Wet Wraiths on the Hogwarts Express
The next morning began with a flurry of chaos as everyone heaved their trunks and bags out of the Leaky Cauldron and over to the Ministry cars parked over on the curb. Thankfully the journey to King’s Cross was the complete opposite, uneventful and relatively quiet aside from the small talk made during the short journey.
They soon arrived at the station with more than twenty minutes to spare. Seth watched in fascination as the Ministry cars drove away and somehow managed to jump to the front of the unmoving line of cars stuck in traffic. He’d have to see about getting a chance at examining the magic under those hoods. Traffic was brutal no matter which country you were in and any chance to bypass it was one he’d gladly take.
The group then trudged their way through the station. Seth noted how Mr. Weasley kept particularly close to Harry the entire way and they soon arrived at the platform entrance.
“Right then, let’s go in pairs since there’s so many of us,” Mr. Weasley said, “I’ll go through first with Harry.”
Harry stepped up to the portal with Mr. Weasley almost glued to his side, his head on a swivel as if Sirius Black would jump out as soon as they walked through. The two walk onto the platform without any problems.
Percy and Ginny go through next, then the twins, Hermione and Seth, and finally Ron and Mrs. Weasley.
“Ah! There’s Penelope,” Percy giddily remarked. He smoothed his hair with a soft blush on his cheeks then walked over with his chest puffed out so that Penelope couldn’t miss his shiny new badge.
Seth looked over and saw Fred mockingly imitate Percy, puffing out his chest and walking in place in an exaggeratedly pompous manner. George and Ginny were keeling over in suppressed laughter, Harry and Ron slapped their hands over their mouths to stop the guffaws that threatened to break through, and Hermione merely shook her head with an exasperated sigh.
“Alright, that’s enough mucking about,” Mrs. Weasley said in clear disapproval, “Let’s get you all packed onto the train.”
Everyone followed her to the near end of the train to a carriage that was mostly empty. They loaded the trunks into the storage area and went back outside to say goodbye to Mr. and Mrs. Weasley. Mrs. Weasley kissed all her children on the forehead. Then Hermione, Seth, and finally Harry who she gave an extra tight hug to.
“Do take care, won’t you?” She said, her eyes oddly bright. Then she opened her enormous handbag. “I’ve also made you all sandwiches. Here you are Ron. No, they’re not corned beef. The inn’s kitchen didn’t have any.”
“Thank Merlin,” Ron muttered as he accepted the sandwich from her.
“Fred, George. Where are you two? Oh there you are. Take your sandwiches now. Seth, here you go.”
Seth gratefully accepted his sandwich, watching as Mr. Weasley pulled Harry aside to speak privately with him. He noted how serious the man looked and the nervous ticks he was displaying. He was most likely telling Harry about Sirius Black being after him.
“Come on, Seth,” Hermione said, nudging him into motion, “Let’s go find a compartment. Crookshanks is getting anxious.”
Seth looked at the shaking basket in her arms and noted how the cat within was hissing impatiently. “Yeah. We should go before he stages a jailbreak.”
Hermione deadpanned as they all hopped back into the carriage with Harry soon joining them just as the train blew its whistle, barely hopping in before it began its departure.
They all leaned out the window and waved goodbye to Mr. and Mrs. Weasley until the train turned a corner and blocked them from view.
“We’re off to find Jordan,” Fred announced.
“Don’t get into any trouble without us!” George warned with faux seriousness.
“But if you do, make sure to go after Percy, yeah?” Fred suggested with a grin.
George nodded wisely. “We wouldn’t want him to get too big of a head now, do we?”
The twins walked away, laughing at their own little joke.
“I need to talk to you guys in private,” Harry muttered to Ron, Seth, and Hermione as soon as the twins were out of ear shot.
Ron nodded and turned to his sister. “Go on. Get.”
Ginny huffed. “No need to be such a jerk about it. I was leaving anyway.”
She stalked off only to brighten once she saw Luna poke her head out of a nearby compartment. Before she entered though, she stuck her tongue out at Ron and he stuck his tongue out back at her.
