Chapter 255: Christmas, Diverse Experiences
The trio made their way back to the common room, Hermione notably quiet. However, she had resolved to tell Professor McGonagall about the Firebolt incident.
That morning, Harry received a brand-new Firebolt, and Hermione had heard him ntion the broom's na several tis. The Firebolt was touted as the "fastest broom in the world," not yet in production and without a price tag—its re contemplation hinted at an extravagant cost.
Harry had recounted nurous tis his ti in Diagon Alley, admiring the Firebolt's enchanting curves with Professor Hagrid after their training sessions. It had beco one of Harry's treasured thoughts amidst the arduous training.
But Hermione believed Harry and Ron were oblivious to the danger. The broom could have been sent anonymously by a dark wizard, possibly harboring an unknown curse. Especially after the incident in their first year when Quirrell jinxed Harry's broom, she couldn't fathom why Harry would be so careless.
"What if it's from Sirius Black?" she mused.
It wasn't until Harry ntioned Professor Lupin's peculiar gift that Hermione joined the conversation. "The professor gave you a Boggart?"
"It's a Boggart figurine!" Harry emphasized. "It's just like the real thing, that sudden chill and awful mories..." He shuddered.
"Did you check inside for a note? Maybe there's an explanation," Hermione speculated, though she couldn't imagine what that might be.
Shaking his head, Harry replied, "I only glanced inside and quickly closed the box... Honestly, I'd rather trade with Ron." He looked at Ron, who grinned. "Professor Lupin gave
an entire set of comic books."
Unable to resist her curiosity, Harry asked Hermione, "What did the professor give you?"
"It's a Chestnut mory Plate," Hermione said.
"Chestnut... what?" Harry puzzled.
"It's hard to describe. Wait, let
show you. Also, Harry, bring your Boggart figurine; let's study them together. The professor surely has a purpose."
A minute later, they regrouped.
Harry stared at the Chestnut mory Plate. "Is this... a crafted plate? I've seen sothing similar at the Dursleys', used for important clients."
"Oh, no, it's not that. Let
demonstrate. Professor Lupin wants my input... It might feature in next sester's classes," Hermione said, tapping the plate with her wand. Intricate magical patterns lit up, silver sand forming clouds, and Hermione closed her eyes, recalling details before pointing at the cloud.
The sand cascaded down, presenting a vivid three-dinsional scene to Harry and Ron.
"rlin's beard, this is... the Chamber, the Chamber within..." Ron's eyes widened.
"It's a reenactnt of our past mories," Hermione whispered.
Harry, revisiting the scene from a year ago, couldn't help but ask Hermione, "Did I really jump like that?" He gestured, realizing the Slytherin statue was almost five or six tis his height. If he'd misjudged, aside from the basilisk's tail, he'd plumt and beco its prey.
"We were all quite brave," Ron, watching the clumsy attempts to lure the basilisk, nervously told Hermione, "Um, Hermione—can I try? I an, select a different mory; one that's clearer might work better."
"Of course. Choose a more morable one; the effect will be stronger," Hermione said.
Harry was relieved they were speaking again; he'd expected Ron and Hermione to remain at odds for a day or two, based on his experience.
"Let
think, sothing vivid..." Ron muttered. His wand tapped the edge of the Chestnut Plate, and soon, a new three-dinsional scene appeared. The background was blurry, vaguely showing a car speeding directly into a tall tree—a Whomping Willow.
The Willow's branches thrashed violently, lashing at the car like a furious storm. The car managed to escape, but with two heavy thuds, luggage and two figures—Harry and Ron—were thrown out.
"Other than the Chamber, this was probably the closest to feeling dood," Ron observed the miniature figures, "But there are many unclear parts; I can't recall the car's details. I hope it's doing well in the Forbidden Forest."
Harry attempted his turn. "Here's sothing for you to see, Voldemort's real appearance..."
Monts later, Ron and Hermione finally saw the scene from Harry's first year when he faced Voldemort alone—the unveiling of Quirrell's turban, revealing a face deathly pale, red eyes with snake-like slits below.
Ron and Hermione gasped, both grabbing onto Harry's arms, startled. "Did you exaggerate when you told us last year? It wasn't this dramatic, was it?" Ron's attention always went to the oddest things.
Harry almost laughed but managed to compose himself, trying to be objective. "Um... he was indeed quite ugly. I used to have nightmares about him for a while."
Then the trio turned their attention to the box, a gift from Professor Lupin.
Ron couldn't resist confirming, "Are we really opening it? Your expression the first ti nearly scared
to death." He explained to Hermione, "Imagine opening a present happily and then your mate falls off the bed, looking ghostly pale..."
Harry glanced at Hermione, and she nodded. "We need to be sure."
Harry took a deep breath and opened the box—
At first glance, it seed like a finely crafted Boggart figurine, nothing out of the ordinary. But in the next second, a wave of coldness swept over them. The figurine seed to co to life; the Boggart's robe started fluttering, and they even saw such an image: a gray, decomposed hand erged from beneath the black robes, like a body soaked in water for too long...
Before Harry could suffocate in the eerie feeling, he hastily closed the box, panting, "You both saw it." Ron looked genuinely concerned.
"The card," Hermione suddenly said.
"What?"
"The card, Harry, there's a card beneath the Boggart figurine."
