Professor Dumbledore sat at his desk and sent an amazed look through his semi-lunar glasses to the two entering women.
"Good evening, and please excuse the disturbance!" Lil began when she and Ene had arranged themselves in front of the desk.
"I don't want to hurt your feelings," Dumbledore said, "but I really can't remember you. Who are you?"
Lil took a very deep breath and told who they were, where and how they came here (she concealed the names of Gideon and Hermione to save them from trouble), and that now they didn't quite know what to do. "I'm to blame for it - with my curiosity. Please, don't be too angry, it was too tempting! I didn't want and still don't want to cause any damage. Actually, now we've seen what we wanted to look at and you can send us straight back. Did I mention I'm to blame for it? Punishments are exclusively for me, please, it's not Ene's fault."
Ene stood motionless, Lil played nervously with her fingers. Silence. Seconds lasted endlessly.
"Hmhmhm," Dumbledore made and the corners of his mouth twitched. And then he laughed – he was roaring with laughter. "Hahahaaa, you simply came in here and no-one spotted you as muggles? And no-one stopped you? I'm looking forward to telling Professor McGonagall about it! Oh dear, mighty wizards and witches who could have taken on unbelievable camouflage and wanted to find fault with us didn't even dare to come here. But you two, plain Muggles, walk in here unhindered and put the best wizards and witches to shame! I haven't had such a good laugh in a long time! Hahahaha!"
Ene and Lil looked as if they've learned the proof that astronomy was swindle and the earth was flat.
The professor took off his glasses and wiped a few tears of laughter from his eyes. "Now, who would have thought that this new school year might start that humorous? But, as I see," his voice calmed down again, "you're not in the mood for laughing. Yes, what are we to do with you? Of course, tonight you can't ride back with the Hogwarts Express. And besides, there should be a little punishment."
Lil swallowed dryly.
"You told some – unnamed – student about a practical training, right? That's a wonderful idea! You will get through a training for, let's say, two weeks. That's what I consider..."
A knock on the door. "Come in!" Dumbledore called.
Professor McGonagall opened the door, entered with a puzzled look at Ene and Lil and started: "Professor, the first-years will be here soon and we should..."
"Ah, Minerva, how wonderful you turn up right now! Step closer, I have to tell you this before we go to the Great Hall. Look, these two young ladies..."
And Professor Dumbledore informed Professor McGonagall of the whole story. While doing so, a little smile played around Dumbledore's lips, whereas the face of Professor McGonagall grew increasingly strict; her mouth seemed to be one single dot.
Evidently, she didn't like the idea about the practical training at all. She threw a look over to Ene and Lil which would have degraded every dragon with seven heads to a servile pet doggie, and then she said: "And how are these two Muggles to get over two weeks among witches and wizards alive and physically unharmed? The missing witchcraft will immediately be noticed even by the most stupid student."
Dumbledore nodded: "Yes, but we never had trainees at Hogwarts before. I hereby lay down as a rule that trainees from other schools are not allowed to perform magic here. They should only assist the teachers with inferior work, watch, and learn. Minerva, I think it best if you take the two under your wing for their first day tomorrow to explain the essentials. After that, please assign them to different teachers, they should change teachers after a few days so they can get a general idea," he twinkered, "but above all to prevent any teacher or student from noticing during a longer period that the trainees lack even the basic knowledge of witchcraft."
Ene bit her lips, Lil drew a deep breath.
McGonagall wasn't amused: "You really consider this to be a good idea, Professor? Think of the high reputation of our school! If this is going to be public..."
"... then I will explain," Dumbledore said. "I certainly consider it good idea the longer I think about it. Outside the school our students live ever closer to the Muggles, mixed marriages are quite common. Witches and wizards live unrecognized in the Muggles' world – why shouldn't muggels live unrecognized in our world for some time? Let's regard it as an experiment and as a test for teaching staff and students: Let's see who'll find out first that these trainees are Muggles. Because for this, Minerva, it takes more than to take a good look. After all, the headmaster, that's me, and therefore the whole staff take the line that here are two witches who are worthy to complete a practical training at our renowned institute. Whoever assumes to have made out these two as Muggles is to bring him- or herself to advance this opinion openly – and with this to know better than the whole staff. This might be a very hard examination, don't you think?"
He looked expectantly at the professor. She lowered her head a little and replied: "Well, if you want to look at it like this, why not. I never had anything against examinations, especially hard ones."
Dumbledore nodded and gave a searching glance at Lil and Ene. "Ladies, you have to promise us not to tell anyone who you are and what we have arranged here. Otherwise the examination wouldn't be any. So, do I have your promise?"
Ene and Lil gave their affirmations and swallowed dryly.
McGonagall looked intensely at the two trainees and said: "Fine, so that's settled. But now we really should be going to the Great Hall. Ladies, leave your luggage right here; we'll take care of it later. Come with me! I'll take you to the hall and there you will wait at the side of the teachers' table until I beckon you to come forward and introduce you. You better be silent for you might give yourself away too early. You have to be very watchful the next weeks and I expect you to follow my orders."
All the way to the hall Ene and Lil received countless similar admonitions and quickly conjured-up used black coats so they wouldn't attract attention.