Hermione rolled her eyes. “Real mature Ronald.”
“Oh shut up,” Ron said, blushing in embarrassment, “You’re an only child. You wouldn’t understand.”
“I don’t need to have siblings to know plenty about maturity,” she retorted.
Harry cleared his throat awkwardly. “Um, guys?”
“What?” Ron and Hermione snapped simultaneously.
“I, er, still need to talk to you all about something really important,” Harry said.
“And I for one, would prefer we do this in an empty compartment instead of out in the wide-open corridor where anyone and everyone can see and hear us,” Seth pointedly added.
Ron and Hermione blushed and in unison, turned away from each with a huff. Harry and Seth exchanged looks, one pained and one amused, before they set off down the corridor for an empty compartment.
The quartet’s search for an empty compartment led them all the way to the very end of the train as all of them were full except for the very last one. Inside was a single occupant - a man who was fast asleep next to the window. This was surprising since the Hogwarts Express seemed to be used exclusively by students and the only adult they’ve seen was the food trolley witch.
The man wore an extremely shabby set of robes that was patched in several places. He looked ill and exhausted and though he seemed quite young, his light brown hair was already peppered with gray.
“Who d’you think he is?” Ron quietly asked as they carefully made their way inside and slid the door shut, settling themselves as far from the window as possible.
They settled Hedwig and Kendra’s cages under the seats and Hermione placed Crookshanks’ basket on her lap.
“R. J. Lupin,” Hermione answered.
Ron looked at her with wide eyes. “How d’you know that?”
“It’s on his case,” she said, pointing at the battered suitcase up on the luggage rack where the name ‘R. J. Lupin’ was stamped across the side in peeling letters.
“You think he’s a new professor?” Harry remarked.
Ron frowned. “But what would he teach?”
Hermione rolled her eyes. “Defense against the Dark Arts obviously. It’s the only one with a vacancy.”
“Really?” Ron said, skeptical as he took in Professor Lupin’s poor form, “He looks like one good hex would finish him off.”
“You never know. He could be the best professor we’ll ever have,” Seth said in his defense, “Not that that’s a high bar to clear.”
“Hear hear,” Ron said before turning to Harry. “Anyway, what were you going to tell us?”
Harry then explained the warning Mr. Weasley gave him about Sirius Black. When he was done, Ron looked as if he were about to hurl from fear alone, Hermione was utterly shocked with a hand over her mouth to cover the gasp that escaped, and Seth crossed his arms as a severe frown marred his face.
“Sirius Black escaped just to come after you?!” Hermione exclaimed, completely befuddled, “Oh Harry, this is really serious. You’ll have to be really careful this year. You can’t go looking for trouble.”
“I don’t go looking for trouble. Trouble looks for me!” Harry cried out in protest.
Seth, Hermione, and even Ron leveled unimpressed looks at him.
“It may find you sure, but who’s the one who actively keeps chasing after it once it does instead of getting someone else to take care of it?” Seth dryly pointed out.
Harry had the decency to blush and shut his mouth on any further protests.
“Hermione does have a point though Harry,” Ron said, surprisingly sensible for once, “Black is an utter nutcase and nobody knows how he escaped Azkaban. No one’s ever done it before and he was a top security prisoner too.”
“But they’ll catch him soon, won’t they?” Hermione nervously fretted, “It seems like they’ve even got the muggles involved in the search as well.”
“I’m more interested in these guards Mr. Weasley mentioned,” Seth said, “What kind of guards would Azkaban even have-”
“What’s that noise?” Ron said, interrupting him.
Everyone shut their mouths to listen for the noise Ron was talking about. They soon heard a faint tinny whistle coming from somewhere. They looked all around for the source.
“I think it’s coming from your bag, Harry,” Ron said, pointing at said bag.
Harry pulled up his bag and dug through it, pulling out a sneakoscope that spun very fast in his hand and glowed brilliantly.
Hermione peered at it with fascination. “Is that a sneakoscope?”
“Yeah, but it’s a cheap one,” Ron responded, “It went nuts when I tried tying it to Errol’s leg to send it to Harry.”
