The clash in Hogsmeade Village-or rather, the war-had inflicted the heaviest casualties on both sides since the conflict began. Dumbledore had originally intended to settle everything in a single battle.
Naturally, that meant fighting without regard for their lives, until everyone was either dead or wounded. Even Dumbledore had been injured by Voldemort's dark magic during their duel.
At that year's Halloween Feast, Dumbledore had, unusually, offered no remarks and simply told everyone to begin eating.
Only a few days earlier, the wound on his arm had still been oozing an unending stream of black blood. Over the following days, it had taken several drops of phoenix tears, combined with other magic, to finally remove the dark magic curse. Phoenix tears were among the finest remedies in the world for wounds and poison, but breaking curses was not their strength.
Even now, Dumbledore's face was so pale that scarcely a trace of color remained.
Several other professors had also been affected. That Christmas, they made no changes to their attire, nor were there any smiles on their faces.
And that was only what showed on the surface.
After Manus's clash with Slytherin house that day, there should originally have been further steps beyond Slughorn's immediate handling of the incident, such as calling him in for a talk and asking for a detailed account.
Yet so much time had passed without any follow-up. Clearly, the professors had long since put the matter out of their minds.
It was not just the professors. The Slytherins should also have come looking for trouble with Manus again. Detention and lost points might not have been entirely ineffective as deterrents, but they came close.
Now, however, Voldemort's side had lost over a hundred that day. Even excluding the dark creatures, more than fifty Death Eaters