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CHAPTER ELEVEN. SECRET MEETINGS

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Hogsmeade had come fairly quickly. Evangeline had told Vivian about the class that Harry would be teaching to a group of students. Vivian thought the idea was both stupid and brilliant and agreed to go. Though, she would only do so if Evangeline came as well. The youngest Caspian had declined, claiming that she was not interested.

Vivian didn't believe it though and continued to beg her to go before Evangeline finally admitted that she didn't think that they had wanted her to go, seeing as she wasn't invited. Vivian had looked at her as though she were stupid, saying that Hermione probably didn't invite her because she knew that Evangeline would say no.

Vivian then proceeded to beg and annoy Evangeline until the younger girl agreed to accompany her sister to this secret meeting. Vivian saying that Evangeline was the only one that she could trust and therefore who she was going to take.

And so, the two Caspian sisters were trudging through the snow on their way to the Hog's Head, where Harry, Ronald, and Hermione wanted them all to meet. Why they chose to meet here, Evangeline didn't know. After Hermione had told Evangeline about the meeting and Evangeline relayed the message to her sister, the two roommates hadn't brought it up since, except for when Hermione told her where they'd be meeting. So, it was safe to assume that Hermione didn't know that either of them were coming.

Evangeline crossed her arms over her chest in an attempt to keep more warmth in her body. "This is exciting, don't you think?" Vivian said. Evangeline shrugged, squeezing her arms tighter around her body when a cold gust of wind blew by. "I feel like this will be good for us. Especially with everything that's going on. When the Death Eaters come after us, we'll be prepared," she continued.

The younger girl turned to look at her sister. "When?" She questioned, slowing to a stop. Vivian stopped as well, looking at her sister as though she had grown an extra head. "Don't be so naïve. We're not going to become one of them and serve He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named. They'll come after us for going against them. But we'll be ready," Vivian explained. Evangeline looked down at the snow covered ground.

"Mum and dad were way more skilled at magic than us and they weren't ready. Do you really think that we will be?" She asked. Vivian's face softened and she sighed softly. "Of course I do. We may not know as much as we they did, but that doesn't mean that we will end up like they did. We don't know the whole story, we don't know what happened that night. But I do know that you and I can do anything as long as we stick together," Vivian said.

Evangeline scoffed, "That's so cheesy. You sound like some lame teen off of a Muggle movie." Vivian raised her eyebrows, "You watch Muggle movies?" Evangeline averted her gaze and the older girl laughed. "They are so stupid. It's entertaining," Evangeline defended. "Where would you even watch them?" The older girl asked. "I have my ways," Evangeline replied. Vivian continued to laugh as she wrapped an arm around the younger girl's shoulder. The two began walking again, the Hog's Head coming in sight.

Vivian pushed the door open, walking in first. "What're we waiting for?" A voice questioned from inside the bar. The door slammed shut behind Evangeline and all eyes turned to the door where the two sisters were stood. Hermione Granger stood, a smile making its way onto her face. "Sorry we're late," Vivian apologized, sending the girl a smile. "You came," Hermione said in surprise. She looked to Evangeline and her smile widened a fraction, her plan had worked.

"What are they doing here?" A person called. Hermione turned to the small group of students, looking for the source of the voice. Evangeline looked at them too, noticing that most, if not all, of them were glaring at her and Vivian. "I invited them," Hermione answered. Ronald stood up, leaning in toward Hermione. "I thought we agreed that it would just be Vivian," he said not so quietly. Evangeline narrowed her eyes at him.

"No, we agreed that we'd ask Vivian to come and she could bring someone who might be interested that she trusted. And that's what she did," Hermione said, rather pleased with herself as Vivian connected the dots. "You knew I would bring my sister," she realized. "I knew that if I asked Evangeline to come, she'd say no. I figured that you'd have more luck in convincing her to come than I would," Hermione said.

Evangeline shook her head, "You sneaky little witch." She almost smiled, the realization that she had initially been included making her somewhat happy. "Come on, there was no way that you would come to this if I asked," Hermione defended. "I guess we'll never know, will we?" Evangeline replied. "This wasn't apart of the plan," Ronald said, giving Hermione a look. "Change of plans," she said with a shrug.

"Why would you invite a Slytherin?" Seamus said, standing up from his seat. Evangeline sent him an icy glare. "Yeah, she'll probably rat us out to Umbridge the second she gets the chance," another student agreed. "If anyone was going to rat us out, it would be Evangeline. She hates everyone. She'd probably do it out of spite," a girl said. Evangeline let out a humorless laugh, one that sent shivers down some of the students' spines.

"Yeah, your logic isn't very logical. 'Oh she hates us so much that she'll purposely get us in trouble.' 'She's a Slytherin and she can't be trusted.' You all sound like a bunch imbeciles. If I wanted to tell Umbridge about this meeting, I would've done it after Hermione told me about it and Vivian would've told after I told her about it," she said, locking her gaze with the students who dared look her in the eyes.

"And I hate Umbridge way more than I hate all of you. And I would never give her the satisfaction of having more power of us," she added. Harry smiled at her, looking around the room at the students. "I still don't trust them," a boy said. Evangeline didn't recognize him nor did she care to know who he was. "It isn't a good idea to have them here."

"If anyone has a problem with them being here, they can leave," Harry spoke. Evangeline looked at him in surprise whilst the students became quiet. "That's what I thought," he muttered before turning to Hermione and gesturing for her to begin. Evangeline and Vivian took seats further away from the other students. Many of them were still glaring but all Evangeline did was glare back, her own much more intimidating than theirs.

