Supported & Torn (HP) {Book 3 of the Wild & Free Series}

16. Inside the Snake

After a large conversation with Hagrid that night, Harry, Ron, Rowan, Hermione and I learned that Hagrid had been trying to convince the giants in the mountains to join our side to fight against Voldemort.

Hagrid told us that he and Madame Maxine had given the giant chief gifts, but he was killed in a fight the next do, so there was a new chief. That chief wasn't very fond of Hagrid and Madame Maxine, but he was fond of the Death Eaters that visited him.

A few giants wanted to join Hagrid and Madame Maxine to help Dumbledore, but they were killed by the other giants, so Hagrid notified us that there would be no giants on our side.

After Hagrid's tale, Professor Umbridge visited him, causing us to disappear underneath the Invisibilty Cloak again.

Umbridge asked Hagrid about where he had been and he lied to her about it, of course, but she didn't look really convinced when she left.

Hagrid's reappearance at the staff table at breakfast next day was not greeted by enthusiasm from all students. Some, like Fred, George, and Lee, roared with delight and sprinted up the aisle between the Gryffindor and Hufflepuff tables to wring Hagrid's enormous hand; others, like Parvati and Lavender, exchanged gloomy looks and shook their heads. I knew that many of them preferred Professor Grubbly-Plank's lessons, and the worst of it was that a very small, unbiased part of me knew that they had good reason: Grubbly-Plank's idea of an interesting class was not one where there was a risk that somebody might have their head ripped off.
It was with a certain amount of apprehension that Harry, Ron, Rowan, Hermione and I headed down to Hagrid's on Tuesday, heavily muffled against the cold. I was worried, not only about what Hagrid might have decided to teach us, but also about how the rest of the class, particularly Malfoy and his cronies, would behave if Umbridge was watching us.

However, the High Inquisitor was nowhere to be seen as we struggled through the snow toward Hagrid, who stood waiting for us on the edge of the forest.

"We're workin' in here today!" Hagrid called happily to the approaching students, jerking his head back at the dark trees behind him. "Bit more sheltered! Anyway, they prefer the dark..."

"What prefers the dark?" I heard Malfoy say sharply to Crabbe and Goyle, a trace of panic in his voice. "What did he say prefers the dark — did you hear?"

I remembered the only occasion on which Malfoy had entered the forest before now; he had not been very brave then either. I smiled to myself; after the Quidditch match anything that caused Malfoy discomfort was all right with me.

"Ready?" said Hagrid happily, looking around at the class. "Right, well, I've bin savin' a trip inter the forest fer yer fifth year. Thought we'd go an' see these creatures in their natural habitat. Now, what we're studyin' today is pretty rare, I reckon I'm probably the on'y person in Britain who's managed ter train 'em —"

"And you're sure they're trained, are you?" said Malfoy, the panic in his voice even more pronounced now. "Only it wouldn't be the first time you'd brought wild stuff to class, would it?"

The Slytherins murmured agreement and a few Gryffindors looked as though they thought Malfoy had a fair point too.

" 'Course they're trained," said Hagrid, scowling and hoisting the dead cow a little higher on his shoulder. "Now if yeh've fin- ished askin' stupid questions, follow me!"

He turned and strode straight into the forest. Nobody seemed much disposed to follow. I glanced at Ron, Harry, Rowan and Hermione, who sighed but nodded, and the five of us set off after Hagrid, leading the rest of the class.