Okay, let me start off by saying that I hate Umbridge. I absolutely despise her. But what if I put things in a different perspective for you?
The House Competition:
House: Slytherin
Category: Short Story
Prompt: Toad [creature]
Word Count: approx 1,000
Disclaimer: Do I look like JK Rowling to you? Nope! Maybe next time JKR'll write a fanfic, who knows!
"What's it like over there?" she asked curiously, tiptoeing so she could face her father as he sat on his couch as he watched TV. He didn't answer, didn't even look her way.
Eleven-year-old Dolores sighed. "Father, how it is-"
"I heard you the first time. Leave! Can't you see I'm busy?" Her father snapped, whipping his head around to look coldly at his only daughter. "Do you have anything better to do than annoy me all day? I'll answer your stupid questions later."
With that, he pointed at the doorway and glared at Dolores' retreating back until she left.
"Later never comes.." she said softly to herself, as she trudged back to her room, where she would often hide from her parents, hidden underneath her covers, with only her stuffed animals for company. Her parents never liked talking to her; they always shooed her away.
They never had time for her. They were always too busy doing their own things, or at least they said they did. Dolores would envy other children often, and she'd look from her window at the nearby park, where families laughed, played, and had a good time together.
Together.
She never that her family would never be like that, but she couldn't help but wish they were. Her mother was always scolding her for not being able to control her powers, but no one could blame Dolores. Not one eleven-year-old could, especially not when they didn't have anyone to teach them.
Dolores leaned against her window, staring ahead at the kids playing tag. She wished she could join them. She wished that she could also have fun. But she couldn't. No one liked her, no one wanted her to be near them, and no one cared about her.
This was why she was so excited to go to Hogwarts. Maybe she could make friends? Other witches and wizards would be there! It would be so nice to finally get away from the dreadful place she lived in. She waited months for her letter, and when it finally arrived, she couldn't contain her excitement. She kept telling herself: When I go there, it'll all be over. I won't be different anymore... I know it.'
…
When she first arrived at Hogwarts, she found that it, indeed, wasn't as magical as everyone had said. Found that it wasn't as beautiful as she pictured it would be.
She still didn't make any friends. Not one. In fact, it was quite the opposite. Most people tended to pick on kids who didn't have any older siblings to protect them, and Dolores was the perfect person.
They would bully her, laugh at her, whisper hurtful things in loud voices, and never think about how it could affect a person, let alone a child. They never thought about the consequences, as long as they were having a good time.
No one stood up for her, and sometimes even the Professors would watch in pity as the older kids slowly ruined her life.
Even the Hufflepuffs, though they might have been known for their kindness, were mean to her. A fourth-year boy had once laughed at her as she passed in the hallway.
"Oi, Umbridge! You never told me you had a twin!" He shouted. Dolores stopped in confusion.
"I don't," she said slowly. "What're you talking about?"
The boy grinned maliciously, "Your toad, I mean. Isn't it just the spitting image of you? Slimy, disgusting, and not worthy of being an actual pet, just like you're not worthy of being a student at Hogwarts?"
Dolores felt her eyes tear up. She hated being called a toad. She hated being compared to them. "I'm not a t-toad. Shut up!" she said shakily.
"You sure? You look just like him, Toad. Now, I've got to go to class, so if you'll get your ugly face out of my way?"
She did move. And he walked away again, not noticing, or caring for that matter, how a tear slid down her cheek and a choked sob escaped her lips.
As the years passed, she became more depressed and miserable, more than she had ever been before. She would often sob her heart out, alone in her dormitory, abandoned by everyone. She feared to go to anyone, she was scared that they might do something, say something, something that would cut through her heart like a dagger.
She was slowly giving up.
She felt worthless. I am worthless, she thought bitterly to herself. She was unwanted, uncared for, and unloved.
Love.
That word seemed alien to her. What was it like? She would wonder. How is it like to have someone care for her, to be there for her, and comfort her? Was such a thing even possible?
Love was a lie.
It always was.
She never opened up to anyone, knowing that they would only turn her trust against her, and she knew they would only turn it against her. She knew they wouldn't care, and only pretended to until something better came for them. Yet, she wished it was true, something…real.
She wished she could feel someone's arms around her, telling her that she wasn't worthless, telling her that she was actually cared for, letting her know that they were there for her.
When the professors asked how she was, she always smiled and told them that she was doing very well.
It hurt her to know that her parents didn't want her home for Christmas or other holidays. It hurt her very much to see other children unwrapping presents after presents, and not having any of her own. It hurt her to know that she would never have this, the joy of living a normal childhood.
At only thirteen years old, she became a gloomy child who seemed destined to live a life of solitude and was only seen in classes. She wasn't living, only trying to survive.
She wanted to yell, shout, scream out her pain, but all she could do was crumble to the ground and sob until she couldn't anymore.
She didn't even try to change herself anymore. She knew it never worked. She only trudged along, feeling helpless and weak.
Though she might have put on a smile for others, she knew no one noticed how torn and broken she was inside, and she knew they would never care.
A bit of a twist, huh? Hope you liked it!