The next morning, at breakfast, Harry looked toward the staff table, wondering about Professor Moraz. That was when the new teacher turned and looked at him. Harry instantly felt a sharp pain in his scar and clapped a hand over it, muttering, "Ouch!"
Ron and Neville were the only ones to notice, as they were sitting next to him, and turned to look at him in concern. "What happened?" asked Neville. This got the others' attention and they turned to look at Harry as well.
"My scar hurt just as Professor Moraz turned to look at me," responded Harry, rubbing his scar.
"He definitely is bad news," said Reanne grimly. Pierre and Rose looked questioningly at her, so she explained the idiom.
"I did some research last night," said Hermione, "and while Fadil is a genuine Arabic name, Moraz doesn't seem to be. In fact, Moraz happens to be similar the name of King Miraz in the book Prince Caspian, part of the Chronicles of Narnia series." Seeing Neville's confused look, she added, "It's a Muggle book about a fantasy land called Narnia, and sometimes children from our world can travel there and help the people and/or the talking animals living there."
On Friday at dinner, they overhead a conversation from a group of third and fourth years sitting at the table next to them. Eric Stuart, Harry's other cousin, remarked, "Something fishy is going on with Professor Moraz. I'm not sure if he really is Arabic."
"Well, if he is, he's definitely not Muslim," said Violet Harbring. "Professor Haseem always stopped what she was doing in the middle of class and prayed to the direction of Mecca. But Professor Moraz isn't doing that."
Her friend, Johanna de Wit, nodded. "But except for those who converted into Christianity and the Jews in Israel, most Middle Eastern people are Muslim. So it would be very odd if Professor Moraz wasn't a Muslim. Especially as he's wearing a turban and has a beard. I think I'll ask him next class what his religion is."
"Good idea," said Cedric. "If he says he's Muslim, then we know he's lying, because he isn't praying five times a day while facing in the direction of Mecca the way Muslims are supposed to do. Oh, and Professor Haseem has said 'Praise Allah' or something similar several times before, but Professor Moraz hasn't even once. I'd be surprised if he even had any idea as to whom Allah is."
Maddie raised a brow. "The older students are starting to notice something wrong with the new teacher."
"Who wouldn't be?" asked Harry. "Professor Haseem is a practicing Muslim, and when the substitute teacher claims to be Middle Eastern but isn't acting very much like one, people are bound to be suspicious."
"When is Ramadan this year?" asked Ron. "Because then we could see if Professor Moraz fasts during that month."
"It began in the middle of March and ended halfway through April," answered Maddie. Ron looked disappointed.
Rose sighed. "All we can do is keep an eye on Professor Moraz and tell a teacher what is wrong with him."
Reanne glanced at the staff table, then said, "I think the rest of staff already know that there is something fishy about him."
"Why would Professor Moraz be like a fish?" asked Rose, looking confused. The others laughed, then Hermione explained the other meaning of 'fishy' to her.
On Saturday was the Quidditch match beween the Dragon and Sphinx teams. As Pierre was a beater for the Sphinx team, his friends supported that team and waved a banner that had a picture of a sphinx on it. They also wore brown and gold rosettes, which were the colors of the team. Draco Malfoy played as seeker for the Dragon team, as the full-time seeker was in detention over a prank he played the day before.
The Dragon team either had better chasers, or the Sphinx keeper wasn't very good, for the Dragon team scored many times and were ahead in points. The Sphinx seeker, Violet, was apparently better, for after forty-six minutes, she spotted the Snitch before Draco did and went streaking after it. A few seconds later, Draco noticed what was going on and followed her. However, Violet had a head start, and her hand closed on the snitch before Draco could reach there.
The commentator, Lee Jordan, happily shouted the results. "The Sphinx team wins, three hundred and sixty to three hundred and forty!"
In the afternoon, Harry and Maddie went to talk with Stuart and Alice about Professor Moraz. "Dad and Mum, I don't think Professor Moraz is-"
"We already know about him," interrupted Stuart. "Eric spoke with me yesterday about his suspicions, and Emily, I mean Professor Kennedy, is keeping an eye on Fadil Moraz, if that is his real name. The staff all know there is something odd about him, and Miku, or rather Professor Kishi-Elliot, advised against hiring him. However, he was the only one with knowledge of Arithmacy that applied since the position was advertised in the beginning to October, besides a woman who knew nothing at all about Arithmacy, so Professor Kennedy had no choice but to hire him."
Alice added, "It is obvious to the staff that he's not really Middle Eastern or a practioner of Islam, despite what he has said to the contrary. He doesn't pray five times a day in the direction of Mecca, does not have any idea as to what the proper prayer is, and when Professor Haseem asked him about Ramadan, he just looked confused. And Muslims aren't supposed to eat pork or drink acoholic beverages, but I've seen Professor Moraz eat sausage at breakfast this morning, and he had wine at dinner last night."
Harry frowned. "Why can't Professor Kennedy just fire him and hire somebody else?"
"I told you, nobody else applied for the post, except for a woman who had absolutely no skill in Arithmacy at all," replied Stuart. "And we need an Arithmacy teacher right now. Or didn't you realize that Parvana, I mean Professor Haseem, is carrying twins, and also happens to be five months along? She is not in any condition to teach, and Madam Flamel has ordered her to rest for much of the day."
"Well, she's not my teacher, so I haven't exactly been paying attention," said Harry. "And if Professor Kennedy knows that there's something suspicious about Professor Moraz, she should modify his memory so he doesn't remember the location of the Academy and sack him."
"Actually, Professor Kennedy first wants to be absolutely sure of what he's up to, which is mainly why she isn't giving him the sack," explained Alice. "Now please forget about all this and let the staff deal with Professor Moraz, all right, Harry and Maddie?"
"Fine," said Maddie and Harry together, but privately they were still determined to watch out for Professor Moraz. They left the office and told their friends what Stuart and Alice had told them.