Charlie looked at the blue car in the distance, regretting it in his heart.
Why wasn't he in that car?
Those were tyrant points!
He missed a perfect opportunity to earn points.
Professor McGonagall's face was incredibly grim, her lips pressed into a thin line.
But she maintained her basic professional composure, waving her hand to signal the students to enter the Great Hall.
"Everyone inside, don't stand here gawking."
The students walked towards the Great Hall, discussing animatedly, occasionally looking back at the Whomping Willow, whose branches and leaves were scattered everywhere from the impact.
Charlie followed the crowd into the Great Hall and found a seat.
His gaze swept across the teachers' table, and he keenly noticed that one person was missing.
Snape wasn't there.
Charlie understood instantly.
Snape must have gone to catch Harry and Ron.
Good luck, Harry.
He hoped they wouldn't be tormented too badly by Snape.
Lockhart, dressed in a green robe, flashed his pearly white teeth at the students below, very showily.
He was showing off his smile again.
Professor McGonagall walked to the front of the teachers' table and cleared her throat.
Despite the incident that had just occurred, the Sorting Ceremony still had to proceed.
"The Sorting Ceremony will now begin."
Professor McGonagall's voice echoed through the Great Hall.
The first-year students stood in a nervous line, awaiting the Sorting Hat's judgment.
The Sorting Hat was placed on the first student's head.
That student looked quite nervous.
"Hufflepuff!"
The first student was sorted into Hufflepuff, and the Hufflepuff table erupted in enthusiastic applause.
Charlie also clapped, welcoming his new junior.
The sorting continued.
"Chris Bett!"
"Gryffindor!"
"Levi's Batty!"
"Ravenclaw!"
"John Teach!"
"Slytherin!"
Charlie noticed that a particularly large number of students, more than ten, were sorted into Hufflepuff this term.
Finally, a familiar name was called.
"Ginny Weasley!"
When Professor McGonagall called out this name, the Weasley Brothers at the Gryffindor table nervously watched their sister.
The Sorting Hat remained on Ginny's head for a few seconds.
"Gryffindor!"
The Gryffindor table erupted in thunderous applause.
Fred and George also put aside the car incident and excitedly stood up, cheering for their sister.
Percy also showed a satisfied smile.
The tradition of the Weasley family was continued.
The Sorting Ceremony finally ended.
Dumbledore stood up and walked to the podium.
He hadn't been seen for a long time, and Dumbledore seemed unchanged; his eyes were still sparkling as he scanned the Great Hall.
"Welcome back to Hogwarts, everyone," Dumbledore's voice was gentle yet powerful.
"Before we begin our feast, I have a few things to say."
He paused, his expression becoming serious.
"Firstly, I must emphasize some school rules. Night wandering is forbidden, and I hope certain students will bear this in mind."
His gaze swept over the Hufflepuff table, clearly hinting at certain students.
"No sleeping in class."
Charlie touched his nose, pretending not to see.
"The Forbidden Forest outside the school is very dangerous, and unauthorized entry is forbidden. It contains many dangerous creatures, including Werewolves, Acromantulas, and so on."
Dumbledore continued, "Also, keep an eye on your Owls, and don't let them always spend the night in the Owlery."
"Now all the little female Owls in the Owlery are pregnant."
A burst of laughter erupted in the Great Hall.
Students whispered and chattered amongst themselves.
Professor McGonagall's face darkened even further; she walked over to Dumbledore and said in a low voice, "Albus, don't say such things."
Dumbledore smiled and nodded, raising his hands to signal for quiet.
"Alright, now let us enjoy the feast."
He clapped his hands, and a lavish dinner instantly appeared on the long tables.
Charlie picked up a piece of American slow-smoked beef brisket with his fork.
Rich gravy dripped down the fork, and the smoke ring on the surface glowed an inviting red.
Charlie took a bite; it was tender, flavorful, and juicy.
Hogwarts' food was as delicious as ever.
Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall left the Great Hall, apparently to deal with Harry and Ron's matter.
The surrounding students ate and discussed what had just happened.
"Did you see that car? It was absolutely insane," Ernie said excitedly.
