Harry Potter - The Accidental Animagus

Chapter 21 - The Language of Flowers

"A Seeker, you say, Minerva?" said Albus Dumbledore, raising his bushy white eyebrows.

"I've never seen anything like it, Albus," Minerva replied with a rare air of excitement. "The boy's a natural. His first day on a broom, and he caught a practice snitch in a fifty-foot dive. Charlie Weasley couldn't have done it, or at least not at his age."

"Hmm, very impressive," Albus said thoughtfully.

"If his guardians approve of him joining the team, I think we'll have a decent chance at the Cup this year," Minerva continued. "And heaven knows we need it. Severus was gloating for weeks after last year's match."

"Of course," Albus said with a smile. "And as the boy's magical guardian, I will happily grant my approval-"

"But you're not."

"Excuse me?"

"Didn't you know? Andromeda Tonks took over as both Harry's and Hermione's magical guardian over a month ago. Surely you were informed. I think you may be slipping, Albus."

The Headmaster seemed uncomfortable as he looked over to one corner of his office where he kept a large stack of government paperwork. He drew his wand and muttered a complex summoning spell. Two documents flew out of the middle of the stack and settled on his desk. He looked them over. There it was, just as Minerva had said. It was a minor point in the grand scheme of things and probably better for the children, to be honest, but he was a bit unsettled that it had managed to slip by him. "I must have missed it on the first pass," he said with a weak smile. "I trust that you will contact Madam Tonks and the Grangers?"

"Of course. I will keep you informed." She turned to leave, but looked back for a moment. "Oh, and I suspect that Draco Malfoy will be the Slytherin Team's Seeker by Monday," she added. She walked out down the spiral staircase.

Albus sighed. Why am I not surprised?

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"Do you think we have time for karate practice before dinner?" Harry asked after McGonagall had dismissed them.

"After all that, you still want to practice karate?" Hermione said.

"Hey, you're the one who said we should practice every day."

"Hmm..." she checked her watch. "I guess we have time to run a few if we hurry up to the seventh floor."

They went on to the Grand Staircase and climbed up the four flights from their meeting with Wood to the seventh floor corridor. But they didn't particularly notice that someone was following them-someone who had been following them all the way from the Training Grounds.

Something about Harry Potter didn't make sense, thought Draco Malfoy. Maybe more than one something, and he was going to get to the bottom of it. Could it be that these muggle sports of his really made the difference? He had heard the rumours filtering through the castle about Potter's and his sister's supposed "training". It was time he saw it for himself.

So he followed at a distance, planning to watch from the shadows to see what they were really up to. He motioned behind him for his friend to follow-not Crabbe or Goyle: they didn't have a clue about being discreet. He'd brought Theo Nott along with him. Ultimately, this was a matter for the Noble Houses, after all. Theo had an impatient look about him at the moment, but he reluctantly accepted the importance of intelligence gathering. Draco and Theo were all set to spy on the two without being seen, but they needn't have worried. As soon as they got close to the corridor, they heard quite a few more than two voices. He peered around the corner and saw that a group of half a dozen Hufflepuffs, led by Susan Bones, no less, had come to watch, and Potter and Granger were openly explaining to them what they were doing. Draco made a snap decision and just walked toward the group to see what would happen.