Charlie stared at the blue car in the distance and sighed inwardly.
What a shame.
If only I had been in that car.
That was a perfect opportunity to rake in Tyrant Points!
A missed chance to score big.
Professor McGonagall's face was stormy, her lips pressed into a tight line.
Still, she maintained her professional composure and waved the students toward the Great Hall.
"Inside. No gawking."
The students murmured and shuffled toward the Great Hall, many sneaking glances at the battered willow tree that had just been hit, leaves and branches strewn everywhere.
Charlie followed the crowd in and found a seat.
His eyes flicked toward the staff table, and immediately noticed someone was missing.
Snape.
Charlie understood instantly.
Snape must've gone to catch Harry and Ron.
Good luck, he thought.
Hopefully, they won't suffer too much under Snape.
Up on the stage, Lockhart was decked out in a flamboyant green robe, flashing his pearly whites like a toothpaste commercial.
Still peddling that smile of his.
Professor McGonagall stepped forward and cleared her throat.
Though there had been quite a bit of chaos earlier, the Sorting Ceremony had to go on.
"The Sorting will now begin."
Her voice echoed across the hall.
The first-years stood in a nervous line, awaiting the Sorting Hat's judgment.
The hat was placed on the first student's head.
He looked like he was about to faint.
"Hufflepuff!"
Applause erupted from the Hufflepuff table.
Charlie clapped along, welcoming his new junior.
The sorting continued.
"Chris Bett!"
"Gryffindor!"
"Lewis Barty!"
"Ravenclaw!"
"John Teach!"
"Slytherin!"
Charlie noticed that Hufflepuff seemed to be pulling a lot of students this year, more than ten so far.
Then came a familiar name.
"Ginny Weasley!"
When Professor McGonagall read the name aloud, the Weasley brothers at the Gryffindor table visibly tensed, eyes fixed on their sister.
The Sorting Hat hovered on Ginny's head for a few seconds.
"Gryffindor!"
The Gryffindor table erupted into thunderous applause.
Fred and George temporarily forgot about the flying car fiasco and jumped to their feet, cheering for their sister.
Even Percy allowed himself a proud smile.
The Weasley legacy continued.
When the Sorting finally ended, Dumbledore rose and walked to the podium.
Despite the months away, he looked unchanged. His eyes still twinkled with that familiar gleam as he gazed around the hall.
"Welcome back to Hogwarts," Dumbledore said, voice warm yet firm.
"Before we begin our feast, I have a few announcements to make."
He paused, his expression growing serious.
"First, I'd like to remind you all of the school rules. Night wandering is forbidden. I expect certain students to remember this clearly."
His gaze swept over the Hufflepuff table, clearly aimed at someone.
"No sleeping in class."
Charlie rubbed his nose and pretended not to notice.
"The Forbidden Forest is off-limits. It's filled with dangerous creatures, werewolves, Acromantulas, and more."
Dumbledore continued, "Also, keep an eye on your owls. Don't let them spend every night in the Owlery."
"There's been… a rather sudden spike in pregnancies among the female owls."
A wave of laughter swept through the hall.
Students whispered and giggled at the remark.
Professor McGonagall's face turned even darker. She stepped up beside Dumbledore and whispered in a low voice, "Albus, enough."
Dumbledore grinned and raised his hands for silence.
"Well then, let the feast begin!"
He clapped his hands, and the tables filled instantly with a lavish spread.
Charlie used his fork to pierce a chunk of slow-smoked beef brisket.
The meat glistened with rich juices, a smoky ring curling along the edge in a mouth-watering red.
He took a bite. Tender, flavorful, the juices bursting with every chew.
As always, Hogwarts meals were top-tier.
Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall quietly slipped out of the hall, clearly off to deal with Harry and Ron.
Around him, the students buzzed with chatter, still reeling from what they'd witnessed.
"Did you see that car? That was insane," Ernie said excitedly.
"I heard Harry Potter and Ron Weasley were the ones driving it," Justin whispered.
"No way. How could they possibly fly a car to school?"
"Beats me, but they're in deep trouble," Ernie shook his head.
"They crashed into the Whomping Willow. That tree's one of the most valuable magical plants on campus."
Charlie's ears perked up.
"The Whomping Willow is valuable?"
"Of course!" Ernie nodded.
"There are only a handful in the whole world. If it broke, that'd be a huge loss."
"Even if it didn't break entirely, a lot of branches definitely got damaged."
Charlie's thoughts began to churn.
Couldn't willow branches be grafted to grow new ones?
If he could get some cuttings from the Whomping Willow and plant one at the entrance to his trunk's expanded space... imagine having a Whomping Willow as a security guard.
Now that had potential.
=====
In Snape's office, the atmosphere was suffocating.
Harry and Ron sat in stiff chairs, bodies tense and rigid.
Ron's right hand clutched the pocket where his broken wand lay.
Snape paced the room, black robes billowing behind him.
That familiar sneer curled his lips, his eyes sharp and filled with contempt.
"How splendid," he said coldly.
"Two Gryffindor heroes, soaring to school in a flying car."
He stopped and glared down at them.
"Tell me, Potter. Weasley. Do you feel proud of yourselves?"
Harry opened his mouth to speak, but Snape cut him off instantly.
"Silence!" he shouted
"When I speak, you will listen."
Ron's face turned ghostly pale, sweat beading on his brow.
Snape was, in that moment, more terrifying than any spider.
The Potions Master stalked to his desk and picked up a newspaper.
"Look at this."
He slapped the paper open. The headline screamed:
'Elderly Londoner Spots Flying Car, Causes Scene at Psychiatric Clinic!'
"A seventy-three-year-old man claimed to see a flying car," Snape read aloud, voice dripping with sarcasm.
"He thought he'd gone insane and stormed into a clinic."
"And here," he flipped the page.
"Seven different Muggles reported sightings of this magical vehicle."
Harry felt his heart sink to his stomach.
They were really in trouble.
"And the best part?" Snape's eyes gleamed as he turned to Ron.
"Weasley. Your father still works in the Misuse of Muggle Artifacts Office, doesn't he?"
Ron's face drained of all color.
His father's job, his entire career, could be on the line because of this.
"And let's not forget," Snape added, voice like venom,
"You crashed into the Whomping Willow. One of the most treasured magical plants in this school."
"To be perfectly honest…" he sneered.
"If you were Slytherins, I would've had you expelled already."
At that moment, the door opened.
Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall entered the room.
Dumbledore's face was unreadable, which somehow made Harry feel worse.
He'd rather be yelled at.
"Harry," Dumbledore said calmly,
"Tell me what happened."
Harry took a deep breath and recounted everything.
"We didn't have a choice… The wall just stopped working. The train was about to leave, and…"
"Then why," Dumbledore asked,
"didn't you write to a professor?"
Harry was stunned.
Why hadn't he thought of that?
"I… I didn't think of it," Harry mumbled.
"Are we going to be expelled?"
Dumbledore fell silent for a moment, clearly considering why the platform might've sealed itself. Then he spoke:
"Not now. But that may change in the future."
Both boys let out a collective breath of relief.
Snape, on the other hand, looked positively murderous.
Professor McGonagall stepped forward, arms folded, voice strict but tinged with concern.
"You two, come with me."
"First, you're going to the hospital wing for a checkup."
Harry and Ron leapt to their feet like they'd just been pardoned.
"And because school had not officially started when you took the car," she added,
"no points will be deducted."
The boys exhaled again.
"But," her tone hardened,
"You will both serve detention."
"Yes, Professor," they replied in unison.
Because in the grand scheme of things, detention was nothing.
Not being expelled? That was everything.
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