Lessons with Toadface.
When I woke in the morning, I lay for a while in my bed, listening to the soft sounds of the other girls breathing. I was sharing a dorm with Angelina and a few other girls who had already been in bed when I'd gotten in last night. Fred and George assured me that Angelina would look after me and so far she'd been true to their word, helping me unpack and introducing me to some of the other boys in our year. Before leaving for bed I'd pulled Harry aside and thanked him for what he'd done, but he promised he wouldn't be found doing it continuously; his neck was on the line also.
I watched the ray of brilliant morning sunshine dance across the draping's on the other girls beds and felt my head spin as I sat a little too quickly. Eating so much at the feast and later at the party the twins had thrown me had made me feel groggy and I grabbed my things to shower before leaving our small room.
The feel of icy water quickly awakened me, only stirring the feeling of nervousness I'd had the night before. Today would be the first day of classes and the anticipation of possibly being in Severus's classroom challenged the bravery I'd had last night at entering that classroom with him, and I yearned desperately for the safety of 12 Grimmauld Place. I dried slowly and dressed before meeting Angelina on the stairs. We walked together to the hall and as we chatted realised we'd be sharing all of our classes with twins. We'd laughed at the prospect of seeing them face toad-face later in the day, after the strict new professor had screamed at them last night on her patrol when one of the fireworks had escaped the common room through the portrait that Lee had left open on returning from the kitchens, arms full of butterbeer crates.
"Miss Black and Miss Johnson, your timetables." Professor McGonagall met us at the head of the table and the groan that escaped our mouths was evidently a common reaction from seventh years, when a small smirk marked the witches face, as she handed us each a piece of parchment. We took seats a little further up the table, beside Harry and Hermione who were currently reading their own timetables. "Double Toad-face first with the Slytherins, then double Transfiguration after break. Great . At-least we have the afternoon free. I need to plan the Quidditch trials for Friday." I smiled taking several pieces of toast and plastering them with heavy layers of butter and marmalade. No potions today then. I glanced up at the head table and Severus smiled down at me and when he took his goblet moments later I noticed he drummed his fingers against the gold cup before placing it back down and looking to me once more. I copied the motion and he smiled back. "Stupid bloody woman! What a nerve! Her first bloody day and she's already causing us trouble!" The boys sat down loudly, their bags thrown roughly to the floor and their timetables propelled across the table to fall upon my plate. "Umbridge?" I asked cautiously, removing their timetables from my marmalade, they nodded angrily; "Bloody snitch reported us to McGonagall .Detention with Filch for a week." Fred's face was flushed with rage and he slopped pumpkin juice across the table as he poured some into his goblet. "Don't know what's going to hit her though does she. It'll serve her bloody right." Angelina and I sighed heavily before laughing. They'd put on a show after breakfast no doubt. "Wait a weeks' worth of detention? What about the trials? I wanted you there with me." Angeline was taking her new role as coach very seriously and anyone who stood in her way should be ready to submit. "She said she'll let us have Friday off. Something about liking the trophy? Not wanting Snape to have it. I don't know." Fred piled his plate full of bacon and eggs and was scoffing them angrily. "One plus of today. No pooey potions. Snapes finally invested in shampoo I see." We all looked up to the table, but I already knew this to be true. Sev's hair had certainly been looking different since that first day at Grimmauld. "Maybe he has something for Umbridge.' 'Oh Dolores, your headband matches the ugly muddy shade of your eyes and that cardigan clashes so very violently with those shoes.'" Fred caressed Georges face lovingly and we collapsed in fits of giggles, noting how quickly it had taken for this to turn into a blood bath.
As breakfast finally came to an end, everybody seemed to be very unenthusiastic to leave their seats, that is but for Fred and George who grabbed up their bags, thrusting their timetables into their bags roughly and running off out of sight before even the teachers had even made a move. "Come on Lena, I want front row seats for this," Angelina and I took the last few sips of our coffee and Made to leave, wishing the others luck for their first lessons before weaving our way up through the corridors to the Defence against the Dark arts classroom. Standing outside the door I quickly realised this was the room Sev and I had taken solace in the night before and I felt myself blush deeply. Pushing open the door we entered the room to find Fred and George in the front seats on the left hand side. Angelina and I took the seats on their right, anticipating the arrival of toad face and what the boys had planned for her.
