Sunlight pierced through the clouds and illuminated the earth. Hogwarts welcomed its first weekend after the start of term.
Umbridge's arrival had made the week feel especially long, like a History of Magic class that had only just begun.
The dormitory was silent with sleep. Eda got out of bed and pushed the window open slightly. A fresh, cool breeze immediately blew into the warm room, making her feel refreshed.
Eda stretched her hands out of the window. Only after quite some time, when her hands had become cold, did she pull them back inside.
Next, Eda walked toward Angelina's bed. Angelina was still deep in her dreams, breathing slowly and evenly, with a smile on her lips. She seemed to be dreaming that she had once again led Gryffindor to win the Quidditch Cup.
Eda revealed a devilish smile. She suddenly reached her hands into the warm blankets and placed her freezing hands against Angelina's flat stomach.
Angelina, still in the middle of her sweet dream, let out a startled cry and abruptly sat up in bed, glaring furiously. Her expression looked as though she wanted to tear Eda apart.
Alicia and Katie, who were also fast asleep, were awakened by the noise. They glanced toward the source of the commotion and saw that Eda and Angelina were only silently staring at each other, so they went back to sleep.
Still groggy, they had yet to realize what was about to happen.
Eda placed her index finger against her lips and made a "shh" gesture. Angelina immediately understood and swallowed all the swear words she had been about to unleash.
Quietly getting out of bed, Angelina also came to the window. She and Eda simultaneously stuck their hands outside the window, both of them wearing devilish smiles.
After a while, another sharp cry rang out through the quiet dormitory. The difference was that this time there were two cries.
Alicia and Katie were once again jolted awake from their dreams.
The weekend began with cheerful horseplay.
It was not until their stomachs began growling with hunger that the four girls, all with their clothes in disarray, finally stopped. They each changed their clothes and left the dormitory.
Eda had thought this weekend would be as pleasant as the morning, but when she saw that day's Daily Prophet, she realized she might have been a little too optimistic.
ILLEGAL ENTRY INTO THE MINISTRY OF MAGIC
Sturgis Podmore, aged thirty-eight, who resides at Number 2, Laburnum Gardens, Clapham, was recently tried before the Wizengamot on charges of illegally entering the Ministry of Magic on August 31 and attempting to commit robbery.
Podmore was caught by Ministry security guard Eric Munch, who discovered him attempting to break through a Level One security door at one in the morning.
Podmore refused to defend himself and was found guilty on both charges, receiving six months in Azkaban.
Looking at the report, Eda, sitting in a soft armchair, became the Thinker, except that she was a clothed Thinker.
Sturgis Podmore was a member of the Order of the Phoenix.
He had gone to Privet Drive to escort Harry during his transfer, and he had also been selected as one of the guards to escort Harry to King's Cross.
However, Podmore had not shown up on the day Harry was taken to the station. Clearly, he had already been caught by Munch by then.
Why had he entered the Ministry in the middle of the night? Had he received an order from the Order of the Phoenix?
No, Podmore had not entered the Ministry on the Order of the Phoenix's instructions. If he had received an order, Moody would not have arranged for him to escort Harry, and Moody would also have known that he had been caught by the Ministry.
So this should have been Podmore's personal action. Was there something behind that Level One security door that had attracted him?
What could have made Sturgis Podmore disregard his mission for the Order of the Phoenix and take such a dangerous risk?
Perhaps Eda should ask Dumbledore about it instead of sitting alone at breakfast and making wild guesses. But when Eda raised her head and looked toward the staff table, she discovered that Dumbledore was not in his usual place.
She folded the newspaper and stopped letting her imagination run wild, continuing with her breakfast.
Just when Eda thought this weekend would be uneventful after all, Sunday's Daily Prophet once again told Eda that she was still too young and too inexperienced.
The front page on Sunday featured a huge photograph of Umbridge, occupying the entire page.
In Fred's words, wouldn't putting a photograph of Umbridge in the Daily Prophet be afraid of affecting its sales? Apparently, they really weren't afraid. Or perhaps they were worried but had no choice.