"I heard Harry Potter and Ron Weasley were driving it," Justin whispered.
"Really? How could they drive a car to school?"
"Who knows, but they're in big trouble this time," Ernie shook his head.
"They crashed into the Whomping Willow, which is a very precious magical plant."
Charlie's ears perked up.
"Is the Whomping Willow very precious?"
"Of course," Ernie nodded. "The Whomping Willow is a very rare magical plant; there are only a few in the whole world."
"If it's broken, the loss would be huge."
"Even if it's not broken, there are still many snapped branches."
Charlie's mind stirred.
Willow branches can be re-rooted and propagated, right?
If he could get some Whomping Willow branches and plant a Whomping Willow as a guard at the entrance of his box, that would be a great idea... In Snape's office, the air was suffocatingly heavy.
Harry and Ron sat on chairs, their bodies tense.
Ron's right hand was tightly tucked into his pocket, where his wand, broken by the Whomping Willow, lay.
Snape paced around the office, his black robes billowing behind him.
His lips wore that characteristic sneer, and his eyes were full of malice.
"Truly remarkable."
"Two Gryffindor heroes, arriving at school in a flying car."
He stopped, looking down at the two of them.
"Tell me, Potter, Weasley, do you think yourselves quite extraordinary?"
Harry opened his mouth, wanting to explain something, but Snape gave him no chance.
"Silence!" Snape snapped.
"You'd best remain quiet when I'm speaking."
Ron's face was pale, and fine beads of sweat appeared on his forehead.
He had never been so scared; Snape, in his eyes, was more terrifying than an Acromantula at that moment.
Snape walked to his desk and picked up a newspaper.
"Look at this."
He spread out the newspaper, the headline emblazoned: "London Elder Witnesses Flying Car, Causes Uproar at Mental Hospital."
"A seventy-three-year-old man claimed to have seen a flying car, thought he was insane, and caused a scene at the clinic."
Snape read the contents of the newspaper, his voice full of sarcasm.
"And here, at least seven Muggles witnessed this magical flying car."
Harry felt his heart stop.
They had really caused a huge disaster.
"Even more interesting..." Snape put down the newspaper, his eyes fixed maliciously on Ron.
"I recall Mr. Weasley still works in the Misuse of Muggle Artefacts Office, doesn't he?"
Ron's face instantly turned ashen.
His father's job, his father's future, could all be ruined by his foolish actions.
"You also damaged a precious Whomping Willow. That is one of Hogwarts' most precious magical plants."
"Honestly."
"If you were Slytherin students, I would have expelled you long ago."
Just then, the office door was pushed open.
Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall walked in.
Dumbledore's face was expressionless, which made Harry feel a little sad.
He would have rather Dumbledore scolded him a bit.
"Harry, tell me what happened."
Dumbledore's voice was calm, but Harry could feel the authority within it.
Harry took a deep breath and recounted the entire incident.
"We really had no other choice."
"The wall suddenly became impassable, the train was about to leave, and we..."
"Then, Harry," Dumbledore continued to ask.
"Why didn't you write to the Professors?"
Harry was stumped by the question. Oh right, why didn't I write a letter?
"I... I didn't think of it," Harry's voice was barely audible.
"Will we be expelled?"
Dumbledore was silent for a moment, thinking about why the platform had suddenly become impassable, then he said.
"Not now, but it's hard to say about the future."
This sentence made the two of them sigh in relief, as if reborn after a disaster.
Snape's face became even more grim.
He was clearly very displeased that Harry had not been expelled.
Professor McGonagall stepped forward, looking at the two dusty, disheveled students.
"You two, come with me." Her voice was stern but her words were full of care.
"Go to the Hospital Wing first to get checked out."
Harry and Ron, as if granted a great pardon, quickly stood up and followed behind Professor McGonagall.
"Although the school hadn't officially started when you were driving, so you won't lose points."
The two of them breathed a sigh of relief again.
"But," Professor McGonagall's tone became strict.
"Both of you will receive detention."
"Yes, Professor," Harry and Ron said in unison.
As long as they weren't expelled, what was detention?
-------------------------------
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