Last time on We're In This Together...
"Hem, hem." Just outside the door, a squat little witch shimmered into view as she canceled her Disillusionment charm. "I think that will be ten points from Gryffindor, and a detention in my office tonight, miss Granger."
...
Pansy grabbed onto both of their arms and dragged them down the hall with as much force as she could muster. Thankfully, it was surprising enough that both turned to her and kept their mouths shut before they could make things worse.
They had reached a stairway leading up when Harry started to talk.
"She can't do that, can she?"
"Actually, she can," Hermione answered then groaned. "I can't believe how stupid that was. I should have known better than to assume she wasn't waiting to-"
"That's enough," Pansy cut her off with a hiss. "Not another word until we are in private."
Granger at least had the sense to nod and hurry up the stairs with her. Harry rubbed his face and followed along.
They made good time as they headed for Gryffindor tower and then cut through the crowd and into their quarters. Hermione took the chair as Harry started to pace. Pansy sat on the couch and closed her eyes, waiting for the inevitable explosion.
"Alright, we're alone," Harry began. "Now, how can that bitch take points and assign you a detention? She isn't a teacher. Since when do ministry stooges have the authority-"
"To interfere at Hogwarts?" Hermione finished. "That's the purpose she's had all along. We just didn't realize that she would take it in this direction. I should have expected something though."
"Why?"
"Harry, why do you even bother getting the paper if you never read it?" Granger sighed. "There was an article today about a new educational decree granting her the same rights as a member of the staff, supposedly 'due to the lax and irregular standards of discipline' that have plagued Hogwarts in recent years."
"You mean like how Snape constantly ruined things? Someone should have killed that bastard years ago," Harry growled. "Alright, that means that you will have to go. Now it's time for us to plan our response."
"What can we do?" Hermione shivered. "I really don't want to be alone with her. I don't know what she might try to do."
"You won't be," Harry replied. "I'm coming with you."
"I don't think she'll allow that."
"I don't think she has a fucking choice."
"Harry-"
"Hermione, you do remember that you are under my protection, right? I know I have mostly played the whole patronage thing for laughs, as an excuse to allow me to tease you about being my protege. But there is a legal precedent as well. Sam was deadly serious about the attack on you really being a political attack against me, or House Potter, if you will. An attack that bitch was chomping at the bit to lead during that farce of a trial. Do you remember how few votes there were for guilty?"
"Yes. Only nine."
"Exactly. Even Fudge was smart enough to realize that it had failed, so he bowed out of the vote. There's no way in hell I'm going to leave you alone with that woman."
"I guess you do have your invisibility cloak," Hermione suggested. "I just don't want us both getting in trouble."
"Just let me worry about things like that," he countered. "Try to relax as much as you can. I've got your back, Hermione."
"I'll try."
"Good. We should head down to dinner soon. We don't want her to suspect anything out of the ordinary. Let me grab my cloak first."
Pansy had been silent throughout the conversation and now in the peace, she had a chance to really start working on precautions and backup plans. She loved Harry, she really did, but times like this reminded her that the Sorting Hat had been wrong when it considered putting him in Slytherin- he was far too prone to impetuous behavior.
But that's why he had her to take care of him.
And Dobby...
She smirked as the idea started to form.
"This is not how I was hoping my birthday would go."
"Don't worry too much. Harry will have you back safe and sound in your dorm with plenty of time to talk to your parents before bed."
"I hope you're right."
"Alright, I'm ready," Harry said as he returned from the bedroom. Granger got up with him and she started for the door.
"Hermione, would you give me a couple of moments alone with Harry?"
"Of course."
"You should wait for him though," Pansy added. "Going down to dinner together wouldn't be a bad idea."
"Okay."
She waited for the other girl to make her exit before turning back to Harry. "We need to talk for a minute."
"Alright, what is it?"
"I'm not going to dinner."
"What? Why not?"
"I've got work to do," she replied. "You follow Granger and keep an eye on her. That's fine, and it's not necessarily a bad idea. But I have other things I'm planning."
