HP: The Dropout Who Saved the World

During dinner.

The temperature in the Great Hall suddenly dropped as a chill spread through the air.

Hundreds of ghosts marched through the Great Hall in neat, orderly rows.

They raised their clenched fists above their heads, shouting so loudly the ceiling almost shook:

"We want work! We want wages!"

"Ghost rights are human rights!"

Peeves zoomed around the Great Hall cackling, throwing paper balls at students' heads.

Harry's nose got hit, and when he painfully unfolded the paper, he found messages written in bright red ink:

"Unscrupulous Headmaster Withholds Wages!"

"Is it human nature's distortion or moral decay?"

"99% unemployment rate - who will save us?"

"Ghost surplus - help us out!"

The Great Hall erupted in chaos, with students buzzing with discussion and craning their necks to watch this unprecedented ghost protest.

"Merlin's beard— Albus, what's happening?"

Professor McGonagall looked around anxiously while other professors nervously gripped their wands.

Dumbledore had never seen anything like this in his life.

His fork clattered onto his plate as he watched his old friend Cuthbert Binns float before him, speaking in a gloomy and angry tone:

"Since the day I died, I haven't received a single Galleon."

"I've given everything to teaching History of Magic at Hogwarts—"

Dumbledore stared at him in shock, momentarily speechless.

He finally managed to stammer:

"But ghosts can't touch physical currency."

Professor Binns grew even more furious:

"Exactly! We can't touch it, so we demand spiritual rights!"

"Labor deserves compensation! School work deserves rewards!"

Dinner was forcibly suspended.

Several ghost leaders made their way to the Headmaster's office.

The ghosts presented two demands:

First: Pay Professor Binns' years of back wages;

Second: Provide job opportunities for ghosts with proper compensation;

Dumbledore sat stunned in his chair as the ghosts spoke over each other.

Ghosts wanting work? Unheard of!

He stroked his white beard, mentally calculating Professor Binns' wages since his death.

Ones... tens... hundreds... thousands... tens of thousands...

By Merlin's beard! Even selling himself wouldn't cover this deficit!

Would Hogwarts go bankrupt under his leadership?

Extraordinary events have extraordinary causes - he strongly suspected someone was instigating the ghosts.

Could it be Beauxbatons? Durmstrang?

Bankrupt Hogwarts, and they could naturally become Europe's strongest magical school!

What a vicious scheme!

No, he absolutely couldn't pay this money!

Dumbledore's blue eyes grew serious as he adjusted his half-moon spectacles, speaking in a persuasive tone:

"I understand your demands... Binns, but perhaps you'd care to explain what changed your minds?"

"After all, ghosts can't touch physical objects, I apologize for my previous oversight—"

Professor Binns' voice remained dry, but Dumbledore detected a note of pleasure:

"We learned of an Eastern secret art from Miss Yu that can ease our suffering."

"We merely wish to pay Galleons for it, but as you know, ghosts have no property."

...

Minutes later.

Jane Yu was summoned to the Headmaster's office.

Dumbledore and the ghosts watched as she filled the cauldron with sand, inserted three sandalwood branches, and lit them.

The room filled with woody smoke, making the poor Headmaster cough violently.

Almost instantly as the branches began burning, the ghosts closed their eyes, nostrils flaring as they breathed deeply, their faces showing expressions of pure bliss that left Dumbledore dumbfounded.

He drew his wand and cast several detection spells on the cauldron and branches, but found no trace of dark magic.

His worried heart finally settled.

"cough cough Impressive... Eastern secret art."

After death, wizards can choose to either completely leave this world or remain as ghosts in places where they left their mark.

Becoming a ghost meant being caught between life and death, rejected by both the living and dead realms.

This magic clearly broke that boundary.

Dumbledore tried to copy Jane's actions, lighting three sandalwood branches and placing them in the cauldron's sand.

But he failed - despite the same scent filling the room, the ghosts showed no reaction.

His expression grew serious, unable to comprehend this phenomenon.

The soul was a mysterious thing, as everyone in the magical world knew. Even he, the master of the Elder Wand, couldn't fully understand its mysteries.

Yet Jane had succeeded.

Was this the power of the laws she had touched during her soul's separation?

What an extraordinary gift!

After several minutes of contemplation, Dumbledore asked Jane:

"This magic draws on fundamental laws, and only you can perform it."

"Perhaps, for this old man's sake, you'd be willing to accept a part-time position to improve the lives of these old friends?"

Since payment was offered, Jane readily agreed.

The ghosts, having gotten their answer, left satisfied.

Professor Binns attempted to raise the corners of his mouth, and this usually head-hanging, listless History of Magic professor made a ghostly motion of patting Jane's head:

"Thank you, child."

After the last ghost left the Headmaster's office, Dumbledore sank back into contemplation.

The ability to cross the boundary between life and death, mastery of secret arts to communicate with ghosts...

Was this a gift to the magical world, or another kind of disaster?

At least Jane's only goal was to ease the ghosts' suffering - she was a kind child.

But what if someone took advantage of her kindness?

He sat there, seriously considering student education issues.

Unable to reach a conclusion, he felt unsettled, and even found himself wanting to take a whiff of the sandalwood incense.

...

Professor Binns was a rigid, dull ghost who always lectured about magical history in a monotonous voice, making it terribly boring. He couldn't even remember students' names, often calling them incorrectly.

In fact, he didn't care what the students were called, only wanting to endlessly teach magical history.

But now, he was determined to ensure Jane excelled in his subject, to pass on his life's work to her.

When he next floated through the blackboard to teach the Slytherin second-years, he kept calling on Jane to answer questions, making everyone too afraid to doze off.

"Miss Yu, when did the International Warlock Convention of 1289 take place?"

Jane was forced to wake from her half-asleep state, answering drowsily:

"In 1289, sir."

Professor Binns continued reading from the textbook in his monotonous voice, but soon woke Jane again:

"Miss Yu, where did the goblin rebellion near Hogsmeade in 1612 take place?"

Knowledge entered Jane's brain in the most vindictive way.

"Near Hogsmeade, sir."

Professor Binns' voice remained dry, but everyone could hear his satisfaction.

"Five points to Slytherin."

The Slytherin students barely contained their laughter, looking at Jane with incredulous expressions as if seeing some human-shaped magical creature sitting on the bench.

"By Merlin— Professor Binns is like her personal point-giving fairy!"

"Can ghosts be hexed? Professor Binns seems possessed!"

The History of Magic class had never been so lively, with the little snakes staying awake through an entire lesson for the first time.

But when Dumbledore heard about this, he smiled:

"If you had read the school history, you would know—"

"Professor Binns' quick mind and clear thinking in life were highly praised by Slytherin."

"All students absolutely loved his classes."

Though these were small changes, he was happy for the ghost who had taught History of Magic since Hogwarts' founding.