Sharing the Spotlight

"Look over there!"

Despite the cover of darkness, many students still noticed the Ford car flying overhead.

Professor McGonagall, who was welcoming the new students at the entrance, also stepped down the stone steps, looked up at the direction where the car had disappeared, and frowned deeply.

That's the direction of the Forbidden Forest, which is not good news.

Percy, after getting off the carriage, immediately walked up to Professor McGonagall Professor McGonagall he saw her at the door, like a student tattling to his teacher.

When Albert and the others entered, they heard Percy talking to Professor McGonagall about the Ford car. Albert clearly saw the muscles twitching on Professor McGonagall's face; the Deputy Headmaster was obviously very angry.

There's no way around it; everyone would assume that Harry Potter and Ron Weasley driving a flying Ford to school was purely for showing off.

"Alright, everyone, go inside, the banquet is about to begin!"

Professor McGonagall called out to the students who were still peering toward the Forbidden Forest. Then she summoned Nearly Headless Nick, and told him to go and report the matter to Dumbledore.

In the Great Hall, Dumbledore, having received the message from Nearly Headless Nick, fell into a brief silence. Several professors beside him also began to whisper among themselves upon hearing this.

"Severus."

Dumbledore turned to Snape, who was sitting not far away, and said, "I need you to find Mr. Potter and Mr. Weasley and bring them back to school. Hopefully, they haven't gone too far."

"Need my help?" Lockhart ignored the strange looks from his colleagues and offered with a smile, "Finding people is my specialty. I once tracked down the Yeti in the Himalayas and successfully located it."

"No need, Gilderoy," Dumbledore politely declined. "You've only just arrived at the school, and you need to meet everyone tonight."

"You're too lenient, which is why they're ignoring the laws restricting underage wizards from using magic," Snape added. "Perhaps they should be expelled so that all students can learn from this."

"Thank you for the suggestion, Severus. I think we need to find them first and figure out what's going on."

"I will find them."

Snape understood Dumbledore's unspoken meaning, stood up from the High Table, and walked away with a gloomy face to find Harry Potter, who liked to cause trouble everywhere.

On the way, Snape overheard many students talking about coming to school by car. For most students, whether it violated School Rules or was dangerous was secondary; in their eyes, coming to school by car was just too cool.

Finding the two students wasn't actually that difficult for Snape. The Tracking Charm allowed Snape to quickly locate the Ford car, which had crashed into the Whomping Willow and was being brutally beaten by the magic tree.

However, the fact that the two people in the car were unharmed relieved Snape.

Watching the Whomping Willow wielding its branches to beat up the car, Snape recalled an unpleasant incident. Just as he was about to rescue the Ford from under the Whomping Willow's branches, Potter and Weasley had already escaped the Whomping Willow's attack and narrowly escaped.

Seeing the two disheveled figures and the Ford car driving away alone, Snape had no intention of showing up for the time being. He cast a Disillusionment Charm on himself and silently followed the exhausted two back to the castle.

Seeing the two disheveled figures, Snape felt inexplicably good.

Albert was not in such a good mood as Snape.

The youngest International Wizard's Chess Champion has never felt so popular.

Along the way, many students came over to greet him, seemingly wanting to say a few words to him. People around him secretly watched him, huddled together and whispered among themselves, the whispers of students echoing throughout the corridor.

Albert could only pretend he didn't see or hear them and simply ignore them.

"It's hard to imagine that someone would drive to school."

Shanna was chatting with Aylia and Angelina when she saw Albert and the others. She greeted them with a smile, "Congratulations on becoming the youngest Wizard's Chess champion. Newspapers and weekly magazines have been talking about you for most of the summer."

Albert felt a stomachache upon hearing this; the corridor had finally come to an end.

Four long college dining tables were set up in the Great Hall, with candles floating above them, illuminating the excited faces of the students.

Everyone was chatting excitedly, exchanging news from the summer vacation, or loudly greeting friends from other colleges.

Of course, most of the students were talking about the Ford car that had just been driven by the car. Although very few people actually noticed it, the news had already spread among the students.

Albert and his friends left the crowd and sat down at the Gryffindor table. The girls chattered and asked Albert about things from abroad.

Compared to news about people arriving at school by car, Albert's romantic scandals are more likely to attract girls' attention.

Today, Albert, who has won the International Wizard's Chess Champion and is famous, has a great attraction for all girls.

Albert could only offer vague accounts of his experiences abroad; as for his love life, sorry, nothing like that. He was a very focused person—how could he have a foreign girlfriend? "There's an empty seat in the High Table," Fred whispered to his companion after sitting down. "Snape seems to be missing?"