"Like?"
"Like writing a letter to Sam about Umbridge's harassment of House Potter, and legal steps we can take to fight her. You're Hermione's patron, and after the trial this summer, it should come as no surprise to Sam that Umbridge is still attacking House Potter via your friend. It is no coincidence that the very first day she has this authority, she uses it to single out Hermione for punishment."
"Okay, that is pretty smart. Thank God I have you, right?"
"Indeed. I'll have you sign it once I've got it finished."
"Eat something too, please."
"I'll have Dobby bring me a sandwich or something," Pansy waved off his concern. "Just try not to do anything too rash without me there to stop you, alright?"
"Yes dear." Harry grinned and leaned down to kiss her. "What would I do without you?"
"Make a mess of your life, probably," she snorted.
"Probably," he agreed with a smile. "I love you."
"I know." Pansy shooed him towards the door. "Go on, I'll see you later."
"Okay." Harry turned back just before he left. "Thanks for this- I know you and Hermione aren't exactly friends, but I appreciate you helping her anyway."
Pansy nodded and waited for him to leave. She took a deep breath.
"Dobby?"
"Yes, miss?"
"It's very good that I remembered how helpful you can be. Harry gets all excited and rushes off to do everything by himself."
"Master Harry grew up not having anyone he could count on. Dobby knows that's why he forgets sometimes."
"How right you are my friend. Well, it's time for you and I to take care of things for tonight. First things first, I need you to go check on Umbridge's office. See if there are any portraits in there..."
Harry usually had a grace under fire when dealing with threats against his own life, but he felt incredibly anxious as he followed Hermione under the invisibility cloak towards her detention with Umbridge. Looking back, he would realize that it was because someone else was in danger for once, and acting as a guardian rather than just swashbuckling his way through an adventure would not work when his focus had to be on Hermione's welfare instead of his own.
Hermione pushed the door wide open and stepped aside, allowing him plenty of room to enter, before turning to close the door.
"At least you are punctual, miss Granger. Do come in."
The hairs on the back of his neck stood up. There was something slimy and foul about the phony smile on the ministry's head pencil pusher. Harry reflexively squeezed his wand, already in hand, knowing intuitively that this would not be going well. He quietly took a deep breath as he slipped further into the room, noticing a student's desk that had obviously been confiscated from some classroom a few feet in front of Umbridge's much larger and fancier one.
"Yes, Madam Umbridge," Hermione replied, and Harry wondered how many people knew her well enough to detect the hint of apprehension in her tone.
"Please, take a seat." The fat little witch motioned to the desk in front of her, and Harry noticed a peculiar looking black quill along with the parchment waiting there. "Tonight, you will be writing lines, perhaps a little commonplace, but I think it is a fitting punishment for a common witch such as yourself."
Harry could see the rancor in Hermione's eyes, and he had a feeling that she knew exactly how insulting that supposedly innocent comment was meant to be. He well remembered the nasty tone in Umbridge's voice every time she uttered the word muggle during the farce of a trial. Blood supremacist fanatics in the wizarding world were almost always so incredibly obvious with their bigotry.
"Yes, Madam Umbridge." Hermione sat down with no other comments and picked up the quill.
"You will write 'I will not insult my superiors.' Perhaps that will teach you better manners, something that your parents clearly failed to do." The nasty inflection was once again blatant. As if this hideous bitch was in any way superior to Hermione, let alone used manners as anything more than a facade to be as rude and obnoxious as possible.
He wondered for a moment just how prevalent hatred of muggles and muggleborns was in pureblood society. Pansy and Luna certainly didn't seem to have any sort of prejudices like that. Of course, in Pansy's case it was likely partially inspired by her resentment and need to rebel against her father, while Luna was about as open-minded as any person could be. Maybe they weren't the best examples?
"How many times, Madam Umbridge?"
"Let's just say, until the message sinks in."
"Yes, ma'am."
