The Veela and the Lion

Educational Decree Number 26 & 31

A/N: Apparently, after listening to the song given for the prompt (song: Stand Up by Melee) this came to mind. The thought of students in Hogwarts and Dolores Umbridge's Educational Decrees. Hopefully this pass the prompt. ;) Had fun writing this with a few friends who gave me their ideas.

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The sound of concrete thick nail being hammered down to the wall echoed within the great hall. Flitch happily hammered away while the students who passed him by groaned. It was another rule that Umbridge declared. Few of her rules that shows how close-minded she is, as per the students' opinion that is.

After Flitch finished nailing the new rule, students immediately checked what incredulous rule did Dolores Umbridge decided to place again. After reading, some even read it our loud, you can practically hear the annoyance from the students who finished reading and comprehending the rule.

Some students hated the new rule. Well all of the rules in fact. But the Decree number 26 and 31, the newly posted ones, were the most frowned upon by the students. The said rule caused the students much trouble than they already have. They were unable to get close to their friends who are their opposite gender, be it a friend or a housemate, and cursed the fact that they can no longer copy the homework of their opposite gendered friends and housemates. Or the fact that they cannot even sit together during breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

Oh how they hated the new rules.

Educational Decree Number 26: Boys & girls are not permitted to be within 6 inches of each other.

Educational Decree Number 31: Boys & girls are not permitted to be within 8 inches of each other.

But some of the students –mostly Slytherin- followed the rules like it was their personal code of belief. They kept their distance with their opposite sex and remained happy about it.

But some of them laughed at the said rules and continue their day normally. As if they are not even affected by the rules.

Ron heard the new rule as he passed by some students who are grumbling about it. He also heard some giggles pertaining about the rules. He hurried to his friend, Harry Potter, and upon catching up with the boy-who-lived, he asked him about the silly rules. "Hey Harry, did you hear about that Umbridge's new ridiculous rule?" he asked the bespectacled boy.

Harry potted tilted his head, unsure what specific rule Ron was talking about. There were a lot of them on the wall. "Which one?"

"The one about spaces between boys and girls rule." Ron informed his friend.

Harry nodded his head. He heard about the absurd rule while they were on their way to one of their class. "Ahh yes. I heard a few students laughing about it." He could still remember how some of those who laughed sounded like they are amused at the whole rules.

The redheaded Gryffindor snorted. "I know... It echoed in the halls. Girlish laughs and even some are boys."

"One of those boys' is probably Seamus." Harry noted. He always knew that their sandy-haired friend has something inside a closet.

Ron laughed. He was not that much surprised to hear Seamus being one of the boys who found the rules as amusing than an annoyance. "And the girls? I know the Patil twins are one of them." He mused. The Indian descent twins usually spend more time with each other than their opposite sex.

Harry laughed. Both of them knew who one of the girls that did not mind the rules is. "Well, one of them IS Hermione." He said with a grin. Both of them laughed at this.

They made their way to the great hall for lunch, Ron started putting different food in his plate blindly after they settled down in the Gryffindor table. The redhead looked around and found that their intellectual friend is missing. He smirked after thinking where Hermione could be. "Where is Hermione anyway?" He asked, hoping his conclusion would be confirmed by Harry.

Harry waited until Ron was eating when he decided to reveal where Hermione is. It was Friday, meaning that there are not much of students where their brunette friend is hiding. "Probably in the library... studying Fleur... I mean studying with Fleur..." he drawled. His revelation made Ron choke on his pork chop and manically reached for his cup of pumpkin juice to wash the clog down.

"Blimey mate! Don't go telling those things if I'm eating. Bloody hell..." Ron whined, wiping the pumpkin juice away from his lips. But since his assumption was confirmed, he once again started devouring his lunch. "Hope they keep it down. Last time they were almost caught." He said in-between chewing his food and drinking his juice.

How the blonde Veela was able to sneak into Hogwarts, it was all Harry's doing using his cloak and map. The boy with special items laughed. "Yeah. To think Umbridge has the gall to roam around campus and ask who owns the silk blue underwear she found in the library during her rounds." He remembered how the Ministry woman, one they all hate to the core, walked around the halls asking who owns the said lingerie.

Ron swallowed the remaining food in his mouth, plate now clean, and patted his stomach. "Oh yeah. That's why the rule 'Don't leave your unmentionables outside your bedroom.' was posted." HE remembered the said rule, unsure of which Decree number it is, and wondered why there was even such obscene rule. He watched his best friend nodded his head and answered him with a 'yep', making a lip-popping sound with the 'p'. He laughed once again and after a good round of laughing, he cleared his throat ans started to blush as a question suddenly popped in his head. "So, uhh... Any idea who owns it?" he whispered.

Harry, having a poker face at the moment, did not even think about lying to his best friend. He knew who owns it, even saw the said person going mad at how Umbridge paraded the said clothing article. The rumors all pointed out at anyone they think of wearing such expensive item but none of them knew who really owned it. Deciding to answer Ron's question, he prayed that his life would be spared until the Dark Lord appears and be defeated.

"Hermione's."