The Thursday Defense Against the Dark Arts exam arrived.
This course, which had suffered such a turbulent fate at Hogwarts, turned out to be the exam the young wizards felt most confident about. Whether it was the written test or the practical, the young wizards emerged from the Great Hall looking relaxed, with Gryffindor even echoing with joyous laughter.
Scrimgeour wasn't an examiner, but as the Head of the Auror Office, he came every year to observe and assess the students. Few students qualified to become Aurors each year, but this year was an exception. Leaving aside Harry, Hermione, Ron, and Neville—students he had already met and confirmed to be exceptional—the others still lagged considerably behind the likes of Hermione, Ron, and Neville. But how many students like Hermione and Neville came along in a year? This batch of students was noticeably much better than the previous year's cohort.
Chapter 304