nosed man. This had been the first time this term where Professor Snape had gone out of his way to signal Harry out. Why?

Probably for revenge, Harry mused. Snape had just lost two members of his Quidditch team

“If he had taught his students better he wouldn’t have?” Lily huffed. “See if one of McGonagall, Flitwick or Sprout’s students dares do what those two Slytherins did. They would have been hung by their toes and skinned alive. But Snape encourages his students to be bullies and they cross the line!”

Harry spent the remainder of the day in a daze. He didn’t know what to think anymore. There was so much happening this term that just didn’t make sense. The teachers were acting strangely but that could be because of Professor Umbridge and her High Inquisitor role. His dreams were stranger than normal which was certainly saying a lot. The only good thing that was also strange was that he really hadn’t had an outburst since Voldemort had awakened. Harry really didn’t know what to think about that. In one aspect, he was grateful that he didn’t have to worry about it but on the other hand, it could mean that the next one would be a powerful one that would completely overwhelm him.

After a quick dinner which he barely ate anything, Harry hurried off to Professor McGonagall’s office for his detention. He reached it with five minutes to spare. Figuring that he better just get it over with, Harry knocked on the door and heard a firm ‘come in’ from Professor McGonagall. He opened the door and saw McGonagall sitting at her desk, grading assignments. Not wanting to interrupt, Harry remained by the door until Professor McGonagall looked up at him.

“Close the door, Mr. Potter,” McGonagall said sternly, making Harry wince. She hadn’t used that tone with him for the past few years. Once Harry closed the door, Professor McGonagall stood up and walked around her desk, her pile of assignments instantly forgotten. “We need talk about the attack in September, Harry,” she said in a kinder tone. “Why didn’t you tell anyone?”

“Because he was being stupid,” Lily huffed.

“There was also the little fact that it would have been their word against the Slytherins remember?” James asked. “Umbridge would turn it around Harry and make it look like he had attacked them.”

Lily huffed and scowled but said nothing.

To say that Harry was confused was an understatement. Was she upset with him or not? Why did she want to talk about something that happened months ago? Well, something that didn’t really happen months ago. “Excuse me?” he asked softly, not sure that he heard right.

Professor McGonagall approached Harry and met his gaze with a knowing look on her face. “Harry, I spoke with your teammates,” she said gently. “I know you were cornered by five Slytherin students when you were grounded by Madam Pomfrey. The question is why did you remain silent about it? Those students were wrong to do what they did. Remaining silent only encouraged their behavior to continue.”

“She does have a point,” Remus said grimly. “Unfortunately, so does James.”

“But nothing happened,” Harry protested as he took a step back trying to distance himself from McGonagall. “Words were said, that was all.” Of course that wouldn’t have been the case if they hadn’t been interrupted when they had by the Gryffindor Quidditch team but Harry wasn’t about to mention that. “I don’t understand why everyone’s making a big deal about this. You know Malfoy, he’s all talk.” Okay, that’s a lie.

“If that was true then how do you explain what happened after the Quidditch game?” Professor McGonagall asked. “Mr. Malfoy is clearly out of hand. If we had known what he had done months ago then we could have kept an eye out if this inexcusable behavior continued. You should have come to me with this, Harry. I still don’t understand why you did not.”

“Can I say something without being pummeled to death?” Sirius asked and the others shrugged. “If Harry had said something, Umbridge, as James pointed out, would have done something earlier that would probably make it impossible to punish Malfoy no matter what he did. So in a way it’s a good thing that he had the chance to do something so undeniably awful in front of the whole school and cannot escape that punishment. Because I can bet that from now on, while Umbridge is on staff, he will be untouchable.”

“I hate to agree with Sirius,” Lily sighed.

“Because I didn’t want any more attention than I already had!” Harry shouted before he could stop himself and instantly regretting it. Letting out a sigh, Harry rubbed his eyes underneath his glasses and shook his head. This was why he didn’t say anything about what happened. No one would understand why he needed to do what he did. “Forgive me, Professor,” he said softly. “I didn’t mean to shout. You don’t know Malfoy like I do. He’s jealous of what happened on the train. He was just trying to convince me that he was the ‘king of the playground’ so to speak.”

