Hermione leads Umbridge into the Forbidden Forest, and nothing goes quite according to plan. Andrew, Eric, Micah, and Laura follow along in Chapter 33 of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, “Fight and Flight.”
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You can listen to the full episode above. Below are the biggest takeaways from our conversation.
Umbridge Takes the Bait
Hermione tells Umbridge that Dumbledore has hidden a secret weapon in the forest, and Umbridge can’t resist. She even agrees not to bring along her Inquisitorial Squad. When Harry and Hermione ask to borrow a wand along the way, Umbridge refuses, saying the Ministry “places a rather higher value on my life than yours, I’m afraid.”
Is that really how the Ministry sees her? Micah thinks she’s valuable to Fudge because she backs up his version of events. Laura agreed she’s useful as long as she keeps “toeing the party line.” Eric pointed to her fanaticism, which makes her the perfect enforcer for a Minister who wants someone willing to do anything in his name.
Laura also noticed something about the aftermath. If the Ministry cares so much about Umbridge, where were they when she was carried off? It’s Dumbledore who walks into the forest to rescue her later. Laura counted that as a point in Dumbledore’s favor, since she doubts Harry would have blinked if nobody had gone after the woman who spent the year torturing him.
A Good Plan in Theory
The hosts gave Hermione credit for reading Umbridge perfectly. She feeds Umbridge exactly the story she wants to hear and uses a little reverse psychology to keep the Inquisitorial Squad away. But how much of the rest did Hermione actually plan out? Micah’s verdict: “A good plan in theory, bad in practice.”
Eric pointed out that Harry and Hermione had a long walk into the forest. That was plenty of time to think about what they would say if they ran into the centaurs, and they don’t seem to have used it.
Hermione Misjudges the Centaurs
When the centaurs show up, they carry Umbridge off, but they aren’t interested in helping Harry and Hermione either. Laura put her finger on the problem. “The big mistake that Hermione makes here is assuming that the centaurs’ morality standards will align with her own,” she said. Hermione expected them to see two students in trouble and step in. The centaurs see two humans dragging a fight into their territory.
Eric noted that when Hermione basically says she expected the centaurs to “take care of her for us,” she’s treating them like a tool to fix a human problem. After everything the centaurs have dealt with from the Ministry, it’s no wonder they’re furious.
Grawp to the Rescue
Just as things turn dangerous, Grawp comes crashing through the trees looking for Hagger. The centaurs fire arrows at him, and in the chaos, Harry and Hermione slip away. Micah feels terrible for the giant. “Grawp is a victim,” he said, and Andrew agreed he was dragged into all of it.
Micah also spotted a fun parallel. In Prisoner of Azkaban, Buckbeak swoops in to save Harry and Hermione from a werewolf. Here, Grawp shows up to save them from the centaurs. Either way, it’s one of Hagrid’s creatures saving the day. Laura loved that connection.
Eric caught a detail in the writing he had never noticed before. When Grawp swipes at the centaurs, the book says they’re lifted off their hooves. Normally you’d picture a rider flying off a horse, but with centaurs, the whole creature goes airborne. Laura pointed out that Grawp doesn’t care about them at all. He’s just reaching for Harry, and the centaurs happen to be in the way.
Give Hermione Some Credit
Once they escape, Harry immediately turns on Hermione for her plan. Laura wasn’t having it. Hermione had almost no time to think, and improvised plans are never perfect, but sometimes they get the job done. Laura was proud of Hermione for reminding Harry that, plan or no plan, they weren’t going to be much help to Sirius without their wands.
Harry Doesn’t Want Help, and Nobody Thinks of the Floo Network
Back at the edge of the forest, Ron, Ginny, Neville, and Luna catch up after fighting their way out of the Inquisitorial Squad. Harry wants to leave them behind. Eric couldn’t understand it. If Voldemort really has Sirius, there will almost certainly be Death Eaters there too. “You need as many people as you can possibly get in a situation like this,” Eric said.
Micah gave Harry a little credit, since he’s one of the few who has faced Voldemort before. Still, he thinks the DA members have “earned the right” to come along. They just helped Harry try to contact Sirius. If they were good enough for that, why aren’t they good enough to help rescue him?
Eric also raised a question that’s hard to shake once you hear it. They had just used Umbridge’s fireplace to reach London, and her office is now unguarded. So why does nobody suggest using the Floo Network again? Harry might not be thinking clearly, but Ron, Ginny, Neville, and Luna were in that office the whole time. Laura called it a good point.
Luna Finds the Way
Instead, the answer comes from Luna. Harry and Hermione are covered in Grawp’s blood, which attracts a group of Thestrals, and Luna suggests they fly. At the start of the year, Harry worried something was wrong with him when Luna turned out to be the only other person he knew who could see the Thestrals. Andrew noted how much his view has changed, both of the creatures and of Luna. Micah put it simply: “If not for Luna, in this moment, Harry wouldn’t have a way to get to London.”
That moment shows just how far the DA has come. These aren’t just kids practicing spells in the Room of Requirement anymore. They’re about to fly into the Ministry of Magic together.