Hermione winced and let out a little gasp, bringing Harry's attention back to the present. He looked over her shoulder and couldn't help but notice that the ink on the parchment was red.
Blood red.
And the back of Hermione's hand showed exactly where that 'ink' was coming from.
"Is there a problem miss Granger? I believe I told you to write lines."
Harry felt a haze of fury over take him and didn't even hear the word come from his mouth as he raised his wand.
"Crucio!"
The fat bitch fell to the ground, writhing and screaming in front of him, and all he felt was a profound sense of satisfaction.
"Harry! What are you doing? Stop!" Hermione was shouting behind him, but he ignored her to focus on the thrill of watching the little toad squirm. He saw his friend step into his peripheral vision, but it took her slapping him to make him stop holding the torture spell on his victim.
"What the hell are you doing?" Hermione screeched.
"Petrificus Totalis!" rang out, again and again, as all three of them stiffened, unable to move. Pansy stepped around in front of them, looking weary and disgusted. "Dobby, please tell me that you have the room taken care of."
"Of course, miss Pansy." The elf popped into view as well, standing on Umbridge's desk. "Dobby made sure that nasty toad witch's room was sealed and that no one would see anything that might happen. No hearing either. And there are no paintings on the walls."
"Excellent work," she praised him before turning to Harry. "For the love of Kali, don't start casting any more spells for a moment, alright?"
She lifted the spell from Harry first and he nodded.
"Sorry. I guess I sort of lost my cool."
"You think?" Pansy smirked. "Look at the mess we're going to have to clean up now."
"Yeah, I know," he sighed. Harry saw the pain in Umbridge's eyes, and he swallowed down something that might have been a hint of guilt. Not for torturing her- the bitch had set this supposed detention up to torture his best friend after all- but because of his realization that he didn't feel anything other than pleasure at watching her suffer.
If that was how the Dark Arts worked, he had a much greater appreciation for how addictive they could be.
He turned back to Pansy and took her free hand in his own, kissing the back of it.
"I think I underestimated how much I depend on you. But Kali?"
"Wicked blue chick who cuts off people's heads, remember? Much better than Merlin or Christ. Seemed fitting too considering how you were radiating vengeance against this wretched thing." Pansy kicked at Umbridge's leg and Harry didn't contain his snort of amusement. "I might not like Granger very much, but not even she deserves to have to deal with someone this loathsome."
"I really love you."
"Yes, yes, we know. I'm amazing," Pansy drawled with a smirk. "But let's concentrate on the moment and figure out what the hell we're going to do about all this. You should probably obliviate both of them."
"I know, but first things first." Harry turned back to Umbridge with a smirk of his own. "We have her at our mercy, so I might as well do a little bit of investigation while we can. Let's see what all we can find out before we do anything else."
"Alright."
Pansy stepped aside while Harry squatted down to look into the beady little eyes of Delores Umbridge. If the ministry stooge knew what he was about to do, she would have been even more terrified.
"Legilimens!"
Harry barged into her mind and tore through her memories, looking for anything pertaining to Hermione, Pansy, himself, or anyone else he could think of.
The next few moments sealed her fate, and if Pansy had been able to see the look on Harry's face, she would have been prepared to stop him from acting rashly again. But she wasn't, so once he stood back up, she wasn't ready with her wand or quick enough.
"Crucio!"
"Dammit Harry," Pansy muttered, shaking her head impatiently. "Stop it, you idiot! Get ahold of yourself."
But he didn't stop, so she followed Hermione's example and slapped him.
"Ow."
"Ow?"
"You slapped me."
"Look, I find this bitch to be annoying too, but what the fuck are you doing?"
"I-" Harry gritted his teeth and forced himself to set his wand aside, on the desk next to Dobby. "This fat little fucking bitch is a monster. And considering I've dreamed of having Voldemort in my head, believe me, I know what a monster is. Not only did she come here with a perverse desire to torture children, specifically looking for anyone that might have 'stepped out of line' especially if they were 'mudbloods' but she also is responsible for pretty much everything this summer."