She pinned him with a knowing look. “Were you doing something untrustworthy at the time?”
“No!” He immediately exclaimed only to backtrack shortly after. “Well, I wasn’t supposed to be using Errol since he’s not really up for long journeys. But how was I supposed to get Harry’s present to him? Besides, Scabbers was the only one there and who’s he going to tell? Percy?”
Hermione frowned in disapproval. Seth also frowned, but for an entirely different reason.
“Hey Ron. How did you end up with Scabbers?” He asked.
“What d’you mean? Percy gave him to me,” Ron answered in confusion.
“Let me be more specific, how did your family end up with Scabbers?”
Ron opened his mouth to answer and then paused. He tilted his head in thought. “Huh. I don’t really know. He just appeared in the garden one day I think. I’d ask Percy but…” He made a face.
“I’ll ask him myself later,” Seth assured.
“Thanks,” Ron said gratefully, “Anyway…” He looked to Harry and nodded at the sneakoscope which was now whistling at a higher pitch. “Stick it back in your bag or it’ll wake up the professor.”
Harry nodded and stuffed the sneakoscope in a wad of socks that muffled the sound and then shoved it deep into his bag before zipping it shut.
“We should get that checked in Hogsmeade,” Ron suggested, “They sell that sort of stuff at Dervish and Banges. Fred and George told me.”
“Do you know much about Hogsmeader?” Hermione eagerly asked, “I’ve read that it’s the only entirely non-muggle settlement in Britain.”
“That sounds about right,” Ron said, “But that’s not why I want to go. I want to get inside HoneyDukes.” A dreamy look appeared on his face. “It’s a famous sweetshop that’s got everything. Pepper imps that make you smoke at the mouth, great fat chocoballs full of strawberry mousse and clotted cream, excellent sugar quills you can suck on in class and just look like you’re thinking about what to write next.”
“That sounds great and all but Hogsmeade is a historically fascinating place,” Hermione said insistently, trying to change the subject, “Sites of Historical Sorcery says the inn was the headquarters for the 1612 Goblin Rebellion and the Shrieking Shack’s supposed to be the most haunted building in Britain!”
“And massive sherbet balls that make you levitate a few inches off the ground while you’re sucking them,” Ron continued, completely ignoring her.
Hermione looked like she wanted to smack him but held the urge in. She turned to Harry and Seth. “It’ll be nice to get out of school for a bit and explore, wouldn’t it?”
“Absolutely!” Seth responded.
“Sure. You’ll have to tell me all about it though,” Harry glumly replied.
Ron was broken out of his daydreaming and looked to Harry in surprise. “What do you mean?”
Harry sank in his seat. “I can’t go. The Durseley’s didn’t sign my permission form.”
“You’re not allowed to come?!” Ron exclaimed, horrified, “What if you asked McGonagall or Hagrid or, or even Dumbledore to sign it? Surely someone will give you permission?”
“Or you can tell me what your uncle’s signature looks like and I can forge it for you,” Seth helpfully suggested.
“Or we could even ask Fred and George for help. They know every secret passage out of the castle!” Ron added.
“Seth! You can’t forge someone’s signature. That’s illegal,” Hermione scolded.
“Only if you get caught,” Seth rebuked with a smirk.
“And Ron, Harry shouldn’t be sneaking out of school while Black’s still on the loose,” she berated.
Harry sighed. “That’s probably what everyone would say if I tried to ask ‘em for permission.”
“And they would be right,” Hermione said sharply, “Black is dangerous. He murdered a whole group of people in the middle of a crowded street in broad daylight. Harry will be safer at Hogwarts where the professors can watch over him.”
“And hey, you could also use this as an opportunity to hang out with Snape while everyone’s out,” Seth helpfully pointed out. He also barely caught the slight twitch Lupin gave at the mention of Snape’s name.
Harry perked up slightly at the reminder. “You’re right. Thanks Seth.”
Hermione began fumbling with the straps of Crookshanks' basket and Ron scowled. “Don’t let that cat out!”
