PoA Re-Read: Chapters Fifteen and Sixteen
We left off with Sirius breaking into the boys' dormitory, Remus finding out about the map, and Hermione telling Harry and Ron Buckbeak's fate.
Chapter Fifteen: The Quidditch Final
Hermione hands Harry the letter; it's a brief letter smudged with Hagrid's tears. Short letter even shorter, they lost the trial, meaning that Buckbeak will be executed. Aww.
Hermione is in tears, and says that Lucius frightened the Committee into it. That's MoM justice for you. There's going to be an appeal, but Hermione doesn't think it means anything.
Ron says it will, that he'll help her help Hagrid this time, and Hermione flings her arms around him, sobbing. Ron awkwardly pats her head as she says she's sorry about Scabbers. Ron shrugs it off, saying he was old anyway, and maybe now his parents will let him get an owl. I'd comment on how abrupt their make-up was, except that's pretty much how teenagers reconcile. Besides, their priorities have been forced straight, I think.
Because of the security measures, it is now impossible to visit Hagrid anytime other than Care of Magical Creatures class. Hagrid seems numb with shock, and waves off Ron's words of hope and encouragement. He retreats to his cabin, crying.
Some distance away, the Green Plastics are jeering. Draco says he's never seen anything more pathetic. Harry and Ron are about to make him sorry, but Hermione gets there before them.
Much to everyone's surprise (except everyone who's read this book 500 times), she smacks Draco hard across the face. Draco is physically and emotionally staggered; Hermione raises her hand as if to dare him to say anything else, calling him foul and evil. Ron tries to grab Hermione's hand, but she pushes him away and grabs her wand. Draco tells his entourage to follow him, and they walk away.
Hermione tells Harry he'd "better" beat Draco in the Quidditch final, because she can't stand the thought of Slytherin winning. Ron calmly reminds them it's time for Charms. Aww. I've missed Ron being Hermione's voice of calm, not her source of agitation.
Flitwick tells Harry and Ron they're late, but makes no comment about Hermione. This is because she isn't even there, nor does she turn up all lesson, which is a shame as they're working on Cheering Charms. Hermione doesn't show up at lunch, and Ron worries that Draco did something to her.
When they get back to the Common Room, Hermione is sleeping with her head on an Arithmancy book. Harry wakes her up, and asks why she didn't come to Charms; Hermione realizes in horror that she "forgot" to go because she was thinking about Draco. Ron points out that maybe Hermione's thinking a bit too much altogether, but Hermione just rushes off to apologize to Flitwick.
We see Hermione again when she appears by the Divination ladder, upset because she missed Cheering Charms, which Flitwick implied would be on their exams. They ascend into the room to see crystal balls. Trelawney announces they're doing this early because "the fates have informed me that your examination in June will concern the Orb, and I am anxious to give you sufficient practice."
Okay, that's really stretching it, Sybil. Sorry.
Hermione makes a snarky comment, and as they begin the lesson, Ron keeps giggling and Hermione keeps tutting. Hermione whispers that "this is such a waste of time", because she could be practice something useful. Trelawney passes and asks if anyone needs help; Ron says he knows there's going to be "lots of fog tonight."
Harry and Hermione burst out laughing, and Trelawney accuses them of not being good star children. She doesn't actually say that, but that's the gist. Trelawney peers into Harry's ball, and starts to say she sees the Grim when Hermione interrupts her very loudly: "Not the ridiculous Grim again!"
Lavender and Parvati give Hermione the Evil Eye. Trelawney tells Hermione that it's always been clear to her that she doesn't have what it takes, and that she's never met someone whose mind was "so hopelessly mundane."
Here's what you don't do: Insult a man's mother, insult a Hippogriff's... anything, OR insult a brainy girl's intelligence.
Hermione crams her book into her bag, says "fine!" and announces that she gives up. To everyone's amazement, she kicks the ladder open and indeed leaves.
FFP: Can I leave Biology the same way?
Me: No.
Lavender observes that Trelawney predicted this - that around Easter, one of their number would leave forever. Trelawney asserts that she indeed See Hermione's departure.
