Chapter 689: before holiday
Chapter 689 Before the holidays
What happened in the Department of Mysteries yesterday was spread to every corner of the magical world with the "Daily Prophet".
However, the newspaper did not mention the prophecy ball. It only said that Voldemort led his Death Eaters to try to rob something and wreak havoc in the main hall.
Therefore, in the eyes of many people, this is Voldemort declaring war on the Ministry of Magic, which also means that he has gathered enough followers and is ready to cause trouble at any time... and it also makes them feel uneasy.
But these have nothing to do with Hogwarts students.
In the afternoon, almost all the teachers and students of the school were on the Quidditch pitch to watch the most important final of the school year.
Hufflepuff vs. Gryffindor, the total score difference between the two teams is only twenty points, which is very small. It can be said that whoever wins this game will take the Quidditch Cup.
From the start of the game to now, the cheers and cheers in the stands have never stopped. Everyone is doing their best to cheer for the team they support.
“For both teams, this is a game that cannot be lost..."
Li Jordan said loudly in the commentary box: "Whether it is Cedric and Ted from Hufflepuff, or the Weasley brothers and Angelina from Gryffindor, they will all graduate next year, and no one wants to take them with them. Sorry to leave Hogwarts!
"...Oh, the Quaffle is in Kyle's hands again, which is not good news for Gryffindor... Angelina rushed towards Kyle... Unfortunately, her broom couldn't catch up with the Firebolt. …”
Li Jordan did not make witty remarks this time, nor did he tease the players as usual. Instead, he explained the game in a very professional manner throughout the game.
Because not only the people he mentioned before, but also himself is in the seventh grade, this game is also of great significance to him.
"Oh, look, Harry found the Golden Snitch." Li Jordan's voice had begun to become hoarse due to the long period of screaming, but he didn't care at all. He leaned half of his body out of the commentary table and roared. shouted:
“It’s right across from the Ravenclaw Stand, and Cedric saw it too… They started to speed up… Who can catch the Snitch? I really wish someone could give me a panoramic telescope…
"Look at the other side, Kyle has also arrived in front of the goal post... He threw the Quaffle... It's the middle goal post... Can Ginny... Oh, she stopped it and was saved by the temporarily appointed goalkeeper. This is the most crucial goal!"
Amid Li Qiaodan’s roar, Ms. Huo Qi also blew her whistle.
The Snitch was caught.
Harry raised his arms high, a pair of wings exposed between his fingers flapping feebly.
A burst of enthusiastic noise suddenly erupted in the audience.
The game is over.
210：220
Gryffindor won, and this was their first victory over Hufflepuff in six years, ending the unbeaten myth.
The players hugged each other excitedly, with Harry and Ginny clustered in the middle.
When everyone returned to the pitch, Dumbledore smiled and held up the glittering Quidditch Cup.
“Congratulations!” he said as he handed the trophy to Cedric.
Yes, Gryffindor won the game, but it also lost the game.
Because before the start of the game, Hufflepuff's total score was twenty points higher than theirs, but at the end of the game, they only led by ten points.
"What a pity..." Neville sighed in the stands: "It would be great if Harry could catch the Golden Snitch when we are seventy points ahead."
"He knows this is impossible." Next to her, Hermione, who had just been discharged from the hospital, said: "Hufflepuff's chasers are too strong, and it will be useless to delay them any longer, and they may even be overtaken."
"Ah, that's right." Neville nodded, and then cheered with the others.
Anyway, at least they beat Hufflepuff once.
“Honestly,” Cedric looked at Kyle in the locker room and asked, “Did you do it on purpose?”
“What’s intentional?” Kyle asked.
"Of course it's the last goal." Cedric folded his uniform solemnly, "I don't think you will lose the ball at such a close distance, and you are facing a person like Ginny who was temporarily pulled in to make up the score. goalkeeper."
"Ginny is not bad at flying, right?" Kyle said, "And you think too highly of me. Even those long-famous chasers in professional teams cannot guarantee that they will fly every time. You can hit it.
“And isn’t this situation pretty good now? Both sides have won the game...it’s a win-win situation and everyone is happy.”
“That’s right.” Cedric put the uniform into a bag.
By the time they walked out of the locker room, all the spectators had left, and the stadium that was bustling five minutes ago was now silent.
Cedric stood quietly at the door of the locker room, and it seemed that he could still faintly hear the cheers around him.
At this time, other players also came over from the locker room.
“Want to watch a little longer?” Kyle asked.
“No need.” Cedric said, he turned his head, chatted and laughed with everyone, and strode out of the stadium.
“I can’t believe we actually won six consecutive championships…”
“Professor Sprout is extremely happy. I have never seen her so happy in recent times...”
“Professor McGonagall seems to be quite happy too…”
“Yes, this is the best result...”
“A banquet, a banquet must be held…”
“It would be great if we celebrated with Gryffindor, it would be great.”
