Dark Defense

Career Advice.

Dolores Umbridge stormed into the dusty, tiny little office that she had been allotted for her personal use during her stay here at Hogwarts, the High Inquisitor and all around Ministry Toady gnashing her sharp little teeth, what few remained from the bludger incident, so tightly that they threatened to crack, ripping wildly at her hair as she raged at this latest failure to make any headway in the Minister's plan to curtail Hogwarts to the Ministry's standards.

'How dare he!' she snarled, wringing the air before her heatedly as she recalled the cold, evaluating look that the blue clad bane of her existence had leveled at her employer 'How DARE he mock the ministry in such a direct fashion!'

Not only had Minister Fudge been humiliated, albeit in private mercifully, as the poor man had so much going through his mind as it was without having his good name dragged through the mud any further. How that Skeeter woman could sink so low as to spread such lies in the QUIBBLER of all things, but Dumbledore had managed to pull this latest affront off WITHOUT breaking any of the laws that they'd dug up in order to discredit the old codger. Not only that, but the old coot hadn't even DONE anything this time round, leaving the actual humiliating to that blue-clad interloper, who once again had been directly involved in ruining their plans, including the ones that, Umbridge had been confident, would see to his dismissal.

It had all been rather ironclad, while it was true that yes, the headmaster had EVERY right to select his own staff, something that would need to be addressed later on in Umbridge's opinion, this did not mean he could just grab any lowlife thug off the street who'd survived being cursed. And it CERTAINLY didn't give him permission to seek aid from outside the Magical Community. Hiring from abroad was all well and good, frowned upon on as a matter of civic pride, but hardly illegal, however hiring a MUGGLE, as she was confident Virgil had never used a wand since arriving at Hogwarts, WAS.

But no, much to Umbridge's rage, the report had come in that yes, Virgil did indeed have ties to the magical community, simply not the British one. It turned out the man's mother WAS, in fact, a witch, and had studied at none other than Beaxbatons, considered the French equivalent of Hogwarts. Not only that, but contrary to Umbridge's hope that the man was of inferior stock, the report had gone on to reveal that the woman, long dead, had graduated from the academy at the top of her class, and had served both as prefect, then Head Girl and Captain of their Quidditch team, and was apparently from some minor European wizarding nobility.

So, much to Umbridge's displeasure, it seemed that not only did Virgil have a solid, virtually adamantine alibi, for being involved in wizarding affairs, he apparently, at least as far as peerage went, was FAR more certifiable than the Ministry Toady, despite the fact he'd never so much as lifted a wand.

It didn't help that, unlike the British ministry, their mainland equivalents DID see the value of Demonology, and it was still taught at all European magical institutions, most notably Durmstrang. The Headmistress of Beaxbatons had actually written a letter congratulating Dumbledore on his sense in restarting the program, and offered additional aid in continuing it upon Professor Virgil's conclusion of his term as Professor.

'Savages!' the ministry Toady swore, gnashing her horrid teeth together as she wrung her hands, desperately pacing back and forth as she cursed Virgil, Dumbledore, and the French, with every fiber of her being 'The very idea! Bad enough Dumbledore and Potter are spreading hogwash that Voldemort has returned, now this…Neanderthal, is training students to be soldiers!'

This would not do, she decided, her eyes narrowing venomously as she turned her mind to the task at hand, years of experience in underhanded dealings and behind-closed-doors activities now turning their full attention to this latest threat. If it was the last thing they did the Ministry of Magic would not accept this complete disregard for their doctrine, not while Delores Umbridge remained within a position to do something about it.