The Next Generation and the Followers of Darkness

"Rose," muttered Melody. "Rose — come here."

"Why?" said Rose.

Melody didn't say anything. She had tossed the old parchment to the side, skimming the pages curiously. There were photographs of Deatheaters and sketches of the masks they had worn to hide their identities. The myth and history of the Followers of Darkness spanned several pages, causing Melody to wonder how much truth was behind this legend.

"Why?" Rose repeated, sounding irritable. The bushy-haired girl sat down on the floor beside Melody. "The Followers of Darkness — what are you looking them up for?"

"They're dismissed as a myth," Melody said quickly. "No one even gives the slightest thought to that it might have existed."

"It can't have existed, Mel. Hagrid said so himself, and he was captured by Voldemort!"

"But what if he was wrong? What if . . . it wasn't elites that had been chosen. He said that not every Deatheater had been imprisoned in Azkaban. What if some of them had banded together during the end of the war — ?"

"Melody, there has been peace for nineteen years. Of course, there have been some minor spats, but that's what comes with rebuilding the government. And there has been no reason for us to believe that there has been any Deatheater activity recently. Give it a rest. There's no reason to worry about something that most likely doesn't exist."

Melody huffed. She was about to make another argument when the door swung open to admit Isabella, Lissa, and Gianna. Snapping the book shut, Melody got to her feet and stuffed the book under her pillow; maybe she would read it some more later.

"Why aren't you two downstairs?" asked Lissa. "We've been wondering where you were. Some thought you two had gone back to Hagrid's."

"Are we needed for something?" Rose snapped.

"No, just wondering," Gianna shrugged.

Melody and Rose rolled there eyes. The other three left and the two friends turned to face each other, the misunderstanding about the book forgotten.

"Those girls are so weird," Rose whispered in case they were listening at the door. "They never leave each other's sides."

"And we have to put up with it for the next seven years," Melody said.

