Chapter 118: Complaints
"Mr. Black, please proceed to the Headmaster's office..."
McGonagall's Patronus scattered in front of me, and with a sigh, I set aside the book I was reading.
"What happened?"
Fleur rose slightly from the bed and looked at me attentively.
"Who the hell knows..."
I shrugged.
*...but judging by McGonagall's voice, she's a bit displeased. I don't know exactly why. So I suppose I should hurry. Perhaps the matter will be somewhat...*
I winced.
*...unpleasant.*
After straightening my clothes with a couple of spells, I hurried to the Headmaster's office. They were already waiting for me. There was a displeased McGonagall, an angry Flitwick, and Granger, who looked extremely uncomfortable.
"So, Mr. Black..."
The moment I entered his office, Dumbledore began to speak.
"...a complaint has been filed against you."
I raised an eyebrow questioningly.
"A complaint?"
"Yes. Through my deputy..."
Dumbledore nodded toward McGonagall.
"...a complaint came to my desk claiming that because you are a rabid Muggle-hater, and because you hate Muggle-born students, you are lowering those students' grades."
"May I ask how many signatures this document has?"
"Twenty."
"Oh..."
I nodded.
*...I believe I could even name, with some confidence, about half of the students who signed that complaint. And by the way, most of them are either half-bloods or pure-bloods.*
"Well, we are not discussing their blood status at the moment, but you are correct..."
"So?"
"What do you mean, so?"
Dumbledore looked at me with slight amusement in his eyes.
"Well, what is required of me? To give up my powers as a professor? I don't mind..."
I shrugged.
Considering that I had already passed my exams for this year, it would free up a great deal of extra time for self-development. True, Mentor would be upset. He had already gotten used to me slacking off...
At this, Flitwick snorted loudly, showing he hadn't taken offense and had instead taken my words as a joke.
"To begin with, I would like to hear your explanation..."
"Well, since Miss Granger is present here, I assume she was the initiator of this inquiry. So I propose we examine the matter using her case. Do you agree?"
"Yes."
Dumbledore nodded.
"Well, then, I will describe how the situation looks from my point of view. Miss Granger, in her world, was used to the idea that in a written test, it was enough to simply write down terms from the textbook and receive the highest mark. When I saw her answers on my test, I noted that I would accept such work from her for the first and last time, because if I need to read a textbook, I'll do that, but in a test, I want to see whether she understands the material."
"Well, in general..."
Dumbledore stroked his beard.
"...that is a rather reasonable approach. Warning a student about the standards you hold. So, for now, I see nothing especially strange."
"I thought so too, but after class, Miss Granger came to me and essentially told me that I was teaching incorrectly. That she had done everything right and that my complaints about her were unfounded."
Dumbledore frowned slightly.
"Remembering that Miss Granger came to us from another world, and that there she had some sort of conflict with my alternate version, I decided not to try to convince her I was right on my own. Instead, I summoned Professor Flitwick, who, after reading her test, confirmed that I was correct."
"Professor?"
Dumbledore looked at Flitwick, and Flitwick nodded.
"Yes, that is so..."
"Mr. Black, Professor Flitwick, you should be gentler with the girl. She's under stress because she's become a traveler between worlds."
"Well, I don't think we were being harsh..."
I shrugged.
"...I simply said that MY requirements, as a teacher, are that students write tests in their own words instead of stupidly reproducing what was written in the textbook from memory. I even gave her an Acceptable, though for other students, I would only have given that grade if they had answered every question, even with similar answers. If they, like Miss Granger, had answered about eighty percent, I would have given them a Poor."
"Well..."
Dumbledore nodded thoughtfully.
"...Miss Granger, is that how it happened?"
"Yes."
She nodded.
"And what, then, prompted you to write this complaint?"
Dumbledore lifted the parchment between two fingers.
"The fact that it's unfair! He treats me this way only because I'm Muggle-born! And I have witnesses who confirm that he is prejudiced against Muggle-borns! There are signatures!"
"Well then... all right... So you are dissatisfied with Professor Black as a teacher and Professor Flitwick as Head of House. Who else are you dissatisfied with?"
"I don't..."
Granger seemed to start realizing that this wasn't about my professional suitability at all, but about her suitability as a student.
"I didn't..."
"You did not say it, but you did it."
Dumbledore's voice was like thunder rolling through the mountains.
"You called into question not only Professor Black's words, but also the words of the Head of the House you study in. Of course, you still know very little about our world, but both these professors enjoy well-earned authority in Ravenclaw, and in the other Houses as well. And now you have effectively declared to all the students that their favorite teachers are nothing to you."
"I didn't..."
"You, Miss Granger, have just driven YOUR reputation into the ground."
