Chapter Seventeen
"Flight and Fight"
Minutes later, Lizzie, Hayden Ron, and Hermione were running along the corridor after Harry, then up the moving staircases toward the hospital wing, hurtling along the corridors so fast that the portraits they passed, muttered reproachfully as they burst through the double doors like a hurricane, causing Madame Pomfrey who had been tending to a patient, to shriek in alarm.
"Potter, what do you think you're doing?"
"I need to see Professor McGonagall," gasped Harry, the breath tearing his lungs. "Now…It's urgent…"
"She's not here, Potter," said Madame Pomfrey sadly. "She was transferred to St. Mungo's this morning. Four Stunning Spells to the chest at her age? It's a wonder they didn't kill her."
"She's gone?" Lizzie gasped.
The sounds of students flooding the corridor could be heard above and below her. It was still early in the evening, the sun was only beginning to lower in the sky through the high windows outside.
She remained quite still, looking at Madame Pomfrey. Terror was rising inside her heart.
There was no one left to protect her from Professor Umbridge. Hayden was only one man. How could he possibly protect her alone? Dumbledore had gone, Hagrid had gone, and yet she had always expected Professor McGonagall to be there, irascible, and inflexible, perhaps, but always dependable, solidly present.
"I don't wonder why you're shocked, Miss Brooks," said Madame Pomfrey with a kind of fierce approval on her face. "As if one of them could have Stunned Minerva McGonagall face on by daylight! Cowardice, that's what it was…..Despicable cowardice…..If I wasn't worried what would happen to you students without me, I'd resign in protest!"
"Yes, ma'am," said Lizzie blankly. She strode blindly from the hospital wing into the teeming corridor where she stood, buffeted by the crowd, the panic expanding insider her like poison gas so that her head swam. Harry had a similar expression on her face. He turned to Hermione, Ron, Lizzie, and Hayden, and told them what he had seen. "Voldemort's got Sirius," said Harry. "Are you sure?" asked Lizzie. "I saw it! It's the same door I've been dreaming about for months, and I couldn't figure out where I had seen it before! Sirius said that Voldemort was after something – something he didn't have the last time, and it's in the Department of Mysteries…"
The five of them went up and down the moving staircases as Harry ranted, Lizzie barely able to keep up.
"Harry, please, just listen!" Lizzie begged, mostly so he would stop walking and she could catch up.
"What if You-Know-Who meant for you to see this? That he's only hurting Sirius because he's trying to get to you?"
"What if he is?" asked Harry. "I'm supposed to just let him die? Lizzie, he's the only family I have left!"
Lizzie stared at Hayden. "What do we do?" asked Hayden. "We'll have to use the Floo Network," said Harry. "But Umbridge has all the fireplaces under surveillance," said Hermione. "Not all of them," said Harry. "Oh, no!" said Lizzie, realizing what they were getting themselves into. "It's the only way, Lizzie," said Harry.
Despite being terrified of what could happen to any of them should Umbridge catch them, Lizzie reluctantly nodded as she and Hayden followed Harry along the corridor and a couple minutes later were jumping the last few stairs (Hayden assisted Lizzie by lifting her up the stairs) to join Ron, Hermione as well as Ginny and Luna who they had run into in the corridor and filled them in as to what was going on.
"Ready?" asked Harry. "All right," whispered Hermione as a gang of loud sixth years passed them. "So, Ron – you go and head Umbridge off….Ginny, Luna, if you can start moving people out of the corridor….Harry and I will get the cloak on and wait until the coast is clear. Lizzie, you, and Hayden stay out of sight. Hayden, don't let her out of your sight for a minute!"
Hayden nodded, wrapping his arms protectively around Lizzie.
Ron strode away, his bright red hair visible right to the end of the passage. Meanwhile, Ginny's equally vivid head bobbed between the jostling students surrounding them in the other direction, trailed by Luna's blonde one.
"Get over here," muttered Hermione, tugging at Harry's wrist and pulling him back into a recess where the ugly stone head of a medieval wizard stood muttering to itself on a column.
Lizzie and Hayden had ducked behind the other side of the ugly stone head, Hayden clapping a hand over Lizzie's mouth.
"Here," she heard Harry say as he threw the Invisibility Cloak over himself and Hermione as they vanished from view.
"You can't come down here!" Ginny called to the crowd. "No, sorry, you're going to have to go round by the swiveling staircase, someone's let of Garroting Gas just along here…."
They could hear people complaining, one surly voice said, "I can't see no gas….."
"That's because it's colorless," said Ginny in a convincing exasperated voice, "But if you want to walk through it, carry on, then we'll have your body as proof for the next idiot who didn't believe us…
She's good, thought Hayden as the crowd thinned. The news about the Garroting Gas seemed to have spread – people were not coming this way anymore.
When at last, the surrounding area was quite clear, Hermione said quietly, "I think that's as good as we're going to get, Harry – come on, let's do it. Lizzie Hayden, you can come out too….."
Together they moved forward, Hermione and Harry covered by the cloak, Luna was standing with her back to them at the far end of the corridor. As they passed Ginny, Hermione whispered, "Good one…..Don't forget the signal….."
"What's the signal?" muttered Harry as they approached Umbridge's door with Lizzie and Hayden following close behind.
"A loud chorus of 'Weasley is Our King' if they see Umbridge coming," replied Hermione as Harry inserted the blade of a knife in the crack between the door and the jam. The lock clicked open, and the entered the office.
The garish kittens were sleeping peacefully in their plates, but otherwise the office was still and empty. Hermione breathed a sigh of relief.
"I thought she might have added extra security after the second niffler…."
They pulled off the cloak. Hermione hurried over to the window and stood out of sight, peering down into the grounds with her wand out. Harry dashed over to the fireplace, seized the pot of Floo Powder and thew a pinch into the grate, causing emerald green flames to burst into life there.
"Alert the Order if you can!" he commanded. "Are you mental? We're going with you!" said Ron. "It's too dangerous!" said Harry.
Lizzie knelt down next to him. "When are you going to get it into your head? We're in this together!"