“As true as that may be, Mr. Malfoy is not a little boy anymore,” Professor McGonagall said firmly. “He is a fifteen-year-old who needs to learn that you don’t always get what you want in life. I seem to remember his father being the same way. Did it ever occur to you that Mr. Malfoy may be acting out against any other students here, not just you?”

Harry shook his head. He had to admit that it didn’t occur to him. He hadn’t heard anything so he assumed that nothing had happened. Malfoy had always targeted Harry and his friends. He never bothered with anyone else then, why should he now?

“Just because you don’t know doesn’t mean he doesn’t. I mean, if people see Malfoy getting away with doing things like this to the Boy-Who-Lived they may think that they common folk don’t stand a chance and just keep their mouth shut to avoid even more trouble,” Remus shrugged unhappy. “What?” he cried in protest at the looks he was getting. “Harry may not like his fame or the special treatment he gets but he does get it. It’s a fact. I’m not talking about Harry here, I am talking about the students that don’t have special treatment and that won’t think they stand a chance if the one that has can’t get any justice.”

A firm knock on the door halted the conversation. Professor McGonagall motioned for Harry to take a seat in front of her desk as she moved for the door. Sitting down, Harry set his school bag on the floor as he glanced over his shoulder to see Professor McGonagall open the door and step outside. She kept the door partially opened allowing Harry to hear the conversation although whether that was intentional, Harry didn’t know.

“Professor Umbridge, I’m afraid I can’t talk right now,” Professor McGonagall said in her normal stern voice. “I am currently with a student for detention.”

“That is exactly why I’m here, Professor,” Umbridge said in her usual sweet voice. “I understand you have Mr. Potter for detention at the moment.” A shuffling sound could be heard followed by a rustling sound. “Hem, hem. As a result of recent events, the Minister has passed Educational Decree Number Twenty-Four declaring that the High Inquisitor will henceforth have supreme authority over all punishments, sanctions and removal of privileges pertaining to the students of Hogwarts, and the power to alter such punishments, sanctions and removals of privileges as may have been ordered by other staff members. Sighed Cornelius Fudge, Minister of Magic, Order of Merlin First Class, etc., etc.”

“Close enough Padfoot,” Remus grunted.

“Can she overturn Malfoy’s punishment?” Sirius asked.

“It says she can,” James frowned.

“No, she can’t. That punishment was issued before that Educational Decree. She can’t change it,” Lily pointed out.

James looked skeptical.

Before Professor McGonagall could say anything Professor Umbridge forced her way into the office. “Mr. Potter, please come with me,” she said in the same sweet voice that made Harry feel ill.

“Now see here, Professor,” Professor McGonagall objected. “Mr. Potter was assigned to detention with me. To come in here and alter the punishment like this undermines my authority and the authority of every other professor in this school.”

“Like she cares,” Sirius snorted.

“Now, now, Professor,” Umbridge said with a wide smile as she turned back to McGonagall. “There is no need to be overdramatic. I just have it on good authority that you may be a little lenient on your students, especially Mr. Potter.”

Sirius and James looked shocked and Sirius spluttered, “Lenient? Minnie lenient? Since when?”

She looked back at Harry, noticing the teenager hadn’t moved in the slightest. “Come on, Mr. Potter. The longer you dawdle the later your detention will last.”

Not wanting to get Professor McGonagall in any trouble, Harry stood up, grabbed his schoolbag and followed Professor Umbridge, noticing a shocked Professor McGonagall as he passed. This day was just going from bad to worse. This meant that every time Professor Snape was being unfair Professor Umbridge could change the punishment to a night of writing lines in his own blood. No matter what it took, Harry made a mental vow not to give any of his teachers any incentive to give him detention.

“The problem is,” James said through gritted teeth, “That both Umbridge and Snivellus do not need an incentive. They will give you detention for breathing to loudly.”

