Remember | June Potter and the Battle of the Ministry | Book Four |

Chapter Twelve

Chapter Twelve; The Hog's Head

　　The slew of detentions came to an end with a bleeding hand but she struggled to feel too poorly for herself since Harry's was a much different and worse story and by the looks of it, she doubted it would ever fade entirely. Although June hated writing due to the cruel and unusual punishment inflicted on her writing hand, she had managed to catch up on her homework thanks to late nights and all-nighters (much to Maribelle's protests and complaints). Over the two weeks since Hermione had suggested Harry take to teaching them Defence Against the Dark Arts, she hadn't heard mention of it, it seemed to her that the idea had fallen to the wayside, it was disappointing, to say the least. Despite the bounds of comfort she received hanging close to Harry after her stint of detentions, she hated it and took to lingering in her dormitory.

    　　No matter how much she loved her brother, she hated being known as Harry Potter's tag-along little sister. She was sure that title already lingered over her head after her last few years at Hogwarts.

    　　Despite all her anxiety about stepping a single toe out of line anywhere near Professor Umbridge and risking another detention, June was looking forward to the weekend trip into Hogsmeade. Sirius's stony silence since the night he appeared in the fireplace made her fearful that he'd run the risk and make an appearance even with him being angry with them for asking him not to come. What would she do if a big black dog came bounding up to her in the street? She could only imagine the looks and whispers that that display would bring upon her. But, even with the article hanging over his head, it was hard to blame him for wanting to get out and about. He had been on the run for the last two years, exploring the world after his twelve years imprisoned, but now he had been forced to stay couped up in his childhood home with a screaming portrait of his dreadful mother and a house elf prone to throw insults under his breath.

    　　The morning of the Hogsmeade visit dawned bright but windy and Ginny was forcing the girl out of bed by abruptly tugging her blankets off her.

    　　"What the hell, Gin?" she complained, tugging at her jumper. The air of the dormitory was cold, especially against her bare legs which had regulated to the blankets' warmth.

    　　"Hogsmeade weekend," Ginny grinned, almost as if that fact itself was the answer as if it made up for her thievery. "Get up."

    　　She snatched the blanket back, cocooning herself in the deep burgundy as an act of protest before sighing deeply under the matching disgruntled looks being directed her way. After breakfast, she, James, Ginny and Maribelle joined the queue in front of Filch, who was tasked with matching their names to the long list of students who had permission from their parents or guardians to visit the village. June was thankful that Remus had had enough time between being sent off on missions to sign off on her visit. Under the watchful gaze of Filch, she stepped out onto the stone steps and into the cold, sunlit day, encouraging her to tug her jumper tighter around herself. As they walked, a Ravenclaw boy June recognised vaguely from his long presence around Ginny and quickly joined them after spotting her amongst them.

    　　It took her a few long moments of staring at him absently before she remembered his name and who he was–Michael Corner and he had somehow managed to snag her sometime after the Yule Ball. Ginny had been writing to him all summer, more than June dared write Daniel,  and had talked her ear off about him late into the night, even though she was keen to keep the blossoming relationship quiet from her siblings. This journey to Hogsmeade would be the first time she had gotten a proper look at the boy after having classes with him over the past four years. He wasn't much to look at, by all accounts, and June couldn't find the appeal of his long, flat dark hair nor his pale, lanky body. His face seemed to have a hollow look to it that suggested he was underfed but after seeing how he took to eating one too many times, she knew that wasn't the case.