"That – you – are!" said a voice as everyone whirled around. Umbridge was standing in the doorway, her face less red that it had been at the horse show, but she still looked furious. Her pouchy eyes fell on Lizzie as she suddenly made a move to grab her hair again. "Don't touch her!" said Hayden angrily. Umbridge ignored him as she seized another fistful of Lizzie's hair, pulling her to her feet and forcibly bent her head back so that she was staring at the ceiling.
"You think," she whispered. "That after two nifflers, I was going to let one more foul scavenging creature enter my office without my knowledge? I had Stealth Sensoring Spells placed all around my doorway after the last one got in, you foolish girl! Take her wand!" she barked at someone Lizzie could not see, and she felt a hand grope inside her pocket and remove her wand.
"His too…."
There was a scuffle as there was a fight for Hayden's wand, and it was wrestled from his grasp.
Umbridge threw Lizzie against her desk as she slammed against it, crying out in pain, before crumpling in a heap on the floor as Hayden watched in horror. Shaking slightly, Lizzie slowly began to get to her feet, but Umbridge slapped Lizzie so hard that she cried out and fell to the floor, as Umbridge repeatedly kicked her.
Umbridge knelt down in front of her, and Lizzie was forced to look into those horrid pouchy toad's eyes. "You were going to Dumbledore, weren't you?" she asked, her usual falsely sweet voice long gone.
"N-no," Lizzie whimpered as Umbridge slapped her again as Lizzie sobbed.
"Liar!" she shouted as she held Lizzie's jaw in her stubby be-ringed hand, her nails digging hard into her skin.
Lizzie could feel the side of her face sting where she had been slapped, and she felt a sharp pain in her ribs. Either they were badly bruised or broken.
Malfoy was smirking as he threw Lizzie's wand into the air one handed and caught it again.
There was a commotion outside and several large Slytherins entered, each gripping Ginny, Luna, and to Lizzie and Hayden's utter bewilderment – Neville, who was trapped in a stranglehold by Crabbe, and looking in imminent danger of being suffocated to death. All four of them had been gagged.
"Got 'em all!" said Warrington, shoving Ron roughly forward into the room. "That one,' he poked a thick finger at Neville, "tried to stop me taking her," he pointed at Ginny who was trying to kick the shins of a large Slytherin girl holding her, "so I brought him along too."
"Good, good," said Umbridge, watching Ginny struggle for a moment before turning her eyes back on Lizzie who looked absolutely terrified, and it took a lot for her to be scared.
"Well, it looks as though Hogwarts will shortly be a Weasley-free and….mentally retarded free zone, doesn't it?" she said nastily, nodding at Lizzie.
Malfoy laughed loudly and sycophantically. Umbridge gave her wide complacent smile and settled herself into a chintz-covered armchair, gazing around at her captives like a toad in a flowerbed, before settling her eyes back on Lizzie.
"So, Miss Brooks," she said. "You and your little friends stationed lookouts around my office and you sent this buffoon," she nodded at Ron, and Malfoy laughed even louder, "to tell me that the poltergeist was wreaking havoc in the Transfiguration department when I knew perfectly well he was busy smearing ink on the eyepieces of all the school telescopes. Mr. Filch just informed me. Clearly it was very important for you to talk to somebody. Who was it, hmm? The half-breed Hagrid, perhaps? I doubt it was Minerva McGonagall, I hear she is still too ill to talk to anyone….."
Malfoy and a few of the other members of the Inquisitorial Squad laughed some more, and Hayden felt he was so full of rage and hatred for this evil woman that had made Lizzie's life hell, that he was shaking uncontrollably.
"None of your business!" said Lizzie finally, her voice no longer quivering.
Umbridge's slack face seemed to tighten.
"Very well," she said in her most dangerous voice; the falsely sweet tone returning.
"Very well, Miss Brooks….I offered you a chance to tell me freely. You refused. I have no choice but to force you."
Hayden's heart sank like a stone. Was Umbridge going to torture her to make her talk?
"Draco, fetch me Professor Snape."
Malfoy stowed Lizzie's wand inside his robes and left the room, smirking. There was silence in the office except for the fidgetings and scufflings resulting from the Slytherins efforts to keep Ron and the others under control. Hayden was older and much stronger than them, and was desperately trying to free himself from their grasp so he could get to Lizzie.
Ron's lip was bleeding onto Umbridge's carpet as she struggled against Warrington's half nelson. Ginny was still trying to stamp on the feet of the sixth year girl who had both her upper arms in a tight grip. Neville was turning steadily more purple in the face while tugging at Crabbe's arms, and Hermione was attempting vainly to throw Millicent Bulstrode off her. Luna, however, stood limply by the side of her captor, gazing vaguely out of the window, as though rather bored by the proceedings.
Lizzie looked back at Umbridge who was watching her closely. As much as it pained her to, she forced herself never to take her eyes away from Umbridge, keeping her face deliberately smooth and blank as footsteps were heard in the corridor outside and Draco Malfoy came back into the room, holding open the door for Snape.
"You wanted to see me, Headmistress?" asked Snape, looking at all the pairs of struggling students with an expression of complete indifference. "Ah, Professor Snape," said Umbridge, smiling widely and standing up again. "Yes, I would like another bottle of Veritaserum, as quick as you can, please." "I'm afraid you've used up all my stores interrogating students – the last of it on Miss Edgecombe," said Snape.
"You can make some more, can't you?" she said, her voice becoming more sweetly girlish as it always did when she was furious.
"Certainly," said Snape, his lip curling. "It takes a full moon cycle to mature, so I should have it ready for you around a month."
"A month?" squawked Umbridge, swelling toadishly. "A month? But I need it this evening, Snape! I have just found Miss Brooks and her little friends using my fire to communicate with a person or persons unknown!"
"Really?" asked Snape, showing his first, faint sign of interest as he looked down at Lizzie. "Well, then, they must have done all the work for her. Miss Brooks has never shown enough intellect to be capable of doing such things on her own."
His cold dark eyes were boring into Lizzie's ceruleans, who met his gaze flinchingly. Hayden glared at both Snape and Umbridge. Their adolescent name-calling of Lizzie, taking potshots at her disabilities was getting really old, really fast.
