Charlus was quite reserved and did not assume that his grandson was in the right just because Harry was the one who called him, though that Harry had done so without being ordered was a point in Harry's favour that he at least thought he was in the right. So Charlus let Harry pull him through the floo to Dumbledore's office. As soon as Harry returned with his grandfather, he and Snape started to throw accusations at one another, sniping and bickering trying to outdo each other. Charlus was reminded of having been called to the school on occasion to deal with James and this man when he was still a boy.
"What's this, Potter, now that you have your grandfather back you're going to hide behind him just like your father did? He won't be able to save you from your mouth. I will have you expelled for the way you talked to me," Snape pushed.
That seemed to be the final straw for Dumbledore, who stood up and shouted. "Enough!" The word was so loud that it had to have been magically amplified. "It is I who will decide if someone is to be expelled, Severus, not you. And I won't be making a decision until I have heard both sides of the story."
Both Harry and the professor started trying to explain at the same time, which quickly devolved into the two of them shouting at each other again. Dumbledore silenced them this time with a flick of his wand and a bang like a starting pistol. "One at a time please. Severus, you may go first. Harry, please indulge us. We will listen to your side in full momentarily."
Dumbledore finally seemed to get the irate pair calmed enough that explanations were possible. "Potter, Granger, and Weasley were disrupting my lesson by casting dangerous spells on their cauldrons. When I called them out on it, reminding them that they were in a Potions class and foolish wand waving was off the table, Granger decided to be belligerent as usual, so I dressed her down as she deserved. Potter, in his arrogance, decided that he would launch a string of verbal attacks against me. As a teacher and one of the Heads of House, I officially recommend expelling Potter from Hogwarts," Snape finished.
Charlus listened to the man and it was clear to him that Snape's version of events was heavily edited. He didn't need the fact that he had to hold Harry back from intruding three times, either. For one, he knew the spells they were casting, as he had been the one to teach them the spells, and they were supposed to be standard in any potion lab.
"Okay Severus, now Harry, it's time for you to give your side of things," Dumbledore was calm and trying to give off the air of a wise old man judging from on high. To Charlus it just looked staged, but it probably worked well on the students.
Harry took a breath before speaking. "Hermione, Ron, and I were casting some standard safety charms, specifically the Cauldron Shielding Charm and the Bubble-Head Charm, when Snape came over and started being completely unreasonable, shouting at us that he wouldn't allow us to use any wand magic in his class. Hermione tried to say that we had been taught to always cast the safety spells before brewing. Snape just started yelling at her, insulting her, and spitting in her face like a crazed lunatic. To redirect him away from Hermione I told him exactly what I thought of his inability to teach and-..."
Harry was cut off by Snape. "Who do you think you are to judge my skills as a Potions master? You are nothing but an arrogant child who struts around this castle as if you own it…"
Charlus had heard enough and shouted over Snape, "Shut up! You were given your opportunity to speak and were allowed to finish uninterrupted. You are supposed to be an adult here. Act like it."
Snape shot a murderous look at Charlus and Charlus started to understand the man a little more. But he ignored Snape and turned to Dumbledore. "Now,, there are a few points I feel need to be considered here, but before getting to those, I have two concerns. First, I'm worried that a professor is preventing the use of standard safety charms, charms that should be mandatory in a classroom. But more importantly, what is this about your professor spitting in the face of Miss Granger?" Charlus's voice went ice cold in his last sentence.
Dumbledore looked momentarily taken aback by how upset Charlus was at a slight against a girl Dumbledore must have thought he barely knew of. Dumbledore was just about to assure him that it would be looked into, but Snape couldn't keep his mouth shut for two minutes.
"Who are you to say what should be taught in my classroom?" The dismissal was clear in his voice. "I am a recognised Potions master and am widely considered a prodigy in the field. What would you know about anything?"
That was probably the worst thing Snape could have said. Charlus drew on his considerable experience as a member of the Wizengamot and turned on Snape. "You may have your mastery in Potions, Snape, but I am a recognised Grandmaster. I have held my position as a Grandmaster for longer than you have been able to hold a stirring rod. I have over twelve different Potions credited to my name and I have been credited with assistance on about thirty more. So when I say that such safety charms are a standard practice in any halfway decent potions lab, you, journeyman Snape, say 'Yes sir'." Charlus's voice was calm and full of authority in a way that very few ever learned to pull off. "And I asked you about spitting in the face of Miss Granger."
