Having learned Grindelwald's spell, Hoffa bid Joey farewell and raced back toward the school. He hoped to tell Gorshak about it and learn more about Miller and Grindelwald.
Yet when he arrived at the school, panting for breath, it had suddenly become empty. He ran to his Charms classroom, but it too was deserted.
Wanting to ask the other teachers, he ran to the third floor, where most of the staff offices were located. Not only was there no one there, but Slughorn's office door stood wide open. The room inside was a complete mess, its precious artifacts smashed to pieces in a terrifying display.
Hoffa stepped over the shards of glass on the floor and peered inside. There was no one in the office. A flicker of unease rose in his heart.
What was going on?
He rushed toward the Great Hall. By the time he got there, he finally spotted one or two upper-year students hurrying down the corridor.
Hoffa quickly grabbed one of them and asked anxiously, "Hey, where is everyone? The teachers and students?"
The student looked at him as if he were an idiot.
"Are you stupid? Today's the Quidditch final. Why would you stay here instead of watching it?"
The final?
Hoffa was confused.
He remembered the date of the Quidditch final perfectly. Argeleia had reminded him of it almost every day. It was supposed to be next week, so why had it suddenly been moved up by a week?
"Professor Dumbledore moved the final up. It's normal that you didn't know."
A Hufflepuff girl beside him smacked the boy, then said gently to Hoffa, "Today is the school's Quidditch final. Ravenclaw is playing Gryffindor. Do you want to come watch with us?"
The final... Were Gorshak and the other professors watching the Quidditch