0343 Strange Course

That afternoon, not a single young wizard could focus on their lessons. Everyone was engrossed in discussions about the first real duel between professors in the history of Hogwarts.

Amidst the heated debates, the details of this duel gradually became clearer to all.

No one was overly surprised that Professor Watson had subdued Professors Snape and Black with just one spell. After all, ever since Professor Watson arrived at Hogwarts, the young wizards had witnessed or heard about many of the extraordinary feats he had accomplished recently, and people had grown accustomed to his prowess.

Now, in the minds of the young wizards, Professor Watson's image had gradually drawn parallel to Dumbledore's, and in some houses, there were even whispers that Professor Watson had surpassed their headmaster.

However, the true source of intense speculation centered around the ultimate outcome of the heated duel between Professor Black and Professor Snape.

On this matter, opinions diverged, fracturing the student body into different factions.

From the select few students who had borne witness to the confrontation firsthand, the finer details of the duel gradually materialized. Yet, regarding the ultimate resolution of this clash, these inexperienced student spectators each clung to their own uniquely skewed interpretations, colored by the lenses of their respective preferences.

Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw could still maintain relatively impartial views, but Slytherin students firmly believed their head of house had emerged victorious. In stark contrast, not a single Gryffindor acknowledged that Professor Black had lost the intense duel.

Within the span of a single afternoon, the very atmosphere that permeated the school had grown inexplicably tense, tense with an undercurrent of simmering animosity.

Whether in class or around the castle grounds, whenever Slytherin and Gryffindor students crossed paths, they would glare menacingly at each other. The confrontational atmosphere between these rival houses had even compelled Headmaster Dumbledore to divert the efforts of professors without active class schedules towards patrolling the corridors, in an effort to maintain the delicate balance of harmony.

Curiously, none of the principle figures directly embroiled in this had made a public appearance. Professor Black and Professor Snape had respectively asked their colleagues to cover their classes, while Professor Watson remained in his office. Even Draco had not shown up all afternoon, and by the time night fell, with the dazzling starry sky appearing in the enchanted ceiling of the Great Hall during dinner, they still had not been seen.

Harry withdrew his annoyed gaze from Ernie Macmillan of Hufflepuff, having just noticed the animated manner in which Ernie was voicing his opinion on the duel – a conclusion Harry could not accept.

"Sirius definitely wouldn't lose to Snape!" Harry declared adamantly once more, his impassioned words eliciting a resounding chorus of enthusiastic agreement from his surrounding housemates. Yet, curiously, neither Ron nor Hermione had expressed their respective viewpoints on the matter. The two exchanged a furtive glance, and Hermione, cautiously said, "Why don't you go ask Sirius directly, Harry? Surely he wouldn't hide anything from you—"

In fact, after classes had ended that afternoon, Ron had suggested they should go ask Sirius about it. But it was Harry who had rejected the proposal.

"I'd rather not bother him right now, Ron—" Facing Ron's inquisitive gaze, Harry elaborated, "He has just taken over Professor Lupin's duties and has a lot on his plate. I don't want to disturb him over this."

Harry had stubbornly brushed aside Ron's suggestion with this reason, but in reality, that was not his true motive.

With the conspicuous absence of nearly half the faculty members, a substantial portion of the staff table lay vacant. Headmaster Dumbledore was engaged in hushed discussion with the heads of the three remaining houses, while Hagrid, noticing the hint of worry in Harry's eyes, gave him a reassuring look.

At that moment, Malfoy, who had been missing for most of the day, suddenly appeared. His face was lit with excitement, as if he had encountered something worth celebrating.

The trio exchanged glances, a dull feeling surrounding them.

Usually, whatever made Malfoy happy wouldn't be good news for them.

Curiously, Malfoy had appeared in the company of none other than the grumpy caretaker, Filch. He did not head straight into the Great Hall for dinner but, he instead accompanied Filch towards the notice board situated within the entrance hall, where he proceeded to assist the ill-tempered squib in attaching some manner of announcement.

It was well known that the Malfoy Family had long been staunch supporters of pure-blood supremacy. Draco also looked down upon witches and wizards without pure-blood lineage. During the first half of second year, he had even referred to Hermione as a "Mudblood." And nearly everyone knew that Filch was a Squib.

Moreover, it was common knowledge that the vast majority of Slytherin students routinely treated Filch with thinly veiled contempt whenever their paths intersected within the castle's corridors. So, for Malfoy, considered a prime representative, to go out of his way assisting Filch was truly puzzling!

"I bet that codger Filch has come up with some useless new rules again—" Fred scoffed with disdain. He glanced towards his brother, unsurprisingly finding a mischievous glint in George's eyes.

"Maybe we should give him a taste of his own medicine," George chimed in.

"You'd both better stay calm—" Hermione interjected, her penetrating gaze fixed upon the smug face of Malfoy until he had returned to the Slytherin table, enthusiastically discussing something with those around him.

