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[[Muggles' Guide to Harry Potter/Characters/Hermione Granger|Hermione]] leads [[Muggles' Guide to Harry Potter/Characters/Dolores Umbridge|Umbridge]] and [[Muggles' Guide to Harry Potter/Characters/Harry Potter|Harry]] (who is trying to look like he knows where they are going) into the [[Muggles' Guide to Harry Potter/Places/Forbidden Forest|Forbidden Forest]]. When Umbridge questions this, Hermione points out that they could not have built a weapon anywhere that it would be found easily by the students, could they? Harry has no idea where Hermione is taking them, although he notices that she has avoided the path leading to [[Muggles' Guide to Harry Potter/Characters/Grawp|Grawp]], instead apparently taking the one that leads towards [[Muggles' Guide to Harry Potter/Characters/Aragog|Aragog]]. Harry knows Hermione had not been with them on that trip, and wonders if she has any idea where she is headed. He also thinks she is deliberately being noisy.
As they approach a clearing, an arrow whizzes through the air, hitting a tree. About fifty [[Muggles' Guide to Harry Potter/Magic/Centaur|Centaurs]] appear on all sides, demanding to know why the humans are in their forest. BelievingTreating theythem areas inferior half-breeds, a haughty Umbridge unleashes an insulting tirade, infuriating the Centaurs. When she [[Muggles' Guide to Harry Potter/Magic/Incarcerous|binds]] [[Muggles' Guide to Harry Potter/Characters/Magorian|Magorian]], the Centaurs charge; Harry and Hermione duck to avoid the flying hooves. [[Muggles' Guide to Harry Potter/Characters/Bane|Bane]] seizes Umbridge; she drops her wand, but before Harry can reach it, another centaur has stepped on it and broken it. As other Centaurs lift up Harry and Hermione, they see Bane carrying the hysterically screaming Umbridge into the woods. Hermione tries explaining the situation to the other Centaurs, hoping to gain their sympathy, but they only become angrier at being involved in human affairs and want to attack her and Harry. Despite her protests that they are "foals", and [[Muggles' Guide to Harry Potter/Characters/Ronan|Ronan]]'s reminder that they do not attack young humans, the Centaurs consider Harry and Hermione as devious as their adult counterparts. As they are about to carry off Harry and Hermione, Grawp crashes through the trees. Recognizing "Hermy", he yells for "Hagger" ([[Muggles' Guide to Harry Potter/Characters/Rubeus Hagrid|Hagrid]]). The panicked Centaurs shoot him with arrows. Enraged, the Giant howls in pain as the arrows become embedded in his face, and flails blindly at the Centaurs. Harry and Hermione, splattered with Grawp's blood, get away amid the confusion.
Though they have escaped Umbridge, they still have a problem—how to get to London. [[Muggles' Guide to Harry Potter/Characters/Ron Weasley|Ron]]'s voice behind them asks the same thingagrees. Apparently he, [[Muggles' Guide to Harry Potter/Characters/Ginny Weasley|Ginny]], [[Muggles' Guide to Harry Potter/Characters/Luna Lovegood|Luna]], and [[Muggles' Guide to Harry Potter/Characters/Neville Longbottom|Neville]] escaped the Inquisitorial Squad, thanks to Harry's [[Muggles' Guide to Harry Potter/Major Events/Dumbledore's Army|Defensive Arts]] training and Ginny's excellent [[Muggles' Guide to Harry Potter/Magic/Bat Bogey Hex|Bat Bogey Hex]]. They then followed Harry and Hermione into the Forest, bringing Harry's and Hermione's wands with them. Luna, matter-of-factly, says that they will just have to fly to London. When Harry says he is going to the [[Muggles' Guide to Harry Potter/Places/Ministry of Magic|Ministry]] to find [[Muggles' Guide to Harry Potter/Characters/Sirius Black|Sirius]], the others insist on going along. Harry prefers only Ron, feeling that Neville, Luna, and Ginny are the weakest D.A. members, and that even Hermione is unsuitable in a combat situation. Luna's insistence that they fly provokes an outburst from Ron, but Luna points to two [[Muggles' Guide to Harry Potter/Magic/Thestral|thestrals]]. Harry says he and Ron will take those two, and the others can follow later, but Luna says more will be attracted by the blood on Harry and Hermione. Soon, six or seven more Thestrals appear, and Harry, angrilyexasperated, tells everyone to pick one and mount up.
== Analysis ==
Of all the D.A. members of Dumbledore's Army, Luna, Neville, and Ginny are very nearly the last ones that Harry or Ron would have chosen to go with them to London, believing they are the least qualified. They are even reluctant to include Hermione and try to persuade her and the others to remain behind or to come later. But Harry can underestimate or misjudge his friends' abilities, often valuing the popular and seemingly more capable students over the ones who are loyal, determined, and dependable. It is Hermione, Ginny, Neville, and Luna who usually respond first to Harry's distress calls, and they display immense bravery by risking their own lives to help Harry face [[Muggles' Guide to Harry Potter/Characters/Lord Voldemort|Voldemort]], a fact Harry does not yet fully appreciate.
Although Hermione quickly devised a clever plan to save Harry from Umbridge's [[Muggles' Guide to Harry Potter/Magic/Crucio|Cruciatus curse]], she nearly gets them both killedcaptured as a result. The Centaurs' hatred of humans usually excludes children, or "foals" as they call them. Hermione counts on this when she leads Umbridge into the forest knowing the Centaurs will resent the intrusion and that Umbridge will probably further infuriate them. Umbridge arrogantly confronts the Centaurs, believing her Ministry-backed authority will intimidate any "sub-human" creature into readily stepping aside. Even though the Centaurs carry Umbridge off into the forest, Hermione's plan backfires because she underestimated their reaction, and mistakenly believed that if she explained their plight, the Centaurs would be sympathetic. The herd, still outraged over [[Muggles' Guide to Harry Potter/Characters/Firenze|Firenze]]'s "betrayal" to serve [[Muggles' Guide to Harry Potter/Characters/Albus Dumbledore|Dumbledore]], only became more incensed that Hermione used trickery to involve them in human affairs. Hermione and Harry are no longer considered so "innocent", and one Centaur argues that Harry is nearing manhood. If not for Grawp's timely intervention, it is unlikely they would have survived the Centaurs' wrath unscathed.
We see here, also, an instance of Luna's matter-of-fact nature and her willingness to ignore heckling, coupled with a perhaps surprising intelligence, and an awareness of her environment quite out of line with her usual dreamy appearance. It is Luna who connects Hagrid's mention that the Thestrals are excellent fliers with the fact that they are attracted to raw meat and blood. Ignoring Ron's gibes about [[Muggles' Guide to Harry Potter/Magic/Crumple Horned Snorkack|Crumple-Horned Snorkacks]], she sticks to her guns, pointing out the arriving Thestrals to Harry and Neville, who she knows can see them.
== Questions ==
=== Review ===
# Why does Hermione take Harry and Umbridge into the Forbidden Forest and who do they meet?
# What happens to Umbridge in the Forbidden Forest? Why?
# How does Luna suggest getting to London? How do the others react this?
# Ron, Ginny, Luna, Neville, and Hermione insist on going with Harry to the Ministry of Magic to help save Sirius. Why does Harry only want Ron to accompany him?
=== Further Study ===
== Greater Picture ==
{{Muggles' Guide to Harry Potter/Intermediate Spoiler}}
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