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It begins like this: Harry Potter receives his letters. No house-elf interferes, no innocent godfather escapes from prison. This is new for Harry. Normally, at this time of year, he is having some kind of problem. When Harry is going to Diagon Alley, nothing happens. Nothing that is not normal for a normal late summer afternoon in London. The Dursleys would call it a perfect day out shopping. Harry is frightened by this. After a normal day without any kind of commotion, Harry travels back to Privet Drive. Voldemort must have done something to the wizarding world. That is the only explanation he can come up with.
September 1st. comes around. Harry boards the Hogwarts Express. On the platform, people look around in worry when they see him. They start whispering and the other students board the train a bit quicker. The parents flee the platform in case something goes wrong in the last moments. The Hogwarts Express leaves the station and arrives in Hogsmeade without problems or delay. The students rush to the carriages, only Hagrid stays behind with the first-years.
When everyone arrives at the great hall, Dumbledore is waiting for them. When the headmaster begins his speech that they all unfortunately have to wait for Harry as something has happened to him, everyone is relived. When Hermione points out that Harry is present, Dumbledore is so confused that McGonagall has to take over for him. She introduces the new DADA-Professor, a renowned expert in the field and everywhere in the hall, people start to bet on how this one will try to kill Potter. The rest of the feast goes off without any problem.
The first month of the school-year is quiet. Nothing happens. No students are attacked by anything. Fred and George are pranking everyone left and right and Peeves declares it his noble duty to lighten the mood. The new DADA-Professor is kind and competent. Everyone looks out for the full moon but he does not go sick.
Werewolf off the list.
When the last days of October roll around, everyone's anticipation grows. Surely, the Halloween-curse will not fail.
It does.
No ancient lair is opened, no troll in the dungeons. The common rooms are not attacked and no student is roped into any kind of deadly competition. Dumbledore is mumbling to himself. Trying to restore some sense of normality, he sends everyone away early, perhaps something happens on the way.
Nothing. November 1st. comes around and nobody is threatened.
Trelawney has not uttered a single death prophecy yet. That more than anything is freaking the teachers out. But luckily everyone can still count on Snape to be a rude bully to Gryffindors and Harry in particular. And Neville. Everything else would be defying the laws of physics.
Dumbledore at this point is hoping that a Slytherin is attacked in Care for magical Creatures or in an unfortunate Quidditch accident but magic hates him this year. He is often seen going to the Hog's head Inn, quietly crying into his brother's shoulder. Aberforth is flooing Saint Mungo's.
Over Christmas break, Aurors and Curse breakers descend upon Hogwarts trying to figure out the new curse. They are not successful. The rest of the year goes by without a hitch. By now, everyone has figured out what the new DADA-Professor is: Not a threat. He is showing perfectly human behavior, is nor a fraud neither a Death-eater and he is giving decent grades.
By now, everyone is moving around in groups of five to ten. If nothing has happened yet, it will get ugly when it finally does.
Lucius Malfoy is rallying the board of governors as Dumbledore clearly has done something to Hogwarts that has ruined the magic of the school. Despite the numerous testimonies and signatures from students of all houses nothing is ultimately done. This is very reassuring. Nothing is as normal as everyone either overreacting or not doing nothing at all when it comes to Hogwarts.
The Daily Prophet reports on the matter completely truthfully. This is very alarming to the wider wizarding public. In the resulting investigation into the Prophet, an undercover Death-eater within the Ministry is discovered and subsequently tried and sentenced to Azkaban. When in the following weeks several ground-breaking laws are passed and the Wizengamot works just fine, Fudge is put on sick-leave. Everyone suspects he is under the Imperius-curse. He is being too competent. The suspects are Amelia Bones and Mad-Eye Moody. When every test comes back negative, Fudge is put back into office, but is heavily watched.
The end of the schoolyear comes around. The DADA-Professor is fired, for good measure, but as nothing has happened that has forced Harry Potter to do some last minute battle against Voldemort, Dumbledore can't give the house-cup to Gryffindor. Ravenclaw takes the trophy. Gryffindor keeps the Quidditch-cup.
The ride back to London is calm. Nothing has happened this year at Hogwarts.
The next year begins with Harry Potter being chased to King's Cross Station by Dementors and Death-eaters. Fudge is embezzling one million Galleons. The new DADA-Professor attacks Harry on the Hogwarts Express. The wizarding World is breathing out again, relieved. Everything is back to normal.