"Filch now falls under the jurisdiction of the Student Safety Office, which means any decision he makes has been approved by Professor Watson. Unless you don't mind incurring his wrath, by all means, continue your pranks."

"Why don't we go take a look?" Harry suddenly spoke up, his attention captured by Cho Chang from Ravenclaw. Hand in hand with a girl possessing wavy locks of reddish-gold, they made their way towards the notice board, Cedric Diggory, the Hufflepuff Quidditch team captain who had defeated him in a match the previous year, also rose and caught up with Cho, greeting her before they walked over together.

Hermione noticed that Harry's expression was different than usual, and she raised an eyebrow.

"All right, I suppose we can go have a look directly," she acquiesced, recognizing the futility of resistance in the face of Harry's newfound resolve.

Their decisive movement towards the heart of the commotion appeared to trigger a catalytic chain reaction, as the sound of scraping chairs and benches reverberated throughout the Great Hall like a thunderous chorus. Unable to contain their insatiable curiosity, students from each of the four long tables surged forth in a great tide, surging towards the entrance hall.

Within mere moments, the spacious entrance hall grew increasingly crowded, the press of bodies leaving those at the front tightly compressed against one another. Harry found himself mere inches from Cho, close enough to detect the delicate floral fragrance of her hair wafting tantalizingly upon the air. He felt his heart racing faster than it ever had, even more intense than the breathless anticipation that gripped him in the split second before seizing the Golden Snitch during a hard-fought Quidditch match. This heady sensation left him utterly intoxicated, yet bewildered, until he noticed Cho giving him an odd look, snapping him back to reality.

"Huh, what?" Harry blurted, suddenly aware that Cho had been saying something to him, but he hadn't heard a word, so he hurriedly asked in embarrassment.

"Oh—"

Cho bit her lip, a subtle gesture that Harry found utterly captivating, as she struggled against the relentless press of bodies, her arm inadvertently brushing against Harry's chest. Offering him an apologetic smile, she said, "I was asking how your godfather, Professor Black, is doing. Everyone's been discussing his duel with Professor Snape!"

Confronted with this query, Harry realized that he was uninformed regarding Sirius's current state in the aftermath of the duel. Hesitantly, he parted his lips to respond, but before he could utter a word, Cedric, having overheard their exchange, boldly interjected.

"I reckon Professor Black wouldn't lose to Snape. He's a hero, isn't he? The Dementors of Azkaban couldn't defeat him."

Harry felt uneasy at Cedric's unsought input, but he had no choice but to respond in kind.

"I agree with you," Harry nodded. "I don't think anything could defeat him."

Cho clearly knew Cedric better, and seemed more familiar, even intimate with him. As they read the announcement together, they started discussing the recent Quidditch match between Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff the previous weekend, which Ravenclaw had ultimately won.

In stark contrast to Fred's dismissive claim that Cedric was "dumb as a rock and too dim to string two words together," he appeared remarkably adept at the art of flattery. After exchanging but a few artfully constructed phrases, Cho's attention had been wholly diverted from Harry, leaving him feeling utterly isolated amidst the crowd.

If the earlier sensation was akin to floating on clouds, Harry now felt as though he had been brutally stomped into an icy hell. Not only were there issues with his vision, but even the words on the notice right before his eyes seemed to evade his sight, leaving him utterly distraught and unable to make out anything.

Hermione, who was standing behind them, saw everything clearly. Faced with Harry easily giving in, she could only sigh and had nothing else to say.

"Oh, Professor Watson is planning to introduce a physical education and training class to train the physical abilities of young witches and wizards, starting with the third and fourth year students—those from other years who harbor an interest may submit an application to the Office of Student Safety, conditional upon securing the approval of their respective house heads," Ron exclaimed loudly.

"Physical education? Physical abilities training? What strange terms!" he added, his brow furrowing as he struggled to grasp the unfamiliar concepts.

Ron frowned as he looked at the frowning Hermione, who was half a head shorter than him and glaring at him disapprovingly.

"Why did you step on me?!"

Hermione rolled her eyes at Ron's complaint.

"The notice clearly states that the course covers physical training, exercise, and the development of attributes such as strength, endurance, and agility," she clarified in a tone one might reserve for a particularly dense child. "It maybe intended to elevate the overall fitness levels of the students."

"But why would they want to introduce something so...Muggley?" Ron wondered aloud, his bewilderment palpable as the foreign concept clashed with his ingrained perceptions of the wizarding world.

"Perhaps Professor Watson holds the belief that establishing a strong physical foundation contributes to becoming a more powerful witch or wizard," Hermione hypothesized, undeterred by Ron's apparent ignorance. "In any case, it seems this new policy has his full backing."

"I dunno, it still sounds barmy to me," Ron muttered, though his protest lacked real conviction.

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