Once the applause faded, Douglas spoke in a cool, measured tone:
"I hope you realize just how precious your fifth year is. Next time, don't waste it on pointless clapping.
You're at the most difficult and critical point of your O.W.L.S. preparation.
As the saying goes: 'A journey of a hundred miles is only half completed at ninety.' The final stretch is always the hardest.
But I want you to remember—no matter how rough the road ahead may be, never give up. Only by persevering to the end can you achieve victory...
You're young, full of courage, confidence, energy, and intelligence. That means you should understand: today's gap is not tomorrow's fate, and today's sweat will surely blossom into tomorrow's flowers.
Face the O.W.L.S. head-on. Swim against the current.
Youth shines through hard work, and life is glorious through struggle..."
When Douglas finished, a few students reflexively started clapping, only to freeze and lower their hands under his piercing gaze.
For most Ravenclaws, this was their first taste of one of Douglas's motivational speeches. Their minds spun, a little dazed. A few quick-witted students thought, These lines would suit Hufflepuff or Gryffindor much better. Some almost scoffed out loud, but managed to hold back.
Douglas, however, was quite satisfied with their restraint. He continued:
"Who can recite the Defence Against the Dark Arts class rep code?"
Only last year's class rep, Eddie Carmichael, shot his hand up, beaming with excitement.
Douglas nodded.
"Excellent, Mr. Carmichael. You'll continue as class rep this year. I trust you'll uphold last year's spirit and lead the class forward."
Eddie looked ready to burst with pride.
The rest of the class stared in shock. So that's all it takes to be class rep? Some of the higher-achieving students looked stunned, but none dared to challenge Douglas's decision.
He took note of their expressions but said nothing more.
"Everyone, place your summer homework on your desks."
Once the homework was set out, Douglas snapped his fingers.
Homework soared through the air to his desk; at the same time, a stack of test papers floated down, one to each student.
Douglas's voice was calm as ever:
"Today's lesson will start with a little quiz..."
The students, clearly used to this drill, put away their textbooks and began.
First multiple-choice question:
How many Unforgivable Curses are there?
A. 3
B. 1
C. 4
Some students answered without hesitation. Others frowned, suspicious. Professor Holmes wouldn't ask something this basic, would he? Had there been new discoveries? Maybe an Unforgivable Curse had been added—or one was now defunct? Was the professor testing their knowledge of specialist magical journals?
They set the question aside and moved on.
What's the spell to repel a Boggart?
A. Left-Right Separation
B. Waddiwasi
C. Morsmordre
D. Riddikulus
Again, frowns. Some glanced up at Douglas, who was already grading summer homework. This was almost insultingly easy. A few even recalled that article in The Quibbler from this morning. Was it possible... Professor Holmes was actually an impostor?
They kept going.
Which spell disarms your opponent?
A. Stupefy
B. Alohomora
C. Expelliarmus
D. Protego
Where can you find a Kappa?
A. Deep lake
B. Heavy snow
C. Shallow pond
D. Dense grass
If used correctly, what does the spell "Relaxo" do?
A. Causes pain
B. Extraction Charm
C. Leg-Locker Curse
D. Banishing Charm
What's the effect of mixing silver powder and dittany?
A. Makes werewolves uninterested in you
B. Heals werewolf bites
C. Returns werewolves to human form
D. Cures children who have become werewolves
...
Suddenly, in the silent classroom, a student gasped.
Now he was certain—Professor Holmes was still the same Professor Holmes. No way could this be an impostor.
This was classic Holmes—absolutely devious.
He hurried back to the first question, double-checking his answer.
Other students, hearing the gasp, began to see the trick in the test as well.
Soon, sharp intakes of breath echoed across the room.
Douglas rapped his knuckles on the desk.
"What's the matter? Do my test papers have a curse on them?"
The students shook their heads and bent over their papers, scrutinizing each question with new wariness.
So that was it—he'd scrambled the answer choices.
Minute by minute, they sweated over every symbol and word.
Douglas finished marking their summer homework, then strolled around the classroom, noting with satisfaction that no one was distracted by his presence.
