Hogwarts' Many Clubs

After leaving Umbridge's office, Kyle strode down the corridor toward the Great Hall.

It was already noon, and the Great Hall was full of people who had come to have lunch.

Around the Hufflepuff table, team members, including Cedric, were sitting together discussing the new players who had joined that morning.

Upon seeing Kyle, Cedric quickly moved aside to make room for him.

"How's your confinement with Professor Umbridge? Has she been giving you any trouble?"

"What did Umbridge ask you to do?"

After Kyle sat down, the people around him began to ask him questions.

"Not bad," Kyle said after a pause, "I wrote the sentence five hundred times."

"It's alright..." Cedric said, "It's not too bad."

"Yes," Kyle nodded, "But five hundred times is a bit much. Ten sheets of parchment, it feels like writing a really long assignment."

"It's already pretty good," Kanna comforted him, pushing a plate of pies towards him. "Would you like some pies?"

"Thanks, I've been hungry for an hour." Kyle off a piece and put it in his mouth.

The beef pie, with added onions and pepper, tasted pretty good.

"By the way," he said, looking at Cedric, "How are the new players doing this year?"

"It's so-so," Cedric said. "We haven't found any incredibly talented players this year. The only decent one is a third-year goalkeeper."

"Davy was flying quite well in fifth grade, but she didn't seem to value Quidditch. During the selection process, she made it clear that team training couldn't overlap with her ' Charm Club ' schedule, otherwise she would prioritize the club over training."

"Wait, what club did you just mention?" Kyle asked, looking up.

"Charm Club," Cedric repeated.

"Does Hogwarts really have such an organization?" Kyle asked, puzzled.

"Not only are there, but there are quite a few," Cedric said. "For example, there are Wizard's Chess clubs, gorgeous robe clubs, and afternoon tea clubs, and so on."

"These have nothing to do with the professor; they were all spontaneously formed by students with shared interests. They have fixed times and places for activities. I even joined the Wizard's Chess Club when I was in fourth grade."

"How come I've never heard of this before?"

"Do you have time to attend these events?" Cedric countered.

Kyle was momentarily speechless. He had indeed been quite busy. Just attending the professors' club every week was enough to keep him occupied, and he also had to squeeze in time for team training and studying Ancient Runes. In the end, he left all his remaining time for homework.

He did have time last school year, but back then he was Champion representing Hogwarts, so no one would bring up such trivial matters with him.

And now that he thinks about it, Kyle vaguely remembers people discussing what activities they were going to participate in while in the common room, but he didn't pay much attention to it at the time.

"I see..." Kyle nodded, then looked at Kanna curiously and asked, "Did you join that Charm Club?"

"No," Kanna said. "This is the first time I've heard this name."

"Me too," Kyle laughed. "It seems this club isn't as authoritative as I thought."

Kanna couldn't help but laugh out loud.

"I advise you to be careful. You can't assume others aren't authoritative just because you weren't invited."

Cedric said, "There are quite a few people in the 'charm' group, and it's very difficult to join; you have to go through a series of tests."

Kyle glanced at him. "So, Qiu is one of them too?"

Cedric paused for a moment. "Well, it's not exactly authoritative."

He couldn't help but chuckle as soon as he finished speaking.

"But one thing I'm not wrong about is that there are quite a few of them," Cedric continued. "Besides Flora, there's also Gryffindor's Vicky, who is also participating in the selection and flies very well as well."

"However, Captain Angelina did not accept her, but instead chose Ron Weasley, who was mediocre in all aspects."

"I think this might be a deliberate facade they're putting on... after all, the Weasley family has produced quite a few outstanding members."

"Maybe you're overthinking it," Kyle said. "Besides, perfect teamwork can bridge the gap in individual player skill. There's still some time before the first game; we can just have a few more practice sessions."

"That's what I think too," Cedric said.

In the afternoon, a few people who had nothing to do went to the lawn outside.

Fred and George wanted to check if Hagrid had returned. Their Skiving Snackboxes line needed some special poisonous berries as raw materials, which were available in the Forbidden Forest. Picking them themselves would save them a lot of money.

However, when they got there, Hagrid's Hut was still tightly closed, and there was not a sound inside, making it seem as if no one was there.

"Looks like Hagrid isn't back yet," Fred said. "I really want to know what he's up to."

"Let's not think about that now." George seemed a little excited. "Don't you think this is a great opportunity?"

"Hagrid's absence means the Forbidden Forest is unguarded. Why can't we go in and gather berries ourselves?"

"Hey, I'm saying," Cedric glanced at the two of them, "Are you two sure it's okay to say this in front of us?"

Fred and George then realized that there were four Prefect around them.

Furthermore, Prefect can disregard the college's rules; that is, if someone violates school rules and is caught, points can be deducted even if the Prefect is not from their own college.

"Can you pretend you didn't see anything?" George said with a grin. "After all, it's a rare opportunity, and we just wanted to pick some berries."

"Is it really just about gathering berries?" Qiu was skeptical of their words.

"Of course," Fred said. "We promise."

"I promise to only take berries, but I don't guarantee how far we'll go, right?" Kyle added quietly.

The poisonous berries needed for the Skiving Snackboxes aren't rare; they can be found both on the outskirts and deep within the Forbidden Forest.

Given their adventurous nature, they would definitely choose the deepest ones.

Seeing that their plan had been exposed, Fred and George were not embarrassed, but before they could even make excuses, a stern voice came from not far away.

"What are you doing!"

Professor Grubbly-Plank emerged from the Forbidden Forest carrying two large buckets, looking at them warily.

"Students are not allowed in the Forbidden Forest. Go back now, or I'll tell Professor McGonagall."

"No, we're here to see Professor Hagrid," George said quickly. "Where is he?"

"They're here to see Hagrid again," Professor Grubbly-Plank muttered under his breath, then shook his head and said, "I don't know, but you'd better get back to the castle quickly. Students shouldn't be here except for the Care of Magical Creatures."

"Okay, Professor, we'll be leaving now," Cedric said.

The group then headed towards the castle, with Fred and George following behind.

"She doesn't seem very approachable," Fred muttered to himself. "I still prefer Hagrid."

"Yes," George agreed.

"That's not what you said before." Cho looked at them with amusement. "Didn't you always complain that Hagrid guarded the Forbidden Forest too tightly and that you couldn't sneak in?"

"But at least he's willing to listen to us finish what we have to say."

"Sometimes we even go into the Forbidden Forest to help bring out what we need."