But Harry has one concern holding him back from complete astonishment: What if Trelawney really had seen the Grim?
There's homework over the Easter holidays, to the point where it barely feels like one. Hermione is more stressed than anyone, always the last to go to bed, and the first to go to the library. Her eyes have shadows like Remus, and she seems close to tears.
Why on earth would McGonagall let her keep this up? I get that it's supposed to be a sort of Victorian Boarding School, so it's natural the kids aren't coddled the way they might be in the real world, but still.
Ron has taken over Buckbeak's case, so absorbed he's even decent to Crookshanks. This makes sense to me, considering that Ron is the strategist of the group. Harry is busy with Quidditch, and oddly enough, there's a complex twist to their last game - Slytherin is still leading by 200 points, meaning Harry can't catch the Snitch unless they're more than fifty points up. Oliver reminds Harry of this about 100 times, causing Harry to finally shout at him that he knows.
The pressure is on for Harry to win, but Harry wants it more than anyone for reasons that are quite understandable - Draco has essentially devastated Hagrid. Still, both Houses are tenser than ever, with small scuffles breaking out, including an incident that ends with a Gryffindor fourth year and a Slytherin sixth year in the Hospital Wing with leeks sprouting out of their ears. That's a bit of an overreaction, methinks. Harry is getting the brunt of it, unable to do much without Slytherins trying to trip him; Oliver encourages students to accompany him everywhere, so the poor guy can't get a moment's break. I imagine that would also be a little embarrassing, really.
The night of the game, even Hermione can't concentrate. Both Ron and Hermione assure Harry that he's going to be fine. Oliver orders his team to bed, which again, I think would be a bit embarrassing. Harry keeps having nasty dreams, to the point where he just gives up and accepts he's not going to get much sleep. I know the feeling. Harry goes to pour himself some water from the jug beneath the window, and looks out towards the Forbidden Forest. As he turns, he thinks he sees an animal prowling across the lawn. For a moment he thinks it's the Grim, but it's Crookshanks... or is it? Much to his surprise, a large, shaggy black dog joins Crookshanks.
FFP: SIRIUS ZOMG SIRIUS!
Me: Hold your Hippogriffs.
Harry wonders what this means. How can it be an omen of death if Crookshanks can also see the dog? I don't know, Harry, maybe someone has a pet dog. Yes, obviously I realize it's Sirius, but... why hasn't that occurred to Harry? Hagrid has a pet dog, after all. Two, if you count Fluffy.
Harry tries to wake up Ron, but after some confused "whats?", Ron goes back to sleep. Harry is left alone to stare out the window; neither Crookshanks nor the dog are anywhere to be seen.
Hm...
That morning, the Gryffindor team enters the Great Hall to applause, even from the Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws. The Slytherins hiss loudly. You guys are evil overlords in the making, surely you can do better than that. As the team retreats, Cho calls out "good luck!" to Harry, who blushes. Aw, puppy love. As they change, Harry feels as though he's eaten something bad for breakfast.
When the game starts, Lee introduces them as the "best team Hogwarts has seen in a few good years." Way to be impartial, Lee. He goes on to introduce Flint, saying that the team seems to be going for size rather than skill. Oh, Lee.
The game is intense - would you expect any different? Flint almost knocks Angelina off her broom, and Fred less subtly chucks his club at Flint's head. Even Lee appears to have no comment. Madame Hooch takes penalty shots from both of them. Harry, meanwhile, is holding Draco off of the Snitch.
A Slytherin with the surname of Montague is even less subtle than Fred, squeezing Katie's head instead of the Quaffle. Lee screams at Montague that he's a cheater, and when rebuked for not being unbiased, says he's just telling it like it is. He has a point; I imagine the Slytherins wouldn't be so insulted by being called underhanded. Even the nice ones. Gryffindors, however, would flip out and start defending their House's honor.
Harry sees the Snitch, and fakes seeing it at the Slytherin end. Draco follows him, and Bludgers start flying at Harry. The Beaters zoom towards Harry, who ducks them; they crash into each other. Lee starts to gloat, but the Slytherins score, and he starts using language so horrible McGonagall tries to tug the megaphone away from him.
