The March Of The Centaurs - A Harry Potter Fanfiction
Disclaimer: I do not one Harry potter nor any of the characters in this story. I also don't own most of the speech and the characters descriptions. That belongs to J. K. Rowling
Summary: Have you ever wondered what happened to Dolores Umbridge after the centaurs carried her away into the forest? Set in Harry Potter's 5th year at Hogwarts school of witchcraft and wizardry.
Authors notes: I dedicate this story to my friend, Beth, who inspired me and gave me the idea to write this story. Thank you very much Bethy! Thank you to all of the people that have commented, reviewed, liked, favourited and followed all my other stories. I really appreciate the feedback from the reviews! I hope you all enjoy this story as much as all the others. Thanks;)
It was a pleasant, warm evening. The wind was gently running through the grounds of Hogwarts school of witchcraft and wizardry, as the sun fell towards the tops of the tress of the Forbidden Forest. There were a few lights on in the nearby castle, doting the fading sky, like a starry night, some occasionally switching off as it was near to night time. It was all quite, before the oak front doors opened with an almighty BANG, and the footsteps of three people echoed throughout the air. They were all abruptly walking down the stone steps of the castles entrance and glancing nervously at each other.
One had a rather broad, flabby face, little neck and a very wide, slack mouth. Her eyes were round and slightly bulging. She looked like a large, pale toad. She had a little black velvet bow perched on the top of her short curly hair and robes that were head to toe in pink. She was the one at the back of the group. She seemed to be, in her mind, in charge of the two younger looking teenagers.
One of the teenagers was a young girl. She was walking slightly ahead of the other two, taking great galloping steps. She had untidy, brown, bushy hair that she had just managed to tame by scraping it back into a pony tail. A curl of her hair covered her brown eyes, occasionally flapping in the breeze as she determinedly walked on into the direction of the Forbidden Forest. She kept trying, but failing, to make eye contact with the boy walking a couple of steps behind her.
The boy had a mop of untidy jet-black hair, that stood up in almost ever direction. He had startlingly green, almond-shaped eyes that were covered by black, round-rimmed glasses that were placed on his thin face. He was rather small and skinny considering how old he looked. Upon his forehead, covered mostly by his unruly black hair, was a scar shaped like a lightning bolt. This was very faintly seen, but a few blown hairs allowed you to see the scar. The boy looked anxious and worried. He was watching and following the every movement of the bushy haired girl that stood a couple of paces in front of him.
The young girl marched purposefully across the green grass - the older women jogging to keep up - their long dark shadows rippled over the grass behind them like cloaks. They were now approaching a small wooden cabin located on the edge of the Forbidden Forest. The older women seemed to perk up a little bit.
"It's hidden in Hagrid's hut, is it?" She asked eagerly, nearly spitting into the young boys ear as she was now so close to him.
"Oh course not," said the girl, "Hagrid might have set it off accidentally."
"Yes," said the lady. Excitement seemed to be brewing up inside of her, "yes he would have done, of course, the great half-breed oaf." She began to laugh hysterically. The young boy seemed to tense up at the comment and the repulsive laugh that the women had made. His fist clenched and declenched as he tried to control his anger. He looked as if he had had the urge to swing round and seize her by the throat, but obviously had resisted the temptation.
"Then were is it?" Asked the women, a hint of uncertainty creeping up into her voice as the girl continued to stride towards the Forbidden Forest.
"In there, of course," said the girl, 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 the women, although she sounded a little apprehensive now. "Of course ... very well, then ... you two stay ahead of me."
"Can we have your wand, then, if we're going first Professor Umbridge?" The young boy asked her.
"No, I don't think so, Mr Potter," said the lady sweetly, poking him in the back with it. "The Ministry places a rather higher value on my life than yours, I'm afraid."
As they reached the cool shade of the first trees, the boy tried to catch the young girls eyes several times, but despite the fear that he may have been feeling, the girl merely gave the Professor a contemptuous glance and plunged straight into the trees, so that Umbridge, with her shorter legs, had difficulty keeping up.
"Is it very far in?" Umbridge asked. Her robe seemed to be caught on a bramble and as she moved to keep up with the kids, it ripped.
"Oh yes," said the girl, "yes, it's well hidden." The girl lead them onto an overgrown path that seemed to lead them further and deeper into the forest.
"Er - are you sure this is the right way?" The boy asked her pointedly. He seemed to be wondering why the girl had chosen this path.
