Chapter 5
"Professor, are you saying that there's a reason behind every Defense Against Dark Arts professor only managing to stay and teach for only one year?" Alan, though he knew this already, being a transmigrator, asked, as he didn't know why Dumbledore had revealed such information to him.
Dumbledore looked at Alan for a second, and then, giving him a meaningful look, he said, "Though this information is best not revealed, yes, Voldemort had once approached me in this same office for the position of the defense against dark arts, but I rejected him, and since then there hasn't been a single professor who managed to teach the course for more than a year." As Dumbledore recounted this, a sudden look of tiredness appeared on his already old face, as if he wanted to let Alan know how hard it is to find a professor for that post.
The office fell silent for a moment. Alan continued to observe Dumbledore, who finally opened his mouth again and said, "With all those conditions, I, an old man, think that a combat class is really necessary."
"Professor, firstly, thank you for letting me know such information, and secondly, I, too, think that opening a combat class is a wise decision; it could also boost students chances in many aspects." Alan smiled while saying that.
"No need to thank me; such information is best to reveal to people like you whose interest is the betterment of Hogwarts and its students." Dumbledore said that though till last year his ideas on certain things were pretty conservative, with Quirrell's involvement last year, his ideas had changed greatly, and he no longer desired to hold onto every bit of knowledge and not let it out.
And moreover, with giving out such details to a certain someone, one can increase trust or distrust, but despite the half chances, he wanted to take a risk and see whether the professor of combat class he had already chosen in his mind would be on his side and prove to be useful while adding strength to their side and strengthening the abilities of Hogwarts' students, which had begun to decline for a few years now.
As for worrying about the course defense against the dark arts and its selection of professor, he felt that he had already run out of luck for a few years now, since this year as well the man he had found to teach the subject wasn't up to mark.
Well, the man had a sizeable amount of reputation in the wizarding world, but the moment he had held that interview with him, Dumbledore knew that the person known as "Gilderoy Lockhart" wasn't really the person he showed to the outside world, but since he had already hired him and did not have much time left to look for the other options, there wasn't much he could do about it.
'All I could hope is that he do much better than what I'm hoping.' Dumbledore almost sighed inwardly.
Meanwhile, on the other side, Alan felt a bit complicated after hearing what Dumbledore had said. He didn't know whether Dumbledore trusted him or was just trying to test him with his usual old and cunning mind, but whatever the case, Alan didn't want to back out from here.
Being a transmigrator, he had the advantage of the plot and many other things, which could be utilized when needed, so Alan at this moment didn't feel that much pressure because of Dumbledore's excessive trust; instead, he said, "Professor, if I'm allowed, I want to say a few things."
"Of course you can, Alan. I'm open to any other ideas you have to share." Dumbledore said immediately, and at the same time, the snoring heard from the old headmasters' portraits also seemed to have stopped.
Alan, seeing the sudden change in the atmosphere, couldn't help but cough, "Firstly, the curriculum of Hogwarts is complete in a sense, as most of the subjects complement each other and are intertwined, like the Charm, Transfiguration, and Defense Against the Dark Arts."
"Hmm. You are right." Dumbledore couldn't help but say it out loud, not because he didn't know about it, but only because he wanted to know where Alan was taking this point.
Alan, hearing Dumbledore, stopped for a moment and then continued, "But, mostly, all of those subjects are taught here as if they are completely different from each other and probably have no relation too." Though Alan didn't know whether Dumbledore would agree with such thoughts, he continued, "Like, Defence Against the Dark Arts is mainly focused on the dark arts with all its professors changing, and that to some extent is needed, but will the enemy always use the dark arts to attack? What if that person knows many other spells that don't fall in the black magic category?"
"But I don't think many wizards understand that, even someone like Voldemort, too, failed to understand that." This time Dumbledore interjected with much more passion, as if he had found someone who shares his own ideas, but realizing he had stopped Alan midway once again, he apologised, "You can continue, Alan; please forgive this old man for suddenly getting talkative."
"It's alright, professor." Alan waved his head, saying he didn't mind, and then opened his mouth to speak again. "Being the most powerful wizard of this era and being the wizard who has experienced countless battles, you must be aware that even the slightest or smallest mistakes in the battle could cause the wizard to pay a heavy price, including his life, but at the same time you must know that instead of those three unforgivable curses or any black magic doing wonders in the battles, the common spells, such as stunning, disarming, or confusion spells, are more useful in the critical moments."
As Alan stopped to take a breath, Dumbledore leaned forward and said, "That's right, Alan; I have always disagreed with that point of view. Though the black magic may seem powerful, it is not the best way to fight the enemy." And with a smile he added, "Of course, I have to admit as well that when necessary, I use black magic. It works."
A/N : Throw some powerstones.