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Chapter 616: An Unusual Dinner (2 in 1)

The evening of 1st September was rainy and overcast.

The Hogwarts Express arrived at Hogsmeade station.

Ron and Hermione had to maintain order on the muddy roads in the rain, taking the somewhat over-excited young wizards to their carriages. Harry dawdled deliberately, waiting until the platform was almost completely empty before finding the opportunity to slip out. So they were almost the last ones to enter the carriage.

“Ugh, those brats are a pain in the arse.” Ron said grumblingly, “I have a sudden craving for French food, what about you guys?”

“Anything.” Hermione answered a little tiredly.

The carriage started to move, it was cloudy outside, the light was darker than usual at this time of year, and the rain hit the roof and wormed its way into the carriage, making Harry shiver. The carriage finally stopped by the stone steps leading up to the oak gate and Hermione, who had been dozing off, woke up with a start and jumped out of the carriage, “Come on you two!”

“She’s absolutely starving.” Ron said in a hushed voice to Harry.

The three of them rejoined the crowd, after stomping their way up the waterlogged stone steps, the brightly lit entrance hall was in sight, Harry couldn’t wait to sit down in the great hall and enjoy the food, this thought injected a rush of heat into his cold body, and he climbed the last few steps in one breath.

A pair of shoes blocked his way.

Harry looked up at the blank, expressionless face of Professor Hap. An inexplicable wave of fear washed over him, stretching his internal organs to the point where they ached strangely. Ron and Hermione looked back at them in wonder.

“Prof- Professor?” Harry swallowed hard.

“Harry, stay after the dinner, Headmaster Dumbledore and I are going to take you somewhere.” Felix said, and he had almost assumed Harry had missed the train, after spending nearly half an hour in the chilly breeze at the door.

Valen was soaked to the bone and finally couldn’t take it anymore and run off to the great hall.

Harry opened his mouth, swallowing what he was about to say, “Okay.”

Felix nodded at him, leading him towards the great hall. “Professor?” Felix stopped and looked at Harry. Harry was shivering from the cold, “Do I need to make any preparations …”

“No need, oh, better bring your wand.”

Harry walked into the great hall with heavy feet.

The great hall looked chaotic with students making their way to the table and when he sat down, Ron and Hermione gave him a questioning look, and he shook his head. He couldn’t help but look towards the professor’s seat where Professor Hap was whispering something over to Headmaster Dumbledore as he leaned over Professor McGonagall’s empty chair, and Headmaster Dumbledore nodded solemnly.

His heart sank little by little.

“I’ve already informed Harry, and when the dinner is over he will…”

“I understand.” Dumbledore said in a hushed voice as he picked up a fork and tapped it against a goblet, a crisp clink echoed through the great hall, and the noises subsided as the students’ eyes focused on the professor’s seat. Some of those who had previously been preoccupied with chatting with their classmates noticed something out of the norm.

“Two new professors!” Seamus said in surprise, as he counted them one by one by subject, his face filled with bewilderment, “How come there is one more person …”

“Professor McGonagall’s seat is empty!”

…

“The man sitting next to Snape is Mr. Slughorn, and the one sitting next to Professor Hap is Mr. Bagshot.” Harry whispered.

Hermione breathed in softly, looking a little uneasy.

“What’s wrong?”

“The number of chairs isn’t right, there is an extra one -”

At that moment, the door to the Great Hall opened and Professor McGonagall led a row of little wizards in and had them line up in front of the faculty table. Then, she placed a dirty hat on a small round stool and stepped aside to wait.

The Sorting hat sang aloud:

I have been worn on the head of the best duellist,

Though then not yet given a life;

I am older than everything in the castle,

But don’t think I’ll ever change.

The four founders of the great school,

Their deeds have been passed down for a millennium.

Who else in the world knows enough about them?

Then think who carried their beliefs!