"Headmaster, the only thing lower than the baseboards around here is Sixth Weasley's reputation. Though, yes, an act like this does lower Miss Granger's reputation almost to that level."
"Draco..."
McGonagall looked at me reproachfully.
"No? What, am I wrong? In these two and a half years, he's already done so much ridiculous nonsense..."
I shook my head.
"All right, let's leave that topic for now. What are we going to do?"
"Well..."
I shrugged.
"...I actually have only one suggestion, and it's probably the right one. Well, more precisely, I have two, but the second isn't exactly proper..."
I fell silent, and the Headmaster nodded at me, signaling he wanted to hear what I had to propose.
"Well, look. The right option would be to announce this complaint in the Great Hall..."
Granger shrank into herself, understanding that after that, her life at Hogwarts would turn into hell. She wanted to say something, but under Dumbledore's gaze, she simply didn't dare open her mouth.
"...and since all the signatories are dissatisfied with the quality of teaching at Hogwarts, we'll bring them in for exams twice a year. So to speak, we'll create a fifth House, and their successes and failures will be recorded by people completely unrelated to us. We won't even check their homework."
Dumbledore winced slightly.
"They would become pariahs..."
"Well..."
"...they wanted this themselves..."
"I suppose not quite like this."
He shook his head.
"The second option is that we simply burn this complaint in your fireplace."
"And you won't treat Miss Granger any worse?"
"Um..."
I looked at the Headmaster, not understanding.
"Worse? She's nobody to me. I treated her like a stranger before, and I'll keep treating her that way."
"Well... I suppose we could take this course of action... if, of course, Miss Granger is not opposed. After all, she may wish to proceed with the first option..."
"No!"
The panic in Granger's voice was unmistakable. She had already realized what she had gotten herself into and how badly it could end for her.
"You do not wish to destroy your complaint?"
"I agree! I agree to destroy it!"
"Very well..."
Dumbledore nodded.
"...but I want to note that we are meeting you halfway for the first and last time. Do you understand?"
"Yes..."
She quickly nodded.
"Good. Then you are free to go..."
Hermione practically flew out of the office, and Dumbledore sighed sadly as he watched her rush out.
"Draco..."
"Yes?"
I looked at the Headmaster quizzically.
"Don't hold a grudge against the girl... a great deal has fallen on her shoulders..."
I shrugged.
"I wasn't going to. She's just an ordinary student, but I'm afraid that even without this, she'll have a lot of problems now. Surely someone won't be able to hold back and will secretly tell their friends what document she signed... As Muggles like to say, two can keep a secret if one of them is dead."
"That's true..."
"By the way, Headmaster..."
"Yes?"
"Perhaps by the end of this year, I will be able to solve your big problem."
"Mine?"
"Potter."
Dumbledore flinched.
More precisely, I'll be able to solve part of that problem. If I continue training with the same intensity, by the end of the year, I'll be able to unravel the natural protection that has formed around the Horcrux, and we can surgically remove it from the boy's skull.
"Albus?!"
McGonagall looked at Dumbledore in shock and disbelief.
"Draco..."
"What? At this point, there's no point in hiding it. Of course, the operation will be complicated. We'll need more than just Madam Pomfrey. Ideally, we should bring in Muggle specialists in brain surgery, but overall, even now, I can say we have every chance of solving this matter."
"That's good..."
Dumbledore nodded.
"That isn't just good, that's very good. If we gather all the Horcruxes in one place, then the Lord will become mortal without even knowing it."
"That won't help much..."
Dumbledore shook his head.
"He has always been a VERY powerful wizard. I can still compete with him, of course, but defeat him? Not anymore..."
The Headmaster shook his head.
"Albus, he has always feared you..."
"He has..."
Albus nodded in agreement.
"...but he feared me only because I was strong and experienced enough to stand against him. However, by the end of the last war, he was already powerful enough to defeat me, even if it would have required almost all his strength, and the fight itself wouldn't have been simple."
"Well, I suppose we can try sending curses at him through the Horcruxes, and also create something that will help track the creation of new ones."
"Do you think he will dare?"
Dumbledore looked at me sadly.
"I think so... he is no longer human... more precisely, he has very little in common with us. So he will at least try. And this could all end very badly... with each new chipped-off piece, he will become more and more insane. And in the end..."
"Yes..."
Dumbledore understood exactly what I wanted to say.
"...he may cause even more problems than the Convergence."
We fell silent.
"All right, Draco, you may go. Filius, I won't keep you either."
"But you and I, Albus, need to have a conversation about trust."
McGonagall interrupted her superior, planting her hands on her hips. He sighed sadly and nodded, indicating he agreed to speak frankly with her.
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