"I merely yelled at the insufferable know-it-all," Snape said, avoiding the truth.
"Don't try and fob me off with a half truth Snape. I have sent a lifetime dealing with Slytherin doublespeak. Let me inform you of something you have clearly missed. Miss Granger is under the protection of House Potter. Under MY protection, because she defended Sirius Black, another under my protection, from those like you who would unjustly target him. Spitting in the face of a lady is a grave insult. One I or my heir in my sted are honour-bound to respond to. Honestly, you are lucky it was Harry in the room with you. I would have just challenged you to a duel and been done with it."
Charlus then turned to Dumbledore, leaving Snape fuming. "Given the circumstances I would say yelling at this, Professor, is a proportionate and appropriate response,, wouldn't you Dumbledore?"
Dumbledore hesitated a second under Charlus's cold stare but regained his composure quickly. "I'm afraid I can't agree. We can't have students attacking our professors, verbally or otherwise."
Harry snorted to himself and muttered under his breath, loud enough they all heard him. "Don't you need to actually teach to be considered a professor?"
Snape started shouting again. "The boy is clearly unrepentant. He needs to be expelled. Casting magic in class when forbidden, shouting at the professor, now this cheek here in front of us all. What are you going to do about it?"
Snape was looking at Dumbledore, obviously expecting him to rule in his favour, but unfortunately it was Charlus who spoke up. "Why thank you, Snape, for reminding me about the other point. Journeyman Potions Master Snape, please explain to me the rationale behind banning the use of Charms that are standard practice in every commercial potions lab in the county, the charms every book on setting up your own potions lab at home, recommend you use before even trying to make even a boil-curing potion. Charms that do no more than clean equipment, prevent the brewer from inhaling any fumes, and prevent other ingredients from accidentally being dropped or maliciously thrown into a potion."
Snape was quiet for a while, trying to think of what to say before saying, "Any reasonably competent brewer shouldn't need such crutches when they brew. A true potioneer only needs their skills with a cauldron"
Charlus wasn't impressed. "And here speaks a complete idiot. A school is not a place where you have rooms full of, how did you put it, 'true potioneers'. By definition, they are amateurs just learning the craft. Even the exceptionally talented are sharing a lab with those who struggle to get the recipe right, as well as children who can act out and throw newt eyes at each other. That's why it's important for your class to use the proper safety charms. That's why it's standard practice. I know for a fact other schools make it mandatory, even Slughorn taught the charms to all his students. Yet you seem to think it's acceptable to target a student for doing the right thing. What's next, detention for finishing your dinner? Or maybe points loss for breathing? It's no wonder Harry lost his temper and shouted at you. Someone needs to give you a goddamn wake up call."
Now Dumbledore decided it was time for him to step in. "I've said before, no matter Mr. Potter's rationale, we can't have students yelling at their professors without repercussions. This is a school, after all, imagine what would happen if all the students started to behave this way."
Dumbledore made it sound all so reasonable, but Charlus wasn't unused to the kind of talk, as it was fairly common among politicians and he had learnt to look past it long ago. "Quite right headmaster. This is indeed a school, and Snape here does hold the position of Professor. With that title comes not just a job, someone with that title holds a position of authority and respect over the future of magical Britain, and with that privilege it is also his duty to uphold certain standards of safety and behaviour when in the presence of students. Preventing safety charms and spitting in the face of a young woman falls well below the standards I would expect of an instructor of one of the core classes at what is supposed to be one of Europe's premier schools of Magic. You will have representatives of two other schools staying here this year. It would be a source of national embarrassment if such behaviour was repeated in front of such illustrious guests. I do mean if either of them were to repeat their actions, but as children cannot be expected to react perfectly in stressful situations - they are, after all, still learning - then it is incumbent on the adults to behave to the high standards we expect of them, is it not?"
Dumbledore thought for a few minutes while Harry and Snape glared at each other. "You definitely have a point, Warlock Potter. And I feel that this is being blown out of proportion by the enmity of the individuals involved. I suggest that young Harry here loses ten points and serves two nights of detention with his Head of House. I will speak with my Potions professor as well and advise him to act more the part of a professor. Good enough?"
