Were shaking with shock. She fumbled in a pile of documents balanced on the chair

beside her, finally withdrawing a sheaf of parchment with Mrs. Cattermole’s name on it.

“That’s – that’s pretty, Dolores,” she said, pointing at the pendant gleaming in the

ruffled folds of Umbridge’s blouse.

“What?” snapped Umbridge, glancing down. “Oh yes – an old family heirloom,”

she said, patting the locket lying on her large bosom. “The S stands for Selwyn…. I am

related to the Selwyns…. Indeed, there are few pure-blood families to whom I am not

related. …A pity,” she continued in a louder voice, flicking through Mrs. Cattermole’s

questionnaire, “that the same cannot be said for you. ‘Parents professions:

greengrocers’.”

Yaxley laughed jeeringly. Below, the fluffy silver cat patrolled up and down, and

The dementors stood waiting in the corners.

It was Umbridge’s lie that brought the blood surging into Harry’s brain and

obliterated his sense of caution – that the locket she had taken as a bribe from a petty

Criminal was being used to bolster her own pure-blood credentials. He raised his wand,

Not even troubling to keep it concealed beneath the Invisibility Cloak, and said,

“Stupefy!”

There was a flash of red light; Umbridge crumpled and her forehead hit the edge

of the balustrade: Mrs. Cattermole’s papers slid off her lap onto the floor and, down

below, the prowling silver cat vanished. Ice-cold air hit them like an oncoming wind:

Yaxley, confused, looked around for the source of the trouble and saw Harry’s

disembodied hand and wand pointing at him. He tried to draw his own wand, but too late:

“Stupefy!”

Yaxley slid to the ground to lie curled on the floor.

“Harry!”

“Hermione, if you think I was going to sit here and let her pretend –“

“Harry, Mrs. Cattermole!”

Harry whirled around, throwing off the Invisibility Cloak; down below, the

Dementors had moved out of their corners; they were gliding toward the woman chained

to the chair: Whether because the Patronus had vanished or because they sensed that their

Masters were no longer in control, they seemed to have abandoned restraint. Mrs.

Cattermole let out a terrible scream of fear as a slimy, scabbed hand grasped her chin and

Forced her face back.

“EXPECTO PATRONUM!”

The silver stag soared from the tip of Harry’s wand and leaped toward the

dementors, which fell back and melted into the dark shadows again. The stag’s light,

more powerful and more warming than the cat’s protection, filled the whole dungeon as it

Cantered around the room.

“Get the Horcrux,” Harry told Hermione.

He ran back down the steps, stuffing the Invisibility Cloak into his back, and

Approached Mrs. Cattermole.

“You?” she whispered, gazing into his face. “But – but Reg said you were the one

who submitted my name for questioning!”

“Did I?” muttered Harry, tugging at the chains binding her arms, “Well, I’ve had

a change of heart. Diffindo!” Nothing happened. “Hermione, how do I get rid of these

chains?”

“Wait, I’m trying something up here –“

“Hermione, we’re surrounded by dementors!”

“I know that, Harry, but if she wakes up and the locket’s gone – I need to

duplicate it – Geminio! There… That should fool her….”

Date: 2015-12-11; view: 669