𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐠𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐭 𝐰𝐚𝐫 | n. tonks

xii

Hadley comfortingly rubbed the back of a Gryffindor second year boy. Umbridge had made him write with the quill, and she, George, and Fred had found him sobbing on a bench on the inside wall of the courtyard.

"What's your name, sweetie?" Hadley asked softly as the boy hid his face in the crook of her neck.

"Michael," he replied, sniffling.

"Your hand's gonna be fine, Michael," Hadley said gently.

"Yeah." Fred nodded. "It's...It's not as bad as it seems. See? It's fading already."

"You can hardly see ours anymore," George said as he showed Michael his hand.

"And the pain stops after a while," Hadley added. Michael choked out a sob, clinging tighter to Hadley's purple, gray, and black striped shirt.

Dolores cleared her throat, and the four students turned to see her standing in the archway of what was once Dumbledore's office before she took over the school. "As I told you once before, Miss Weasley, naughty children deserve to be punished."

Hadley's jaw clenched, and she glared at Umbridge as she turned and walked back into her office. Her protective hold on Michael tightened. She whispered soothing words to him to help him feel better.

"You know, George, Hadley," Fred said, stuffing his hands into his jean pockets as he stood up, "I've always felt our futures lay outside the world of academic achievement."

"Fred," George smiled, "I've been thinking exactly the same thing."

"Boys," Hadley said as she stood up, a mischievous smirk spreading across her face, "as always, we are on the exact same page."

"What are you guys gonna do?" Michael asked, wiping away his tears as he looked up at the older teens.

The triplets exchanged smiles with each other before turning to the second year. "What the Troublemakers do best," they said in unison.

─── ⋆·✧·⋆ ───

Fred, George, and Hadley were up all night planning their last hurrah. They always planned to end their time at Hogwarts by going out with a bang, so what better time to stick it to the bitch than to pull their final prank during that day's O.W.L. exams?

"Ready, Fred?"

"Ready, George."

"Ready, Hadley?" the twins asked their youngest triplet.

"Ready, boys." Hadley grinned.

"Now!" the three of them yelled. They struck their matches and set off the first set of fireworks to get Umbridge's attention. They ran down the hall and out of sight just as the pink troll opened the doors of the Great Hall.

She looked down the corridor in confusion, and the triplets came swooping down the steps on their broomsticks. She quickly ducked out of the way, and the three of them zoomed into the Great Hall, lighting fireworks as the group of fifth years cheered and threw their test papers up in the air.

Hadley struck a match to light a special firework. She tossed it to Fred, who threw it up in the air. It exploded and took the shape of a dragon, which chased after Umbridge. It bit down on her, setting off a string of fireworks that busted all the framed rules she had set in place for the students at Hogwarts.

The Troublemakers zoomed out of the Great Hall and outside to the courtyard. The fifth years followed them, cheering. They flew up high above the school and set off more fireworks, making a big W against the sky of clouds.

The rest of the school and a few teachers had come out to see what all the commotion was about. Professor Flitwick had a secret moment of celebration before pretending to be cross about what was happening. The students on the ground below clapped and cheered as the triplets came back down, fireworks continuing to pop in the sky above. Fred, George, and Hadley grabbed each other's hands and took a bow, the biggest smiles on their faces as their peers praised them for a job well done.

The three of them formed a small circle and put their wands in the middle. "Mischief managed," they said together before lifting their wands and sending orange sparks into the air.

Hadley's smile faded when she spotted Harry falling over, a panicked look washing across his face. She went over and knelt down beside him. So did Ron and Hermione. "Harry?" Hadley frowned softly. "Are you alright?"

"Sirius." Harry stood up and ran back inside, Ron and Hermione following.

"Like hell I'm letting them go by themselves." Hadley rushed after them. She followed them down the corridors and up the moving staircases.

"Harry, are you sure?" Hermione asked.

"I saw it!" Harry insisted. "It's just like with Mr. Weasley. It's the same door I've been dreaming about for months, only I couldn't remember where I'd seen it before. Sirius said Voldemort was after something. Something he didn't have the last time, and it's in the Department of Mysteries."

"Harry, please, just listen," Hermione begged. They stopped walking, and Harry turned around to face them. He frowned for a moment when he saw that Hadley had followed them, but realized that it was her big sister instincts kicking in. "What if Voldemort meant for you to see this? What if he's only hurting Sirius because he's trying to get to you?"

"Hermione has a point," Hadley said. "You guys have already put yourselves in so much danger over the years. What if you're walking right into his trap?"

"What if I am?" Harry asked. "I'm supposed to just let him die? He's the only family I've got left."

Hadley exhaled slowly and nodded in understanding. "Okay. But I'm coming with you guys. This could be dangerous."

"What do we do?" Ron asked.

"We'll have to use the Floo Network," Harry told them as they continued up the stairs.

"But Umbridge has the chimneys under surveillance," Hermione pointed out.

"Not all of them." Harry continued down the corridor until they reached Umbridge's office. He pulled out his wand. "Alohomora." He pushed the door open, and they followed him inside. "Hadley, alert the Order if you can."

"Accio notebook." Hadley flicked her wand, and a few moments later, her notebook appeared. She took a quill out of the holder on Umbridge's desk, dipped it in some ink, and wrote a message to Tonks to tell her what was going on.

"Are you mental?" Ron frowned. "We're coming with you."

"It's too dangerous," Harry said.

"Which is exactly why we are coming with you," Hadley stated as she closed the notebook and tucked it away. She placed the quill back into the holder on Umbridge's desk.

"When are you going to get it into your head?" Hermione asked as she knelt down beside Harry. "We're in this together."

"That...you...are."

The four teens turned around. Umbridge had caught them, and she did not look happy.

─── ⋆·✧·⋆ ───

a/n

whoo, double update! 🥳

i was originally gonna end this chapter after the triplets' prank, but then i realized that hadley would definitely notice her little brother's best friend freaking out about sirius. kind of like how molly is the whole series mom, hadley is like everyone's big sister 

thoughts?