"I wish to interrogate her!" shouted Umbridge angrily, and Snape looked away from Lizzie back into her furiously quivering face. "I wish you to provide me with a potion that will force this – this…girl to tell me the truth!"
"I have already told you," said Snape smoothly. "That I have no further stocks of Veritaserum. Unless you wish to poison Miss Brooks – and I assure you that I would have the greatest sympathy if you did – I cannot help you. The only trouble is that most venoms act too fast to give the victim much time for truth-telling….."
"You're on probation!" shrieked Umbridge, and Snape looked back at her, his eyebrows slightly raised. "You are being deliberately unhelpful! I expect better! Lucius Malfoy always speaks very highly of you! Now, get out of my office!"
Snape gave an ironic bow and turned to leave.
"He's got Padfoot!" said Harry suddenly. "He's got Padfoot at the place where it's hidden!"
Snape had stopped with his hand on Umbridge's door handle.
"Padfoot?" cried Professor Umbridge, looking eagerly from Harry to Snape. "What is Padfoot? Where what is hidden? What does he mean, Snape?"
Snape looked around at Harry. His face was inscrutable. Harry could not tell whether he had understood it or not, but he did not dare speak more plainly in front of Umbridge. "Do you know what he's talking about, girl?" snapped Umbridge at Lizzie. Lizzie whimpered and shook her head frantically.
"I have no idea," said Snape coldly, as he walked out of the room, closing the door with a snap.
Lizzie sighed. Snape could have been her last hope for rescue, yet she knew it was in vain. Snape despised her quite possibly as much as Umbridge did. She was completely at her mercy now, and neither she nor Hayden had wands to defend themselves.
"Very well," said Umbridge, her chest heaving with rage and frustration as she pulled out her wand. "Very well…..I am left with no alternative….This is more than a matter of school discipline…..This is an issue of Ministry security….Yes….yes…."
She seemed to be talking herself into something. She was shifting her weight nervously from foot to foot, staring at Lizzie, beating her wand against her empty palm, and breathing heavily, and Lizzie felt her heart beat frantically against her bruised and beaten ribs, feeling more vulnerable and powerless than she had felt for the entire year as she watched her anxiously.
"You are forcing me, Miss Brooks, I do not wish to," said Umbridge, still moving restlessly on the spot, "but sometimes circumstances justify the use…I am sure the Ministry will understand that I had no choice….."
Lizzie had no idea on what she was planning to do, and didn't want to know. She looked over at Hayden who had a look of quiet desperation and fear on his face. She had never seen him look that terrified before.
Malfoy was watching Umbridge with a hungry expression on his face. "The Cruciatus Curse ought to loosen your tongue….." said Umbridge softly.
Hayden gasped. Umbridge had finally resolved that the only way to get Lizzie to tell her what she wanted to hear was to torture her.
"No!" shrieked Hermione. "Professor Umbridge – it's illegal!" – but Umbridge took no notice. There was a nasty, eager, excited look on her face that Lizzie had never seen before. She raised her wand.
"The Minister wouldn't want you to break the law Professor Umbridge!" cried Hermione. "What Cornelius doesn't know won't hurt him," said Umbridge, who was now panting slightly as she pointed her wand at different parts of Lizzie's body in turn, starting with her legs, apparently trying to decided what would hurt the most. Finally, her wand settled on her lower right side – where her appendectomy scar was.
"I told Professor Dumbledore people like you shouldn't be allowed in this school. Of course, Cornelius agreed with me, but you still managed to skirt my little educational decree didn't you?" An evil smile curled on Umbridge's slack mouth. "If I couldn't get you expelled, then I had to resort to other measures…Madame Pomfrey had no idea that I had cursed you that day you came into the hospital wing. It was my own special creation, of course, so she wouldn't suspect anything…..And still she wasted so much time saving your life…."
Lizzie froze as her mind flashed back to the day of her appendectomy surgery and she saw herself lying on the ground in the Forbidden Forest, writhing in pain. She had been right this entire time! Umbridge had cursed her, which in turn led to her almost dying.
Hayden was looking equally stunned and infuriated. "You did this to her?" he gasped. "I intended for her to die in the forest, but you had to interfere!"
Lizzie sat there, rooted to the spot. Umbridge had been trying to get rid of her for the entire year, and judging by the look on her face, she had been waiting and hoping for a time such as this where she could really make her suffer.
"You were trying to kill me?" asked Lizzie, voicing the one thing she had suspected this whole time. The smile on Umbridge's slack face widened sadistically.
"No, no" she breathed. "That would have been too easy. I wanted you to beg for death before I killed you."
"Why? What did Lizzie do to you?" demanded Hayden. Umbridge turned to him. "It is not what she did, Mr. Chamberlain," she said, her wand still pointed at Lizzie. "It is the fact that people with her deficits are permitted to breathe the same air as the rest of us." Harry, Ron, Hermione, Ginny and even Luna stared at Umbridge with a kind of furious disbelief at the fact that she had tried to murder their friend for being disabled.
"So, that's why you tried to kill her!" growled Hayden savagely. "Clearly my attempts to expel her weren't enough," said Umbridge. "But not now, Miss Brooks…No….Not this time…..You've got nowhere to go….No one to protect you…"
And taking a deep breath, she raised her wand and cried, "Cruc…."
"No!" shouted Hayden as Umbridge stared at him. He was crying now, tears spilling from his ocean blue eyes. "Hayden, we – we need to tell her!" said Hermione. "No way!" yelled Hayden, staring at the little of Hermione he could see. "We'll have to, Hayden she might kill Lizzie if we don't!" said Hermione.
Umbridge smiled a horribly evil smile, as though she would like nothing more than to kill Lizzie. And Hermione began to cry weakly along with Hayden into the back of Millicent Bulstrode's robes.
Millicent stopped trying to squish her against the wall and immediately dodged out of her way, looking disgusted.
"Well, well, well!" said Umbridge, looking triumphant. "Little Miss Question-All is going to give us some answers! Come on then, girl! Come on!"
"Er – my – nee – no!" shouted Ron through his gag. Ginny was staring at Hermione as if she had never seen her before; Neville still choking for breath, was gazing at her too. But Hayden had just noticed something. Though Hermione was sobbing desperately into her hands, she was not shedding a single tear…..
