"No way." Dean breathed.
At the unfamiliar voice, the man's head snapped up and he glanced around. "Ah...Is it September first already?"
Chapter 2
Dumbledore chuckled. "It is indeed."
The man- What had Snape called him? Mutu? Moto?- rubbed his head sheepishly. "Ah, I see. It appears I've lost track of even more time than I had thought." He gave the headmaster a slight bow. "My sincerest apologies headmaster. And to the Sorting Hat as well- I was looking forward to that song it's been working on."
The man finally closed his book and started to put it to the side. Before he could set it down, though, one of the creatures that had been hovering around him gave a series of chirps and croons. The man smiled at- it? her?- and replied, "Ah, yes, thank you; that would be very helpful." He handed the book off to the being, which in turn zoomed out of the hall.
Hermione made a strangled sound as the creature passed her. Before Harry could ask why, Dumbledore continued.
"Never fear, my boy; the Sorting Hat is always happy to give a repeat performance. In fact, it remembers every song it has performed throughout the many years and is willing to accept requests. I, myself have enjoyed several concerts. I have developed something of an ambition to hear the song from every year since the Founding. I believe I am up to the year-" Professor McGonagall cleared her throat pointedly. "Er, but that is something to discuss later; to business, now. Though you have unfortunately missed the feast, you're right on time for your introduction." He turned to the tables of still-gawking students.
"Now then. I believe I have already informed you of a change in staff for the position of Defense Against the Dark Arts professor." Harry held his breath. 'Does that mean it isn't-?'
"Which means all that's left is to introduce him." Harry let out his breath in a sigh of relief. 'Him. So, not Umbridge...Probably.'
"Students, this is your new professor, Y-"
"That's YUGI MUTO!" Dumbledore was interrupted by an excited shout from one of the new first years seated at the Ravenclaw table.
It was like a dam had burst. The Great Hall was suddenly flooded with noise, students no longer sleepy from the long train ride and the meal, but chattering excitedly. Or, as in Harry's case, trying to figure out what was happening.
Harry turned to Ron. "Who?" Ron shrugged. "Don't look at me, mate. Hermione?" But as they turned to her they saw she was still staring at the creatures and sputtering. "Hermione, what are you- actually, never mind. One thing at a time." Harry searched for a more coherent source of information and, as he looked around, saw he wasn't the only one.
Actually, Harry realized with some satisfaction, it looked like none of the Slytherins knew what was going on.
The students quieted when a series of bangs sounded from the staff table. Harry looked over to see McGonagall with her wand raised and such a stern expression on her face, he felt the urge to fix his tie and sit up straight.
"Well," Dumbledore began with a smile. "Happily, it seems that quite a few of you know, or at the very least know of our new professor. For the rest of you, however, I'm afraid it's getting quite late, and you will have to wait until class for further introductions. For now, I believe it's best time for b-"
The headmaster was, however, interrupted for a third time that night.
"Wait just a moment, Dumbledore!" If the shrill voice was any indication, it seemed Umbridge had recovered from the interruption. Harry looked over to see her face was a blotchy red color, verging on purple. "You can't just-just pick up a new professor the night the first term starts!"
Dumbledore looked surprised. "Whatever do you mean, Dolores? At the start of the summer, I believe I informed you and the minister that I would have someone for the position by the beginning of the term."
"But that was-! You said you would, you never said you had a professor!" She sputtered. She pulled herself together enough to demand, "In any case, what are his qualifications? Although the students seem to think this man is someone important, I'm afraid I, the Senior Undersecretary to the Minister of Magic," she emphasized as much as possible, "have never heard of him."
Several of said students made indignant noises at her implication that their intelligence was inferior to her own.
The teachers looked just as indignant as the students, though Dumbledore seemed jovial as ever. "To my knowledge, Hogwarts has never needed Ministry approval in order to hire staff." Madam Hooch bit out. Umbridge cut her a glare.
"Maa, maa." A gentle voice with a slight accent cut through the tense atmosphere. Harry looked over at the ma-er, Professor Muto- to see him rubbing the back of his head again, looking vaguely embarrassed by all the commotion. "Let's all calm down a bit, yes? It seems like all of our tempers are running a little high with the late hour and long trip. There's no harm in making sure the students have a proper teacher, after all. Ms. Umbridge, was it? You asked about my qualifications?" He smiled kindly.
"Madam Umbridge, if you please," she corrected, looking smug. She continued in a sugary tone, "And yes. You see, if you were somehow a famous wizard, I would have heard of you. I just don't want the poor students to be taken advantage of somehow if you've been filling their heads with false impressions."
Harry and several of the other 'poor students' glared at her.
"Ah, I see. Don't worry, I'm not. You haven't been misinformed." He reassured.
"Not famous?" She questioned, looking gleeful. "So you've somehow tricked-".
She broke off as Professor Muto chuckled lightheartedly.
"No, no. I apologize, I should have been clearer. You see, I'm not a wizard." He said in almost an offhand tone.
Silence.
Then-
"Not a-!" she shrieked, amid incredulous shouts from students. "You can't mean you're a- a Muggle! A Muggle, teaching at a wizard school- no, an unknown Muggle even knowing about our world- Dumbledore! What on earth are you thinking!"
There was such a commotion, however, that Dumbledore wasn't able to answer her. Professor McGonagall had to make several loud bangs with her wand before the noise level came back down.
"Madam Umbridge," she began frostily. "I would thank you to gather all the facts first before making wild accusations and inciting a panic!"
"Gather all the facts?!" Umbridge squawked. "He just admitted he wasn't a wizard! The only other option is Muggle!"
She paled suddenly. "Unless-," here her voice somehow gained an even higher pitch, and Harry was tempted to cover his ears, "unless you're a magical creature!" She directed the almost-question towards the new professor.
For his part, Professor Muto looked thoughtful. "Hmm. Well, I can tell you I'm not a magical creature, but I'm afraid I'm not sure what that other word means. I'm from Japan, you see, so English isn't my first language. I'm fairly fluent, but I don't believe I've ever heard the word 'muggle' before. Would you mind explaining?" He asked politely.
"It means," she said through gritted teeth, face starting to purple-Harry vaguely wondered whether that was healthy- again after the new professor admitted to being a foreigner, "that you are a non-magical person. Someone who should not be here!" She ended in a hiss.
"Ah." Professor Muto intoned, with laughter in his eyes and a mischievous quirk to his mouth- not that Umbridge had noticed in the state she was in. "I apologize for the misunderstanding once again. I can assure you, Madam, I am not a Muggle." His vaguely mischievous smile turned into a full blown smirk.
"I'm a Mage."