The latest Hogwarts Legacy trailer has shown off the amazing detail found in the Hufflepuff common room. It's exactly the sort of thing that Potterheads have been looking forward to, ultimately bringing them closer than ever to the dream of being an actual student at Hogwarts.
Though studying at Hogwarts would certainly be filled with a steady stream of surprises, some wannabe students feel that they'd likely end up getting detention for what (pretty much) amounts to curiosity. There's a lot of temptation in the Wizarding World, especially for a young witch or wizard. These Redditors offered up their own most likely reasons for getting stuck in detention at Hogwarts.
Library No-No’s
It isn’t far into the Harry Potter franchise before Harry and readers/audiences are introduced to the Hogwarts library and its highly tempting restricted books section. Redditor SmidgeonThePigeon sees the detention potential here, saying, “Being in the restricted section – again.”
There’s no doubt that the restricted section has fascinating material in it, the likes of which are only just glimpsed in the films. There’s much insight within these books into some of the most dangerous and frightening magic in the Wizarding World, which is why it makes sense that some students simply couldn’t resist the temptation of breaking the rules.
Being Out After Dark
As fantastical and amazing as it is, Hogwarts can actually be a pretty dangerous place. As such, students are typically advised to stay within the castle walls after dark. Redditor AlastorsPlaything thinks this could be problematic for them, listing their inevitable reason for detention as “Caught outside the castle after dark.”
What exactly is lurking about the Hogwarts grounds is hard to say, but what’s certain is that it’s a risky place to be at night. This is particularly true due to the close proximity of the Forbidden Forest – a place that houses everything from vampires and werewolves to dangers so severe that they aren’t even mentioned.
Magical Curiosity
Hogwarts offers its students the opportunity to gain tremendous insight into the world of magic, but there are limits to this knowledge. Redditor Toothless_Potter sees access to this magic as too much temptation, saying they’d get detention for “Experimenting with various magic spells and potions and, doing magic in corridors.”
Knowing that so many different and amazing spells exist would certainly be a difficult temptation to ignore. Hogwarts professors are strict on this, and along with students not being permitted to perform magic away from Hogwarts, there are serious boundaries that shouldn’t be crossed by those who are just getting familiar with the power of magic.
Common Room Conflicts
Hogwarts nurtures a competitive spirit between its four rival houses and this is fine, though some houses tend to be a little more aggressive than others. Because of this, Animal_Gal feels their Hogwarts detention would be the result of “Trying to sneak into another common room to comfort a friend or fighting a bully.”
Time and time again in the Harry Potter franchise, it’s the Slytherin house and a handful of its students responsible for bullying and trouble. Sneaking into another house’s common room is a real no, no – though oddly enough, the only ones to pull this off are Harry, Ron and Hermione. Yet, regardless of any honorable intention, this is one infraction that would incur serious detention time, if caught.
Being Late To Class
Being a student at Hogwarts is a dream come true for most, if not all Potterheads, but it’s important to remember that regular school rules still apply. As Redditor IncrediblySneepy points out, they would get detention for a pretty standard infraction, “Being late to class.”
On one hand, it’s easy to understand how effortless it would be to get distracted at a place like Hogwarts, with its humongous potential for adventure. That being said, however, being late for class is only going to contribute to being a pretty crummy witch or wizard. Still, it would inevitably be tough to focus on just one thing – like getting to class on time.
Professor Issues
The Harry Potter franchise provided fans with a tremendous array of Hogwarts staff members to love, or in some cases, despise. Some professors certainly caused some students no small amount of grief. Redditor FaithKHaugrud seems to agree, citing, “Definitely yelling at a professor” as the cause for their detention.
Though yelling at a professor isn’t all that advisable, it’s fair to argue that Hogwarts students might get a bit of a pass when it comes to reacting to at least a few of their professors. For example, Dolores Umbridge proved herself instantly unlikeable, biased and cruel. Reacting to her despotic measures seems more like a method of self-preservation than disrespect.
Temper Tantrums
For all its rivalries and the vast age range of its students, physical violence is rarely seen at Hogwarts. There have been glimpses, of course (Hermione famously punching Malfoy comes to mind), but Redditor Electrical_Sort_3909 feels that Quidditch holds detention potential for them, saying, “punching somebody in the throat on the Quidditch field.”
Whatever happened to sportsmanship? While it’s true that emotions run high when it comes to Quidditch, physical violence in the sport surely would be dealt with severely. In fact, it might even bring about more than just detention – expulsion from the team perhaps? Then again, in a world where magic is commonplace, could a punch be a minor infraction?
Testing Out Magic On Friends
Because of the unique position they find themselves in, Hogwarts students have access to a variety of amazing magic spells. A now-deleted Redditor lists, “Trying out magic I learned on other students” as their reason for detention at Hogwarts.
It will likely be easy for many fans to sympathize with the Redditor’s assessment. Being able to do magic opens up a world of possibilities, and for many people, that inherently means getting into mischief. Unfortunately, an appetite for fun doesn’t really justify zapping classmates with strange spells.
Making Friends With The Wrong Beasts
When the glamour of attending Hogwarts fades and learning the ins and outs of the goblin rebellion of 1612 becomes less fascinating than expected, things could get a little dull. But that doesn’t matter to Redditor 6ChickenScream9 – they’d be busy “Not doing my assignments and being caught trying to domesticate wolves.”
This sounds like the makings of another Hagrid. Though to be fair, there’s no evidence that Hagrid didn’t do his assignments when he was a student. What can be said about detention for trying to domesticate wolves? Well, it’s an interesting pursuit, to say the least. And given how unfriendly it is to communal living, detention seems entirely warranted.
Kidnapping Mrs. Norris
While the Harry Potter franchise is replete with great human characters, there are also some pretty special animal characters as well. Redditor isaacangelo admits that their Hogwarts detention would be linked to their love for a notorious Hogwarts resident, saying, “Kidnapping Mrs. Norris and taking her to my common room.”
Even though students are permitted to bring their own cat to live with them at Hogwarts, that doesn’t seem to be enough for some. Oddly enough, Mrs. Norris doesn’t always come across as the most cuddly of cats. She spends much of her time lurking, though she clearly means the world to Filch, meaning detention for a common room kidnapping would be a certainty.