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On The Hunt: Chapter 16
🕑 Added 2023-03-02 17:30:08 +0000 UTCHARRY POTTER: BETROTHED!
In an announcement that took the entire Wizengamot by storm, Lord Cyrus of the Ancient and Noble House of Greengrass announced the betrothal of his eldest daughter and heiress, Daphne Greengrass, to none other than the incumbent lord of the Ancient and Noble House of Potter and the heir to the Ancient and Noble House of Black, Harry Potter during the final Wizengamot session for August 1995.
The announcement has sent waves across the political stratosphere of Wizarding Britain. An alliance between the two houses has solidified the voting bloc, putting it in an absolute majority. It is to be remembered that Lord Cyrus Greengrass is the de-facto leader of the Neutral faction of the Wizengamot.
Sources close to the two factions have indicated that the two houses have been in talks since the trial that took place in late July, and with the official announcement now, it seems they do not wish to waste any time.
Lord Cyrus Greengrass was all smiles when our correspondent interviewed him after the session, standing alongside Lord Sirius Black, who has already declared his godson as the heir of his house. With two lordships at his command, the incumbent lord is surely going to be the subject of several approaches for another betrothal.
Heiress Daphne Greengrass shall be the lady of the Ancient and Noble House of Potter, which leaves the position of the prospective lady of the Ancient and Noble House of Black vacant.
The development has been met with mixed reactions from the rest of the Wizengamot, with Lord Lucius of the Noble House of Malfoy being particularly critical. The primary supporter of Minister Cornelius Fudge didn’t mince his words, openly questioning Lord Cyrus Greengrass regarding his intentions. He also called for an investigation into his approach to the trial that took place in July, calling his appointment to the jury panel a conflict of interest if the houses were already involved in brokering a betrothal.
When asked for his comments, Lord Greengrass dismissed the accusation of Lord Malfoy, citing the response as nothing more than a sting of rejection.
It is to be observed what moves this alliance makes in the Wizengamot now that it has been made official.
Lucius Malfoy seethed as he read the article inside the confines of his solar. His hands were gripping his cane tightly, the metal digging into his palm as he stared at the smug visage of Greengrass smiling alongside Black.
He had urged Cyrus to see the light and take the right side. However, the idiot had gone and done exactly something he shouldn’t have done. Betrothing his daughter to the man marked by none other than the Dark Lord was a suicidal move, and Lucius couldn’t help but take a sadistic pleasure as he pictured the fate that would befall that house now.
Time and again, he had been rejected. His son deserved the world – the perfect specimen of pureblood pride and breeding that he was, and Cyrus snubbed him to choose the son of a mudblood instead. Lucius seethed.
A knock on the door made him look up and he hid his grimace when none other than his wife came in with a self-satisfied look on her face.
He didn’t know what he had been thinking when he had agreed to a betrothal with this woman. Probably disillusioned with her beauty and the power her house granted them. Over the years, their marriage had devolved into one of convenience, with the pair staying clear of each other’s way as often as they could. They presented a unified front in public, but their private life was another matter entirely.
“What?” He asked, and Narcissa’s smirk became more prominent at the tone. Wordlessly, she threw an envelope on the table before walking away without any response. Lucius scoffed. The bitch could’ve sent this with any stupid elf, but she came herself.
‘Probably to relish in the look on my face after this humiliation,’ he thought scornfully.
Lucius had taken care to raise his son as the perfect scion of the Noble House of Malfoy, leaving Narcissa with little to no influence over him. As a result, he was not surprised when the woman didn’t even feel a thing when her son was rejected for a filthy half-blood.
For all the talk of blood, the recent generation of the Blacks had truly turned out to be a disgrace. Bellatrix – a mad cunt twisted in her sick devotion. Regulus – a disgrace of a wizard who had upped and killed himself at the first sight of blood. And the less he said about the remaining three, the better it was. Blood traitors, all three of the lot.
