Chapter 9 The Note
"Accio note!" said Tonks, pointing her wand at it.
The note popped out of Percy's hand and flew to Tonks. She grabbed it.
"Incendio!" she said, and the note disappeared in a puff of smoke.
"What- what did you do that for?" said Percy in astonishment. "You're working for Dumbledore, aren't you?"
"In a manner of speaking, yes," said Tonks. "I'm a member in good standing of the Order of the Phoenix."
"Then the note _does_ incriminate Dumbledore. There really _is_ a weapon in the woods!" said Percy.
"No. I didn't burn the note because it incriminates Dumbledore. I burned it because it incriminates me!" said Tonks.
"What does the note have to do with you?"
"I wrote it," said Tonks.
"Dolores Umbridge wrote it!" said Percy.
"Exactly."
There was a mocking tone in her voice and a wild look in her eyes that scared Percy. Had she gone mad? He instinctively reached for his wand, but it wasn't in his pocket.
"Looking for something?" said Tonks. "I took it while you were unconscious." She kept her own wand pointed at him.
Percy decided he'd better humor her.
"So, you're Dolores Umbridge?" he said.
"I see you don't believe me," said Tonks. Her features shifted into the froglike face of Umbridge. "I got my hands on a Time Turner from the Ministry years ago. There was a real Nymphadora Tonks, but she died young. I set up a fake identity in her name. When my career went wrong as Umbridge, I came back as Tonks to get revenge."
"How did you disguise yourself so completely?"
"I've always been a metamorphagus, but I kept it secret. It was an ace up my sleeve in my rise in the Ministry."
"What are you planning to do?"
"I'm nearly ready to take revenge on them all: Dumbledore, Harry Potter, Hermione Granger, and your brothers George and Fred. But there was one thing that could expose me before I was ready. That note."
"There's nothing in the note that points to you."
"Something happened to my mind that Friday night I was captured by those filthy centaurs. Probably Dumbledore did an obliviate on me. I scribbled on that note trying to get my head together, and I revealed too much."
"I don't see what."
"I was having trouble writing straight. 'FIX CAREER KNOTS' I wrote. 'KNOTSKNOTSKNOT'. You see now? It's almost backwards for 'TONKS TONKS TONKS'."
"I would never have seen that."
"But someone at the Ministry who was smarter than you might have. I couldn't take the chance. There was also something there about how killing me would break the fabric of time. It would have messed up time to kill me as Umbridge before I affected the past as Tonks."
"So you had to get the note before I showed it to anyone."
"That's why I sent the Dementor after you."
"_You_ sent the Dementors?"
"I sent one. The Dark Lord must have figured out that you were going to Trelawney because she was the source of the lost prophecy, and sent the other."
"I got away because the two Dementors argued over me."
"That's why I made backup plans, like intercepting you today at the Ministry before you could report to Fudge."
"What are you going to with me now?"
"You can be killed while resisting arrest. You're already under suspicion. Aurors are allowed to use the death curse when they have to."
Percy realized he had to do something before she killed him. A wild plan came into his mind. Would she still be affected by this? He had to try it. He made a clip-clop sound with his tongue as Ron had done in the hospital.
Umbridge looked around wildly. In that instant, Percy grabbed a pile of books from the floor and threw them at her, knocking her wand from her hand. They both raced for it, but Umbridge was clumsy with age and tripped over a footstool. Percy got to the wand first and stunned her with it.
He had to report this to Fudge. It was after office hours, so he apparated straight to the Minister's house.
"Accio note!" said Tonks, pointing her wand at it.
The note popped out of Percy's hand and flew to Tonks. She grabbed it.
"Incendio!" she said, and the note disappeared in a puff of smoke.
"What- what did you do that for?" said Percy in astonishment. "You're working for Dumbledore, aren't you?"
"In a manner of speaking, yes," said Tonks. "I'm a member in good standing of the Order of the Phoenix."
"Then the note _does_ incriminate Dumbledore. There really _is_ a weapon in the woods!" said Percy.
"No. I didn't burn the note because it incriminates Dumbledore. I burned it because it incriminates me!" said Tonks.
"What does the note have to do with you?"
"I wrote it," said Tonks.
"Dolores Umbridge wrote it!" said Percy.
"Exactly."
There was a mocking tone in her voice and a wild look in her eyes that scared Percy. Had she gone mad? He instinctively reached for his wand, but it wasn't in his pocket.
"Looking for something?" said Tonks. "I took it while you were unconscious." She kept her own wand pointed at him.
Percy decided he'd better humor her.
"So, you're Dolores Umbridge?" he said.
"I see you don't believe me," said Tonks. Her features shifted into the froglike face of Umbridge. "I got my hands on a Time Turner from the Ministry years ago. There was a real Nymphadora Tonks, but she died young. I set up a fake identity in her name. When my career went wrong as Umbridge, I came back as Tonks to get revenge."
"How did you disguise yourself so completely?"
"I've always been a metamorphagus, but I kept it secret. It was an ace up my sleeve in my rise in the Ministry."
"What are you planning to do?"
"I'm nearly ready to take revenge on them all: Dumbledore, Harry Potter, Hermione Granger, and your brothers George and Fred. But there was one thing that could expose me before I was ready. That note."
"There's nothing in the note that points to you."
"Something happened to my mind that Friday night I was captured by those filthy centaurs. Probably Dumbledore did an obliviate on me. I scribbled on that note trying to get my head together, and I revealed too much."
"I don't see what."
"I was having trouble writing straight. 'FIX CAREER KNOTS' I wrote. 'KNOTSKNOTSKNOT'. You see now? It's almost backwards for 'TONKS TONKS TONKS'."
"I would never have seen that."
"But someone at the Ministry who was smarter than you might have. I couldn't take the chance. There was also something there about how killing me would break the fabric of time. It would have messed up time to kill me as Umbridge before I affected the past as Tonks."
"So you had to get the note before I showed it to anyone."
"That's why I sent the Dementor after you."
"_You_ sent the Dementors?"
"I sent one. The Dark Lord must have figured out that you were going to Trelawney because she was the source of the lost prophecy, and sent the other."
"I got away because the two Dementors argued over me."
"That's why I made backup plans, like intercepting you today at the Ministry before you could report to Fudge."
"What are you going to with me now?"
"You can be killed while resisting arrest. You're already under suspicion. Aurors are allowed to use the death curse when they have to."
Percy realized he had to do something before she killed him. A wild plan came into his mind. Would she still be affected by this? He had to try it. He made a clip-clop sound with his tongue as Ron had done in the hospital.
Umbridge looked around wildly. In that instant, Percy grabbed a pile of books from the floor and threw them at her, knocking her wand from her hand. They both raced for it, but Umbridge was clumsy with age and tripped over a footstool. Percy got to the wand first and stunned her with it.
He had to report this to Fudge. It was after office hours, so he apparated straight to the Minister's house.