She could see Cleo in the mix of students, the girl smiling and sending Evangeline a wave. She also spotted a boy in her year, Aldon Carlisle, who had been nice enough to give her a Divination assignment when she had been sick back in her third year. The boy was watching Hermione with a certain glimmer in his eyes. The Granger girl didn't seem to notice, though. Evangeline turned back to face Hermione once she had began speaking.

"Um. Hi. So you all know why we're here. We need a teacher. A proper teacher. One who's had experience defending themselves against the Dark Arts," she began. "Why?" A boy asked, the same boy who hadn't wanted the two Caspians there.

"Why?" Ronald repeated incredulously, "Because You-Know-Who's back, you tosspot." The boy was quick to reply, "So he says." Hermione was the one to respond, "So Dumbledore says." Another boy decided to chime in, "So Dumbledore says because he says. The point is, where's the proof? If Potter could tell us more about how Diggory got killed..." He trailed off. Evangeline stood up, anger coursing through her veins. "He already told us how Cedric was killed. And if you don't believe him, then that's your problem. I am so sick of you people trying to discredit him just because you're afraid of the truth. Which is that Voldemort is back," she said.

Everyone was surprised that she had the guts to say his name. But they were even more surprised that she had defended Harry Potter as though they were friends. The boy who she had spoken to stood up as well, "You'd know all about that, wouldn't you?" Evangeline began walking over to him but Vivian gripped onto her arm, pulling her backward and into her seat. Harry stood up next, looking at the group. He sent Evangeline an appreciative smile before addressing everyone.

"I'm not gonna talk about Cedric, so if that's why you're here, clear out now," he said before whispering something to Hermione and turning to leave. "Wait!" Hermione whisper shouted. "Is it true you can produce a Patronus charm?" Luna Lovegood questioned, halting Harry's stride. All eyes turned to her before turning back to Harry. "Yes. I've seen it," Hermione answered for her friend.

"Blimey, Harry. I didn't know you could do that," Dean Thomas spoke. "And he killed a basilisk, with the sword in Dumbledore's office," Neville Longbottom spoke next. "It's true," Ginny Weasley said. "Third year, he fought off about a hundred Dementors at once," Ronald added. "Woah. That's wicked," Aldon commented. It was quiet for a brief moment after that. "And last year, he really did fight off You-Know-Who in the flesh," Hermione said. Evangeline felt sorry for the boy. He was, in fact, just that, a boy. He shouldn't have had to do the things that he did.

"Wait. Look, it all sounds great when you say it like that, but the truth is, most of that was just luck. I didn't know what I was doing half the time. I nearly always had help," Harry said. "He's just being modest," Hermione spoke. "No, Hermione, I'm not. Facing this stuff in real life is not like school. In school, if you make a mistake, you can just try again tomorrow. But out there, when you're a second away from being murdered, or watching a friend die right before your eyes... You don't know what that's like," Harry said.

The room was silent for a moment. Everyone thinking over Harry's words. He was right. They didn't know what it was like. And in all honesty, Evangeline didn't want to know what it was like. Harry sat down, Hermione following in suit. "You're right, Harry, we don't. That's why we need your help. Because if we're going to have any chance at beating... Voldemort..." Hermione didn't finish her sentence.

"He's really back," a boy, younger than Evangeline, stated. Harry barely nodded his head. It was then that the students began to realize the severity of the situation. They were realizing what they were getting themselves into. Hermione, Harry, and Ronald stood after a few more minutes of discussion. They walked over to a table and all took a seat. A piece of paper was laid out onto the table.

"For those of you who are willing to do this, I'd like for you to write your names on this piece of paper," The Granger girl said. Nobody moved from their seats. Evangeline looked around the room, waiting for someone to get up. When no one did she rolled her eyes, pushing herself out of her seat and walking over to where they sat. She picked up the pencil and looked at the paper, seeing the three's names already on it and the words, 'Dumbledore's Army', at the top.

She wrote her own name down before placing the pencil back on the table. She looked up at the three. Hermione smiled appreciatively, while Harry gave her a nod. Ronald looked at her with curious eyes and she stepped away from the table. Vivian was next to write her name and slowly, the other students followed in suit.

Once everyone had signed it, the students began to disperse, making their way back to Hogwarts in small groups. Evangeline and Vivian were about to leave when the younger girl's name was called. She turned around and came face to face with Ronald Weasley. She raised a questioning eyebrow and he cleared his throat. "I just wanted to thank you. You know, for not ratting us out and for defending Harry," he said.

She rolled her eyes, "I'm not a snitch Ronald. I can keep a secret." He nodded furiously, "I-I know that... now." An awkward silence fell upon the two. "Uh, thanks for coming," he muttered lamely. Evangeline nodded her head and turned back toward the door. "Evangeline," he said. She turned back to face him. "I'm really sorry about getting you detention. And about your hand," he said, looking down at her hand. She hid it behind her thigh and rolled her eyes again.

"Don't be. It wasn't your fault," she replied before turning around and leaving the bar. Vivian was quickly by her side, nudging the younger girl. Evangeline eyed her and Vivian smiled. "What?" Evangeline asked. "Ronald Weasley, huh?" Vivian questioned. Evangeline scoffed, pushing her sister away from her and picking up her pace. Behind her, Vivian laughed maniacally.

"Aw, come on. I'm only joking!" She called. Evangeline shook her head in annoyance, continuing in her stride.

"Wait! Slow down!"