"Maybe he's sick," Lee Jordan said maliciously.

"Don't be silly, Snape's probably gone to find Potter and Weasley." Albert interrupted, looking at his friend who was speculating whether Snape had been fired. "Someone has to go find out where those two have gone."

Soon, the Great Hall quieted down, and Professor McGonagall began to preside over the Sorting Ceremony.

The Sorting Hat began to sing its new song, which it had been working on for a year, and freshmen were assigned to their respective colleges amidst applause.

However, just as the Sorting Ceremony was halfway through, whispers suddenly broke out in the Great Hall. Someone saw Harry and Ron appear at the entrance of the Great Hall, and then they were taken away by Snape who suddenly appeared.

Without a doubt, the student who arrived at school in a Ford was none other than the famous Harry Potter and his good friend Ron Weasley.

Amidst the students' whispers, the Sorting Hat continued to work.

When Ginny Weasley was sorted into Gryffindor, Percy led the applause and exclaimed in an exaggerated tone, "Great, Ginny, fantastic!"

This made Ginny a little embarrassed, and she looked down at the plate in front of her.

Shortly after the Sorting Hat ceremony, Snape hurriedly returned, stopping Dumbledore, who was about to say a few words.

The Great Hall fell into a deathly silence, everyone staring at Snape, who was talking to Dumbledore.

The students in the front row could vaguely hear things like: "I found them... The car hit the Whomping Willow... They're okay... They're in my office," and so on.

Then, Professor McGonagall left with Snape.

After Dumbledore said a few words and announced the start of the banquet, he quickly left behind Snape and Professor McGonagall.

What did they say?

"It seems that Potter and Weasley hit the Whomping Willow with their car. They're okay and are in his Potions Office."

"I dare say this will be a topic of conversation for years to come," Lee Jordan said excitedly. "Maybe we should turn this into a wizard card."

"Okay, whatever makes you happy." Albert began to enjoy his food, not wanting to join in the discussion around him.

When the three professors returned to the Great Hall, Harry and Ron were not seen, and many people were discussing whether they had been expelled.

During the meal, people focused on three things: Albert winning the International Wizard's Chess Champion, the new Defence Against the Dark Arts Professor Gerald Lockhart, Harry Potter arriving at school by car.

Albert skillfully diverted the girls' attention to Lockhart.

The various stories of this handsome middle-aged man are very attractive to the girls.

Undeniably, handsome young men or beautiful and elegant young women are more popular.

Although Albert is handsome enough, he already has a girlfriend, so there's no chance for other girls.

Before the banquet ended, Dumbledore announced that Gilderoy Lockhart would fill the vacancy for the Defence Against the Dark Arts course.

Lockhart has been warmly welcomed by many girls, which shows that he is quite popular among them.

"What's wrong?" Lee Jordan noticed the strange expression on Albert's face and asked in a low voice.

"This year's Defense Against the Dark Arts is probably doomed," Albert said silently, his lips trembling slightly.

On the corridor leading to the secret entrance to the Gryffindor Tower, Fred couldn't help but ask, "You think Lockhart isn't good at Defence Against the Dark Arts?"

"I don't have a very good impression of Lockhart," Albert said. "And you probably haven't noticed how the other professors treat him."

"What attitude?" George asked curiously, he really hadn't noticed.

"How disgusting," Albert said with a strange expression. "Even Snape didn't get this kind of treatment."

"Password?"

As they approached the painting, the Fat Lady in the pink silk dress asked a question.

"The password is ' Honey-eating bird '," George explained, noticing the others' puzzled looks. "I asked Percy for it."

In the Gryffindor Common Room, many students hadn't gone back to sleep yet and were all crowded there waiting for them.

"You're really popular."

"Don't be silly, they're waiting for Harry Potter." Albert couldn't help but roll his eyes.

"They haven't gone back to the Common Room yet?"

"Many people say that the two of them have been expelled from school," an older boy answered Lee Jordan's question.

"No, I'm going upstairs now. You guys keep waiting. Goodnight!" With that, he squeezed towards the door at the other end of the Common Room, preparing to return to his bedroom via the spiral staircase.

As Albert changed into his pajamas to rest, he heard a burst of enthusiastic applause from downstairs, indicating that Harry and Ron had returned to the Common Room.

"That's good, someone's helping to share the burden," Albert muttered, looking at the cat bed that the House-elf had carefully cleaned, and suddenly missed his own Tom.