Gryffindor Study Group

Mc POV 

Sitting in the great hall, I was having my lunch with my friends. The topic of conversation was the Azkaban breakout. Neville was furious that the culprits responsible for his parent's current condition had escaped.

My parents and Neville's parents were part of Dumbledore's secret group, the Order of Phoenix, and fought against Voldemort's followers 

My parents were killed on that night and Neville's parents were tortured by two death eaters using 'Crucio' one of the three Unforgivable Curses, it caused unbearable pain to the target and the result was their minds couldn't take it anymore and broke.

Right now, they are under the care of St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries, a wizarding hospital located in London and intended for the treatment of illnesses and injuries caused by magic. 

Lots of complaints have been raised towards the Ministry of Magic and Cornelius Fudge is trying his best to put down the fire by pointing fingers at others but still, it didn't work as expected.

The whole magic world raised the question, has Voldemort returned and Fudge has been evading the question with vague answers or shifting away from the topic.

Dumbledore has been missing since the Breakout happened and all his work has been handled by Professor McGonagall. People were afraid of Voldemort and they weren't ready to face another war.

The news of Voldemort's core followers escaping had put a lot of pressure on them and it's like an invisible threat looming over their heads. Mass panic would have been the result of the public and it didn't happen because of Dumbledore's existence.

He was the people's knight in shining armor, because of his extraordinary feats like defeating Grindelwald, who was also a Dark Lord, holding Voldemort at bay, and preventing mass destruction.

Fudge doesn't like people relying on Dumbledore, because he thinks that Dumbledore is after his job. His image has taken a huge hit because of the Azkaban breakout. 

All this has kept Dumbledore busy and I was at peace knowing that I don't have to face the old man without my complete Occlumency. Snape is still avoiding me like I'm some kind of Plague, but since he didn't bother me, I was fine with it.

I resolved my mind to focus more and make sure that both projects were done without any delay. Ron, Hermione, and Parvati were comforting Neville that the escaped prisoners would be recaptured, calming him down.

I on the other hand was thinking about our study session requests. A few first-year Gryffindor have approached my friends and asked if they can join because of our group's academic performance. 

When I asked why no first-year from our house approached me, Hermione's answer was that I was like a celebrity to the first-years and was like a shining star that could not be approached easily. 

With my looks, knowledge, and skills, I was treated like some kind of royalty within the Gryffindor first-years. I didn't shy away from Hermione's claim, because my plan was to rule the light side and such an image is required for my future, it is much better this way.

Even though it was unspoken, but when asked, my four friends wouldn't hesitate to say that I was the leader between them unanimously because my friends knew how skilled and knowledgeable, I was.

"So, Harry, is it alright to let them join our study session?" asked Hermione 

"I don't see a problem with it. Hermione, why don't you take charge of screening the new applicants for the study group? I don't want any troublemakers in it" I replied

"OK Harry, I'll take care of it" Hermione nodded with determination and I was sure that I had chosen the right person. 

Hermione likes responsibilities and is kind of a perfectionist so such positions were perfect for her. The others didn't raise any objections because they knew that Hermione was a hard worker and took her responsibilities very seriously.

"From now on, Study Group will be conducted in the Gryffindor common room on Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday evenings" I informed Hermione who noted it down in her study diary along with a few rules she came up on the spot for the screening process.

All of us went to our evening class after lunch and later hung out in the common room and Hermione was away from the group, discussing with a few first-years who approached her about the study group.

She explained how the study group worked and a few rules to follow. The muggle-born and half-bloods didn't have a problem because they were having a hard time with magic study so they agreed immediately, but the purebloods didn't see it that way and told her that they would think about it.

Seamus Finnigan, Lavender Brown, and two others joined the study group and they were informed about the study group dates and timings. 

Watching Hermione working with dedication, I started formulating some plans and getting her into a position of power inside the Ministry of Magic. Her skills could be used for the betterment of the magic world and for that she needs to be placed in such an appropriate position.

The next day came and today was the first session of the study group. I decided to throw in some bait to increase our study group numbers by explaining a few topics related to the first-year curriculum. 

Since we are conducting the study group in the Gryffindor house common room, a few first-years who were not in the group also attentively listened to my explanation from their seats. Even some second years were also listening but I didn't mind them and focused on helping the people for the study group only.

By the time the study session came to an end, more first-years were standing next to the walls, listening to the session taken by me. Hermione was crowded with first-years who also wanted to join the study group and so our study group's numbers increased gradually.