But it was too late. Crookshanks leapt out of the basket and stretched with a yawn. He eyed the trembling lump in Ron’s pocket and Ron covered it protectively. “Don’t even think about it,” he warned.
“Oh leave him alone, Ron,” Hermione huffed in exasperation. She picked up Crookshanks and cradled him in her arms with a coo. The cat settled in with a purr but continued to eye the trembling lump of a rat.
Seth and Harry exchanged looks at that. Both agreed that something strange was going on. There was no reason for a cat as intelligent as the clerk claimed Crookshanks was to be so obsessed with a single rat after being told to leave him alone. Unfortunately, those thoughts would have to be put aside to make sure Ron and Hermione didn’t come to blows over their respective pets.
The Hogwarts Express chugged on steadily as the landscape became wilder and darker. The clouds overhead thickened with the promise of rain. Students ran back and forth out in the hall.
At one, the food trolley stopped by and the quartet tried to wake Lupin for lunch but he remained asleep. The trolley witch assured them he could find her up front if he was hungry when he finally woke up.
Not long after, the door to their compartment opened to reveal Draco Malfoy in all his robed glory.
“Hello Potter, Granger, Weasley, Sorenson,” he greeted.
Seth waved with a grin. “Hey Draco! What’s up?”
Draco haughtily sniffed. “I merely wanted to make sure you hadn’t been stupid enough to be possessed again over the summer.”
“Awww, you really do care. You’re such a tsundere.”
Hermione started coughing violently into her hand to cover up her laughter.
Draco glared at her. “And what’s wrong with you, Granger?”
She waved him off, clearing her throat. “Nothing, nothing. Just swallowed wrong is all.”
“Whatever,” he said with a huff. He looked at Harry. “There’s something important I need to tell you, Potter.” He glanced around at everyone gathered. “Alone.”
Harry frowned. “Why can’t you tell me now or with the rest of them? You know I’ll only tell them later.”
Draco frowned. “That’s- But- Argh! I forgot how frustrating you are!” He threw his hands up in defeat. “Fine. I’ll tell you all but later-” He looked pointedly at Lupin, “When there aren’t other people around. Don’t want anyone overhearing.”
Harry then quickly caught on to what the topic of discussion might be. “If this is about Sirius Black then I already know.”
That surprised Draco. “Wait. You do?”
Harry nodded. “Yeah. Mr. Weasley warned me that Black’s out to get me.”
Now Draco was confused. “What do you mean he’s-”
The lanterns flickered, the carriage rattled, the rain hammered on the windows, and the train began to slow.
“Oh! We’re already there,” Ron said, getting up and carefully walking past Lupin to try and see outside. “I’m starving. I can’t wait for the feast.”
Hermione checked her watch with a frown. “We can’t be there yet. It’s too early.”
Seth frowned as well. “So then why are we stopping?”
Draco went over to the window to check outside as well. The compartment door closed behind him.
The train kept slowing down. Harry got up to look into the corridor. All along the hall, heads were sticking out of compartments to look around curiously.
The train came to a stop with a sharp jolt. Then without warning, all the lamps went out and they were plunged into total darkness. Hedwig and Kendra screeched with indignation and Crookshanks hissed. Seth blinked until his vision adjusted so he could see clearly in the darkness.
“What’s going on?” Ron shouted as he tried to make his way over to the door.
“Ow! Ron, that was my foot!” Hermione cried out.
Harry carefully fumbled his way back to the seats. “Have we broken down?”
Draco wiped the condensation off the window and peered out. “There’s something moving out there. I think it’s coming aboard.”
As soon as he said that, Seth shuddered as the sensation of multiple dark entities entered the train. He closed his eyes to get a better sense of what they were. The entities felt wispy with a layer of slime, like wraiths wearing the skin of waterlogged corpses. “Whatever’s coming aboard, it’s dark.”
Everyone gasped sharply.
“How can you tell?” Ron asked nervously.
“More importantly, can you tell what it is?” Hermione sharply demanded.
“I-”
“Quiet!” A raspy voice whispered with a hiss.
