Chapter 8: Metamorphmagus

Chapter 8: Metamorphmagus

After the school song was sung, the opening banquet finally ended. The students formed their own teams and left the hall. A tall girl with pink hair led the Hufflepuff team through the hall and down to a remote corner, where there were piles of large wooden barrels placed on a dark stone trough.

"Um?"

Avada was surprised to find that the red glow on the girl's body, that is, the structure of her life force, was much more complex than that of others, and the connection between her and her spiritual power was also closer. Based on Avada's many years of experience in studying magic and observing the structure of magic, the purpose of the extra structures in her life force seemed to be... transformation?

"Freshmen, pay attention." She reminded in a crisp voice: "This is the entrance to our Hufflepuff common room. If you want to enter the common room, you must hit the bottom of the second bucket in the middle of the second row according to the rhythm of 'Helga Hufflepuff', like this..."

As she spoke, she reached out and knocked on the wooden barrel seven times. Immediately, the barrel lid spun open, revealing a passage leading to the basement.

"If the person who wants to enter doesn't knock according to the correct rhythm, knocks on the wrong barrel, or knocks the wrong number of times, the lid of the other barrel will open and pour vinegar all over the intruder," the tall girl reminded.

Avada's eyes lit up when he heard this: "If we want to cook for ourselves and are still short of ingredients, can we use this trick to collect the vinegar?"

He is very good at making dumplings!

"I learned it by myself!"

The tall girl smiled happily, "Congratulations, you've discovered the main source of vinegar used in Hufflepuff picnics and tea parties!"

"But the type of vinegar obtained in this way is random." Cedric added: "Sometimes it is apple cider vinegar, sometimes it is black grape vinegar, and there is also coconut vinegar, white vinegar..."

"Two years ago, someone even got a big bucket of balsamic vinegar. The whole Hufflepuff was in an uproar. The next three picnics were all luxurious Italian food. Even the Slytherins were invited to eat for free!"

Avada: ...

"However, this also means that not every vinegar you get will be satisfactory. So if you encounter vinegar you don't want, you can give it to the house elves in the kitchen, or save it for later use."

Gabriel Truman said as he walked into the corridor first: "Let's go back to the lounge quickly. Don't forget that there is a banquet tonight!"

"Party!

Avada and the other first-year students asked in surprise, but were only met with a mysterious smile. Helplessly, they followed everyone to the Hufflepuff common room.

It was a large, plain, round room with a low ceiling. Through the round windows, you could see the swaying grass and dandelions outside, which must have been sunny during the day. The room was decorated with many polished copper ornaments and lush plants, either hanging from the ceiling or placed on the windowsills.

There is also a large honey-yellow wooden mantelpiece with a badger carved into it in the middle of the wall. Above the fireplace hangs a portrait of the founder of the house, Helga Hufflepuff, and around the fireplace are soft sofas and armchairs with yellow and black fabrics.

Before Avada had time to take a closer look at the lounge, his thoughts were interrupted by an excited voice:

"Hufflepuffs, rejoice!"

A young man with brown curly hair and freckles on his face leaped to the fireplace and spoke so loudly that even the Avatar jumped. He raised his arm gracefully and said in a sonnet-like aria:

"After four years of vacancy, a new Auror has finally been born! She is the head of Hufflepuff, not a prefect but better than a prefect, a Metamorphosis who can change her appearance in a thousand ways, and who doesn't like people to pronounce her full name..."

"Nin…Tonks!"

Under the threatening gaze of the tall girl, Tonks, he shuddered and forced himself to hold back the words that were about to come out. Then he continued to read as if nothing had happened:

"In the past summer vacation, she finally passed the assessment of the Auror Office and became a trainee Auror. She is also the first Auror from Hufflepuff in twenty years. As long as she can obtain five NEWT certificates this year, her path to becoming an Auror will be unobstructed!"

"Ha, the 'Newt' certificate!"

Someone in the audience laughed and said,

"Maybe you can ask your grandfather to give her the certificate directly, Rolf!"

"This is Rolf Scamander, a fourth-year student." Cedric suppressed his laughter and whispered to Avada, "He is the grandson of the famous Magizoologist Newt Scamander, and his grandfather's name happens to be the same as the abbreviation of the Ultimate Wizarding Exam, so everyone often teases him about this."

"Maybe we can also give him a fire 'salamander'. He happens to be studying this recently."

Amidst the laughter, Rolf Scamander waved his hand as usual and stepped back, leaving the middle position to the real protagonist Tonks.

"Let me tell you about the situation first."

She said happily, her hair turning bright red: "In the first half of this semester, I will go to the Auror Office for a half-year training, so I won't be able to meet you all. I'm afraid the Defense Against the Dark Arts tutorial will also be stopped. I hope this year's new professor can teach you well!"

"After Christmas, I will come back to take the second half of the semester and prepare for the NEWT exam. But that's just a formality..."

She chuckled a little sheepishly, and after a pause, she said, "Anyway, the Auror Office recruited me because of my Metamorphmagus talent, which has little to do with my test scores."

There was a good-natured laugh in the lounge.

"But don't worry about me being a fool. After all, everyone knows my level of defensive skills." She continued, her expression gradually becoming more hopeful: "Also, with You-Know-Who's death for ten years, more and more Death Eater remnants have been arrested, and the British wizarding world has become safer and safer. There will be fewer and fewer places where Aurors can be used. Maybe in a few years, all Aurors will have nothing to do, because all the dark wizards have been arrested and the wizarding world has been completely peaceful!"

"Yeah, I really hope there will be such a day."

Rolf on the side exclaimed, then waved his wand, causing a large glass of butterbeer to appear in front of everyone. "Don't make a sound, I contacted the house elves to secretly prepare this. If Professor Sprout finds out, she will put me in detention."

"For peace, then!" Tonks raised her glass.

"For peace!"

The Hufflepuffs below drank the butterbeer in one gulp, and the freshmen followed suit without realizing it - it tasted pretty good.

"By the way, I'll tell you a little secret."

Tonks let her hair turn the same yellow-brown color as butterbeer and lowered her voice mysteriously: "According to the Auror Office, the savior who defeated the mysterious man as soon as he was born, Harry Potter, will come to Hogwarts to study next year."

"I regret that I cannot see him in person. You must see him for me."

She shook her hair and raised the cup that had been filled at some point again: "To Harry Potter!"

"To Harry Potter!"

The Hufflepuffs once again happily drank a large glass of butterbeer.

"Okay, let's stop here for today. The new students haven't had time to get to know their dormitories yet." Tonks wiped the corners of her mouth and smiled brightly, "Tomorrow I will be heading to the Ministry of Magic to begin my training as an apprentice Auror. I wish you all peace and success in the new school year, and I also hope that the new students can integrate into Hufflepuff and feel the happiness and warmth of our college."

"I also hope you can pass the test smoothly and be safe at work!"

Rolf smiled and raised his glass, shouting, "To Tonks!"

Hufflepuffs raised their glasses: Tonks!

After the third glass of butter beer, the small dinner in the common room came to an end. The seniors reluctantly said goodbye to Tonks and returned to the dormitory, while Cedric, Truman, and others were responsible for guiding the freshmen, leading Avada and his friends to understand the various facilities, giving them the first semester's course schedule, and then taking them to their respective dormitories.

After two consecutive banquets, they were exhausted and didn't want to talk anymore. They changed into their pajamas and fell asleep one by one.

　Note: There are two exams at Hogwarts. Owls means "owl" and newt means "salamander".

(End of this chapter)

Don't forget to use Power stones