It goes on and on and on. Insert the dirtiest tactics you can imagine, and that's more or less the gist. Harry spots the Snitch, and bursts towards it. As he reaches his hand, he feels his broom being pulled. He realizes it's Draco. Because Draco is four years old.
Lee starts swearing at Draco, and this time, McGonagall can't disagree; in fact, her hat's fallen off and she appears to be joining him. More of this sort of thing happens; just when all hope seems to be lost, Harry gets the Snitch.
Everyone cheers and cries; Harry is somehow led to the stands, where Dumbledore awaits with the Cup. He realizes he could have, at this moment, produced the world's best Patronus.
That will teach Draco to screw with Hagrid.
Chapter Sixteen: Professor Trelawney's Prediction
As June approaches, all anyone wants to do is be outside. But instead, they have to study for exams. Just so we know this is Sirius serious business, we're told that even Fred and George are studying.
Hermione has several exams that take place at the same time. Harry asks if there's any point in asking how on earth she'll manage that; of course there isn't. They get a note from Hagrid saying that the appeal is set for the sixth, when they finish their exams. Apparently the executioner will be attending the appeal, and everyone knows what that means.
FFP: I'm starting an online petition!
Me: What... good would that do?
FFP: It's fandom, we have a petition for Dumbledore to get socks next Christmas.
Me: Oh, 2002.
Draco certainly seems to think poor Buckbeak is doomed, as he makes crude jokes and seems quite pleased with himself. The trio can't see Hagrid because of security measures, and Harry "didn't dare retrieve his Invisibility Cloak from below the one-eyed witch." Not to mention that exams are nearing.
Transfiguration exams commence; Hermione gets stressed because her tortoise looked more like a turtle, even though the other students apparently caused theirs to do things such as breathe steam. In Charms, they have to do Cheering Charms. Poor Ron ends up laughing so hysterically he has to be escorted to another room.
The next day, one of their exams is Care of Magical Creatures. Hagrid is sad and tells them to pass their exams, their flobberworms have to go an hour without dying. Suffice to say, the trio have time to talk to Hagrid, who tells them Buckbeak's depressed due to being cooped up too long.
Then it's Potions, Astronomy, History of Magic, Herbology (I just skipped a page), and, finally Defense Against the Dark Arts. DADA entails "the most unusual exam any of them had ever taken." It is an obstacle course where they have to wade across a pool containing grindylows, cross potholes full of Red Caps, cross a marsh while ignoring directions from a hinkypunk, and finally, climb into a trunk and face a Boggart.
Harry succeeds with "full marks", and waits for Ron and Hermione. Ron does get mislead by the hinkypunk, and ends up sinking into the marsh. Hermione does fine until the boggart; after a minute, she bursts out screaming. She claims (much to Ron's amusement) that it's because McGonagall told her she'd "failed everything."
This part always interested me. Mostly of course it's intended to be comic relief, but on a deeper level, I think what it really symbolizes is Hermione's need to get things right, no matter what. The consequence of her failing is not given, but she's already been on several situations where her failing could have had horrible consequences. It's also possible she saw something much else, but lied. Or maybe Hermione, bless her, really does love school that much.
Ron starts to tease her, but they're silenced when they see Fudge at the top of the steps. Fudge greets Harry, and Ron and Hermione shift awkwardly. Fudge goes on to say that he has to be the witness to an execution. Ron steps forward and argues that if the appeal hasn't already happened, "the hippogriff" (nice discretion) might get off.
Two men accompany Fudge; one of them says he's getting too old for this. The executioner, meanwhile, is stroking his axe. Ron goes to say something, but Hermione stops him. As they leave, he complains that it's not justice, but Hermione reasons that he can't argue with his father's boss. She's got a point, but what's interesting is that I can easily see the conversation being reversed later on. Hermione's still not quite ready to trap Rita Skeeter in a jar. Hermione goes onto say that if Hagrid just keeps it together, they can't possibly go through with this.
I kind of hate Draco now too, by the way.
The last exam is Divination. Each of them has to see Trelawney separately. Trelawney tells Neville that if she tells anyone, he'll have a horrible accident; Ron remarks that this is convenient, and says he's beginning to think Hermione's right about Trelawney being a fraud. Don't speak too soon, Ron.
