Discovery

69.

After a couple Stunning Spells, Disarming Charms, and Jelly-Leg Jinxes, we managed to escape Umbridge's office. We hurried down to the Forbidden Forest, and it wasn't long before we found Harry and Hermione.

"So," said Ron, pushing aside a low-hanging branch and holding out Harry's wand, "have any ideas?"

"How did you get away?" asked Harry in amazement, taking his wand from Ron.

"Let's just say, Malfoy will have bats flying out his nose for weeks!" I grinned. "All thanks to Ginny! What happened to Umbridge?"

"She got carried away," said Harry. "By a herd of centaurs."

"And they left you behind?" asked Ginny, looking astonished.

"No, they got chased off by Grawp," said Harry.

"Who's Grawp?" Luna asked interestedly.

"Hagrid's little brother," said Ron promptly. "Anyway, never mind that now. Harry, what did you find out in the fire? Has You-Know- Who got Sirius or — ?"

"Yes," said Harry, "and I'm sure Sirius is still alive, but I can't see how we're going to get there to help him."

"Well, we'll have to fly, won't we?" said Luna.

***

"How're we supposed to get on?" said Ron faintly. "When we can't see the things?"

Luna suggested we fly using thestrals. However, thestrals can only be seen by those who have seen death. For the majority of the group, that meant sitting on something totally invisible and trusting that you wouldn't die as it carried you thousands of feet into the air. It was terrifying...

When we finally made it to London, we quickly hurried to a battered telephone box and opened the door.

"Whoever's nearest the receiver, dial six two four four two!" Harry said.

Ron did it, his arm bent bizarrely to reach the dial. As it whirred back into place the cool female voice sounded inside the box, "Wel- come to the Ministry of Magic. Please state your name and business."

"Harry Potter, Ron Weasley, Hermione Granger," Harry said very quickly, "Ginny Weasley, Ella Hart, Neville Longbottom, Luna Lovegood . . . We're here to save someone, unless your Ministry can do it first!"

"Thank you," said the cool female voice. "Visitors, please take the badges and attach them to the front of your robes."

***

When we arrived in the Atrium, it was completely deserted. I had only been in the Ministry of Magic a handful of times, but I knew that it was usually much busier, and definetly not empty.

"Come on," said Harry quietly and the seven of us sprinted off down the hall toward the lifts.

When we reached level nine, we hurried through a door that led to a large, circular room.

"Someone shut the door," Harry muttered.

"Where do we go, then, Harry?" Ron asked.

"I don't —" Harry began. "In the dreams I went through the door at the end of the corridor from the lifts into a dark room...I'll know the right way when I see it. C'mon."

We ran through a variety of rooms before coming to a large hall, full of nothing but towering shelves covered in small, dusty, glass orbs.

"You said it was row ninety-seven," whispered Hermione.

"Yeah," breathed Harry, looking up at the end of the closest row.

"We need to go right, I think," whispered Hermione, squinting to the next row. "Yes . . . that's fifty-four. . . ."