.Afraid.I.m.going.to.have.to.dock.a.few.points.from.Gryffindor.and.Hufflepuff,.
.he.drawled..
.It.s.only.teachers.who.can.dock.points.from.houses,.Malfoy,..said.Ernie.at.once..
.Yeah,.we.re.prefects,.too,.remember?..snarled.Ron..
.I.know.prefects.can.t.dock.points,.Weasel.King,..sneered.Malfoy..Crabbe.and.Goyle.sniggered...But.members.of.the.Inquisitorial.Squad.‐..
The.whatT.said.Hermione.sharply..
The.Inquisitorial.Squad,.Granger,..said.Malfoy,.pointing.towards.a.tiny.silver..I.on.his.robes.just.beneath.his.prefect.s.badge...A.select.group.of.students.who.are.supportive.of.the.Ministry.of.Magic,.hand‐picked.by.Professor.Umbridge.
.Anyway,.members.of.the.Inquisitorial.Squad.do.have.the.power.to.dock.points…
.so,.Granger,.I.ll.have.five.from.you.for.being.rude.about.our.new.Headmistress.
.Macmillan,.five.for.contradicting.me..Five.because.I.don.t.like.you,.Potter.
.Weasley,.your.shirts.untucked,.so.I.ll.have.another.five.for.that..Oh.yeah,.I.forgot,.you.re.a.Mudblood,.Granger,.so.ten.off.for.that...
Ron.pulled.out.his.wand,.but.Hermione.pushed.it.away,.whispering,..Don.t!..
.Wise.move,.Granger,..breathed.Malfoy...New.Head,.new.times.
….be.good.now,.Potty….Weasel.King…..
Laughing.heartily,.he.strode.away.with.Crabbe.and.Goyle..
.He.was.bluffing,..said.Ernie,.looking.appalled...He.can.t.be.allowed.to.dock.points….that.would.be.ridiculous….it.would.completely.undermine.the.prefect.system...
But.Harry,.Ron.and.Hermione.had.turned.automatically.towards.the.giant.hour‐
glasses.set.in.niches.along.the.wall.behind.them,.which.recorded.the.house‐
points..Gryffindor.and.Ravenclaw.had.been.neck.and.neck.in.the.lead.that.morning..Even.as.they.watched,.stones.flew.upwards,.reducing.the.amounts.in.
the.lower.bulbs..In.fact,.the.only.glass.that.seemed.unchanged.was.the.emerald‐
filled.one.of.Slytherin..
.Noticed,.have.you?..said.Fred.s.voice..
He.and.George.had.just.come.down.the.marble.staircase.and.joined.Harry,.Ron,
.Hermione.and.Ernie.in.front.of.the.hour‐glasses..
.Malfoy.just.docked.us.all.about.fifty.points,..said.Harry.furiously,.as.they.watched.several.more.stones.fly.upwards.from.the.Gryffindor.hour‐glass..
.Yeah,.Montague.tried.to.do.us.during.break,..said.George..
.What.do.you.mean,..tried.?..said.Ron.quickly..
.He.never.managed.to.get.all.the.words.out,..said.Fred,..due.to.the.fact.that.we.forced.him.head‐first.into.that.Vanishing.Cabinet.on.the.first.floor...
Hermione.looked.very.shocked..
.But.you.ll.get.into.terrible.trouble!..
.Not.until.Montague.reappears,.and.that.could.take.weeks,.I.dunno.where.we.sent.him,..said.Fred.coolly...Anyway….we.ve.decided.we.don.t.care.about.getting.into.trouble.any.more...
.Have.you.ever?..asked.Hermione..
.Course.we.have,..said.George...Never.been.expelled,.have.we?..
.We.ve.always.known.where.to.draw.the.line,..said.Fred..
.We.might.have.put.a.toe.across.it.occasionally,..said.George..
.But.we.ve.always.stopped.short.of.causing.real.mayhem,..said.Fred..
.But.now?..said.Ron.tentatively..