Both of them groaned simultaneously before breaking into a fit of giggles that was completely uncharacteristic of the two friends. They didn't have a clue what they found so funny. But Melody and Rose couldn't stop themselves and had to laugh it out before they left their dormitory to sit downstairs with the rest of Gryffindor House.

~~~~~

The next week passed by quickly with no further discussion of the Followers. Melody had thought long and hard about what Rose had said, and had decided that it was pretty much impossible for any such organization to have existed at any time. How could a group of highly advanced Dark wizards and witches make a living in Wizarding England, all while maintaining a secret society among themselves?

The book had ended up under her bed, gathering dust.

In the meanwhile, Rose had introduced her other relatives to Melody. Other than Victoire, Dominique, and Louis, there were Molly and Lucy, daughters of Ministry official Percy Weasley. The last two Weasley cousins currently at Hogwarts were Fred and Roxanne Weasley. All of the Weasleys were very nice, and, as all of them were in Gryffindor, they were all very involved in each other's lives. For this reason, a piece of parchment went around Friday night at dinner from Victoire.

~
This note is for the following Gryffindors:
Dominique Weasley
Louis Weasley
Molly Weasley
Lucy Weasley
Fred Weasley
Roxanne Weasley
Rose Weasley
James Potter
Albus Potter
Edward Pendleton
Richard Pendleton
Hayden Trent
Luke Salisbury
Oliver Smith
Melody Smith
If your name is not on the list above, pass it on immediately! This has nothing to do with you, and if you don't listen to me, I will personally curse you.
If your name has been listed above, please be in the common room at eleven o'clock this evening. I've already arranged for everyone else to be in the dormitories by then, so it'll just be us. Don't be late! Can't wait to see you all!
Love, Victoire Weasley
~

When the note reached Melody, she was surprised to see her name on it. She had only met Victoire a couple weeks before, and now the young Gryffindor was being invited to a gathering of some sort. Yes, she was good friends with one of the Weasleys, but that was no cause for them to accept her with open arms so quickly. Nonetheless, she made a mental note to be there and passed the parchment along to Edward.

Melody, Rose, and Albus headed upstairs as soon as they had finished dinner. Being the youngest people and the newest Gryffindors on the list, they had no idea what to expect. As they sat by one of the huge windows in Gryffindor Tower, the three friends proceeded to speculate on the night ahead.

"Maybe we'll be sneaking out to play a trick on one of the other Houses," Albus suggested, a mischievous glint in his eyes. "I'd love to sabotage Slytherin."

"Hmm — unlikely," said Rose, dismissing the idea with a wave of her hand. "Victoire is a prefect. She would never break so many rules at once. . . . If we're going to leave the Tower, than she would do something more productive that prank the Slytherins."

"Like you said," Melody intervened, "she's a prefect. I don't think we'll be leaving the Tower at all."

"Then what do you think we're going to do?" Albus asked.

"I don't know," Melody said, a little frustrated for no reason in particular. "They're your family! You know them much better than I do."

"Not for long," Rose said. "If they're inviting you and Oliver to something full of Weasleys, then you'll pretty much be family by the end of it. We Weasleys love to talk about anything and we know almost everything about each other —"

"Mostly because they have a tendency to snoop through each other's things," said Albus, smirking at Rose. His cousin shot him a look before starting to speak again.

"We do not 'snoop,' we investigate. And, I'm just warning you, Potters are the exact same way. Did James already confess to looking through Oliver's stuff during their first year? Victoire's probably found out everything about you from her 'sources.'" Rose giggled.

But Melody was suddenly nervous and irritated.

"I hope one of those sources wasn't Amelia, or neither of your families are going to like me very much . . ." muttered Melody.

The Head Girl had not spoken to Melody since her screaming fit two weeks back. No one had even attempted to make them come to terms, as many of the older students were aware of Amelia's temper, and the younger students could understand Melody's contempt — Amelia had been quite bossy the past few days. But the younger Smith daughter knew that the two of them would have to reconcile eventually, unless the dispute was to be brought home for the Christmas holidays.

"Actually, Victoire can't really stand Amelia," Albus said. "No offense, but your sister is just annoying and mean."

"Oh, I know," Melody chuckled hollowly. "That's why I've been avoiding her as much as possible. But she seems determined to make my life miserable. I don't know what I did to make her so angry."

"Well, we'll just have to stay out of her way until she finally cools down," Rose concluded. "But, really, what do you two think is going to happen tonight?"

Their conversation continued as afternoon turned to evening and the other Gryffindors began to return to the common room. It was hot and stifling in the tower as the sun receded to the mountain peaks, shining directly through the windows. Everyone sat around in the armchairs and couches, speaking loudly to be heard over their peers.

The sun finally disappeared over the distant mountains, plunging the castle and grounds into night. Light streamed out the windows, but was not strong enough to cut through the pressing darkness. It was just a mass of black outside the windows of the castle. There was no moon in the sky. Just a small flicker of light could be seen from where Hagrid's hut should have been. It could normally be seen from the tall windows of Gryffindor Tower, but for now, it was cloaked in the combined shadows of the Forbidden Forest and the mountains. Not even the stars reflected off the Black Lake.

But the light inside the castle was enough for the students still milling about within the common rooms. Melody, Rose, and Albus were sitting around the same table by the window. It was about ten o'clock now, and the crowd of people in the Gryffindor common room was thinning considerably. Loud conversations turned to mutters as students began to make their way up the spiral staircases to the dormitories. While they waited for eleven to come, the three friends continued to chatter, discussing everything from weekend homework to family traditions. For a while, they ended up talking about professional Quidditch teams.

"My favorite team is the Holyhead Harpies," Melody replied proudly to Rose's question about what her favorite team was.