Everyone startled at the sudden unknown voice speaking. Seth looked over and saw that Professor Lupin was finally awake. He watched as the man whispered under his breath and a soft orb of light appeared in his hand.
“Stay where you are,” Lupin cautioned. He slowly got up to his feet but a small cracking noise halted his movements.
Everyone turned around and watched in confusion as the window slowly iced over. The temperature in the compartment dropped sharply, leaving everyone except Seth shivering at the cold.
The compartment door cracked open and a hand with slimy gray skin stretched tightly over long spindly bones curled around to slowly pull it open, revealing a cloaked figure that towered toward the ceiling. The figure’s face was completely hidden beneath its hood but Seth was able to clearly see a face that wouldn’t look out of place on a decayed corpse.
The wraithlike creature looked around the compartment and its gaze landed on Harry. It drew in a slow, long rattling breath and Seth could feel that breath trying to pull something out from within him but failing to do so due to the unique constitution granted by his abilities.
However, the same could not be said for the others. Hermione, Ron, and Draco trembled fiercely as they stood frozen in place. Lupin struggled to pull his wand out with violently shaking hands and Harry seized up as if he’d been jinxed by a Petrificus Totalis.
Lupin managed to pull his wand out and with a stammering voice, said, “None of us are hiding Sirius Black under our cloaks. Go.”
But the creature refused, drawing in a longer and deeper breath. Seth watched in horror as Harry began to tremble violently and his eyes rolled back into his head.
Overcome with anger, Seth stepped forward and barked out a harsh command, “Stop!”
The creature immediately stopped. Its breath cut short so abruptly that if it could look shocked it would. Everyone else took in a shuddering breath and Harry fell to the ground like a puppet with its strings cut.
“Leave. Now!” Seth sharply ordered.
The creature did so, bowing its head submissively like a chastised zombie puppy, and fled the compartment without further ado. Everyone gaped at Seth, equal parts shaken by whatever the creature did and shocked by how Seth managed to command it like a tamed animal.
After a few minutes, the train jolted back into motion and the lights flickered on. It was then the others realized Harry was passed out on the ground.
“Harry!” Ron cried out at the same time as Hermione shouted, “Harry, are you alright?”
But Harry didn’t stir. Before anyone could begin to panic, Lupin stepped in.
“Hold on. Let me help.” He pointed his wand at Harry. “Rennervate!”
Harry jerked up with a gasp. He began breathing heavily and sweating like he’d just ran a marathon. “What? Where?”
“It’s alright. You’re alright,” Lupin said soothingly, “Come on. Let’s get you off the ground.” He pulled Harry back up onto his seat.
“Are you okay?” Ron asked in concern.
“I…I think so?” Harry said, looking around the compartment. “What happened? Where’s that thing? Who screamed?”
Hermione looked at him in alarm. “No one screamed, Harry.”
“But…I heard screaming,” Harry insisted, looking lost.
Seth and Draco shared concerned and unnerved looks. A loud snap made them all jump and they turned to see Lupin breaking apart an enormous bar of chocolate.
“Here,” Lupin said, handing Harry a particularly large piece, “Eat it. It’ll help.”
Harry took the chocolate but didn’t eat it. “What was that thing?”
“It was a dementor, wasn’t it,” Draco said more than asked.
Lupin nodded as he handed out chocolate to everyone else. “One of the dementors of Azkaban. They’re the prison’s guards.” He crumpled the empty wrapper and shoved it into his pocket. “Eat the chocolate. It’ll help. I need to speak with the conductor. Excuse me.”
He left the compartment and disappeared into the corridor. Seth looked down at the piece of chocolate skeptically but shrugged, deciding there was no harm in it and ate it. He felt no different other than feeling the pleasant sensation that came from eating chocolate.
The others slowly followed his example and there was a more noticeable difference with them. The color returned to their pale faces and the faint lingering tremble of fear disappeared.
Hermione eyed Harry anxiously. “Are you sure you’re okay?”
“I’m feeling alright now,” Harry answered honestly, “But, I don’t understand. What happened?”
