GEORGE:

Lucy always looked exhausted after a full moon, but generally, the trend was that she looked less and less tired as the days went on. But when she showed up to breakfast on Tuesday morning with Hermione, a couple minutes after Harry and Ron had appeared, she looked as if she hadn't slept in a year. Fred and I exchanged a look, making the unspoken decision not to say anything.

Tactful as ever, though, Harry took one look at her and asked, "Are you alright, Lucy? You look exhausted."

"Yeah, I'm fine," she muttered without looking up at him. "Wonder when the mail's arriving with whatever the hell Percy mentioned last night."

"Percy?" Fred and I asked at the same time.

"Yeah, he sent Ron a lovely letter last night with a delightful P.S. intended for me. Ron tore it up as soon as I wrote my reply, though, so don't bother asking to read it. Not worth reading, anyway."

"Git," Ron commented with a roll of his eyes.

The mail arrived then, and the letter from our darling git of an older brother was forgotten as Lucy reached forward for the newspaper. She instantly dropped it as if it had burned her. Umbridge — or, more appropriately, as I had heard many times whispered behind hands, Umbitch — was front and center, smiling. The headline above her was even worse.

MINISTRY SEEKS EDUCATIONAL REFORM

DOLORES UMBRIDGE APPOINTED FIRST-EVER "HIGH INQUISITOR"

"This can't be good," Lucy whispered.

"'High Inquisitor?' What does that mean?" Harry asked.

Lucy grabbed the newspaper again and began reading out loud, her voice trembling more and more as it went on and on. Fred and I opted to read over her shoulder instead of listen along — we'd both always been fast readers.

   In a surprise move last night, the Ministry of Magic passed new legislation giving itself an unprecedented level of control at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

   "The Minister has been growing uneasy about goings-on at Hogwarts for some time," said Junior Assistant to the Minister, Percy Weasley. "He is now responding to concerns voiced by anxious parents, who feel the school may be moving in a direction they do not approve."

   This is not the first time in recent weeks Fudge has used new laws to effect improvements at the Wizarding school. As recently as August 30th, Educational Decree Twenty-two was passed, to ensure that, in the event of the current headmaster being unable to provide a candidate for a teaching post, the Ministry should select an appropriate person.

   "That's how Dolores Umbridge came to be appointed to the teaching staff at Hogwarts," said Weasley last night. "Dumbledore couldn't find anyone, so the Minister put in Umbridge and of course, she's been an immediate success totally revolutionizing the teaching of Defense Against the Dark Arts and providing the Minister with on-the-ground feedback about what's really happening at Hogwarts."

   It is this last function that the Ministry has now formalized with the passing of Educational Decree Twenty-three, which creates the new position of "Hogwarts High Inquisitor."

   "This is an exciting new phase in the Minister's plan to get to grips with what some are calling the 'falling standards' at Hogwarts," said Weasley. "The Inquisitor will have powers to inspect her fellow educators and make sure that they are coming up to scratch. Professor Umbridge has been offered this position in addition to her own teaching post, and we are delighted to say that she has accepted."

   The Ministry's new moves have received enthusiastic support from parents of students at Hogwarts.

   "I feel much easier in my mind now that I know that Dumbledore is being subjected to fair and objective evaluation," said Mr. Lucius Malfoy, 41, speaking from his Wiltshire mansion last night. "Many of us with our children's best interests at heart have been concerned about some of Dumbledore's eccentric decisions in the last few years and will be glad to know that the Ministry is keeping an eye on the situation."

   Among those "eccentric decisions" are undoubtedly the controversial staff appointments previously described in this newspaper, which have included the hiring of werewolf Remus Lupin, half giant Rubeus Hagrid, and delusional ex-Auror "Mad-Eye" Moody.

   Rumors abound, of course, that Albus Dumbledore, once Supreme Mugwump of the International Confederation of Wizards and Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot, is no longer up to the task of managing the prestigious school of Hogwarts.

   "I think the appointment of the Inquisitor is a first step toward ensuring that Hogwarts has a headmaster in whom we can all repose confidence," said a Ministry insider last night.

   Wizengamot elders Griselda Marchbanks and Tiberius Ogden have resigned in protest at the introduction of the post of Inquisitor to Hogwarts.

   "Hogwarts is a school, not an outpost of Cornelius Fudge's office," said Madam Marchbanks. "This is a further disgusting attempt to discredit Albus Dumbledore." (For a full account of Madam Marchbanks' alleged links to subversive goblin groups, turn to page 17).

Lucy dropped the newspaper, so pale she looked like a ghost. Hermione's hand shot across the table and snatched up the newspaper, eyes flashing.

