days at Hogwarts

Chapter 564 Who is the Fool
"Although I haven't heard it for many years..." Umbridge turned to look at Dumbledore and raised her eyebrows, "But I can still hear that it's a bit off topic this year, isn't it? I can't remember when this dirty hat was given the task of giving advice to the school. To be honest, maybe we should change to a more appropriate hat, nothing fancy, just a little more normal."

"This is a treasure left by the founders to the school. I think we should cherish it more." Dumbledore chuckled. "Normally, the Sorting Hat is only responsible for describing the different qualities valued by the four colleges of Hogwarts, as well as its own task of sorting students. However, there are exceptions. When Hogwarts faces a major crisis or danger, it feels that it has a moral responsibility to warn the school..."

"We are safe now!" Umbridge emphasized in a shrill voice, "There has never been a safer time in history than now. The Ministry of Magic has curbed the goblin rebellion and controlled the activities of dark wizards. Under the wise leadership of the Ministry of Magic, we have won the victory of the wizard war!"

"I don't deny these..." Dumbledore didn't seem to care about the great achievements she mentioned at all. He just picked up the goblet and took a sip. Before she could continue speaking, he interrupted her softly, "The Sorting has begun."

Professor McGonagall, who was standing in front, cleared her throat, lowered her eyes to glance at the parchment in her hand, and read loudly: "Euan Abercrombie!"

It was one of the unfortunate ones who fell into the water. The little boy was a little flustered and stumbled forward. He put the hat on his head. The Sorting Hat thought for a moment and announced loudly: "Gryffindor!"

As applause welcoming the new students rose and fell at the four long tables, the line of first-year students gradually shortened. When the last little carrot-head named Rose Zeller was sorted into Hufflepuff, Dumbledore stood up with a smile on his face.

"Welcome our new students, welcome our old students, welcome back! I have a lot to say to you, but there is plenty of time for speeches, it doesn't have to be now. Everyone, enjoy your meal!"

The sorting is over and the banquet begins.

The auditorium erupted in laughter of appreciation and warm applause. Delicious food suddenly fell from the sky. The long table was suddenly piled with large pieces of beef, pies, plates of vegetables, bread, jam, and pots of pumpkin juice. The wooden table groaned under the weight.

The atmosphere at the dinner was a little subtle. Whether it was professors or students, everyone's focus was on the new Defense Against the Dark Arts professor.

A few years ago, Cornelius Fudge was appointed Minister of Magic amidst the criticism of many wizards because of Dumbledore's strong recommendation. At that time, he had to act cautiously in handling cases involving the proliferation of dark magic items. Whenever he encountered any problem, he would write to Dumbledore for advice. Occasionally, when he was refuted at internal meetings of the Ministry of Magic, he would even openly take out the letter and act under the banner of Dumbledore.

Once known as Dumbledore's yes-man.

The young wizards were not idiots who did their homework behind closed doors. On the contrary, quite a few students subscribed to the Daily Prophet and read every article about Dumbledore published in it during the summer vacation:

Spreading rumors in public, suspected to be brain degeneration, mental disorder...

The Wizengamot voted to dismiss him, and the Ministry of Magic intended to take back the Order of Merlin that Dumbledore had won in his early years...

With a weird temper and childish personality, the famous St. Mungo's therapist suspected that he was suffering from Alzheimer's...

Any young wizard with normal intelligence can see that there is something wrong with the relationship between Hogwarts and the Ministry of Magic, and the harmonious and friendly atmosphere of previous years has long disappeared.

Loren enjoyed his steak and pork pie with gusto, followed by a large plate of thick soup and rice pudding, which he once despised but now loves. Hermione savoured the dishes in small bites, observing the guest of honor table while eating. The professors at the guest of honor table were divided into three groups. The four deans and professors of the main subjects needed no introduction. On the other side sat a group of professors of elective courses, astronomy professor Aurora Sinister, flight instructor Madam Hooch, school doctor Madam Pomfrey and other faculty members. A group of wizards were also surprised by Umbridge's employment, and sat together, enjoying the banquet while looking at her.

The eyes of two of them were the most obvious. One was Professor Hagrid of Care of Magical Creatures, whose eyes were so big that almost no one could ignore them. The other was Headmaster Snape of Slytherin, whose dark eyes were cold and chilling.

Loren scraped the rice off the plate, biting the spoon thoughtfully, and lowered his voice to Hermione beside him and said, "It is known that there are three forces, Hogwarts, the Death Eaters and the Ministry of Magic. Question: Who is the real fool?"

Hermione didn't answer, but she chose the answer involuntarily in her heart, and subconsciously glanced at the pink figure in the guest of honor seat.

Loren understood her look and happily scooped a spoonful of broth, sipping it with relish.

After eating and drinking, the hall gradually became noisy. At this time, Dumbledore stood up again: "Well, since we are digesting another extremely rich meal, I ask everyone to be quiet for a while and listen to me talk about the precautions for the new semester as usual... No magic is allowed in the corridor during class breaks, and there are many other rules, all listed on that long list..."

Except for the freshmen, other students didn't react much. The ones who cheered the loudest were George and Fred.

Euan Abercrombie, who had just joined, tilted his head. These two red-haired twin brothers were really active...

"It is also my pleasure to introduce our new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, Professor Dolores Umbridge!"

"Oh, thank you, thank you principal for your warm welcome speech, and thank you classmates for your applause..."

Umbridge thanked the sparse applause with a bright smile, and ignoring the people's secretly laughing expressions, she began to speak in a shrill voice: "I am eager to meet all of you as soon as possible. I believe that we will become very good friends... I am not only holding this teaching position in my personal capacity, I also bring the earnest expectations of the Ministry of Magic. Fudge has long been looking forward to the progress and innovation of Hogwarts, and hopes that more outstanding talents can be cultivated here..."

The entire speech lasted more than ten minutes, full of twisted and confusing words. The little wizard's attention quickly became distracted and her eyes became dull. Some students shook their heads and began to whisper to each other, while others began to feel drowsy and nod their heads on the dining table. Few people listened to what she said.

It was not until the end of the speech that Dumbledore led the applause, and the students finally reacted and followed suit with polite but not very enthusiastic applause.

"Thank you very much, Professor Umbridge. Your speech was very inspiring." Dumbledore nodded at her, turned to look at the students, and said loudly, "One last thing. The selection of the Quidditch team will begin this Friday!"

The auditorium was silent for a moment, and then deafening cheers broke out, almost shaking off the dark clouds above the dome.

(End of this chapter)