Time passed by little by little, and the hall was filled with sweet smells.

Felix put down his knife and fork with satisfaction, waiting for the dessert after the main meal. The other students in the hall were still eating enthusiastically and chatting noisily, unaware of the ghost floating above their heads.

At the Gryffindor table, Harry had almost finished eating and began to pay attention to the voices around him. He was not happy to find that one of the topics people were whispering about was him, the ghost of Gryffindor House - the voice of Nearly Headless Nick floated to his ears across seven or eight seats.

"Yes, it's Harry Potter, he's over there, you'll have plenty of opportunities to see him later..."

Harry didn't turn around, but he guessed that Nick was talking to the new student at Hogwarts, and he concluded that the new student was from a wizard family, so he would know his name before going to school, unless the student was a top student like Hermione.

Dean and Seamus talked loudly about the news in Diagon Alley. He pricked up his ears. He had no chance to go there this year. The textbooks, stationery and potion materials he used were all bought by Mrs. Weasley. He originally planned to go to the Future World No. 1 store in Diagon Alley to see if there were any new products, but this plan had to fall through.

He didn't know whether the Weasley twins' anti-curse series products were on sale...

"The store is packed, there are more people than before... There's nothing we can do, because the book list was sent out so late this year, and everyone rushed together. Not many people are interested in stopping and chatting. I saw several familiar faces, but they disappeared in the blink of an eye, as if something was chasing them..."

"The magic rune booklets are in short supply, and my mother wants to buy a few to give to relatives living abroad..."

Seamus said excitedly, and when he met Harry's eyes, he grinned and his voice became louder.

"There are a lot of mobile stalls on both sides of the street. In fact, they are just a piece of cloth on the ground. What do they sell? Of course, all kinds of amulets. My mother told me that they are all rubbish. The probability of finding the real thing in Knockturn Alley is not as high as that of finding the real thing... She was joking of course."

"That damn place hasn't been closed down by the Aurors yet." Ron's mouth was full, and Harry magically understood what he meant.

Diagon Alley and Knockturn Alley are adjacent to each other, but their reputations are completely different. Diagon Alley covers a huge area and is the magical commercial center of British wizards, while Knockturn Alley is just a remote alley, and the goods sold in the shops are not too formal.

At this time, a voice spoke in his ear: "Excuse me, make room for me."

Harry was startled and turned around to see a tall girl with long braids leaning over him, her face less than a foot away from him. It was Angelina Johnson. She poked Harry and Ron with her fingers and successfully squeezed out a seat between them.

"So, how was your summer vacation?" she asked briskly.

"Not bad." Harry said, not knowing what she meant for a moment.

"Well, it's like this," Angelina stroked her hair, "I've been elected captain of the Gryffindor Quidditch team."

"Quidditch captain," Harry repeated, then opened his eyes wide and shouted, "Quidditch?"

Angelina showed an expression of "as expected", "Fred told me you forgot about Quidditch, I didn't quite believe it..."

"How could it be." Harry stammered, "I played with Cedric during the holidays." He looked around and saw the handsome face at the long table of Hufflepuff House.

"Really, so you won't quit the team?" Angelina asked, her big eyes fixed on Harry, and Harry's heart was under pressure.

"Absolutely not, I'm still counting on winning another trophy." He promised.

"That's good," Angelina breathed a sigh of relief, "I don't want to be too sensitive, but I just took over the team and I always feel a great responsibility. I understand why Oliver is so nagging..."

"Don't learn from him." Harry said hurriedly.

Angelina laughed.

"Then I'll be leaving first. Oh, by the way, since Oliver has left, we need a new goalkeeper. I'm going to schedule the tryouts for Friday at five o'clock in the afternoon. I hope all the players can be there by then, okay? That way we can let the newcomer try to cooperate with everyone."

"No problem, do you have a candidate yet?" Harry asked, and Ron, who was eating on the side, pricked up his ears.

"Not yet," she sighed, "I'll post the application form on the wall when I go back." She bent over and left.

"She looks very stressed. I almost forgot about Quidditch." Hermione said.

