A brief burst of fire later, the papers were gone, and the Potions Master left to report the failure of his mission.
The Defense Professor was sitting calmly with his hands still folded in his lap. "If you consult Headmaster Dumbledore," said the Defense Professor, "you will find that he is well aware of this matter, and that I agreed to teach his Defense class on the explicit condition that no inquiry be made into my -"
In a lightning motion, the interrogator whipped out his wand and spat "
"Pardon me," the Defense Professor said politely.
The smile that the Auror gave had absolutely no mirth in it. "So where's the real Quirinus Quirrell, eh? Under an Imperius in the bottom of a trunk somewhere, while you take a hair now and then for your illegal Polyjuice?"
"You are making highly questionable assumptions," the Defense Professor said with an edged voice. "What makes you think I did not steal his body outright using incredibly Dark magic?"
This was followed by a certain pause.
"I suggest," the Auror said, "that you take this seriously, Mr. Whoever-You-Are."
"I'm sorry," said the Defense Professor, leaning back in his chair, "but I see little reason to humble myself on this particular occasion. What are you going to do, kill me?"
"I don't appreciate your humor," the Auror said softly.
"How unfortunate for you, Rufus Scrimgeour," said the Defense Professor. "You have my deepest sympathy." He tilted his head, seeming to study the interrogator; and even within the shadow of the ice-light, the eyes glinted.
Padma stared down at her plate.
"Hermione wouldn't just
"Our General would
"Of course he would!" shouted Anthony Goldstein. "Malfoy's the son of a
Padma stared down at her plate.
Draco was the General of her army.
Hermione was the founder of S.P.H.E.W.
Draco had trusted her to be his second-in-command.
Hermione was her fellow Ravenclaw.
Both of them were her friends, maybe the two best friends she had.
Padma stared down at her plate. She was glad the Sorting Hat hadn't offered her Hufflepuff. If she'd been Sorted into Hufflepuff it would probably have been much more painful, trying to decide where her divided loyalties lay...
She blinked and realized that her vision had gotten blurry again, and raised a trembling hand to wipe once more at her eyes.
Morag MacDougal snorted so loudly it was audible even amid the pandemonium of lunch, and said in a loud voice, "I bet Granger
"All of you
At any other time it would have gotten Professors reprimanding him, this time it just got a few nearby students to look.
"I'd wanted to eat lunch," Harry Potter said, "and then get back to investigating, so I wasn't going to talk. But you're all being
"You think we'll believe
And Morag nodded right along with him, with a condescending look.
The look that came over Harry Potter's face then made Padma flinch.
"I see," Harry Potter said, it wasn't a shout so Padma had to strain to hear it. "Professor Quirrell isn't here to explain to me how stupid people are, but I bet this time I can get it on my own. People do something dumb and get caught and are given Veritaserum. Not romantic master criminals, because
"What are you