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Chapter 552: The Outrageous Proposal of the Deputy Minister
Chapter 552: The Outrageous Proposal of the Deputy Minister
Moody's leave of absence lasted much longer than anyone expected. It was nearly a month before he returned to Hogwarts.
On Friday evening, as everyone was engrossed in their delicious dinner, the Great Hall's doors suddenly swung open, and Moody strode in, his face grim and his gait uneven.
While Moody usually wore a serious expression, one might even say frightening, it was clear to everyone at a glance that he was in a foul mood.
His scarred face was taut, and the magical eye in his eye socket darted rapidly, taking in everyone around him.
Seeing this, some students who had intended to greet him thought better of it and remained seated, not daring to meet Moody's gaze.
"Kyle, any idea what's going on?" Cedric whispered from the Hufflepuff table. "I've never seen Professor Moody this angry before."
"I'm not sure," Kyle shook his head. "But I suspect it might have something to do with recent events at the Ministry of Magic."
He glanced at the copy of the Prophet lying beside him.
On the front page, a bold headline caught the eye.
'Former Deputy Head of the Magical Law Enforcement Patrol, Dolores Umbridge, has been transferred to the Minister's office and appointed Senior Deputy Minister.'
Unlike the brief mention of Crouch a month prior, this new appointment of Umbridge as Deputy Minister dominated the entire front page.
The article detailed her past achievements and contributions to the Ministry.
Kyle skimmed most of it, finding it uninteresting, until his eyes landed on the final paragraph.
It mentioned Umbridge's belief that the Aurors had too much power and that certain powerful spells, such as the Blasting Curse, should be banned from their use.
Additionally, she expressed that the Aurors had been too lax and should be placed under the direct command of the Minister's office, just like the Hit Wizards, instead of being led by the Director of Magical Law Enforcement.
The proposal, made two weeks prior, was still under consideration, as indicated by the 'pending' status at the end of the article. It had neither been approved nor rejected.
Professor Moody's prolonged absence was likely due to this issue.
No wonder he was so angry.
The Aurors and Hit Wizards were inherently different departments. Aurors primarily dealt with notorious Dark Wizards, embarking on dangerous missions that often meant dancing on the edge of a knife.
Restricting their use of powerful spells would have dire consequences.
Moreover, being under the command of the Minister's office would mean added bureaucracy for the Aurors, hindering their efficiency.
In some cases, especially emergencies, every second counted, and delays could make the situation worse.
Even though Moody had retired, he wouldn't stand idly by and let the Ministry send Aurors to their deaths.
Fudge had let his ego get the better of him. How could he not immediately reject such an outrageous proposal?
Other countries were striving to improve Aurors' treatment, attracting more talent, while Fudge was doing the opposite.
Kyle could guess Fudge's motive—he wanted to control the Aurors himself—but this approach was downright foolish.
If word of this got out to other countries…
Well, as a matter of fact, it already had.
Fleur sneered at the newspaper.
While Kyle couldn't be certain that this was the reason for her reaction, there didn't seem to be anything else particularly amusing in the paper that day.
And across the hall, at the Slytherin table, Krum was no longer eating in silence as he had before. Instead, he chatted and laughed with the other Durmstrang students in Bulgarian.
But these were not his concerns, and he trusted that Dumbledore would not let such a proposal pass.
Kyle glanced towards the staff table and noticed Dumbledore speaking with Moody, their expressions equally grave.
...
The next morning, as Kyle made his way to the Headmaster's office on the eighth floor, he found that Dumbledore was not there... most likely, he had gone to the Ministry.
Kyle had anticipated this, so he only waited in the office for about ten minutes before leaving.
A break once in a while wasn't bad, and since it was Hogsmeade weekend, after drinking pumpkin juice for over a month, Kyle decided to head to the Three Broomsticks for a cold butterbeer.
After leaving the eighth floor, Kyle ran into Sirius and Harry in the entrance hall, and it seemed they were on their way out as well.
"Kyle?" Sirius said, sounding surprised. "You don't have to study spells with Professor Dumbledore today?"
While most students were unaware of this arrangement, the professors certainly knew, and Sirius had even tagged along to a class in the Headmaster's office once, though he had quickly left after only enduring ten minutes of it.
It was incomprehensible to him.
The complex magical formulas made his head spin, and having not chosen Ancient Runes as a subject in school, his limited knowledge had mostly faded over the past twelve years.
"What, Kyle is studying spells with Professor Dumbledore?" Harry asked, astonished and a little envious at the news.
After all, it was Dumbledore, the greatest wizard of the century, and one could only imagine the wealth of knowledge he could impart.
"That's right... well, it's for the Triwizard Tournament," Sirius winked and whispered, "Just remember to keep it a secret, alright?"
"Of course, I won't tell a soul," Harry nodded vigorously, his envy momentarily forgotten.
He had been thinking of sharing this secret with Ron and Hermione, but if Sirius wanted to keep it under wraps for now, he'd wait a little longer.
He couldn't wait to see their reactions when he finally spilled the beans before the third task; their faces would be priceless.
Harry turned to Kyle and said, "So, have you learned anything yet? I really hope you win."
"Learned? It's too early for that," Kyle replied. "Professor Dumbledore isn't at school today, so I thought I'd grab a drink at the Three Broomsticks. What about you guys..."
"Perfect timing," Sirius smiled. "We're headed to Hogsmeade too, and Remus is there as well. Care to join us if you're not busy?"
"Professor Lupin? Sure, why not," Kyle nodded in agreement.
It had indeed been a while since he last saw Lupin, the former Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher.
Looking at Sirius, Kyle suddenly realized that he had essentially taken Lupin's place... it figured that best friends would end up in the same profession.
He wondered if Sirius would be able to exit this job as cleanly as Lupin had at the end of the school year.
To be fair, Lupin's outcome was one of the best-case scenarios in the past several years. Though he had been exposed as a werewolf and forced to resign, he had escaped any serious harm.
And that alone put him ahead of ninety-nine percent of his colleagues.
...
(End of Chapter)
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