Chapter Thirty Two

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"This is ridiculous" George moaned as we walked back to our carriage "they could've just told us"
I laughed at him, opening the door and watching him slouch inside.
"What's made you so sad all of a sudden?" Lee asked humorously as we entered.
"They won't tell us what the big event is" Fred grumbled.
"Ohhhh - I had no idea that there was an event? I was just told to take some dress robes" Lee replied with a shrug.
"Am i the only one not prepared for a fancy event? I don't have anything to wear" I said confused.
"You'll probably have to go dress shopping"

I let out a squeal-like scream, latching on to Lee's top.
"No! Don't let them take me! It's torture in there! It takes forever and I don't even like dresses" I fake-wept, shaking him back and forth.
Fred peeled me off him, and pulled me onto his lap.
"I shall not be calmed!" I protested "you have your robes already - I have to shop for mine. That involves effort and time. Not to mention patience". I almost spat out the last word as if it were a poison.

I caught Lee giving me a weird look.
"What?"
"When did that happen?" He asked, pointing at how close I was to Fred.
"Uh end of last year? Quidditch match?"
"Yeah but you were really awkward - not now"
"We spent some time together over summer?" I said with a shrug

Lee let out a gasp, "did you f-?"
"NO" I bellowed, covering my face with my hands.
"Ew Lee I don't want to think about that" George groaned, pretending to puke in the corner. I sent him my middle finger before turning back to Lee.

"Well you're one to talk - will we ever meet that mystery lover of yours?"
"Yeah!" Chimed in the twins.
"You've been hiding -"
"For too long -"
"We need to know Lee!"
Now it was Lee's time to squirm. He let out an awkward cough, almost sounding strangled.
"Maybe there isn't a girl - anymore"
"Oh no! What happened?" I asked concerned.
Lee gave me a sad smile, scratching the back of his neck with an uncomfortable shrug.
"Things just didn't work out I guess"


By the time we reached Hogwarts, the rain was hammering violently on the castle windows, lightning crashing like massive symbols.
"Blimey, I wouldn't want to be a first year this year, going across the lake in this? Id be shitting myself" George whistled, looking at the black sky with distaste.
I tried wringing some of the water out of my hair, grumbling about how soggy my robes were.
A large, red, water-filled balloon had dropped from out of the ceiling onto Ron's head and exploded. Drenched and sputtering, Ron staggered sideways into Harry, just as a second water bomb dropped - narrowly missing Hermione, it burst at Harry's feet, sending a wave of cold water over his sneakers into his socks. I burst out laughing, pointing at Ron. The twins and Lee whipped around, jovial grins on their faces. That was, of course, until the onslaught of balloons broke out.

People all around us shrieked and started pushing one another in their efforts to get out of the line of fire. I looked up and saw, floating twenty feet above them, Peeves the Poltergeist's, malicious face contorted with concentration as he took aim again.

"PEEVES!" yelled an angry voice. "Peeves, come down here at ONCE!"
Professor McGonagall, Deputy Headmistress and head of Gryffindor House, had come dashing out of the Great Hall; she skidded on the wet floor and grabbed Hermione around the neck to stop herself from falling.
"Ouch - looks like that hurt" I breathed empathetically, Lee letting out a gasp as a water bomb burst to his left.
"My hair!" He screeched, launching himself at me "protect me Emily!"

"Peeves, get down here NOW!" barked Professor McGonagall, straightening her pointed hat and glaring upward through her square-rimmed spectacles.
"Not doing nothing!" cackled Peeves, lobbing a water bomb at several fifth-year girls near me, who screamed and dived into the Great Hall. "Already wet, aren't they? Little squirts! Wheeeeeeeeee!" And he aimed another bomb at a group of second years who had just arrived.
"I shall call the headmaster!" shouted Professor McGonagall. "I'm warning you, Peeves -"
Peeves stuck out his tongue, threw the last of his water bombs into the air, and zoomed off up the marble staircase, cackling insanely.