"Oh yes," she said in a steely voice, crashing through the undergrowth of the forest, making an enormous amount of noise. Behind the two children, Umbridge had tripped over a fallen sapling, but neither of them bothered to stop and help her up. The girl just merely strode on, calling loudly over her shoulder, "it's a bit further in!"
"Hermione," muttered the boy, hurrying to catch up with her, "keep your voice down. Anything could be listening in here -"
"I want us heard, Harry," Hermione replied quietly, her voice dropping considerately lower than before, as Umbridge jogged noisily after them. "You'll see ..."
They continued to walk on for what seemed a long time, until they were so deep into the forest that the dense tree canopy blocked out all light.
"How much further?" Demanded Umbridge angrily from behind Hermione and Harry.
"Not far now!" Shouted Hermione, as they emerged into a dim, dark clearing. "Just a little bit -"
Just then, an arrow flew through the air and landed with an almighty thud in the tree just over Hermione's head. The forest floor started trembling; the sound of hooves filled the nights air; Umbridge gave a little scream and pushed Harry in front of herself. He managed to wrench himself out of her grasp and he turned around to see around fifty centaurs emerging on every side of the forest, their bows raised and loaded, pointing at Harry, Hermione and Umbridge. All three of them backed slowly into the centre of the clearing. Umbridge seemed to be uttering odd little whimpers of terror. However, when Harry turned to look at Hermione, who was standing rather close to him now, she was wearing a strangely triumphant smile.
"Who are you?" Said a voice from the group of centaurs.
A chestnut-bodied centaur began walking towards them out of the circle; his bow, like those of the others, was raised. Umbridge pointed her wand, trembling with fear, at the centaur.
"I asked you who are you, human," said the centaur roughly.
"I am Dolores Umbridge. Senior Undersecretary to the Minister of Magic and Headmistress and High Inquisitor of Hogwarts!" Umbridge replied in a high-pitched, terrified voice.
"You are from the Ministry of Magic?" Asked the chestnut-bodied centaur. As he asked this many of the centaurs in the surrounding circle shifted restlessly.
"That's right!" said Umbridge, in an even higher voice, "so be very careful! By the laws laid down by the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures, any attack by half-breeds such as yourselves on a human—"
"What did you call us?" shouted a wild-looking black centaur. This was followed by a great deal of angry muttering. The tightening of bowstrings could also be heard in the air around them.
"Don't call them that!" Hermione said furiously, but Umbridge did not appear to have heard her.
Still pointing her shaking wand at the chestnut-bodied centaur, she continued, "Law Fifteen 'B' states clearly that 'any attack by a magical creature who is deemed to have near-human intelligence, and therefore considered responsible for its actions—'"
"'Near-human intelligence'?" repeated the centaur, as several others roared with rage and pawed the ground, sending annoyed glances at Harry and Hermione. "We consider that a great insult, human! Our intelligence, thankfully, far outstrips your own."
"What are you doing in our Forest?" bellowed a hard-faced grey centaur. "Why are you here?"
"Your Forest?" said Umbridge, shaking now not only with what looked like fright but also, it seemed, with indignation. "I would remind you that you live here only because the Ministry of Magic permits you certain areas of land—"
An arrow flew so close to her head that it caught at her mousy hair in passing: she let out an ear-splitting scream and threw her hands over her head, while some of the centaurs bellowed their approval and others laughed raucously. The sound of their wild, neighing laughter echoing around the dimly lit clearing and the sight of their pawing hooves was extremely unnerving.
"Whose Forest is it now, human?" bellowed one centaur.
"Filthy half-breeds!" Umbridge screamed, her hands still tight over her head. "Beasts! Uncontrolled animals!"
"Be quiet!" shouted Hermione, but it was too late: Umbridge pointed her wand at the chestnut-bodied centaur and screamed, "Incarcerous!"
Ropes flew out of midair like thick snakes, wrapping themselves tightly around the centaur's torso and trapping his arms: he gave a cry of rage and reared on to his hind legs, attempting to free himself, while the other centaurs charged.
Harry grabbed Hermione and pulled her to the ground; face down on the Forest floor. Hooves thundered around them, but the centaurs leapt over and around them, bellowing and screaming with rage.
"Nooooo!" They heard Umbridge shriek. "Noooooo… I am Senior Undersecretary… you cannot—Unhand me, you animals… nooooo!"
There was a flash of red light that indicated that Umbridge had attempted to Stun one of them; then she screamed very loudly. Umbridge had been seized from behind by another centaur and lifted high into the air, wriggling and yelling with fright. Her wand fell from her hand to the ground. The boy, Harry, stretched out to get it, but as he leaned across the ground, a centaur's hoof descended upon the wand and it broke cleanly in half.