Following Umbridge into her office, Harry noticed that the infamous quill was already on the table along with a long piece of parchment. “You know what to do, Mr. Potter,” Umbridge said sweetly as she motioned for him to take a seat at the table. “Chop, chop.”

Harry suppressed a groan as he set his schoolbag on the floor and took his seat. Picking up the quill, Harry inhaled deeply, already dreading what he knew was going to happen. How many hours would she keep him this time? Reluctantly, Harry put the quill to the parchment and wrote I must not tell lies. The words appeared in red on the parchment and on the back of his hand as clear as if it had been there all along. Ignoring the stinging pain from his hand, Harry wrote I must not tell lies again and this time felt a more intense pain as the cut on the back of his hand deepened.

It was only an hour into the detention when Umbridge started talking. “Mr. Potter,” she said with a sad tone to her voice. “I’m afraid we are having a problem.”

“Yes we are. The problem is you are deliberately breaking the law and should be carted to Azkaban!” Lily shrieked.

Harry hesitated and looked up. “Oh, keep writing, Mr. Potter,” Umbridge said sweetly then turned her tone back to distressing. “I try and try with you but you can’t seem to let it sink in. You are determined to spread lies around the castle. Sometimes I have to wonder if this just isn’t a cry for help.”

“Pardon me? What?” Sirius blurted incredulous.

Professor Umbridge looked at the scroll in her hands and shook her head slowly. “I believe it all started before your third year with Sirius Black and your uncle,” she said thoughtfully. “From what I’ve learned you were quite the delinquent when you lived with your relatives, causing problems…starting fights. One has to wonder if Vernon Dursley was justified to use whatever means necessary to ensure your obedience.”

James rubbed his eyes nervously and hissed angrily, “Please tell me I didn’t just hear that?”

Harry froze as he inhaled sharply. No! There was no way what Uncle Vernon did could be justified! Sirius, Remus and the entire Hogwarts staff assured Harry that Uncle Vernon was wrong to take his anger out on a teenager. No adult has any right to strike a child. Remus had told him repeatedly that Uncle Vernon had been wrong to do what he did.

“Exactly!” Remus cried. “And you listen to me Harry not to that… that… that- you know!”

Sirius that had been looking exited at the prospect of hearing his friend say something a little stronger about Umbridge deflated and shook his head, “Moony, Moony, Moony. You are a lost case!”

“Terrorizing your relatives with threats of magic, Mr. Potter?” Umbridge said regretfully.

“When did that happen? Because I sure never saw it?” Lily growled. “All I saw was that fat pig beating up my baby!”

 “And you wonder why your relatives behaved like they did. Keep writing, Mr. Potter.” She waited until Harry resumed writing his lines before continuing. “Perhaps you are the reason your relatives hate magic so much. From what I understand they provided everything you needed for almost twelve years before you accused your uncle of abuse.”

“WHAT?” the four cried.

“Provided…what…” James said shaking. “THEY DIDN’T BLOODY WELL PROVIDE ANYTHING TO HIM!”

“AND HARRY IS NOT THE REASON MY GOOD FOR NOTHING SISTER HATES MAGIC! IT’S HER! SHE’S BLOODY JEALOUS AND SHE TAKES IT OUT ON HARRY!”

ACCUSED? Harry couldn’t believe what he was hearing. Professor Umbridge was blaming him for Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia’s fear of the ‘abnormal’. It wasn’t true! Aunt Petunia had been jealous of her sister and resented her for being a witch. Aunt Petunia had admitted that much when Hagrid had rescued him on his eleventh birthday!

“That was when the lies started,” Professor Umbridge continued. “Once you saw the attention you received you couldn’t stop.” She clicked her tongue and shook her head. “It’s sad that a respectable family must now pay the price. I fear that lying is like an addiction for you, Mr. Potter. Once you start with one you just can’t stop. It doesn’t help that your—hem, hem—guardians only enforce the lies. You may think you have everyone wrapped around your finger, Mr. Potter, but I know what you’re trying to do. I don’t think you realize the trouble you have caused for so many.”

