Chapter 42: Sponsoring the Brooms
"Well," Professor Sprout said, folding her arms, "it seems you didn't forget everything you learned after graduation. Though I hope the only thing you remember about cranberries isn't that they're edible."
She gave him a sharp look.
"Now then, what did you come to speak to me about?"
Douglas glanced around to make sure no one else was nearby. Then he leaned closer and lowered his voice.
"Professor… I'd like to sponsor a set of Nimbus 2001 brooms for our House Quidditch team."
Professor Sprout blinked.
"You want to sponsor seven Nimbus 2001s for Hufflepuff?"
She looked at him with open suspicion.
"Douglas… when did you suddenly start caring about the Hufflepuff Quidditch team?"
Then she narrowed her eyes.
"And why are you whispering about it like it's a secret conspiracy?"
Douglas blinked innocently.
"Well of course it has to stay confidential! What if the other Houses find out we have such advanced equipment and try to imitate us?"
Professor Sprout stared at him with utter disdain.
"You think I don't know what's going on?"
"This afternoon Cedric came to see me. He said Slytherin has prepared a secret weapon."
"And surprise—it's also Nimbus 2001s."
Then she crossed her arms.
"More importantly… do you even have that many Galleons?"
"I heard you've been living mostly in the Muggle world. Gringotts is very strict about exchanging large amounts of Muggle currency."
Douglas nodded quickly.
"I have enough funds in the wizarding world. More than enough to pay for the brooms."
The Problem of Wizarding Currency
Gringotts had very strict rules about currency exchange.
Not everyone could simply walk in and convert Muggle money into wizarding gold.
Muggles themselves could not exchange currency at all. Muggle-born Hogwarts students could exchange a limited amount each year. Adult witches and wizards exchanging Muggle income had to provide proof that the money came from legitimate work. Even then, exchanges were strictly limited to 1,000 Galleons per year.
Gringotts used powerful magic to verify financial contracts and detect the true source of funds.
The rule prevented the Muggle economy from overwhelming the wizarding economy.
Because of the vast cultural gap between the two worlds, most wizards struggled terribly if they tried to live without magic in Muggle society.
They would need to relearn Muggle knowledge and find work from the beginning.
To many witches and wizards, that felt like throwing away the seven years they spent at Hogwarts.
Professor Sprout studied Douglas for a long moment.
Then she nodded slowly.
"Very well. We'll do it your way."
She waved a hand dismissively.
"Consider it compensation for that little… incident earlier."
"Have the brooms delivered to my office and I'll arrange everything."
Then she pointed firmly toward the door.
"And if you don't have anything else to do, leave the greenhouse."
"Don't come near it unless necessary!"
"You're a Hogwarts professor now. Try behaving like one instead of the same troublemaker you were as a student."
With that, she turned and walked back into the greenhouse.
Douglas stood there blinking.
That was it?
No praise?
No medal?
No "Distinguished Alumni Award"?
Just compensation?
A moment later Professor Sprout suddenly called out from inside.
"Wait!"
Douglas brightened immediately.
Ah. Here comes the reward.
Sprout emerged carrying a basket.
"Madam Pomfrey won't need all these cranberries," she said briskly. "Take them."
"As thanks for what you've done for Hufflepuff."
"If you enjoy eating them so much, I'll have some planted in the orchard as well."
Then she turned and walked away again.
Douglas stood there holding the basket.
Still confused.
No medal.
No recognition.
No wonder so few alumni donate to Hogwarts…
The Realization
As Douglas walked back toward the castle, the basket swinging in his hand, a thought suddenly struck him.
Hogwarts was funded primarily by the Board of Governors.
If a Muggle-born wizard suddenly donated expensive equipment to the school…
…he would effectively be stepping on the toes of the twelve members of the Board.
Douglas felt a chill run down his spine.
Now he understood why Professor Sprout had called it compensation, not sponsorship.
He also understood why she had avoided praising him publicly.
If she hadn't done that…
By tomorrow, angry letters from wealthy parents might already be arriving.
They might even pressure Headmaster Dumbledore to dismiss him.
After all, the Board of Governors did not want someone funding Hogwarts independently.
Technically, they had the authority to appoint or suspend the Headmaster.
And the Headmaster controlled the teaching staff.
Douglas suddenly felt extremely uneasy.
If he got fired over something like this…
…his part-time professor job would have been ruined for nothing.
Afternoon in the Office
Back in his office, Douglas immediately poured himself a cup of tea to calm down.
Not long afterward, Professor McGonagall stopped by.
"Professor Holmes," she said, "several teachers have returned to the castle. Tomorrow afternoon we'll be having tea at the Three Broomsticks in Hogsmeade."
"Would you care to join us?"
Douglas agreed at once.
After she left, he leaned back in his chair and couldn't help thinking about Madam Rosmerta, the elegant owner of the Three Broomsticks.
After all—
Who doesn't dream when they're young?
Who doesn't have a little romance in their youth?
Just as Douglas was drifting into nostalgic thoughts, a group of seventh-year students arrived at his office.
He realized he didn't have enough chairs.
So he casually transfigured several books from the shelf into chairs and invited them to sit.
As he prepared tea, he asked,
"So… after observing classes this week, what do you think?"
The students who had been eager to speak suddenly fell silent.
Finally, a Ravenclaw girl raised her hand.
"Professor… I think the teaching quality of Defense Against the Dark Arts has been very poor."
She hurried to clarify.
"I'm not talking about you! You said yourself that this week was only a baseline assessment."
"But because the teaching of this subject has been unstable for years… many of us never developed a systematic understanding of the subject."
Douglas listened carefully as each student reported their observations.
Then he took their parchment notes and read through them one by one.
He commented on several points immediately.
In truth, he was very pleased with this group of seventh years.
Ever since the introduction of the OWL-based selection system, only students with strong marks continued into advanced Defense Against the Dark Arts classes.
Which meant that most of them were excellent students.
After finishing the reports, Douglas tapped the table lightly.
"I know Defense Against the Dark Arts teaching has been inconsistent."
"Most of you probably chose the subject because of family background or independent study."
He raised a hand as some students started protesting.
"Don't rush to deny it. Everyone here has been that age."
Then his expression hardened.
"But based on what I've seen this week… many of you haven't even mastered sixth-year spells."
"That's far worse than when we were students."
He began listing them.
"How many of you can cast Protego properly?"
"How many can perform nonverbal spells?"
"How many can resist the Imperius Curse?"
"What about the Patronus Charm?"
"And how many of you have actually encountered illegal dark magic?"
He looked around the room.
"Don't quote the textbook to me. I know it better than you."
"My goodness… what exactly were you doing last year?"
A Slytherin student named Mario Nott curled his lip.
"Professor Holmes, you weren't here last year."
"You don't know what Professor Quirrell's classes were like."
"He spent the entire lesson nervously reading from the textbook."
"If someone asked a question he'd answer—but it took so long because of his stutter that we weren't even sure he could cast a complete spell."
He laughed.
"And in the end, he was defeated by three first-year students."
Several seventh-years snorted in agreement.
Douglas sneered.
"So you all think the same?"
"Which means… you didn't really attend Quirrell's classes at all."
He folded his arms.
"And you still think you're qualified to become Aurors one day?"
He shook his head.
"Humility leads to progress. Pride leads to failure."
"If he was truly that useless…"
"Why do you think Headmaster Dumbledore hired him?"
Douglas's gaze swept across the room.
"You don't seriously believe you're more capable than Albus Dumbledore… do you?"
One student muttered quietly…
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