Later that night, at 11 P.M. Hogwarts time, Harry was in his room when Hedwig swooped in with a note.

Hedwig dropped the note on Harry's bed, gave Harry an affectionate nibble on the ear, and took off again immediately.

The nanosecond Hedwig was gone, Harry picked up the note. The note read:

Dear Hogwarts students:

In light of the recent events at Zonko's, I as Headmaster have concluded that Hogwarts should offer training in Offensive Magic as part of its curriculum. While the use of Offensive Magic should be rare and you damn well better have had a very good reason for using it, it is invaluable to be prepared to use Offensive Magic should the need to use Offensive Magic present itself. Failing to prepare is preparing to fail. I have been thinking about how to incorporate Offensive Magic into Hogwarts curriculum without being disruptive to the overall educational experience at Hogwarts. My solution is that every year's first and last Defensive Against the Dark Arts class of every month shall be a lesson in Offensive Magic starting with November of 1994. Sirius Black has agreed to teach these classes in addition to his post as Astronomy teacher. Sirius was responsible for teaching three Hogwarts students Offensive Magic over the summer and the three students were three of the students involved in the incident at Zonko's. The students in question made clear how much they benefitted from knowing Offensive Magic. The three other students with them at the time were able to perform Offensive Magic after watching the three students in question perform Offensive Magic, but not everyone can be expected to succeed at Offensive Magic on his or her first attempt. Training and practice are needed for most students to hone and craft these skills. Sirius and I will taking some time over the next few weeks and the next few nanoseconds to discuss what types of Offensive Magic we should teach to which year groups. It is my fond hope that none of my students will ever have to use Offensive Magic ever again. However, I'm not naive enough to think that will actually happen. Dark witches and wizards exist and sometimes striking them first before they can strike you is the best way of dealing with them. If the three students in question at Zonko's had not known some Offensive Magic, it is possible that all six students in question would have faced very dire consequences up to and including death. I cannot in good conscience know about Saturday's incident at Zonko's and NOT be proactive in making sure all of my students are prepared should they face such a situation in the future. As such, there is one exception to the rule stated at the start of this note and that is that the next Defense Against the Dark Arts class every year is scheduled for will be a lesson in Offensive Magic taught by Sirius. You'll get some inital training immediately and then settle into the first and last lesson of the month pattern. Hoping you are all doing well.

Hogwarts Headmaster

-Remus Lupin.

Harry was very pleased by this news.

Harry appreciated that Remus was being proactive in teaching Hogwarts students Offensive Magic in light of Saturday's events and he knew Sirius would do a great job teaching Offensive Magic. Sirius had already proven his capabilities there by teaching Harry, Hermione, and Ginny Offensive Magic over the summer.

Another gap in curriculum was about to be closed.

Hogwarts students would now learn Offensive Magic.

That was part of the Different Path they were all traveling.

A shout out to the following members who have added A Different Path to their favorites and/or follows lists since the last update:

Controlchaos

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Jimu Retroguru

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neady1034

Truwin Simpson

Much love from Arizona for all the support. Love you all-Michael. :)