Charlus pondered the question for a few minutes before answering. "On the provision that Harry and any other student will be allowed to use the standard safety charms in Potions class."
Snape scoffed at that, and Charlus fixed Snape with a cold look. While looking him straight in the eye Charlus said, "As I was saying, on the understanding that the students be allowed to use the normal safety charms in class, or I will use my position as a Grandmaster to get journeyman Snape reassessed. If he is actively dissuading the use of the established safety procedure, perhaps he was awarded his mastery before his time and needs to spend a few years retraining under another master."
Snape paled at that announcement. Harry didn't know (like the other three in the room did) that the core subjects in Hogwarts required the professor to hold a mastery in the subject, and Charlus was threatening that if Snape didn't shape up Charlus would remove him from the school, and in a way that Dumbledore couldn't protect him from.
"Now Charlus, isn't that a bit much over such a small matter? I'm sure that Severus's classes are perfectly safe. There is no need for such drastic action," Dumbledore tried to calm Charlus and get him to back down
"Well, considering that your Potions professor has been bullying my grandson for over three years because of a grudge he has towards Harry's father - a father that had been dead for almost ten years before these two met, and of whom Harry doesn't even have any real memories - I'm not exactly in the mood to be overly forgiving," Charlus told the headmaster in a calm tone that Harry remembered from the lessons on etiquette and politics. This was the tone that you had to cultivate to conceal your emotions and give nothing away. Hermione had called it a poker face.
Dumbledore sighed and suddenly looked a lot older. "Charlus, surely it's better to forgive such small infractions and not let them eat at you."
"You speak of us forgiving him while he still holds his grudge and abuses his position. Forgiveness can only be granted after the end of the transgression and the perpetrator has demonstrated remorse. It certainly should never be given to a bully who is still tormenting his victims. And when they rightfully push back, the bully then acts all offended and abuses their position to punish their victim," Charlus told Dumbledore, still using the neutral tone. "Now, will the students be permitted to use the appropriate safety charms, or do I need to go home and start writing letters to my old colleagues?"
Charlus had Dumbledore backed into a corner and everyone in the room knew it. Even before Dumbledore said anything, Harry was suppressing a smirk and Snape looked like he wax considering throwing both Harry and Charlus out of the window. Dumbledore seemed to deflate slightly as it became obvious that Harry hadn't kept anything from his grandfather, and Snape's behaviour had made the old Warlock unwilling to compromise. "Fine, which safety charms are you referring to?" He asked. What Dumbledore didn't know was that Charlus already considered that he had compromised enough by not taking Harry and Sirius and leaving Britain behind for good. That was more to do with Harry's desire to remain with his friends, and more specifically Hermione. If the pattern of Harry's school life continued, though, Charlus was sure he could convince Dan and Emma that leaving the country was a far safer solution, and with Hermione leaving with them he was sure that Harry wouldn't protest all that much.
Charlus prompted Harry to tell the headmaster the three charms that he had been taught to make brewing safer: 'Sanuspirantes', the Bubble-Head charm, 'Protago Lebes', the Cauldron Shielding charm, and finally 'Emundareranferro' the Tool Cleaning Charm, to clean their tools between ingredients. Dumbledore agreed to the usage of the charms and so (begrudgingly) did Snape, although Harry was sure he hadn't heard the last of this from the dungeon bat.
Harry was sent away after that, and the last thing he heard before the headmaster's door closed was his grandfather's voice saying. "Now that Harry has gone, I have a few a few questions about what the fuck you have been doing least thirteen years, Dumbledore."
-ϟϟϟ-
Harry hadn't ended up going back to Potions. By the time he and Snape had returned to the classroom everyone had left, they had spent about a third of the lesson in Dumbledore's office, and once some of the Slytherins left (meaning that Snape couldn't punish the students who left without also punishing his own house), all the Gryffindors would have left, except maybe Hermione. Instead, Harry found Hermione and Ron in the library with his things. Hermione had opened a few books on Runes and Arithmancy, obviously intending to quiz him on the subjects before his tests in them later today. At first, it also looked like Ron was doing his homework, but when Harry got close enough to look at the parchment it turned out Ron was working out his fantasy Quidditch team for this year.
