Chapter 1021: The Wonders of the World
Chapter 1021: The Wonders of the World
"The world is truly a wondrous place. I wonder how he did it."
After carrying the stunned Toad to the school hospital, Harry felt exhilarated. He had never thought of such a method—allowing oneself to be knocked unconscious. Anderson's methods were truly eye-opening.
Seeing Toad embarrass herself and suffer in front of everyone brought Harry a sense of satisfaction like never before.
That's right, take that, you pink toad! Let's see you favor Malfoy now.
In the end, it was Harry himself who took her to the hospital, and it felt incredibly refreshing. His mood instantly lifted, and his thoughts cleared.
"It was probably a Trip Jinx; otherwise, she wouldn't have slipped like that." Hermione looked around and lowered her voice. "I hope she's alright."
"Come on, Hermione," Ron said, fixing his gaze on Hermione. "Think about the scar on Harry's hand, the students she's locked up, and the mess she's made of Hogwarts. Do you really hope she's alright?"
"No, I just hope Albert hasn't gotten himself into trouble," Hermione quickly added.
"Who would know? Is there any evidence? Without evidence, it's just slander," Harry stated calmly, presenting the facts. "Everyone saw the Toad slip and knock herself out."
"I didn't see Anderson take out his wand. He didn't even utter a spell. Besides, the Trip Jinx doesn't cause people to pass out," Ron added, feeling just as relieved as Harry at Umbridge's misfortune, his thoughts mirroring his friend's. "If the Toad hadn't fainted, I bet she would have favored Malfoy and probably taken his word to cause trouble for Harry, maybe even find a reason to lock him up. Don't tell me it's impossible; there's nothing the Toad wouldn't do."
"I wish I could do something like that."
Harry suspected Albert's involvement, but some things, even if guessed, couldn't be said aloud. The truth was that Umbridge had tripped herself.
"How did he do it?"
"Nonverbal spells and wandless magic, perhaps?" Hermione speculated.
"I've practiced nonverbal spells, and they're incredibly challenging. Wandless magic is even harder. It's hard to imagine how Albert managed it," Harry said, both envious of Albert and understanding of his indifference towards Umbridge. If he possessed such skills, Harry wouldn't hesitate to teach the Toad a memorable lesson if she dared to bother him.
"Oh, right, Harry, I almost forgot to tell you something amazing. You're going to love it," Ron suddenly said, interrupting their conversation.
"What is it?" Harry and Hermione looked at Ron, puzzled.
"Umbridge is in the hospital!" Ron exclaimed, waving his arms excitedly. "That means we don't have to attend our Dark Arts class this afternoon!"
"Don't get your hopes up, Ron. Madam Pomfrey will probably have her fit for class by then," Hermione said, dashing Ron's hopes.
However, Ron's prediction turned out to be accurate.
Due to Umbridge's absurd self-inflicted unconsciousness, no one opened the door to the Dark Arts classroom. After the class bell rang, Hermione had no choice but to go to the Transfiguration classroom to find Professor McGonagall and inform her of the situation.
"Umbridge tripped and is now lying unconscious in the hospital wing?"
Upon hearing this ludicrous news, Professor McGonagall's face twitched slightly.
"What will we do about the Dark Arts class?" Hermione inquired.
After a moment of silence, Professor McGonagall instructed the class to study on their own for the time being and hurried off with Hermione to the hospital wing to assess the situation.
Umbridge was still unconscious, her head wrapped in bandages, and her face smeared with a yellowish ointment.
"I didn't dare to use a spell to wake her forcefully. Doing so might leave her with unpleasant after-effects. It's best to let her wake up on her own," Madam Pomfrey decided on a conservative treatment plan.
"Are you sure she did this to herself?" Professor McGonagall asked, incredulous.
"Many students witnessed it, and they were all stunned," Hermione said, struggling to hold back her laughter.
With Umbridge bedridden and unable to teach, and Professor McGonagall unable to find a substitute teacher, the afternoon's Dark Arts class had to be suspended.
As for opening the classroom door and letting the students study on their own, with the prefects maintaining order?
That was out of the question.
Who knew what they'd do without a professor to supervise them? They might blow up the classroom! News of Umbridge knocking herself out quickly spread throughout the castle, and the maker of mirth had provided Hogwarts with yet another laughing stock.
The trio decided to head to the library to finish their homework, as did many other students, the impending O.W.Ls exams for their fifth year instilling a sense of urgency.
"By the way, Hermione, do you know the Memory Charm?" Harry paused in his writing and turned to Hermione, seeking her knowledge of the charm. He needed her help.
"I've read about it. Why do you ask?" Hermione looked at him quizzically.
