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……
Ten minutes later, the banquet officially began.
As previously speculated, Dumbledore did invite the Skeleton Dance Troupe to entertain the Halloween party.
Moreover, they didn't just give themselves a rebellious-sounding name, but were real skeletons...similar to ghosts, but a different species.
Accompanied by a burst of music and thunder and lightning on the ceiling, they appeared out of thin air in the space reserved in front of the guest of honor seats, and their appearance attracted exclamations from the little wizards.
Then the music changed and they started dancing to the rhythm.
At this point, Kyle also understood why Nearly Headless Nick acted so upset when he learned that the dance troupe was coming to Hogwarts.
Although it was somewhat scary to see these moving skeletons at first, that feeling quickly disappeared when they started dancing to the music.
It was the first time that Kyle saw elegance in the skeletons. Every movement they made was full of beauty and power.
The terrifying appearance and graceful dance steps... this huge contrast instantly caused deafening cheers to rang out in the auditorium.
It was from here on that the applause in the auditorium almost never stopped.
Especially when they were dancing the last dance, they chose a more cheerful and exciting music.
Magical Stuff
It is also the most famous song of the Weird Sisters.
Amid a series of cheerful drum beats, some little wizards couldn't help but jump along.
At first, only Fred and George, and a few Gryffindors were enjoying themselves, but as the music passed halfway, more and more people joined in.
Even Lockhart, who was sitting in the guest of honor seat, left his seat and started dancing. His teaching level was average, but he danced very well.
He also wanted to invite other professors to dance with him, but Professor McGonagall and Professor Sprout refused.
However, Professor Kerry Dibbaghi, who was in charge of Muggle Studies, readily accepted his invitation and stood up to join him on the dance floor.
Dumbledore was standing beside them, clapping his hands in time with a smile.
The song ended, but the cheerful atmosphere was still spreading in the auditorium, and the students shouted, wanting them to dance again!
Dumbledore stood up and motioned for everyone to be quiet.
“Dancing… is more powerful than any words,” he said with a smile, “but filling your stomach is just as important.”
As soon as he finished speaking, the empty plates on the table were filled with all kinds of delicious food.
Pumpkin roast chicken, grilled steak with pumpkin sauce, pumpkin pie, pumpkin soup, pumpkin pudding...
They are all pumpkins, and the main feature is to suit the occasion.
"Fortunately, we didn't go to the dungeon with Potter and the others..."
Cedric had just danced along, and he was still excited. He couldn't help but say to Kyle, "This Halloween party was really great. Do you think Headmaster Dumbledore will invite them again next year?"
……
(End of this chapter)
Chapter 295: Hogwarts Tradition, Uneasy Halloween
After the banquet, everyone left the auditorium with a sense of reluctance.
The Skeleton Dance Troupe had left while they were eating...which was a bit disappointing.
“This dance troupe is very difficult to hire.”
A young wizard in the crowd said loudly: "My father told me before that even if the Ministry of Magic wants to invite them to perform, they will have to wait in line for a long time."
"I heard they were invited to perform at the last Quidditch World Cup, along with the Weird Sisters... People said it was the best opening act in a century."
"I didn't expect that we could actually see them in Hogwarts. The headmaster is really amazing..."
"Of course, that's Dumbledore..."
The students walked out of the auditorium and prepared to return to their respective common rooms while excitedly discussing what had just happened.
But before they left the hall, a shrill howl suddenly came from the direction of the stairs.
The sound was so sharp that it made your scalp tingle.
The noise of the crowd gradually died down...
"What was that sound just now?" someone asked.
"It's Mrs. Norris."
Someone said: "My scalp goes numb when I hear the sound of it, it can't be wrong."
"Could it be that it has caught someone violating school rules again... But, we are all in the auditorium!"
"It is also possible that some dangerous magical animal escaped from the Forbidden Forest... There was something wrong with the sound that Mrs. Norris made just now. It was exactly the same as when my cat was frightened."
