His upper and lower eyelids had merely exchanged an affectionate greeting, and the intervening Thursday had been skipped.
Early Friday morning, Hufflepuff's kindly Head of House-Professor Sprout-stopped Su Er at the entrance just as he was about to step into the greenhouse.
"Dumbledore would like you to go to his office now. You needn't attend this morning's Herbology lesson." Professor Sprout's face glowed, her eyes curved in a smile. Seeing Su Er standing there in a daze,
she raised a hand and gently nudged his shoulder.
"Go on. Don't keep the headmaster waiting."
"Hufflepuff is proud of you."
Su Er returned to the Castle looking utterly bewildered. As he stepped onto the stairs that liked to move about, he suddenly remembered the first thing Snape had said when they met on Wednesday...
The Order of Merlin, Third Class?
Right, today was Friday. The Daily Prophet had mentioned that Peter Pettigrew's trial would be held today...
Was the Ministry of Magic also planning to award him a medal at today's trial?
Why award the Order of Merlin to a third-year student who was still at school? What plans lay behind it?
He was only a student. Even if he had put in a tiny bit-a hundred million tiny bits-of effort in the Black affair, there was no need to give him a share of the credit, let alone the chief credit.
Then it had to be Fudge. He wanted to get something out of him.
Su Er could hardly help thinking more about it. Mainly, it was common knowledge that people who played politics had dirty hearts. Politicians would not waste their efforts on something that brought no benefit.
If he thought it was simply a matter of rewarding merit, that would be far too naive.
While he was thinking, Su