Harry and Ron exchanged looks as Hermione retrieved the card. "Hermione, you're brilliant," they praised.
Hermione waved it off, "Oh, I just—overthought a bit; you both jumped to conclusions." She read aloud from the card—
"Harry, heard you've been learning the Patronus Charm from Lupin. Maybe this could help you.
P.S.: The figurine's enchanted. As long as you avoid eye contact, it won't affect you."
She looked at them, "That's all it says, quite clear."
"Wow, that's cool!" Ron said. "Let's try it again."
Harry felt a weight lift off his chest. He nodded, opening the box. The chill returned, but as soon as he shut his eyes, the terrifying cold, damp feeling abruptly vanished. He heard Ron's excited voice, "It works! Just look away."
Opening his eyes, Harry watched Ron repeatedly swivel his head, glancing at the Boggart figurine and then swiftly turning away—it was comical. Harry finally couldn't contain his laughter.
...
Malfoy Manor
Draco Malfoy was unwrapping his gift, neatly stacked inside a box labeled "Felix Harp's Gift to Draco Malfoy" were a whole set of comic books he was quite familiar with - "The Adventures of Little Wizard Mickey." For a while, this book had stirred quite a bit of conversation.
His mother, Narcissa Malfoy, entered. With her blonde hair and blue eyes, she gently rested her hand on Draco's shoulder. "Draco, it's lunchti. Have you finished opening your gift? What did Pansy give you?"
Draco muttered, "A set of formal robes."
"Oh, our Draco is growing up," Narcissa chuckled. Her gaze landed on the book in Draco's hand. "Whose gift is this, a comic book?"
"A gift from a professor at school," Draco said, flipping a page casually.
...
Longbottom Residence
The old house rejuvenated, dark tapestries cleaned to reveal their original crimson and gold hues. Christmas trees adorned almost every corner, colorful ribbons hanging from their branches.
A round-faced boy attempted to hang a golden ball onto the Christmas tree.
"Nev, Nev!" Alice Longbottom called from afar. "Your Uncle Algie and Aunt Enid have arrived."
"Comi—coming, Mum!" Neville responded. He tiptoed, spending seconds trying to finally hang the ball, beads of sweat forming on his nose.
As he turned around, Alice stood behind him, watching quietly.
"Mum—" Neville blushed, feeling embarrassed about his earlier struggle.
Around the dining table, a bunch of relatives gathered, celebrating Frank and Alice's return. Mid-feast, Algie, gaunt and sporting a goatee, exclaid, "Great! Absolutely great!" Downing two hefty glasses of spirits in quick succession, his face flushed.
He looked at Neville. "Kid, I heard you've made progress lately, show us what you got!"
Neville, hesitant, shrank behind Alice. She patted his shoulder, encouraging him. Neville stepped forward, drew his wand, and a red light sparkled from the tip, casting a spell.
"A silent charm!" Algie gasped, nearly toppling from his chair. "Easy there, Frank, no need to help —I never had that skill at his age!"
Neville scratched his head, grinning sheepishly.
...
Muggle World, London Suburbs
"Justin, it's eleven o'clock. Rember our agreed-upon excuse for when the guests arrive."
"Got it," Justin, with his curly hair, replied, looking sowhat unhappy. "The reason I couldn't attend Eton was due to poor health. We had to hire tutors, and every year we had to visit places with fresh air... Mum, don't you think this excuse is too la? Every ti they see , I'm perfectly fine."
"Who would have thought we'd have a little wizard in our family, unable to attend Eton? I'm more disappointed than you, but—" Mrs. Finch-Fletchley playfully winked, "after the guests leave, tell
about your school days. I still can't believe Lockhart turned out to be a fraud despite his captivating books..."
Justin discreetly rolled his eyes.
...
Hogwarts
Exiting his office, Felix strolled through the lavishly decorated halls, holly and mistletoe garlands guiding the way to the Great Hall. Armor throughout the castle glead.
Entering the hall, four long tables had been shifted against the walls, leaving only one in the center for a dozen or so people to dine. Dumbledore, McGonagall, Snape, Sprout, and Flitwick were present. Felch had donned a slightly worn-out tailcoat.
"I hope I'm not late," Felix smiled.
"rry Christmas, Felix! I love the woolen socks you've gifted, twelve colors in total, I can rotate wearing them," Dumbledore exclaid joyfully. "We're waiting for the students; they might think it's regular timing, but we're slightly early—"
"To pass the ti, we're taking turns telling jokes. It's Severus's turn," Flitwick added.
Felix glanced at Snape, who wore a stern face, his expression full of resistance.
Thank you for reading this far! You can access more chapters from HERE by joining my Patreon community. You'll gain exclusive early access to the COMPLETE NOVEL.
As a mber of my Patreon community, here is what you'll get:
For $5
Early access to 100s of chapters before they go public. You also get access to all the novels I'm translating, you can find them here HERE.Your na will be featured on the "Wall of Gratitude".The power to vote on which novel I translate next.You Get Ad-free Chapters.
For $10
You get to suggest a Novel for
to translate.You get access to Digital art.Your na featured on the "Wall of Gratitude" (in gold).
For $20
You get to recomnd a Novel and I will imdiately start translating it.Your na featured on the "Wall of Gratitude" (in blue).
Don't let this amazing opportunity slip through your fingers!
Reviews
All reviews (0)