Godric Gryffindor, the matchless duellist,

Rowena Ravenclaw, whose wisdom is unmatched,

Helga Hufflepuff, who is merciful and compassionate to all,

Salazar Slytherin, with a shrewd and merciless mind.

Despite their bodies being decayed.

Their beliefs still live on in their students.

The four Houses have been blessed with talent.

Together they have made Hogwarts prestigious.

But I will pour cold water on you,

But I will pour cold water on you;

A single belief can only work in isolation,

A single belief can only work in isolation!

Courage and recklessness are inseparable.

Wisdom and arrogance are intertwined,

Kindness and weakness are always in harmony,

The clever and the selfish are only a matter of thought.

I stand before you now,

To confess to you the past.

I have done my duty and told you straight –

Let us begin the sorting now.

The Sorting Hat didn’t move after it finished singing. In the great hall, it was like a pause button had been pressed, and it took a few seconds before sparse applause broke out. The students all murmured, “This is the first time I’ve ever heard the Sorting Hat criticize the beliefs of four houses.” Ron said in surprise.

“But it does have the credentials.” Harry said, applauding along with the crowd, despite the fact that he also found it a little strange in his mind.

Usually, the Sorting Hat will simply describe the qualities that the four houses value and brag about the four founders to the sky (sometimes with the exception of Slytherin). Last year had been different, it had given an unprecedented warning to the students to stick together, but that was because Voldemort was lurking outside the school.

Now that the war was over, Ginny had even made a bet with Ron on the train that the Sorting Hat would sing the praises of people coming out of the shadow of war this year in a butchering way.

Professor McGonagall, too, was a little stunned, and she cleared her throat with some effort, the chatter at the bottom ceased abruptly as she pulled out a long roll with the names of the new students, and read them out one by one –

“Tulsa Alamo.”

“It’s very distinctive.” At the professor’s seat, Grindelwald put down his hand and murmured softly.

Felix smiled slightly, and his eyes swept across the great hall. The reactions of the students and professors to the song of the Sorting Hat were different, for example, Slughorn, who had been loudly trying to establish relations with the many professors before, now said nothing and furrowed his brow.

Slughorn glanced at Dumbledore and then subtly glanced at Grindelwald as his walrus moustache twitched.

Probably he is weighing up in his mind whether he is at a losing end … Felix thought quietly. He knew that Dumbledore had used the teaching position and the offer of asylum as a base to rope in Slughorn, but at the time Voldemort had not yet fallen and Slughorn did not want to expose himself in plain sight.

Now that the war was over, the wily old walrus couldn’t hold back any longer.

But this also brought a plus, as Severus finally got his wish and secured the position he desired.

“… Toby Gilbert.”

Felix glanced at the Sorting Hat and keenly grasped the crux of this year’s Sorting Hat song – the same as last year – a call for students to unite as one. But these two are different from each other; last year it was because of external enemies, and this year it may be because of internal reasons.

Did the Sorting Hat hear something from Dumbledore?

He looked at Grindelwald, who was in high spirits and relaxed, and thought that the direction was quite obvious – the old man’s strength had shrunk so much that he could only verbally try to influence others with speech, and although Felix had poked fun at Grindelwald with the list of books for this year’s Defence Against the Dark Arts class, he did not think that the Dark Lord, who had once aspired to rule Muggles, would easily bow to his peaceful philosophy.

It was more likely that he would use his book as a target for criticism.

Felix had already made up his mind that he would go over for a couple of classes sometimes; his book had been written with great care, and he couldn’t let Grindelwald interpret it in a haphazard way.

“- Hubbard Zenobia.”

“Slytherin!”

The Sorting Ceremony was finally over and Professor McGonagall came over to pick up the Sorting Hat and stool- “Just a moment, please, Minerva.” Professor McGonagall froze in place as Dumbledore abruptly spoke, and she asked hesitantly, “Albus?”

