Chapter 617: The Attentive Umbridge (Edited)

Despite Umbridge's kind behavior, Fish was not oblivious to her evil intentions.

Ever since she returned to school, Fish's Beast Instinct warned him of the malice emanating from Umbridge...

But Fish was too brave to not take Umbridge's malice seriously.

Furthermore, after the last attack, Fish felt that Umbridge was not as strong as most members of the Order of the Cat. Not only was she slow to react, but she was also mentally weak and would start screaming when frightened.

So Fish was not worried about being in danger. Instead, he was curious about what Umbridge wanted to do...

Not to mention the food!

The two of them arrived one after the other at Umbridge's office, which had also been the office of Quirrell, Lockhart, Lupin, and Moody (Barty Crouch Jr.).

Fish had paid visits to each of the three Defense Against the Dark Arts professors during their tenure, except for Quirrell, whom Fish had not visited because Quirrell was very stinky in his first year.

Each of the three professors had their own office style. Lockhart's flashy office was magnificently decorated and would be quite beautiful overall if not for his habit of having photos of himself all over the office. But the addition of "the most charming smile" on all the walls made it a bit eerie suddenly.

Lupin's office, on the other hand, was very simple, the complete opposite of Lockhart's, and contained little more than the necessary teaching materials.

Moody's office, or rather, Barty Crouch Jr.'s office, was a bit more cluttered, with all kinds of accessories and magical artifacts to detect ill intentions from others, and of course, the chest with seven locks that kept the real Moody inside.

Umbridge's office was different.

The entire room was colored in Umbridge's favorite pink, and everything was covered in tapestries and lace tablecloths, which, of course, were mostly pink as well. There were also several vases filled with dried flowers, each on its own cushion.

But what interested Fish the most was one of the walls, on which hung a set of decorative plates, each depicting a brightly colored cat with a different bow around its neck, lazily dozing inside the plate.

"Where did you get these plates?"

(?ω?)

Fish asked, pointing at the plates on the wall.

Unexpectedly, Umbridge also liked cats, and Fish's impression of her suddenly improved.

"These plates were brought back when I went to France to attend the International Magic Union Conference," Umbridge replied with a smile.

She then walked over to the cabinet beside her, took out some cute cookies and pastries, and placed them on the desk.

"Come and try these snacks first, dear," Umbridge greeted Fish and said in an overly sweet tone.

Fish blinked and sat down.

Wrinkling his nose... it smelled quite good.

Fish grabbed a piece of pastry, examined it for a moment, and put it in his mouth.

"You eat first, I'll make you some tea," Umbridge was so friendly that it was startling.

Fish, on the other hand, ate without hesitation.

"Fish, I heard that you are a cat who roams the school at night after curfew," Umbridge asked with a smile as she took out tea leaves and placed them in a pretty round teapot.

"Yes, what's the matter, nya?"

(??~??)

Fish looked at her cautiously and said, "Albus and Minerva gave permission! Even if Fish loses points, it won't change, nya!"

"Ah, of course, I didn't mean that." Umbridge waved her hand and kindly asked, "I just wanted to ask you, did you notice anything unusual on the night I was attacked?"

"Fish has said several times that on that night Fish left early to play in the Forbidden Forest, nya! Fish didn't know anything!"

(〃｀3〃)

Fish crossed his arms and appeared impatient.

"Well, I was just asking, you know how cruelly I've been treated before." Umbridge returned to her desk with the teapot in hand, gritting her teeth from the depths of her mind.

"Isn't it just becoming a toad?" Fish tilted his head and said bluntly, "Anyway, you look like one, so it's not a big deal, right?"

(?ω?)

Fish wore a very serious and perplexed expression.

That angered Umbridge.

She stiffened for a moment, then composed herself and served a cup of tea in front of Fish.

"You must be thirsty after all those snacks. Have some tea," Umbridge said sweetly.

"Fish is not thirsty yet."

(Φ~Φ)

But Fish ignored the tea and instead reached for two more pastries and ate them voraciously.

The smile on Umbridge's face twisted slightly, but she quickly readjusted it and said in a sweet voice, "Alright, I'll leave it here for now. You can drink it when you're thirsty."

"Nya?"

?ω?

Fish realized something was wrong and looked at Umbridge with confusion, then glanced down at the still steaming teacup.

Umbridge instantly grew nervous, but her years of experience in power struggles allowed her to maintain control over her expression and not show any hint.

After a moment of contemplation, Fish used his poison detection spell on the teacup, but found nothing wrong with it.

But as Fish knew, there were many magical potions whose toxicity couldn't be detected, like the Polyjuice Potion.

It's just that the Polyjuice Potion doesn't scare Fish, and although toads don't have hair and look a little ugly, it's fun to think about turning into a toad...

So Fish didn't pay it much attention, set the teacup aside, and continued eating the pastry.

While Umbridge anxiously waited, Fish quickly finished his plate of pastries.

"Thank you for inviting Fish to have something to eat."

(?ω?)

Fish patted his stomach and squinted his eyes, satisfied, before attempting to get up and leave. "If there's nothing else, Fish will go now. The Quidditch match should be over, and Fish has to go find Hermione, nya."

"Wait! Would you like a cup of tea before you go?" Umbridge was so anxious that she used her original voice.

Now Fish was certain that Umbridge had done something to the teacup.

He was curious to know what she had put in it, but it wasn't poisonous, so Fish gave it a lick.

After making sure it didn't taste too bad, Fish looked at Umbridge, who was still struggling to maintain her affectionate smile, and then drank the tea from the cup.

"Your tea doesn't taste as good as Sybil's," Fish said, pursing his lips mercilessly.

"I'm no match for Professor Trelawney," Umbridge casually replied, her eyes fixed on Fish.

Fish continued to purse his lips, feeling nothing wrong in his body.

Am I mistaken?

Just as Fish was puzzled, an inexplicable sensation of emptiness suddenly struck. Fish's face and body instantly relaxed, and his previously erect cat ears drooped. He slumped onto the table like a puddle of liquid, his tail lazily following suit and also falling down.

Fish appears to be tired.

(ω"∠)