Oleandra, Astoria and Tracey were finally released in the late afternoon after being questioned at length at the Aurors' outpost in Hogsmeade. It had been a colossal waste of time by anyone's standards, and their entire Saturday was ruined.
It had taken a very long time for Magical Law Enforcement to cross-reference their story with Dawlish's, since he could neither speak nor write with all of his missing bones. In fact, the only thing he was able to do was nod or shake his head, but even that wasn't of much help, since it had quickly become apparent that the man's memories had been wiped clean.
He couldn't even remember the last thing he'd been doing before being cursed; he had simply woken up earlier in the morning with his limbs disabled and jawbone removed, which must have been a terrifying experience for him.
At any rate, by the time Oleandra and company were set free, it was already time to return to school, and they still hadn't got any lunch.
"You know, the least they could have done was bring us some snacks," Astoria complained. "It's a wonder they could hear my testimony over my stomach."
Oleandra sniggered.
"I don't know how you could still be hungry after seeing that," said Tracey, who was looking rather queasy. "Still, I wonder what kind of Curse does that to someone?"
"The kind you don't want to be on the receiving end of," said Oleandra impatiently. "Now hurry up, if we keep dawdling, by the time we finish buying sweets for Daphne, we'll miss dinner as well!"
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Daphne seemed to have disappeared, as she didn't show up to dinner that night or come to bed. Oleandra and Astoria were beginning to get worried; the last time she had disappeared like this, she had hatched a plot to steal Phoenix ashes from right under Dumbledore's nose.
On Sunday, Oleandra tried searching all of Daphne's favourite sunning spots in the castle, while Astoria pored over the Marauder's Map borrowed from the Gryffindor Trio, but in the end, neither of the sisters managed to find Daphne for the rest of the weekend.
With her time quickly running out, Oleandra gave up searching for her sister, and instead paid a visit to the Ollivanders branch in Hogsmeade to retrieve her wand, before the wandmaker left for his main shop in Diagon Alley.
The following morning, on Monday, Oleandra and Tracey found Daphne calmly reading the Daily Prophet while eating porridge at her usual seat at the Slytherin table, looking no worse for wear.
"I'm still mad at you, before you ask," Daphne said preemptively, not even bothering to lift her eyes from the newspaper. "But it seems like your little act of rebellion is coming to an end."
She flipped her newspaper around and pushed it forward for Oleandra and Tracey to read.
"Looks like you've made it to the news again," Tracey observed. "Lucky you."
British Auror Office Coordinates Swift Response in Hogsmeade
The usually tranquil village of Hogsmeade recently found itself embroiled in a national manhunt for the dangerous Dark Wizard known only as the Bonebreaker when one of his victims was found by chance by visiting Hogwarts students. The victim, Auror John Dawlish, could not be reached for comment, but is expected to make a full recovery within the week.
Ministry officials have yet to disclose the full details of the situation, but they have assured the public that there is no cause for alarm, and that a joint task force composed of local Magical Law Enforcement Officers and Aurors had been established to ensure the safety of the villagers.
However, not everyone seemed to appreciate these new measures:
"At least they haven't brought Dementors this time around," remarked Rosmerta, proprietress of The Three Broomsticks. "Not that I mind the extra business, but should officers really be drinking Firewhisky while on duty?"
Residents are encouraged to carry on with their daily activities and to come forward with any relevant information that might help the investigation.
"The Bone Breaking Wizard is considered highly dangerous," Auror Kingsley Shacklebolt added. "Under no circumstance should he be approached."
Kingsley Shacklebolt, who was previously tasked with finding Sirius Black […]
"I don't see what you're talking about, Daphne," said Oleandra quizzically, looking up from the newspaper. "The front page's all about that bloke Astoria tripped over, and the person who cursed him."
"Oh, was that you three?" said Daphne, raising an eyebrow. "But no, I wasn't talking about the main article; look at the bottom of the page."
She tapped on a small paragraph hidden away in the bottom corner of the newspaper: High Inquisitor Dolores Umbridge was disbanding all of Hogwarts's student associations by issuing Educational Decree Number Twenty-Four.
"Well?" Daphne asked triumphantly.
"So much for the Starshower Club," said Oleandra glumly.
Her club was pretty much defunct, since Ginny and Draco had essentially quit. There wasn't much sense in keeping the club going with just the three of them; Oleandra, Daphne and Tracey. She'd been hoping to make Hermione's new Defence Against the Dark Arts Club her new army, but Umbridge was clearly targeting it. But how could she possibly have heard about it?
"Daphne, you didn't tattle on us, did you?" Oleandra said reproachfully.
"I didn't."
Oleandra's Mystic Eyes indicated that Daphne was telling the truth.
"Where were you all weekend, in that case?" Tracey asked suspiciously.
Daphne smirked.
It ticked her off to no end whenever Daphne did that, since their faces were nearly identical— it was like looking into a very bratty mirror. Luckily, she didn't do it very often, preferring to maintain a neutral or bored expression at all times.
To Oleandra, it felt like her twin sister had gained some confidence in herself, for some reason.
"I felt like stretching my legs a bit, so I was out investigating something in the Forbidden Forest," Daphne simply said. "I daresay something very big is coming this way. Something that has not set foot on our soil for hundreds of years."
"And how would you know that?" Oleandra asked irritably.
"The land speaks, if you cared enough to listen to the plants," Daphne said smugly. "You might want to take your nose out of the stars, every once in a while."