"My mum played for them!" Albus exclaimed. "She was a Chaser."

"Really? I thought she had always been written the Quidditch column in the Daily Prophet? Well, that would explain her knowledge of terms and techniques. Do you games often?"

"We go to the Quidditch World Cup almost every year," said Rose.

"Wow. . . . What are your favorite teams?" Melody asked.

"I'm a Chudley Cannons fan," said Rose, blushing. "I know they aren't that good, but I'm still a dedicated fan."

"Ireland, all the way." Albus grinned.

"He only says that when they're winning," said Rose, smirking at her cousin. Albus rolled his eyes.

"I do not! Even when they don't make it to the World Cup, I support them completely. My favorite team — always. . . . Have you been to any games, Melody?" He tried to change the subject quickly, shifting the focus off of himself.

"I went to one when I was nine," said Melody. "It was England versus Bulgaria. My dad won tickets in a Daily Prophet drawing."

Melody hated to admit, but her family wasn't the wealthiest family of wizards in London. They had enough to make due, but when it came to luxuries, they were sparing in the Smith house.

Her parents owned one broomstick, which was currently being borrowed by Oliver, who was planning on trying out for the Gryffindor Quidditch team this year. Many of the books in the house were old Muggle ones or from second-hand shops in Diagon Alley. The cauldron her mother used had been from Mrs. Smith's school days at Hogwarts.

But the family could afford some luxuries, such as new wands, robes, and cloaks, and the four Smith children were each allowed a little spending money for the year.

The clock on the mantel chimed softly. It was eleven o'clock. Every single one of the people that had been on Victoire's list had remained inside the common room, while everyone else had vanished up to the dormitories. At that time, Fred, James, and Louis pushed some of the armchairs and couches about, creating a horseshoe shape by the fireplace. They moved a small table out of the circle. There seemed to be a pattern. A couch followed by two armchairs and a space, then another couch, two armchairs, and a space, then again, completing the horseshoe.

The first couch stayed empty as Melody, Rose, and Albus watched the others. Victoire and Edward sat down in the two armchairs beside the empty couch. In the sofa and armchairs facing the flames were Dominique, Molly, and Lucy on the couch, Louis and Fred settling in the armchairs. The last group of seats were taken by the third years: Roxanne, James, Oliver, and Luke squeezed onto the sofa, and Hayden and Richard sitting in the armchairs. The three first years had no idea what they were supposed to do.

"Oh, I probably should have told you three before we all sat down," said Victoire, grinning at Melody, Rose, and Albus, "but you can sit here." She motioned to the couch beside her. Silently, they seated themselves.

There was a short silence in which everyone looked expectantly at the first and seventh years. Melody gulped as they gazed at her.

"Well," Victoire said loudly to get everyone's attention. Half of them jumped. "This is our first meeting of the year, so let's start with introductions of the first years, although I'm pretty sure everyone here has met. On the end over there is Melody Smith. Next, is Rose Weasley. And beside me is Albus Potter."

Melody felt her cheeks flush. She hated being noticed. James smiled at her pink face, and Oliver chuckled slightly. Despite the teasing, Melody began to relax.

"As you all know, Edward and I are in our seventh and final year here at Hogwarts," Victoire continued. "And as there are no sixth years to take our places in leading these meetings, the responsibility will transfer to Dominique and Molly next year —" she paused as everyone applauded and the two girls bowed mockingly "— and, before we do anything else, there are a few announcements."

Roxanne Weasley got to her feet.

"Rainsford wanted me to tell you all that tryouts for the House Quidditch team will be in a week," she said. "He also wanted me to say that people who were on the team last year will have to re-tryout. No one has a spot on the team for sure until he says so."

There was a small outburst of complaints.

"That's not fair . . . I trained my arse off this summer because of him —"

"— I can't believe that. Some of us have been on that team for years!"

"Oi!" said Roxanne, glaring about. "I'm no happier about it than you are. I'm not safe! That's just what he wanted me to say, and I've said it. If you've got complaints, take it up with him. Don't maul the messenger . . ."

She sat back down, as Edward stood up.

"The Defense Club has been approved by the teachers and will have their first meeting next Saturday at two. We will meet in Professor Medwin Wordsworth's classroom. For those of you who don't have any idea what we'll be doing in this club, just show up — it should be interesting."

Only silence met this announcement. After a few moments, Victoire clapped her hands together.

"And with that, the boring parts of this are over. Now it's time for us to have some fun."

Melody, Rose, and Albus shifted in their seats but grinned like all the rest. They were just as eager to find out what was going on tonight.

"James — Oliver — if you will . . ."

Grinning mischievously around at the group of family and friends, James and Oliver stood for a moment before dropping to their knees in the middle of the horseshoe. The former took a large piece of parchment out of his robes and spread it out across the rug, everyone else trying to see what they were doing. Oliver took out his wand, tapped the center of the parchment, and said, "I solemnly swear that I am up to no good."

At once, shapes and lines began to bloom across the paper from the spot his wand had touched. Melody watched curiously as they touched and crossed, creating something. She nearly gasped when it was complete. It was a map.

Oliver grinned at her, Rose, and Albus, who were gaping at the parchment.

"'Messrs. Mooney, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs are proud to present the Marauder's Map,'" he read to them.

"Where did you get that?" Albus asked, still gawking at the Marauder's Map.

"I got it from Dad's desk," he explained, "two years ago. He hasn't asked me about it so I don't think he'll be needing it back any time soon."

"Well, why do we need it?" said Lucy. "What're we doing tonight?"

"Nothing," Victoire said. She gave a sympathetic look to the disappointed faces around her. "I know, I know — but we'll be using it soon. I just wanted to show you all so we can use it next time. Maybe we'll all play Quidditch at midnight or something . . ."

