novelcrest Chapter 542 A Great Humiliation
Chapter 542 A Great Humiliation
Chapter 538 A Great Humiliation
Aside from Sirius Black, Harry couldn't think of anyone else who would write to him.
"Perhaps it's Phoenix One."
"Okay, I understand."
Sean nodded to indicate that he understood, and then gave Harry some serious instructions.
"By the way, Harry."
"Hogwarts' correspondence with the outside world may be being monitored; you need to be careful."
Before the words were finished, the bell rang to signal the end of get out of class.
People poured out of the classrooms in the corridor. Harry saw Sean nod at him, then point at Hedwig and say something before turning and leaving, while he himself was swept away by the crowd.
It's time to eat.
If someone isn't enthusiastic about eating, there's something wrong with their thinking.
"Is Hedwig alright?"
In the Great Hall, Hermione saw Harry approaching and asked him anxiously.
"It has been handed over to Professor Phillips."
"You also ran into Professor Phillips?"
"Um."
Harry nodded and relayed to the two what Sean had just told him: "What? You mean Hogwarts' communications system is being monitored?!"
"Keep your voice down!"
Harry quickly pressed Ron's head down while looking around to see if anyone had heard what he said.
Fortunately, the time right after class is the busiest time in the auditorium, so no one noticed what was happening there.
"As expected—I knew it."
"Know what?"
Harry looked at Hermione in surprise, but Hermione simply shook her head and didn't say anything.
"Professor Phillips can actually treat owls?"
Ron's focus was completely different from the two of them.
Hermione glanced at Ron and asked with a hint of pride, "What can't Professor Phillips do?"
Then she looked at Harry.
"I was just telling Ron that maybe someone intercepted Hedwig and injured her—and now it seems I was right. By the way, what did that letter say?"
Harry then remembered the letter and quickly took it out of his pocket.
It reads:
Today, last time, last place.
The handwriting was very familiar; few people besides Sirius Black would write like that—very forcefully, as if trying to rub the tip of a quill pen into the paper, causing a lot of ink to seep out onto the back of the paper.
"Why didn't he have Professor Phillips relay the message to us?" Ron complained.
"I don't know, maybe they're worried Professor Phillips is too busy."
"The last time and place refer to ————?"
'
"It must be the fireplace in the common room."
"Hopefully no one has ever seen this letter."
"The letter is still sealed tightly," Harry reassured the two of them. "And the conversation inside is encrypted; most people wouldn't understand what those two words mean, would they?"
"Resealing the letter with magic is not difficult."
Hermione analyzed rationally.
"Furthermore, if someone is monitoring the FiluNet, then Sirius's arrival will inevitably attract attention."
"At that time—"
The conversation should stop short of being overly explicit.
Everyone knows the consequences of Umbridge finding out about this.
The consequences would be severe. The Order of the Phoenix would also be exposed to the Ministry of Magic, under Fudge's leadership.
To ease the tension, Harry changed the subject.
"By the way, did you go to Professor Tonks today to talk about Umbridge's ban?"
Hermione shook her head, Harry said with some annoyance.
"When I saw Professor Phillips, I wanted to ask him about it."
"But because of Hedwig's matter, and Umbridge, I forgot—"
"When I saw Professor Phillips apply for the Wizard Killer Club, I was thinking of asking him if he could apply for the Gryffindor Quidditch team as well."
"If there's no way to form a team..."
"This Quidditch season is probably the only one in Hogwarts history to have three teams participating."
O
Harry kept his last words to himself.
If Gryffindor really didn't participate in the competition for such an absurd reason, then this would definitely be the most absurd season ever, and a disgrace to Hogwarts history.
After saying goodbye to Harry, Sean took Hedwig back to his office.
Hedwig looked dejected, still in shock of being "abandoned" by Harry.
"Here, take your medicine."
Sean took out the healing potion and poured it into the small bowl of water in front of him.
The medicine was pale green, and in Hedwig's eyes, it didn't look very appealing.
"drink."
