The Bard of Hogwarts

Chapter 179 Pansy's Confusion

The Great Hall at Hogwarts.

Starting at 11 a.m., quite a few students had already arrived here.

Although lunch hasn't started serving yet, that doesn't stop the young wizards from gathering together to chat and boast, especially about the turbulent events at the Ministry of Magic during this time, which has become their favorite topic of conversation.

Noon.

Ino arrived at the Great Hall just in time, casually found a seat at the Slytherin table, and gently tapped the table.

A standard, formal lunch is laid out on the table.

Seeing how efficient and convenient this method was, he sometimes thought about buying a house-elves. But for some reason, the thought of Dobby, that traitor, made him give up the idea.

Because it's terrifying. Once it has the thought of rebellion, it will start to think and even look for loopholes within the reasonable rules, such as... accidentally dripping in a little bit of magic potion.

Of course, it's possible that Dobby is an outlier, but once a crisis of trust arises, it's very difficult to regain that trust. After all, Dobby represents not only itself, but also the entire community of house-pocketed Pokémon.

As for the unconventional Dobby, he wrote to Lucius last year, urging him to find a buyer and sell him off quickly.

……

Just as she was pondering this, Ino noticed that another lunch had appeared across the table.

"I saw you standing here in a daze, so I came over!" Pansy smiled and sat down naturally across the long table.

"It's not exactly daydreaming, it's just that sometimes my thoughts just drift off." As she spoke, Ino picked up the sandwich on the table and took a small bite.

"During the summer vacation, I read through History of Magic again, from beginning to end," Pansy said calmly.

Ino put down the food in her hand, also curious about what Pansy would say, after all, the story had already changed.

"From the pre-Christian era to the Middle Ages, from the modern era to the contemporary era, the entire history of magic describes the tortuous fates of wizards."

Pansy spoke softly, her pace as gentle as if she were discussing the weather and celestial phenomena.

But Ino didn't rush to speak; he knew Pansy hadn't finished.

Sure enough, after a slight pause, Pansy suddenly raised her head, a hint of confusion flashing in her eyes, and said with some uncertainty in her tone:

"We always rush to solve problems after they occur, but no one ever considers why the problems occurred in the first place. We are always passive."

Listening to Pansy's explanation, he finally understood the reason: this girl had read history and turned it into philosophy, which is a very typical existentialist philosophical idea.

"Pansy, I can't answer your question, or rather, you have to find the answer to this question yourself."

Ino picked up her lemonade from lunch, and while drinking it, she also organized her thoughts. Philosophical debates are truly difficult to answer because everyone's ideas are different.

However, if the answer conflicts with one's inner thoughts, one will enter a mental dead end. Compared to Muggles, wizards face far greater trouble if they fall into a mental predicament.

If Pansy has truly reached a dead end, he has to take the blame. Because it all started last year when he impulsively organized a history of magic review class.

Looking at the somewhat bewildered girl before him, after a moment's thought, Ino said earnestly:

"While I cannot answer your question, I can offer some advice: perhaps you could read some Muggle books; their ideas are quite valuable."

As he spoke, Ino pointed his wand at the tableware on the table, and the cup and plate instantly transformed into a piece of parchment and a quill pen stuck in an ink bottle.

After careful consideration, he wrote down a series of book titles on a piece of paper: Sartre on Freedom, Simone de Beauvoir on the Hidden Mechanisms of Oppression, Kierkegaard on Anxiety, Camus on Rebellion, Heidegger on Technology...

He did not write about Socrates, Plato, or Aristotle perfunctorily.

It is clear that Pansy's problem stems from history, or rather, the root of the problem lies in sociology and humanism. Only by addressing the root cause can she quickly emerge from her blind spot in thinking.

After handing over the parchment, Ino sighed with relief that the review sessions had ended early, and also resolved not to say anything carelessly in the future, as the thinking patterns of wizards and Muggles are truly different.

After receiving the parchment, Pansy glanced at it briefly, then folded it up and put it in his pocket.

Since the cutlery had been replaced with pens and paper, Ino had to knock on the table again, and a steaming standard lunch was once again served on the long table.

This time, neither of them spoke.

……

Hogwarts' schedule is actually quite standard.

After lunch, classes didn't start until 3 p.m., giving the young wizards plenty of time to rest in between.

However, this is unnecessary, because in most cases, especially for first and second-year wizards, there is basically only one class a day.

Slytherin common room.

It's 2:30 p.m.

After a brief period of quiet during the lunch break, things gradually became lively again, and the young wizards who had afternoon classes began to emerge from the lounge one after another.

On the fourth floor of the castle, Lupin arrived at the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom on time.

This lesson is Defense Against the Dark Arts for third-year Ravenclaws and Slytherins.

Looking at the chandelier on the ceiling, he regained a sense of familiarity.

Meanwhile, the young wizard below was also sizing up the professor in front of him. His clothes were still excessively plain, but his complexion looked much better than it had been on the train.

"Good afternoon!" Lupin stood on the podium and said in a gentle tone, "Please put away your textbooks and line them up in rows. Today we're having a practical lesson, so you only need to bring your wands."

To be honest, this action really surprised the students in the classroom, but because of Lupin's behavior on the train, everyone put away their textbooks and lined up in a row as required.

"Very good! Now please wait a moment!" Lupin said, waving his wand so that the desks and chairs in the classroom were stacked against the wall.

Then, an old single wardrobe slowly floated in from outside the door. This beautiful levitation spell alone dispelled everyone's doubts, after all, the professor from the previous two years had already frightened them.

The wardrobe landed steadily on the floor, but just as Lupin approached it, a thud came from inside.

This unexpected turn of events caused the young wizards at the front of the line to instinctively take a few steps back.

"No need to worry! It's just a Boggart inside," Lupin explained with a smile, then changed the subject:

"Boggart likes dark and enclosed spaces, such as wardrobes, gaps under beds, and cupboards under sinks. I once even met one that lived in an old clock."

"Now, the first question we need to ask ourselves is: What is a Boggart?" Professor Lupin looked around at the young wizards in the room.

Ino calmly looked at the wardrobe, not intending to steal the spotlight. At this moment, he was thinking about what he might be afraid of in his subconscious. Although he had experienced many stories, he seemed to have never really encountered anything that made him afraid.

But if we're talking about truly terrifying things, there are quite a few. I've encountered a man-eating old witch, Quirrell in his Voldemort form during his first year of high school, Dementors in the sky, and even Santa Claus from Narnia...

(End of this chapter)