Parvati's told she has the potential to become a Seer; Ron makes things up, but knows Trelawney was not convinced. Harry's next. And this is where it gets good. Really good. Well, and awful, the result of her prediction is the loss of several characters -
FFP: Nobody major, I hope? Dumbledore's obviously a goner, but Sirius, Remus, Snape and the Weasley twins all live, right?
Me: Oh, hon - I mean, wait and see!
But back to before the wizarding world went to shit completely. Harry stares into the crystal ball hoping desperately that it will show him something. Harry envisions Buckbeak; Trelawney asks if he still has his head, and describes what it might look like otherwise. Feeling a bit nauseous, Harry quickly says that it's actually flying away. This, of course, actually happens.
Trelawney dismisses Harry, looking slightly disappointed. Just as Harry's about to leave, he hears a harsh voice say: "It will happen tonight."
Harry wheels around. Trelawney is rigid in her chair, her eyes are unfocused and her mouth is sagging. Harry considers getting help, but then she continues
.
“THE DARK LORD LIES ALONE AND FRIENDLESS, ABANDONED BY HIS FOLLOWERS. HIS SERVANT HAS BEEN CHAINED THESE TWELVE YEARS. TONIGHT, BEFORE MIDNIGHT . . . THE SERVANT WILL BREAK FREE AND SET OUT TO REJOIN HIS MASTER. THE DARK LORD WILL RISE AGAIN WITH HIS SERVANT’S AID, GREATER AND MORE TERRIBLE THAN EVER BEFORE. TONIGHT . . . BEFORE MIDNIGHT . . . THE SERVANT . . . WILL SET OUT . . . TO REJOIN . . . HIS MASTER. . . .”
That's never good.
Trelawney comes back to earth (as much as it's possible for her to come back to earth, anyway), and says she "drifted off." Harry stares, and tells her what she just said. Naturally, Trelawney doesn't think she would have predicted something like that. Little does she know...
Harry wonders as he makes his way down the staircase if he'd just heard a real prediction, or if Trelawney had been trying to scare the bejesus out of him. He finds Ron and Hermione in the Common Room, and begins to tell them when Ron informs him that Hagrid sent a note saying they lost the appeal, Buckbeak is to be executed at sunset, but not to come down because he doesn't want them to see it.
Poor Hagrid and Buckbeak.
Harry says they have to go, and regrets that they don't have the Cloak. Hermione asks where it is, and Harry tells her, but says he can't be spotted by Snape again. Hermione dashes off, and returns with it under her robes.
That night, the trio sneak to his cabin. Hagrid lets them in, saying they shouldn't have come. He doesn't cry, but rather, just looks helpless, which bothers Harry more than if he'd been crying. Hagrid's left Buckbeak outside. Hagrid starts to explain that he'd wanted Buckbeak to enjoy the fresh air before getting killed, but his hand trembles so much he drops the milk jug. As Hermione cleans it up, Harry asks if Dumbledore's done anything, but he couldn't stop it. So instead, Dumbledore's going to be there to see Hagrid through it.
Hermione is clearly stifling tears; she goes to pour milk into a new jug when she lets out a shriek, saying it's Scabbers. She takes the jug over, tips it, and Scabbers slides onto the table. Ron grabs him, shocked; Scabbers has many bald patches, and is wriggling in Ron's hands as if to escape. Ron reassures him there's no cat around.
Hagrid suddenly goes pale, and Harry sees that a group of men, including the executioner (who we learn is named Macnair) are coming. Hagrid, who is tremlbing now, tells them to go. They protest, saying they'll tell the truth, but Hagrid orders them to leave, saying he can't get them into trouble too. They put on the cloak, and, trying not to look or listen, the trio and Scabbers retreat silently. Suddenly, Ron stops; Hermione thinks he's going back to Hagrid, but he's trying to keep Scabbers from running. Scabbers is now attempting to bite into Ron's hand.
They hear a door open, and Hermione begs Ron to keep going. They go forward, and although Scabbers is squealing loudly, he can't drown out the sound of male voices and the horrible thud of an ax.
