'Where were you this morning?' She continued, her eyes flashing furiously as she glanced at the blackened, heat-warped remnants of her office. It really was an improvement over the pink.
'Hogwarts,' Harry replied. There was no point fighting the urge to tell her the truth if he did not have to.
'Specifically?' Snape drawled. The small smirk was at the corner of his lips again.
He had an almost overwhelming desire to tell them that he'd been in the Chamber of Secrets, that he'd been in Myrtle's Bathroom and in here, but somewhere in the back of his head a little voice reminded him that if he did that then Umbridge would escape his plan and her well-deserved end.
'Gryffindor Tower,' he replied, keeping his voice even and dull. There was no compulsion strong enough to steal his revenge from him. She frowned, wrinkling her wide, pale brow.
'Where is Dumbledore?' She asked suddenly, a gleeful grin spreading across her wide face at the prospect of eliciting such an important secret from him.
It's almost too easy, Harry thought.
She was already asking questions and searching for a way to further herself by handing something about Dumbledore to the Ministry. Umbridge would jump at the chance the map would seem to offer.
'I have no idea,' Harry answered earnestly. He hardly cared. As long as he wasn't in the
causing trouble for him, then Albus Dumbledore could go anywhere he pleased.
'Have you attended any meetings of,' the witch's pale face twisted in disgust, 'Dumbledore's Army, since the first?'
'No,' he droned. That was almost true.
Umbridge's face fell, but disappeared into his hairline.
Snape's
eyebrows
Not good. He knows I might be lying.
'Why did you not attend any meetings?' Umbridge pressed, seeing the potions teacher's reaction.
'The club was illegal,' he answered, trying not to laugh at the sheer disbelief on Snape's face, 'and I would not have been welcome after everything that had been written about me.' The incredulousness faded from the face of the potions master, that half-truth he had swallowed.
'Did you destroy my office?' The Pink Professor asked resignedly, aware that she wasn't getting any of the answers she wanted.
'No,' Harry replied in the same emotionless tone.
I didn't destroy it, he corrected to himself, I razed it. I improved it.
'You may go, Potter,' she spat, clearly angry that he had not been the culprit. 'Mr Malfoy, if you would be so kind as to fetch,' she paused to survey the list, 'Mr Smith,' she decided.
'You want to check Potter's answers against another, more insignificant member?' He heard Snape ask as he left.
A swift check of the Marauder's Map showed Zacharias Smith on one end of the Hufflepuff table. Umbridge was going to be so very disappointed when he only corroborated Harry's answers, but he imagined the revelation of the map would make up for it.
He set off at a brisk pace, concealing himself once again. Malfoy and the others would also start at the Great Hall, so he would have little time in which to act.
Fortunately Smith was sitting in clear view of the doors, giving him an uninterrupted line of sight.
'Imperio,' he commanded softly, willing the Hufflepuff to rise and walk out towards him.
Footsteps indicated the Inquisitorial squad was coming, so he led Smith round the corner and pulled him into a broom closet, stunning and disillusioning him after tugging a couple of hairs out of his head.
Unstoppering the vial of polyjuice he dropped the handful of hairs in and watched as it changed from the colour and consistency of a very thick, mud-like porridge to an off colour sludge -like brown. He didn't particularly care to guess what that said about Zacharias Smith, it was what Zacharias Smith's doppelgänger was about to say that mattered.
Pinching his nose he downed the potion, trying not to gag at its foul taste and feeling.
A horrible writhing sensation sprung from his stomach, accompanied by a fierce heat that spread all across his body, burning just beneath his skin. His bones twisted, lengthening, in some places, shortening in others, his skin rippled like liquid wax, and muscles melted away from under his skin. Hissing with pain he collapsed onto the floor and curled up until the transformation ended.
When it was done he checked his reflection in the locket Fleur had given him, making sure he completely resembled the Hufflepuff, then he transfigured his robes, changing their size and colour to exactly match what Smith had been wearing.
Stepping back into the Great Hall he rejoined Smith's friends for a few moments before Malfoy spotted him and dragged him off the bench.
'The Headmistress wants to speak with you,' he sneered.
Crabbe and Goyle took an arm each and half-marched, half-carried him down the corridor. The difference between his two journeys was amusing, but he made a mental note to ensure the two brutes paid for their behaviour. He hated being manhandled, he always had. A lasting gift from his uncle and cousin.