Dumbledore stood up agilely and walked out, his footsteps were brisk. He smiled and said, “I’m just a little curious to see what house … I would be sorted into if it were now.” He picked up the Sorting Hat and raised his arms to put it on his own head while sitting somewhat comically on the small stool.

The Great Hall was at once abuzz with voices.

In spite of their stomachs rumbling with hunger, the students rose to their feet and stood on tiptoe in anticipation. “Finally, he has gone mad!” Hermione exclaimed. “No, that’s normal!” Harry and Ron said in unison as all the students looked at Dumbledore without blinking.

“What do you guys think he is up to?”

“I don’t know, but if the Sorting Hat sorts him into another house there’ll be fun to watch!”

“Maybe that’s what he wants!”

Dumbledore sat upright on the small stool, his long white beard trailing on the floor, he closed his eyes and seemed to be communicating with the Sorting Hat as the crack opened up in irritation at the brim of the Hat, and it shouted, “That’s not allowed in the rules, Dumbledore!”

“Oh, come on, don’t be like that … be more accommodating …,” Dumbledore whispered, the words were only audible to Professor McGonagall, her lips pursed into a tight line and her fingers kept opening and closing as she was mentally torn over whether or not to forcibly remove the Sorting Hat from Dumbledore’s head.

She was unable to decide which of these things would turn into a scandal … so she could only stay frozen in place, her chest heaving violently.

It took a minute or two for the Sorting Hat to reluctantly call out the word ‘Gryffindor’.

Dumbledore stood up contentedly and handed the Sorting Hat to an exasperated Professor McGonagall. Felix, Grindelwald, and Snape looked thoughtful, although they had completely different views.

Felix became more excited about the speech that would follow after the dinner; what would Dumbledore say? Would he support school reform? Grindelwald’s lesson preparation this year had been extremely purposeful, and without Dumbledore’s tacit approval, that outrageous list of books would not have existed at all.

Dumbledore had returned to his seat and, as if nothing had happened, he spread his arms wide and said with a broad smile, “There is no better way to represent my mood at the moment than a great meal, so let’s eat with pleasure!”

Then he sat down and the food floated down from the air.

Grindelwald stared, faintly surprised, expecting Dumbledore to say at least a few more lines.

“The Headmaster never lets anyone down in this regard, does he, Minerva?” Felix said as he happily plied his plate with ribs, “Perhaps we should make a school rule that no more than ten words are allowed in a speech before the main meal.”

Professor McGonagall, who had just sat down, grunted softly, her eyes darted over to Dumbledore.

“Better include one more rule with it, prohibiting sudden insanity.”

As the last bits of dessert disappeared, Dumbledore stood up again and Felix looked at his Headmaster with interest, his eyes lingered on the black gemstone ring that seemed to grow on his hand, could that be the Resurrection Stone? The memory of a chance meeting with Xenophilius Lovegood a few weeks ago came to his mind.

Unfortunately, they didn’t speak more than a few words in total, as Mr. Lovegood seemed to have had a bad stomach and was in a hurry to find a toilet.

I wonder if his unsuccessful interview had anything to do with that …

“Well … new students, welcome to school; old students, welcome back to school!” Dumbledore wiped the corners of his eyes sentimentally, “What awaits you is a new academic year of magical education …”

“Caretaker Filch asked me to relay to everyone the list of … Quidditch selections will be held on … Assessment spells and make-ups tests … ”

The students listened lazily and drowsily, these things were all the same old stuff.

“This year the school welcomes two new professors, along with some minor changes to the original faculty. First, let us welcome Professor Slughorn, who has worked with me and is an experienced Potions Professor and Potions master …”

“Potions?”

The students’ eyes widened as they stared at the old wizard who stood up and was waving enthusiastically at them, dressed in an elaborate waistcoat, his stomach is too big to button up, and his bare head reflected the bright light from overhead as he turned his body.

“Sure enough-” Hermione hammered the table lightly with her fist.