"You mean the trial?"
"Yes. Not only was it her idea, but she is the one who set the dementors after Hermione and her parents."
"Fuck. This is going to be an even bigger mess to clean up than I thought." Pansy glanced over at Hermione. "If I remove the spell from you, I expect you to sit there and not try to cast anything. Blink twice to show you agree and understand, alright Hermione?"
Once she had complied, Pansy lifted the curse and Hermione sat back down in shock.
"Are you alright, Hermione?" Harry asked.
"No," she answered woodenly. "I don't even know where to begin. You cast an Unforgivable curse- twice, Harry. How could you do that?"
"It was a lot easier than you might think," he shrugged. "You did hear what she came here to do. Do you think a quill that makes you write in your own blood is anything other than a torture device? Do you think anyone would own such a thing if they weren't an evil monster? This bitch is lucky she's still breathing."
"You really mean that, don't you?" Hermione looked at him in horror. "Harry, you can't respond to torture with more torture. How will that fix anything? How has it made anything that's happened here better?"
"It made me feel better."
"That's awful," Hermione gasped. "Don't you know how wrong that is?"
Harry stared back at her, not knowing what to say.
Was it wrong?
...
He thought back to his childhood, at the lessons he had learned from being beaten up constantly. If he were normal, maybe he would have learned that it was wrong to hurt others.
But he grew up in a cupboard, living with child abusers. So instead, he learned that vengeance was sweet.
Harry had never loved Pansy more than when she got the Dursleys arrested, framed for his murder. It wasn't 'right' necessarily, especially since they didn't actually commit that crime, but after everything else they had done to him, it felt like justice.
Long, long overdue justice.
But he also saw that Hermione clearly had very different ideas about that than he did.
"Remember this summer? She wanted those things to devour your soul, Hermione. Your parents hardly even mattered to her. 'Muggles are no more than beasts' is how she put it. Do you see how wrong that is? Do you think I should let her get away with it?"
"No. She should be arrested," Hermione insisted. Harry laughed at her.
"Oh yes, I'm sure Fudge will have his nasty little minion brought to justice for her crimes. Just like how he's done so much for justice in dealing with the 'rogue Death Eaters' or how he began your trial by leading the charge in trying to get your wand snapped. I'm sure the ministry of magic, which we have ample proof has had unrepentant Death Eaters and their sympathizers working there for years, I'm sure that august institution will do everything in its power to put things right.
"There is no justice in this world, Hermione. Not unless we make it for ourselves."
"Just because there is corruption doesn't mean that justice always fails."
"It's always failed me."
"So now you're going to be judge, jury, and executioner?"
"Yes."
Hermione gasped. "You can't-"
"Why not?" Harry challenged her with a glare. "Lucius Malfoy set a basilisk loose on a school full of children. It nearly killed you and I. He got away with it, until I took up the task of making him pay for his crimes. Justice didn't occur for him until I left him bleeding out on the floor."
Hermione started to lift her wand, but Pansy was ready for her.
"Expelliarmus!"
Hermione's wand went flying and she turned to the other girl in betrayal. "You can't let him do this. Please, you have to talk sense into him."
"Harry is doing this for you. To protect you. How dare you suggest that he is wrong? You should be groveling before him, thanking him for doing what needs to be done. Or would you rather have you and your parents left to the 'mercy' of a ministry filled with people like this vile little worm?"
"I can't believe this." She turned back to Harry. "Please, Harry. Take her memory if you must, but don't become a murderer. Not for her. Not for me."
"I've already killed before, Hermione. You've seen me do it."
"There is a difference between killing a Death Eater in a battle and murdering someone in cold blood."
"Even an enemy? Do you think I would be righteous for killing the Dark Lord in a duel, but evil if I were to sneak into his home and slit his throat in the night? According to you, one of those things would be 'killing' while the other would be 'murder.' Is one worse than the other?"