Hermione hadn't noticed Harry yet and was telling Ron about how all the maths he was doing was the same type of stuff they did in Arithmancy, and if he focused he could probably transfer to the other class and get an O.W.L. that was actually useful. Ron, of course, was not interested in switching to a course where he would have to work hard to catch up, but that didn't stop the most academically inclined of the trio from trying to encourage him into doing better.
Ron was the first to spot Harry as he was the one looking towards the door to the library. Any talk of taking Arithmancy died right then as they both wanted to know what had happened. Harry explained that he had Floo'ed Charlus and that he had only lost a handful of points and had two evenings of detention with McGonagall, both of them were relieved. Hermione admitted she had visions of Harry having detention with Snape every weekend until Christmas.
"When I said that Snape spat in your face and that was what started me shouting at Snape, Grandfather looked like he wanted to crucify Snape then and there. He told both Snape and the headmaster that, as you are under the protection of House Potter, as the Heir of the House I had no choice but to shout at him. It was amazing to see Snape taken to task for once."
Hermione smiled. "Honestly, a part of me wishes that you hadn't done that. He is a professor, even if he doesn't behave like it," she added the last bit after she noticed the looks on Harry and Ron's faces. "But I admit a part of me wanted to join in and shout 'say it, don't spray it,'" she admitted.
Hermione quizzed Harry on his runes and Arithmancy until lunch, then after a quick meal it was right back to the revision. She actually convinced him to skip History and keep revising for the tests. It was that more than anything that told Harry just how much Hermione wanted Harry to join her in her other classes. She even convinced Ron to try and take decent notes in History of Magic for them, saying that she would make him copies of her History of Magic notes for the next month in exchange. So Harry and Hermione spent the last lesson of the day in the library. If someone was in the library and working, even if they were supposed to be in class, Madam Pince just assumed they had a free spot in your timetable. So they were left alone, and as it was the first full day of term and no one had any homework yet, they had the library all to themselves.
Hermione ended up spending just under three hours waiting outside the classroom while Harry took his tests. Each test was only an hour long, but Professor McGonagall, who was supervising the tests, gave Harry a thirty minute break between the tests. He had sat the Arithmancy one first, and when he left the classroom after the test he looked dejected, assuming he had failed the test. Hermione had reminded him that the Arithmancy was always a long shot at best, and as it was sprung on him as a surprise this morning no one was going to judge him for not passing. Hermione was more anxious about the Runes exam than the Arithmancy one, because she really wanted Harry to join her in at least one of her other classes. While she would have loved to have Harry in Professor Vector's class with her as it was her favourite subject, she never really expected it to happen. Professor Babbling's class, however, Harry had a really good shot at.
Hermione actually ended up knowing Harry's Arithmancy mark before he did, as Professor Vector turned up to collect the test for Arithmancy ten minutes into Harry's Runes test. Seeing who was probably her most high–strung student waiting outside the class for Harry as she wrung her own fingers together, the professor had decided to transfigure a bench right there and mark the test. Harry hadn't actually done all that badly, he got a lot of marks for getting the pure mathematics correct. He even got a few of the methodologies correct, but it was obvious that this was more of a lucky guess than any form of knowledge in the subject, so even though Harry just scraped an Acceptable he wasn't going to be allowed to join the Arithmancy class.
Professor Vector even confided in Hermione that it was a pity, as she was sure if Harry had joined her class last year then he had the potential to be one of her better students. Scraping an Acceptable on an end-of-year test like the one Hermione sat at the end of last year, even if it involved some lucky guessing, was something to be proud of. Professor Vector sealed Harry's marked test in an envelope along with Harry's mark and a note explaining her decision not to accept Harry into her class, asking Hermione to give it to Professor McGonagall when Harry finished his Runes test.
Eventually Harry came out, and this time he just looked tired. Hermione wasn't able to work out either way whether Harry thought he had passed or failed. What she could see was that Harry needed a hug, even if he couldn't see it for himself, so Hermione handed the envelope from Professor Vector to Professor McGonagall (who had walked out just behind Harry) and then pulled him into a hug. Harry leaned into her, glad for the support both physical and emotional, while Professor McGonagall read the letter from Professor Vector and then gave Harry the results of his first test. Harry was actually surprised he had a passing score, but agreed with the assessment that it was purely down to his mathematics ability and not his understanding of the principles of Arithmancy. Unfortunately, Harry was going to have to wait for his Runes mark, as it was now dinner time for everyone, including Professor Babbling. She probably wouldn't even start marking his test until early this evening, and so Harry shouldn't expect his score until tomorrow at breakfast.