The sorting ceremony passed quickly, and I was more than happy to tuck in to my meal. Lee was happily chomping next to me, humming as he continued to pile his plate higher and higher with food.
"Are you alright there Lee? That's enough to feed a small army" Katie Bell chuckled, pointing her fork at him.
"'M al'igh" he said, struggling to pronounce his words properly due to the amount of food currently in his mouth.
"Charming" Angelica laughed, rolling her eyes at him.

"So!" said Dumbledore, smiling around at them all. "Now that we are all fed and watered, I must once more ask for your attention, while I give out a few notices."
"Mr. Filch, the caretaker, has asked me to tell you that the list of objects forbidden inside the castle has this year been extended to include Screaming Yo-yos, Fanged Frisbees, and Ever-Bashing Boomerangs. The full list comprises some four hundred and thirty-seven items, I believe, and can be viewed in Mr. Filch's office, if anybody would like to check it."
The corners of Dumbledore's mouth twitched, his eyes briefly fixing on the twins and I.
He continued, "As ever, I would like to remind you all that the forest on the grounds is out-of-bounds to students, as is the village of Hogsmeade to all below third year."
"It is also my painful duty to inform you that the Inter-House Quidditch Cup will not take place this year."

"What?" I gasped.
Fred and George let out a squeal of shock, Lee looked close to fainting, and Angelina and Katie's mouths kept opening and shutting without a sound.
"Thank god Oliver's not here anymore" I said quietly "he'd have an aneurism"

Dumbledore went on, "This is due to an event that will be starting in October, and continuing throughout the school year, taking up much of the teachers' time and energy - but I am sure you will all enjoy it immensely. I have great pleasure in announcing that this year at Hogwarts -"
But at that moment, there was a deafening rumble of thunder and the doors of the Great Hall banged open.

A man stood in the doorway, leaning upon a long staff, shrouded in a black traveling cloak. Every head in the Great Hall swiveled toward the stranger, suddenly brightly illuminated by a fork of lightning that flashed across the ceiling.
I subconsciously reached for Fred's hand, watching the man in horror.
He lowered his hood, shook out a long mane of grizzled, dark gray hair, then began to walk up toward the teachers' table.
A dull clunk echoed through the Hall on his every other step. He reached the end of the top table, turned right, and limped heavily toward Dumbledore. Another flash of lightning crossed the ceiling.
The lightning had thrown the man's face into sharp relief, and it was a face unlike any I had ever seen. It looked as though it had been carved out of weathered wood by someone who had only the vaguest idea of what human faces are supposed to look like, and was none too skilled with a chisel. Every inch of skin seemed to be scarred. The mouth looked like a diagonal gash, and a large chunk of the nose was missing. But it was the man's eyes that made him frightening.
One of them was small, dark, and beady. The other was large, round as a coin, and a vivid, electric blue. The blue eye was moving ceaselessly, without blinking, and was rolling up, down, and from side to side, quite independently of the normal eye - and then it rolled right over, pointing into the back of the man's head, so that all they could see was whiteness.
The stranger reached Dumbledore. He stretched out a hand that was as badly scarred as his face, and Dumbledore shook it, muttering words I couldn't hear. He seemed to be making some inquiry of the stranger, who shook his head unsmilingly and replied in an undertone. Dumbledore nodded and gestured the man to the empty seat on his right-hand side.
The stranger sat down, shook his mane of dark gray hair out of his face, pulled a plate of sausages toward him, raised it to what was left of his nose, and sniffed it. He then took a small knife out of his pocket, speared a sausage on the end of it, and began to eat. His normal eye was fixed upon the sausages, but the blue eye was still darting restlessly around in its socket, taking in the Hall and the students.
"May I introduce our new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher?" said Dumbledore brightly into the silence. "Professor Moody."
It was usual for new staff members to be greeted with applause, but none of the staff or students chapped except Dumbledore and Hagrid, who both put their hands together and applauded, but the sound echoed dismally into the silence, and they stopped fairly quickly.

"Well this is going to be an interesting one" Fred said, looking uncomfortably at the man.
"Yeah, no kidding" I quietly replied.

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