in the end ~ d. malfoy

Chapter Thirty-Eight

April 2016

As O.W.L season nears, the fifth years seem to crack from the pressure. Neville constantly fidgets, Terrence Higgs breaks out in boils, and Hannah Abbott is rushed out in the middle of class due to break down and crying that she's going to fail all eight of her O.W.Ls. Hermione lives in the library, barely emerging except for meals and a change of clothes, and Maya now spends her Friday nights revising Arithmancy and writing essays. Her brain is crammed to the brim with information, barely thinking about anything (or anyone) except making the upcoming exams her bitch.

They've finally started work on Patronuses, which take much, much more energy than she's anticipated. Maya's struggling to produce more than a wisp of silver, but it's almost the end of the month when she finally manages, a majestic lioness bursting out of her wand.

"Bloody hell . . . " Diana whispers, awestruck as she watches her doe gallop around the room.

"Bloody hell indeed . . . " Maya mutters, as her lioness gives a terrifying roar, startling Zacharias Smith, whose field mouse is currently being chased around the room by her Patronus .

Everybody has been very keen to practise, though, as Harry reminds them, producing a Patronus in the middle of a brightly lit classroom when they're not under threat is very different from producing it when confronted by something like a Dementor.

'Oh, don't be such a killjoy,' says Cho brightly, watching her silvery swanshaped Patronus soar around the Room of Requirement during their last lesson before Easter, 'They're so pretty!'

'They're not supposed to be pretty, they're supposed to protect you,' says Harry patiently. 'What we really need is a Boggart or something; that's how I learned, I had to conjure a Patronus while the Boggart was pretending to be a Dementor — '

'But that would be really scary!' says Lavender, who's shooting puffs of silver vapour out of the end of her wand. 'And I still — 'can't — do it!' she adds angrily.

Neville's having trouble too. His face is screwed up in concentration, but only feeble wisps of silver smoke issue from his wand tip.

'You've got to think of something happy,' Harry reminds him.

'I'm trying,' says Neville miserably, who's trying so hard his round face is actually shining with sweat.

'Harry, I think I'm doing it!' yells Seamus, who has been brought along to his first ever DA meeting by Dean. 'Look — ah — 'it's gone . . . but it was definitely something hairy, Harry!'

Hermione's Patronus, a shining silver otter, is gambolling around her.

'They are sort of nice, aren't they?' she says, looking at it fondly.

The door of the Room of Requirement opens and closes. Maya whirls around to see who's entered, but there's no one's there. Everyone's gone unnervingly silent.

Suddenly, a small elf appears, tugging at Harry's robes and peering up at him from beneath his usual eight woolly hats.

'Hi, Dobby!' he says, alarmed. 'What are you — What's wrong?' The elf's eyes are wide with terror and he's shaking violently.

'The members of the DA closest to Harry have fallen silent; Diana watches him with something akin to horror. The few Patronuses people have managed to conjure fade away into silver mist, leaving the room looking much darker than before.

'Harry Potter, sir . . .' squeaks the elf, trembling from head to foot, 'Harry Potter, sir . . . Dobby has come to warn you . . . but the house-elves have been warned not to tell . . .'