Chapter 608: OOC (Order of the Cat) (Edited)

"Welcome, Master Fish!" Comey, the house-elf, was the first to greet him. "Your friends have arrived!"

The two of them entered the living room, which was already filled with people.

"Hello, everyone! Welcome to Fish's house!"

?(ΦωΦ)?

Fish cordially greeted the group.

Hermione approached them and asked, "Is everyone here? Has anyone followed you?"

"Yes," answered Lavender Brown, Hermione's dormmate, with a hint of annoyance. "And aren't you being too cautious? How could anyone have followed us?"

"Actually, Fish and I were just followed."

Hermione didn't get angry and calmly recounted the story of Willy Widdershins.

"The Ministry must have put him there," Alicia Spinnet said confidently, "Just to follow Fish... and maybe Harry."

Everyone's eyes turned to Harry.

And Harry could only smile bitterly. "I don't have a nose like Fish's..."

"Harry shouldn't have been followed, nya."

(?ω?)

Fish thought for a moment and then said, "Fish didn't smell any other strangers, and didn't smell any other students outside the house before."

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief. No one wanted to be discovered by the Ministry of Magic before their operation had begun.

"Well, now that we're all here, you should know the conditions for joining this operation."

Hermione took out a blank piece of parchment and placed it in front of everyone.

"I must remind you, intentionally or not, that anyone who signs this and reveals a secret will be severely punished."

She solemnly said to everyone, and taking out a quill, she was the first to sign it.

Although they already knew it beforehand, some hesitated, but Hermione ignored them and handed the quill to Fish, who was beside her.

After Fish signed, the Gryffindors, including Harry, Ron, and Neville, stamped their signatures on the parchment without hesitation.

The others, guided by them, also wrote their names on the parchment.

"Very well," said Hermione as she put away the parchment, "Now, let's get to work."

She took out another basket from her bag, which tinkled with golden Galleons.

Ron's eyes immediately lit up. "Are you paying us?"

"I have carefully studied your schedules; it's not difficult to fit in some nights when everyone is free," Hermione said to the others, ignoring Ron, "But with Quidditch practices, there are very few options, and with the changing weather, there will have to be additional adjustments. Unless you can give up Quidditch practice."

"That's not possible!" Harry and the rest of the team immediately shouted.

Hermione nodded calmly and said, "I knew it would be like this, that's why I prepared this."

She lifted the basket she had in her hand and shook it vigorously, causing the golden Galleons inside to clink against each other with a crisp sound.

"These are the fake Galleons I've been making in my spare time, they're actually made of brass." Hermione took out a fake Galleon from the basket.

Ron's eyes dimmed for a moment.

And Hermione continued to ignore him, pointing to the numbers on the edge of the coin and saying, "See this chain of numbers? In genuine Galleons, it's just a number that represents the goblin who minted the coin. But the numbers on these fake coins change, indicating the time of the next meeting. When the time is changed, the coin heats up, and if you put it in your pocket, you'll notice it."

She placed the basket on the coffee table in the living room and let each person grab one for themselves.

"Each of you grab one, as soon as the time for the next meeting is set, I will change the numbers on the coins since they are all under a changing spell, so everyone's coins will change equally."

Hermione felt slightly embarrassed as she saw everyone looking at her motionless while she finished.

Just as she was about to say something else, Fish touched his neck and said, "Hermione, the effect of your coin resembles Voldemort's tattoo..."

(?ω?)

"Well... I actually got inspired by that Dark Magic mark on the hands of Death Eaters, except I carved the time into the metal instead of on the skin," Hermione explained.

"Well... I like how you've done it," Harry smiled as he grabbed a Galleon from the basket and put it in his pocket, "I suppose the only danger is accidentally spending it."

"Not many chances of that happening," Ron said, also grabbing a fake coin and looking at it with a bit of sadness, "I don't have any real Galleons to mix it with."

With their interruption, the others came back to their senses.

"Transfiguring Charm!" exclaimed a seventh-year Hufflepuff student, "That's N.E.W.T. level magic!"

He had thought that the seventh-year students had come to this event more for Fish's sake than to teach the first-year students.

Now that Hermione had mastered an advanced spell that he himself had not been able to master, he felt a little embarrassed.

Hermione's reaction was silent.

After all, she couldn't be proud that she was accompanied by a cat that was always eating, drinking, and playing, but was far superior to her in spellcasting.