Lucius was not blind. He had seen his wife meeting with her eldest sister several times over the years. The first time he had witnessed the scene of the two women hugging like lowlives in that eatery, he had given Narcissa a good tongue-lashing when she returned.
That had been the proverbial nail in the coffin that their sham of marriage had become. The bitch dared to tell him to take his opinions and shove them. Her crass mouth would have earned her a swell on the cheek at the very least, and Lucius couldn’t have felt more vindicated at the power he would’ve felt at that moment.
However, such recourse was impossible since the bitch was entirely protected under their marriage contract.
Instead, he chose to humiliate her in another way. His son became his biggest weapon against her, and he raised him with such ferociousness that Narcissa had ultimately had enough of them. The pride he had felt in Draco when his heir had forsaken his mother in return couldn’t be explained in mere words. Since then, Narcissa didn’t bother them, instead opting to do whatever she chose to inside the confines of her bedroom.
He still had to use Narcissa’s name in public, particularly when the matter of betrothals was concerned. It was important to preserve the façade that they had created, and it was the only matter they agreed on. Narcissa, despite what her opinion of him or his family was, loved her image in society, so she always played the part of a dutiful wife. It helped him keep his image clean as well, so he couldn’t complain either. It was always good if the public saw you as a caring family man instead of someone whose marriage broke off and who had to raise his son by himself.
Lucius shook those pathetic thoughts out of his mind. There was nothing he could do about Greengrass now. The idiot had dug his grave. He could lie in it with his entire family now. What he needed to do was to inform Draco not to try anything with the Greengrass chit. The betrothal contract was bound to extract severe penalties from any possible offender, and he didn’t want his heir to be cursed.
The Malfoy lord stood up and made to walk out of the solar when his eyes widened and he hissed in pain. The mark on his left forearm burned with ferocity, and he gulped. His lord must have finally seen the news as well.
A soft pop sounded inside the solar as Lucius Malfoy apparated away.
XXXXX
The Dark Lord’s chamber screamed oppressiveness. Cold, grey stone lined up the floor and the only light came from the eerie candles floating in the air that cast the room in shadows. A massive throne, ornate and covered in green velvet was perched over the tall staircase, and atop it sat a creature straight out of nightmares.
With his gaunt face and pasty skin, the crimson eyes of Tom Marvolo Riddle stared at his faithful follower who was bowing in front of him with his eyes down and head bent in submission.
Voldemort relished this feeling. For years in his youth, these so-called pure wizards had made his life a living hell. He remembered how he had been bullied for years until he had shut them up with his ancestral skill of Parseltongue. There had been no scorn since that day. The tables had turned now, and it was he who commanded such power over these witches and wizards.
His other followers who had survived the night in the graveyard stood near the walls, staring at the scene unfolding in front of them. Voldemort seethed once again at the reminder of that night. It had not gone as he had envisioned. Potter had been captured and he had been resurrected, but he had not expected to lose his followers, incompetent as they might have been, to the boy. The losses of Crabbe and Goyle were immaterial, however, it was Barty who was the biggest loss of the night. The man was as capable as any, and to lose him so early was a massive blow.
He had also been surprised when Potter survived yet another killing curse, and try as he might, there was a voice in the back of his mind now, advocating that something was preventing him from truly killing him. His thoughts had instantly gone to the accursed prophecy, and it was now essential for him to know what it truly said.
His eyes fell on the wizard in front of him and he glared.
“Tell me Lucius,” he began, “what task did I entrust you with?”
Lucius Malfoy winced. He dared not look up.
“To bring you more servants from the old houses, My Lord.”
“And did I ask you to ensure anything else?” Voldemort’s eyes bored into the back of his head.
Lucius stayed bowing low, “To ensure we had more power in the Wizengamot, My Lord.”
“Precisely,” Voldemort hissed, and Lucius was levitated in the air so he was eye-to-eye with this monster to whom he had pledged his undying fealty. “You had one small task, Lucius. Ensure more control in the government. I trusted you, despite your past failures, and I gave you full authority to do whatever you pleased. In return, I asked for something so minuscule that even an incompetent mudblood could have done it. And yet, you failed.”