"So now we know how we ended up with Umbridge!" she exclaimed angrily. "Fudge passed this 'Educational Decree' and forced her on us! And now he's given her the power to inspect other teachers! I can't believe this. It's outrageous!"

"Yeah, it is," Harry said, glancing across the table at Lucy's bandaged hand for a moment before looking up at her face. "Lu, are you-?"

Lucy shook her head, still not looking at him. "I'm fine."

"If you don't feel much like going to your next class," Fred whispered, reaching into his pocket, "we've got options for you. The nosebleed one is the most reliable, but if you'd rather try one of the newer ones-"

"Don't be ridiculous, give her one of those and she'll faint!" Hermione hissed. She leaned across the table to get a closer look at Lucy. "What is it?"

Lucy shook her head again. "Nothing. It's nothing. I'm fine." She glanced at Fred. "What was that one you were working on at my house? Fever Fudge?"

"No, no, you don't want that one," I said quickly.

"It'd get her out of class," Fred replied with a shrug.

"No." I shoved my hand into my pocket and felt around for a better solution. I found a Blood Blisterpod and offered it to her. "Are you sure about this, Cub?"

She glanced over at Hermione. "What do we have this morning?"

"Potions then Herbology, but Lucy, you really shouldn't-"

Lucy took the candy from me and held it up. "Which end first?"

"Orange. Save the purple for once you're in the hallway. But wait, you shouldn't just eat it," I said with a grin. "We should make a show of it, don't you think?"

"Brilliant idea, George!" Fred replied. "Say, dearest twin, would you pass me a slice of toast from that-" He shot his arm forward, missing Lucy's nose by an inch. But to everyone else, it looked as if he'd collided with her as he pointed.

She caught on right away. "Fred!" she complained loudly, popping the candy into her mouth as she pressed her hands to her nose.

"Merlin, sorry!" he yelped.

I lunged for a napkin so she didn't have to use her sleeve to soak up the blood already beginning to pour from her nose. "Oi, Fred, maybe you should take her to the Hospital Wing, looks like you really did a number on her nose!"

"Good idea, George." He grabbed Lucy by the elbow and dragged her to her feet, and the two of them hurried from the room.

I kept a perfectly straight face as I glanced back at the three fifth-years across the table. Hermione looked torn between amusement, anger, and utter resignation. Ron was biting his lip to keep from laughing at the spectacle. Harry merely looked concerned.

"He didn't actually hit her nose, did he?" he asked.

"Oh, of course he did," I replied, reaching for a slice of toast from the very same tray Fred had pointed to. "We take our shenanigans very seriously. Anyway, what do you reckon made her so upset?"

"Everything about that article." Harry shook his head. "What about that isn't upsetting?"

Fred returned a couple minutes later. "Our dearest Lucy is expected to make a full recovery by lunchtime. Funny enough, the bleeding stopped just before we arrived in the Hospital Wing, but Madam Pomfrey seemed to think it best if Lucy stay with her for a while."

"Funny indeed," I said in response.

"No rebuke, Hermione?" Fred asked.

"Yeah, Prefect Granger, aren't you going to turn us in for endangering a fellow classmate to the point she has to miss class?"

"Oh, come off it," she replied, turning slightly pink. "I've realized now she wouldn't have been able to function well in class, and she looks tired today anyway." She sighed. "We'd better head to class, just in case Umbridge is inspecting our classes."

Ron grinned suddenly.

"What is it?" Harry asked.

Ron laughed. "Oh, I can't wait to see McGonagall inspected. Umbridge won't know what hit her!"

We all laughed at that before heading our separate ways. Our first class was Herbology, and I made a beeline for the empty seat next to Henry.

"Happy Tuesday!" I said brightly. "Lovely day to try to avoid being eaten by plants, don't you think?"

Henry snorted. "If you say so. Say, is Lucy alright? I saw her rushing out of the Great Hall with Fred."

"That would unfortunately be my handiwork," Fred announced with a sigh as he and Lee took the seats across from us. "Buffoon that I am, I more or less squashed her nose as I pointed at a tray of toast. But don't worry, old chap, she will be fully recovered by lunchtime, according to Madam Pomfrey. For now, let's just try to survive this class with all of our fingers still attached and uneaten by these bloody venomous tentacula plants."

It was easier said than done, truthfully. The plants were merciless.

Henry had never been much of a talker, even when Cedric was around, but without him, he was quieter than ever. Just the same, the three of us Gryffindors were able to coax a couple of smiles out of him with our tremendously witty banter. We also kept him entertained with a handful (alright, more than a handful, more like a dozen or two) of near-accidents with the carnivorous plants, one of which involving my hand, dragon dung fertilizer, and a bouncing bulb plant that managed to escape its pot nearby. Fortunately for my fingers, Henry's Keeper reflexes allowed him to swat the bouncing bulb in the way of the venomous tentacula's reach, so it wrapped its thorny vines around that instead of around me.