Next time: It's the man himself!
Chapter Fifteen: The Quidditch Final
Hermione hands Harry the letter; it's a brief letter smudged with Hagrid's tears. Short letter even shorter, they lost the trial, meaning that Buckbeak will be executed. Aww.
Hermione is in tears, and says that Lucius frightened the Committee into it. That's MoM justice for you. There's going to be an appeal, but Hermione doesn't think it means anything.
Ron says it will, that he'll help her help Hagrid this time, and Hermione flings her arms around him, sobbing. Ron awkwardly pats her head as she says she's sorry about Scabbers. Ron shrugs it off, saying he was old anyway, and maybe now his parents will let him get an owl. I'd comment on how abrupt their make-up was, except that's pretty much how teenagers reconcile. Besides, their priorities have been forced straight, I think.
Because of the security measures, it is now impossible to visit Hagrid anytime other than Care of Magical Creatures class. Hagrid seems numb with shock, and waves off Ron's words of hope and encouragement. He retreats to his cabin, crying.
Some distance away, the Green Plastics are jeering. Draco says he's never seen anything more pathetic. Harry and Ron are about to make him sorry, but Hermione gets there before them.
Much to everyone's surprise (except everyone who's read this book 500 times), she smacks Draco hard across the face. Draco is physically and emotionally staggered; Hermione raises her hand as if to dare him to say anything else, calling him foul and evil. Ron tries to grab Hermione's hand, but she pushes him away and grabs her wand. Draco tells his entourage to follow him, and they walk away.
Hermione tells Harry he'd "better" beat Draco in the Quidditch final, because she can't stand the thought of Slytherin winning. Ron calmly reminds them it's time for Charms. Aww. I've missed Ron being Hermione's voice of calm, not her source of agitation.
Flitwick tells Harry and Ron they're late, but makes no comment about Hermione. This is because she isn't even there, nor does she turn up all lesson, which is a shame as they're working on Cheering Charms. Hermione doesn't show up at lunch, and Ron worries that Draco did something to her.
When they get back to the Common Room, Hermione is sleeping with her head on an Arithmancy book. Harry wakes her up, and asks why she didn't come to Charms; Hermione realizes in horror that she "forgot" to go because she was thinking about Draco. Ron points out that maybe Hermione's thinking a bit too much altogether, but Hermione just rushes off to apologize to Flitwick.
We see Hermione again when she appears by the Divination ladder, upset because she missed Cheering Charms, which Flitwick implied would be on their exams. They ascend into the room to see crystal balls. Trelawney announces they're doing this early because "the fates have informed me that your examination in June will concern the Orb, and I am anxious to give you sufficient practice."
Okay, that's really stretching it, Sybil. Sorry.
Hermione makes a snarky comment, and as they begin the lesson, Ron keeps giggling and Hermione keeps tutting. Hermione whispers that "this is such a waste of time", because she could be practice something useful. Trelawney passes and asks if anyone needs help; Ron says he knows there's going to be "lots of fog tonight."
Harry and Hermione burst out laughing, and Trelawney accuses them of not being good star children. She doesn't actually say that, but that's the gist. Trelawney peers into Harry's ball, and starts to say she sees the Grim when Hermione interrupts her very loudly: "Not the ridiculous Grim again!"
Lavender and Parvati give Hermione the Evil Eye. Trelawney tells Hermione that it's always been clear to her that she doesn't have what it takes, and that she's never met someone whose mind was "so hopelessly mundane."
Here's what you don't do: Insult a man's mother, insult a Hippogriff's... anything, OR insult a brainy girl's intelligence.
Hermione crams her book into her bag, says "fine!" and announces that she gives up. To everyone's amazement, she kicks the ladder open and indeed leaves.
FFP: Can I leave Biology the same way?
Me: No.
Lavender observes that Trelawney predicted this - that around Easter, one of their number would leave forever. Trelawney asserts that she indeed See Hermione's departure.
But Harry has one concern holding him back from complete astonishment: What if Trelawney really had seen the Grim?
