Diggory Is Still A Loser (book 2)

31- Nighttime Assault

Distancing herself from Harry seemed to be the only logical thing for Celia to do.
If she wanted to protect Harry and his future, she had to keep her pain to herself, and not get him or anyone else involved.
When Umbridge berated and shamed her in lessons, Celia said nothing to provoke her further.
And when she was forced to write lines in her own blood, she held her tongue.
Celia didn't want to do anything that would anger Umbridge further.
And to avoid facing her own roommates, Celia wouldn't return to her dormitory until late at night.
Instead she would stay in the owlery until around midnight, before returning to Ravenclaw tower, once she felt sure everyone would be asleep.

One night, Celia was looking at the grounds from the owlery, while she knew that Harry was doing is Astronomy exam.
She was about to turn and head back to her room, when she saw movement below her.
As she looked closer she saw several figures coming out of the castle.
She recognised Umbridge immediately, because of her ludicrous pink outfit, but Celia couldn't tell who the other people were as she was too far away and it was too dark. But they all had their wands raised, and they looked ready to do battle.

Although she couldn't see the other figures clearly, Celia knew that there was no good reason why Umbridge would be taking a walk around the grounds at night.
It took Celia a few minutes to realise that they were headed towards Hagrid's hut.
Concerned for his safety, Celia took off and sprinted towards McGonagall's office.
She knew that students were not allowed to walk around the castle at night, and she hoped that McGonagall wouldn't punish her for doing so. And she prayed that she didn't run into Filch or Mrs Norris on the way.

"Professor, I need to talk to you, it's an emergency" panted Celia, as she tried to get her breath back, once arriving at McGonagall's office.
"Is it Potter? Is he alright?" Asked McGonagall.
"Um, I think so. He's in his Astronomy exam right now. This isn't about him though" answered Celia.
"Then what is wrong, and why have you come to me at this time of night?".

"I just saw Umbridge heading towards Hagrid's cabin, with what looked like a bunch of aurors around her. I'm worried about what they are going to do" revealed Celia.
"I must head there at once to assess the situation. You should return to your dormitory" instructed McGonagall.
"Not a chance, I'm coming with you, because I'm not letting you take them on alone" informed Celia.
"I can take care of myself"
"I know that, but I still don't like the idea of you being hopelessly outnumbered. So I'm coming with you"
"I would prefer it if you didn't, but since I don't have time to argue with you, I will have to allow you to accompany me".

McGonagall and Celia began speed walking out of the castle, heading towards Hagrid's hut, where they heard raised voices and flashing lights.
"Be reasonable Hagrid" shouted one of the men.
As they got closer, Celia saw the aurors attempting to stun Hagrid, and failing because of the giants blood inside him.
"Reasonable be dammed, you won't take me like this, Dawlish" yelled Hagrid.
Celia watched as Fang tried to defend his master, and ended up getting Stunned.
Hagrid furiously picked up one of the attackers, and threw him into the air.
The man landed around 10 feet away, and did not get up.

"How dare you! How dare you!" Shouted McGonagall, as she advanced on the group attacking Hagrid.
"Stay out of this" ordered Umbridge.
McGonagall pushed Celia to the side, before continuing on towards Umbridge.
"Absolutely not" informed McGonagall.
"This is a Ministry matter, Minerva. And you are not a member of the Ministry, so you should head on back to the castle" announced Umbridge.
"I'm not going anwhere. Leave him alone! Alone, I say! On what grounds are you attacking him? He has done nothing, nothing to warrant such a-" McGonagall was interrupted when 4 Stunning spells were shot directly at her by the aurors, causing her to drop to the ground.

Celia screamed and ran to McGonagall's aid.
The teacher was still alive, but she had been knocked out cold.
All the anger inside of Celia reached a boiling point, and she removed her wand from her pocket, before standing up to face the Ministry workers.
She knew that she couldn't take them all on at once, but Celia wasn't going to be a bystander to tragedy anymore.
Celia sent a Stunning spell at the nearest auror, but he deflected it.
Another man sent the disarming spell at Celia, but he did it with such strength that she was thrown several feet away, into a nearby tree.
Celia dropped her wand as her head smashed against the tree, causing her to go dizzy.

As Celia struggled to keep her eyes open, she saw blurry images of Hagrid taking out the remaining attackers.
Hagrid then picked up an unconscious Fang and ran off into the distance, with Umbridge chasing after him.
Celia could feel something running down her face, and as she touched it, she realised it was blood.
She knew that she couldn't wait for help to arrive, so she pushed herself up into a standing position.
This movement caused her to stumble and feel rather queasy, but she refused to sit back down.

After picking up her wand, Celia made her way over to McGonagall.
She removed the Stunning spell, but McGonagall still did not wake up.
With no other choice, Celia lifted up her teacher, and placed an arm around her.
She then began to drag McGonagall back towards the castle, hoping that Madam Pomfrey would be able to sort them both out.
When she saw Hogwarts coming into view she watched as a blurry figure began to run towards them.
But before Celia could see who it was, she passed out on the floor, unable to stay awake any longer.