"Of course it is. Even if he might deserve it. But Umbridge isn't the same as Voldemort."
"Tom Riddle murdered a teenage girl- Moaning Myrtle. Delores Umbridge tried to murder a teenage girl- you. Seems like they're pretty close to me."
"I can't believe you're saying this. You can't really mean to kill her, Harry. My best friend wouldn't do something like that."
Harry saw the conviction in her eyes, and everything fell into place. He knew now better than ever before just what this would cost him.
And all the other costs he might be forced to pay as well.
Everything it might take for him to survive all this shit that the magical world kept throwing his way. Voldemort, Quirrell, Malfoy, Parkinson, Snape, Pettigrew, Karkaroff... and now Umbridge. Every time a new enemy came his way, and no one ever stood up to stop them.
No one but Harry.
He saw in her eyes when she realized that, yes, her best friend would kill someone to protect her. Even if she didn't want him to. Even if she told him it was wrong and pleaded with him to change his mind.
Even if it ended their friendship.
Harry stepped forward, not even pausing as she flinched, and he wrapped his arms around her.
"You're my best friend, Hermione. You have been for four years now. In fact, you were something like the fourth friend I'd ever had. I suppose it's a question of whether Hedwig counts, but..."
He sighed and closed his eyes, feeling her shaking against him.
"Don't do this, Harry," she whispered.
"I have to." He kissed her forehead and leaned back to look in her eyes. She was every bit as aghast as he thought. "I care about you, and a part of me probably always will. So I hope you believe me when I say I'm sorry."
He didn't remember when he had picked his wand back up, but it had never before felt as heavy in his hand.
"Obliviate!"
He took a deep breath and focused himself.
"Confundo! Umbridge lectured you and forced you to write lines. She was very nasty and mean but nothing too surprising came of it and soon enough you were dismissed. You should grab your things and head back to the Gryffindor tower."
Pansy placed Hermione's wand in her bag and handed it to her, watching silently as she left the room.
When she turned to Harry, there was a tear running down his right cheek, but he wiped it away without saying anything and turned back to the still prone form of Umbridge.
"Time to get to work," he muttered as he glanced down at his prey.
He was subdued but calm.
Pansy was proud but also worried at the change that had come over him. She stepped closer and took hold of his left hand, squeezing it briefly.
"What do we do first?"
"Release her from your spell and I'll take care of the next step. Then we'll need Dobby's help before the night is through."
"Alright." Pansy lifted the full body bind from Umbridge and before she could get out a word of protest, Harry was already casting his own spell.
"Imperio!"
It was more than an hour later before they made it back to their quarters. Harry had been far too quiet the entire time, and she was worried.
"I'm going to take a shower," he said as he took off his shoes.
"Want me to scrub your back?"
"No, I... I just need some time to think. And try to relax, I guess."
"Okay."
Pansy watched him walk into the bathroom, throwing his shirt aside carelessly. It was really, really not like Harry to turn down fun shower times, even when he was in a bad mood or stressed out.
Not having anything else she could do at the moment, Pansy went out and started to make some tea. It usually helped to clear her head, so maybe it would help him too. Dobby had work to do, so she couldn't call for him, but it was a simple enough thing to keep her hands busy and maybe let her figure out something that could come next.
The little elf's company would have been nice too. He was one of the few people that knew Harry well enough to be able to figure out what could help to bring him out of this mood.
She could only hope that it would be something as simple as sex.
Any more serious issues the two of them had stumbled through blindly over the last couple of years were always so damn frustrating. Pansy didn't have Harry's patience either, and she knew that Granger meant a lot to him.
She just didn't have any experience at losing a friend, especially not a good one. Before Harry, and now Luna, Pansy wasn't really sure that she'd had any real friendships, now that she thought of it. Acquaintances she tolerated better than most- Bulstrode and Greengrass were maybe the closest she'd come. Considering she and Millicent had no real shared interests, and that she was always irritated by how perfect Daphne seemed, it was hard to think that either of them had been friends.
