Eric had lost track of how long he had run. Tearing away from the Rookery, he transformed into the Beast to make better use of time and the London sewer system. Exhaustion began to creep into his limbs, and he knew he had to change back soon. He needed clothing and a place to hide, but he had no idea where to get them.
As Eric pondered these problems as he crawled through the sewer muck, he began to hear a voice calling to him. At first, he was sure he was hearing things, but the voice came through loud and clear. "Don't be afraid. Trust me, and I'll see that you're safe." Uncertain at first, he decided that his rather limited set of options made an investigation necessary. Peering out from a sewer grate, he was astounded to see a house materialize out of nowhere. "There is another sewer grate behind the house. No one will see you enter."
Following the instructions given, Eric found a coal chute in the back of the house, leading to the basement where he found a set of clothing was waiting for him. After an easy shift back to humanity, he found that not only were the clothes a Hogwarts uniform, they were his Hogwarts uniform. This meant that his benefactor knew him personally.
After he finished dressing, he was about to investigate the house when the ground-floor door opened, revealing Professor Dumbledore. "Ah, Eric. I am relieved to see that you are unharmed, and that you haven't yet lost the capacity to trust." He closed the door behind him. "I must ask a favor of you. We're having a rather difficult night, so I must ask that you keep to the basement for right now. Once you hear us leave, you may enter the kitchen, where a cot and food will be waiting. Take them downstairs with you and make yourself as comfortable as you can. I will fetch you in the morning."
Eric couldn't imagine what Dumbledore meant; but if he was having a difficult night, Eric knew the safest place would be out of sight. He waited an eternity of five minutes before entering the kitchen. True to the Professor's words, there was a small cot and some blankets. The stew in the kettle smelled heavenly, while the bread laid out on the table was warm and soft. He tried to compromise between taking as little as he could and as much as he dared before making his way back to the basement.
The house was enchanted, the home of a Great Family. Eric could feel it in the walls and timbers. Because of this, he decided to lay down some wards against bogarts and other vermin. Then, with a full belly and a warm blanket, he settled in for the night. With Dumbledore protecting him, he'd at least get a fresh start in the morning.
Eric's dreams that night were a jumbled mix of images. Shadows and shafts of light fought with one another for a gemstone – a giant dog fell and drowned in a pit of tar – and a snake was struck by a flaming bird as it constricted about a yearling stag. None of it made any sense, but in the morning it all left Eric feeling empty and alone.
In the morning Remus Lupin came down the stairs with a dusty quill. Professor Dumbledore had summoned him. Taking the quill, Eric found himself drawn back to Hogwarts courtyard, where Dumbledore was waiting for him. "Ah, Eric. I need a favor of you. I'm going into the Dark Forest to retrieve Professor Umbridge, and I'll need you to scout ahead for me."
Eric smiled to himself as he drew out his crystal. A quick sweep found the Inquisitor. While he couldn't make out all that was happening, he could see that she was terrified. "That way, sir; straight as the crow flies."
The headmaster smiled to him. "Excellently done. However, in this case I need a path that would avoid obstacles, traps and complications. I need a scout, my boy; not a compass."
Eric looked at the professor quizzically. "Um, sir, you know that for me to be any good at all, I'd have to..."
Dumbledore smiled. "Most likely, and we need to act quickly."
Moving off to a patch behind Hagrid's hut, Eric stripped down and transformed. It wasn't long before he discovered a scent which told him which professor he was seeking to hunt down. An overpowering scent of a really cheap perfume made it clear that he was hunting down Dolores Umbridge. He couldn't make out who else was there at first. Their scents were old and faint. After a while, though, he picked up an additional trail, ruggedly equine – Centaurs, then.
He followed the trail deeper and deeper into the forest. Several times he had to cut left or right to avoid traps, Devil's Snare, and a menagerie of unpleasant creatures. Eric expected that Dumbledore was somehow following him, though he never saw or heard the Headmaster. Finally, he came just shy of a clearing in which a centaur herd had Professor Umbridge surrounded.
A cackling laugh escaped him as he watched the creatures trot about her. She was tied about a tree with her wand stomped to splinters before her, while the elders spoke among themselves about what to do with her. Burning, thrashing, and whipping were all being discussed – as well as leaving her tied up for the werewolves. Eric was waiting anxiously to find out what they decided, hoping beyond hope for the last. He was disappointed, however, when Professor Dumbledore broke through the tree line into the circle.
The Professor was handling the group well, asking them to release Umbridge into his custody. The discussion, however, was not going well. Eric got the impression that, while Dumbledore may have had a good or at least amiable association with the centaurs in the past, the Ministry of Magic had done too much. The centaurs were livid about how they were viewed and dealt with. Humans violating their remaining spaces would pay; and it looked like Umbridge, and now Dumbledore, were going to be first.
As they began to circle about the Professor, it was clear that something had to be done. Moving to the tree line, he began to growl. The centaurs turned about to face him as the Beast, backing up in a horrified response to his appearance. Dumbledore, however, took advantage of the situation. "Noble elders: I see that you dislike this creature. It wasn't my intent that you would ever encounter him, but now it seems we have something to barter."
The professor walked over to Dolores Umbridge. "If you clear the way for myself and the professor here, I will take charge of the beast you see, making sure that it will never trouble you again." The centaurs looked to each other uncertainly before clearing a path. Drawing out his wand, Dumbledore hexed the rope to release Dolores, then waved it at Eric – indicating that he was to leave.