"Just go and see and you will find out..."
Driven by curiosity, the crowd began to speed up and rushed to the stairs where the sound came from, wanting to see what was going on.
Anyway, the banquet has just ended and everyone is free to do nothing. As for the possible danger... no one cares about it at all.
At this time, another howl was heard, and people followed the sound to the third floor.
In an empty corridor, they finally saw Mrs. Norris.
It was standing on a statue at the end of the aisle, with its back hunched and its hair standing on end, looking like a hedgehog.
There were words graffitied on the wall behind it, which glowed faintly in the light of the burning torches.
[The secret room has been opened,
Those who are enemies of the heir, beware. 】
Harry, Ron and Hermione stood stiffly in front of the wall, looking at the crowd in panic.
Harry seemed to want to explain something, but as soon as he turned his head, Mrs. Norris started howling at him.
Now people finally knew what the screaming was about.
"Click..."
Colin Creevey squeezed through the crowd, holding his camera.
"Harry, I've been looking for you. Why didn't you go to the banquet in the Great Hall?"
Harry also wanted to explain, but Mrs. Norris didn't give him the chance at all. Now, if they even moved a little, the cat would rush up and bite the three of them.
Harry had never seen such a nimble cat. Both he, Ron and Hermione had long bloody scratches on their bodies.
And for some reason, they can't resist yet.
"Excuse me, excuse me..." Kyle also squeezed out of the crowd.
He had come here just to join in the fun, but when he saw the words on the wall clearly, his pupils suddenly shrank.
Chamber of Secrets?
How can this be?
Riddle's diary was still in his box, and he always carried that box with him, so it was impossible for anyone else to get into it.
But this scene before my eyes...what is going on!
Kyle's mind was in a mess and he didn't even notice what Connor was saying next to him.
He walked over subconsciously.
Mrs. Loris, who always had a good relationship with Kyle, did not give him face this time. She turned around and growled at him, revealing her sharp claws.
Kyle stopped and didn't go any further.
Only when he got closer did he notice that the place where Mrs. Norris was standing was not a statue at all. It was clearly Filch, but he was curled up and motionless with his head down, so he was not recognized at first sight.
Others followed.
"Those who are enemies of the heir, beware! You will be the next one, mud..."
Draco Malfoy seemed to have thought of something, but in the end he didn't say the word.
But his cold eyes became lively, and his usually bloodless face turned red, and he looked at Hermione with a sinister smile.
In the crowd, Kyle frowned and felt even more confused. If Filch's current state was not caused by the petrification curse... then it could only be a basilisk.
"No, something must be wrong." Kyle thought to himself.
Just as he was about to go to Myrtle's bathroom on the second floor to check the situation, the professor came...
"What happened here!"
The crowd automatically parted a path, and Dumbledore walked over, followed by other professors. In just a blink of an eye, he passed through the crowd and walked in front of Filch.
Mrs. Norris finally stopped being angry, jumped to the ground, and stood quietly at Dumbledore's feet.
"Now, everyone go back to the dorms!"
Dumbledore said, "As for you, Mr. Potter, Mr. Weasley, Miss Granger, follow me. I need your help with something."
Lockhart stepped forward anxiously.
"My office is the closest to here, Principal. It's upstairs... and I have done a deep study of this kind of black magic. When I was in the Custer tribe, I helped the people there solve similar situations. At that time, they..."
"Thank you, Gilderoy, and go to your office."
Dumbledore interrupted him and said, "Could you please notify Madam Pomfrey at the hospital wing? I think she needs to come over."
"Of course, Headmaster."
The crowd again parted a path to allow them to pass.
Lockhart was very excited and walked hurriedly towards the school hospital with a proud look on his face.
The other professors followed Dumbledore out, and asked the prefects around them to take everyone back to the common room.
After the professors left, the crowd suddenly became noisy, and everyone was discussing what had happened to Filch.
And what about that so-called secret room?
There were the most people around Malfoy, but he just smiled smugly and said nothing.