Having an acquaintance become more distant wasn't something she'd ever been bothered by. But she could think of how awful she would feel if she lost Luna's friendship.
Her mind completely skipped past the idea of losing Harry- that would be akin to dying at this point.
But losing Luna just didn't seem possible. She wouldn't argue about the necessity of killing the Death Eaters, whether it was 'self-defense in battle' or just slitting their throats in their sleep. Honestly, Luna would be more likely to be there, knife in hand, ready to help.
There was no such thing as an innocent Death Eater.
And putting down rabid beasts was necessary. Certainly not some 'sin' to be bothered about. Why couldn't Granger see that?
Then again, she had freaked out about the other deaths she had seen, so Pansy should have expected it. Harry should have too. Not that that thought helped anything.
At least tonight, Granger wouldn't be witness to anything.
But Harry must have seen something that would be a problem in the future. Even after taking her memories of the toad, he was still in that sullen mood.
Pansy had to admit that she found Hermione almost bearable at times. A rift between her and Harry was no longer something that Pansy looked forward to. Most of that was just due to loving him, but even so, it wouldn't be the same without having Granger around to horrify.
The tea was steeping now.
For some reason, she decided that she should check on Harry. Pansy hurried to the bathroom, tearing off her clothes along the way, and as she pushed open the door, she heard him choking back a sob.
She finished undressing in record time and stepped into the shower with him. He was standing with his arms pressed against the wall, his head bent down under the water spraying out of the shower head. She crushed herself against his back, arms going around his chest.
For a second, she thought of how he was slowly becoming more solid, getting muscles that he hadn't had two years ago, and she felt a very pleasant warmth spreading through her...
But Harry's pain was too real at the moment, no matter how excited she had unexpectedly become. She kissed between his shoulder blades, as much to feel him and to try to focus herself on his pain instead of her desire as to have a moment to gather her thoughts.
"Harry," she called to him. "It's going to be alright."
"No, it isn't." He shook his head, but he also brought his left hand up to squeeze her own. "She's gone."
"Huh?"
It felt very strange to be the inelegant one for once, stumbling through a conversation, and it brought to mind all the wonderful times Harry had drooled over her boobs. No matter how she might tease him, the delight of her self-esteem rising whenever he did that always felt wonderful.
"I saw it. Hermione will never forgive me for this."
"Harry, she won't even remember it."
"That's not it."
He took a deep breath that she could feel through his skin, pressed up against her, and Pansy shuddered. As wrong as the timing was, for some reason all she could focus on was the idea of turning him around and having him inside of her. In fact, she had to stop her free hand from roaming too far down because she was almost ready to just grab his cock, determined to make him forget this painful night, one way or another.
"I understand now. Hermione's never been okay with death. She was really bothered by what happened with the Malfoys and with Snape. She wouldn't have a place in the war that's coming. The idea that we would have to kill our enemies or watch them kill our friends- it just isn't something that she really understands.
"And I don't want to make her understand. I could, but... I'd rather just do it on my own. Or with the help of people like you... Sirius, Moody, even Luna probably. We won't be trying to 'arrest' the Death Eaters the next time we face them. I think that's what Hermione thinks would happen. That we would stun them and have them get carted off to Azkaban, and that everything would be fine. That no one would have to get their hands bloody. I don't want to take her illusions away from her."
Harry sighed and Pansy was again struck mute for a second.
"Why not?"
"Because I love her. If I'm willing to kill to protect her, then I have to be just as willing to let her go. Don't I?"
"This is why Luna is the better friend. We'll never have to get rid of her," Pansy replied.
"God, I hope not."
"Have faith in our girl, Harry."
"I'm a little low on faith, tonight."
"Well, you can't get rid of me, even if you wanted to. Not that you ever would, of course. Your life wouldn't be nearly as wonderful without me."
