Umbridge bolted blindly out of the alley, running wildly through the cold night wind. Her heart hammered like a drum, every step falling as if on the edge of a blade, as though death might claim her at any moment. Passersby lingered with curious stares, but she had no mind to care; only a single thought drove her: to reach Fudge as fast as possible, to tell him the terrifying news of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named's return, and to save her own skin.
At last, breathless and stumbling, she burst into the Ministry of Magic atrium and practically tripped as she ran toward Fudge's office. Along the way, she knocked over several busy wizards, but none dared to block the formidable Ministry official. When she shoved open Fudge's office door, her face was slick with sweat and panic, her eyes shining with a desperate plea for help.
"Minister Fudge!" she shrieked, almost beside herself. "He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named has returned! He's already planning his revenge against the Ministry! I... I could be his target! An—and you, of course! He's behind all of it!"
Chapter 230