“Sure enough what?” Ron asked in bewilderment, his eyes darting between the new professor and Snape with a look of glee, just like most of the students.

“Haven’t you guys noticed that there’s an extra professor this year? I originally thought-”

“At the same time, Professor Bagshot, and Professor Snape,” Dumbledore said with his usual expression, only raising his volume slightly, “will be co-teaching the Defense Against the Dark Arts class.”

Hermione sucked in a breath.

“It turned out to be this sort of arrangement! Sigh, Professor Snape sort of got what he wanted.”

The murmurs between the students grew louder. “All I care about is who will be teaching the sixth year,” Ron said, at which point Professor Bagshot politely stood up to greet the students, while Snape drew applause from the Slytherin students by simply lazily extending one of his hands.

Ron bared his teeth and said, “The gap is too wide, although I hate Snape with a passion, but compared to a Squib he is-”

“Ron!” Hermione exclaimed warningly.

Ron shrank his neck, “Well … I won’t say it, but the problem is there, there’s no way we can pretend like we can’t see it, anyone will know who to pick …”

Dumbledore waited until Grindelwald sat down before continuing, “The two professors will each divide their work between them and cooperate, Professor Snape will be responsible for teaching years one to five and Professor Bagshot will be responsible for teaching the advanced classes …”

There were loud boos sounded from Slytherin House as they booed against the injustice done to their Head.

Even Harry was very surprised, at the moment although the only people who expressed their clear opposition were Slytherin students, and the other three houses showed a lukewarm response, but that was only because they didn’t know that Mr. Bagshot is Squib, if they had known, they would probably have been just as loud.

Harry looked over at the professor’s seat and couldn’t help but worry about Mr. Bagshot, but his expression looked as usual.

Somewhere in the back of his mind, Harry breathed a secret sigh of relief. Although he had not yet attended Professor Bagshot’s class, at least one thing is certain, he would not have much chance of dealing with Snape this year.

A notion suddenly occurred to him that perhaps Snape had chosen Years 1 to 5 for this same reason.

After the announcement of the change of posts, Dumbledore was still standing in place, and clearly had something to say. The buzz in the great hall faded as the students thought involuntarily of the Song of the Sorting Hat and Headmaster Dumbledore’s strange actions, and perhaps they could hear the answer to this question in the words he’s going to say.

“Many people have suffered greatly over the past year due to Voldemort and his entourage causing havoc. Fortunately, we have not had to sacrifice too many of our cherished possessions, as we did in the last war that stretched over a decade, and I hope that we will all take even a minute out of our celebrations – like right now – to reflect on what the war has brought to us. ”

What followed was an extremely long minute.

“I’m sure each of you has your own reflections. Please remember this moment of reflection, it will allow you to grow and to know right from wrong, it is normal that one’s thoughts will change with one’s own experiences, I still remember clearly the scene of my own sorting when I was enrolled: the decision was made almost immediately by the sorting hat. But just now I’m not sure where it would sort me out… but one thing is certain, bigotry can lead people to extremes and stir up disputes.”

Dumbledore’s speech came to an awkward halt.

“Well, you will have plenty of time to ponder these vexing questions later, but the immediate priority at hand is a well-deserved rest, and I see someone yawning, so … good night.”

The single bench was pushed behind him and Harry stood up together with the rest of the group, his brain wanted to rush back to the warmth and comfort of his bed immediately, that’s when he saw Professor Hap waving at him with a serious expression.

He sobered up with a jolt.

“What’s the matter, Harry?” Ron asked with a yawn, by which time Hermione had run off to show the way to the first years.

Harry gave him a deep look.

“If … well, I mean if I couldn’t make it back, I left some stuff in the box …”

“What are you talking about?” Ron rubbed his stomach.

“… remember, the box.”

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[Author:]

The Sorting Hat Song is not for word count, it was something personally composed by the author and a lot of brain cells have died as a result.

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