Ugh. This year has been horrible. Having that toad Umbridge in the school is just ruining everything. she thinks that just because she works for the Ministry that she can do anything she wants, and no one can stop her! Which I mean, is partly true and everything, but really! She keeps putting up all these Decrees, changing what we are and aren't allowed to do (and really, we aren't allowed to do anything now!). And her teaching style! Don't even get me started! She is a horrid teacher, as we aren't allowed to use the practical magic. All we do is read about things. How on earth is that supposed to help us understand, or be able to perform the right kind of magic when the time comes that we need to? Also! She seems to absolutely DETEST Harry. He has tried to correct her on a number of things, and he simply gets detention. Which, in itself is not SO bad. But these detentions consist of him writing lines...using his own blood. Of course, Harry is too stubborn to go and tell Dumbledore or McGonagall about it, so he just continues with the detention, slowly getting madder and madder.
Then, one day, I had a great idea. I very cautiously proposed it to Harry; what if we started our own Defense Against the Dark Arts club? One where we could practice the defensive spells and Harry could teach us and such. He agreed...hesitantly. And so, we created the DA (Dumbledore's Army). We met usually about once a week, and had a lot of fun whilst improving our skills! Even when Umbridge technically banned clubs, we kept meeting, in secret, in the Room of Requirement.
All the participants in the DA improved steadily, and I really think that it was a true act of rebellion. I felt so nervous that we would be caught and be expelled! Overall, the year so far has only had one bright spot, and that is the DA. We shall see what the future brings...
