Dumbledore expected many things when he made his plans and believed he was in control of the situation, but it was certainly not one of them that the philosopher's stone would disappear without a trace from the Mirror of Erised.
Flamel was going to break his legs for this!
Although the most unexpected part wasn't even that...
That Mr. Longbottom's toad appeared at Harry's last moment of danger, emerging from a cloud of smoke, and beat up a Voldemort-possessed Quirrel, helping Harry deliver the final blow, has him completely stunned!
What potions did Neville give to his pet to make it end up like this?
Wasn't it a toad specialized in fleeing?
When did he become so good and expert at hitting people?
Even he grimaced as the toad leaped into the air and performed an elbow drop aimed at Quirrell's crotch. Even Voldemort felt that ghostly pain!
So when the last banquet of the school year was held, where the holder of the House Cup was announced, Dumbledore found a way to relieve his stress and with his practiced eloquence, began handing out points to Gryffindor as if They were candy.
For his bravery in the face of the unknown, 20 points!
For his cleverness in the face of problems, 30 points!
For his camaraderie in times of need, 35 points!
For the boy in the third row, he finished his vegetables, 50 points!
For that girl who used the napkin and showed us all the importance of education at the table, 70 points!
For praising my beard and demonstrating Hogwarts unity along with a taste for the exquisite, 100 points!
The professors looked at their headmaster numbly, as did the other three Hogwarts houses. The first points were reluctantly accepted, since it was Albus Dumbledore himself who distributed them and they seemed to make sense, but...
Why did they have the feeling that things had deviated a little from their original intention?
But the one who spoke was the director, no one had the courage to stand up and tell him what they thought in their hearts...
The out-of-sync and confused applause from around the Great Hall was overshadowed by the roars and emotions of the Gryffindor table, which lifted everyone who received points to move in a wave.
Barnaby looked somewhat disappointed at the "winners" who accepted a victory like this.
And for what?
They couldn't even take an imitation of the House Cup home, it was all an imaginary honor with no real benefits.
Barnaby was not against this competitive spirit, but he felt that aside from the momentary possession of the House Cup, the teachers should make a small surprise gift for the winner.
Nothing too complicated, just the icing on the cake, so to speak.
Perhaps a basket of herbal-vitalizing potions, a miniature replica specifying which year they managed to win so they can take it home, a jar of mandrake powder, etc.
Forget it, finish the dark chocolate cake on your plate and go about your business.
He still had to return to finally get Fluffy out of that enclosed space and let him run free through the Forbidden Forest, he needed to feed Norberta while she continued to grow and finish cleaning the bodies of the acromantulas in secret.
He could simply banish the bodies, but that would be a terrible tragedy.
He, Sanshi, and the centaur tribe had not finished squeezing out all the poison from their bodies yet!
All of that was hard cash, money that was going to come in handy for Barnaby after he bought the property with the Scamanders. Even with the favored price, it wasn't cheap and it hurt your wallet just thinking about it…
Furthermore, since the centaurs were extremely grateful to Barnaby for ending that "dark plague" in "their forests," they only asked for two vials worth of poison in the form of miscellaneous supplies.
They were things like some bags of salt, new tools, sharpening stones, some seeds and cuttings, rolls of fabric, ink with paper, etc.
Everything a tribe of centaurs could want and they could hardly get from the forest, without luck or too much work involved.
Of course, Barnaby wasn't stingy with them and gave them three times what they asked for without batting an eyelid, even adding a few things from his personal collection that he estimated they might like.
One must know that the acromantula venom collected at one time should be enough for no less than four hundred vials, most likely a few more!
At one hundred galleons a jar, Barnaby obtained in a few days at least forty thousand galleons and spending six hundred galleons on supplies for the centaurs, he gave them more than enough to last them a few generations.
This was also because of their friendship over the years, the help they had provided on many occasions, and the fact that they accepted Sanshi's presence with open arms when he made himself known.
At first, Barnaby believed that he could only get half of the poison as a fair share, so his surprise at his small demands was enormous, he even told them the value of the vials to make it clear to them. that they were giving up.
"The value that magicians give to money is not the same as ours," they told him clearly, very satisfied with their own share.
The centaurs did not need money in the forest and only asked for what they asked due to the convenience of the situation, not because there was a real need. They had a feeling that that money would have much more use in the hands of the Hagrid colt they saw growing up next to them.
Furthermore, Sanshi's presence was great news for them.
They didn't expect that Barnaby would secretly marry such a beautiful woman!
Although he told them that she was his magical familiar, his gestures and behaviors could not be hidden from the eyes of the wise centaurs.
That kind of affection couldn't be more obvious.
Furthermore, he also secretly solves a small problem in his own tribe of centaurs, where some young women had slightly out of place thoughts and ignored the vigorous men of the tribe.
Barnaby shuddered for some reasons and looked around cautiously, feeling that he had just avoided a tragic fate, which left him confused without knowing exactly what he had just passed through.
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Wow, centaurs have their own misunderstandings and thoughts.
But it's inevitable, Sanshi must be the equivalent of Afrotida for them.