On the same night as the meeting in Hogsmeade, Godric, Rowena, and Salazar met in the Room of Requirement. The students had already taken the first, fundamental step: the decision to do something and to begin doing it. Now, the three of them had to figure out how to help them succeed. They all shared the same opinion. It would not be good for their hand to be seen in it, although in the end, no one knew their true identities. Which was recommended. The students might know they were reincarnations but not that they were really them.
"The most complicated thing will be to find a place," Salazar observed.
Godric knew that despite how few students there were, the chances of attracting attention were serious and dangerous. Umbridge was a threat; if she caught them, she would try to force one to betray the rest. It was a risk the students knew and were willing to take, but the three of them would help them regardless.
"It has to be a place that few can access," Godric told his friends. "And few places in the castle are like that."
"This one is," Rowena said. "And it can provide good exit and escape routes if needed."
The Room of Requirement was the safest place they had to meet. A place that everyone could access without relying on anyone and was quite discreet. A place they could reach with little risk. The other place where they met, the Shrieking Shack, was built on one of the castle's safe escape routes. That place was out of the question; it would alarm the population of Hogsmeade, and that would be a serious problem.
"We must sacrifice this place," Godric said with aplomb. "The Room of Requirement is the ideal place for this purpose. It is the only way."
"It is not, but it is the safest. Will you tell Hermione?" Salazar asked.
"Yes, I'll take care of it. I'll explain how the room works. It will be important to use it properly and safely."
Godric was deep in thought. The meeting a few hours ago had not gone badly at all. The potential problems had been neutralised. He had detected that Helga was hiding on the premises. She had taken care of Smith, Edgecombe, and Chang. They would not remember anything about the meeting and could not betray them. The cover of the birthday was left for anyone who had seen them enter the reserved room. But those three wouldn't know what had happened and wouldn't put them in danger.
"I'll go talk to Hermione. Don't stay too late."
"Don't worry."
"There will be no problem."
"I hope you're right."
As soon as everything was ready, Hermione took it upon herself to notify everyone. Salazar sighed. Both he and Godric would have preferred to stay out of it, but they saw it as necessary to support the students in this venture. It was they who, after all, had to take control. Salazar exchanged a glance with Godric as the Room of Requirement filled with the students who had finally signed the list. Everyone seemed to admire the layout of the room. It had adopted a somewhat obscure disposition, with shelves full of books, Dark Arts detectors, and practice dummies. Everything they needed to be able to practice and learn. More or less how well a class should be stocked. If it were up to him, he would not participate, but it was clear that many came precisely because he was there; which seemed to him a bit lacking in personality and perspective.
"Well, since we're all here, I think we can start organising," Hermione said. "Given the variety of the group, and the activities of the different members outside of it, it will be difficult to have a fixed schedule; which could work well in our favour. Anyway, I've thought of a way to communicate with each other without attracting attention. Well, two: The first is a spokesperson for each house to announce the date of the next meeting and who will pass on the message. The second is some coins enchanted with the Protean Charm."
"You've managed a Protean Charm?" Terry Boot asked. "How is it that you're not in Ravenclaw?"
"I considered the Hat, for a few moments," Hermione replied. "But anyway, what I was getting at. I believe that we should vote for the method that seems best to you. Both have their advantages and their problems."
There was a bit of a commotion as they commented with each other on what Hermione said and organised themselves to vote. It was something Salazar didn't participate in; he just watched. An attitude that Godric and Rowena had also adopted. With a quick gesture, he communicated with them: they would be the last to decide how to position themselves. It was something they found vital and was part of what they had agreed upon. Salazar saw danger in both options. In the first, talking so much, making a verbal chain of messages, could be overheard by speaking at the wrong time and place. In the second option, the danger was the loss or expense of a coin. However, he saw the coin thing as more sophisticated and imaginative. No one would expect that from teenagers. Both his friends and he were in favour of using the coins, being the last to cast their votes.
