Catching Professor Babbling after class was no easy task.
Harry had tried three times. His first two attempts had failed, but fortunately, he succeeded on the third.
Professor Babbling's expression did not change when Harry stopped her in the classroom. Of course, her face rarely showed any expression. Only when she spoke with Professor McGonagall and a few of the other professors did she occasionally show a hint of a smile.
Harry had heard from Qiu that Umbridge had sat in on one of her lessons. But when Umbridge tried to say something, Professor Babbling cut her off and reprimanded her for making noise without permission during her class.
Professor Babbling's exact words at the time had been:
"Professor Umbridge, I understand that you also come from a wizard family. So even if you have no accomplishments whatsoever in Ancient Runes, you should at least know that their pronunciation must be flawless. The slightest mistake could have enormous consequences. I do not understand how you dared to make a sound while I was correcting a student's pronunciation."
Umbridge had flushed scarlet and remained silent for the rest of the lesson. Even after class, rather than asking questions as she did in other lessons, she simply left.
"Professor Babbling certainly has nothing to fear," Hermione had said when she heard about it too.
"She holds an Order of Merlin, Third Class, jointly awarded by the International Confederation of Wizards and the United Kingdom's Ministry of Magic for her achievements in Ancient Runes and her guidance of students. She's one of the most qualified professors of the younger generation.
"Well, now that Snape no longer teaches here, there's no need to say 'one of' at Hogwarts. However much trouble Umbridge tries to make, she won't be able to touch her."
Harry always