For previous years' students, this test might have been tough. But for those he'd personally taught last year—especially Ravenclaws—it was almost straightforward. Last year's memorization had not been in vain.
Of course, Douglas had added some twists: scrambled multiple-choice options, true/false questions with double-true or double-false, short-answer questions that looked like one thing but required a different answer.
This exam had two purposes. First, after the release of Seven Years... Five Years O.W.L.S., the Wizarding Examinations Authority would surely make O.W.L.S. questions trickier, adding complexity within a limited knowledge base. He wanted his students to get used to this style early.
Second, he wanted to see which students would dare to question authority.
Sadly, even when he announced "fifteen minutes left," not one student challenged the test's fairness.
That was a slight disappointment.
When class ended, everyone let out a collective sigh of relief and bolted for the door.
Douglas glanced at his system interface: student satisfaction—six out of ten. He was speechless.
So most of them were unhappy with him, but none dared say so to his face. Was his reputation at Hogwarts now on par with Snape?
—
The second Defence Against the Dark Arts class was with the Gryffindor second-years.
Douglas didn't waste words—he simply announced that Ginny would remain class rep this term. After collecting homework, he started the quiz.
But as soon as the exam began, he noticed something was off.
A handful of students barely glanced at the questions before scribbling down answers. Others, after reading the first question, frowned, quickly scanned the whole paper, and grew visibly agitated.
Douglas quietly stepped down from the podium, drifting among the desks—especially those with odd behavior.
He soon saw that the students answering at lightning speed all had identical multiple-choice responses.
It was obvious: they thought they'd gotten the right answers ahead of time, memorized them, and were now breezing through.
Douglas wasn't unfamiliar with such tricks. Back in his own school days...
During his first-year finals, he'd collected past exam papers for every subject. Comparing them, he realized many old professors used the same tests year after year. So he and Bill compiled answer booklets for each subject and grade, selling them to other students.
They'd been cleverer, though. Each year's answers were slightly different. They graded them—"Outstanding" answers cost a Galleon, "Exceeds Expectations" ten Sickles, "Acceptable" twenty Knuts. Each set had deliberate errors, and they made sure everyone's mistakes were unique, so professors wouldn't catch on.
Their scheme fell apart when one lazy student smuggled answers into the exam on a self-flipping sleeve device. Professor McGonagall caught him, and he immediately ratted out Douglas and Bill.
Thanks to Douglas's quick thinking and heartfelt apology, McGonagall realized the final exams needed improvement. In the end, she only docked Hufflepuff and Gryffindor fifty points each and made the two boys clean toilets for three months the following year...
Of course, the main reason the punishment was so light was that Douglas and Bill had never touched O.W.L.S. content—just regular finals. Otherwise, things would have gone much worse.
That was the origin of the Magical Study Group. When selling answers proved too risky, Douglas convinced Bill to set up a study group, teaching those same answers as "knowledge points" to paying students. The group lasted until O.W.L.S. were over, then disbanded.
Douglas hadn't expected to see such crude cheating again at Hogwarts, especially on his own opening quiz.
But this time, the method was laughably primitive—a throwback by decades. These so-called successors were pathetic.
He swept his eyes over the class. The furious students glaring at their test papers were clearly victims, but at least they were smart enough not to copy blindly.
Douglas sneered to himself. Not only were they clumsily imitating their predecessors, they were even challenging the professor's authority.
Brilliant. Absolutely brilliant.
He didn't even need to investigate—he could tell right away this was the work of the Weasley twins.
Not that other students couldn't pull this off, but Douglas hadn't given them enough time. Ravenclaw hadn't tried it last period, so it had to be Gryffindor.
Collecting and organizing past papers took a student with decent grades, good social skills, and a sharp mind—someone who could whip up answers overnight.
This was a disgrace to Bill Weasley.
Douglas decided not to deal with the twins just yet. Tonight, he'd leave Bill a voicemail or send an owl, just to rub it in.
He'd be sure to have a good laugh at his old friend's expense...
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