Call it what you want {Theodore Nott}

chapter thirty-nine

"Well, good afternoon!"

Everyone was seated in the Defence Against the Dark Arts classroom as Umbridge was sat at the teachers desk wearing the same fully pink cardigan as the night before.

"An outfit repeater, really?" Iris whispered sounding unimpressed.

"Someone tell this woman to ditch the pink." Amy replied.

Umbridge straightened up, "Wands away and quills out, please." She said sweetly.

Many of the class exchanged gloomy looks; the order 'wands away' had never yet been followed by a lesson they had found interesting. Amy shoved her wand back inside her bag and pulled out a quill, purposefully slamming it down. Professor Umbridge opened her handbag, extracted her own wand, which was an unusually short one, and tapped the blackboard sharply with it; words appeared on the board at once:

DEFENCE AGAINST THE DARK ARTS
A return to Basic Principles

"Well now, your teaching in this subject has been rather disrupted and fragmented, hasn't it?" Started Umbridge, turning to face the class with her hands clasped nearly in front of her. "The constant changing of teachers, many of whom do not seem to have followed any Ministry-approved curriculum, has unfortunately resulted in your being far below the standard we would expect to see in your O.W.L. year. You will be pleased to know, however, that these problems are now to be rectified. We will be following a carefully structured, theory-centred, Ministry-approved course of defensive magic this year. Copy down the following, please."
She tapped the blackboard again; the first message vanished and was replaced by the "Course Aims."

1. Understanding the principles underlying defensive magic.

2. Learning to recognise situations in which defensive magic can legally be used.

3. Placing the use of defensive magic in a context for practical use.

For a couple of minutes, the room was full of the sound of scratching quills on parchment. When everyone had copied down Professor Umbridge's three course aims she asked, "Has everybody got a copy of Defensive Magical Theory by Wilbert Slinkhard?"

There was a dull murmur of assent through the class.

"I think we'll try that again," said Umbridge. "When I ask you a question, I should like you to reply, 'Yes Professor Umbridge' or 'No Professor Umbridge'. So: has everyone got a copy of Defensive Magical Theory by Wilbert Slinkhard?"

"Yes, Professor Umbridge," rang through the room. Amy made sure to say it as unenthusiastically as possible.

"Good," she said. "I should like you to turn to page five and read 'Chapter One, Basics for Beginners.' There will be no need to talk."

"We're not beginners." Amy called out bluntly. Not being able to hide her attitude anymore.

Everyone in the room seemed relieved as someone was finally saying what they were all thinking.

Umbridge likes to her and smiled a little too sweetly. "You may as well be dear." She said, not changing her expression whatsoever. She left the blackboard and settled herself in the chair behind the teacher's desk.

Amy scoffed and opened her book to page five and stared aimlessly at the words. She could remember reading it in her first year. She looked around the room and saw how everyone else seemed to be doing the same thing. She caught the eyes of Theo who was looking at her smiling. Amy furrowed her eyebrows confused and Theo lifted up a small piece of parchment which had a drawing of a toad in a pink fluffy cardigan.