"I'm – I'm sorry, everyone," said Hermione. "But – I can't stand it…."
"That's right, that's right, girl!" said Umbridge, seizing Hermione by the shoulders, thrusting her into the abandoned chintz armchair, and leaning over her. "Now then…with whom was Miss Brooks and their little friends communicating with just now?"
"Well," gulped Hermione into her hands, "well, she was trying to speak to Professor Dumbledore…."
Ron froze, his eyes wide; Ginny stopped trying to stamp on her Slytherin captor's toes; Hayden stared flabbergasted at her; even Luna looked mildly surprised.
Fortunately, the attention of Umbridge and her minions was focused too exclusively upon Hermione to notice these suspicious signs.
"Dumbledore!" said Umbridge eagerly. "You know where Dumbledore is, then?"
"Well…..no!" sobbed Hermione. "We've tried the Leaky Cauldron in Diagon Alley, and the Three Broomsticks, and even the Hog's Head…."
"Idiot girl, Dumbledore won't be sitting in a pub when the whole Ministry's looking for him!" shouted Umbridge, disappointment etched in every sagging line in her face.
"But – we needed to tell him something important!" wailed Hermione, holding her hands more tightly over her face, not, Harry and Hayden knew, out of anguish, but to disguise the absence of tears.
"Yes?" said Umbridge with a sudden resurgence of excitement. "What was it you wanted to tell him?"
"We…wanted to tell him it's r-ready!" choked Hermione
"What's ready?" demanded Umbridge, and now she grabbed Hermione's shoulders again and shook her slightly. "What's ready, girl?"
"The…the weapon," said Hermione.
"Weapon? Weapon?" said Umbridge, and her eyes seemed to pop with excitement. "You have been developing some method of resistance? A weapon you could use against the Ministry? On Professor Dumbledore's orders, of course?"
"Y-y-yes!" gasped Hermione. "But he had to leave it before it was finished, and n-n-now we've finished it for him, and we c-c-can't find him t-t-to tell him!"
Give the girl and Oscar, thought Lizzie. It was a pretty convincing story, and Umbridge seemed to be buying it. The question was for how long? Would she eventually see that it was a rouse? And if she did, Lizzie, or anyone else in the group was most definitely going to be tortured, possibly into insanity, just like Neville's parents…
"What kind of weapon is it?" asked Umbridge harshly, her stubby hands still tight on Hermione's shoulders.
"We don't r-r-really understand it," said Hermione sniffling loudly. "We j-j-just did what P-P-Professor Dumbledore told us t-t-to do….."
Umbridge straightened up, looking exultant.
"Lead me to the weapon," she said.
"I'm not showing….them," said Hermione shrilly, looking around at the Slytherins through her fingers.
"It's not for you to set conditions," said Professor Umbridge harshly. "Fine," said Hermione, now sobbing into her hands again, "fine….let them see it, I hope they use it on you! In fact, I wish you'd invite loads and loads of people to come see! Th-that would serve you right – oh, I'd love to see it if the wh-whole school knew where it was and how to u-use it, and then if you annoy any of them they'll be able to s-sort you out!"
I'd sort her out after everything she's done to Lizzie! Hayden thought savagely. Hermione's words had a powerful impact on Umbridge. She glanced swiftly and suspiciously round at her Inquisitorial Squad, her bulging eyes resting for a moment on Malfoy who was too slow to disguise the look of eagerness and greed that had appeared on his face.
Umbridge contemplated Hermione for another long moment, and then spoke in what she clearly thought was a motherly voice. "All right, dear, let's just make it you and me, and we'll take Miss Brooks and Potter too, shall we? Get up now…."
"Professor," said Malfoy eagerly. "Professor Umbridge, I think some of the squad should come with you to look after…."
"I am a fully qualified Ministry official, Malfoy, do you really think I cannot manage three wandless teenagers alone! Especially when one of them is crippled?" asked Umbridge, nodding at Lizzie with a look of deepest loathing.
"In any case, it does not sound as though this weapon is something that schoolchildren should see. You will remain here until I return, and make sure that none of these" – she gestured around at Ron, Ginny, Neville, Luna, and Hayden – "escape."
"All right," said Malfoy, looking sulky and disappointed. "And you two can go ahead of me and show me the way," said Umbridge, pointing at Harry and Hermione. "You will stay with me," she said, nodding at Lizzie. Lizzie swallowed hard.
"Lead on…" said Professor Umbridge.
Neither Lizzie nor Harry had the slightest idea what Hermione was planning, or even whether she had a plan. Harry walked half a pace behind her as they headed down the corridor outside Umbridge's office, knowing it would look very suspicious if he appeared not to know where they were going. He did not dare attempt to talk to her or Lizzie, who was being dragged along by the arm by Umbridge. "Pick up your feet, girl!" Umbridge snapped at Lizzie, continuing to pull her along. Lizzie said nothing as she attempted to keep pace with her.
They were walking so close to Harry and Hermione that Harry could hear Umbridge's ragged breathing.
Hermione led the way down the stairs into the entrance hall, the din of loud voice and the clatter of cutlery on plates echoed from out of the double doors of the Great Hall. It seemed incredible to Harry and Lizzie that twenty feet away were people who were enjoying dinner, celebrating the end of exams; the Gryffindors and Canadian students rejoicing in Hayden and Lizzie's victories at the horse show, not a care in the world.
Likewise it seemed incredible to Lizzie that mere hours ago, she had been celebrating with her friends. It felt like a lifetime ago now…..
Hermione walked straight out of the oak front doors and down the stone steps into the balmy evening air. The sun was falling towards the tops of the trees in the Forbidden Forest, now as her and Lizzie breathed heavily, struggling to keep up.
Their long dark shadows rippled over the grass behind them like cloaks.
"It's hidden in Hagrid's hut, isn't it?" said Umbridge eagerly in Harry'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 and Lizzie felt a strong urge to kick her teeth in, but resisted. She kept thinking of Hayden, and the feeling of his lips on hers. She prayed she would live through this to kiss him again.
