~ 💎 WEEKLY POWER GOALS 💎🔥 60→1ch | 100→2ch | 200→5ch ⏰ Resets Monday! Thanks!
Even from this distance, Anthony could feel Umbridge's anger. She tilted her head, said nothing more, and just scribbled furiously on her clipboard.
"Right, ignore her," Professor Kettleburn said to the students, his own anger simmering. "Gather round, get a good look at this Porlock. You rarely see one this close in the wild—they usually bolt at the sight of people… Hey, you!" He barked at a burly Slytherin boy. "Keep your fingers to yourself unless you want a nip. The poor thing's stressed enough."
The boy scowled and pulled his hand back. He was bigger than the students around him. Anthony vaguely recalled him being on the Slytherin Quidditch team, but the name escaped him.
"What do they eat, Professor?" Katie asked.
"Grass," said Kettleburn. "Depends on the region, the herd. Preferences vary. Generally speaking—"
"Clover," Hagrid supplied to Anthony in a low voice. "But they don't like the flowers much."
Anthony nodded. "Let's move on, Hagrid."
"Oh, right." Hagrid shot another confused glance towards Umbridge before turning away. "Is she here for the class too?"
"What?" Anthony hesitated. "Well… maybe. Who knows. I heard she didn't take Care of Magical Creatures when she was a student."
"Missed out on a lot, she did," Hagrid said firmly, pushing aside a tangle of dead branches and ducking through the woods. "This way, Henry, it's shorter…"
Just then, Fang stopped dead. A second later, both Anthony and Hagrid heard the shouts. Coming from the Care of Magical Creatures class.
"What's happening?" Anthony was already turning and running back. Hagrid's long strides kept pace beside him, Fang at their heels.
"Dunno… might be an injury…" Hagrid used his height, peering ahead as they moved. "Students are in a circle… Umbridge and Professor Kettleburn in the middle. Both look furious."
Anthony could already hear Umbridge's shrill voice. "You will pay for this!"
"Yes, yes, I know. Another probation for me," Professor Kettleburn shouted back. "And you've already paid. I warned you what would happen if you didn't shut your mouth." He brandished his walking stick, making a shooing motion. "Be off!"
Umbridge's knuckles were white on her clipboard. Her voice was a clenched hiss. "No. You will be dismissed."
"And you can go to hell," Kettleburn said dismissively. "On what grounds? Your Dangerous Magical Creatures Regulations? Your sodding Curriculum Standards?"
"For assaulting a Senior Undersecretary," Umbridge said.
The title seemed to puff her up. Her voice slid back into that sickly-sweet tone. She scribbled rapidly. "Wilful obstruction of the Senior Undersecretary's inspection… presenting unsuitable creatures to students… let me see…" She glanced at the Slytherin boy and made another note. "Reckless disregard for a creature's aggressive tendencies…"
"Professor Kettleburn!" Anthony called, emerging from the tree line at a brisk walk. "Heard the commotion. Everything alright—? Oh, good afternoon, Madam Umbridge." He offered her a tight smile, then glanced at the Porlock. It was trying to shrink into the shadowy corner of its cage, only its distrustful eyes visible.
Umbridge's eyebrows arched. "Good afternoon, Professor Anthony."
Hagrid burst from the trees then, hauling Fang by the collar, squeezing through the ring of students. Fang panted heavily, white mist billowing around his muzzle. A few students eyed his sharp teeth with wary respect.
Umbridge looked at the massive dog. Her smile grew more unpleasant.
"Seems everything's under control," Anthony said to Hagrid. "No one's hurt."
A student behind him muttered, "Except Umbridge got whacked on the arm with a cane."
Another student whispered back, "Even better, isn't it?"
Anthony was certain Umbridge heard. Her fake smile didn't falter. She gave their direction a cold look, then turned to the Slytherin boy. "What is your opinion of Professor Kettleburn's lesson?"
"My opinion?" the boy repeated, dumbly.
"On its structure," Umbridge prompted, sickeningly patient. "If you had learned about the… the Pilock—"
"Porlock," Kettleburn corrected sharply.
"—the relevant knowledge first, before such a… hands-on activity, do you think it would have aided your learning?"
The large boy gaped at her. Anthony could almost hear the rusty gears grinding in his head.
"Say 'yes,' Bletchley," a voice cut in, dripping with impatience. "That's the answer she wants."
Umbridge pretended not to hear. "Or, to put it another way, do you find the Care of Magical Creatures curriculum… dangerous?"
Bletchley finally caught on. He knew who was asking, and what she wanted.
"Dangerous. Deadly," he said, embellishing with gusto. "Nearly took my finger off."
"Oh, how dreadful," Umbridge said with deep satisfaction, writing again.
Hagrid blurted out, shocked, "Porlocks aren't dangerous!"
Even with Hagrid's somewhat… diminished credibility on the subject, Anthony was inclined to believe him. Judging by the Porlock's cowering, it probably considered humans the dangerous ones.
Umbridge acted as if Hagrid hadn't spoken. Her quill scratched on.
"What exactly are you here to investigate?" Katie asked bluntly. "Can we get on with the lesson?"
"I am here to ensure you receive a proper education, my dear," Umbridge said sweetly. "Young witches and wizards need careful nurturing before they—"
"The first lesson in being a proper witch or wizard," Kettleburn cut in, "is not to poke things you don't understand. Go prod the Whomping Willow, I guarantee it won't be gentler than a Porlock."
Umbridge remained unflappable. "Specifically, young lady, I am here because we care about your education. We wish to ensure the next generation of witches and wizards receives the instruction they ought to have, and are not," she paused meaningfully, "distracted by… extracurricular incidents. Trolls in dungeon bathrooms. Quidditch matches that descend into chaos."
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
📚 BOOK COMPLETED ON PATREON!📚
This story has reached its conclusion on my Patreon!
🔥 Full story available now
💎 Exclusive bonus content & early access to new books
👉 Join my Patreon community today!
✨patreon(.)com/GoldenLong
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━