Hedwig shook her head.
"Drink it quickly."
Hedwig was still shaking her head.
"After you finish your drink, I'll introduce you to a beautiful owl."
Hedwig reacted, glancing down at the medicine in the bowl of water, then occasionally looking up at Sean, as if weighing her options.
No one can resist the charm of owls, especially beautiful owls.
Gently.
Hedwig slowly lowered her head, gently pecked at the rim of the bowl, and tentatively licked a small amount of the medicine.
The taste seems pretty good? Much better than it looks.
Tonks came in while Hedwig was still taking her medication.
"Hedwig?"
"Yes, it's injured. Harry brought it here to recover."
Tonks merely greeted Hedwig before turning his gaze to Sean.
"Senior, Umbridge has banned the Duel Club from being held anymore."
"Yes, I know."
"so"
"So, I've applied for the Wizard Killer Club for you."
"Will it work?"
"In The Witcher Slayer Club, isn't it perfectly normal to train in order to understand the characters' actions and moves on the chessboard?"
Tonks stared in disbelief. Hedwig, standing beside him, also stared blankly at Sean.
For some reason, it felt that Sean's promise of a "beautiful owl" wouldn't be kept.
"Let's begin."
"You should all know what we're supposed to do in this class! Didn't I teach you how to open your textbooks?"
An angry roar rang out in a classroom.
Somewhat sharp. But unfamiliar.
The whole class looked at Trelawney, who was inexplicably throwing a tantrum, with confusion and no idea what to do.
What's wrong?
Several people guessed the reason.
"I think she received Umbridge's teaching evaluation."
Who else but Umbridge could break down the defenses of all the professors at Hogwarts?
"What's wrong, Professor?"
"It's nothing. I mean, I was absolutely not insulted, not subjected to baseless accusations, not subjected to—"
As she finished speaking, tears of grievance welled up in her eyes.
"I am Sybil Trelawney."
"The great-great-granddaughter of the famous prophet Cassandra Trelawney, who has worked diligently at Hogwarts for sixteen years, bearing the honor of the Trelawney family and the responsibilities of a Hogwarts professor, has one day suffered such humiliation."
"This shouldn't be the case."
"If it weren't for me, that person would have won long ago. You bunch of thieves of the spoils of victory, how dare you humiliate me like this—"
'
"What a disgrace! What a disgrace!"
Trelawney's hands trembled involuntarily along with her voice.
"Professor, who is that person?" a young wizard asked from the audience.
Trelawney glared at him and said bluntly.
"Who else could it be? Of course, it's—the mysterious person!"
A collective gasp rippled through the audience.
It wasn't just because the name "mysterious man" appeared in class, but also because they never expected that Trelawney, who always seemed "somewhat confused," would have such "noble" deeds.
Even the three little ones, who had always disliked Trelawney, widened their eyes.
Is what she said true?
"Why don't you go ask?"
"I'm afraid she'll kick me out of the classroom." Ron instinctively shrank his neck, hiding it in his collar.
"Given Professor Trelawney's situation, it's highly likely she's telling the truth, right?"
"Professor, could you tell me about it—" Some young wizards, not wanting to miss out on a good story, had already taken the initiative to ask what had happened.
But Trelawney seemed to realize something and skipped the topic.
"But Professor, who exactly is insulting you?"
"Those who wield power!"
Trelawney answered firmly.
"Those in power are always blind to the voice of the people, blinded by power, and we prophets are always framed by them—it has always been this way for generations, and perhaps this is our fate."
'
Trelawney kept muttering about the shortcomings of those "people in power".
For a moment, the air in the classroom felt strangely strange.
"Professor, are you talking about Umbridge?" Hermione asked, raising her hand immediately.
"Don't mention her to me!"
Trelawney suddenly yelled, and Hermione, having found the answer, also chose to sit down.
The following time was unusually long.
Trelawney paced back and forth, spouting phrases like "resign."
Prior to this, no one believed that Trelawney would ever actually resign.