“M-my Lord…”
“I did not give you permission to speak, Lucius,” Voldemort whispered dangerously, and Lucius shut up. “Instead of gathering more control within the government, you managed to let the other side gain majority. What use are you, if you cannot even fulfil these small demands?”
“My Lord, I had approached Greengrass numerous times for his daughter, but he denied me every time. My son–“
“I could not care less, Lucius,” Voldemort hissed, “Potter getting to sample the Greengrass heiress instead of your spawn does not concern me. What I care about is the loss of power in the administration.”
Lucius felt a searing pain in his joints and his mouth clamped shut. Gashes appeared on his torso and not even a cry of pain escaped his lips when the Dark Lord threw him away. Battered and bruised, he rolled on the rough floor. The remaining witches and wizards with their masks on watched his humiliation in silence.
“I am losing faith in your ability to ensure power and control within the ministry, Lucius. Fudge is an incompetent buffoon and all you have done is bolster his idiocy a hundred-fold. His days are numbered, Lucius. And alas, so are yours.”
Lucius’ eyes widened at that.
“M-my Lord!” He managed to get out, “Please, My Lord! Give me one chance. One final chance! I- “
He was cut off when his lips vanished.
“I am sick of listening to your drivel, Lucius. However, never let it be said that I am not a benevolent master. You want a final chance, then you shall have it.”
Glaring at the Malfoy lord malevolently, Voldemort smirked.
“Ensure that my faithful in Azkaban are free by the end of the year and you shall be forgiven. Fail, and I shall tear you and your Noble house down, root and stem.”
Lucius’ eyes widened as his lips were restored, and he grovelled pathetically on the floor. Voldemort tuned out the snivelling wizard and started to caress his dear familiar, chuckling at her hisses.
“Soon, Nagini. Very soon,” he whispered, staring at the pathetic wizard at the bottom of the stairs.
XXXXX
“You’re staring at it again.”
Daphne jerked her head up and could not stop the smile that came over her face. Her eyes closed in contentment when he came forward and planted a soft kiss on her forehead, a gesture oddly intimate and something he had made a habit to do whenever he felt like it.
“Can you blame me?” She asked when he pulled back, smiling as she held her arm up, and Harry took her hand in his to stare at the platinum ring adorning her finger. He traced the engraved stone in the centre delicately, the Potter crest proudly emblazoned on the sapphire. The glint of the gem reminded him of her eyes, and that had been the primary reason why he had chosen this ring for Daphne.
Harry chuckled as he took the seat beside her and Daphne leaned her head against his shoulder.
“If I knew you’d like it so much, I’d have given it to you much earlier.”
Daphne smiled, “I’m glad you took your time. It made it even more special.”
Harry smiled and recalled the moment when he had presented Daphne with the family ring. It belonged to Iolanthe Potter, the wife of Hardwin Potter and the last descendant of the mighty Peverell clan that had been absorbed into his bloodline. Woven inside the Potter crest was the Peverell crest – a triangle surrounding a circle with a perpendicular in the middle. The symbol of the mythical Deathly Hallows.
He didn’t know if there was any semblance of truth to the fairytale, but he was inclined to believe they existed. At the heart of every legend, there was a grain of truth.
Daphne had been stupefied when he had presented her with the ring, and she had stood still when he had softly slid it on her ring finger. Her parents and Sirius had been in attendance inside the latter’s solar for the small ceremony.
It signified a step forward in their budding relationship, and when she had finally looked up at him with eyes glistening and an angelic smile on her lovely lips, it took him everything in his power to hold himself back from capturing them. Instead, he had opted for an intimate featherlight kiss on her forehead, something that had become a frequent occurrence between them since that evening.
He knew they were taking forward strides in their relationship, and Harry had come to trust the young woman wholeheartedly in the short time they had known each other. However, he didn’t want to rush anything. They had time.