-ϟϟϟ-
Despite it being their third day back at the school (if you count the first of September as their first day), the next day was Saturday, so after one day of class it was now the weekend. Harry had planned to go straight down to breakfast with Ron and Hermione, but he was waylaid by the Flying Foxes of Gryffindor, the three chasers, Harry's teammates Angelina, Alicia and Katie. "Harry, we are having a team meeting. Can you run up and get Fred and George?" Angelina asked him.
Harry sighed, he obviously wasn't going to get to breakfast quickly; he told Ron and Hermione to go on without him, giving Hermione a quick kiss on the cheek as he told her that it looked like he was going to be busy for a while. He ran up the boys' stairs to get the twins. Apparently the Gryffindor chasers refused to go up because they had heard horror stories of just what they might see. A short while later, Harry and the twins joined the girls in the comfortable chairs next to the fire in the common room that was currently unlit, as the lingering warmth of the summer would still hold for a few more weeks.
"So what's this all about?" Fred asked as he looked over at the girls.
"Devastated that without Quidditch to practice for the three of you won't be able to hang around Gryffindor's two most eligible bachelors?" George finished.
"Hardly," answered Angelina, which was a lie. It was an open secret that she and Fred were dancing around each other and would probably start dating soon if they weren't already doing so in secret, and it was no secret that Katie had a thing for George. How the two girls could tell the twins apart had always confused Harry, but according to them the twins were quite different from each other, they just played up their similarities so much it was difficult for most to see.
"This is about the lack of Quidditch, though. I know you two," she indicated the twins, "are not interested in a Quidditch career, you have your plans to run a joke shop, and Harry you haven't ever said either way, but Katie, Alicia, and I are definitely looking for a Quidditch career after Hogwarts. And we aren't the only ones, there are at least two players on every team that are looking to go pro after Hogwarts," Angelina said.
That got Harry thinking. He wasn't going out of his way to search out a Quidditch career, but it was a well paying job if you could get it. If some club wanted to offer him twenty-five to fifty thousand galleons a year to chase a snitch then he would be crazy to turn it down. He just had to remember that Quidditch was a career that would only last at most years. And he would need to be prepared for something to do after.
Katie then took up the talking point. "Just think what a whole year without any Quidditch will do. The professional scouts come to those games and use what they see here to help decide who gets a spot on their teams. This Triwizard crap is hurting the career opportunities of at least nine students so that one student has the chance to show off. It's ridiculous and goes against the school's responsibility to its students."
Harry couldn't help but give a slightly mad laugh at the idea that Hogwarts has ever had responsibility to its students. His last three years had already proven that at least Dumbledore didn't seem to care. None of them called Harry on his laugh, and it was Alicia's turn to speak. "We have to do something about this, to convince them to bring back Quidditch this year. I think first we should talk to the other teams, we'll need a united front on this. Fred, George, I heard you have known the Diggorys for a while outside of Hogwarts, can the two of you try talking to Cedric and getting him to bring the Puffs to a meeting? And Harry, can you approach the Claws? The three of us will approach the Slytherins. Let's try and meet in the Charms classroom at, say, three o'clock today. I really want to get this done quickly so that if we can get it changed there will be plenty of time to sort out the logistics of the games and give the scouts time to arrange to attend."
They all agreed to that and Harry went down to breakfast. Not only was he hungry, but the Great Hall was his best chance to run into a member of the Ravenclaw Quidditch team at this time of day. He glanced over at the Ravenclaw table when he walked in but didn't see any of their Quidditch players, so he sat down between Ron and Hermione where they had saved him a space. "Hey, has Professor McGonagall been looking for me?" Harry asked, wondering about his Runes test as he loaded his plate with toast, sausage, and baked beans.
"Not yet, but she may have just seen that you hadn't come down yet," Hermione told him as she was finishing off her own breakfast of what looked like toast and eggs.
"What did the flying foxes want anyway?" Ron asked as he added food to the dirty plate in front of him, telling Harry that this was at least his second helping.
