Chapter 74: Christmas Eve

"Kyle, come build a snowman with us!"

Fred and George greeted him enthusiastically and invited him to join them.

But Kyle refused without hesitation.

Their art was too avant-garde. The abstract style, combined with the free and flexible lines, exuded a mysterious and intriguing aura.

Kyle was just an ordinary person. He was average in ability and limited in skill. How could he dare to participate in such a great project without overestimating himself?

He wasn't worthy.

…

Not far ahead, a few Hufflepuff students were gathered by the Black Lake.

The snow had caused a thick layer of ice to form on the lake. They were discussing whether to cut a hole in the ice and catch some fish to make a delicious "Looking at the Stars" pie.

Next to them, a few other students were having a snowball fight. Kyle saw a Gryffindor upperclassman sneakily stuff a stone into a snowball and aim it at a Slytherin.

It was just that his aim was a little off. The special snowball flew in an arc, almost directly hitting Professor Oren, who was walking by.

"Sir, you have to be more careful when you're having a snowball fight. Don't put stones in them anymore."

Professor Oren used his wand to flick the snowball aside. "Since you probably did it by accident, I won't deduct points this time. But don't do it again."

The Gryffindor nodded repeatedly.

Everyone was having fun, except for Filch.

Because the students didn't have the habit of wiping their shoes, when they returned to the castle after the snowball fight, they left a trail of dirty footprints on the ground.

This undoubtedly increased Filch's workload.

Later, he simply moved a chair to the entrance of the castle. He only allowed students to enter the castle after they had wiped their shoes clean.

In History of Magic class, Kyle fell asleep in only thirty seconds. And he slept better than he did in the dorm.

If Kanna hadn't pushed him when class was over, Kyle would have slept until noon.

"Both houses are sleeping…"

Kanna rubbed her slightly red eyes. She looked like she had just woken up too. "Why can't the school get a new History of Magic professor?"

"Probably because Professor Binns doesn't need a salary." Kyle shrugged.

He didn't have to worry about anything else. Just that one thing made Professor Binns irreplaceable.

Not to mention that he worked year-round. He didn't have any personal matters like other professors. His attendance rate was consistently 100%. Very stable.

Besides, the History of Magic exams were also very easy. As long as you carefully read the textbook before the exam, you could easily get an "E."

So, even the Board of Governors, let alone Headmaster Dumbledore, wouldn't agree to replace this chosen worker.

"That stingy old bee."

Kyle rolled his eyes, expressing his disdain for Dumbledore's ruthless exploitation of the elderly professor.

…

As December arrived, the weather got colder and colder. But the students, unlike their previous month of lethargy, were very excited.

Because Christmas break was coming…

It meant they were about to have a two-week holiday.

In this atmosphere, it was difficult for the students to focus on their lessons. They would start to daydream in class.

The professors would deduct a few points at first, trying to make them a little nervous. But it didn't work very well.

It would only last for a few minutes. After a few minutes, they would return to their previous absent-minded, miserable state.

After realizing this, the professors simply stopped caring.

It was the same every year. They were used to it. They wouldn't teach anything new before the holidays anyway. As long as it wasn't too outrageous, they would turn a blind eye and pretend they didn't see it.

Of course, there were two exceptions.

Professor Binns didn't care about Christmas. In History of Magic class, he continued to narrate the invention of the self-stirring cauldron in his mournful tone.

"The self-stirring cauldron is a cauldron that has been enchanted to stir potions automatically. It was invented by Gaspard Singleton at the end of the 20th century. He also…"

As for the other one, it was Professor Snape.

He didn't care why the students were distracted. He wouldn't show any mercy like other professors. If it wasn't a Slytherin, they would be deducted three points for every offense.

With his relentless efforts, by the day before Christmas, Slytherin's house points were far ahead. They were even almost a hundred points ahead of Ravenclaw, who was in second place.

Professor Snape was very satisfied with this result.

Slytherin's six consecutive wins this year were secure!

The night before leaving school, Kyle ran into Hagrid in the Great Hall.

He hadn't seen Hagrid since that night in the Forbidden Forest.

It was mainly because he was guilty. For the past month, the five of them had been avoiding Hagrid.

But now that they had run into each other, it would be awkward to pretend they didn't see him.

Kyle walked over and waved, "Hagrid, how are you doing?"

"It's Kyle." Hagrid lowered his head, "Sorry, I don't have time to chat right now. I still have a lot to prepare.

Merlin's beard, I forgot that Hogwarts is on holiday tomorrow. I thought Halloween was only a few days ago."

As he spoke, Hagrid didn't stop. He strode towards the castle.

Kyle had to run to keep up with him.

"Do you need help?" Kyle asked.

"If you're not busy…" Hagrid thought for a moment, "Could you help me get some mistletoe for decoration? The feast is soon, and I'm worried I won't have enough time."

"Of course, no problem."

Kyle and Hagrid walked to the cabin by the Forbidden Forest.

Not far away, there were two fir trees, about sixty or seventy centimeters in diameter, and a small pile of holly and mistletoe.

"Just take those decorative plants. I'll handle the rest."

He finished speaking and bent down, struggling to lift the two fir trees.

When Hagrid stood up, his face was red. It was clearly a struggle for him to lift two trees at once.

At this moment, Hagrid suddenly heard a voice behind him.

"Wingardium Leviosa!"

The next second, he felt a sudden lightness. The two fir trees were as if they didn't exist.

Hagrid turned his head in surprise and looked at Kyle.

"The Levitation Charm… amazing!"

"You're exaggerating, Hagrid." Kyle shook his head, "Everyone can do that."

"Is… is that right?"

Hagrid blinked in confusion. He remembered that it wasn't like this when he was a student.

It had only been a few years. Had Hogwarts freshmen become so good already?

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