Smiling, he leaned his head against hers and Daphne sighed. Their hands stayed clasped on her lap as she softly stroked the back of his, and Harry allowed himself to immerse in this little moment of tranquility that was sure to be broken in a few hours.
“Oh my!” A faint voice came from outside their compartment, and they looked over to see a young brunette with a wide grin waving her arms. Daphne chuckled and waved her wand. The door to their compartment slid open and in strode an energetic bubble of never-ending exuberance that was Tracey Davis.
“Holy Shit Daph!” The brunette cried out as she pulled her best friend on her feet and hugged her firmly. Daphne’s breath was knocked out of her lungs as she struggled for a moment before giving in. Harry chuckled.
“I leave you alone for one summer and you get yourself betrothed to the biggest catch in the Wizarding World! Oh you minx!” Tracey cackled as she pulled back with a wide grin, before turning towards Harry.
“Hello Harry Potter, I am Tracey Davis. Daphne’s best friend and sister in all but blood. You can call me Tracey or Trace. Nice to meet you.”
Harry smiled and stood up to shake her hand as Daphne sighed fondly. Never let it be said that her best friend lacked energy.
“Nice to meet you too, Tracey. You can call me Harry,” he replied.
Tracey scoffed, “Pish, I was gonna call you that anyway. None of that Potter or Potter-Black business for me, no offense.”
“None taken,” Harry chuckled as Daphne took her seat back beside him. Tracey levitated her trunk on the overhead rack and sat down opposite them by the window.
“So, how did this happen exactly? I hope it wasn’t all for that alliance shit. That would be so unromantic,” Tracey remarked, looking at them expectantly. Harry exchanged a look with Daphne and smirked before looking over at the bubbly brunette.
“Didn’t Daph here tell you? We’ve been seeing each other since last year. I just couldn’t wait anymore, you know?”
Two pairs of eyes bugged out. Tracey stared accusingly at Daphne who looked at Harry in shock.
“What the hell, Daph!?” Tracey cried out in surprise. Daphne shook her head.
“That’s so not true,” she replied. Instantly, Harry turned to look at her with a mock-hurt look on his face.
“Come on, Daph. We’re engaged to be married now. Don’t lie,” he replied. Tracey shot the blonde a betrayed look.
“I can’t believe you did that to me, Daph,” she muttered, looking down. Daphne looked at her before shooting a grinning Harry an exasperated look.
“You can cut it out now,” she chided him with a poke to the ribs and started to explain everything to her friend. The brunette listened to it all with a small pout on her face at how stereotypically formal it was before her lips curved into a satisfied smile as Daphne finished.
“That’s good,” Tracey nodded, smiling at the couple, before adding mischievously, “So, you’ve been living together for three weeks now, hmm?”
Daphne flushed slightly while Harry smiled uncertainly at the smirking witch, who took one look at their faces and cackled.
“Oh, you’re so easy,” she leaned back.
A knock on the door prompted them to look over, and Harry smiled before waving his wand. A young brunette entered, dragging her trunk behind her and Harry quickly levitated it on the rack.
“Harry!” Astoria smiled and hugged him. Harry squeezed her back and smiled as she took her seat beside Tracey, giving the other brunette a quick hug as well.
“What? No hugs for your dear sister?” Daphne teased. Astoria gave her sister a mock pout.
“That’s what happens when you hog him all to yourself,” she replied, gesturing towards Harry with her thumb. He chuckled.
Daphne stood up and hugged her sister, smirking at the younger girl’s protests before the latter gave in.
“I missed you too,” she whispered. Astoria sighed and hugged her tightly. Harry smiled at the scene.
Astoria had been like an avid fangirl in the beginning, excited every time they talked whenever she came over to Grimmauld Place, which was not much often. However, with time, she had mellowed down a lot. No longer was she an exuberant spirit who had once bluntly asked him to make her his second bride, much to Daphne’s combined shock and embarrassment. Now, he found her to be a charming young girl who seemed to have a knack for trouble, as evident by her close camaraderie with Nym when the two had met.