"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 the 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 two stay ahead of me, so I can keep an eye on this one," she said, nodding at Lizzie who had suddenly gone chalk white and began to shake and hyperventilate in alarm. "No! no!" she gasped, her eyes wide as saucers.
"Don't be silly, girl!" said Umbridge, though she had a sort of nastiness to her voice and an evil, satisfied smile on her face. She may not have succeeded in killing Lizzie when she went into the Forest on Flicka that day, but she had caused her enough physical pain, severe enough to deeply traumatize her, which was good enough for her.
Lizzie would never forget it now…
"It's okay, Lizzie," said Harry, soothingly. "Here, hold my hand," he said, offering it to her. "I don't think so, Potter," said Umbridge sternly. "She's not going anywhere!" Harry snapped. "Oh, and could we have your wand, then if we're going in first?"
"No, I don't think so," said Umbridge, poking him in the back with it. "The Ministry places a rather high value on my life than yours – and hers, of course, the value on her life is even less than yours," she said nodding at Lizzie, who was still looking terrified at the idea of going back into the Forest.
I wish Hayden was here, thought Lizzie, knowing that if he heard Umbridge say these things about her, he wouldn't stand for it. He would give her a piece of his mind, even if he didn't have a wand.
As they reached the cool shade of the first trees, Harry tried to catch Hermione's eye; walking into the forest without wand, seemed to him to be more foolhardy than anything they had done so far this evening. She, however, merely gave Umbridge a contemptuous glace and plunged straight into the trees, moving at such a pace that Umbridge, with her shorter legs, had difficulty keeping up.
Lizzie sighed as she walked beside Umbridge, as she thought about her first date with Hayden and how much she had enjoyed spending time with him, how romantic it was, and how loved and appreciated she felt when he kissed her….
"Is it very far in?" Umbridge asked her as her robes ripped on a bramble.
"Oh, yes," said Hermione. "Yes, it's well hidden."
Both Harry, and Lizzie's misgivings increased. Hermione was not taking the path that she and Harry had followed to visit Grawp, and later relayed the story to Lizzie, but one that he had followed two years ago to the lair of the monster Aragog. Neither Lizzie nor Hermione had been with him on that occasion; he doubted either of them knew what danger lay ahead at the end of it.
"Er – are you sure this is the right way?" he asked her pointedly.
"Oh, yes," she said in a steely voice, crashing through the undergrowth with what he and Lizzie thought was wholly unnecessary amount of noise. Several times, Lizzie tripped over exposed tree roots and Harry had to help her. She hadn't walked this distance without her walker before, and her legs were beginning to ache and spasm.
"Doesn't she know how to use her legs?" Umbridge sneered.
For the second time, Lizzie felt a powerful urge to wheel around and smack Umbridge. But again, reconsidered. Harry was looking furious at the horrible mistreatment of his best friend, but like Lizzie, said nothing
Moments later, Umbridge herself tripped over a fallen sapling, and Lizzie sniggered, but managed to turn it into a very convincing sneeze.
Neither of them bothered to help Umbridge however; Hermione merely strode on, calling loudly over her shoulder. "It's a bit further in!" "Hermione, keep your voice down," Harry muttered, hurrying to catch up with her, still clutching Lizzie's hand. "Anything could be listening in here….."
"I want to be heard," she answered quietly as Umbridge jogged noisily after them. "You'll see….."
They walked on for what seemed like a long time, until they were once again, so deep into the forest that the dense tree canopy blocked out all light. Lizzie had the feeling, as she had felt before in the Forest, one of being watched by unseen eyes.
"How much further?" demanded Umbridge angrily from behind Harry. "Not far now!" shouted Hermione, as the emerged into a dim, dark clearing. With a chilling realization, Lizzie recognized where they were. They were standing in the spot where she had dragged herself when she fell off Flicka and where Hayden eventually found her.
She felt tears build in her eyes as she struggled not to let them fall. "Just a little bit…"
An arrow flew through the air and land with a menacing thud in the tree just over her head. The air was suddenly full of the sound of hooves. Lizzie could feel the forest floor trembling; Umbridge gave a little scream and pulled Lizzie out of Harry's grasp and in front of her like a shield –
Lizzie managed to wrench herself free of Umbridge's grasp, and turned around. Around fifty centaurs were emerging on every side, their bows raised and loaded, pointing at Harry, Hermione, Lizzie and Umbridge who backed away slowly into the center of the clearing. Umbridge muttering odd little whispers of terror.
Harry looked sideways at Hermione. She was wearing a triumphant smile.
"Who are you?" said a voice.
Both Harry and Lizzie looked left. The chestnut bodied centaur called Magorian was walking towards them out of the circle; his bow, like the others, was raised. On their right, Umbridge was still whimpering, her wand trembling violently as she pointed it at the advancing centaur.
"I asked you who you are, human," said Magorian roughly.
"I am Dolores Umbridge!" said Umbridge in a high-pitched, terrified voice. "Senior Undersecretary to the Minister of Magic and Headmistress and High Inquisitor of Hogwarts!"
"You are from the Ministry of Magic?" asked Magorian, as 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 humans…"
"What did you call us?" shouted a wild-looking black centaur, whom Harry recognized as Bane. There was a great deal of angry uttering and tightening of bowstrings around them. "Don't call them that!" said Lizzie furiously. But Umbridge did not appear to have heard her. Still pointing her shaking wand at Magorian, she continued, "Law Fifteen B states clearly that 'Any attack by a magical creature who is deemed to have near-human intelligence, and therefore responsible for its actions….',"
" 'Near-human intelligence'?" repeated Magorian as Bane and several others roared with rage and pawed at the ground. "We consider that a great insult, human! Our intelligence, thankfully, far outstrips your own…."
"What are you doing in our forest?" bellowed the hard-faced grey centaur, that Lizzie had passed when she was out riding Flicka. "Why are you here?"
"Your forest?" said Umbridge, shaking now not only with 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 Lizzie had to duck to miss it, and it caught Umbridge's mousy hair in passing. She let out an earsplitting 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 echoed around the dimly lit clearing and the sight of their pawing hooves was extremely unnerving.
"Whose forest is it now, human?" bellowed Bane.
