Harry Potter and the Hall of Echoes [COMPLETED]

Chapter 6

'Right,' said Ron warily. 'When's it happening?'

Harry showed Ron the timetable that Blake had given him: the next Quidditch practice would be happening tomorrow after classes.

'And he said I could join, too?' Ron asked.

'Well, not exactly,' said Harry, 'but he did tell me that their school team isn't very good, so I don't think we're going to get flattened. And I think other Exchangers' — he nodded to the students sitting at the other tables — 'will probably join up, too.'

Ron considered this point. 'I'll think about it,' he said. 'I don't have a broom, though...'

'You can borrow mine,' Harry suggested.

As Harry and Ron helped themselves to the food on the plates in front of them, Hermione let out a loud sigh.

'What's up with you?' Ron asked her.

'Nothing,' said Hermione primly. 'It's just — we didn't come all this way to play Quidditch, that's all... Don't you two want to try and learn something new?'

Ron groaned as he cut up his bacon with a knife and fork. 'We're meant to be on holidays, Hermione,' he whined. 'We'll have enough school when we're back at Hogwarts — what's the problem with doing a little training while we're here?'

Hermione turned to Harry with an expectant look.

'What?' Harry said. 'I'm with Ron — I mean, it's just a bit of Quidditch...'

Ron nudged Harry in the ribs, then lowered his voice to barely a whisper. 'She's just jealous that we'll be spending time with Blakey-poo,' he observed. 'Won't be an opportunity for old Blake to bring her tulips and dandelions...'

X

Although there was much about Dartford College that felt very familiar to Harry, it was different to Hogwarts in many ways. The Headmaster of the school was a man named Professor David Hopkins (Blake's father), and although he was clearly much younger in age than Dumbledore, he seemed wearied and worn out in a way that Dumbledore was not.

After the students had eaten their breakfast, Professor Hopkins caught their attention with the ring of a handbell.

'Over the following three weeks,' he began, 'we will journey together into the unfamiliar, the unexpected... And we will of course be joined on this wonderful journey by our exchange students,' (there was polite applause) 'who I trust will all receive the usual warm Dartford welcome.'

The first class listed on Harry's schedule was something called 'the Eye of Truth' — it was run by a witch named Professor Honeywell.

At the beginning of the lesson, Professor Honeywell split everyone up into pairs, and the majority of the class thereafter was spent with each partner simply staring at the other. Their homework was to do more of this mindless staring in the dormitories, as well as to write down a list of notes ('accurately and in detail') as to what the other person was thinking.

'Well, that was useless,' Ron muttered, as soon as they'd left the classroom. 'What does she expect us to do — read minds?' He turned to Hermione. 'What do we have next?'

Their next class was slightly more interesting than the first, although it was more of a show-and-tell than anything else.

The Finder had guided them over to a pair of iron doors at the back of the castle, and after navigating their way through the grounds outside, they'd arrived at an enormous wooden ranch.

Here they were greeted by a Professor Banjeev — an old man who spoke so softly that Harry missed the majority of what he was saying. The highlight of the class was when Banjeev opened up the largest cupboard: he revealed three humongous glass jars, with swirly green liquid — and inside that liquid, three preserved dragon heads. Professor Banjeev walked very slowly and gingerly throughout the lesson, and it was only when he stretched for a jar of pixie dust, which lay on an upper shelf, that Harry realised it was because he had two wooden legs.