“I thought you’d be sitting with your friends?” Daphne asked as she took her seat back beside him. Astoria shrugged.
“Will go in a while. For now, I’d like to sit with my brother-in-law,” she replied cheekily. Harry chuckled.
“Well, you won’t find me complaining, dear sister-in-law,” he replied. Astoria grinned.
“We’re not actually married yet, you know?” Daphne whispered in his ear with a smile. Harry turned to look at her.
“Just a matter of time,” he replied softly and quickly pecked her forehead, smiling when she flushed and looked away. Off to the side, he thought he heard someone squeal but he didn’t pay the trouble bubble any mind, instead tucking a strand of her blonde hair behind her ear.
Their little moment of intimacy was forcefully broken when the door to the compartment slid open, and they abruptly turned around. Harry couldn’t hold back the groan that escaped his lips at the sight.
There stood the slimy son of a cunt in all his glory, flanked by none other than his bodyguards who were more suited to be gluttonous trolls instead. His lip was curled into that disgusting sneer that he somehow thought made him look attractive but instead made him look like a pissant with a bag of shit right under his nose. An emerald badge with a ‘P’ emblazoned in silver was proudly affixed to the front of his robes.
His eyes took in the closeness between him and Daphne, and Harry involuntarily wrapped his arm around her shoulder. The ponce’s sneer became more pronounced.
“I guess you really did it, huh?” He began, “My father urged your father to see the light, but I think he is too hellbent on being the stupidest Greengrass if he allied himself with this trash. Wonder if he’s even thought this through.”
Daphne and Astoria glared at the Malfoy scion.
Harry scoffed, “Listen to you, prattling like your idiotic father. He was quite a disappointment in that courtroom, you know? I really enjoyed bringing him down a peg in front of the entire Wizengamot, just like I’ve done to you all these years. Guess the apple really doesn’t fall far from the tree.”
Malfoy bristled at the reminder, hands clenching as he glared at all the occupants of the compartment before his eyes fell on the youngest Greengrass and he smiled.
“Well, congratulations on your upcoming nuptials, I guess,” he said, before smirking, “And I hope your father sees the light soon, Greengrass. I never liked you much anyway. Too stuck-up for my tastes, not to mention not much variety either, you know, with you being a blonde as well. Now, on the other hand, your sister would make a fine Lady Malfoy, won’t you say?”
Daphne glared murderously as she stood up and took a step forward. Harry made no move to stop her.
“Let me be clear, Malfoy, so that even your inbred little brain can comprehend this. If you so much as look at Astoria the wrong way, I will end you,” Daphne intoned softly, her rage simmering inside her sapphire pools.
“You won’t do shit,” Malfoy whispered with bravado previously unseen in him. “What? Do you think you could get away with anything? Not even with all the power your alliance wields right now. Don’t worry, I have no evil intentions towards you or your sister. It won’t do to have discord among family, right?” He smirked.
“Keep telling that to yourself, Malfoy. And remember my warning very well. When I’m through with you, not even a rat will piss on the Malfoy name. You can count on it,” Daphne whispered dangerously.
“Big words from someone who sold herself to the highest bidder like a common whore,” Draco retorted with a malicious glint in his eyes.
That was enough. Before anyone could even blink, Harry had his hand wrapped around the blonde’s throat and he pinned him to the wall beside the door, his emerald pools glowing with latent magic as his hair swayed.
“Harry no!” Daphne cried out as she grabbed his arm and tried to pull him back. On the other side, Astoria and Tracey stood up in alarm. Harry didn’t relent.
“You’ve got quite a mouth on you, Malfoy,” Harry whispered menacingly, waving his hand and freezing Crabbe and Goyle when they made to move.
“Wh-what are you gonna do, Scarhead? Curse me? Do it, and we’ll see how you weasel your way out of it this time, you murderer,” Malfoy choked out. Harry’s grip tightened around his throat.
“Harry! Please don’t! He’s trying to rile you up, don’t give in,” Daphne pulled him back once again.
