Chapter 20: The Banquet

The new students were amazed by Dumbledore's magical abilities, but their hunger took precedence over figuring out how the headmaster accomplished his feats.

Albert knew the secret. Dumbledore used Hufflepuff's magic to transport the food from the kitchens beneath the Great Hall. The Hufflepuff Cup, which served as Voldemort's Horcrux, was the first vessel used by Hogwarts to assist house-elves in transporting magical food.

Albert couldn't resist testing his knowledge on the prefect sitting next to him. However, the prefect had his mouth full of food and clearly had no intention of answering.

The feast was plentiful, though not particularly fancy. It was enough to satisfy everyone's hunger.

Albert helped himself to a piece of steak and leisurely began to cut it. He wasn't very hungry since he had been eating throughout the journey.

Everyone else dug in, and across from Albert, Lee Jordan was comically devouring a chicken leg.

As the banquet progressed, the ghosts made their appearance, emerging from various parts of the castle and greeting the new students, causing quite a commotion.

The Gryffindor ghost was a male aristocrat, likely the legendary Nearly Headless Nick.

"Mr. Ghost," Albert swallowed his beef and greeted Nearly Headless Nick.

"I prefer if you call me Sir Nicholas de Mimsy-Porpington," the ghost replied.

"Sir Nicholas de Mimsy-Porpington," Albert managed to say the long name, quite impressed with his instant memory. "Can you be photographed? I mean, can you appear in pictures?"

"What? Child, I don't understand what you're saying," Sir Nicholas said, pleased that someone could pronounce his name correctly. He disliked being referred to as "Nearly Headless Nick" by newcomers.

"Taking photographs," Albert clarified. "Please, find time in the future to take a picture with me."

"Well, my boy, if you want to do that, oh, take a photograph, you can find me," Sir Nicholas agreed, liking the polite young lad.

"May I ask another question?" Albert inquired.

"Go ahead, child."

"Are ghosts the souls of the deceased?"

"Wizards can leave their imprints in the mortal world and float ethereally where they once walked, but only a few wizards choose that path," Sir Nicholas de Mimsy-Porpington replied without directly answering Albert's question.

"Are they memories then? It doesn't quite seem like it. So... it really is souls?" Albert muttered to himself. He knew that the magical world included the existence of souls.

After all, Voldemort had fragmented his own soul.

As Albert snapped back to reality from his musings, he noticed that people nearby were staring at him.

"What's wrong?" Albert asked in confusion.

"Nothing," others quickly averted their gaze.

"I still think you should have been sorted into Ravenclaw," Fred slurred his words.

"Swallow before you speak," Albert retorted unkindly.

"Why are you so curious about ghosts?" a fellow student asked.

"In the Muggle world, there are no such magical beings as ghosts," Albert calmly replied. "Now that I have the chance to learn about them, I don't want to miss it. By the way, it feels very cold when a ghost passes through you, so it's best to be careful in the future."

He had just discreetly poked Nearly Headless Nick with his finger and felt the chill as it passed through them, akin to being drenched in icy water.

That would definitely not be pleasant in winter.

"Indeed, there are no ghosts in the Muggle world," a girl spoke up from two seats away from Albert. Her name was Shanna Wilson.

"To be honest, when I received the letter, my family thought it was a prank. They nearly kicked Professor McGonagall out when she came to visit," Shanna Wilson found it amusing. "In fact, they didn't want me to come here."

"I had a similar situation. My mother almost called the police to arrest Professor McGonagall," Albert chuckled. "People who live on the scientific side usually have a hard time accepting anything out of the ordinary. They wanted me to go to Eton College."

"Eton College, is it that Eton College?" Shanna Wilson was surprised.

"What's that?" Lee Jordan asked, perplexed.

"It's one of the best schools in Britain," Shanna Wilson explained.

"Hogwarts is the best," George raised an eyebrow.

"I know that, because there's only one magical school in Britain. Naturally, Hogwarts is the best," Shanna Wilson said disdainfully. "Muggles, or what you call ordinary people, have thousands of schools. Eton College ranks within the top three. What does that mean? I don't need to say it, do I!"

"It seems impressive," George shrugged nonchalantly. In truth, he didn't really understand.

"Don't just talk about us. Tell us about yourselves," Albert changed the subject, looking at another girl.

"I'm a half-and-half. My mother is a witch, and my father is a Muggle," Angelina Johnson said. "They were honest with each other early on. However, we've always lived in the Muggle world. I've been exposed to magic since I was young, so my family wasn't too surprised when I received the invitation."

Beside her, Alicia Spinnet added, "I was born into a wizarding family and grew up with magic. Nothing particularly exciting. When I received the letter, my family was quite happy and bought me an owl."

After everyone had eaten their fill, the remaining food on the plates disappeared, replaced by portions of desserts.

Albert took a serving of pudding and listened to the new students share interesting stories.

Once the feast was over, the plates on the table were cleared, like Tom had licked them clean.

Professor Dumbledore stood up again and announced to the crowd, "I am pleased to welcome a new professor to our school. Professor Barty Blore will be the new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher."

Sparse applause rang out in the hall.

Professor Barty Blore was an elderly man.

"There are a few more things to inform everyone about," Dumbledore addressed all the students below. "First-year students, please take note that the Forbidden Forest is strictly off-limits to students. Also, Mr. Filch, the caretaker, has asked me to remind you all not to use magic in the corridors during breaks. Lastly, the Quidditch tryouts for the house teams will be held in the second week of this term. Students interested in joining their house team should contact Madam Hooch."

"Why can't we go into the Forbidden Forest?"

"There's probably danger in the forest," Albert replied, glancing at the eager twins.

"If you dare go into the Forbidden Forest, I'll write a letter to Mum," Percy Weasley glared fiercely at his younger brother. He knew their personalities all too well.

"We won't," the twins quickly assured.

(End of this chapter)