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Chapter 616: The Many Clubs of Hogwarts
🕑 Added 2025-03-14 12:46:59 +0000 UTCAfter leaving Umbridge’s office, Kyle walked briskly down the corridor toward the Great Hall. It was already noon, and the Great Hall buzzed with students gathering for lunch.
Near the Hufflepuff table, Cedric and the Quidditch team were deep in discussion, chatting about the new recruits from the morning’s tryouts. When Cedric spotted Kyle, he immediately scooted over to make space.
“How was your detention with Professor Umbridge?” Cedric asked as Kyle sat down. “Did she give you a hard time?”
“What did she make you do?” another teammate chimed in.
Kyle paused before answering, “It was okay. I had to write a sentence—five hundred times.”
“That’s not too bad,” Cedric said with a slight shrug.
“Yeah,” Kyle agreed, though his tone carried a hint of exasperation. “It’s just that five hundred times is a lot. Ten sheets of parchment—it felt more like an extra-long homework assignment.”
“That’s manageable,” Kanna reassured him. She pushed a plate of pies his way. “Do you want some pie?”
“Thanks. I’ve been starving for an hour,” Kyle replied, cutting himself a piece and taking a bite.
The pie was filled with beef, onions, and peppers, and he found it quite satisfying.
“By the way,” he said between bites, turning to Cedric, “what do you think of this year’s new recruits?”
“They’re… okay,” Cedric said with a slight grimace. “We didn’t find anyone with standout talent this year. The only one who showed some promise is a third-year Keeper.”
“Flora Padvey, in fifth year, was also pretty decent,” Cedric continued, “but she’s not that serious about Quidditch. She made it clear during tryouts that if practice overlaps with her Charms Club meetings, she’d pick the club over the team.”
“Wait, what club did you say?” Kyle asked, looking up.
“The Charms Club,” Cedric repeated.
“Is there really such a thing at Hogwarts?” Kyle asked, his eyebrows furrowing.
“Not only does it exist, but there are quite a few clubs,” Cedric replied. “For example, there’s the Wizard Chess Club, the Gorgeous Robes Club, and the Afternoon Tea Club, just to name a few.”
“These aren’t run by professors,” Cedric explained. “They’re student-organized. People with similar interests set them up, and they meet regularly in specific locations. I joined the Wizard Chess Club in fourth year.”
Kyle looked bewildered. “I’ve never heard of any of these.”
Cedric retorted with a laugh, “You’ve probably been too busy to notice.”
Kyle had no response to that. Now that he thought about it, it was true. His previous years had been packed—attending the professors’ clubs, keeping up with team training, studying runes, and handling the mountain of homework assigned every week.
Last year, he’d had more free time, but being Hogwarts’ Champion in the Triwizard Tournament meant no one would bother him with things as trivial as clubs.
Now that he reflected, he vaguely recalled overhearing students in the common room discussing club activities, but he hadn’t paid much attention at the time.
“I see...” Kyle said with a nod. Then, turning to Kanna, he asked curiously, “Have you joined the Charms Club?”
“No,” Kanna said with a slight shake of her head. “I’ve never even heard of it.”
“Same here,” Kyle said with a laugh. “Doesn’t sound as ‘charming’ as it claims to be, then.”
Kanna couldn’t help but laugh at that.
“I advise you to be careful,” Cedric said. “Just because you weren’t invited doesn’t mean the others aren’t good. The ‘Charms Club' has a lot of members, and it’s quite difficult to join—you have to pass a series of tests.”
Kyle raised an eyebrow. “So, Cho is one of them?”
Cedric paused for a moment before conceding, “Okay, maybe it’s not that charming.”
The table erupted in laughter, Cedric joining in after a moment.
“But I wasn’t wrong about one thing,” Cedric continued, recovering his composure. “It’s still quite popular. Besides Flora, there’s also Vicky Frobisher of Gryffindor—she’s one of the participants in their selection, and she’s a very skilled flyer.”
“Though,” Cedric added thoughtfully, “Captain Angelina didn’t recruit her. She picked Ron Weasley instead, who, to be honest, is mediocre in every way. I wonder if it’s part of some bigger strategy... After all, the Weasley family has produced some brilliant members.”
“Maybe you’re overthinking it,” Kyle said with a shrug. “A good team dynamic can sometimes make up for individual weaknesses. There’s plenty of time before the first match—we just need to focus on training.”
“That’s how I see it, too,” Cedric agreed.
In the afternoon, the group of friends who were free gathered on the lawn outside the castle.
Fred and George had a specific goal in mind: finding Hagrid. They needed a special type of poisonous berry for their Skiving Snackboxes, and the Forbidden Forest was the only place they could find it.
However, when they reached Hagrid’s hut, it was still shut tight, the silence inside confirming his absence.
“It looks like Hagrid hasn’t come back yet,” Fred said with a sigh. “I’d love to know what he’s up to.”
“Don’t worry about that now,” George interjected, a gleam of excitement in his eye. “Don’t you see? This is a perfect opportunity! Hagrid’s not here, which means the Forbidden Forest is unguarded. Why not go in and pick the berries ourselves?”
Cedric raised an eyebrow. “Are you seriously saying this in front of us?”
Fred and George turned to look at their companions, suddenly realizing there were four Prefects among them. Prefects were technically obligated to enforce school rules, meaning they could punish anyone breaking them—even fellow students.
George gave a sheepish grin. “Could you pretend you didn’t hear that? It’s a rare chance, and all we want are some berries.”
“Just berries?” Cho asked skeptically, crossing her arms.
“Of course!” Fred said earnestly. “We promise.”
Kyle smirked, leaning in. “Promise to only pick berries, sure. But we all know you’re not promising how far into the forest you’ll go.”
The group chuckled knowingly. Poisonous berries weren’t hard to find—they grew both near the forest’s edge and deeper inside. Given Fred and George’s penchant for adventure, it was obvious they’d aim for the most forbidden areas.
Fred and George didn’t seem the least bit embarrassed about having their plan exposed. Before they could defend themselves, a stern voice interrupted them.
“What are you doing!”
The group turned to see Professor Grubbly-Plank emerging from the Forbidden Forest, carrying two large buckets. She looked at them with suspicion, her expression sharp.
“Students aren’t allowed in the Forbidden Forest,” she said firmly. “Go back to the castle, or I’ll report this to Professor McGonagall.”
“No, no, we’re here to see Professor Hagrid,” George said quickly, plastering on a smile. “Do you know where he is?”
“Another group looking for Hagrid...” Professor Grubbly-Plank muttered, shaking her head. “I don’t know where he is. But I suggest you get back to the castle. Students are only allowed near the forest during Care of Magical Creatures lessons.”
“Yes, Professor. We’ll leave now,” Cedric said diplomatically, steering the group away.
The group started walking back toward the castle, Fred and George trailing behind, grumbling.
“She’s not very pleasant,” Fred muttered. “I definitely prefer Hagrid.”
“Agreed,” George said.
Cho smiled slyly at them. “That’s not what you used to say. Didn’t you complain all the time about Hagrid guarding the Forbidden Forest so closely that you couldn’t sneak in?”
“But at least he’d hear us out,” Fred protested.
“And sometimes,” George added, “he’d even go into the forest and bring us what we needed.”