"Umbridge is a venomous tentacula," I announced as we headed up to the castle after Herbology.

"What do you mean?" Lee asked, looking at me out of the corner of his eye.

"Oh, I get it!" Fred said, beating me to my own explanation. "So she's got all of these vines, right, and everywhere she touches, uh oh! Chaos! Destruction! Children eaten alive!"

"But it's not enough yet. She keeps reaching," I added. I counted on my fingers. "First it was cutting Dumbledore off at the feast. Then it was changing the Defense Against the Dark Arts curriculum. Now she's High Inquisitor, and who knows where she'll go next?" I started wiggling my arms in what I hoped were venomous tentacula-like motions. "Maybe she'll go for you!" I suddenly jumped on Henry from behind, latching onto him. "'I'm sure we'll be very good friends!'" I said in a high-pitched imitation of the pink venomous tentacula.

Henry laughed — really laughed! — and wrestled me off of him. "Thanks for that." He dropped his voice to almost a whisper. "We've all been trying to think of a way to talk about her without using her name. I think 'Venomous Tentacula' will do nicely."

"Happy to be of service," I replied.

We parted ways with the Hufflepuffs once we reached the steps, and when we arrived in the Charms classroom, we found the devil herself already there, sitting in the corner of the room with a clipboard. Fred and I assumed our typical seats behind Angelina and Alicia, respectively.

I got the feeling Alicia fancied me, and I knew for a fact Angelina and Fred thought it would be rather funny if the Gryffindor Beaters were dating two of the three Gryffindor Chasers, and she was certainly nice and fun to be around, but I didn't think I'd ever properly loved her. I'd always been under the impression that love, true love, was supposed to be empowering rather than embarrassing. Did I get flustered sometimes around Alicia? Did I stick my foot in my mouth sometimes when I was trying especially hard to make her laugh? Yeah, I couldn't deny it. But it had never seemed quite, well, right. I never felt the way I imagined Fred felt around Angelina when she beat him to a punchline just so she could watch him stumble over his words and bring out his exasperated smile. I never felt the way I imagined Lucy felt when Harry instinctively went to her every time he entered a room (even though he was too bloody thick to realize any of this). I liked Alicia plenty, and I might have even fancied her, but it was different, somehow. It wasn't quite right.

Flitwick didn't change his lesson any for Umbridge's sake. We were learning how to cast blue sparks, something Fred and I had been doing for years and years at that point. Typically, we would have used the free time to fiddle around with our products under the desk, but with Umbridge there, we didn't want to take any chances. Besides, we'd already used a product that day, and to great effect. We reckoned we could take the period off.

We were glad for it, too, because Umbridge crossed the room at one point to ask Alicia a couple of questions about the class. Fred pretended to be taking notes, but when I glanced over, I saw a shoddy sketch of a venomous tentacula in the margins. I bowed my head quickly to hide my amused smile.

We swung by the Hospital Wing to grab Lucy on our way to lunch. She reported that while she was sleeping and we were all in class, she had a lovely dream about "accidentally" sending a Quaffle directly into Umbridge's face during a Quidditch match.

"Now you just need to start playing again and make it reality!" Fred remarked. "Any idea when you'll be able to take the Pitch again? Katie's great and all, but we miss you."

She blushed a bit at that. "Not yet. That's all I really know. I'm still an earthquake on two legs for the time being."

Fred laughed, and I did too, but it still made me sad. I still felt a pinch somewhere deep inside me at the thought of all she had gone through, even though I understood I didn't know the half of it. Sometimes, I still saw the Dark Mark over her house in my nightmares. Sometimes, I had nightmares where we couldn't save her in time.

I wrapped an arm around her shoulders and pulled her just a bit closer. "Well, until then, you could always come crash our practices."

"A certain someone might be happy to see you," Fred added, wiggling his eyebrows at her.

She huffed, half a smile on her face. "Yeah, well, a certain someone-" She jabbed him hard in the ribs with her index finger. "-should stay out of it. Harry's gotten on just fine without me there so far."

"Who says I was talking about Harry?" Fred replied, glancing at me over his head.

For half a second, I panicked. What's he playing at? Then I recovered myself and replied, "Yeah, Cub, you would be good for Ron. If he learned to block your shots, he'd be able to block anything. You never miss a shot."

"Oh, shove off, I miss all the time," she replied, shaking her head. "Besides, if I tried to score a goal right now, I would hit Umbridge in the face, even if she were in her office. My aim would be that bad."

