The identity of the Professor of Defense Against the Dark Arts piqued the curiosity of all the viewers.
Because, based on the number of seats in the High Table during the live broadcast, unless Ms. Filch in this world is also a professor, it simply doesn't match up.
Therefore, there is only one possibility: the Professor of Defense Against the Dark Arts did not attend the dinner.
Adding to the earlier mention of Kitrell Lockhart by Harley, it's highly likely that Voldemort's curse on the Professor of Defense Against the Dark Arts still exists.
Even Voldemort was very curious as to why he, a hero and magnanimous figure in this world, would do something so petty.
Therefore, anyone who knows the inside story knows that the Professor of Defense Against the Dark Arts who did not attend the banquet must be a stranger.
After all, the timeline here is 1996. Moody's, which joined in 1994, must have left long ago for reasons unknown.
At that moment, Harry, stepping into the classroom, also considered this possibility.
Since he no longer had myopia, he blinked his large, green eyes at the podium without wearing glasses.
He instinctively took a half step back.
Sirius Black!
Sirius in this world!
She's actually the Professor of Defense Against the Dark Arts!
(Sirius grasped Lupin's hand. "Am I a professor?")
("That's possible. Lily and James are fine in this world, and it's not surprising that you became a professor since you've never been to Azkaban." Lupin withdrew his hand. "I'm Werewolf, and I've been a professor too. What's the big deal?")
(Snape noticed something interesting and a smile crept onto his face.)
Upon noticing the gaze directed at him, Sirius Black on the stage also took a half-step back.
"James!"
Harley blushed. "Please note, Professor Black, you are married. My father's name is not something you can casually mention!"
The classroom suddenly became lively.
Everyone started whispering.
Ignoring Harley's sarcasm, Sirius stared intently at Harry.
She only noticed the fear on Harry's face. 'Are you serious about taking that half-step back? I'm Sirius, James.'
(Lupin shifted his position, moving a few steps away from Sirius, and said, "Sirius, you really like James in this world.")
(Snape, a look of satisfaction on his face, said, "As expected, you're a madman no matter which world you're in.")
Harry's appearance had become much more refined due to the changes to the "roads," and since he no longer wore glasses, Harley didn't notice the resemblance between Harry and her father.
But Sirius was different. Unable to marry Lupin, she saw James's shadow in Harry at first glance. Even though Harry had Lily's green eyes, which she hated the most, she was still captivated by him and couldn't extricate herself.
Draco noticed the odd look in Sirius's eyes, gave a soft snort, and stepped in front of Harry.
"Why are you looking at my boyfriend, you old woman!"
("Well said!" Snape stood up and applauded.)
Harley finally realized the reason for Sirius's outburst— Harry's face, which resembled James Peverell's.
"Harry, your mother looks like my mother," she recalled the conversation on the train, "And you look like my father?"
The relationships were so complicated that they confused her.
Sirius finally came to his senses.
Ignoring Draco's offense, she suppressed her embarrassment and asked Harry tenderly, "What's your name?"
"Harry, Harry Potter." Harry, hiding behind Draco, tried to remain calm.
The 'godfather' before him had a more feminine face, not as disgusting as a man dressed as a woman, and could even be considered beautiful, but Harry still couldn't get over it.
The last time I felt this disgusted was when I saw Snape Boggart dressed as Neville's grandmother in Defense Against the Dark Arts class last year.
But back then it was mostly joyful, completely different from now.
Lily inside the Magic Immortal Artifact was also disgusting. Before and after she got together with James, Sirius kept talking bad about her.
Could it be that Sirius harbors Dumbledore -like feelings for James?
But because of Harry's presence, she, as a mother, couldn't directly swear.
Sirius's expression softened. "Harry, if Harley were a boy, this would be her name."
"That's amazing. I heard your mother is similar to her, and you—" She forced herself to look away from Harry's face, remembering her role as a professor, "Excuse me, students, I just mistook a friend for someone else."