Harry told his two friends about how the lack of Quidditch was hurting those who were looking to make Quidditch their livelihood after Hogwarts, and how the girls wanted to try and change that and wanted a meeting with all the teams this afternoon. Both Ron and Hermione were supportive, but for completely different reasons. Ron wanted to try out for the Gryffindor team and maybe play professionally in the future, but he still had a few years so his main focus was just wanting the Quidditch back. Hermione, however, was actually quite angry at the school when she realised that the Quidditch players with professional aspirations had been cut off at the knees like that. As Harry ate his breakfast, Hermione gave him a few suggestions on how to reverse the decision to cancel Quidditch for the year that Harry should bring up at the meeting. Most of them Harry was sure his teammates had already come up with, but a couple of them he was also sure they wouldn't have.
Harry scanned the Ravenclaw table again and this time was able to spot Cho Chang sitting and having breakfast with a few of her friends. Chang was the Ravenclaw seeker and was pretty popular in her house from what he had heard, so that made her the perfect one for him to approach. Harry wired off his mouth to remove any crumbs or tomato sauce that he might have gotten on himself from breakfast and got up to go over to the Ravenclaw table. He supposed he was lucky now he was with Hermione, because last year he had had a crush on Chang and he would have been nervous talking to her, but his relationship with Hermione had shown him just how shallow his crush on Chang was. He knew nothing about her other than she played Quidditch and was a Ravenclaw, whereas he could write a six foot essay on Hermione and still have more to write.
"Hey Chang. Do you mind if I sit here for a few minutes? I was hoping I could talk to you," Harry said, trying to be as friendly as he could.
Cho's friends all started to giggle at that, but Cho rolled her eyes at them and told Harry he could sit. He grabbed a clean goblet from the table and poured himself a glass of pumpkin juice. "This is about the fact that there is no Quidditch this year. Am I right in assuming that the Ravenclaw team is just as disappointed as the Gryffindor team? Especially those of you considering professional careers in the sport?" he asked.
"If disappointed is your way of saying royally pissed off, then yes. I'm hoping to sign with the Harpies, the last thing I need is a year without any of the scouts seeing me fly." And she really did sound angry, that was a side to her he had never seen before but he supposed everyone got angry sometimes.
"Well that's good, well not good - damn it, you know what I mean." Harry stumbled over his words, prompting Cho and her friends to have a quick giggle at his expense. "As I was trying to say…Angelina, Alicia and Katie are putting together a meeting of all the Quidditch teams in the Charms classroom at three o'clock this afternoon. We want to discuss our options for bringing Quidditch back this year, and I was hoping you could get your team to join us."
"What do you think your chances are of succeeding?" One of Cho's friends, whose name Harry didn't know, asked.
"I'd say we have a fair shot. There are a few ideas that could get us our games back. But that's what the meeting is about, listening to everyone's ideas and seeing what we think could work, and deciding what to go forward with. Are you all in?"
"We're in alright, I'll see you at three. After all, I need to pay you back for beating me last year." She finished with a wink and a laugh. Harry laughed too, he knew it was part of her game strategy to flirt with the other Seekers. Diggory,he could understand, but how she did that with Malfoy without throwing up was something that was always going to be completely mental to him.
Harry stuck around for a few more minutes just to be polite and to finish his pumpkin juice before he made his way back to Ron and Hermione. Ron was just polishing off what was probably his third helping, while Hermione had pulled out a book and was now reading it. Harry grabbed himself a couple of apples to snack on later and was just considering putting himself together a breakfast sandwich when Professor McGonagall came walking up to the table looking directly at him.
"Mr. Potter I have a note here from Professor Babbling. She says that she hopes that you purchased the necessary books over the summer because you will need them on Monday." The head of Gryffindor said in her usual clipped tone. It took Harry a few moments to work out exactly what she meant, but he did finally put it together and a smile spread over his face. Professor McGonagall dropped her poker face and smiled at Harry, who was now being hugged by an equally happy Hermione congratulating him. "Yes, congratulations indeed, but remember. Now that you are in the class, you need to put the work in. If you don't, you can always be moved back into Divination," she told him as a warning.
Professor McGonagall was just about to walk off when Harry asked her. "Professor, what grade did I get?"
"An Exceeds Expectations, Mr. Potter. I expect you to score this high or better at the end of this year, or you'd better have a good excuse why." Then she went back up to the staff table, leaving a happy Harry and Hermione and mildly grumpy Ron at the Gryffindor table.