Into The Light (Golden Trio Era) {2}

Inspecting Hagrid

The class stared for a couple seconds then a few people gasped. Parvati squealed loudly. "D'you think it's more interesting to watch when you can't see 'em?" Mikayla asked out of the corner of her mouth to Harry, who was still focused on the creatures. "What's doing it?" Parvati trembled and backed away to hide behind a tree. "What's eating it?" "Thestrals," said Hagrid proudly, puffing his chest out and beaming down at them. "Hogwarts has got a whole herd of 'em in here. Now, who knows-?" "But they're really, really unlucky," Interrupted Parvati. "They're supposed to bring all sorts of horrible misfortune on people who see them. Professor Trelawney told me once-" "No, no, no," said Hagrid, laughing. "tha's just superstition, that is, they aren' unlucky, they're dead clever an 'useful! 'Course, this lot don' get a lot o' work, it's mainly just pulln' the school carriages unless Dumbledore's takin' a long journey an' don't want ter Apparate- an' here's another couple, look-" Two more came quietly out of the trees toward the meat. One came very close to Parvati, who clung closer to the tree. "I think I felt something, I think it's near me!" "Don' worry it won't hurt yeh," he said reassuringly. "Right', now who can tell me why some o' yeh can see them an' some can't?" Hermione raised her hand confidently. "Go on then," Hagrid beamed. "The only people who can see thestrals," she started, her eyes darting to Mikayla and away a few times, "are people who have seen death." "Tha's exactly right," said Hagrid proudly but in a tone that wasn't any less serious than it should be on the matter. "Ten points ter Gryffindor. Now-"

"Hem, hem." Mikayla's head snapped toward the sound, Umbridge was standing there clutching her clipboard and handbag. Hagrid looked closely at the nearest thestral to him, probably convinced that it had made the noise, since he had never heard Umbridge's fake cough before.  "Hem, hem." she repeated her noisy little cough.  "Oh, hello!" Hagrid answered, figuring out the source of the odd noise.  "You received the note I sent to your cabin this morning?" She said in a slow, loud voice with exaggerated pronunciation, as if Hagrid had difficulty understanding English. "Telling you that I would be inspecting your lesson?"  "Oh, yeah," Hagrid answered brightly. "Glad yeh found the place all righ'! Well, as you can see- or, I dunno- can you? We're doin' thestrals today-"  "I'm sorry?" said Umbridge loudly, cupping one hand around her ear to hear him. "What did you say?"  Hagrid looked confused but answered politely, "Er, thestrals!" he said back loudly. "Big- ere- winged horses, yeh know!" He flapped his arms to mimic wings, hoping she would understand him. Umbridge raised an eyebrow at him and started to scribble on her clipboard, muttering along the way, " 'has... to... resort... to... crude... sign... language..." She read loud enough for the whole class, including Hagrid, to hear.  "Well... anyway..." said Hagrid, turning back to the class, looking flustered. "Erm... what was I sayin?"  "'Appears... to... have... poor... short... term... memory..." she continued narrating her inspection notes. Hagrid began to look severely disheartened. Draco, however, was looking ecstatic and filled with pure joy.  "Oh yeah," Hagrid said hesitantly, glancing over at Umbridge's clipboard. "Yeah, I was gonna tell yeh how come we got a herd. Yeah, so, we started off with a male and five females. This one," he patted the first thestrals to have appeared, "name o' Tenebrus, he's my special favorite, firs' one born here in the forest."  "Are you aware," Umbridge said loudly, starting as if she hadn't heard Hagrid talking, or hadn't cared. "that the Ministry of Magic has classified thestrals as 'dangerous'?" Mikayla crossed her arms and felt her face start to burn in anger. Hagrid seemed less annoyed, or even worried than the blonde, he only chuckled.  "Thestrals aren' dangerous! All righ, they might take a bite outta you if yeh really annoy them-"  " 'Shows... signs... of ... pleasure... at... idea... of... violence... ' " she turned back to her clipboard and wrote without hesitation.  "No- come on!" said Hagrid, his hands fidgeting anxiously now. "I mean, a dog'll bite if yeh bait it, won' it- but thestrals have jus' gotta bad reputation because o' the death thing- people used ter think they were bad omens, didn' they? Jus' didn' understand, did they?" Though Umbridge did not answer him, she did, however, look up at him, and say very loudly and slowly.