Once that was agreed, Hermione distributed the coins, leaving the standard coin aside—the one that, when modified, would modify the rest. A subtle change, in the number engraving of the coin, would indicate the new date. One currency communicated with all but the others did not communicate with each other. It was interesting. Salazar analysed his coin before putting it in his pocket. It was the work of a quasi-master of Transfiguration. Hermione always made an effort in all areas.
"And now—" Hermione continued. "We have to talk about what we want to study and practice. We need to cover what the Defence subject is not covering and also learn to defend ourselves."
"Why doesn't Harry talk?" A third-year asked. "He's the leader, isn't he?"
"I'm not the leader here," Salazar said softly. "This isn't about me. It's about all of us who are here. As I said at the meeting, it is time to learn from everyone. And that's what Hermione is indicating. That is why we will all agree on what we will do both in this and in the next sessions."
"And we're not going to have a name?" Colin Creevey asked.
"If you think we need it, go ahead. Of course, I recommend that it is nothing that is subversive to the Ministry. Subtlety is always the best way. Better than shouting what we are doing under the noses of the Ministry."
Those words brought murmurs again. Salazar was not so interested in the group having a name, although he recognised that it helped a lot to unite everyone, to cohere; to generate a feeling of belonging to something. It was like with teams or houses, only on a different scale. It could definitely be a positive thing, but it was not something he had thought about or considered. He saw it as more important to focus on what they had to learn, although with the idea that students would take their own reins, he could not simply impose himself in that way of proceeding.
The following weeks were somewhat intense at the Ministry. Helga had managed to find out some things. In addition to having heard some things and knowing that the Minister was going to give more and more powers to Umbridge inside Hogwarts. It was clear to her that the Ministry wanted to control Hogwarts. That was unheard of. Hogwarts was completely out of political situations, or, at least, that was one of the ideas they had. Hogwarts was not supposed to be a political battleground. Besides what she had heard about Umbridge earlier in the summer, it made her want to sink the witch. Helga wasn't usually vindictive, but she couldn't help but put herself in that frame of mind when it came to someone who had planned to specifically harm her boy. It was difficult for her to meet her friends, but she had something important to talk to them about. Summer holidays aside, Umbridge was a threat to Hogwarts as a whole. She waited for them in the Shrieking Shack, a place where they could talk quietly.
"I'm glad to see you," she said with a smile.
"Helga, how have you been?" Salazar asked her.
"Good. I'm more concerned about how you've all been."
"It wasn't bad. Nothing apart from what I told you in the last letter."
"Well... perhaps we should mention the fact that Umbridge has begun to interrogate students. I think he suspects something," Rowena commented, looking at both her and Salazar.
"That fits with what I've heard at the Ministry. Umbridge has managed to convince Fudge that there are conspirators against him at Hogwarts, conspirators incited by Dumbledore. That group of students you have helped create may be in danger."
"It won't be. They are all reliable. We made sure of that, and you know it," said Godric.
"I'll just warn you. Umbridge is more dangerous than she seems. Perhaps she's working for Fudge on his takeover of the castle and his confrontation with Dumbledore, but her ambitions go further. Fudge is a puppet who, as soon as he loses his support for anything, will be easy to unseat. Umbridge is getting her own support at the Ministry. People as unpleasant as her who think that Fudge's regime is soft."
"We may need a contingency plan," Salazar said. "We'll have to find out what he's up to and find a way to thwart his plans."
"Salazar, she's coming for you too. Dumbledore's statements about Voldemort's return implicate you even if you preferred not to say anything about it. You're one of Umbridge's targets."
"I know. I've noticed and I'm trying to keep a low profile."
