0168 Comparisons and Aftermath

Ever since the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor at Hogwarts frequently had accidents, no wizard could hold the position for more than a year and retire safely, which became a consensus among the young wizards. At the beginning of each new school year, identifying how good the latest Defense Against the Dark Arts professor is has almost become a reserved program at the start of the school year. It was a topic that sparked heated debates and lively discussions among the students, who eagerly awaited to see what surprises the new professor would bring to them and how long will he be able to teach.

As usual, the popularity of this topic would last until the end of the first month of school, before gradually having a conclusion that everyone agrees on. 

But this year’s situation was different from the past. Before the class started, Professor Lupin, who showed his hand on the Hogwarts Express by saving Harry from a Dementor, received widespread praise within a week after the class started. He was calm, gentle, and knowledgeable, and he taught the students how to deal with various dark creatures, such as boggarts. He also gave them the rare ‘practical’ class on how to defend themselves against the dark arts and creatures. 

Of course, the least popular Slytherin House still maintained the style of the past. They couldn’t find any fault with Professor Lupin’s Defense Against the Dark Arts class, so they simply made an issue of Lupin’s plain dress, which they thought was shabby and poor. They also spread rumors about it, but they could only amuse themselves, and not many people would have any opinions on Professor Lupin because of this. 

Most of the students admired and respected him, and some even had a crush on him.

Now, among the young wizards, the most popular topic was, Professor Remus Lupin and Professor Bryan Watson, who of them was the most ‘professional’ professor in the past decade. 

This was not something that could be clarified in one or two sentences. Even within Gryffindor, there was a lot of controversy on this topic. Some preferred Professor Lupin, who followed the curriculum and taught them the basics, while others favored Professor Watson, who was more adventurous and creative, and taught them some simple but advanced and unconventional magic. 

“There is no doubt about the professionalism–” 

Fred, who had been silent for the whole night, leaned on the cold fireplace and said, “But obviously we value more–” 

“Professor Watson!” 

The twins exclaimed in unison. Fred and George were proud of their silent communication. They sprang up and bumped their elbows in the air with a grin. They liked Professor Watson more because he was more adventurous and thrilling. He often brought strange and dangerous creatures to the class, such as eight-eyed spiders and inferi.

Harry, Ron, who was sitting on the sofa, and Hermione, who was lying on the wooden table and previewing several subjects at the same time, were not surprised at all. They all knew why Fred and George liked Professor Watson more. For them, boggarts were obviously not as interesting as eight-eyed spiders. 

“Neville and Dean like Professor Lupin more–” 

Ron carefully fed the strengthening potion especially made for magical beasts to the listless Scabbers in his hand, but Scabbers seemed to dislike it very much. He twisted and turned in Ron’s hand, trying to escape, causing most of the potion in the small bottle to be spilled on his wizard robe. Ron cursed under his breath and tried to wipe off the sticky liquid, but it only made it worse. He looked at his robe with dismay and sighed. 

“At least they can deal with the boggarts in the closet, but Professor Watson-” 

Ron suddenly shuddered and said with lingering fear, “During the summer vacation, Mom and Dad took us to visit the mummies in the pyramids. That night I had a nightmare. I remembered the inferi that Professor Watson brought. The rotten flesh and bones-, That was so creepy and disgusting. They tried to grab me and drag me into the water. I will probably never forget it in my life!” 

Hermione, who was writing quickly at the desk, suddenly smiled with her lips pursed. She lifted her hair and looked at Ron, 

“Seriously, Ron, I thought when you went on stage, the boggart would turn into a inferi or a Basilisk, but what you are most afraid of turned out to be a spider?” 

The ‘deep’ conversation on this issue lasted for about ten minutes. In the end, Harry and Hermione both figured out the reason why Ron was afraid of spiders. It turned out that when Ron was three years old, his brother Fred had turned his teddy bear into a giant spider, and Ron had been traumatized ever since. In a burst of cheerful laughter, the unhappy Ron accidentally poked the mouth of the strength potion into Scabbers nose. As a result, after a series of painful screams, Scabbers gave Ron a bite, which made Ron even more depressed. He looked at Harry with a slumped face and said, 

“It’s time to talk about your opinion, Harry!” 

“Uh-” 

Harry hesitated and didn’t speak, but this was completely pretended. 

Hermione appreciated Professor Lupin, who taught according to the formal textbook step by step, while Ron liked Professor Watson more. This is not surprising. Professor Watson almost saved half of Ron’s brothers and sisters, and gave him a very exquisite commemorative coin of merlin. 

How to say it, when facing Professor Lupin, Harry would feel a strange sense of intimacy from his actions and that was very different. 