“I AM GOING TO KILL THAT BITCH!” Sirius cried and lunged towards the book. Remus had to throw himself at the bed to avoid Sirius. James and Lily were trying to help them when suddenly the door opened and the four teenagers froze on the spot. James turned quickly, and with the sweetest and innocent smile he asked:

“Can we help you with something mom?”

Mrs. Potter crossed her arms and looked sternly at her son with a ‘you don’t fool me James Potter’ glare, “What is all the shouting here about?”

“Shouting?” Lily asked nonchalantly. “No one’s shouting.”

“Oh, yes they are. I heard you,” Mrs. Potter said her lips in a thin line and turned to Sirius shaking a finger to him. “And you Mr. Black apologize to Lily right now and do not let me hear you calling her names again!”

“But I didn’t-” Sirius tried to defend himself while Lily shook her head:

“He didn’t-“

“My hearing is quite good thank you very much and I heard you calling Lily the b- word Sirius. Apologize before I Scourgify your mouth young man,” Mrs. Potter said sternly waving her wand.

Very contrite Sirius mumbled, “I’m sorry for calling you that Lily.”

“That’s fine,” Lily patted his shoulder. “I know you weren’t calling me that!”

Mrs. Potter nodded and said sternly, “I’m leaving but if I hear more yelling I will be separating you four and having you cleaning the whole house without magic.”

The four teens nodded their heads very apologetically and waited until Mrs. Potter left. James closed the door and pressed his ear to it. Once he was sure he couldn’t hear her anymore he nodded and Remus smacked Sirius’ head.

“See what you did? Be quiet now!”

“But Moony, I’m not the only one that yelled. I’m just the one she was close enough to understand!” Sirius moaned.

It’s not true, Harry mentally repeated over and over again. The Dursleys were anything but respectable. It’s not true. They treated him like a slave. It’s not true. Sirius and Remus were the first ones to tell him the truth about his parents and what the Dursleys had done to him. It’s not true. Harry trusted them with his life. It’s not true. He would never lie about anything like that.

“An ex-convict and a half-breed,” Umbridge muttered.

James and Sirius grabbed a pillow each and started hitting them on the wall, the floor, the bed. Then they strangled them and Sirius even bit his.

“Calmer now?” Remus asked as Sirius raised his head, still clutching his pillow and nodded with his jaw tight.

“Perhaps your current living environment has been more damaging than what we originally believed. It seems clear that your relatives were the only ones who could keep someone like you in line, Mr. Potter. It has only been since you left them that you have caused nothing but problems.”

“I’m getting sick and tired of Umbridge’s implications,” Lily said annoyed rubbing her temple.

That’s because the Ministry is too daft to accept that they make mistakes! Harry mentally screamed. He could only come to the conclusion that Professor Umbridge was completely out of her mind. Umbridge was obsessed with the Ministry. In her distorted mind everything the Ministry did was right regardless of how true it actually was. She is certainly a few bricks shy of a full load.

“Exactly!” Remus mumbled.

“I suppose it shouldn’t surprise me to find you taking advantage of a gracious title and privileges the Ministry had given you,” Professor Umbridge continued. “You could be using your fame to be such a positive influence for the Ministry yet you use it to strut around these halls like you own the place. With such an attitude, I find it to be no surprise that others take it upon themselves to keep you in line.”

“Oh, so now Malfoy was the one keeping Harry in line and it’s Harry that struts around not the little ferret?” Remus asked sarcastically.

Harry’s breathing quickened as he tried to keep his emotions under control. He did not strut! How could she be so twisted to think that Malfoy was in the right? Also, he never asked for the fame that came with being the-boy-who-lived; he never wanted it. The problem was no one could seem to realize that.

“You may have many people under your control, Mr. Potter, but I am certainly not one of them,” Professor Umbridge said confidently.

“No, you are a Ministry obsessed moron just like Fudge!” Sirius hissed.

“I see what a pampered brat you really are. You seem to make it your mission in life to cause problems. The way I see it, it’s only a matter of time before your precious guardians and teachers see you for who you really are. When that time comes, I hope you’re prepared to face the consequences of your actions.”

“That,” Remus hissed offended. “Will never happen!”