Before either of us could protest further, we had reached our destination in the Great Hall, where a spirited conversation about grades was brewing.

Ron was red in the face. "Hermione, if you want to know what grades we got, ask."

She immediately turned red, too. "I don't — I didn't mean — well, if you want to tell m-"

"I got a P. Happy?"

"Well, that's nothing to be ashamed of. Nothing wrong with a good healthy P," Fred commented as we sat down.

Hermione furrowed her brow. "But doesn't P stand for-"

"Poor, yeah. Still, better than D, isn't it? 'Dreadful?'"

"Yes, it is, but- well, let me get this straight. So top grade's O for 'Outstanding, and then there's A-"

"Nope, E for 'Exceeds Expectations,'" I cut in. "And I've always thought Fred and I should've got E in everything, because we exceeded expectations just by turning up for the exams."

Even Lucy smiled at that one, and I mentally patted myself on the back.

"So after E, it's A for 'Acceptable,' and that's the last pass grade, isn't it?" Hermione asked, not about to be derailed.

"Yep."

"Then you get P for 'Poor' — woo hoo — and D for 'Dreadful,'" Ron said.

"And then T," I added.

Hermione's jaw dropped. "T? Even lower than a D? What on earth does that stand for?"

"'Troll,'" I replied. Then, below us, I heard the rustling of parchment. Lucy cocked her head slightly to the side, and the rustling grew louder.

She leaned back a bit to stare at the parchment Harry had just passed her under the table.

"T — illegible!" was scrawled in the top left corner of her essay. Harry had obviously tried to be discreet about it so she wouldn't be embarrassed, but she immediately pulled the paper up onto the table and slammed it down.

"Well, what the hell does he want me to do about it? I'm allergic to the only bloody potion that might help!" she burst out. Hermione and Ron both turned to look and see what was going on.

Harry winced. "I know, I'm sorry. He just gave both of ours to me since you weren't there today. He even put yours on top to make me panic at first."

"That git. Professor Sinistra gave me an O on my Astronomy essay, so I know it's possible to read my writing if you try," Lucy said through gritted teeth. She shook her head. "I-I do my best to write legibly. I-I just can't help it. I'll go talk to Professor McGonagall tonight and see if she'd be willing to talk to him for me. I'd do it myself, but I doubt he'd listen."

"Are you feeling better, at least?" Hermione asked sympathetically.

"Yeah, I'm fine," she replied with a noncommittal shrug. "Did I miss any inspected lessons?"

"Nope," Ron said. He glanced up between Fred and me. "You two have any?"

"Just now, before lunch. Charms," I replied.

"What was it like?"

"Not that bad. Umbridge just lurked in the corner making notes on a clipboard." Fred made the appropriate recreation, prompting a couple of smiles. He straightened up and continued, "You know what Flitwick's like, he treated her like a guest, didn't seem to bother him at all. She didn't say much. Asked Alicia a couple of questions about what the classes are normally like, Alicia told her they were really good, that was it."

"I can't see old Flitwick getting marked down, he usually gets everyone through their exams alright," I added. "Who do you have this afternoon?"

"Trelawney and Umbridge herself," Harry answered.

"Well, be a good boy and keep your temper with Umbridge today. Angelina'll do her nut if you miss any more Quidditch practices," I warned him.

"It'd give Lucy a chance to brush up on her Seeker skills, though!" Fred commented, slapping her on the back.

"That was a one-time deal," she replied, flushing. "If Harry hadn't been a little busy in the Hospital Wing-"

"You caught the Snitch, though, didn't you?" I pressed. "Come off it, Cub, you could play Seeker."

She shook her head, turning even more red. "Cedric was Seeker. Not me."

We dropped it after that, and I shared with the group my new name for Umbridge. Lucy smiled again at that, but she seemed distracted. Her gaze eventually shifted to the Hufflepuff table, and I understood her distraction wasn't just distraction — her mind was elsewhere. A simpler time. A time before pink-clad toad-faces and Ts on essays Snape didn't even try to read. A time before she was, as she put it, an earthquake on two legs, or before she was, as the rest of us recognized, a thundercloud just waiting to burst. A time before all of this, a time before all of these worries and burdens and struggles.

I found myself missing that simpler time, too.

A/N: Well... surprise! Happy Monday!

I was planning to post both this chapter and Chapter 113 on Wednesday, since both chapters take place on the same day, just with two different narrators, but I finished this chapter today and I just finished proofreading, so here you go! I hope you all enjoyed George's perspective, because I had fun writing it. :)

Thank you so much for reading! See you all on Wednesday with Chapter 113!