"Umbridge is someone who wouldn't mind breaking the law," Helga warned. "She had to do with the Dementors, but there is no order to the Dementors to go to Diagon Alley or to follow anyone in particular. Assuming there are no Dementors outside the Ministry's control, an unregistered order is an order that does not exist." He paused for a few moments. "In addition, the last three people who confronted her at the Ministry ended up being fired for 'irregularities' in their jobs and have not found any work since; at least in some magical occupation. Two of them, Muggle-born, survive on jobs below their means in the Muggle world. The third lost not only his job but his investments and now practices begging in Knockturn Alley."
"So there's no sneaking into her office and snooping," Godric said.
"I don't recommend it. Not at least without a way that she does not know there is someone or thinks that it was Salazar. And while we're at it, neither do you. None of those with whom she meets on a regular basis would be able to enter."
"That narrows the list down a lot. A lot," Salazar whispered. "But if she hides something, she must take it with her. From what you say, she doesn't seem like someone who pushes her cards far away much more than her hands can handle."
"We need to go into your office," Rowena said. "You yourself would do it if you were in the situation and opportunity. However, we have the tools to generate that opportunity and not lay the blame on Salazar if that is what you fear. He may go after him, but for the moment the Ministry seems to have only the problem with Dumbledore and to a lesser extent with Diggory."
"What do you have in mind?" Godric asked.
"Isn't there a Quidditch match at the end of the week?" Rowena asked rhetorically, looking at them with a smile. "Salazar will be playing and you will be in the stands. That leaves me to review the office."
"As long as you don't go alone," Helga said. "I don't want any of you to be in too much danger."
"The brilliant Dark wizard hunter says so," Salazar joked.
"When we're alone, I'll show you how brilliant I can be."
"It's a pity we have to wait for the Christmas recess," Salazar replied, winking at her.
"How many times do I have to tell you to find a hotel?" Godric said as Rowena shook her head in amusement.
Ron was nervous. That Saturday was his first Quidditch match as Keeper of the Gryffindor team, and he wasn't sure he could do well. In training he had done a little badly, and he felt a bit pressured to succeed. That his brothers made fun of him and teased him made him more nervous. Yes, he knew that they were doing it looking to make him relax, but he didn't completely succeed. He had a good track record in wizard chess tournaments, but Quidditch was not a chess tournament, and there would be a lot of people watching it.
"Relax, my friend. Take it as if we were playing in the Burrow in summer. Don't take anything else into account. We all know you can do it very well."
"Wood set the bar very high. People expect us to keep the cup, and if I don't do well..."
"What does it matter what people expect? Ron! I already told you two years ago and I repeat it now. Look for a way to achieve what you expect from yourself, what you want to have; and leave others aside. If they wanted the cup, they would have entered the team."
"But Angelina expects a team like the previous one."
"That is what every Captain aspires to achieve. Maintain a good team. But don't put pressure on yourself about it and do what you know how to do well. We both know you can do it."
The conversation with Salazar calmed his nerves a little, just a little. As soon as they took the field, he heard the roar of the fans cheering on Gryffindor and the whistles of the Slytherin stands. That increased their anxiety levels. The atmosphere that had previously been exciting for him in other years, was now overwhelming. He looked at his friend, who made a gesture of approval and encouragement. Salazar was right; he should simply enjoy the moment and not be intimidated or carried away by his insecurities. Madam Hooch entered the field with the briefcase containing the Quidditch balls. The Captains shook hands; well, the Slytherin one seemed to be trying to break Angelina's fingers. He looked at the opposing team. Everyone except Draco had macabre smiles that promised nothing good. Draco looked bored. He didn't trust Draco. He didn't like how close he was getting to his sister, nor the vote of confidence Salazar seemed to have given him and the other Slytherins, Zabini, and Nott. Although he had to admit that Nott had publicly confronted the Death Eater who impersonated Moody the previous year. But no, he couldn't trust them because they were Slytherins and Slytherins were bad. After the "salute" of the Captains, he mounted his broom and went to his position next to the goalposts that he had to defend; those who were in the middle of the field that had been assigned to them by lot. The two Beaters were a few feet ahead of him, ready to use the bats. The Chasers drew a semicircle in midfield, waiting for the release of the balls. And Salazar, placed above everyone.