There's homework over the Easter holidays, to the point where it barely feels like one. Hermione is more stressed than anyone, always the last to go to bed, and the first to go to the library. Her eyes have shadows like Remus, and she seems close to tears.
Why on earth would McGonagall let her keep this up? I get that it's supposed to be a sort of Victorian Boarding School, so it's natural the kids aren't coddled the way they might be in the real world, but still.
Ron has taken over Buckbeak's case, so absorbed he's even decent to Crookshanks. This makes sense to me, considering that Ron is the strategist of the group. Harry is busy with Quidditch, and oddly enough, there's a complex twist to their last game - Slytherin is still leading by 200 points, meaning Harry can't catch the Snitch unless they're more than fifty points up. Oliver reminds Harry of this about 100 times, causing Harry to finally shout at him that he knows.
The pressure is on for Harry to win, but Harry wants it more than anyone for reasons that are quite understandable - Draco has essentially devastated Hagrid. Still, both Houses are tenser than ever, with small scuffles breaking out, including an incident that ends with a Gryffindor fourth year and a Slytherin sixth year in the Hospital Wing with leeks sprouting out of their ears. That's a bit of an overreaction, methinks. Harry is getting the brunt of it, unable to do much without Slytherins trying to trip him; Oliver encourages students to accompany him everywhere, so the poor guy can't get a moment's break. I imagine that would also be a little embarrassing, really.
The night of the game, even Hermione can't concentrate. Both Ron and Hermione assure Harry that he's going to be fine. Oliver orders his team to bed, which again, I think would be a bit embarrassing. Harry keeps having nasty dreams, to the point where he just gives up and accepts he's not going to get much sleep. I know the feeling. Harry goes to pour himself some water from the jug beneath the window, and looks out towards the Forbidden Forest. As he turns, he thinks he sees an animal prowling across the lawn. For a moment he thinks it's the Grim, but it's Crookshanks... or is it? Much to his surprise, a large, shaggy black dog joins Crookshanks.
FFP: SIRIUS ZOMG SIRIUS!
Me: Hold your Hippogriffs.
Harry wonders what this means. How can it be an omen of death if Crookshanks can also see the dog? I don't know, Harry, maybe someone has a pet dog. Yes, obviously I realize it's Sirius, but... why hasn't that occurred to Harry? Hagrid has a pet dog, after all. Two, if you count Fluffy.
Harry tries to wake up Ron, but after some confused "whats?", Ron goes back to sleep. Harry is left alone to stare out the window; neither Crookshanks nor the dog are anywhere to be seen.
Hm...
That morning, the Gryffindor team enters the Great Hall to applause, even from the Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws. The Slytherins hiss loudly. You guys are evil overlords in the making, surely you can do better than that. As the team retreats, Cho calls out "good luck!" to Harry, who blushes. Aw, puppy love. As they change, Harry feels as though he's eaten something bad for breakfast.
When the game starts, Lee introduces them as the "best team Hogwarts has seen in a few good years." Way to be impartial, Lee. He goes on to introduce Flint, saying that the team seems to be going for size rather than skill. Oh, Lee.
The game is intense - would you expect any different? Flint almost knocks Angelina off her broom, and Fred less subtly chucks his club at Flint's head. Even Lee appears to have no comment. Madame Hooch takes penalty shots from both of them. Harry, meanwhile, is holding Draco off of the Snitch.
A Slytherin with the surname of Montague is even less subtle than Fred, squeezing Katie's head instead of the Quaffle. Lee screams at Montague that he's a cheater, and when rebuked for not being unbiased, says he's just telling it like it is. He has a point; I imagine the Slytherins wouldn't be so insulted by being called underhanded. Even the nice ones. Gryffindors, however, would flip out and start defending their House's honor.
Harry sees the Snitch, and fakes seeing it at the Slytherin end. Draco follows him, and Bludgers start flying at Harry. The Beaters zoom towards Harry, who ducks them; they crash into each other. Lee starts to gloat, but the Slytherins score, and he starts using language so horrible McGonagall tries to tug the megaphone away from him.