"Harley, you're going too far. I'm already Remus's wife. James and I are just friends."
Harley pouted.
None of the witches present believed Sirius's words. Pure friendship between witches and wizards? Who would believe that?
The Defense Against the Dark Arts class began in this strange atmosphere.
"By now, you've probably had five different teachers for this course."
"Needless to say, these teachers all have their own teaching methods and teaching focuses."
"You are all undoubtedly excellent. It's amazing that so many of you passed the OWLs exam for this course, even in such a chaotic situation."
"But you should not be complacent, the advanced course is much more advanced."
"Dark Magic," Sirius paused, "Is, as the name suggests, a kind of extremely evil magic that requires extreme malice to be successfully cast."
"It can corrupt people's hearts, making them indulge in negative emotions, and over time turn them into little monsters who are obsessed with Dark Magic."
(Snape trembled with rage, "She's a disgrace to the world! How can she be a teacher? This Dumbledore truly lives up to her title of witch!")
"Therefore, the defense against Dark Magic is not just about defending against the invasion of Dark Magic and dark creatures, but more importantly, about fighting against the dark side within oneself and maintaining the light in one's heart."
Harley's displeasure with Sirius led Harley to start picking a fight. She raised her hand and said, "But don't we have spell cards? The reverse emotional contagion from high-level spells, including Dark Magic, isn't a big problem for us."
"It's just that you need to put in the right emotions when you make it for the first time."
Sirius's face darkened, and he almost cursed out loud, "You Doxy!"
The face that looked so much like Lily Evans, coupled with Harley's provocative expression, almost made her lose her temper instantly.
But her love for James, and the face of the boy named Harry Potter not far away, made her suppress the Beast within her.
She took a deep breath. "If you only want to be users of magic, that's fine."
"But you are in the advanced class. As ordinary users, you cannot get an O (excellent) in my course."
"Yes, it's a spell card for advanced spells, but you need to put the corresponding emotion into it when you create it for the first time."
"Subsequent use only requires a thought, inputting magic power."
"However, if you want to control your magic as skillfully as a truly masterful wizard, you must devote yourself entirely to magic itself, understand its nature, and follow its principles to drive the generation of magical phenomena."
"But directly engaging with magic and immersing oneself in it makes it too easy to be corrupted by it."
"At this time, the magic wand becomes the best helper."
"As a bridge between wizards and magic, the magic it receives will only make it more spiritual, and it may even automatically counterattack when facing enemies."
(Ollivander stroked his chin and smiled smugly. "Yes, that's it. The wand chooses the wizard, not the other way around.")
("The wand automatically counters?" Professor McGonagall frowned. "Dumbledore, is that really possible?")
(Dumbledore. "A wand learns the essence of its master, including their power and qualities. This is why wizards have always maintained the tradition of being buried with their wands after death. A wand that learns too much might cause a change of dynasty.")
("For example, Godelot sees his wand as a partner, even a mentor, someone knowledgeable in Wandlore. The wand becomes the master, and he becomes the user.")
"That's why wands have never disappeared from history; skilled wizards always keep their wands."
"Okay, we've gone on too much into irrelevant topics."
"Next, I will teach you the Patronus Charm, which is a strong shield against the corruption of Dark Magic and a Patronus of our Mind Stone."
"What I'm going to teach you first isn't its spell card model. To successfully summon Patronus with a physical body, you must have strong positive emotions. I suggest you think about the happiest thing in your life and concentrate before casting it."
"The creation of spell cards with incantations like these requires the infusion of emotion."
"Only when you successfully summon Patronus with a physical body can your emotional investment be considered satisfactory."
"So, everyone, pull out your wands."
Sirius's request clearly left most students at a loss. They had long forgotten about wands since they made their first spell card, leaving them relegated to the bottom of a box.
Many people grumbled, "What is this? They're actually learning to cast spells with a male witch's stick. It's so outdated."
Sirius wasn't angry; instead, he patted his chest and said, "Luckily, I was prepared."