"Filthy half-breeds!" Umbridge screamed, her hands still tight over her head. "Beasts! Uncontrolled animals!" "Stop!" said Lizzie, but it was too late – Umbridge pointed her wand at Magorian and screamed "Incarcarus!"
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 onto its hind legs, attempting to free himself while the other centaurs charged.
Harry grabbed Hermione and Lizzie and pulled them both to the ground. Facedown on the forest floor, he knew a moment of terror as hooves thundered around them, but the centaurs leapt over and around them, bellowing, and screaming with rage.
Then, another whinny pierced the night, echoing through the trees as more thundering hoofbeats came charging toward them. Lizzie raised her head as she saw a large black shape leap over her and charge straight for Umbridge, rearing and whinnying wildly, kicking at her with its back legs…..
"Noooooooo!" she heard Umbridge shriek. "Get away from me, you animal!" Lizzie slowly got up as she watched the black horse snorting angrily at Umbridge and pawing aggressively at the ground as though daring her to take one more step toward Lizzie….
She saw a flash of red light and knew that Umbridge had attempted to Stun the black horse standing before her in a threatening stance, but the spell went directly through him without the slightest mark. Umbridge stared at the large onyx beast standing before her with a mixture of confusion and terror as the centaurs descended upon her, seizing her from behind and lifting her into the air. "Miss Brooks, do something!" screamed Umbridge desperately. "Tell them I mean no harm!"
Lizzie saw her chance to throw Umbridge's sadistic message that was now a permanent scar on the back of her hand, right back in her face. "I'm sorry, Professor," said Lizzie simply. "But I must not tell lies."
She smiled with satisfaction as she watched Umbridge being borne away through the trees by Bane, still screaming bloody murder, until she felt something nudge her softly, and the feeling of a horse breathing on her. Lizzie turned to see Raven standing next to her, nickering, and licking his lips contentedly.
"Thank you Raven," said Lizzie. She wished more than anything that she could pet him…
"Raven?" asked Hermione as she and Harry got to their feet too. "I don't see him."
"He's right next to her," said Harry, smiling. Hermione stared at him. "You can see him?" she asked. "No," said Harry. "But she can." He smiled at Lizzie, who appeared to be interacting with something that he could not see, yet, he knew was there.
"And these?" said the hard-faced grey centaur, holding Hermione. "They are young," said a slow, doleful voice from behind Harry. "We do not attack foals."
"They brought her here, Ronan," replied the centaur, who was gripping Harry. "And they are not so young…..He's nearing manhood, this one…."
"Please," said Hermione breathlessly, "please, don't attack us, we don't think like her, we aren't Ministry of Magic employees! We only hoped you'd drive her off for us…"
Both Harry and Lizzie knew at once from the look on the face of the grey centaur holding Hermione that she had made a terrible mistake in saying this.
The grey centaur threw back his head, his back legs stamping furiously, and bellowed, "You see, Ronan?" They already have the arrogance of their kind! So, we were to do your dirty work, were we, human, girl? We were to act as your servants, drive away your enemies like obedient hounds?"
"No!" said Lizzie hurriedly. "Please – She didn't mean it like that! She was just hoping that you'd be able to – to help us…"
"We do not help humans!" snarled the centaur holding Harry, tightening his grip, and rearing a little at the same time, so that Harry's feet left the ground momentarily. "We are a race apart and proud to be so…We will not permit you to walk from here, boasting that we did your bidding!"
Raven walked up to the centaurs and let out a series of whinnies and nickers. "They are friends of yours, you say?" said Bane. Raven whinnied and nodded his head. They can see him? Lizzie thought as Raven whinnied and pawed at the ground. "And this one was your owner?" asked Bane, nodding at Lizzie. Raven nodded his head again. "Mmmm…Very well, Raven, we will release your friends – this time," said Bane. "You are free to go, but be forewarned, we will not tolerate trespassers again."
"You can see Raven?" asked Lizzie. "Of course we can see him!" said Bane with slight indignation. "But you do know that he's….he's…?" asked Lizzie. "Deceased?" asked Ronan. "Yes. He has made the forest his home with us since his passing last year."
Lizzie nodded.
"Lizzie," said Harry, tugging at her arm as Lizzie didn't have any time to get one last glimpse of Raven before she was being pulled by the arm out of the Forest.
"Where do we go from here?" asked Lizzie breathlessly. "We need to get back up to the castle," said Hermione faintly.
"By the time we've done that, Sirius'll probably be dead," said Harry, kicking a nearby tree in temper; there was a high pitched chattering overhead and he looked up to see an angry bowtruckle flexing its long twiglike fingers at him.
"Well, we can't do anything without wands," said Hermione hopelessly. "Anyway, Harry, how exactly were you planning to get all the way to London?"
"Yeah, we were just wondering that," said a familiar voice from behind her.
Harry, Hermione, and Lizzie moved instinctively together, peering through the trees, as Ron came into sight, with Ginny, Neville, Luna and to Lizzie's enormous relief, Hayden.
The moment he saw her, Hayden ran through the trees toward her as Lizzie ran closer to him until they collided with each other, hugging. "Are you okay? Did Umbridge hurt you?" asked Hayden as they began kissing fiercely like their mouths were glued together. "No…She…..she went mad – more than she already was, and the centaurs that live here in the forest, they just…..just dragged her away, and Raven, he – he saved us."
"But you're okay?" asked Hayden. "Physically, I'll live," said Lizzie. "Emotionally, I….."
"We don't have to worry about that right now," said Hayden soothingly as he held her. The rest of the group looked a little worse for wear. Hayden had a large gash on his neck, but it didn't look too deep. Ginny had several long scratches running the length of her cheek, a large purple lump was swelling above Neville's right eye, Ron's lip was bleeding worse than ever – but all – including Hayden were all looking rather pleased with themselves.
"How did you guys get away?" asked Lizzie in amazement as Hayden handed her back her wand. "Couple of Stunners, a Disarming Charm and Hayden did this absolutely amazing Impediment Jinx, it was brilliant!" said Ron as Hayden took a bow. Lizzie giggled. "That's my hero," she said, kissing him again. "So, how are getting to London?" asked Neville.