Harry could feel his control faltering. Calming techniques, Harry! Closing his eyes, Harry tried to focus on anything but Umbridge’s voice. She had the right to her own opinion, Remus told him that much. Remus didn’t tell him how much her opinion hurt, though. Why didn’t anyone understand that he would happily give up the name and all of the fame ‘the Ministry’ gave him if it meant he could just be like everyone else? Why did everyone assume that he loved the publicity that took away any hope had having any sort of life?

“Desperate times call for desperate measures, Mr. Potter,” Professor Umbridge said matter-of-factly. “People like you need a firm hand to keep you in line. It appears that the actions your uncle took have been the only way to keep you out of trouble. In my opinion, it won’t be long until everyone awakens to see that you are nothing more than an attention-wanting liar.”

“Good thing that no one asked your opinion then!” James growled.

With her speech complete, Professor Umbridge sat down behind her desk and started grading assignments. On the outside Harry displayed no sign of her words breaking the surface but inside he was screaming. Remus had insisted that Uncle Vernon had been in the wrong to take his anger out on Harry. The entire teaching staff had ensured Harry that what happened wasn’t his fault. That was the reason Uncle Vernon was in jail.

Professor Umbridge was silent for the remainder of the detention. The only sounds that could be heard were their quills scratching parchment and the occasional shuffling of parchment as Umbridge moved from one assignment to the next. Finally at nearly one in the morning Professor Umbridge examined Harry’s blood soaked hand before dismissing him with a smile and a sweet ‘good night’.

After grabbing his schoolbag, Harry hurried out of the room and for the nearest bathroom. He carefully cleaned his wound before bandaging it up like he had before. His hand was throbbing severely and still bleeding heavily without any sight of stopping any time soon. After hiding his hand in his robes, Harry hurried to the Gryffindor Tower, not wanting to be caught for being out past curfew and receiving another detention, something that wouldn’t surprise Harry in the slightest.

Entering the Gryffindor Common Room, Harry wasn’t surprised to find it empty. Everyone had most likely gone to bed hours ago. Maneuvering around the furniture to the staircase, Harry couldn’t think of anything except for wanting this day to end. He had thought he could handle whatever Umbridge threw at him but the ridicule she had just given him was something he hadn’t been ready for. It had been over two years since he had been subjected to it but this was nothing like what his relatives had said to him. His relatives had never told him that those who cared about him would turn against him since they never believed that anyone saw Harry as nothing other than a freak.

“Please tell me he doesn’t believe that b-,” James said tiredly but correct as if scared his mother would hear, “that woman said?”

Harry softly entered his dorm room and was instantly hit with the sounds of Neville snoring. He carefully made his way to his four poster bed and set his schoolbag on the floor. He had never thought that he could be so surrounded by people and yet feel so alone. None of them could begin to fathom what his life was really like. At the moment, Harry was willing to go to Malfoy and offer his life to his rival freely. How could people want a life like this?

Changing into his pajamas, Harry subconsciously touched his ribs, remembering the pain that he had felt over two years ago when his uncle had broken them. He remembered Umbridge’s words but the truth was he never accused Vernon Dursley of anything. The whale of a man had admitted what he had done. Everyone knew that. Umbridge knew that.

“Do you really think Umbridge doesn’t know that,” Remus snorted. “Of course she does. But she also knows how to get to you and she is twisted and evil. So she says what she knows will hurt, no matter if it’s true or not.”

“I don’t know,” Lily said frowning her lips, “Umbridge is psychotic enough to actually believe what she spouts.”

Harry cast a few silencing charms around his bed and then crawled in. He buried his face in his pillow, trying to fight back the tears that so desperately wanted to come. This was the price of keeping his secrets. His friends and teachers didn’t understand him, the wizarding world either thought of him as a hero or a liar and he was ridiculed for matters that were long dead. Professor Umbridge was just trying to make him do something stupid like she always did. It wasn’t true. She was lying, she had to be.

But if it wasn’t true then why did it hurt so much?

“Because it always does,” Remus said sadly in a knowing tone. He was drowned in three silent and supportive hugs.