Because Hogwarts pays such a high salary, Trelawney's abilities would make it difficult to find a job in the wizarding world that matches that wage. But now, with the revelation of these "secrets" today, people are somewhat uncertain.
Perhaps—Trillawny really is capable, and Hogwarts might be climbing the social ladder for her.
This strange atmosphere lingered into the night.
"Umbridge did not approve my application."
Angelina walked into the common room with a blank look in her eyes and sat down in the spot where the three little ones usually sat.
"There's no more Quidditch training."
"What about the other colleges?"
"Your applications to Slytherin and Ravenclaw have been accepted —"
"Why?!"
"Why did she approve Slytherin but not us?"
"have no idea."
Angelina sighed, then sat there, just sighing again and again.
"Let's try to think positively."
"What?"
The three of them looked up at Hermione at the same time.
"At least you have time to write articles about Snape!"
"This is the good thing?" Harry immediately retorted, while Ron stared at Hermione in disbelief. "No Quidditch practice, and potions class as punishment!"
Harry slumped into a chair in frustration, took out his Potions class paper from his bag, and began to write.
Angelina stayed for a while, then left.
Only the three little ones and the Weasley twins, who were testing drugs on the other side, remained in the common room.
They seem to have completed their masterpiece:
Fred first bit into the orange candy, and immediately vomited, rushing to the bucket in front of them. Then he swallowed the purple one, and the vomiting stopped immediately.
George lazily used Snape's Vanishing Charm to clear away the vomit.
Amidst sounds of vomiting, cheers, and Fred and George receiving reservations, orders poured in.
Finally, the Weasley twins sat together and counted the money.
Long after midnight, only Harry, Ron, and Hermione remained in the common room.
A moment later, Ron exclaimed, pointing to the fireplace, "Sirius!"
Harry quickly turned around and saw Sirius Black's messy black hair reappear in the flames.
"Hello!" Sirius said with a grin.
"Hello!" Harry, Ron, and Hermione answered in unison, and the three immediately knelt on the rug in front of the fireplace. Crookshanks meowed and moved closer to the fire, ignoring the heat, wanting to kiss Sirius's face.
"How's it going?" Sirius asked.
"Not good," Harry said, as Hermione pulled Crookshank back to prevent its whiskers from getting burnt. "The ministry has passed a new decree that means we can't have a Quidditch team anymore."
"—There's a Dark Magic study group?" Sirius interjected.
A moment of silence.
"How did you know?" Harry asked.
"You guys need to be careful when choosing your meeting place," Sirius Black said with a smirk. "The Pighead Bar, I'm asking you—"
"It's better than three brooms!" Hermione quickly retorted, "It's always crowded there—"
"That would make it much harder to eavesdrop," Sirius laughed. "You still have a lot to learn, Hermione."
"Who was eavesdropping on us?" Hermione asked, somewhat puzzled.
“Of course it’s Mundungus,” Sirius said, then laughed when he saw the three’s puzzled looks. “Ron ordered the drink just like him.”
"Is that Mundungust?" Harry asked, almost speechless with surprise. "What's he doing at the Hog's Head?"
"What do you think he's doing?" Sirius asked impatiently. "He's spying on you, of course."
.
"Is someone still following us?"
“Yes,” Sirius replied, “and it has to be, doesn’t it? If the first thing you do when you have a weekend off is organize a rather dangerous organization.”
Why is Mundungus hiding from us?
"He was banned from Pig's Head Bar twenty years ago; the bar owner has an excellent memory."
Sirius explained.
"He picked up a lot of unwanted stuff at the Pighead Bar earlier — well — first of all, Ron, I swear to your mother I'll pass on her message."
"Huh? Go ahead and say it," Ron said nervously.
"She told you not to join any organization that teaches Defense Against the Dark Arts. You're too young; the truly dangerous things are handled by the adults in their Order of the Phoenix. If you're really interested in these things, there'll be plenty of time later."
"One more"
"What else?"
Sirius turned his gaze to Harry and Hermione.
""