"Look it's not that I don't appreciate everything you've done, all of you," said Harry. "But I've gotten you into enough trouble as it is.
He started to walk away from the group as Neville called him back. "Dumbledore's Army is supposed to be about doing something real," he said. "Or is all that just words to you?"
Harry said nothing, but stared at them all. "You don't have to do this alone," said Lizzie. Harry sighed. "So, how are we going to get to London?"
Lizzie smiled and looked at Luna. "We fly of course!" said Luna.
Hayden looked confused. "How?" he asked. "How do we fly without brooms?"
"There are other ways," said Luna serenely. "I s'pose we're going to ride on the back of the Kacky Snorgle, or whatever it is?" Ron demanded
"The Crumple-Horned Snorkack can't fly," said Luna in a dignified voice, "but they can, and Hagrid says they're very good at finding places their riders are looking for."
Lizzie whirled around. Standing between two trees, their white eyes gleaming eerily, were two thestrals, watching the whispered conversation almost as if they understood every word.
"Of course!" Lizzie breathed, taking Hayden hand, and leading him toward them. They tossed their reptilian heads, throwing back long black manes, and Lizzie stretched out her hand eagerly and made a clucking noise with her tongue. They really were quite majestic and beautiful
"It's those mad horse things?" asked Ron uncertainly, staring at a point slightly to the left of the thestral that Lizzie was petting. "Those ones you can't see unless you've watched someone snuff it?"
"I would appreciate it if you found a better way of phrasing that, thank you!" said Lizzie.
"Sorry, Liz," said Ron. "I can show you what they look like," Hayden offered. Ron and Hermione stared at him. "You can see them?" asked Hermione. "No," said Hayden, reaching inside his pocket and pulling out a folded piece of parchment. "I have this," he said, handing it to Hermione as she unfolded it.
It was the watercolor painting of the thestral that Lizzie had so skillfully drawn up for him. "Where did you get this?" asked Ron. "Lizzie drew it for me at the end of last term," said Hayden.
Hermione looked both surprised and impressed. Lizzie was clearly a woman of many talents, not just in horseback riding and figure skating. "So this is what they look like?" asked Hermione. Lizzie nodded. "How many are there?" asked Hermione.
"Just two," said Harry.
"We need eight," said Hayden.
"Fine," said Harry. "But unless we can find more thestrals, all of you aren't going to be able to…" "More will come," said Lizzie confidently.
"How do you know?" asked Harry. "Because," said Lizzie. "In case you haven't noticed, Hayden and I are covered in blood, and we know Hagrid lures thestrals with raw meat, so that's probably why these two showed up…"
Lizzie felt something cold and wet against her hand and looked down to see the closest thestral licking a cut on her hand.
"Okay, then," said Harry, a bright idea occurring. "Ron and I will take these two and go ahead and Hermione can stay here with you and she'll attract more thestrals….."
"I'm not staying behind," said Hermione. "Me either," said Lizzie. "There's no need," said Luna, smiling. "Look, here comes more now…you three must really smell…."
Harry and Lizzie turned. No fewer than eight or nine thestrals were picking their way through the trees now, their great leathery wings folded tight to their bodies.
"Right, pick one, and get on," said Harry
Hayden glanced at Lizzie as thought to ask how he was supposed to get on when he couldn't see them.
Lizzie smiled and walked up to the nearest thestral and wound her hand tightly into its mane, and Hayden helped her to stand on a tree stump as she swung her leg up and over the horse's silken back. It did not object, but twisted its head around, fangs bared and attempted to continue its eager licking of Lizzie's hand.
She found there was a way of lodging her knees behind the wing joints that made her feel more secure, and looked around at the others. Neville had heaved himself over the back of the next thestral and was now attempting to swing one short leg over the creature's back.
Luna was already in place, sitting sidesaddle and adjusting her robes as though she did this every day.
Ron, Hermione, Ginny, and Hayden however were still standing motionless on the spot, openmouthed and staring. "What?" asked Lizzie. "How are we supposed to get on if we can't see them?" asked Hayden curiously.
"Oh, it's easy," said Luna, sliding obligingly from her thestral and marching over to him, Hermione, Ron, and Ginny. "Come here…."
She took Hayden's hand and led him over to the thestral where Lizzie was already sitting and helped him onto the back of his mount so he was sitting in front of Lizzie. All four of them looking extremely nervous as she wound their hands into the horse's mane and told them to grip tightly before getting back onto her own steed.
"This is mad," said Ron faintly, moving his free hand gingerly up and down the horse's neck. "Mad…If I could just see it."
"You'd better hope it stays invisible," said Lizzie as she wrapped her arms protectively around Hayden's waist as he heard her mutter. "I'm really gonna regret this."
"We're all ready, then?" asked Harry. Lizzie nodded nervously as she tightened her grip around Hayden's waist as she gripped the thestral's sides with her knees – she normally wouldn't do this, but she wasn't staying solid ground, and there were no safety belt, she had to stay on somehow. "Okay…."
Harry looked down at the back of his thestral's glossy black head and swallowed. "Ministry of Magic visitor's entrance, London, then," he said uncertainly. "Er…..if you know…where to go…"
For a moment, his thestral did nothing at all, then with a sweeping movement that nearly unseated him, the wings of either side extended, the horse crouched slowly and then rocketed upward so fast and so steeply that Harry had to clench his arms and legs tightly around the horse to avoid sliding backward over its bony rump.
He closed his eyes and put his face down into the horse's silky mane as they burst through the topmost branches of the trees and soared out into the bloodred sunset.
Harry did not think he had ever moved so fast. The thestral streaked over the castle, its wide wings hardly beating. The cooling air was slapping Harry's face; his eyes screwed up against the rushing wing, he looked around and saw his seven fellows soaring along beside him, each of them bent as low as possible into the neck of their thestral to protect themselves from its slipstream.
Lizzie was hanging onto Hayden for dear life, and whimpering so loud, that it sounded like she was fighting not to scream in terror.
They were over the Hogwarts grounds, they had passed Hogsmeade. Harry could see mountains and gullies below them. In the falling darkness, Harry saw small collections of lights as they passed over more villages, then a winding road on which a single car was beetling its way home through the hills.