Other students began to slowly drift in and Angelina introduced me to Charlotte and Amber who shared our dorm and took seats behind us, while I noticed that as the Slytherins gathered in the back of the room, they whispered behind covered mouths, glancing incessantly in our direction until the small stout woman entered the room and took court from a chair that appeared almost throne like at the front of the room. "Wands away and Quills out please boys and girls." We packed away slowly and pulled out our parchment and quills. Theory? In the first lesson? I suppose it should have been expected. Books flew towards us and as one lay itself between Angelina and me, a loud groaned occurred simultaneously throughout the room. Issuing care when deploying defensive Magic and the consequences of doing such. Having read this in our first year at Beauxbatons, my groan was one of the loudest, the anticipation of such an unimaginative first lesson already boring me. "Is there a problem Dear?" The toad had come to stand in-front of my desk and I looked her in the eye stonily. I opened my mouth to snap a witty remark back in her face but looking into those tiny mouse like eyes I felt myself unable to do so. "None miss," I answered begrudgingly. "I thought not." Her hips wiggled a little at being right as she sauntered back into the centre of the room. "It had come to the Ministry's attention that the teaching here at Hogwarts has been somewhat more practical than it would like. For it to be possible for you to pass your NEWT's you must be able to put the appropriate spell with the correct situation and here in this classroom I will be teaching you such." I heard Charlotte whispering to Amber behind and I sat back a little to listen in. "No practising?" "She didn't say that." "No but she didn't say anything about actually using magic either." I whispered quietly and I heard both Amber and Charlotte agree quietly. Toad face had snapped her head around and was hissing evilly. "Did you say something Miss…?" Her voice was a shrill whisper and everyone in the room fell silent. Even the Slytherins. "Black." She snickered. "Black, yes? I believe you said something?" She held her head higher in an attempt to gain some height and authority, although this failed miserably and she resembled a small squat cat waiting for the sound of its food can to be opened. "I just said that you had made no mention of actually practising these spells. We will get to perform magic wont we?" She came to stand in-front of me now and I noted the many ugly rings on her fingers, yet her wedding finger remained bare. Married to the Ministry. "There will be no need to practise defensive magic Miss Black." The venom in her voice at uttering my name caused by blood to boil and I held onto my desk tightly. What was the point in learning the spells if you couldn't use them. "But what about our NEWT'S? Surely we'll be asked to perform the spells?" Angelina looked verily towards Umbridge who answered without taking her eyes off of me, " You will and by using the theory I teach here in the classroom, you will be able to safely deploy magic in a contained environment." "But surely Hogwarts is as safe and contained as it could possibly be? We'll use spells all the time in Charms and Transfiguration." She snapped her fingers and looked unpleasantly towards me. "There is a time and a place to use defensive spells, such as those being used at this precise moment to track and detain your father Miss Black, and a school is not one of them." I closed my eyes and tried to hold my temper, my hands rigid on the desk with the pain of holding in my anger. Angelina laid a hand on top of mine and squeezed it gently. "I don't think that's quite fair Professor. Those spells aren't being used at this precise moment to detain Lena's father because if what I've heard is correct, the ministry's lost him. Poof. Gone. Even the ministry's best Aurors can't find him. Shacklebolts on it right? Dad said he's the best." Umbridge's head snapped to Fred and it was obvious his and Georges grasps on their desks were as firm as mine had been only moments later. They'd gotten quite fond of Sirius over the holidays and he'd even helped them by laying silencing charms around their room at Grimmauld Place so Molly wouldn't hear the many explosions and crashes issuing from their room. "Black is a serious criminal and a threat, not only the wizarding world, but the muggle world also and he will be detained. The man is a murderer and a convict, and no doubt the Dementors will deal with him as they see fit. She smirked happily and it felt as if all the air had left the room. The Slytherins at the back of the room were laughing heartily and Angelina turned to them before holding Fred back forcefully as he attempted to attack them. "I'd watch it if I were you Ambrose' 'Your father have fun at the Quidditch World Cup last year did he? Mum said she hit him with a stinging curse and he dropped his wand. Said the muggle nearly fell off the broom your father had been holding them on." The bitterness in her voice warmed my heart and her words swam in my head. Ambrose. The name was familiar. "How does your Dad like Azkaban, Ambrose, hmm? At-least my Dad's still on the run. Your Dad was stupid enough to get caught." George had stood to help Angelina hold back Fred and but he dived in-front of me as Ambrose lunged towards me, wand in hand. I knew I'd heard the name before. Kingsley had brought the list of suspected Death Eaters that had been detained on Fudge's orders and Mr Ambrose had been one of the first caught. I smiled wickedly at Ambrose and he shook his head defeated, my words obviously stinging.
"Now, now, now. Settle down boys and girls. Quills please and take notes on chapter 1, the use of defensive spells in the modern wizarding world." The Toad sat smiling down from her throne as if holding court and we slowly took our seats again. The smile spread thickly on her mouth showed she'd enjoyed the little show she'd orchestrated and I could no longer fight the urge to respect authority. I picked up my bag and threw everything in roughly, leaving the classroom without a second thought.