He stared at the smirking face of the blonde and threw him outside the compartment, looking in disdain as his two gorillas helped him up.
“Look at you, resorting to fight like a common mudblood thug instead of an upstanding heir of two pureblood houses. Must be that filthy blood in you. How your ancestors must be rolling in their graves,” Malfoy got out after he had caught his breath. Daphne forcefully pulled Harry back.
“Yeah, do as your little slut tells you to, you spineless fuck,” Malfoy taunted further. “I’d advise you to watch your back this year, Scarhead. Who knows what might happen...”
Harry didn’t deign him with a reply as Daphne made him sit before taking her seat beside him, holding his arm firmly.
“I’ll see you in school, Miss Greengrass,” Malfoy said to Astoria with a smirk, which widened at the young brunette’s glare. He ignored the other three and turned towards his bodyguards.
“Let’s go, you two. We’re done here.”
Harry waved his wand and the door forcefully shut behind the three as they walked off. His breathing was still uneven as he tried to quell his rage. Daphne rubbed soothing circles on his back as Tracey and Astoria looked at them with worried frowns.
“Father would never agree,” Astoria said firmly. Daphne nodded.
“You don’t need to worry, Tori. Malfoy won’t do anything,” she replied firmly.
“I didn’t expect him to be so cocky after how the summer unfolded,” Tracey intoned softly as she stared at the couple.
“Malfoy is a fucking moron. He thinks just because his father has got a stooge at Hogwarts, he has some power. Let him think that,” Harry remarked darkly. “Both he and his father will have their reckoning soon. You can be sure of that.”
Tracey exchanged a concerned look with her best friend who was busy calming Harry down. Daphne nodded firmly as she looked over, before she went back to whispering words of comfort and support to her intended.
XXXXX
A large throng of students from all six years walked inside the Great Hall of Hogwarts for the welcoming feast and the sorting. Clad in the traditional red and gold of his house, Harry Potter walked over to the Gryffindor table and took the seat near the podium.
The Gryffindor prefects were sitting beside him, and Harry greeted them politely. He nodded towards Ron who looked surprised for a moment before giving a hesitant nod back.
Harry understood where the youngest son of the Weasleys came from. Ron had always been a jealous person. Being the youngest son whose older brothers were all excellent in one field or the other had created a massive inferiority complex within him, and he had latched on to the first thing that made him different – the best friend of Harry Potter. It was friendship in the beginning, particularly when Harry remained at the same level. However, changes started occurring in their third year when Harry started to truly come into his own, and their friendship changed as well.
It soon became apparent that Harry had never been only a friend of Ron Weasley, but also a wizarding celebrity who the young redhead could point to and claim to be as good as. A vindication of sorts for him and a way to stand out.
However, Harry had no interest in becoming someone Ron could use to bolster his self-worth. Their friendship was no more, but Harry had no interest in making an enemy out of him either. He had even been happy for Ron when the ginger had been made the prefect, and he hoped that the added responsibility and recognition would help him mature as a person.
Unlike Ron though, he didn’t bother to give Hermione even a glance, not after the revelations of this summer. The frown on the brunette’s face was noticed by all, and he saw a few people looking at them with inquisitive frowns on their faces. He couldn’t blame them. It was the first time they were distant in front of the student populace.
He was sitting at the seat closest to the podium, and his eyes met the headmaster’s, who nodded at him. Harry gave a respectful nod back and looked on as the deputy headmistress walked forward with the first-years in tow.
Harry paid little mind to the Sorting Hat’s song, ominous as it was, and outright ignored the sorting, clapping absentmindedly as he looked around. His eyes were wandering over the Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw tables looking for prospective candidates to approach.
It was when the Order meeting had concluded the day before that he and Daphne talked about it. They had their alliances in the Wizengamot for now, however, they had to look to the future as well. There were many heirs and heiresses of families they were allied with who they didn’t know or hadn’t talked to properly in the past. It was time to rectify that.