"This is bizarre!" Harry heard Ron yell from somewhere behind him and he imagined how it must feel to be speeding along at this height with no visible means of support…..
Twilight fell: The sky turned to a light dusky purple littered with tiny silver stars, and soon it was only the light Muggle towns that gave them any clue of how far from the ground they were or how very fast they were traveling.
On they flew through the gathering darkness; Lizzie could feel her face getting stiff and cold as she held onto Hayden, willing herself not to look down as she tightened the grip that her knees had on the thestral, even though they had begun to ache in protest, and engaged her core tighter than she ever had to keep herself balanced.
She had lost track of what time it was or how far they had gone, and she suspected Hayden wasn't aware of this either.
"I think we're getting lower!" Hayden shouted, jolting Lizzie back to earth. Indeed, the thestrals head was suddenly pointing toward the ground as Lizzie tightened her grip and instinctively leaned back just so, engaging her core. They were descending at last.…..
And now bright orange light were growing larger and rounder on all sides. They could see the tops of buildings, streams of headlights like luminous insect eyes, squares of pale yellow that were windows.
Quite suddenly, it seemed, they were hurtling toward the pavement. Lizzie closed her eyes and held Hayden, bracing for the impact, expecting it to be like that of an airplane. But the horse touched the dark ground as lightly as a shadow, and Hayden slid off its back before lifting Lizzie off too.
The moment her feet touched the ground, she sank to her knees and kissed the ground beneath her. "That…..was the worst trip…of my life!" she gasped. "Well, it's over now," said Hayden soothingly, wrapping an arm around her shoulder as everyone else dismounted from their thestrals. "Where do we go from here, then?" Luna asked Harry in a politely interested voice, as though this was all a rather interesting day trip.
"Over here," he said. He gave his thestral a quick and grateful pat, then led the way quickly to the battered telephone box and opened the door. Lizzie held back, thinking it was going to be hard for everyone to squeeze in there….
"Come on!" he urged them all. Ron and Ginny marched in obediently; Hermione, Neville, and Luna squashed themselves in after them.
Lizzie took one last look at the thestrals, now foraging for scraps of rotten food inside the dumpster as Harry forced himself inside between Lizzie and Hayden.
There was barely any room to breathe, let alone move. "Whoever's nearest to the receiver, dial six-two-four-two!" he said. Lizzie did so, her arms wrenching between the wall to reach the dial.
As it whirred back into place, a cool female voice sounded inside the box. "Welcome to the Ministry of Magic. Please state your name and business."
Harry Potter, Ron Weasley, Hermione Granger," said Harry rapidly. "Ginny Weasley, Neville Longbottom, Luna Lovegood, Lizzie Brooks, Hayden Chamberlain – We're here to save someone, unless your Ministry can do it first!"
"Thank you," said the cool female voice. "Visitors, please take the badges and attach them to the front of your robes."
Eight badges slid out of the metal chute where returned change usually appeared. Lizzie scooped them up and handed them out as she pinned hers to her robes.
LIZZIE BROOKS
RESCUE MISSION
"Visitors to the Ministry, you are required to submit to a search and present your wand for registration at the security desk, which is located at the far end of the Atrium."
"Fine!" said Harry loudly. "Now can we move?"
The floor of the telephone box shuddered and the pavement rose up past the glass windows of the telephone box. The scavenging thestrals were sliding out of sight as blackness closed over their heads and with a dull griding noise, they sank down into the depths of the Ministry of Magic. A chink of soft golden light hit their feet, and widening, rose up their bodies. Lizzie bent her knees and held her wand as ready as she could in such suffocating conditions, peering through the glass to see whether anybody was waiting for them in the Atrium, but it seemed to be completely empty.
The light was dimmer than it had been that day. There were no fires burning under the mantlepiece set into the walls, but Harry saw as the lift slid smoothly to a halt that golden symbols continued to twist sinuously in the dark blue ceiling.
"The Ministry of Magic wishes you a pleasant evening," said the woman's voice.
The door of the telephone box burst open; Harry toppled out of it, followed by Neville, Luna, Ginny, Ron, Hermione, Lizzie, and Hayden. The only sound in the Atrium was the steady rush of water from the golden fountain, where jets from wands of the witch and wizard, the point of the centaur's arrow, the tip of the goblin's hat, and the house-elf's ears continued to gush into the surrounding pool.
"Come on," said Harry quietly, and the eight of them sprinted off down the hall, Harry in the lead, past the fountain, toward the desk where the security man who had weighed Harry's wand for his hearing before the school year began, had sat in which was now deserted.
Harry felt sure that there ought to be a security person there, sure that their absence was an ominous sign, and his feeling of foreboding increased as they passed through the golden gates to the lifts.
He pressed the nearest down button and a lift clattered into sight almost immediately, the golden grilles slid apart with a great echoing clanking and they dashed inside, Lizzie holding tight to Hayden's hand.
Harry stabbed the number nine button, the grilles closing with a bang and the lift began to descend, jangling and rattling. Harry had not realized how noisy the lifts were on the day he had come with Mr. Weasley – he was sure that the din would raise every security person within the building, yet when the lift halted, the cool female voice said, "Department of Mysteries," and the grilles slid open again, they stepped out into the corridor where nothing was moving but the nearest torches, flickering in the rush of air from the lift.
Harry turned toward the plain black door. "Let's go," he whispered and he led the way down the corridor, Luna right behind him, gazing around with her mouth slightly open. Lizzie and Hayden following close behind her. "Okay, listen," said Harry, stopping again, within six feet of the door. "Maybe….maybe a couple of people should stay here as a – as a lookout. Lizzie, Hayden I think the two of you should…."
"Not gonna happen," said Lizzie as though it was her final word on the matter. "I'm with Lizzie," Hayden chimed in. "We're coming with you, Harry," said Neville. "Let's get on with it," said Ron firmly.
Harry still didn't want to take them all with him, and he certainly didn't feel it safe letting Lizzie tag along, but it seemed he had no choice. He turned to face the door and walked forward leading the others over the threshold.