"I can't believe you're not a Ravenclaw," Cho Chang said, squeezing the coin in her hand and looking at Hermione in astonishment.

Hermione shrugged, saying nothing.

Even though the Sorting Hat had considered sending her to Ravenclaw, Gryffindor had Fish! If she had to choose a hundred times, her choice would still be Gryffindor.

"She's not really suited for Ravenclaw," Luna commented with her ethereal voice, "Hermione's brain is too rigid."

Although she had no intention of going to Ravenclaw, Hermione immediately raised her eyebrows and glared at Luna, trying to argue with her.

Seeing that the two were about to argue again, Harry interrupted, "Time is settled, what about the place?"

Hermione glared at Harry, knowing he was asking knowingly, but she stopped arguing with Luna and answered his question.

"The place where we'll meet, in a place called the 'Room of Requirement.'" She briefly described the existence of the Room of Requirement and how to enter it.

"Wow! There's such a great place we didn't know about!" George exclaimed in amazement.

"We should've been in that room, actually," Fred recalled, frowning, "That's where we hid from Filch, George, remember? But back then, it was just a broom cupboard... but if what Hermione says is true, then it could've been anything."

"Of course it's real!" Ron triumphed, "That's where we brewed the Polyjuice Potion in our second year."

"Exactly, Hermione brewed it and we just watched," Harry teased his best friend mercilessly.

"Silence!" Hermione interrupted their banter disapprovingly and then continued, "Since the Room of Requirement is on the seventh floor, it's easier for Gryffindor and Ravenclaw students to get there, and Hufflepuff students don't have to rush."

She pointed to Comey, who was waiting to refill the tea and sandwiches, and said, "If you really can't make it, you can go to the kitchens and ask the house-elves for help. They'll take you to the Room of Requirement."

Comey bowed to the crowd and said, pointing, "Comey and the other house-elves have the honor of serving you all!"

"So, is there anything else you'd like to add?" Hermione asked, clapping her hands.

The group exchanged glances; Hermione's preparations were so thorough that they couldn't find any gaps, so the boys shook their heads, saying they had nothing to add.

But many of the girls were hesitant; they wanted to participate more. After all, according to Hermione, Fish was the heart of the dueling club...

Although Hermione said that it wouldn't actually be Fish who would teach, but Cedric, Harry, and the Weasley twins, who were more than capable and experienced in combat.

"Fine!" Lavender Brown snapped. "We can't call it the Dueling Club in this situation, and the name tends to remind people of that great liar, Lockhart," she suggested. "We should have a different name."

Her suggestion was immediately seconded by the other girls and some boys, and everyone hurried to come up with a name.

After rejecting a bunch of names like "The Anti-Umbridge League" and "The Ministry of Magic is a Bunch of Fools," Hermione suggested, "I think it's better if it's a name that doesn't reveal what we do, so we can mention it safely outside. I think it's better if it's not obvious what we do, so we can mention it safely outside."

Then the group came up with names like "Cat Lovers League," "Fish Support Group," and "Protecting Our Best Cats."

"Don't these groups already exist?!" Hermione exclaimed with a grim look.

Sharpay, who had already graduated, was the founder and first president of the Fish Support Group.

"We could merge into this group," said the second president, Alicia Spinnet, with a serious expression. "Just to keep covering for this group."

Despite this tempting reason, Hermione dismissed it, feeling that by using such a name, her intentions to organize the meeting would be undermined.

"Defense Association?" After some lively discussions, Cho Chang suggested, "D.A. for short, nobody knows what we're talking about."

"Hey, D.A. is fine," Ginny said. "It could also mean 'Dumbledore's Army,' that's what the Ministry of Magic fears the most, right?"

There was a murmur of approval and laughter.

"Are we all agreed on A.D.?" Hermione asked as if she were the host.

"Fish doesn't agree, nya!"

(`Д')

Fish, who had been quietly chewing on his sandwich, jumped in to object.

"Fish?" Hermione looked at him surprised.

"Albus already has an Order of the Phoenix, why does the club proposed by Fish use his name?"

(`н')

Fish puffed up his cheeks, clasped his hands, and grumbled.

"So, what do you think the name should be?" Hermione asked with a helpless smile.

"Well... how about...?"

Fish pondered for a moment, then blinked and said:

"Order of the Cat, nya!"

(?ω?)