Harry Potter and Percy Jackson half-blood heroes (Book 5)

Chapter 3

"Did everyone see that Grubbly-Plank woman?" asked Ginny."What's she doing back here? Hagrid can't have left, can he?"

"I'll be quite glad if he has," said Luna. "He isn't a very good teacher, is he?"

"Yes, he is!" said Harry, Percy, Ron, and Ginny angrily. Harry glared at Hermione; she cleared her throat and quickly said,

"Erm . . . yes . . . he's very good."

"Well, we think he's a bit of a joke in Ravenclaw," said Luna,unfazed.

"You've got a rubbish sense of humour then," Ron snapped, as thewheels below them creaked into motion.

Luna did not seem perturbed by Ron's rudeness; on the contrary, she simply watched him for a while as though he were a mildly interesting television program.

When they passed between the tall stone pillars topped with wingedboars on either side of the gates to the school grounds, Percy noticed that there were no lights on in Hagrid's cabin. 

The carriages jingled to a halt near the stone steps leading up to theoak front doors and Harry got out of the carriage first. then Percy, Hermione, Ron, Luna and Ginny.

"Are you coming or what?" said Ron beside him.

"Oh . . . yeah," said Harry quickly, and they joined the crowd hurrying up the stone steps into the castle

The entrance hall was ablaze with torches and echoing with footsteps as the students crossed the flagged stone floor for the doubledoors to the right, leading to the Great Hall and the start-of-termfeast.

The four long House tables in the Great Hall were filling up under the starless black ceiling, which was just like the sky they could a glimpse through the high windows. Candles floated in midair allalong with the tables, illuminating the silvery ghosts who were dottedabout the Hall and the faces of the students talking eagerly to one another, exchanging summer news, shouting greetings at friends fromother Houses, eyeing one another's new haircuts and robes

AgainPercy noticed people putting their heads together to whisper as hepassed;

Luna drifted away from them at the Ravenclaw table. The momentthey reached Gryffindor's, Ginny was hailed by some fellow fourthyears and left to sit with them; Harry, Percy, Ron, Hermione, and Nevillefound seats together about halfway down the table between NearlyHeadless Nick, the Gryffindor House ghost, and Parvati Patil andLavender Brown, the last two of whom gave Harry airy, overlyfriendly greetings that made Percy quite sure they had stopped talkingabout him a split second before.

"He's not there," Percy said.

Ron and Hermione scanned the staff table too,

"He can't have left," said Ron, sounding slightly anxious.

"Of course he hasn't," said Harry firmly.

"You don't think he's . . . hurt, or anything, do you?" said Hermioneuneasily.

"No," said Harry at once.

"But where is he, then?" Percy asked.

There was a pause, then Harry said very quietly so that Neville,Parvati and Lavender could not hear, "Maybe he's not back yet. Youknow — from his mission — the thing he was doing over the summer for Dumbledore."

"Yeah . . . yeah, that'll be it," said Ron, sounding reassured, butHermione bit her lip, looking up and down the staff table.

"Who's that?" she said sharply, pointing toward the middle of thestaff table.