The Princess of Light

Chapter 5.29 (The centaur and the sneak)

Hogwarts Castle
Hogwarts grounds, Scotland
4 March 1996

"Where's Harry?" Elizabeth asked as she popped a baked potato in her mouth.

"With Snape," Aurora answered. She was picking at her food. She absolutely loathed Mondays. Not only did she have all of her least favourite subjects on Monday, Harry was also in Occlumency lessons with Snape and it made her sick with worry, knowing he would come out of it with a terrible headache and a burning scar.

"You know, I heard Umbridge has finally made the decision about who to throw out." Victoria whispered, glancing at the Head Table.

"It must be Trelawney." Hermione said, sounding as though she was trying to convince herself. "I mean she's a fraud with a drinking problem."

"Yes, but still, Hagrid hasn't had a good class in months. His mind's always somewhere else and his face is always filled with new bruises." Aurora pointed out. "Not exactly good teacher material. And apart from that, everyone knows Hagrid is probably the teacher most loyal to Dumbledore. Umbridge would want to get rid of that, wouldn't she?"

"Yeah, or keep him close so she could keep an eye on him." Hermione said. "I mean, like us she must be wondering where he gets all those bruises from and I don't think she'll sack him before she knows."

Elizabeth was going to say something but her head jerked upwards. A woman screamed from somewhere outside the Great Hall.

Professor McGonagall immediately hurried down from the staff table, out the door. Most students stayed seated, not sure what to do. But when the woman screamed again, they all started filing out of the Great Hall. Elizabeth and Aurora elbowed their way through the crowd and managed to get in front, right beside Professor McGonagall.

Professor Trelawney was standing in the middle of the Entrance Hall with her wand in one hand and an empty sherry bottle in the other, looking utterly mad. Her hair was sticking up on end, her glasses were lopsided so that one eye was magnified more than the other. Her innumerable shawls and scarves were trailing haphazardly from her shoulders, giving the impression that she was falling apart at the seams.

Two large trunks were thrown down the stairs, making the entire hall jump from the sudden noise.

Professor Trelawney was staring, apparently terrified, at something standing at the foot of the stairs. Aurora stood on her tiptoes to see Umbridge standing there with enjoyment stretching her toadlike face.

"No!" Trelawney shrieked. "NO! This cannot be happening...it cannot....I refuse to accept it!"

"You didn't realise this was coming?" Said the high girlish voice of Professor Umbridge, sounding callously amused. "Incapable though you are of predicting even tomorrow's weather, you must surely have realised that your pitiful performance during my inspections, and lack of any improvement, would make it inevitable that you would be sacked?"

"You c-can't!" Howled Professor Trelawney, tears streaming down her face from behind her enormous lenses. "You c-can't sack me! I've b-been here for sixteen years! H-Hogwarts is m-my h-home!"

"It was your home." Said Professor Umbridge, and Aurora was revolted by the widening of her toadlike smile as she watched Professor Trelawney sink, sobbing uncontrollably, on to one of her teunks. "Until an hour ago, when the Minister for Magic countersigned your Order of Dismissal. Now kindly remove yourself from this Hall. You are embarrassing us."

But she stood and watched, with an expression of gloating enjoyment, as Professor Trelawney shuddered and moaned, rocking backwards and forfwards on her trunk in paroxysms of grief.