CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
tell them all that the exams had been canceled as a school treat
(“Oh, no!” said Hermione), or Dumbledore announcing that, un-
fortunately, Professor Lockhart would be unable to return next
year, owing to the fact that he needed to go away and get his mem-
ory back. Quite a few of the teachers joined in the cheering that
greeted this news.
“Shame,” said Ron, helping himself to a jam doughnut. “He was
starting to grow on me.”
The rest of the final term passed in a haze of blazing sunshine.
Hogwarts was back to normal with only a few, small differences —
Defense Against the Dark Arts classes were canceled (“but we’ve had
plenty of practice at that anyway,” Ron told a disgruntled
Hermione) and Lucius Malfoy had been sacked as a school gover-
nor. Draco was no longer strutting around the school as though he
owned the place. On the contrary, he looked resentful and sulky.
On the other hand, Ginny Weasley was perfectly happy again.
Too soon, it was time for the journey home on the Hogwarts Ex-
press. Harry, Ron, Hermione, Fred, George, and Ginny got a com-
partment to themselves. They made the most of the last few hours
in which they were allowed to do magic before the holidays. They
played Exploding Snap, set off the very last of Fred and George’s
Filibuster fireworks, and practiced disarming each other by magic.
Harry was getting very good at it.
They were almost at King’s Cross when Harry remembered
something.
“Ginny — what did you see Percy doing, that he didn’t want
you to tell anyone?”
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