October ended in a raging storm, and November arrived like iron frost, cold enough to freeze through bone. Each morning brought a layer of hardened frost, and the wind bit at hands and cheeks like knives. The sky and the enchanted ceiling of the Great Hall turned a dull blue-gray. Snow capped the mountains surrounding Hogwarts, and the temperature inside the castle dropped so much that students wore thick dragon-hide gloves during breaks in the corridors.
On the very first weekend of November, Slytherin and Gryffindor faced off in a Quidditch match. Gryffindor took the victory, but the aftermath was far from ideal. Harry, Fred, and George got into a full-blown fight with Malfoy.
Because of the newly issued Educational Decree Number Twenty-Five, Umbridge banned Harry and the twins from playing Quidditch.
By mid-November, Hagrid, absent for quite some time, finally returned to teaching. Bundled tightly against the cold, Anne stood among the Slytherin crowd. This was Hagrid's first class back.
"We'll be having class here today!" Hagrid called out cheerfully, jerking his thumb toward the dark forest behind him. "It's a bit dense in the forest, but they like the dark!"
Fanny leaned in close to Anne and whispered, "What happened to Hagrid's face? Is he seriously going to show us some weird creature on his very first class back? Does he even realize what's going on at Hogwarts these days?"
Anne shook her head slightly, signaling she didn't know. "Honestly, I don't think anything scares him."
"Ready?" Hagrid swept his eyes over the class with a grin. "Good. I've saved a forest excursion for you fifth-years. Thought you'd like to see these creatures in their natural environment. They're incredibly rare, I might be the only one in all of Britain who's managed to tame 'em."
"You sure they're tamed?" Malfoy asked, his voice tight with fear. "Not like it'd be the first time you brought a wild beast to class, right?"
Many of the Slytherins murmured their agreement, and even a few Gryffindors looked like they thought Malfoy had a point.
"They're tame," Hagrid said firmly, frowning as he hefted the half-carcass of a dead cow higher onto his shoulder.
"Then what happened to your face?" Malfoy asked pointedly.
"None of your business!" Hagrid snapped. "Now, if you're done askin' stupid questions, follow me!"
He turned and strode straight into the forest. Snow had gathered thickly among the trees, and the students trudged behind him, stumbling through the drifts.
After about ten minutes of walking, they reached a dense, twilight-like part of the woods where no snow covered the ground. The tree canopy above was so thick it swallowed the light. Hagrid dropped the half-cow onto the forest floor with a grunt and stepped back a few paces to face the class.
Many students pressed behind tree trunks, eyes darting nervously around the gloom as they inched closer, like they were ready to run at the first sign of trouble.
"Gather 'round, come on," Hagrid encouraged. "They'll be drawn to the smell of meat, but I'll call 'em anyway, they like hearin' me voice."
He turned his back to the class, shook his head to toss away hair covering his face, then let out a strange, high-pitched cry that echoed through the forest. It sounded like the shriek of some massive bird. No one laughed, most looked too frightened to make a sound.
Hagrid called out again. A minute passed. The students stood tense, scanning their surroundings, unsure what might emerge.
Anne saw it first.
Between two gnarled yew trees in the shadows, a pair of glowing white eyes appeared, growing larger as something stepped forward. Then came the dragon-like face, the long, sinewy neck, the gaunt, skeletal body. A massive black horse with leathery wings emerged from the darkness. It stared at the students for a few seconds, swished its long, shadowy tail, then lowered its head and sank sharp teeth into the dead cow.
This is our first class back?
Anne frowned. This didn't seem like a good idea at all.
Fanny clutched Anne's arm tightly and pointed toward the carcass of the dead cow. Her voice trembled.
"Anne, something's eating the meat…"
She wasn't the only one afraid. More than a few students were staring in horror as chunks of meat peeled themselves from the bones and vanished into thin air.
Several girls let out sharp screams.
"Oh! No, no, don't be scared!" Hagrid said cheerily as he stepped beside the carcass and patted the head of a Thestral, which had appeared beside him. Two more emerged from the shadows behind him.
Anne felt Fanny's grip on her arm tighten even more.
"It's okay, Fanny," Anne said, trying to calm her. "Just three Thestrals."
"What are, "
"Thestrals!" Hagrid said proudly, giving the nearest one an affectionate pat on the head.
Anne felt several curious Gryffindor eyes shift toward her, but she kept her gaze fixed firmly on the Thestral next to Hagrid, pretending not to notice.
"Now, if you can see them, raise your hand."
Harry, Neville, a Slytherin boy, and finally Anne herself raised their hands.
"Mmm? I knew you would, Harry," Hagrid said seriously. "And you too, Neville. And, "
"But they're so, so unlucky!" Parvati suddenly interrupted, looking horrified. "They bring misfortune to anyone who sees them! Professor Trelawney told me once, "
"No, no, no," Hagrid chuckled. "That's just superstition. Nothing unlucky about them. They're clever and useful creatures. Not that this lot has much to do, they mostly just pull the school carriages. Unless Dumbledore's going on a long trip and doesn't want to Apparate, oh, look, here comes another pair, "
Two more Thestrals silently emerged from the woods. One brushed past Parvati, who let out a whimper and clung to a tree.
"I think… I think something's right next to me!" she gasped.
"Don't worry. It won't hurt you," Hagrid said patiently. "Now, who can tell me why some of you can see them, and some can't?"
This time, Hermione didn't raise her hand. Ron's shot up instead.
"Mmm?" Hagrid blinked, then smiled. "Alright, Ron, go ahead."
"You can only see Thestrals if you've seen someone die," Ron said, a little breathlessly.
"Exactly," Hagrid said gravely. "Well done, ten points to Gryffindor. Thestrals, "
"Ahem. Ahem."