It goes on and on and on. Insert the dirtiest tactics you can imagine, and that's more or less the gist. Harry spots the Snitch, and bursts towards it. As he reaches his hand, he feels his broom being pulled. He realizes it's Draco. Because Draco is four years old.
Lee starts swearing at Draco, and this time, McGonagall can't disagree; in fact, her hat's fallen off and she appears to be joining him. More of this sort of thing happens; just when all hope seems to be lost, Harry gets the Snitch.
Everyone cheers and cries; Harry is somehow led to the stands, where Dumbledore awaits with the Cup. He realizes he could have, at this moment, produced the world's best Patronus.
That will teach Draco to screw with Hagrid.
Chapter Sixteen: Professor Trelawney's Prediction
As June approaches, all anyone wants to do is be outside. But instead, they have to study for exams. Just so we know this is Sirius serious business, we're told that even Fred and George are studying.
Hermione has several exams that take place at the same time. Harry asks if there's any point in asking how on earth she'll manage that; of course there isn't. They get a note from Hagrid saying that the appeal is set for the sixth, when they finish their exams. Apparently the executioner will be attending the appeal, and everyone knows what that means.
FFP: I'm starting an online petition!
Me: What... good would that do?
FFP: It's fandom, we have a petition for Dumbledore to get socks next Christmas.
Me: Oh, 2002.
Draco certainly seems to think poor Buckbeak is doomed, as he makes crude jokes and seems quite pleased with himself. The trio can't see Hagrid because of security measures, and Harry "didn't dare retrieve his Invisibility Cloak from below the one-eyed witch." Not to mention that exams are nearing.
Transfiguration exams commence; Hermione gets stressed because her tortoise looked more like a turtle, even though the other students apparently caused theirs to do things such as breathe steam. In Charms, they have to do Cheering Charms. Poor Ron ends up laughing so hysterically he has to be escorted to another room.
The next day, one of their exams is Care of Magical Creatures. Hagrid is sad and tells them to pass their exams, their flobberworms have to go an hour without dying. Suffice to say, the trio have time to talk to Hagrid, who tells them Buckbeak's depressed due to being cooped up too long.
Then it's Potions, Astronomy, History of Magic, Herbology (I just skipped a page), and, finally Defense Against the Dark Arts. DADA entails "the most unusual exam any of them had ever taken." It is an obstacle course where they have to wade across a pool containing grindylows, cross potholes full of Red Caps, cross a marsh while ignoring directions from a hinkypunk, and finally, climb into a trunk and face a Boggart.
Harry succeeds with "full marks", and waits for Ron and Hermione. Ron does get mislead by the hinkypunk, and ends up sinking into the marsh. Hermione does fine until the boggart; after a minute, she bursts out screaming. She claims (much to Ron's amusement) that it's because McGonagall told her she'd "failed everything."
This part always interested me. Mostly of course it's intended to be comic relief, but on a deeper level, I think what it really symbolizes is Hermione's need to get things right, no matter what. The consequence of her failing is not given, but she's already been on several situations where her failing could have had horrible consequences. It's also possible she saw something much else, but lied. Or maybe Hermione, bless her, really does love school that much.
Ron starts to tease her, but they're silenced when they see Fudge at the top of the steps. Fudge greets Harry, and Ron and Hermione shift awkwardly. Fudge goes on to say that he has to be the witness to an execution. Ron steps forward and argues that if the appeal hasn't already happened, "the hippogriff" (nice discretion) might get off.
Two men accompany Fudge; one of them says he's getting too old for this. The executioner, meanwhile, is stroking his axe. Ron goes to say something, but Hermione stops him. As they leave, he complains that it's not justice, but Hermione reasons that he can't argue with his father's boss. She's got a point, but what's interesting is that I can easily see the conversation being reversed later on. Hermione's still not quite ready to trap Rita Skeeter in a jar. Hermione goes onto say that if Hagrid just keeps it together, they can't possibly go through with this.
I kind of hate Draco now too, by the way.
The last exam is Divination. Each of them has to see Trelawney separately. Trelawney tells Neville that if she tells anyone, he'll have a horrible accident; Ron remarks that this is convenient, and says he's beginning to think Hermione's right about Trelawney being a fraud. Don't speak too soon, Ron.
