LRAB Chapter 39 Attending the Banquet: Lion and Serpent Compete for the Golden Cup
Chapter 39 Attending the Banquet: Lion and Serpent Compete for the Golden Cup
Picking up where we left off, all the Slytherin students were determined to win the House Cup, but unexpectedly Dumbledore mentioned some extra points, and the Great Hall fell silent for a moment.
"First, there was Mr. Ron Weasley. He displayed extraordinary courage in the face of wizard chess pieces that were many times his size."
"Therefore, I will award Gryffindor fifty points."
Upon hearing this, the Gryffindor wizards were overjoyed and rushed forward to greet Ron with their arms around his shoulders and pats on the back.
While everyone else was celebrating, Hermione, being a meticulous person, carefully calculated the scores, her brow still furrowed. "Even if we add Ron's fifty points, we only have three hundred and sixty-two points—Slytherin has four hundred and seventy-two."
Before she could finish speaking, Dumbledore added, "Secondly, there's Miss Hermione Granger. Even the most intricate puzzles that Professor Snape struggles to solve, she can still find the answer with ease."
"Therefore, I will award Gryffindor an additional fifty points."
In just a few words, Gryffindor's score increased by 100%. Not to mention the students, even McGonagall, the head of the house, felt as if a hundred drummers were beating their leather war drums, making them thump louder and louder.
Upon hearing this, Fred and George could no longer contain themselves. They immediately grabbed their knives, forks, and spoons and banged the plates and bowls loudly.
One of them was pretending to sing with a high-pitched voice, and the other was stomping his feet as if he were dancing. They were making fun of Snape in their conversations, and it was quite a lively scene.
"Oh~ Homage to the Queen of Gryffindor~"
"Even if the old bat pondered for a whole semester, the Queen only needs an hour."
Physical blows are only temporary, but intellectual blows are permanent.
The two brothers circled around Hermione, humming strange tunes that made Hermione's ears feel like they were dripping with blood-red coral beads, and her face more flushed than a ripe red grape.
The students from the other three houses whispered among themselves and secretly glanced at Snape.
"He's a professor, yet he's not as smart as a first-year wizard."
"I've heard that potion-making requires the least amount of brainpower; all you have to do is control the variables..."
"No wonder he's a professor of potions..."
Although the crowd was whispering amongst themselves, the cacophony of voices caused a few snippets to reach Snape's ears, making his face twitch for a while.
"Pondering hard?" Snape looked at Dumbledore and said coldly, "I remember someone telling me not to make the riddles too difficult."
"Oh, my dear Severus, it's the end-of-school dinner tonight, let's make the children happy."
After saying that, Dumbledore shouted again, "Finally, it was Mr. Harry Potter! He redeemed myself for the mistake I made in a moment of carelessness and defeated Quirrell and his evil master."
"Therefore, I will once again award Gryffindor a score of sixty!"
Dumbledore added points several times, bringing the two houses, the Lion and the Snake, to a draw.
Gryffindor's hundred throats wailed like broken gongs, and a thousand eyes were fixed on the old headmaster's fingers, wishing he would loosen his grip even a fraction so that Gryffindor could win the championship.
"Just one point away! We're just one point away!"
Percy's eyes reddened, and he disregarded his prefectural appearance, yelling for the young lions to score a point.
The wizards of Slytherin realized that the honors were to be shared equally with Gryffindor, and they were all furious. How could they tolerate this?
A prefect wearing a green scarf stood up and exclaimed, "There has never been a time in Hogwarts history when two houses shared the House Cup!"
"Even if Gryffindor's scores are the same as ours, there should still be a ranking!"
These words were reasonable and well-founded, and the wizards of the Slytherin all agreed and cheered.
These snake-like scoundrels grew increasingly arrogant, but Harry merely snorted, took a sip of pumpkin juice, and shouted, "It's true that the latecomers surpass the early ones! Why don't you guys yield to us!"
The Griffin's heroes, upon hearing this, all cheered him on.
Dozens of professors sat at the tables, while a hundred or so snake witches stood beside them. Malfoy, emboldened, jumped up again and shouted at the top of his lungs:
"Why should I listen to you? Just because you threw that stupid hat on the ground?"
It is crucial to know that breaking up a fight is of utmost importance. Now that Harry has launched his attack, those of us who are on the same side must be quick to follow. You protect my side, I will shield him, and that is how we can hold this battle together.
Ron retorted, "Think you have someone to protect you, Malfoy? Aren't you afraid they'll cast spells on you like they did in flight class?"
These words struck a nerve with Malfoy, causing him to bite his cheeks so hard they trembled, his face turning pale, like a wildcat whose tail had been stepped on, whimpering and about to explode.
After a few moments of preparation, Malfoy exclaimed, "Ha! Even the lapdog who only follows Potter around can talk now!"
Fred and George, seeing Ron humiliated, were not about to stand it up and immediately rose to shout angrily. Seeing Malfoy's discomfiture, the snake witches all raised their voices in unison. The lion witches, seeing this, dared not slacken their efforts and joined in the shouting.
Now, the Lion and Snake houses have long forgotten about grades and only care about hurling insults. These two houses are located one against the east wall and the other against the west wall, leaving the Eagle and Badger houses sandwiched in the middle. Those filthy words are clashing in their minds, causing them unbearable suffering.
As the foul language grew increasingly offensive, Dumbledore quickly used a megaphone spell to stop it.
"Quiet! Little wizards, this is the end-of-year banquet! Look how annoyed the little eagle and the little badger are by your foul language!"
"Gryffindor and Slytherin each lose five points."
Seeing that they had been penalized, the two groups finally fell silent, still seething with resentment.
The house next to Gryffindor was Ravenclaw, full of clever people. A witch named Cho Chang, upon hearing this, was startled and suddenly cried out.
"Wait a minute, Professor Dumbledore! Although we live closer to Gryffindor, it's actually Slytherin who's disturbing us!"
It should be known that the other houses have long been suffering under Slytherin's thumb, and even if they themselves cannot win the House Cup, they do not want Slytherin to win it.
The other Ravenclaws chimed in, shouting in unison, "That's right! The ones who disturbed us were Slytherins!"
"The people of Gryffindor are so charming, and they're all incredibly talented. I didn't feel uncomfortable at all!"
"The Slytherin people are so rude!"
Slytherins, having suffered an undeserved calamity, stubbornly proclaimed even when they had no way to defend themselves:
"Slander! Headmaster Snape, they're slandering us!"
"This was intentional!"
Dumbledore said thoughtfully, "While we should respect the victim's perspective... Slytherin's words also have a point."
Before the snake witches could even laugh, Dumbledore added, "I'll pretend the eagles didn't hear anything, but the badger did hear it, so Slytherin loses five points."
A few grains of sand slipped through the green sand behind the hall, and Dumbledore waved his wand, turning all the banners and streamers into a golden-red expanse.