In the photograph, Umbridge had a huge smile on her face, her eyes blinking repeatedly. The headline read:
MINISTRY OF MAGIC SEEKS EDUCATIONAL REFORM
Dolores Umbridge Appointed
First High Inquisitor
~ of the Ministry of Magic
The Ministry of Magic's bullshit had once again broken through its lower limit.
First, the Ministry had shoved Umbridge into the school through Educational Decree Number Twenty-Two.
Now, it had appointed her as High Inquisitor through Educational Decree Number Twenty-Three. There was really no Fucking way to describe it.
And the reason for appointing Umbridge as an inquisitor was that she had achieved great success at Hogwarts, bringing about revolutionary changes to Defense Against the Dark Arts.
Magic had successfully redefined the concept of "great success." Truly astonishing.
The Daily Prophet also interviewed students' parents. Mr. Lucius Malfoy, who was more than happy to reveal his name, strongly supported the Ministry's new measures, believing that the Ministry should have taken control of Hogwarts long ago.
Of course, not everyone supported the Ministry. Wizengamot elders Griselda Marchbanks and Tiberius Ogden raised objections. Then the two of them were forced to resign and were investigated for secretly colluding with a goblin subversion organization.
Eda did not know Tiberius Ogden, but she knew Griselda Marchbanks.
That old lady was even older than Dumbledore. A woman of that age secretly colluding with a goblin subversion organization? What kind of brain-dead charge was that? It was absolutely ridiculous.
What did it mean to have absolute power? This was what it meant to have absolute power.
Putting down the Daily Prophet once again, Eda believed that Voldemort, hiding somewhere in a corner, must be "smiling like a flower" at this moment.
Eda also realized that appointing Umbridge as High Inquisitor was merely the beginning. Internal fighting? The Ministry of Magic was truly an expert at it.
...
The weekend passed, and a new week arrived. High Inquisitor Umbridge began her work, appearing in classrooms for various subjects and inspecting the Hogwarts professors.
This made Eda, who had intended to avoid seeing her altogether, cry out in despair. She had stopped attending Defense Against the Dark Arts, yet she could still see Umbridge. It was too cruel.
During Charms, Umbridge used a measuring tape to measure Professor Flitwick's height, nearly making the good-tempered professor jump onto his desk. Umbridge also asked the students several questions. After failing to receive answers that satisfied her, she walked toward the Slytherin students.
During Herbology, Umbridge huddled in a corner, constantly writing something on her clipboard.
Her brows were knitted together as though a fly had landed on her face. She clearly disliked the smell in the greenhouse, and she also disliked the down-to-earth Professor Sprout, who smelled strongly of fertilizer.
During Ancient Runes, Umbridge sat in a corner, nodding off, with her notebook casually tossed aside.
Perhaps because she was somewhat nervous and frightened, Professor Bathsheda Babbling's usual stand-up routine was gone, replaced by a rigid, by-the-book lesson. Professor Babbling without her jokes had no soul, and her class had become dull and boring.
Eda was almost falling asleep too. It was the most boring Ancient Runes lesson she had ever attended.
During Potions, Eda eagerly waited for Snape to punish Umbridge, only to be disappointed. The Potions professor treated Umbridge like unpleasant air. He merely wore his usual sour expression and paced around the dungeon classroom.
Finally, finally, during Transfiguration, Eda got what she wanted. Professor McGonagall tore into Umbridge.
At the beginning of the lesson, Professor McGonagall had also treated Umbridge in the corner of the classroom like air, simply leaving her to do as she pleased. But Umbridge seemed very dissatisfied with being ignored, so she repeatedly interrupted and disrupted Professor McGonagall's lesson.
Umbridge's suicidal behavior instantly sent Professor McGonagall's anger through the roof. She shouted, "No one is to interrupt me while I am speaking. If you cannot manage that, leave immediately!"
This was not the first time Umbridge had inspected Professor McGonagall's class. The first time had been during a fifth-year lesson, when the two had already argued over Umbridge's interruptions.
Professor McGonagall had been teaching at Hogwarts for thirty-nine years. She was also a highly respected authority in the field of Transfiguration. For the Ministry of Magic to send a little Umbridge to inspect her was already an insult.
And on top of that, Umbridge showed absolutely no respect for Minerva McGonagall, nor for the other professors.
She really had absolutely no self-awareness.
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