Chapter 285: Ancient Runes and Professor Babbling
Chapter 285: Ancient Runes and Professor Babbling
Although Rita Skeeter's report caused quite a stir, the hype didn't last very long.
Starting from the second week, it rained constantly at Hogwarts.
The gloomy weather and relentless rain dampened everyone's mood, and the damp cold crept into the castle, causing many young witches and wizards to catch colds.
Madame Pomfrey had to start brewing large quantities of Wake-Up Potion in advance. While this potion was highly effective, those who drank it would have white smoke coming out of their ears for several hours afterward.
George fell victim to the cold and jokingly compared himself to an old steam train due to the smoke.
Fred, unaffected by the illness, found the situation amusing and asked Madame Pomfrey for a bottle of the potion as well.
And so, the two of them smoked together…
Amidst these circumstances, Kyle finally attended his first Ancient Runes class.
The Ancient Runes classroom was located on the third floor of the West Tower, and the professor in charge of this subject, Professor Bathsheda Babbling, was a witch in her forties with gray irises.
However, there were rumors that she had been a professor at Hogwarts for over fifty years, but no one could confirm the truth of this claim.
As one of the most challenging subjects at Hogwarts, the Ancient Runes classroom had very few students, only sixteen to be precise.
With such a small number of students opting for this subject, this already included everyone from all four houses.
After taking attendance, Professor Babbling scanned the class with a hint of surprise.
"Do we have more students this year?"
Her voice was peculiar, as if it were echoing from the end of a long tunnel.
"That's a lot..."
Connor, who had also chosen this subject, muttered softly, "I didn't realize so few people would choose this class."
Despite his soft voice, Professor Babbling heard him.
"There were nine last year, and even fewer the year before... only seven," she said. "It's rare to have even ten people in this classroom."
Contrary to her stern appearance, Professor Babbling had a playful side. After addressing Connor's curiosity, she joked, "Sometimes I wonder if I could teach all five years together. That way, I'd only need to teach one class a week, and I could spend the rest of my time vacationing in other countries.
Unfortunately, your Headmaster Dumbledore never agrees."
Everyone couldn't help but laugh.
Once the class settled down, Professor Babbling began, "Now, who can tell me what Ancient Runes are?"
Autumn, sitting next to Connor, was the first to raise her hand.
"Ancient Runes, also known as Ancient Magical Runes or Runic Alphabet, were used in many pre-medieval books.
Additionally, when different Runic letters are arranged into special symbols, they can produce specific magical effects, hence their widespread use in alchemy."
"Absolutely correct, five points to Ravenclaw," Professor Babbling said. "The application of Runes in alchemy involves more complex knowledge, so they are usually used for translating ancient texts in most cases.
But if you wish to learn..."
She knocked on the table.
Suddenly, several symbols on the walls lit up, and a bright ball of light appeared in the center of the ceiling.
"...I can teach you."
The students' eyes lit up with excitement.
The idea of casting spells without a wand was a skill they had always dreamed of.
"Professor, I want to learn this!" exclaimed a Gryffindor student eagerly.
"Do you all feel the same?" asked Professor Babbling.
Everyone nodded together.
"Very well, then," Professor Babbling smiled at the class, "I can teach you some basic concepts, but you must be prepared."
"Please start, I can't wait..." a confident student patted his chest.
There were countless ancient runes, and each one had at least five or more meanings, with some having as many as a dozen or more.
Just trying to memorize them all was enough to jumble his brain.
And if he wanted to arrange them correctly into those special symbols, things became even more complicated.
The same rune, when used in different contexts, could be written in vastly different ways.
By the time class was halfway over, he felt like he hadn't retained anything, or that whatever he had learned slipped from his mind mere minutes later.
No wonder this class had so few students. It was just too complex...
When the bell finally rang, Kyle lifted his head from his book, 'Ancient Runes for Beginners', his expression one of bewilderment, as if he had just woken up from a daze, unsure of where he was or what he had just read.
Of course, the others looked much the same.
"Regarding the application in alchemy, that's about all I intend to cover for now."
Professor Babbling said with a smile, "However, normally in our classes, you don't need to memorize the order or the way they are written. You only need to understand the meanings behind each rune.
This should be much simpler for you."
The classroom fell silent. Clearly, the students had a different interpretation of the word "simple" compared to the professor.
As everyone quietly gathered their things and prepared to leave, Professor Babbling suddenly remembered something.
"Oh, that's right, one more thing."
She said nonchalantly, "If you feel that this class isn't suitable for you, you can go to your respective Heads of Houses to request a change of subject... I will approve any requests made before October."
Some students' faces lit up, and they began to contemplate this option.
After leaving the classroom, Kyle turned to Connor and Autumn, asking, "What do you think? Do you want to switch?"
"Of course not," Connor replied without hesitation.
"No way," Autumn agreed with a smile. "It's challenging, but ancient runes are really interesting. No wonder Cedric strongly recommended this class to me, and..."
She arched an eyebrow as she looked at Kyle and Connor, "I am a Ravenclaw, after all. I can't let you Hufflepuffs outdo us."
"Hey, no house rivalry here!" Kyle retorted in mock annoyance.
"Of course not," Autumn said with a laugh. "I just meant that Ravenclaws never shy away from knowledge. The more complex it is, the more intrigued we become."
"I suppose that's true..." Kyle shrugged.
Half of the sixteen students in the class were Ravenclaws.
"But I can't shake the feeling that Professor Babbling is a bit... off," Connor said thoughtfully. "In other classes, the first lesson is usually the simplest. But she did the opposite.
I've read 'Ancient Runes for Beginners' before, and the section on writing runes is meant to be covered much later, and even then, it's only briefly mentioned."
"You're right..." Autumn nodded, "Normal ancient runes aren't this difficult, and Professor Babbling's last comment... I got the impression that she almost wanted students to switch out of her class."
"But there are already so few students enrolled," Kyle pointed out.
"Only we think it's few," Connor whispered. "Remember what she said before the class? That classroom rarely has more than ten people."
"Maybe we can ask Cedric and Fred," Autumn suggested. "Perhaps they felt the same way during their first ancient runes class."
...
(End of Chapter)
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