"Albert suggested I learn the Memory Charm. He said it could help me stop having nightmares," Harry explained in a low voice.
"Didn't you ask him for guidance?"
Ron looked puzzled.
"He didn't agree, telling me to seek guidance from Professor Dumbledore, but I haven't seen him in a while." Harry felt a bit dejected; Sirius couldn't help him with this, so now he could only turn to Hermione.
"Doesn't Sirius know the Memory Charm? What about Professor Lupin?" Hermione asked in confusion.
"No, neither Sirius nor Remus knows it. They asked Professor Moody, but he couldn't teach me. They suggested I ask Albert, but he said he couldn't teach me either and told me to find Dumbledore." Harry became more frustrated as he spoke. "Then I said I wanted to learn it on my own, and Albert mentioned a guide in the restricted section of the library. But I've looked into that book, and I still can't figure out how to learn the Memory Charm."
"Alright, Harry, I'll look into it, but I can't guarantee I'll be able to learn it." Hermione felt the weight on her shoulders increase, as she was well aware that helping Harry master the Memory Charm was no easy task.
The trio quickly returned to the common room, and Harry retrieved the "borrowed" Advanced Memory Charm Guide from the library the day before. It had taken him quite some time to find this book.
Hermione took the brick-like book, carefully studied the Advanced Memory Charm Guide, and then suddenly understood why Albert might not want to teach Harry. Mastering the Memory Charm was no simple feat.
"No, I still can't quite understand it."
Hermione closed the book and sighed helplessly. "I'll keep this with me for now, and I'll look into it when I have time. This is much harder than the Transfiguration spell."
"Transfiguration spell?" Ron asked, puzzled. "What's that?"
"It's a rather advanced spell used often in newspapers. Sometimes you'll notice changes in the news; that's because they've used a Transfiguration spell on the paper." Hermione lowered her voice. "I got some inspiration from Albert's communication bookmark. Although I can't make one of those, I plan to create a more subtle communication device so we won't have to notify each other individually, reducing the risk of exposure."
As she spoke, Hermione pulled out a bag from her robe pocket and emptied three galleons onto the table, handing one each to Harry and Ron.
"Galleons?" Ron picked up the galleon and examined it, looking at Hermione in confusion, unsure why she had given him the coin.
"These are magic coins. I can change the numbers on the counterfeit coins to display the time of our next gathering." Hermione patiently explained to the two. "I'm also considering adding a Fire-Making Spell, so that when I change the time with the Transfiguration spell, the other coins will heat up to alert the owner. That way, we won't have to worry about missing or overlooking the time."
"That's a good idea." Harry fiddled with the magic coin in his hand and muttered, "This reminds me of the Dark Mark used by Death Eaters."
"Yes, it's partly inspired by the Dark Mark, but I don't think anyone would want to make one of those, and no one would even notice it."
"The only problem with this coin is that it's easy to mix up with galleons and spend it by accident." Harry believed that as long as no one leaked the secret, Umbridge would never discover the magic coin's secret.
"Do you need help?"
"No, that's fine." Hermione felt that Harry and Ron would only make things worse. They didn't know the Transfiguration spell, and it was quite challenging. It had taken Hermione nearly a month of relentless practice to barely master it.
After Harry returned the fake coin to Hermione, he pointed to the Advanced Memory Charm Guide and asked, "Are you going to ask Anderson about it? Or learn the Memory Charm from him?"
"Maybe he'd be more patient when facing a girl, but it's better not to expect it." Hermione wasn't sure if Albert would be willing to take the time to teach her.
"If Professor Dumbledore were here, maybe we wouldn't have to go through all this trouble." Harry sighed softly, feeling like Dumbledore was deliberately distancing himself.
"Professor Dumbledore is in the school."
As Fred and George walked by with their arms around each other's shoulders, they glanced at the Advanced Memory Charm Guide on the table and asked, "Are you guys also planning to start learning the Memory Charm?"
"Do you know it too?" Harry asked in surprise.
"We've all tried learning the Memory Charm for a while, but none of us succeeded. After a while, Albert got lazy and didn't want to teach us anymore." George shrugged. "Believe me, it's not a pleasant memory. Someone will try to invade your mind and sift through your memories; it feels terrible."
Harry suddenly understood why Albert didn't want to teach him, and he didn't feel like learning the Memory Charm from him anymore.
"By the way, is Professor Dumbledore in school?" Harry was more concerned about Dumbledore's issue.
"Albert just went to have tea with Professor Dumbledore in his office." Fred explained.
"I need to go to the headmaster's office!" Harry grabbed the Marauder's Map and prepared to visit Dumbledore's office to chat about the Memory Charm and why he always seemed to be avoiding him.
(End of Chapter)
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