Echo | Harry Potter - George Weasley

Chapter 45: The Unforgivable Curses Three

"Have you talked to Hattie much lately?" Hermione asked. When she didn't get a response from Shaye, she waved her hand in front of her friend's face. "Shaye? Hello?"

Shaye blinked a few times at the startling motion and snapped out of the trance she had been in while on the way to their Defence Against the Dark Arts class. Adjusting the strap of her bag on her shoulder, she turned to Hermione. "Sorry," Shaye apologized. "What did you say?"

Hermione chuckled. "I asked if you had spoken to Hattie much lately."

"Oh. No, not much since the end of last year. With everything that happened I've just sort of ... I don't know. Maybe it would be nice just to focus on school this year."

"I think that's a good idea." Hermione agreed. "Plus, with this Triwizard Tournament, I'm sure there will be more than enough excitement to keep you busy." 

Shaye smiled softly. "Yeah, that's what I was thinking."

As the two girls entered the Defence Against the Dark Arts classroom and took their normal spot at the front, they pulled their textbooks out and waited for everyone else to arrive.

"Have you been sleeping any better?" Hermione inquired as she idly flipped through the pages, scanning the text on the subject they would be covering that day. 

"A little," Shaye answered despite being fully aware of the sleep deprivation seeping into her bones. "I had another nightmare again last night but it wasn't as bad. Went down to the common room to stretch my legs a little and Harry was there. He had a bad dream too. We talked a little ... it helped."

Hermione smiled as the office door opened and Mad-Eye Moody stepped out into the classroom. "That's good. At least he knows what it's like."

Shaye lowered her voice to a whisper as the class began. "Yeah."

Standing at the front of the classroom with his hands clasped behind his back, Mad-Eye waited until all eyes were on him before beginning the first lesson of the year. "Alastor Moody," he started by introducing himself and writing his last name down on the chalkboard. "Ex-Auror, Ministry malcontent, and your new Defence Against the Dark Arts Teacher. I am here because Dumbledore asked me. End of story, goodbye, the end. Any questions?"

Shaye had quite a few questions, actually, but after getting a closer look at Mad-Eye and noticing the deep scarring on his face and the way his fake eye danced around frantically, she decided to keep her questions to herself. The other students did the same.

"When it comes to the Dark Arts, I believe in a practical approach," Mad-Eye informed the class. "But first, which of you can tell me how many Unforgivable Curses there are?"

"Three, sir," Hermione answered with a quiver in her voice. Her desire to answer any question she knew the answer to only just slightly outweighing how intimidated she was by their new professor.

Mad-Eye turned back to the chalkboard. "And they are so named?"

"Because they are unforgivable," she said. "The use of any one of them will-"

"-will earn you a one-way ticket to Azkaban, correct." Mad-Eye scribbled madly. "Now, the Ministry says you're too young to see what these curses do. I say different! You need to know what you're up against! You need to be prepared! You need to find another place to put your chewing gum beside the underside of your desk, Mr. Finnegan!"

All heads turned toward Seamus, who was, in fact, in the process of sticking his gum under his desk. "No way." Seamus gasped, unsure of how Mad-Eye had seen him when he had been facing the chalkboard. "The old codger can see out the back of his head."