"You're really brave," Neville said, giving Harry a big thumbs up, genuinely admiring him as he sat next to Harry, with Hannah and Susan Bones sitting close by.
"It just occurred to me at the moment," Harry mumbled, feeling his face start to heat up. He hadn't thought much about it, not even intending for others to follow his lead, hence why he kept silent. It was Hermione who quickly caught on to his intentions.
"That's the spirit, leading by example," Ernie Macmillan said loudly, leaning in to pat Harry on the shoulder, looking at the badge on Harry's chest with envy.
"By the way, do you know if there have been any changes to the teaching staff this year?" Harry hurriedly asked, looking toward the professors' table—it wasn’t fully seated yet, but he could see Snape and Professor Slughorn sitting together, Slughorn looking at Harry with an appreciative gaze, hands clasped together; Snape, on the other hand, had a vacant look, making it impossible to read his emotions. A few seats away, Professor Sprout and the Astronomy professor, Aurora Sinistra, were chatting quietly, smiles evident on their faces.
"People haven’t all arrived yet, hmm, I guess we came a bit early," Susan stretched her neck and said, "But at least it’s certain that there won’t be big changes in the positions for Potions, Defense Against the Dark Arts, Herbology, and Astronomy."
"That the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor hasn’t changed... that’s really unexpected," Ernie exchanged a meaningful look with others. Harry knew that everyone was thinking of the turnover of Defense Against the Dark Arts teachers over the years.
But Harry wasn’t surprised at all, Voldemort was dead, and the shadow that had loomed over Hogwarts had naturally vanished.
"Do you think it's possible that Slughorn and Snape have swapped positions? Snape continuing with potions and Professor Slughorn teaching Defense Against the Dark Arts?"
"That's unlikely," Harry immediately said.
"Why?" Hannah asked curiously.Harry's gaze became distant. Yes, why was he so sure? He couldn’t provide concrete evidence, it was just a gut feeling that such a thing wouldn’t happen. He wondered if it was because of his frequent reminiscing of what he saw in the Pensieve. "Need you ask? He must have got some inside information," a voice interjected.
It was Mafalda, holding a notebook in one arm and a ballpoint pen, the kind only found in Muggle shops, in her other hand, eyeing him unblinkingly as if she smelled an exclusive scoop.
"Spill the beans," Mafalda said with a look of curiosity, "I think the most likely changes would be in Ancient Runes and Transfiguration. Professor Harp was recently appointed as a special envoy by the International Confederation of Wizards, visiting dozens of Ministries of Magic, he might not have much time next; the latter—Professor McGonagall is unlikely to teach this year, she’s the Headmistress now, right?"
She blurted out everything she knew, then looked at Harry with an inquisitive gaze.
Harry glared back, knowing that every word he said next would end up in the rumor mill, so he decided not to say a word—plus, he didn’t actually know the answer, but that didn’t stop him from coming up with a plausible excuse.
"You'll find out soon enough, be prepared for a surprise," he said in a vague, all-knowing tone. The next second, Harry realized he was mimicking Trelawney, which slightly displeased him.
Neville obviously took Harry's words as a clue, pondering hard.
"Who could it be?" he murmured, cautiously looking at Harry, "It must be someone we know, but not someone easy to guess, that would be a real surprise..." Harry watched him nervously, afraid his bluff would be called, especially with Mafalda there, but he couldn’t give away any hints.
Sometimes Harry thought—Ron's distant relative wasn't here to study; like some painters who roam around with their easels, their purpose was to collect useful material for their works.
"Could it be Mr. Longbottom? If so, that would indeed be surprising..." Hannah Abbott speculated.
Harry was struck by the thought; it was indeed possible.
"No," Neville shook his head, very certain, "Because Professor McGonagall actually approached my dad, hoping he would teach at the school."
"Professor McGonagall invited Mr. Longbottom?" Harry said, surprised.
"Yes, but dad declined. He didn’t want to be apart from mom, and they are both busy choosing a location for a new wizarding town," Neville explained.
After being cured by Professor Harp, the Longbottoms traveled abroad for a while. When the wizarding war broke out, they immediately decided
to contribute their efforts. After the war, they had no interest in joining the Ministry but chose to open a small shop to live their own life. Until recently, with the exposure of the wizarding world, they were invited by the Ministry as professionals. Harry had heard about their involvement in raiding domestic black markets and smuggling, but this was the first time he heard from Neville about their current project.
"A new wizarding town—what's that?" Mafalda looked up from her notebook, asking sharply.
Harry thought of the recent hot news; if there were to be trade between wizards and Muggles, a fixed location was needed. But he quickly realized he was off track, "It’s to settle the foreign wizards who have recently moved here," Neville said.
"The radio did mention that..." Mafalda mused.
"My aunt is having a hard time with them," Susan Bones chimed in, "The number of registrations has already exceeded three hundred. To prevent them from causing trouble, the department urgently pulled together a team."
"That’s not surprising, those people are somewhat related to our wizards here," Ernie Macmillan said indifferently, "My dad says—during the first Wizarding War, many fled abroad, and now the situation is just reversing. I believe there are many familiar surnames among them, like Shafiq."
"I remember they came back before the wizarding world was fully exposed," Hannah Abbott said slowly.
Ernie shrugged.
"I haven't paid much attention..."
Satisfied, Mafalda left, then, like a bee that had gathered its pollen, flew to another group—Hermione was chatting with Luna and Ginny. Following Mafalda’s departure, Harry saw Ron looking over here listlessly, eager to come over.
When Felix and Professor McGonagall appeared, they keenly noticed the disorder in the seating arrangements in the hall. They sat down in the large chairs, casting serious and inquisitive glances over the four long dining tables, like lions and snakes surveying their territory.
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