𝐁𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐞 𝐀𝐦𝐞 | 𝐇.𝐏.

𝐲𝐞𝐚𝐫 𝟕 - 𝟒

Immediately after Mundungus had been allowed to leave, Potter began planning. Scheming was a better word, actually, because when he finally explained his thoughts to us it was quite possibly the stupidest idea he'd ever had. And Potter had come up with plenty of stupid ideas.

Essentially he wanted us to break into the Ministry disguised as regular workers, find Umbridge, steal the locket from either her office or, in the worse case, from her neck, and then leave without being arrested. All while also being the four most wanted teenagers in the entire wizarding world.

The only reassurance for me was that the chances of Draco or my father being there were extremely low. I knew they weren't Voldemort's favorite people right now, primarily because of me, and they would most likely be kept in Malfoy Manor. 

Trapped in their own home, just as I had been my entire life. I couldn't help the grim satisfaction that came whenever I considered that. 

After Potter had laid out his entire insane idea to us, the only thing left to do was prepare. And prepare we did, because there was absolutely no room for mistakes. One slip up could give away our entire, already dangerously risky, cover, and then I didn't even want to imagine what would happen to us. 

To Potter especially. Would he be given up to Voldemort? The Death Eaters had complete control over the Ministry, which meant any security that caught us would immediately hand us over to them. It was unspoken, but we all knew that he was in the most danger. His life was on the line.

It started with the four of us taking turns Apparating from the top step of the house, being careful to stay just inside the house's protection so the Death Eater's that were constantly standing outside wouldn't see us, and milling around the Ministry's entrance all day to gather as much information as we could get. It was also helpful that Weasley and I already knew so much from our fathers.

Every last detail was important. We needed to know everything—how to properly respond to Ministry officials, how to walk around and look like we were urgently heading somewhere, and at what time certain Ministry workers left their homes. 

Hermione had created the beginnings of a map, mostly based off the rough knowledge Weasley and I had given her, and there were notes hung all over the walls of the kitchen. It constantly looked like a bomb went off, and the mess annoyed Kreacher endlessly.

Ever since Potter had given Kreacher the fake locket with Regulus's note inside it, there was no point in keeping it anymore, the house elf treated us like royalty. Potter technically was who the sorry old elf served now since Sirius had left him the house, but Kreacher hadn't started acting like it until now.

No one could say they were complaining, though. There was steaming coffee on the table every morning, and hot meals every evening. The house seemed slightly less old and empty, like someone had gotten around to dusting the place, and everyone's mood always lifted when they were greeted with a polite elf instead of a cranky one. 

After weeks of making sure every last part of the plan was engraved into our brains, it was time to break into the Ministry under not only Umbridge's, but Voldemort's nose too. Well, does Voldemort even really have a nose? I thought as we Apparated into an alley in Muggle London. 

We were facing certain arrest, capture, and death, and I was questioning Lord Voldemort's facial features. Maybe I had been stuck in the same house as Weasley for so long that his terrible humor was rubbing off on me.

I shook my head and focused on who I was supposed to be looking out for: Mafalda Hopkirk, an innocent Ministry witch that we were about to turn Hermione into. Weasley bent down on the sidewalk to tie his shoe, which was the signal that she was coming, and I stuck my wand out around the corner.