"Now!" roared a low deep voice, and as this happened a thick, hairy arm descended from thin air and dragged Harry and Hermione up onto their feet. Umbridge, on the other hand, was being borne away through the trees by a black furred centaur. She was screaming endlessly, her body limp, dangling from the centaurs arms.
"Put me down!" Umbridge shrieked, kicking her legs against the back on the centaurs body. However hard she screamed, cried, demanded or kicked, the centaur kept riding deeper and deeper into the forest's centre, not bothering to look back, or register the women he held over his body.
They continued riding for what seemed a very long time, the centaur quickly running out of breath but still honourably galloping on; Umbridge slumped over the back of the centaur, crying and whimpering with fear. As they approached the centre of the forest, the centaur made a sudden stop, that in turn, made Umbridge fly over his shoulders and smack against the hard, dry forest floor. She whimpered in pain, before managing to pull herself up from the floor, her body shaking and trembling in shock and fear. She only had been on her feet a few seconds before three approaching centaurs, all with there bows now lowered, grabbed ruffly at Umbridge and dragged her over to a nearby tree. Ropes seemed to appear out of nowhere as they wrapped themselves around her body, making Umbridge close her eyes in fear and astonishment.
"Let me go!" The words escaped Umbridge's mouth in a low whisper, barely audio over the grunting and the sound of hooves made from the centaurs. "I am Dolores Umbridge. Senior Undersecretary to the Minister of Magic and Headmistress and High Inquisitor of Hogwarts! You must let me go!" Her voice was getting stronger now. So strong that over the noise, one of the centaurs could hear her.
"Never human!" The centaur replied, pacing around the tree that Umbridge was now bound to. "You insulted our honour, our intelligence, our species. You called us "filthy half-breeds"! You will pay for that Dolores Umbridge!" He said, testing the strength of the knot that was holding Umbridge against the tree.
"You cannot do this!" She screamed. "I am from the Ministry of Magic. We granted you this land. Let me go now, or else -" Umbridge broke off in mid-flow as a bandana was gagged upon her mouth from behind, restricting her breathing rate to a minimum, so she had trouble speaking. She sat there, for what seemed like hours, praying, hoping, wishing, that someone would come and rescue her, or even that she could have a chance to escape from the centaurs.
Umbridge became drowsy and delirious as she sat, bound to the tree, barely able to see due to the darkness of the night and the shade from the overpowering trees. She was becoming dehydrated and very hungry. She let her head drop to the side for a split second and felt herself fall into a deep, unnerving sleep about the Department of Mysteries at the Ministry of Magic. She dreamed that Harry, along with Hermione and many others, had broken into the Department of Mysteries and were heading for deep danger, due to the use of dark magic and evil sorcerers. She dreamt about prophecies and archways, great duels and deaths and most importantly death eaters. The dream was so obscure, that when Umbridge woke from her sleep, the thought of anything to do with the Department of Mysteries had vanished from her mind, leaving her with the sensation of forgetfulness. As she longed to remember the dream, a voice spoke out of the edge of the trees.
"Oh hello centaurs." The voice spoke in a almost dreamily fashion. The person spoke as if he was just naturally greeting the centaurs on a daily basis, not intruding in on a group of centaurs surrounding a half conscious women strapped to a tree.
"Dumbledore?" Asked the black furred centaur that had previously carried Umbridge away into the deeps of the Forbidden Forest.
"What are you doing on our lands?" Asked another centaur, taking his eyes off Umbridge to stare up at Dumbeldore's crystal blue eyes, which were covered by half-moon glasses and a few stray hairs from his long mane of white hair. "You have no business here, now that you are no longer headmaster of Hogwarts!"
"Oh, I beg to differ, my friend," Dumbeldore spoke, while drifting out from the edge of the trees and moving into the clearing where the the centaurs surrounded Umbridge and her tree. "You see, I will be reappointed as Headmaster of Hogwarts in a few short hours, so I believe, I still have a certain amount of control over the Forbidden Forest and it's inhabitants."
Most of the centaurs went quite when they learned of this new discovery. A few kicked the ground angrily and a couple moved closer towards Umbridge, as if they wanted to protect her from Dumbeldore.
"Now, I have had a very tiresome and eventful day, today. I would wholly appreciate it if I could take Dolores Umbridge out of your care and escort her back up to the castle." Dumbeldore took a step towards Umbridge, but found his path blocked by two strong, abled bodied centaurs.
