The Scottish Highlands.
The midday Halloween sunlight fell on Hogwarts' walls as though they had been coated in wax.
Of course, perhaps they really had been coated in wax.
After all, the dedicated Deputy Director Umbridge, as Hogwarts' Chief Acceptance Inspector, had always held herself to the highest standards.
Classes were unusually light that day.
Everyone was waiting for that evening's Christmas feast.
After lunch, most people were still in the Great Hall, sitting and chatting or studying.
When they saw owls flying in by the flock.
No one was particularly surprised.
Presumably, some pure-blood bigwig had expressed an opinion again.
And paid extra to have the Daily Prophet print it urgently.
When they saw the name Weasley.
Quite a few people in Slytherin glanced toward Gryffindor, but did not see whom they wanted to see.
Their faces were full of disappointment.
But the Great Hall soon fell quiet.
Ravenclaw's Padma Patil.
Quickly read through the newspaper.
After finishing it.
She pushed it toward Michael Corner beside her.
After reading it, he fell silent too.
Both came from half-blood wizarding backgrounds.
Padma Patil was even of Indian descent.
At the Hufflepuff table, Ernie Macmillan was spreading butter on his bread when he received the newspaper.
He glanced at the headline, and his butter knife stopped in midair.
"The price of arrogance: viewing our fading sunset through magical modernization across the Atlantic."
By Percy Ignatius Weasley, Senior Acceptance Assistant to the Director of the Ministry of Magic's Department of International Magical Cooperation.
Ernie put down his butter knife.
He began reading from the very first word.
The first- and second-year children flipped through their newspapers, could not really understand the figures and comparisons, and tossed them aside to continue eating.
The third-year students could understand some of it.
When they read,