"Maybe all captains who have just taken over the team are like this? Cedric was not used to it at first..." Harry only answered the first half of the sentence. "

Then do you still have time? This year is the year of OWLs, and don't forget that you promised Neville to re-establish the duel study group." Hermione reminded him.

"I know." Harry muttered.

The food on the table was swept away, and after a few seconds, various desserts suddenly appeared on the plate.

Harry picked up a fried jam doughnut and chewed it "crunch crunch" while looking at the professors' seats. His eyes first fell on Dumbledore, who was sitting in the golden high-back chair in the middle of the long table. He was wearing a dark purple robe covered with silver stars, a matching hat and gloves, and looked like a band lead singer who had walked into the wrong place. On his left and right sat Professor McGonagall and Snape. Professor McGonagall was trying a fresh strawberry with sauce on it, and from her expression, it didn't suit her taste. On the other side, Snape squinted his eyes and responded to Dumbledore's questions in a disjointed manner, his lips hardly opening or closing. Separated by Professor Flitwick and Professor Sprout sat Sirius and Professor Hep. Strangely, Sirius had also given up eating early and was poking the fruit on the blueberry cake with a fork out of boredom.

As for Professor Hep - Felix stared at the ceiling, the color on it was the same as the environment outside, much simpler than in previous years. He and Sirius actually arrived at the school earlier than the Hogwarts students, but Madam Pomfrey spent a lot of time examining Sirius.

In Madam Pomfrey's words, Felix's method was quite "rough" and "unprofessional". If it was not treated in time, it might fester and fester in a few days. While she was cleaning the wound again, Felix chatted with Dumbledore who came over.

"The one who passed the message to you was Severus." He said in a positive tone.

"I knew you could guess it." Dumbledore said with a smile.

"I also know," Felix said slowly: "It was Severus who revealed Bones' whereabouts to Voldemort. Sirius mentioned it himself at the meeting and he heard it."

Dumbledore was silent for a moment, "You are right."

"Is it really necessary to do this? I can't save their lives 100%. In fact, Voldemort's most loyal servant Barty Crouch Jr. died in front of him," Felix said with a slightly heavier tone, "I did it."

"As a qualified spy, if you want to gain Voldemort's trust, you must show unique value, and this value must be something that no one else can give you. Only in this way will Voldemort look at him differently." Dumbledore said without emotion.

"This is not the answer I want, Albus, and I don't think you would be so cold." Felix said.

"Thank you for saying that, Felix." Dumbledore smiled, and the wrinkles at the corners of his eyes relaxed.

"If I could, I certainly hope to do more. To exchange my life for Voldemort's? It's indeed a good deal. If I have the chance, I won't hesitate...but in my position, too many people's hopes have been placed on me. I can't make a bet easily..."

"I know Voldemort, maybe better than he does himself. If he doesn't experience a failure, he won't reflect, and Amelia will always be in danger. Voldemort must be made to realize that it is not easy to catch her, and she can call for support at any time. This time there is only you, but it may not be the case next time. Only in this way will Voldemort look away."

"Sirius is the only innocent in the whole thing, but he is not innocent. Every member of the Order of the Phoenix is ​​prepared. Just like the person you buried in the Death Eaters--"

Felix raised his eyebrows slightly, pretending to listen attentively.

"Lucius, is that so?" Dumbledore asked softly, "maybe there are more--"

"How did you guess?" Felix interrupted.

"Ah, Lucius has always tried to make trouble for me in the past. I didn't think that removing him from the board of directors would be the end of our confrontation, and that's true. But I've noticed that the number of complaints against me in the entire fourth grade has decreased by more than half, as if one of the leaders has lost his spirit. Or there are more difficult troubles."

"Then," Felix said slowly, "since you knew about Lucius's existence, why did you still--"

"Let Severus take risks?" Dumbledore asked with a smile, twirling his two thumbs. .

Felix nodded.

