https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-379-The-Ferocious-Black-Not-Even-a-Painting-is-Spared/12538646/
Chapter 380: An Unusual "Transfiguration" Class
Chapter 380: An Unusual "Transfiguration" Class
After the dinner, all the students were asked to remain in the Great Hall.
Professor Dumbledore entered and gave them some instructions. "Prefects, please guard the entrance of the Great Hall. The Heads of the boy's and girl's student councils, please assist Professor Sprout in maintaining order. Should there be any news, send a ghost to report to me immediately."
With a wave of his wand, the long dining tables floated to the side of the Great Hall and arranged themselves neatly along the walls. Another wave of his wand, and hundreds of soft sleeping bags appeared on the floor.
"You will need these," Professor Dumbledore said before leaving the Great Hall.
However, not everyone was a fan of sleeping bags.
With Professor Sprout's permission, several older students waved their wands and transformed their sleeping bags into comfortably sized single beds. They then transfigured their robes into thick woolen blankets.
They had anticipated the possibility of spending the night in the Great Hall and wanted to ensure they would be as comfortable as possible.
Of course, it would be even better if Professor Sprout could allow them to make their beds even bigger.
More and more students, intrigued by the idea, began to attempt to transfigure their own sleeping bags.
Rather than opposing this decision, Professor Sprout even stopped Percy, who was about to intervene.
After all, there was ample space in the Great Hall, and it was in the spirit of learning magic to make oneself more comfortable as long as it didn't disturb others.
Moreover, it was still early, and it was better to keep the students occupied with something interesting rather than letting them discuss Sirius Black.
Professor Sprout walked down the rows of sleeping bags...
"Wonderful transfiguration, Miss Johnson," she said with a smile. "I'm sure this bed is very comfortable."
Angelina Johnson, the Gryffindor Chaser, proudly smoothed her hair. Unlike the hard, flat beds, she had added a thick velvet mattress to hers.
...
When Professor Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall re-entered the Great Hall, they were surprised by the lively scene before them.
The Great Hall had been transformed into a massive Transfiguration classroom, with everyone attending the same lesson.
"Minerva, it seems everyone is keeping themselves entertained," said Dumbledore with a smile. "I thought I had walked into the wrong place for a moment."
Professor McGonagall smiled as well. "Yes, Albus, you're right."
This was the first time she had relaxed since learning about Black's presence in the castle.
"Let's lend a hand as well," said Dumbledore.
With a gentle wave of his wand, the Great Hall seemed to expand, making the previously cramped passages wide enough for two people to walk side by side.
This meant that students could now make their beds even bigger.
Professor McGonagall wasn't idle either. She transfigured the sleeping bags of all first and second-year students into the single beds found in the dormitories.
As for the students in the third year and above, who had already learned advanced transfiguration... they were on their own.
Moreover, these sleeping bags had been conjured by Professor Dumbledore, so the magic was incredibly stable, almost indistinguishable from real sleeping bags.
Strictly speaking, this task didn't even qualify as advanced transfiguration; it was merely transfiguring a sleeping bag into a single bed.
For third-year students, if they couldn't even manage this, they might as well stick to their sleeping bags.
There were quite a few students in this category, including Gryffindor's Harry and Ron.
After fiddling with their sleeping bags for a while, they only managed to make them look uglier. Finally, Hermione took pity on them and offered her assistance.
Fred, George, and Qiu also came over.
"This feels so weird, like we're all sharing the same dormitory..." Fred lay there, looking up at the magically expanded ceiling.
Despite the gloomy weather outside, he felt surprisingly cheerful. "It's a shame Cedric isn't here..."
As a prefect, Cedric had to stand guard at the entrance of the Great Hall and couldn't join them.
"It's all thanks to Black..."
George turned his head and said, "If it weren't for him, we wouldn't be having this interesting experience. To be honest, this is the first time I've ever slept on a bed I transfigured myself... I wonder if it will turn back into a sleeping bag in the middle of the night."
"If your Transfiguration grade is an E (Exceeds Expectations)
, then it won't..." Kyle said.
"That's terrible..." Fred sighed and pretended to be in a dilemma. "Our Transfiguration grade is O. Obviously, we don't meet the requirements, right?"
"Maybe we can deliberately get a few questions wrong during the next exam so that we can get an E."
"Mom wouldn't be happy if she heard you say that."
After saying that, the two of them laughed together.
Kyle couldn't be bothered to pay attention to them.
However, when George mentioned Black, they inevitably thought of their earlier encounter.
"How do you think Black got into the castle?" Connor asked.
This was a question that most people wanted to know the answer to.
At that moment, Kyle could clearly hear several speculations floating around them.
"Disapparating..."
"He flew in on a broomstick..."
"He turned himself into a flowering shrub..."
They had plenty of theories, but none of them seemed plausible.
There was special magic in the castle that prevented Apparation, and it was unlikely that the Dementors would allow someone riding a broomstick or disguised as a flowering shrub to enter the castle.
"Is it possible that he used a secret passage to get in?" Qiu suddenly asked. "Aren't there quite a few secret passages leading out of the castle?"
"Impossible, absolutely impossible," Fred said without hesitation.
George looked around and made sure that Professor Sprout and Percy were on the other side before lowering his voice. "There are only two passages that lead outside the school grounds.
"One is in the Honeyduke's Candy Shop warehouse, and Black obviously couldn't have broken in there. Remember, he doesn't have a wand."
"The other one is in the Shrieking Shack, and while there's no one guarding it, the entrance is right underneath the Whomping Willow."
Fred continued, "If Black dared to go through there, he'd probably be flattened by the Whomping Willow as soon as he came out."
"We didn't hear anything unusual about the Whomping Willow today, did we..."
"Lights out!" Percy shouted. "I demand that all of you stop talking immediately!"
The candles immediately went out, leaving only a few silvery ghosts floating around, emitting a faint glow as they conversed solemnly with the prefects.
(End of Chapter)
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