He watched Madam Hooch open the briefcase with a swipe of her leg and put the Bludgers into play, then the Snitch she had never been able to see, and he had always wondered how Salazar could. And the last thing was the Quaffle. With the release of this last ball, he held on tightly to the broom's handle, but not rigidly, ready to follow Salazar's advice. He had to be prepared because that was when the initial possession of the Quaffle and the initial lead in the match were being contested. That momentary advantage could determine the first points of a match and the mood and general performance of the players. A great example of that was the Quidditch World Cup the previous year. It was the Slytherins who seized power. Ron didn't expect it to happen so soon, that they would come so soon towards his goal zone. He took a deep breath, trying to calm his nerves and focus on the Quaffle's position, not the players themselves. The Quaffle was left in the air, going towards him, towards one of the posts. He was sure she was moving at high speed, but he could see her as if she were in slow motion. He deflected her with his fist, redirecting her toward Katie. He could hear comments from Lee Jordan, a friend of his brothers Fred and George, who was the commentator. Also the shouts of joy and disappointment of the fans, depending on which fan it was. It was better to ignore all that and just dedicate yourself to playing. Ron continued to play that way for the rest of the match that he didn't know until much later what went on, until two hours they were playing. Apparently the Snitch on this occasion was quite elusive. Ron was able to save most of the shots on goal, including a couple of penalties that from his point of view should not have been called. But he could not prevent him from being put in the odd one, although the average was not bad. They finished the game with a score of 230 to 50 in favour of Gryffindor, thanks to a majestic catch by Salazar. That gave them a lot of hope of winning the Quidditch Cup that year. The only thing he didn't like was the final handshake that Salazar and Draco gave each other, as if they were now friends who competed healthily instead of looking to beat each other.
Rowena was accompanied by Theo. She had told him about finding information about Umbridge and her intentions to enter her office. Theo was her boyfriend, after all. He had not hesitated to support her in this, although she had noticed that he did not seem to like the idea. But there they were, taking advantage of the Quidditch match to sneak away. No one would miss them. Theo didn't usually go down to matches much, only when his friends dragged him along. As for her, it wasn't surprising that she wasn't. It is true that she had not missed a game before, but she was the "weirdo" who always did strange things. No one would give it importance, or so he hoped.
"It's lucky that Umbridge came down to watch the game," Theo said.
"If she didn't, we would have had to look for a distraction and we would have less time."
"Let's not count on having too much either. You didn't live it, but in the first year Salazar caught a Snitch in less than five minutes. He could be a professional player because of how he plays."
"I imagine you'll like that idea. Everyone expects him to be an Auror, the eternal hero."
"My father expected me to follow in his footsteps completely, you know, Luna."
"And you've shown that you have a mind of your own. Which makes me very happy."
They made sure that no one was in the corridor where Umbridge's apartment was located before accessing it with a simple Alohomora. Rowena made sure to pre-disable any possible traps she had set up as well as to do so without a trace. She was going to put into practice an idea of Salazar's: Make her nervous, paranoid. She would be sure that she had put the protections on and finding that they were not there would worry her. But if they fell without a trace... She smiled slightly; it seemed that her friend wanted the teacher's particular madness to come to light and, at the same time, she knew that it was something that would bother Helga a little, although she was sure that her friend could imagine that Salazar would think of a move like that.
"Well, and what exactly are we looking for?"
"Anything that proves that the toad is a danger to Hogwarts and its students," she said in a dreamy voice.
"Oh, and how murky does it have to be for that?"
"Quite shady."
The office was completely pink and horrible. Only that combination of colours and the kitten rugs should constitute a crime. She was never one to judge the decorative styles of others, but that was going too far.
"One thing is clear. She has a great obsession with cats. A fetish, perhaps?" Theo commented, looking at the room.
"Do you prefer the desk or drawers?"