~~~~~

To say that everyone was disappointed was an understatement. Molly was clearly upset that Victoire had kept her up until midnight to look at the Marauder's Map again. Everyone looked exhausted the next morning in the common room, and some, like Dominique, threw dark looks Victoire's way.

"I promise we'll do something more interesting next Friday," she had said at the end of the meeting the night before as they were all putting Gryffindor Tower back in order. "This meeting was just to introduce the first years and finish with some necessary business. I promise, next Friday we'll actually do something."

But that didn't stop everyone from being tired. They all came down into the common room, yawning non-stop.

Melody, however, was jerked awake as Oliver elbowed her in the ribs. He had dark circles under his eyes, but looked genuinely happy. She raised her eyebrows. When he didn't say anything, she rolled her eyes and groaned.

"What?" she yawned. "Why are you looking at me like that?"

"Go check out the notice over there," he said with a grin. "I reckon you'll be in a better mood after you've seen it."

Curiosity winning out over her exhaustion, Melody dragged Rose over to the bulletin board. Isabella, Lissa, and Gianna were muttering to Kyler Dorval and Matthew Thomas about the note but were talking too quietly for Melody to make out what they were saying. She pushed past them to be able to see the notice.

And, just as Oliver had expected, she nearly jumped for joy.

"Yes!" she squealed. "Yes, yes, yes!"

"What are you squawking about?" Rose said groggily, pressing her hands to her ears. "Shut it!"

"Sorry, I'm just a little excited about flying lessons this week," snapped Melody, but still grinning. This sure caught Rose's attention.

"Flying lessons?"

"Yeah, look for yourself."

Rose stared up at the parchment pinned to the board. Lessons would begin on Thursday at three-thirty. But Melody didn't expect her friend's face to fall.

"What's wrong?" asked Melody. "Never rode a broom before, eh?"

"No," said Rose.

"Then what?"

"You didn't read the whole notice, did you?"

Melody looked again, and her smile disappeared, too. The happiness that had filled inside her chest a moment ago seemed to pop like a bubble. She mumbled under her breath about nothing in particular, but still stalked off toward the portrait hole. Oliver gave her a confused look as she walked past him, but she ignored him. The lessons she had been most excited to take, even over Transfiguration, had turned into the ones she would loathe the most.

"What's wrong?" Oliver muttered to Rose.