He didn’t know what the reason for this feeling was. Maybe it was because Professor Lupin saved his life on the Hogwarts Express, or maybe it was because Professor Lupin’s gentle temperament that was popular among others, but even so, if he had to choose a winner between Professor Watson and Professor Lupin, he would undoubtedly choose Professor Watson. 

The reason for making this decision is not only because of Professor Watson’s help in the Chamber of Secrets incident last semester, but also because during the summer vacation, he accidentally learned of Professor Watson’s life experience, which made Harry feel that he and Professor Watson had a similar ‘fate’. 

However, this reason cannot be said to others. He cannot reveal Professor Watson’s important past and his privacy without permission, even to Ron and Hermione. 

The next morning, as soon as they entered the hall for breakfast, all the young wizards felt an indescribable depression. Soon, the young wizards realized that this depression came from the front of the hall, the professor’s seat. 

Except for the absent headmaster Dumbledore and Professor Lupin, almost every professor who came down for breakfast had a newspaper in hand. They ignored the various breakfasts piled up in front of them and only focused on the spread out Daily Prophet. They looked worried and angry, and some even muttered words under their breaths. 

“Is there anything new that we don’t know?” 

Harry and Ron, who were late, quickly noticed something was wrong. They lowered their heads and ran in from the hall, and sat directly on the empty seats next to Hermione. 

They looked around and saw that the atmosphere in the hall was too weird. Everyone’s face was heavy, and the young wizards were discussing in groups of three or two with suppressed voices. The professors also expressed their opinions in low voices. Only the ‘beloved’ potions professor was expressionless and calmly dealt with the white porridge on the table. He seemed to be indifferent to the news, or perhaps he was secretly pleased. 

“The Ministry of Magic found Black.” 

Hermione said solemnly, but seeing these two stunned and stiff, she quickly added, “But he ran away again. Seamus told us yesterday, oh, he saw it from the Daily Prophet. A muggle nearby saw Black–” 

Hermione shook the latest edition of the Daily Prophet in her hand, and pointed to the headline that read: Sirius Black Escapes Again!. Underneath the headline, there was a art picture of a gaunt and ragged man with wild eyes and long hair, who looked like a madman. He was surrounded by several hooded figures, who were shooting spells at him. 

“Today’s newspaper says that according to the muggle’s report call, the Ministry of Magic’s hitmen went out and found clues. Last night, the hitmen blocked him in front of the Black family’s Manor and fought a fierce battle with him!”

Harry snatched the Daily Prophet from Hermione and read it with Ron.

The caption said: Black was seriously injured and fled in embarrassment. The Ministry of Magic’s Auror Office’s Dawlish was injured in a duel with Sirius Black. At present, the Aurors and Dementors are still pursuing. Please keep calm, the residents of the wizarding world. 

“Ah!” 

“The Daily Prophet is still the same, always vague when it comes to major issues!” Ron turned his face away with disgust, and said, “They don’t tell us anything useful. Where did they find him? How did he escape?” 

Hermione rolled her eyes and said, “The problem is not here, Ron. Look at this!” Hermione carefully took out a copy of The Times and stuffed it under the table to Harry, whose face was a little dark.

Harry, who was curious and anxious, took the copy of The Times from Hermione and looked at it. He gasped when he saw the front page. There was a large photo of a huge explosion, with flames and smoke rising from a building. The building looked like a mansion, with a large gate and a coat of arms on the wall. 

The caption said: Gas Explosion Destroys Historic Manor in London. No Casualties Reported. 

Hermione nodded and said, “Except for me, I’m afraid no one in the school is subscribing to the muggle newspapers.” 

Hermione pointed to a small article on the side of the photo, which said: Witness Claims to See Strange Lights and Sounds Before the Explosion. Police Dismisses It as a Hoax. Hermione said, “The Daily Prophet did not publish the details of the arrest last night, but the muggle newspapers recorded the scene. The muggle government claimed that there was a gas explosion. This excuse is not new, but look–” 

In the picture, The huge searchlight made the dark night bright, and the ground around the deserted small square cracked open with shocking cracks. The edge of the crack showed a melted crystalline state, and faint smoke could be seen. In the distant alley, a large section of the road surface was blown up, and next to the alley, there was a house with a roof blown off. The scene was like a war zone, with debris and dust everywhere. The muggles who lived nearby must have been terrified by the sudden explosion, and the Ministry of Magic must have had a hard time covering it up. 

“Did Black cause all this?!” 

Ron stared at the muggle newspaper, so shocked that his eyes were about to bulge out, “But the Daily Prophet said that no muggle died!” 

“The muggle newspaper also said that.” 

Hermione pointed to a line of text under the picture and said, then she looked at Harry, who was silent, and said solemnly, 

“With the power of one person, he can fight against most of the elites of the Ministry of Magic, and cause such huge destruction, now, we finally know why the Ministry of Magic is so panicked about Sirius Black’s escape!” 

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