"Never! We will not let you pass," shouted one of the centaurs.
"She is from the Ministry," The other one said, "We don't like the Ministry!"
"I will have to agree with you on that point," Said Dumbeldore, taking a step further towards Umbridge, "I neither like nor hate the ministry, but I extremely dislike it at times." Dumbeldore was not armed with his wand at the present moment, so he could neither use force or magic against the centaurs. Luckily enough, Dumbeldore wasn't that type of person. He could persuade someone to cooperate with him by simply just choosing the correct words at a specific moment. "And I'm sure, since you dislike the Ministry of Magic so much, you would hate to be in the presence of one of its workers for more than a couple of seconds, not hours like it has been?"
The centaurs seemed to think this over for a couple of minutes. Some completely agreed with Dumbeldore's words, but others seemed to think he was just speaking nonsense.
"If we give her over to you, what do we get in return? After all, we are only magical creatures with 'Near-human intelligence', so what could you, one of the cleverest wizards of all time, offer us in return for this Ministry worker? What deal could you possibly make with us?"
"Deal?" Questioned Dumbeldore, "Who mentioned anything about a deal being made?" The centaurs looked surprised at Dumbeldore saying this. "I don't think I ever mentioned anything about making a deal, do you?" The centaurs took a step back from Dumbeldore, leaving a clear path towards Umbridge and the tree she was tied to. He walked directly up to Umbridge, untied her with the flick of his hand and she fell, slumped against the back of the tree. With uncharacteristically strong strengthen for an old man, Dumbeldore lifted Umbridge up off the ground, placed her in his arms and began marching towards the forest of trees, not looking back at the centaurs or the many bows and arrows that were pointed at them.
"Good riddance," Shouted one of the centaurs from behind Dumbeldore and Umbridge, "and stay away from our forest forever!" He finished.
Dumbeldore preceded to walk on, further and further away from the centre of the Forbidden Forest, Umbridge slung over his arms, delirious and slightly unconscious, mumbling occasional words now and again. As they stepped out of the forest into the nights sky, Dumbeldore quickened his pace and was soon climbing the stone steps, Umbridge now slung over his back, and even sooner found himself stepping through the massive wooden entrance hall. Walking through the entrance hall and along the corridor, Dumbeldore found himself outside the hospital wing. Pushing open the door, Dumbeldore noted that Harry, Hermione and many other children laid unconscious in the hospital beds. They had obviously been escorted back from a dangerous mission, and were now resting and recovering from the after affects of it.
"Goodness gracious!" Said a women, presumably a nurse, running towards Dumbeldore, while flicking her wand so Umbridge was magically lifted from his arms and onto a comfortable looking hospital bed.
"Please take care of Dolores for me Poppy. She's had a bit of a run in with some centaurs and is a little shock up. I would greatly appreciate it if you would take care of her for me, while I watch over Mr Potter and his friends."
"Of course, of course. Probably a bit delirious as well. Can't say she doesn't deserve it though, after all she's done this year." And with that, Poppy began to work on Umbridge, placing spells over her unconscious body and testing her for signs of danger or health problems.
"Is Harry and his friends OK?" Dumbeldore asked.
"Perfectly well. All broken bones and jinks have been fixed and sorted out and they all seem to be healthy and in working order. Now if you could leave me be Albus so I can make Dolores better, I would greatly appreciate that!"
"Of course Poppy." Dumbeldore replied before taking a seat next to the door of the hospital wing, so he could watch over all the other occupants of the hospital beds, while Poppy worked on Umbridge. After about half an hour, a barn owl swooped down and delivered the daily prophet onto Hermione's night stand. The owl stood with its leg stretched out, waiting for the occupant of the paper to pay it for its service. Dumbeldore stood up, walked over to the owl and placed a Nut into the money pocket on the owls leg. The Prophets title read 'HE-WHO-MUST-NOT-BE-NAMED RETURNS'.
"I bet they will enjoy reading that in the morning." He chuckled to himself before releasing the owl through the nearby open window and leaving for his office, taking a sherbet lemon from the insides of his robes before passing through the open hospital doors.
N/A: please comment, favourite, follow and review if you like this story. Thank you to all the people that have reviewed all my other stories, I really appreciate them. If you have any story ideas that you would like me to write about, please comment about them in your reviews or send me a personal message. Thank you again to my friend Beth who gave me the idea of this story. Thanks;)3