Parvati's told she has the potential to become a Seer; Ron makes things up, but knows Trelawney was not convinced. Harry's next. And this is where it gets good. Really good. Well, and awful, the result of her prediction is the loss of several characters -
FFP: Nobody major, I hope? Dumbledore's obviously a goner, but Sirius, Remus, Snape and the Weasley twins all live, right?
Me: Oh, hon - I mean, wait and see!
But back to before the wizarding world went to shit completely. Harry stares into the crystal ball hoping desperately that it will show him something. Harry envisions Buckbeak; Trelawney asks if he still has his head, and describes what it might look like otherwise. Feeling a bit nauseous, Harry quickly says that it's actually flying away. This, of course, actually happens.
Trelawney dismisses Harry, looking slightly disappointed. Just as Harry's about to leave, he hears a harsh voice say: "It will happen tonight."
Harry wheels around. Trelawney is rigid in her chair, her eyes are unfocused and her mouth is sagging. Harry considers getting help, but then she continues
.
“THE DARK LORD LIES ALONE AND FRIENDLESS, ABANDONED BY HIS FOLLOWERS. HIS SERVANT HAS BEEN CHAINED THESE TWELVE YEARS. TONIGHT, BEFORE MIDNIGHT . . . THE SERVANT WILL BREAK FREE AND SET OUT TO REJOIN HIS MASTER. THE DARK LORD WILL RISE AGAIN WITH HIS SERVANT’S AID, GREATER AND MORE TERRIBLE THAN EVER BEFORE. TONIGHT . . . BEFORE MIDNIGHT . . . THE SERVANT . . . WILL SET OUT . . . TO REJOIN . . . HIS MASTER. . . .”
That's never good.
Trelawney comes back to earth (as much as it's possible for her to come back to earth, anyway), and says she "drifted off." Harry stares, and tells her what she just said. Naturally, Trelawney doesn't think she would have predicted something like that. Little does she know...
Harry wonders as he makes his way down the staircase if he'd just heard a real prediction, or if Trelawney had been trying to scare the bejesus out of him. He finds Ron and Hermione in the Common Room, and begins to tell them when Ron informs him that Hagrid sent a note saying they lost the appeal, Buckbeak is to be executed at sunset, but not to come down because he doesn't want them to see it.
Poor Hagrid and Buckbeak.
Harry says they have to go, and regrets that they don't have the Cloak. Hermione asks where it is, and Harry tells her, but says he can't be spotted by Snape again. Hermione dashes off, and returns with it under her robes.
That night, the trio sneak to his cabin. Hagrid lets them in, saying they shouldn't have come. He doesn't cry, but rather, just looks helpless, which bothers Harry more than if he'd been crying. Hagrid's left Buckbeak outside. Hagrid starts to explain that he'd wanted Buckbeak to enjoy the fresh air before getting killed, but his hand trembles so much he drops the milk jug. As Hermione cleans it up, Harry asks if Dumbledore's done anything, but he couldn't stop it. So instead, Dumbledore's going to be there to see Hagrid through it.
Hermione is clearly stifling tears; she goes to pour milk into a new jug when she lets out a shriek, saying it's Scabbers. She takes the jug over, tips it, and Scabbers slides onto the table. Ron grabs him, shocked; Scabbers has many bald patches, and is wriggling in Ron's hands as if to escape. Ron reassures him there's no cat around.
Hagrid suddenly goes pale, and Harry sees that a group of men, including the executioner (who we learn is named Macnair) are coming. Hagrid, who is tremlbing now, tells them to go. They protest, saying they'll tell the truth, but Hagrid orders them to leave, saying he can't get them into trouble too. They put on the cloak, and, trying not to look or listen, the trio and Scabbers retreat silently. Suddenly, Ron stops; Hermione thinks he's going back to Hagrid, but he's trying to keep Scabbers from running. Scabbers is now attempting to bite into Ron's hand.
They hear a door open, and Hermione begs Ron to keep going. They go forward, and although Scabbers is squealing loudly, he can't drown out the sound of male voices and the horrible thud of an ax.
Next time: It's the man himself!