His eyes identified a few students who they could approach and he resolved to talk to them soon. The sorting had ended and the headmaster had already called for the feast to commence.
“Surprising to find you sitting here, Harry,” Katie, who was the sixth-year prefect for Gryffindor remarked from beside him. Right opposite them sat the other two chasers who looked at him before looking over at his former friends who were eating silently.
“Did something happen with you three?” Angelina probed with a frown.
“We all have our differences, Angelina. And people grow apart sometimes. Don’t think too much about it,” he replied. Angelina got the message and nodded.
“We were quite surprised when we read about it,” Alicia chimed in this time, and Harry looked over at her. “You being engaged already, and to Daphne Greengrass, no less. How did it come about anyway?”
Harry smiled and looked over at Daphne who was sitting with Tracey and Astoria at the Slytherin table. As if feeling his eyes on her, she looked up and they exchanged soft smiles before Harry turned back towards his teammates.
“You might have read it already, but it was primarily for an alliance,” his voice dipped a bit, “I mean, you already know what’s happening out there. At least it began that way, but I don’t think it’s only an alliance anymore.”
Katie smirked as she looked at the small smile on his face.
“Is our little seeker here smitten with the princess of Slytherin?” She teased. Angelina and Alicia smirked alongside her. Harry didn’t bother with a reply and went back to his dinner.
Truth be told, he did like Daphne, and a part of him believed she liked him too. However, they had not said or done anything about it. Although he had made it a habit to peck her forehead every once in a while, they had not wandered any further.
Involuntarily, his mind flashed back to when she had kissed his chin that night before they parted ways, and he smiled.
Unbeknownst to him, the three chasers were staring at him throughout and exchanged knowing smirks with each other.
Dinner ended and the headmaster walked over to the podium. Every eye turned to look at him. Dumbledore smiled at the gathered students, his eyes twinkling and a beaming smile on his lips.
“Welcome, to another year of learning and progress. To those returning, I wish you continue to improve, and to those who have joined us for the first time, I hope you will further add to the legacy of Hogwarts. Now that we have all relished in another splendid feast, a few moments of your attention for the customary announcements. First years ought to know that the Forbidden Forest is, as the name suggests, forbidden. A few older students also ought to remember that by now.”
Beside the chasers, the Weasley twins smirked and exchanged a look with Harry, who shook his head fondly. He knew all too well what the twins could get up to.
“Our caretaker, Mr Filch, has asked me to remind you for what he has told me is the five hundred and thirty-second time, that all magic is forbidden in the corridors between classes, as are a number of other articles, all of which have been meticulously recorded by him. You can find the list fastened on his office door.”
Again, the Weasley twins smirked, and this time, Harry couldn’t help but smirk as well.
‘Oh, those lists are going to be violated a hell lot more this year, that is for sure.’
Dumbledore continued, “We have a total of two staff changes for the year. We are very pleased to welcome back Professor Wilhelmina Grubbly-Plank who shall take over the Care of Magical Creatures lessons in the absence of Professor Rubeus Hagrid.”
A polite round of applause rang out as the professor bowed her head. Dumbledore smiled.
“And after decades of service, the Department of Education has decided to relieve Professor Binns of his duties. His classes will be taken over by Professor Dolores Umbridge.”
This time, the applause was much louder as students celebrated the exorcism of Binns and the fact that they would finally have an actual teacher in the subject. Harry turned to look at Umbridge who had puffed up in pride, soaking in the undeserved applause that was totally not intended for her. She turned to stare at him with that simpering smile, her eyes alight in glee. Harry gave her a smirk, relishing in the slight widening of her eyes.
He couldn’t wait for the year to start. Umbridge had decided to step into the lion’s den. Well, he’d love to show her who the hunter truly was.
XXXXX
To be continued…
Comments
GhostnKC
I cringed unconsciously with the hem hem lol
Krish
Will let you all decide when you want her back.
Vas Bosh’tet
When will gabby make her return?
I am lord dems
Hem hem this chapter was amazing such a good chapter j absolutely loved it
