Chapter 517 Moody's First Lesson
The storm had cleared by the next morning, though the ceiling of the Great Hall remained gloomy.
Heavy clouds of leaden gray swirled overhead as Evan and Colin entered the Great Hall.
Harry, Ron, and Hermione were examining their new class schedules during breakfast.
It was mainly Hermione who spoke while Harry and Ron listened attentively.
A few chairs away, Fred, George, and Lee Jordan were discussing magical methods to age themselves and sneak into the Triwizard Tournament.
In fact, all the young wizards in the Great Hall were engaged in discussions on this topic.
The young wizards of the appropriate age were all secretly pleased, each with the feeling that they were about to become a champion.
"Good morning, Evan, Colin, I just learned about your schedule from Hermione; it's really great!" said Harry, greeting Evan and Colin, who sat down. "Your first class is with Mad-Eye Moody. It must be awesome."
"Yes, my class schedule is a bit worse!" Ron said, running his finger down the Monday column of his schedule. "Look at this morning. Herbology with the Hufflepuffs and Care of Magical Creatures... darn, we're still with the Slytherins!"
"Double Divination this afternoon," groaned Harry, looking down. Divination was his least favorite subject, apart from Potions. Professor Trelawney kept predicting Harry's death, which was extremely annoying to him.
"It's not until Friday afternoon that we have Defense Against the Dark Arts class, and it's after having Potions all morning," Ron continued, "That's really bad. Why can't we have this class on Mondays like in third year?!"
Harry also nodded and agreed with Ron.
If they knew that Moody intended to use dark magic such as some of the Unforgivable Curses on the students, Evan wondered if they would be as eager for his class.
"Evan, here's your schedule. I magically marked the classes and it will remind you automatically," Hermione handed him the schedule, "So you won't be late when you're too absorbed in reading in the library."
"Thank you!" Evan stored the schedule in his backpack.
In comparison to last term, this year also had many classes.
He took Divination, Care of Magical Creatures, and the Study of Ancient Runes, just like Colin.
"Hermione, I see you're eating again!" Ron said, watching Hermione spread jam on her toast.
"I've decided there are better ways to advocate for elf rights," Hermione said haughtily.
"Yes... and you were hungry," Ron said, smiling.
Either way, it was a good thing that Hermione took the initiative to eat. Otherwise, Evan would have to ask Dobby to prepare separate food for both of them.
After a while, as they discussed which creatures Hagrid would show them in Care of Magical Creatures class that year, Hedwig flew into the Great Hall with a message. It was a package from Sirius.
He sent Harry a bunch of treats for everyone, which made Harry especially happy.
On the first day of classes, the owls brought a lot of things that young wizards had forgotten at home.
Over time, this had become a school tradition, owl mail from home.
For the first time, Harry received a package at this time, giving him the warm feeling of having a home.
After breakfast, the students headed to their classes separately.
Harry, Ron, and Hermione headed to the outdoor greenhouse for Herbology, and Evan and Colin went to Defense Against the Dark Arts on the second floor.
When they arrived, they found the classroom already filled with students.
Everyone was in good spirits and looking forward to Moody's class. This was unusual in recent years.
Ginny had arrived early and saved them two seats right in front of the professor's desk; they hurried to sit down.
In the classroom, the atmosphere was exceptionally quiet, and everyone took out their copies of "The Dark Forces: A Guide to Self-Protection," and waited.
They soon heard Moody's distinctive heavy footsteps approaching down the hallway, and he entered the room, looking as strange and frightening as ever. They could only see his clawed wooden foot sticking out from under his robes.
"You can stow those books," he growled, approaching with heavy steps to his desk and sitting down, "those books. You won't need them. I don't need those things in my class. Wands out!"
The young wizards returned the books to their bags, brimming with excitement.
After their previous experience, the mere sight of their wands hinted at an enthralling course ahead.
Moments later, Moody produced a scroll, his long, silvery-grey hair falling around his twisted and scarred face as he scanned the parchment, his normal eye fixed stoically while his magical eye darted about, scrutinizing each student as they acknowledged their presence.
"Very well," he began, once the last person had accounted for their attendance, "I have received a letter from my predecessor and I am aware of your current progress. Although you have amassed knowledge on handling dark creatures, true combat experience eludes you, and you have yet to witness authentic dark magic. This is of paramount importance."
Moody's magical eye swiveled quickly, echoing words he had shared with Evan the night before.
He instructed the class to stay vigilant and prepared.
"So... any of you familiar with the curses deemed unforgivable by magical law?"
Evan sighed. Undoubtedly, this instructor was inclined to demonstrate Unforgivable Curses in the classroom.
Silence met Moody's inquiry, the young magicians visibly unsettled by his pedagogical approaches.
Nervously glancing amongst themselves, they eventually turned their gaze to Evan, anticipating his response.
"Mason, care to answer?" Moody prompted. After realizing no one else would, he directly called on Evan.
"Professor, there are numerous curses forbidden by the Ministry of Magic for wizards to employ. Presently, approximately ten thousand legal decrees remain in place, some tracing back thousands of years, encompassing tens of thousands of spells," Evan replied. "The specifics remain obscure, but once these curses are unveiled, severe repercussions follow from the Ministry of Magic. I conducted a basic categorization of these dark spells, which can be divided into Curses, Horcruxes, Necromancy, Summoning of Evil Spirits, magic involving familial bloodlines, and magic that unlawfully alters the bodies of humans and magical creatures. Of course, this is not an exhaustive list, and..."
The classroom fell into silence, all eyes fixed on Evan with astonishment, mouths agape as if to swallow a whole egg.