Professor Umbridge had arrived. She stood a few feet from Harry, wearing a bright green hat and matching cloak, clipboard in hand. Hagrid, unfamiliar with her theatrical coughs, glanced nervously at a nearby Thestral, clearly thinking it was the source of the sound.
"Ahem. Ahem."
"Oh, hello!" Hagrid smiled as he finally noticed her.
"Did you get the note I sent to your cabin this morning?" Umbridge asked, speaking slowly and loudly, as if Hagrid were a dim-witted foreigner. "It said I would be observing your lesson."
"Oh, got it!" Hagrid said heartily. "Glad you found your way! So, don't know if you can see 'em, we're doing Thestrals today, "
"Sorry?" Umbridge cupped a hand around her ear, frowning deeply. "What was that?"
Hagrid looked confused.
"Er, Thestrals!" he said louder. "Big horses, er, wings, you know!"
He flapped his thick arms awkwardly. Umbridge raised an eyebrow and wrote on her clipboard as she muttered,
"Relies on crude, clumsy gestures…"
"Right," Hagrid said, turning back to the class, clearly rattled. "Er… where was I?"
"Appears… forgetful?" Umbridge said loudly enough for everyone to hear.
Hagrid gave her clipboard a wary glance but pressed on bravely.
"Right, so, I was going to tell you how this herd got here. Started with one male and five females. This one here, " he patted the first to appear, ", this one's Ooo, my favorite. First one born right here in the forest, "
"Are you aware," Umbridge interrupted loudly, "that the Ministry of Magic classifies Thestrals as dangerous creatures?"
"Thestrals aren't dangerous!" Hagrid said, flustered. "Sure, if you really rile one up, it might bite,"
"Displays… aggressive pleasure?" Umbridge muttered while scribbling more notes.
"No! That's not what I meant!" Hagrid said quickly. "I mean, dogs can bite too, right? People just think Thestrals are unlucky because of the whole death thing. But that's ignorance, that's all."
Umbridge didn't respond. She finished writing, then looked up and said loudly, "Please proceed with your usual lesson style. I will be…", she pointed to various students, "walking among the pupils…"
She mimed walking, while Malfoy and Pansy Parkinson stifled giggles. "Asking a few questions." She pointed to her mouth to demonstrate.
Hagrid stared at her, clearly baffled by her pantomime, as though she believed he didn't understand normal English.
"Er, right," Hagrid said, trying to refocus. "So, these Thestrals… real useful, actually, "
"Pansy, dear," Umbridge asked sweetly, "Can you understand Professor Hagrid?"
Pansy was nearly in tears from holding back laughter. "No, not really, it kind of sounds like… bluh bluh bluh sometimes…"
Umbridge scribbled furiously. Hagrid's face, the few unbruised patches of skin turning red, tried to pretend he hadn't heard.
"Er, right. So, Thestrals. Good sense of direction, amazing, really. Once they're trained like this lot, you won't ever get lost. Just tell 'em where you want to go, "
"You can see Thestrals, can't you, Longbottom?" she asked coldly.
Neville nodded.
"Who did you see die?" she asked, emotionless.
"M-my grandfather," Neville mumbled.
"And what do you think of them?" she asked, gesturing to the now mostly skeletal cow carcass being stripped apart by the Thestrals.
Neville glanced nervously at Hagrid. "They're… they're alright."
"Student… afraid to admit fear," Umbridge narrated as she took more notes.
"No! I'm not afraid of them! " Neville said anxiously.
"It's okay," Umbridge said, patting him on the shoulder. She smiled, clearly pleased with herself.
"Well, Hagrid," she said slowly and loudly again, looking up at him, "I believe I've gathered… enough."
She held up ten short fingers. "You will receive", she mimed grabbing something from the air, "your assessment." She pointed to her clipboard.
Then, looking more smug than ever beneath her green hat, she swept off through the students like a self-satisfied toad.
Hagrid looked visibly relieved once she was gone. His confidence returned, and he began speaking much more smoothly. He explained in detail how he had discovered and trained the Thestrals, even calling more over for the students to touch. He moved among them, guiding and encouraging.
A young Thestral walked up beside Anne and nudged her gently. She let out a small giggle.
Fanny was standing behind her, gripping Anne's shoulders and not daring to step forward.
"Hey! Fanny, it's just a little one," Anne said, laughing. "It doesn't even have all its teeth yet. Come on, step closer, "
Fanny eyed the air in front of Anne suspiciously. "Are you sure?"
"Of course I'm sure. Why would I lie?" Anne stroked the Thestral's head. "Now stretch your hand out, "
Fanny cautiously extended a hand. Anne grinned and pushed it gently onto the creature's head. Fanny nearly screamed but managed to clamp a hand over her mouth just in time.
"Haha," Anne teased mercilessly. "You're such a scaredy-cat. Remember at the start of term, well, anyway, it won't bite."
After that first touch, Fanny was a bit more confident. "Wow… this is its head, right? Are all baby Thestrals this short?"
"Yup, that's its head. It's trying to nuzzle you," Anne said. Then, as she glanced casually toward the Gryffindor group, she accidentally locked eyes with Hermione.
Both of them froze for a moment… and then looked away at the same time.
"Anne, why's it so skinny?" Fanny asked, now crouched and running her hand along its wing.
Anne crouched too. "That's its wing, and Thestrals are just naturally thin."
The bell rang to end the class. Hagrid led everyone back out of the forest.
The two classes split off, following the snowy path they had come down to return to the castle.
"That was an amazing lesson! I bet Thestrals aren't on the O.W.L.s, are they?" Fanny asked, full of excitement.
Anne nodded. "Nope. That's N.E.W.T.-level material."
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