'Mr Smith,' Umbridge greeted him politely, pushing a plain china cup in his direction. It was full to the brim of steaming tea and Harry had no doubt whatsoever that there were a few drops of veritaserum in there as well.
Snape had left, presumably he had only be concerned about Harry's interview.
He eyed the tea carefully and just managed to pick out a thin, clear film of liquid over the top. Part of him wanted to shake his head. Umbridge had just poured it on top, she hadn't even tried to mix it in and hide it.
'Have a drink, Zacharias,' she suggested saccharinely, 'and relax, you're not in any trouble. I just want to ask you about some of the members of that group you were a part of. They've done a great deal of criminal damage to Hogwarts and my own possessions.'
Harry picked up the tea cup and took a sip, ignoring the odd combination of the veritaserum on his tongue and the burning of the tea down his throat.
'What is your full name?' She asked curiously. 'I don't remember seeing a middle name on the records.'
'It's just Zacharias Smith,' Harry answered. 'I have no middle name.' Now he'd off the effects of the serum once the compulsion felt far weaker than it had before, but that could be because he hadn't drunk all the tea.
He took another cautious sip, aware he had to pretend to be oblivious.
'So how many meetings of this group did you go to?' Umbridge inquired lightly.
'All of them,' Harry replied, calmly lying through his teeth. 'There was only one meeting though.'
'That's good,' a simpering smile spread across her face. 'What did you plan to do at the meetings?'
'We wanted to practice magic,' Harry responded honestly. 'I was afraid I wouldn't be able to pass my OWLs otherwise.'
'You're right to be concerned, the exams are very important,' Umbridge nodded kindly, 'but you must be careful who you listen to.' Harry took another gulp of the tea, which had cooled to reach that small window of censurability between scalding and icy. 'How was the group organised?'
'The DA was run by Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley, they came up with the idea, but several different students were going to teach, whomever could help. They had a big list of all the names on.'
Harry dropped the first breadcrumb at her feet and she snatched at it immediately. 'What was the list?' Umbridge asked with sugary sweetness.
'It was a list of every student in the group,' he wrinkled his brow as if in thought, 'but I think there was more to it than that,' he admitted. 'Granger and Weasley were very careful about hiding it an keeping it safe, they talked about it in the corridor when they didn't know I was there.'
'What did they say?' She breathed, a sickly, triumphant smile appearing on her lips.
'They said it was a map,' Harry told her monotonously, 'there was a phrase to reveal it,' he continued, 'one that Dumbledore gave them.'
He was very glad that Snape had left now, there was no way he would swallow this story, even if Umbridge seemed to.
'Do you know the phrase?' Umbridge reached for her handbag, prying open the clasp with her stubby fingers, drawing out her wand, the list, and the tarnished tiara he had used as a marker.
Why did she take that?
He supposed it was hardly important.
'I think so,' Harry nodded, pretending to try and remember.
'Take your time,' Umbridge cooed.
'For the Greater Good,' Harry said eventually. The ice in his chest was crying out in triumph, waves of shivering cold trembled victoriously through his veins. There was no way she could resist, not now.
'For the Greater Good,' Umbridge commanded, tapping her wand to the list. Nothing happened.
'For the Greater Good,' she repeated, trying the other side. This time the rough map he had drawn was revealed in contrast. 'Oh, yes,' she breathed.
Abruptly she stood, spilling the diadem onto the floor, and seizing a handful of floor powder.
'Thank you, Zacharias,' she told him, seemingly sincerely. 'You may go, just remember to be much more careful about who you listen to in the future.'
Oh I will, he laughed to himself, perhaps you should have done the same.
He finished his tea, it seemed a shame to waste it, especially as it was a perfectly adequate cup, then rose to leave. As he did, Umbridge bent to retrieve the circlet, placing it on her head with a high-pitched, girlish laugh, cocking her head almost as if she was listening.
'Dawlish,' he heard her order smoothly after a second, 'come at once, and bring a partner,' there was a silence in which he lingered outside the door, 'no don't bother telling Amelia Bones, there's no time, this is of critical importance to the Minister.'
Harry slowly began to walk back in the direction of the broom closet, periodically checking the map to make sure he knew where Umbridge was. He didn't want her to wander off into the forest without him, it would be a terrible shame for her to die unaware of how she had been led to this moment, how he had led her there.
Harry wanted to stand next to her and smile triumphantly as she realised all her victories had simply been steps on the road to her own ruin.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Ready to lose yourself in an epic tale? Download the full PDF now and start reading from page one!"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
https://fictiontopia.tiendup.com/