Hermione and Ron tag teamed to give him a brief rundown of what occurred the moment the dementor appeared to the moment Harry woke up.
Hermione shuddered. “Oh, that was horrible. Did you feel how cold it got when it came in?”
Ron shifted uncomfortably. “I felt weird. Like I’d never be happy again.”
“That’s what dementors do,” Draco explained softly, “They suck all the positive emotions out of you and if you’re unlucky enough, they’ll give you the kiss of death and suck out your soul, leaving behind an empty husk that can still eat and breath but won’t really be living.”
Hermione shuddered again.
“But didn’t any of you also pass out?” Harry awkwardly asked.
Seth shook his head. “No, it was just you. Everyone was as fine as they could be given the situation.”
“Everyone except you,” Draco said in remembrance, narrowing his eyes in suspicion, “You were the only one who seemed unaffected by the dementor. Even that man was affected so how come you weren’t?”
Seth shrugged, trying to play it off as nothing strange. “I guess us Americans are just built different.”
“Right…” Draco drawled, not buying it at all.
It was then that Lupin returned, cutting off any further conversation. He looked around at them and nodded when he saw they’d eaten the chocolate and were looking much better. “We’ll be at Hogwarts in ten minutes. Are you alright, Harry?”
“Fine,” Harry muttered in embarrassment.
Nobody talked for the remainder of the journey. It was the longest ten minutes Seth had ever experienced in his life and he’d experienced plenty of times when the minutes, and even seconds, seemed to stretch out into hours and sometimes into days.
Thankfully, the train soon stopped at Hogsmeade station and there was a mad scramble to get outside. Despite the fact that it was freezing due to the rain that fell in icy sheets, everyone was relieved to escape the suffocating atmosphere that was left behind by the dementors.
The quartet waved to Hagrid in greeting as the mass of people guided them away from the platform and over to the rough muddy roads where the carriages were lined up to take them to the castle. They climbed on in silence and once the door closed, the carriage kicked into motion and they were off to the castle.
As they passed through the gates, they saw two dementors standing guard on either side. A wave of cold sickness passed through Harry when the dementors turned their heads in his direction. He sank into his seat and squeezed his eyes shut as he tried hard not to throw up.
Seth frowned and glared at the dementors in warning. The dementors quickly turned their gazes away and the sickly feeling soon left, leaving Harry to breathe out a sigh of relief. Only Hermione managed to catch what Seth did. She glanced at him with an eyebrow raised, silently telling him that they would have to speak about this later and he gave a small, curt nod.
Soon the carriage came to a halt and they all clambered out to join the crowd swarming up the steps and into the entrance hall that was thankfully well lit and warm.
Before they could enter the Great Hall however, McGonagall’s voice called out. “Potter, Granger. I want to see you both.”
Harry and Hermione turned to look at her in surprise.
“Now,” McGonagall said, her expression giving nothing away.
Harry and Hermione shared looks of trepidation before fighting their way over through the crowd with Ron and Seth trailing closely behind in concern.
“There is no need to look so concerned. You’re not in trouble,” McGonagall assured “I just want a word in my office.”
Harry and Hermione visibly relax.
“We’ll save you some seats,” Seth said to which the two looked at him gratefully. He grabbed hold of Ron. “Come on. You gotta be pretty hungry by now.”
Ron was instantly distracted by the promise of food so he easily followed along. “I’m absolutely famished.”
Seth and Ron settled down at the Gryffindor table, making sure to save two seats for their friends. By the time the sorting was complete, Harry and Hermione were able to join them.
“So what did McGonagall want?” Ron asked.
Harry opened his mouth to speak but at that moment, Dumbledore stood up so he closed his mouth.
“Welcome to another year at Hogwarts,” Dumbledore said cheerfully, “I have a few things to say to you all and as one of them is of utmost importance, I think it’s best to get it out of the way before you’re all tuckered out by the feast.” He cleared his throat. “As you will all no doubt be aware of by now, our school will play host to some of the dementors of Azkaban who are here on Ministry of Magic business.”