"Gryffindors are paired up with the Slytherins for flying," she replied.

~~~~~

The week passed slowly, and Melody was glad it did so. That meant she'd have more time to cool off before she had to face Scorpius again. Yes, the Gryffindors and Slytherins had Potions together, but the two Houses usually sat on opposite sides of the room, glaring at each other to keep up the feud between them. But in flying lessons, there were no seats, unless you counted the broomsticks. And flying lessons were all practical — you couldn't just stick your nose in a book until the end of class. There was no way of avoiding a confrontation with Scorpius and the other Slytherin first years.

Nonetheless, the Gryffindors ran down the lawn at three fifteen to where twenty broomsticks were lying on the grass in two neat lines. The Slytherins weren't there yet. Melody stood away from the main group with Rose, Albus, and Tyson Spinnet, a boy Albus had become good friends with since their arrival at Hogwarts. The boys were discussing past flight experiences, while Rose chatted to Melody about their homework for Professor Longbottom that was due on Monday. The soft murmur ceased for a moment at the arrival of the Slytherins, who stood several yards away, scowling at the Gryffindors. Melody caught Scorpius's eye, and the two stared at each other for a moment, then he looked away. Rose tapped Melody lightly on the shoulder.

"What happened? I thought you two were friends — Albus was convinced you two would bring about the end of the Gryffindor-Slytherin rivalry," said Rose.

Melody explained her deduction that Scorpius had been the one who had pushed her down the staircase on their first day at Hogwarts, supporting her case with Scorpius's absence and Almer's comments.

"Are you sure he pushed you?" Rose asked as Madam Hooch came down from the castle, walking toward them at a light stroll.

"Positive," Melody said, enunciating each syllable.

"You should go to the teachers, Mel."

"It would still be based off suspicion alone. Neither Almer nor Scorpius confessed to pushing me, so there's no solid evidence. I'll just have to make sure that Almer doesn't mess with me again."

Before Rose could comment any further, Madam Hooch blew her whistle.

"Everyone stand beside a broom, come on," she shouted.

The Gryffindors lined up on one side; the Slytherins on the other. Melody found herself across from Scorpius.

"Now," said Madam Hooch, "stick out your right hand over the broomstick, and say, 'Up!' Don't forget to be firm."

Melody looked down at her broom. It was an old Shooting Star. She smiled. The broomstick she would be using was so old, they weren't made any more. The peeling silver lettering was almost impossible to read, but she knew the broom simply by the way it looked. She had read nearly every issue of Which Broom? her parents owned in the last two years, including the old, ragged ones from the 1980s — from when her parents were starting off at Hogwarts.

"Up!" she said. The broom didn't move. "Up! Up!"

Finally, after five tries, the broomstick flew up into her open hand. She gripped it, but had almost dropped it when it had jumped up toward her.

She heard a snort and looked up to see Scorpius trying to stifle a laugh. Her eyes narrowed, but he smiled at her — a real smile.

Once everyone was holding their brooms, Madam Hooch taught them how to mount their broomsticks and walked up and down the row, correcting their grips. She stopped when she came to Melody.

"That's a beautiful Quidditch grip," she whispers. "Where did you learn that?"

"I'm a huge fan of the Holyhead Harpies," replied Melody. Giving Melody a small smile, Madam Hooch continued up the row, shifting a Slytherin girl's hands down slightly.

"All right," said Madam Hooch. "On the count of three, I want you all to kick off the ground — hard. Hover for a moment, then, leaning forward slightly, touch back down. Don't do anything else." Melody wasn't sure if she imagined it or not, but she was sure that Madam Hooch had given Albus a suspicious look. "One — two — three —"

She blew her whistle, and they all kicked off, hovering above the ground for a few moments. Some looked prepared to take off and zoom about all over the grounds, but they all did as they were told and leaned forward slightly, coming back to earth.

Melody wanted to do so much more, but some of the first years had never even flown before. By the end of the lesson, they had all been flying about at slow speeds only two or three feet off the ground. But it had still been exhilarating.

The Gryffindors and Slytherins made their way back toward the castle, not glaring or sneering at each other but ignoring each other. It was a nice change in a way. They all entered the entrance hall, and the Gryffindors headed up the marble staircase while the Slytherins went off toward the dungeons. Melody was at the back of the group of Gryffindors, and, at the top, she had the strangest feeling she should look back. Glancing over her shoulder, she could have sworn that Scorpius had glanced back, too. Dismissing the ridiculous idea, she trotted up the corridor to catch up with Rose and Albus on their way back to Gryffindor Tower.