Chapter 326: Hermione: Perhaps a God?
Chapter 326: Hermione: Perhaps a God?
Before leaving Professor McGonagall's office, Vold and Hermione both put on their Time Turners and hid them under their robes to avoid being seen.
The two walked side by side in the empty corridor, too excited to speak a word. As they walked, Hermione suddenly jumped in place.
"Time!"
Hermione exclaimed, "Vold, this is the Time Turner! It's so cool! No wonder when I asked Percy how to complete twelve subjects, he said he couldn't tell me, but I'll know when the time comes."
"Hmm."
Vold felt the outline of the Time Turner through his clothes and mused, "I wonder who was the first to discover that time could be tamed."
"Even though I'm a witch, I still feel... perhaps it's a god?"
Hermione pondered, "I've never seen any spell related to time in books."
"Professor Morrie once lent me a book that said the Time Turner itself doesn't have a unique function. It's a spell called the Time Reversal Charm that allows people to travel through time."
Hermione immediately became interested, "Time Reversal Charm?"
"Unfortunately, this spell hasn't been passed down, and it's not even certain if it truly exists."
Vold shook his head, stopping his thoughts from further wandering, and said, "But... don't you think the Renewal Charm is also a kind of time-reversal spell?"
Hermione looked thoughtful.
As they spoke, the two unconsciously slowed their steps. When Professor McGonagall hurriedly arrived from her office, she found the two of them still standing foolishly at the entrance of the Great Hall.
"What are you two doing here?"
Professor McGonagall's voice sounded from behind them.
Hermione was startled and almost jumped. Vold turned around and said, "We wanted to wait until the Sorting Ceremony was over before going in, Professor."
Professor McGonagall showed an approving smile and then said, "By this time, the Sorting Ceremony should be over too. Come with me!"
The witch pushed open the doors of the Great Hall, and many students looked over.
Professor McGonagall calmly walked towards the staff table, while Vold and Hermione returned to their respective Houses.
"What did Professor McGonagall want with you two?" Ron asked curiously.
"Well... it's about the new term's class schedule. You know I chose twelve subjects," Hermione said vaguely.
Percy, sitting at the front of the Gryffindor table, turned around at this moment and smiled at Hermione, noding in mutual understanding.
Michael intentionally sat at the end of the Ravenclaw table, leaving a convenient spot for Vold to enter and exit.
However, when Vold returned, Michael was busy showing off his leaf umbrella to several pretty girls and couldn't spare a moment to talk to Vold. He only gave him a quick glance in the midst of his busyness.
Vold looked towards the staff table in front—the people sitting there were almost unchanged from the end of last term, especially Professor Abigail, who still sat next to Professor Snape with a smile that was neither a smile nor not. Professor Snape, as always, had a grim expression.
Near the edge of the long table, there sat a large man—Hagrid was dressed much more presentably than before, no longer resembling a savage, though his hair and beard remained messy.
Dumbledore stood up to speak.
"Welcome!" he said happily, "Welcome to Hogwarts! I hope our new year will be just as colorful!"
The students burst into laughter, and the Weasley brothers shouted, "Professor! Will there be a September Challenge as well?"
"What beast are we facing?"
"Well, the old friends in the Forbidden Forest might not be too keen on a beating, but I once encountered a mutated flesh-eating slug in the forest. It swallowed my partner, Sean, in one go. When we pulled out poor Sean, he was covered in..."
"Ahem!" Professor McGonagall suddenly coughed.
Dumbledore's reminiscing paused for a moment. After two seconds, he continued, "Let's stop talking about topics that might affect our appetites! This year, we are delighted to welcome an outstanding new member to our teaching staff -"
"Rubeus Hagrid!"
Hagrid stood up excitedly, his face turning red, and waved to everyone. The students' eyes followed his gesture upwards.
Dumbledore smiled and said, "Professor Kettleburn, the Care of Magical Creatures teacher, has retired to spend more time with his remaining little rascals. Hagrid will fill his position and also serve as the Care of Magical Creatures professor, in addition to his role as the Gamekeeper!"
A few seconds later, enthusiastic applause erupted from the Gryffindor table. After a while, the other houses hesitantly joined in with their applause.
Hagrid smiled nervously and stood awkwardly for a moment before sitting down at the reminder of Professor McGonagall beside him.
Even seated, he towered over Professor McGonagall, let alone Professor Flitwick on the other side—this professor with fairy blood seemed like a small doll next to Hagrid.
"Dumbledore is getting crazier!" Draco Malfoy sneered. "He's hiring a servant to be our professor! I wish I were at Durmstrang right now!"
The Slytherins around him echoed his sentiment.
Since last semester, when Malfoy almost killed Crabbe by accident, the students initially feared him and kept their distance. But after some time, they gathered around him again, treating him with even more respect than before.
Previously, they had only flattered Malfoy for his family's wealth, but now they were drawn to him personally.
"I also chose Care of Magical Creatures."
Michael's face turned slightly pale. "Vold, I know you have a good relationship with him... So, this... Professor Hagrid, aside from his height, won't he be... hitting students, right?"
As he spoke, he glanced at Professor Abigail on the staff table, clearly still apprehensive.
Vold couldn't help but laugh. "When you participated in the Labyrinth Challenge, didn't Hagrid serve as a referee multiple times? You should know his temperament."
"The temperament of a gamekeeper doesn't equate to that of a school professor."
Michael said seriously, "And your applause seemed a bit perfunctory... If you were truly happy about him becoming our professor, you wouldn't act like this."
Vold smiled helplessly. "Hagrid likes fire dragons."
Michael was puzzled. "Who doesn't like fire dragons? As long as they don't attack me."
"Even if Hagrid were attacked by fire dragons, he'd only find these little guys cute and charming," said Vold. "That's the difference between you two."
(End of Chapter)
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