"I'll go through the papers on the desk," he pointed to a small mountain of files.
So they split the desk in two. While Rowena checked the surface, Theo took care of the drawers. He reviewed everything he had on the table, file by file. They were files of students who he thought were close to Dumbledore or who he thought could be potential problems. He had notes on them indicating that they knew their movements and that it was obvious that they were being watched. Almost everything in those files seemed to focus on Dumbledore and Salazar, whom he seemed to see as a greater threat. This was very worrying, for it not only confirmed Helga's thoughts but showed that she went further. He wanted to put an end to it completely and, from the way the report was written, he seemed to be looking for his weaknesses and how to provoke him. The report concluded that he would do so by attacking his friends since he could not do so directly. In fact, he had information about Ron, Hermione, most of the Gryffindors, and something about her... This was something he had to inform Salazar about.
"This is murky. A permission from the Minister to interrogate students," Theo said. "He has several vials of Veritaserum, and I doubt very much that the parents will be notified during the interrogation or a lawyer."
"We can change the Veritaserum for water. There will always be some unwary person who drinks what is offered."
"Well thought out. Let's hope we have time for that. Have you found anything?"
"She has information about several students she wants to get out of the way to clean the school of 'undesirable elements.' She also has notes on teachers and plans to provoke them to kick out those she thinks are too pro-'subversive elements to order' such as Dumbledore."
"Yes, I see the reasoning. I remove those that are not favourable to me and place my friends."
"Indeed," Rowena said. "That explains these decrees to be signed and this decree signed. Power by curtailing freedoms and establishing itself as the executor of the regulations, leaving teachers, principals and prefects on the sidelines." She showed him in particular the sketch of the Inquisitorial Squad she wanted to found.
"From what I have observed, Umbridge attacks mainly Gryffindor, and to a lesser extent Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff, but not Slytherin. If this decree goes ahead, you will have to have people within the brigade."
"It's a bridge we'll cross in due course, Theo."
After that brief exchange, they continued to check the table. Rowena focused on much of the mail in which it was clear that she was corresponding with personalities close to Fudge and that she planned to overthrow him in the near future and take her place to help establish the "correct order in society" with the help of a "true champion of blood purity." Personally, she didn't like the sound of it all. If she interpreted it in the worst way, Umbridge seemed to be working for Voldemort's allies. She didn't know whether or not the theory that crossed her mind now was true, but Umbridge was certainly nasty enough to be a Death Eater. It was something to investigate and something he planned to communicate to his friends.
"Here is information about traffic and visits to all the chimneys of the castle. From where they communicate and at what times. And also some intercepted letters. You are blocking the usual channels of communication. Although you already imagined that, I suppose."
"That's right, Theo. But this serves to confirm it."
"It also has scary objects."
"Dark objects?" she asked.
"A Blood Quill."
He did not have time to respond to that. It was a horrible thing, yes, and something had to be done about it, but what he came up with might endanger the person on whom he used that pen. In any case, they did not have much time to chat, not in the office and they had already spent a lot. That was demonstrated by the appearance of Helena Ravenclaw in the office.
"You have to hurry. The match is over. They all come back and Filch is coming this way," the ghost told them.
"Thank you."
"But..." Theo was amazed.
"The ghosts are on the side of Hogwarts and your friends, young Nott."
"Let's copy all the relevant information and go," Theo said. "It may not serve as official evidence, but information is information."
"Okay. Geminio!"
"I knew you were a genius, Luna."
The duplicate documents were put in the inside pockets of the tunic and they left the office, leaving it closed. They walked a few meters down the corridor and got into a passageway that she herself pointed out to her boyfriend. That way they would be at the other end of the castle in a few minutes and no one could tell that they had been in the office if anyone had noticed their absence. In fact, he might even argue that they had taken advantage of the match to spend time alone together. Which, on the other hand, they had done. Now all that remained was to wait for the moment to pass that information on to his friends and tell them about the Veritaserum.