“How about having a celebration banquet in the auditorium…”
"It's okay, but the people in Slytherin and Ravenclaw will definitely not be happy. If you get beaten by then, don't involve us."
…
When the team returned to the castle, they suddenly found that the Gryffindors had begun to celebrate. They gathered together in twos and threes, talking and laughing loudly.
Even if the Slytherins deliberately talked about Gryffindor losing the Quidditch Cup, they didn't care at all, and even greeted Kyle and the others warmly when they saw them.
After putting the broom back in the dormitory, Kyle came to the field outside again.
The scorching sun was shining brightly on the ground, but there were still many people on the field. Everyone was lying on the grass, sunbathing, chatting, eating snacks, reading the Daily Prophet, and enjoying the rare peaceful time.
When Kyle walked over, some people waved at him, saying that today's game was the most exciting he had ever seen.
Kyle responded with a smile, but he didn't particularly care in his heart...Some people said this in the last game and the last game.
Connor is in the library. She is probably the only one who needs to read at this time.
Fred and George are also seizing time to prepare for opening a store, and they have been unable to see anyone recently.
Kyle was a little bored, and he was going to give Lu Wei back first.
I don’t know if Hagrid was waiting here deliberately. Kyle was as far away from the cabin as possible, but he was still discovered when he was about to enter the forest.
“What are you doing?”
Even far away, Kyle could hear Hagrid's loud voice.
“You’re going in the wrong direction, over here…”
There was no other way, Kyle could only turn around and walk towards Hagrid.
“Today’s game was really good.” In the wooden house, Hagrid poured Kyle a glass of dandelion juice. “I can’t think of a better result than this.”
“Actually, the same goes for me.” Kyle picked up the cup and took a sip of Hagrid’s new drink.
The taste is slightly bitter, but Hagrid seems to have added honey, so it tastes pretty good.
"I've heard all about it..." Hagrid said suddenly, his expression becoming serious. "I have to say, Kyle, you went too far this time."
Kyle was startled, thinking that Hagrid was referring to him abducting Walking. Just when he was about to explain, he heard Hagrid say again: "You have been hiding the matter of Cat Leopard from me!"
“What, Cat Leopard?” Kyle blinked.
"Yes, I have heard that the magical cat and leopard saved Harry twice in the Department of Mysteries." Hagrid said with some complaint, "You know that I like those magical animals very much, but you have always kept it secret. Tell me, is this too much?
"Or do you think I would tell the professor or others about this?" "Ah, of course not." Kyle said quickly: "It's just...well, okay, this is my fault."
Kyle opened the box.
The next second, Cat Leopard jumped out. It first glanced around and found that there was no danger, then lay down next to Kyle, licking its fur lazily.
Hagrid’s hand that was about to drink tea stopped in mid-air, staring straight at Cat Leopard, with deep fascination in his eyes.
The Cat Leopard seemed to have noticed something. He raised his head and looked at Hagrid for a while before lying down again.
“It’s so beautiful, isn’t it.” Hagrid threw the cup aside and his eyes fell on the six legs of the cat and leopard. “It must be very fast when it runs.”
"Hmm." Kyle nodded, "Let's put it this way, except for the Firebolt, the Cat Leopard can surpass all flying broomsticks."
Hagrid’s eyes became even hotter.
“Can you leave it in the Forbidden Forest?” he asked. “I can take care of it.”
As soon as he finished speaking, before Kyle could answer, there was a sudden whimpering next to him.
Ya curled up in the corner near the bed, whining with his tail between his legs, as if he wanted to squeeze himself out of the wooden house.
It has been like this since the cat and leopard came out, but this is normal. The adult cat and leopard is a top-notch existence even among magical animals. There is even a special cat and leopard academy in Ilvermorny, which selects warriors. A student with fast skills and strong physique, a bit like Gryffindor.
Being in a small room with this 5X-level magical animal, Yaya would have surpassed 99% of dogs without fainting on the spot.
This is probably also related to its experience.
As Hagrid’s inseparable companion, Yaya often goes in and out of the Forbidden Forest, and he can be considered a dog who has seen the world.
Hagrid often said that it was timid, but it was just an ordinary Neapolitan Mastiff without the blood of any magical animals. Of course it would be afraid when facing the centaurs, unicorns and other creatures in the Forbidden Forest. It's instinct to be scared.
If it were another dog, there would be no need to go to the Forbidden Forest. He would be frightened to the point of being unable to walk even a mile away.
“Torn apart.”
Kyle took out his wand and opened a hole in a wall, and Yaya immediately jumped out.
"Repaired as before." Kyle waved his wand again and patched the hole.
After doing all this, he continued: "Sorry Hagrid, the cat and leopard cannot stay in the Forbidden Forest. I borrowed it from Newt to teach Harry Occlumency during the holidays. I have to go back.”
"Is that so?" Hagrid looked a little disappointed, but said with some admiration: "There must be a lot of magical animals in Mr. Scamander's place."
