𝐎, 𝐂𝐔𝐑𝐒𝐄𝐃 𝐂𝐇𝐈𝐋𝐃 ⎥ "He wants a fight with
a God? I'll give him one."
﹙ from stardust we came, to stardust we return ﹚
Prisoner of Azkaban - Deathly Hollows
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ELARA HAD A SHREWD IDEA TO WHAT HERMIONE WAS DOING. elara walked in pace with hermione as they headed down the corridor outside umbridge's office, knowing it would look very suspicious if elara or harry appeared not to know where they were going. elara did not dare attempt to talk to harry or hermione; umbridge was walking so closely behind them that elara could hear her ragged breathing.
hermione led the way down the stairs into the entrance hall. the din of loud voices and the clatter of cutlery on plates echoed from out of the double doors to the great hall. it seemed incredible to elara that twenty feet away were people who were enjoying dinner, celebrating the end of exams, not a care in the world. . . .
hermione walked straight out of the oak front doors and down the stone steps into the balmy evening air. the sun was falling toward the tops of the trees in the forbidden forest now as hermione marched purposefully across the grass, umbridge jogging to keep up. their long dark shadows rippled over the grass behind them like cloaks.
"it's hidden in hagrid's hut, is it?" said umbridge eagerly in elara's ear.
"of course not," said hermione scathingly. "hagrid might have set it off accidentally."
"yes," said umbridge, whose excitement seemed to be mounting. "yes, he would have done, of course, the great half-breed oaf. . . ."
she laughed. elara felt a strong urge to swing around and seize umbridge by the throat, but resisted.
"then . . . where is it?" asked umbridge, with a hint of uncertainty in her voice as hermione continued to stride toward the forest.
"in there, of course," said hermione, pointing into the dark trees. "it had to be somewhere that students weren't going to find it accidentally, didn't it?"
"of course," said umbridge, though she sounded a little apprehensive now. "of course . . . very well, then . . . you three stay ahead of me."
"can we have your wand, then, if we're going first?" harry asked her.
"no, i don't think so, mr. potter," said umbridge sweetly, poking him in the back with it. "the ministry places a rather higher value on my life than yours, i'm afraid."
the urge to throttle umbridge was almost overwhelming
as they reached the cool shade of the first trees, it clicked.she knew what hermione was doing. she nudged hermione slightly and nodded as they plunged straight into the trees, moving at such a pace that umbridge, with her shorter legs, had difficulty in keeping up.
