Black put down the magazine, walked to the window, and gazed toward the Quidditch Pitch. Suddenly, he asked:
"From what those Hufflepuff students who came last night said, you gave Hufflepuff a batch of new Nimbus Series Flying Broomsticks, and that was why they won last year?"
Douglas said seriously:
"Sirius, you can't think like that. It wasn't the new Flying Broomsticks that won them the tournament. They were capable in their own right. Otherwise, why didn't Slytherin win when they had new Flying Broomsticks too?"
Sirius suddenly looked delighted at this, then turned and asked:
"Do you think I should give Gryffindor a batch of Nimbus 2001s too, and give Harry a Firebolt of his own?"
Douglas said mildly:
"The Black family has money to burn. Give them whatever you like. Still, I suggest waiting until you've cleared your name so you can give them to Gryffindor openly. Otherwise, with you being a wanted criminal, Professor McGonagall won't be able to show off to anyone. Just think how miserable she'd be."
Sirius froze for a moment.
By Sunday, the first batch of successful Detective Club applicants had been decided.
Harry had originally wanted to apply for a dedicated clubroom, but Hermione stopped him.
Ever since visiting the Room of Requirement, Hermione had searched through all the materials related to Hogwarts Castle, yet found no description of that room.
But she felt that since there was a proper way to open it, quite a few people must have been inside.
Once, while resting in the Room of Requirement and doing some Potions Class homework, she had been surprised to discover that when she thought about conducting a Potions experiment, the room, which had originally only offered enough space for one young witch to rest, suddenly grew by half its size.