By the long table in the Great Hall.
Lucien fell into a long silence after listening to Harry's account.
By helping Mr. Weasley modify the car and adding features like automatic invisibility, he had prevented Harry and the others from being seen by Muggles, and had also spared Mr. Weasley from an investigation by the Ministry of Magic.
Logically, those changes had been beneficial—at least in the first half.
However, Mr. Weasley had also gained more time to add further modifications, which ironically led to an even bigger accident.
"Change… good… bad…"
Lucien murmured softly, then looked at the despairing Harry and Ron with a slight headache.
"So, after crashing into the Whomping Willow, you also crashed into the tower where the Headmaster's Office is located?"
"Yes…"
After getting the answer, Lucien didn't ask whether Dumbledore had been in the Headmaster's Office at the time.
Even if he had been, there was nothing to worry about. Could the greatest wizard of the century really be killed by a flying car?
"Actually, the Whomping Willow might not be too badly damaged…"
Harry said quietly,
"I saw the gap wasn't very large. Maybe it can still be fixed…"
However, Ron cut him off with a bitter smile:
"But when we crashed in, we really scared the Headmaster's bird to death."
The Headmaster's bird?
Fawkes.
Scared to death?
Magical creatures like phoenixes naturally undergo rebirth when they are severely injured or reach a certain age.
According to the original course of events, Fawkes was supposed to be reborn this year. But because of this incident, it had happened earlier?
Perhaps the old bird had a weak heart. I should go take a look sometime—I haven't seen a newborn phoenix before.
"That red phoenix—Fawkes—was it covered in flames and then turned into a pile of ashes?"
Harry and Ron's eyes widened slightly as they spoke in unison:
"How did you know?!"
"Oh, right—Lucien, you read a lot of books. You even know what a phoenix looks like when it's… scared to death."
Their comments made the corner of Lucien's mouth twitch, but he still explained calmly:
"That was a phoenix's rebirth…"
After hearing Lucien's explanation, the two of them let out a small sigh of relief, though they still looked dejected.
"Actually, Snape was the first to arrive at the Headmaster's Office. He showed up almost as soon as we crashed in. Do you think Snape was waiting there for us on purpose, just looking for a chance to expel us?"
Snape is a Potions Master, not a Divination professor. There's no way he could have predicted that you would drive a car into the Headmaster's Office.
Perhaps he had gone there to discuss something with Dumbledore, apply for the Defense Against the Dark Arts position, or even deliver some potion for the old bee's cavities or diabetes.
"Later, Headmaster Dumbledore came as well. He said he would write a letter to our families."
"But the punishment hasn't been decided yet. He said he would discuss it with our Head of House, Professor McGonagall, since there's never been a case of students driving a car into the Headmaster's Office…"
At the mention of letters, Lucien noticed the difference in their reactions. Harry seemed relatively calm, but Ron was clearly much more frightened.
That made sense. Harry's relationship with the Dursleys was so poor that they likely wouldn't care what trouble he caused, as long as it didn't involve them.
But for Ron… it would depend on how Dumbledore described the incident in his letter.
Soon, it was time for the start-of-term ceremony.
The older students watched with interest. It was always entertaining to observe the new students.
Lucien was also watching the incoming first-years.
It felt like there were more of them this year.
At least more than in his own year. Was there a baby boom among wizards as well?
Though that would mean the twins could sell more of their products—and he had also designed some items specifically for new students.
The first part, of course, was the Sorting Ceremony.
After Professor McGonagall announced the rules, she picked up the Sorting Hat behind her.
The new students were naturally very curious, whispering among themselves in small groups, which was perfectly normal.
But even the older students, who had witnessed it once or several times before, were no longer calm.
"That color… is that the Sorting Hat?"
"Yeah, why is it grayish-white? Wasn't it gray-brown before?"
"Did they replace it with a new one? Maybe the old one was too worn out."
But someone quickly refuted that:
"That's not right. I remember the patches being in the same places—it's the same hat. Maybe the color was changed with magic, or maybe it was cleaned?"
The idea of magic changing its color was acceptable—after all, they were wizards.
But the latter guess made those around them fall silent. Someone asked in a trembling voice:
"If it was cleaned… then the previous gray-brown color of the Sorting Hat…"
The young witch didn't dare continue, afraid of what she might imagine. But someone casually added:
"Maybe it was head grease—built up over a thousand years?"
"… "
"Shut up. Don't say another word!"
Hearing the similar discussions around him, Lucien felt a bit speechless. Had successive Headmasters really never thought of cleaning the Sorting Hat, or had they simply treated it as a long-standing tradition…
Lucien recalled that the Sorting Hat had changed after he wore it, even taking the initiative to ask Dumbledore to help clean it.
So he had indirectly benefited the younger students as well?
Soon, Lucien noticed something unusual. The newly sorted students all glanced toward the Ravenclaw table.
What were they looking at?
After thinking for a moment, Lucien realized the common factor must be the Sorting Hat. The increasingly talkative hat had probably said something to them.
Before long, Ravenclaw welcomed its first new student—a first-year girl.
The imbalance between girls and boys in Ravenclaw was nothing new.
The Ravenclaws still applauded warmly, welcoming their new member.
Lucien joined in as well. He watched as the girl approached the table and gave a deep bow.
Just as he was about to remark on how polite—almost overly formal—this new student was, he saw her lift her head and quickly scan the table, as if searching for someone.
When her gaze landed on Lucien, she walked straight toward him.
Stopping in front of him, she blinked her large eyes and asked in a soft voice:
"Excuse me, are you Lucien?"
At that moment, Lucien's heart skipped a beat, as if he suddenly recalled something…
A certain conversation with the Sorting Hat…
________
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