With a wave of his right hand, rows of old, weathered wands appeared on the table.
"If you don't have a wand, come up and get one. You can use it for this class."
The classroom was immediately filled with the sound of chairs being moved, as the witches stood up one by one and went to the podium to get their wands.
Before long, all the students had magic wands in their hands.
Sirius waved again, and the chairs in the classroom moved and overlapped at the back of the classroom.
A cabinet appeared in front of the podium.
"Everyone line up in two rows."
"This is Boggart, which you should have learned about before, a non-existent thing that can take the shape of something that wizards fear."
"I used Confundus Charm to make it think that what you fear are all Dementor."
"Dementor?" Harley retorted again. "Are you crazy? This is Azkaban's guardian, a monster that drives dark witches mad! You actually brought it into the classroom?"
(Sirius frowned, "Just by changing the gender, why has Harley's attitude towards 'me' changed?")
(Lupin, standing to the side, thought to himself, "She really has no self-awareness. Would you like a woman who's always clinging to your father?")
Sirius took another deep breath, smoothing the frown lines between his brows.
"Dementor is a monster that can bring despair to people."
"At the same time, it is also a good training subject for the Patronus Charm. The guardian summoned by the Patronus Charm can act as a shield between wizards and Dementor."
"But only a physical Patronus with a flesh body can drive away Dementor."
"What the Patronus advocates—hope, joy, and the desire to live—is the food of the Dementor. If the Patronus is not formed, what you give the Dementor is only some more refined, processed food."
"You don't need to worry. The Dementor you see later are Boggart in disguise. They won't cause you any real harm."
"Alright, let's get down to business."
"The incantation is like this—" Sirius cleared his throat, "Patronus Charm."
"How do you swing a wand?" Harley poked again. "We just had Charms, but we know that the trajectory of the wand is very important."
"You Doxy, I'll tear your mouth apart!" That was all Sirius could think of at that moment.
But reason told her that Harley had another identity— James's daughter.
"You're all in sixth grade now, so you should know about the origins of magic," Sirius said through gritted teeth. "While most of it comes from the patterns on Fantastic Beasts, a small part is the product of wizards having a flash of inspiration, then deciphering and naming the Magic Script."
"The latter often lacks the requirement of the wand's swing trajectory, only the emotions and the incantation itself that need to be focused on when casting the spell."
"The Patronus Charm is such a spell."
("Is that so?" Ron, though he didn't know the Patronus Charm, had been exposed to it by those who used it. "Isn't the spell used by drawing a circle with the wand, taking a step forward, and then thrusting it forward? That's how Harry uses the Patronus Charm.")
(Ron's words, however, sounded completely different to Ginny: "Harry knows the Patronus Charm? He's going to get all the attention again? Roan and Draco must like him even more now.")
(Hermione ignored Ginny's words, "Perhaps it's because this world invented spell cards, so there's no way to deduce the wand swing trajectory of the Patronus Charm?")
"I see." Harley knew when to stop.
"Then I will repeat the incantation one more time. Say it after me, 'Patronus Charm.'"
"Patronus Charm!" the whole class shouted in unison.
"Good," Sirius said. "Very good. But that's only the easiest part. You know, just saying the spell isn't enough. That's up to you, Harry."
Harry had already hidden at the very back, doubted his ears.
Harley, who had already stepped forward and stood in front of the cabinet, was surprised to find that the person calling her name wasn't herself.
"Yes," Sirius nodded, "It's you Harry."
She actually had her own selfish reasons for doing this; before she got too angry with Harley, she wanted Harry to come first.
This allows him to concentrate fully on preventing him from getting hurt.
After all, Harry is a little wizard from the Muggle World.
Harry wanted to decline, but eventually he walked heavily to the counter.
He really wanted to say that he had already mastered the Patronus Charm.
He no longer wanted to show off; how could he concentrate on his mission if things continued like this?
Could it be that all the information is being gathered by Krum? If this continues, his contribution level will be in grave danger.