"I know." He took a small step forward and slowly turned around to face her. "Believe me, I know. I had an... epiphany earlier. About just how much it's going to take to deal with all this crap. Riddle and his fucking minions. The idiots in the government. As long as you and I make it out of here together, I can take anything else. It will hurt, but I can take it."
Pansy reached up and pulled him down, their wet lips sliding together messily. For several wonderful moments, she tried to let him know just how right he was, that they would make it through this- and anything else- together.
"I'll be sure to soothe all your pain away," she said with a smile.
"Now that I do have faith in," Harry chuckled. He closed his eyes and leaned back, letting the water wash over his face again, and if he had any idea how turned on she was watching him at that moment, Harry would have felt infinitely better. "I love you."
"Good. Let's get dried off so I can get to work on soothing you."
"How could I say no to that?"
Pansy glanced down and saw his body at least was reacting to her physical presence despite the mood he had been in. Harry turned slightly to shut the water off and as he turned back around, she was already running her hands down his stomach and carefully going down to her knees.
"Pansy-"
"Quiet now, Harry. I'm hungry," she growled and quickly had half of him in her mouth.
"Oh fuck-"
But in another part of the castle...
Delores Umbridge snapped awake, feeling the cold water dousing her face once again. She immediately began to struggle even as her breathing was still painful, but soon remembered where she was and that her hands were bound behind her.
The huge green eyes in front of her held even more malice than she had seen from that awful brat Potter.
"Dobby has not given nasty toad witch permission to die yet."
"You'll never get away with this," she croaked out, her voice still sore, and she saw that he was once again playing with a noose. "I'll have you and Potter and all his whores begging for death by the time I'm done with you."
"Dobby has heard better threats from the old bad master."
She started to panic as she worried if she really could get out of this. Delores called out for Oggy once again, the house-elf that was supposed to serve her while she was at Hogwarts.
"No Hogwartsies house-elves will ever come to help nasty toad witch. Nasty toad witch smells of the demons that the great master Harry Potter sir drove away, protecting the school. House-elves know that the great Harry Potter protects Hogwarts from demons, and now they know that nasty toad witch is like a demon too.
"And demons do not belong around children."
"You're mad!"
"Dobby is very mad," he nodded in agreement. "Dobby is mad that even now master Harry worries over what he will have to do and worries over how his friends will see him. Dobby is mad that nasty toad witch has upset master Harry and tried to hurt master Harry's Grangey witch. Grangey witch is under protection of Dobby's Potter family.
"No one hurts Dobby's family."
He snapped his fingers and she saw the rope float up to the ceiling again, the noose then floating down towards her neck. Umbridge tried to thrash free, but another snap of his fingers held her immobile. She let out a sob as it slipped over her head and tightened around her neck.
"Dobby tries not to remember the bad years serving under the bad master. So many bad things Dobby had to see and had to do." He shook his head, not looking at her for a moment. "Master Harry saved Dobby from all that. Miss Pansy saved master Harry in the same way. And master Harry saved miss Pansy from her bad family too. Dobby knows this is why master Harry and miss Pansy are so perfect together.
"Someday, Dobby will have even more Potters to care for. Dobby thinks they will have a very big family. Master and miss surely get enough practice at making baby witches and wizards. It can be embarrassing for Dobby sometimes, especially if they forget Dobby is in the room."
The demented house-elf had a smile on his face, but it disappeared when he turned back to her.
"But Dobby still remembers all the things Dobby learned from the bad master. Dobby remembers that a muggle will pass out after being hanged for only a short time. But it takes several minutes for one to die.
"Dobby sees now that nasty toad witch is the same as a muggle. Only eleven seconds before passing out last time. But Dobby can't let nasty toad witch die just yet. Dobby has all night to make nasty toad witch pay for trying to hurt Dobby's family."
He snapped his fingers once more, and Delores Umbridge fell, kicking and choking as she dangled from the rope.
She had lost count how many times this had happened already. But dawn was still several long hours away, and Dobby was always incredibly thorough with his work.