"There are much less now," Kyle said. "Most of the magical animals have been returned to their respective habitats by him. The remaining ones are all those that refuse to leave, or are injured and unable to survive in the natural environment. , and their descendants.
"More importantly, Newt has been banned from entering almost all countries. Even if he wants to send him, there is no way. Moreover, he is almost a hundred years old, and it is impossible for him to use the same methods as when he was young."
When he was young, Newt dared to cross two countries while riding an Airwing, and he could also use his skillful apparation to outwit the local Aurors.
But twenty years ago, Tina would not allow him to do this anymore.
"I really want to see it..." Hagrid said, continuing to stare at the cat and leopard with fascination.
This time Kyle didn't speak.
He could have introduced Hagrid to Newt, but he had no intention of doing so.
It's not because Hagrid often leaks things in front of Harry... Of course, that's part of the reason, but the main reason is that he and Newt don't agree on certain ideas.
As far as the Blast-Ended Skrewt that he tinkered with, it was difficult for the two of them to have anything in common.
And Hagrid prefers dangerous animals with fangs and claws, which is also different from Newt.
Although there are quite a few of these magical animals in Newt’s box, there are more common magical animals such as Moonstruck Beasts or Sniffers.
Hagrid also knew this, so he didn't say anything more, just got up and went outside the house.
After a while, Hagrid came back, bringing with him a lot of food, including polecats, cow legs, warthog... all prepared by him for the magical animals in the Forbidden Forest.
“Take a look, which one do you like?” Hagrid squatted in front of the cat and leopard and asked expectantly.
Cat Leopard first glanced at the polecat that had no hair on it, and pushed it aside with some disgust, as if he didn't understand who would like to eat this kind of "junk food."
In the end, it chose beef shank or warthog.
Mainly because he just had a sumptuous warthog set meal yesterday, and he was ready to change his taste to something lighter.
Kyle stayed in the wooden house until near night, and then returned to the castle under Hagrid's reluctant eyes.
On the way back, Kyle kept feeling that he seemed to have forgotten something, but he couldn't remember the specifics.
“Forget it, it shouldn’t be important.” Kyle shook his head and walked into the castle along the stone steps.
…
The day before the holiday, everyone was discharged from the hospital. Sirius, Lupine, and Moody all accepted Dumbledore's invitation to attend the dinner.
Unlike the silence when he first came, when Moody limped into the auditorium, there was a burst of loud applause and cheers.
They were all Defense Against the Dark Arts professors, and they were also the most popular group of people, with their popularity remaining high.
“This feels pretty good,” Moody said as he sat down at the teacher’s desk.
No wonder Dumbledore stayed in school all the time and never went anywhere... If he didn't have more important tasks, being a professor in school seemed pretty good.
"I'm glad that everyone can get together at this time." Dumbledore stood up and pointed in the direction of Sirius and others: "And we also welcomed a few... old friends."
A burst of warm applause erupted in the auditorium again.
"Okay, okay..." Dumbledore waved his hand, "Before the dinner starts, we still have some important things to announce. Let me think about it...
“First thing, I think you all know from the newspapers what happened in the Ministry of Magic a few days ago...”
Everyone subconsciously looked at Kyle. The latest issue of the "Daily Prophet" wrote more details about what happened in the Ministry of Magic.
On the front page, it was Auror Kingsley thanking Kyle for saving them, but he deliberately ignored the magical animals and replaced them with reinforcements.
“Yes, it’s true.”
Dumbledore smiled and said, "Kale Chopper, you have shown commendable courage and extraordinary wisdom in the previous battle. For this, I will give Hufflepuff a hundred points."
There were bursts of cheers from the Hufflepuff table.
"In addition..." Dumbledore had to raise his voice and continued: "He also won the Hogwarts Special Contribution Award to the school, and Hufflepuff added two hundred points."
Beside the Great Hall, the gems in the Hufflepuff hourglass are so full that they are almost full.
"In this way, the second thing is no longer suspense." Dumbledore said with a smile: "Congratulations to Hufflepuff, they won this year's Academy Cup!"
The cheers were even louder, as if they were knocking down the ceiling.
Dumbledore said nothing more. He waved his hand, and all kinds of delicacies appeared on the golden plate in an instant.
It wasn’t until the last piece of pudding disappeared and the dinner was over that he stood up again, his expression becoming much more serious than before.
"After eating and drinking, I have to say something disappointing..." He said slowly: "I hope everyone can enjoy the holiday while also paying attention to their own safety and trying not to go to places with few people... "
Dumbledore said a lot, basically reminding everyone to pay attention to the unusual things happening around them.
The auditorium gradually became quiet. Everyone knew what he meant. Voldemort and the Death Eaters were like heavy fortresses, weighing on everyone's heart.
So much so that some people don’t even want to leave school anymore, they want to stay here for the holidays, but that’s not possible.
Dumbledore and the professor both have their own things to do, and without their protection, the school will not be so safe.
…
(End of this chapter)