He paused. The faintest frown and look of disapproval was barely noticeable on his face. “They will be stationed at every entrance to the grounds. And while they are with us I must make it plain that nobody is to leave school without permission,” he said with utmost seriousness, “Dementors will not be fooled by tricks, disguises, or even invisibility cloaks.”
The quartet shared looks with each other at the subtle call out and warning.
“It is not in the nature of a dementor to understand pleading or excuses. I therefore warn each and everyone of you to give them no reason to harm you. I look to prefects and our head boy and girl to make sure no student runs afoul of the dementors.”
He paused again, looking gravely serious as his gaze swept around the hall. Nobody dared to make a single move or sound. His expression softened.
“On a happier note, I am pleased to welcome two new professors to our ranks this year. First, Professor Lupin who has kindly filled the post of Defense Against the Dark Arts.”
The students dutifully applauded in welcome. Some gave looks of doubt at Lupin who looked particularly worn down when compared to the rest of the professors.
“Look at Snape,” Ron hissed to the others.
They all looked at Professor Snape who was staring down the staff table at Professor Lupin. While it was common knowledge that Snape wanted the Defense Against the Dark Arts position, they were all startled to see the expression of absolute loathing that twisted his face.
“What’s wrong with him? Why does he look so angry?” Hermione whispered.
“Maybe you can ask him later?” Seth quietly asked Harry.
“Maybe…” Harry murmured.
Once the applause died away, Dumbledore continued. “For our second appointment, I am sorry to inform you that Professor Kettleburn retired at the end of last year in order to enjoy more time with his remaining limbs. However, I am delighted to say that the Care of Magical Creatures position will be filled by none other than Rubeus Hagrid who has agreed to take on this job in addition to his gamekeeping duties.”
The quartet were stunned by the announcement. Then they joined in the applause which was especially enthusiastic at the Gryffindor table.
Hagrid was red in the face and trying to hide his wide grin from view but was clearly failing.
“We should’ve known!” Ron roared with a grin, “Who else would’ve assigned a literal monster book?”
The applause ended a few moments later and Dumbledore spoke again.
“Well I think that’s everything important. Let the feast begin!”
The plates and goblets on the tables were filled with food and drink. The students immediately began tucking into the delicious feast.
The hall echoed with talk, laughter, and the clatter of utensils. The students mingled with each other, easily sitting at other house tables besides their own. The quartet however, were eager for the feast to finish so they could speak with Hagrid. They all knew how much being made a professor would mean to him.
When everyone had finally eaten and drunk their fill, Dumbledore gave the word that it was time for them all to go to bed. The quartet took that as their chance and ran up to Hagrid before he could leave the table.
“Congratulations Hagrid!” Hermione cheered.
“Thanks you four,” Hagrid said, “Still can’t believe it. Great man Dumbledore is. Came straight down to me hut after Professor Kettleburn said he had enough.” He sniffed and wiped tears from his eyes. “It’s what I always wanted.”
He was then overcome with emotion and buried his face in his napkin with a loud sob. The four patted him on his large arms until Professor McGonagall came to shoo them away.
The quartet joined the Gryffindors as they streamed up the marble staircase and down corridors and up more stairs until they reached the hidden entrance to Gryffindor tower.
The portrait of the Fat Lady greeted them with a smile. “Password?”
“Coming through!” Percy called out as he squeezed through the narrow gap the crowd of Gryffindors managed to make. “The new password’s Fortuna Major.”
The portrait swung open in acceptance.
Neville whimpered as he stepped through. “Oh no. I forgot about the passwords.”
“Don’t worry, mate. You’ll get it eventually,” Seamus said encouragingly.
“You could always write it down,” Dean suggested.
“But what if I lose it?” Neville whined in despair.
Seth slapped him on the back. “Come on Neville. Have some confidence!”
Neville only whimpered again as the Gryffindors divided into girls and boys and went up their respective staircases. The boys soon entered their dormitory and all collapsed onto their beds.
Harry let out a content sigh. “It’s good to be back.”
“Hear hear!” Ron cried out in cheer.
The other boys joined in. “Hear hear!”