"I said that Severus' role is unique. He is Voldemort's most proud masterpiece, a nail in the heart of the Order of the Phoenix, who can provide intelligence to everyone including you and me--"

Felix suddenly realized, "Compared to obtaining information from Voldemort, you value how to reasonably convey information to Voldemort more?"

Dumbledore blinked.

"Rather than letting Voldemort act recklessly, I would rather he act at my desired time and in the desired way. Even if there are risks, I can control them within a reasonable range."

...

"You really got it? The day before school starts?" Hermione asked in surprise.

"Yes, I got it." Harry said.

"I didn't expect it. I failed so many times before. What is it, Harry?"

"What are you talking about?" Ron looked at the two of them in confusion.

"Don't interrupt." Hermione said, her eyes still focused on Harry.

"Principal Dumbledore got a memory from Mr. Slughorn." Harry looked around and whispered to them so that no one else could hear, "I guess it involves Voldemort. At least the headmaster was very excited after getting the memory."

"Maybe it's a way to defeat Voldemort," Hermione guessed, "According to what you said, the old gentleman is a colleague of Principal Dumbledore, which means he has also taught the mysterious man, right? He must know something."

"I thought so too," Harry shrugged and continued to eat voraciously. "Compared to Principal Dumbledore, Mr. Slughorn's mood is not so good. He drove us out and didn't even respond positively to the headmaster's suggestion that he move." "Move

?"

"Principal Dumbledore hopes that he will live in Hogwarts and continue his research on potions. Hogsmeade is also fine-he can be neighbors with Honeydukes. You can see that he is a little tempted." Harry said casually.

Hermione's chewing slowed down. "What could it be? Since it's a memory, it can only be a past event..."

At this time, Dumbledore stood up and knocked on the cup. The hall fell silent.

"Welcome back. I know you can't wait to get into the warm and comfortable quilt, but please wait patiently for a while and listen to me. There are two changes in our teaching staff this year. First, in the Care of Magical Creatures class, our game wardens need to deal with some personal matters and will be absent for a few weeks. During this period, Professor Grubbly-Plank is willing to fill this vacancy. Let us warmly welcome him." Professor

Grubbly-Plank stood up from her seat, nodded to the students with her protruding chin, and then sat down. There was a polite applause in the hall.

"Next, we will introduce our new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher. Professor Black has rich experience in fighting against dark magic. He has been the staff of the Minister of Magic for the past two months. He will join the teaching staff this year."

Sirius stood up happily, waved to everyone, and finally couldn't help blowing two loud whistles. The air in the hall suddenly became lively, and Fred and George also responded with whistles.

Dumbledore waited for the applause to subside and continued,

"This year, the school will conduct some small and interesting experiments. I'm sure some of you have heard about it. There are two things that are closely related to you."

"The first is that the exam for the Ancient Magical Rune class will be divided into two parts: a theoretical exam and a practical exam. The specific assessment standards will be introduced to you by Professor Hepp in class."

Felix waved his hand lazily, and the students whispered to each other below.

"The second thing is that the school will include some spells in the scope of the annual assessment. In principle, every student is required to pass it. If there are special circumstances, you can apply in advance. Of course, I will not admit reasons such as 'allergic to specific words'... We will post the assessment spells for different grades within the first week of school."

"Then, before everyone goes to bed, let's sing the school song together." Dumbledore said loudly.

The hall was in commotion, and the smile on Felix's face seemed to freeze. Hogwarts did not sing the school song every year. Sometimes, student orchestras would be arranged to sing, but it was obvious that Dumbledore was very interested in playing the guest conductor this year.

A long golden ribbon floated out from the tip of his wand, twisting into words.

Headmaster Dumbledore wore star-shaped gloves that matched his robes and hat, and he opened and closed his wand like a baton, and Felix hummed along.

"Hogwarts, Hogwarts, Hogwarts, Hogwarts, please teach us knowledge, whether we are bald old men or children with broken knees, our minds can accept some interesting things..."

After the scattered chorus ended, Dumbledore wiped his eyes sentimentally.

"Music always moves people. Okay, now everyone can return to the dormitory. Please ask the prefects to lead the freshmen out."