Chapter 75: Kyle's Garden

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With Kyle's help, Hagrid finally managed to deliver all the Christmas trees to the Great Hall before the feast.

When they arrived, Professor McGonagall and Professor Flitwick were already waiting in the Great Hall.

"Hagrid, you're finally here. These are the last two… Oh, a great Levitation Charm, Mr. Chopper. Five points for Hufflepuff."

Professor Flitwick had been wondering why Hagrid could lift two Christmas trees so easily. When he got closer, he saw Kyle standing next to him, holding a wand.

"If the final exam was the Levitation Charm… I could give you an 'O' right now."

Professor Flitwick winked at Kyle, then used the Levitation Charm to take the two fir trees and place them in the right spot.

Professor McGonagall wove the mistletoe into hanging garlands, filling the last bit of space on the wall.

A few minutes later, a large number of students began to pour into the Great Hall. The feast officially began.

At the table, Cedric looked at Kyle in surprise, "What? You said you're not going home for Christmas?"

"Hmm." Kyle nodded, "I can't help it. Nobody's home. It's not fun to go back. I'd rather stay at Hogwarts."

Chris was responsible for returning the magical creatures he had caught to their original habitats. He had been running around the world with Newt for the past few weeks.

The Department of Mysteries seemed to be on a mission too. Diana had sent him a letter a few days ago, saying that she might not be able to come back for Christmas, but she would send him a gift on time.

Chris and Diana were both away. It wouldn't be fun for Kyle to go back. He might as well stay at Hogwarts. At least he had something to do here.

Like bonding with Fluffy, or watering the ornamental plants he was growing.

"How about you come to my house?" Cedric thought for a moment, "My dad would definitely welcome you."

"Next time." Kyle shook his head, "I promised Hagrid I would take care of his animals during the holidays."

Cedric looked a little disappointed.

Kyle, on the other hand, was the opposite. Honestly, he didn't want to face Mr. Diggory, the show-off dad, let alone spend two weeks with him.

Just thinking about it gave Kyle a headache. Chris was enough to handle that kind of treatment.

To distract Cedric and make him forget about the topic, Kyle turned to Kanna and asked, "What about you? Are you going home for the holidays?"

Kanna didn't say anything. She just shook her head slightly.

Seeing this, Kyle didn't ask anymore.

…

After the feast, the term ended.

The next day, the students all boarded the train and returned to King's Cross Station.

Mickel and Ryan also went home. Kyle was the only one left in the dorm. Even the usually lively common room was much quieter now.

This feeling wasn't bad either.

Kyle sat on a sofa near the fireplace, roasting a whole potato. There were also some flatbreads, mushrooms, and some thinly sliced beef next to him.

When Kyle went to the kitchen to get these ingredients, the house-elves had offered to roast them for him. But he refused.

He just wanted the process. The food was secondary.

Kyle held the roasting fork. He waited until the potato turned black before taking it out.

He peeled off the skin after it cooled. He took a bite. It was sweet, soft, and delicious.

It was just that he might not have mastered the heat. The inside was still raw.

Kyle used a spoon to scoop out the raw part and threw it to a rat nearby.

"Kyle…" Kanna glared at him fiercely, "Don't feed Pocky those weird things!"

"It's just a potato. What's weird about it?" Kyle waved his hand, unconcerned, "Besides, what rat doesn't eat potatoes!"

As if to spite him, the rat named Pocky glanced at the undercooked potato and went to a different place. I didn't even try it.

"Good grief, a rat is picky." Kyle was a little embarrassed. He said earnestly to Kanna, "I think you should starve it for a few meals."

Kanna ignored him and left the common room with Pocky.

It was Christmas break now. The caretaker's cat wouldn't be wandering the castle hallways all the time. So, she planned to take her pet out for a walk and let it explore Hogwarts.

It had been here for so long. She couldn't keep it locked up in the dorm.

After Kanna left, Kyle was alone in the common room. He finished the food in front of him, a little bored. He didn't stay there. He got up and went to the Room of Requirement on the eighth floor.

After three months of Kyle's efforts, besides the Bitey Cabbage, there were also white willow, rue, belladonna, mistletoe, sneezewort… and a beautiful golden spider orchid.

The first three were nothing special. They were common magical plants. You could buy their seeds in Hogsmeade. Kyle had someone bring back a big bag.

As for the last one… it came from the Hufflepuff common room.

One night, Kyle couldn't resist. He cut a small branch with a bud from the lush golden spider orchid…

It was really small, only about an inch long. It wouldn't affect it at all.

He had just planted it here to see if it would work. He didn't expect it to actually succeed.

Although it was still very small now, Kyle was already very satisfied. As long as it survived, it would grow eventually.

Kyle went straight to the middle of the room.

The Bitey Cabbage was growing well. In three months, they had grown from seeds to the size of Bludgers. Their open mouths, with two rows of sharp teeth, looked very powerful. One bite would definitely be enough.

Kyle loosened the soil for them and chased away the Billywig that had been hovering above his head.

"I'm busy now. Go play on the side."

A few days ago, he had accidentally rescued this Billywig from Mrs. Norris's mouth. It was about to be eaten for lunch.

The little guy still had a long gash on its body. It must have been caught by Mrs. Norris… Kyle brought it here and used white willow to help heal it.

Then… it refused to leave.

Fortunately, the little guy was quite obedient. After Kyle finished speaking, it obediently flew to the side.

It was big here. There were many magical plants. Most importantly, there wasn't that cat that jumped so high. I liked it…

After loosening the soil for the Bitey Cabbage, Kyle walked around the room.

He still felt like it was a bit empty. Although he had a lot of white willow and rue seeds, it was such a good place. If he only planted those ordinary magical plants, it felt like a waste.

Kyle stroked his chin and looked thoughtfully at the large empty space on the left side of the room.

If he remembered correctly, they would soon be learning about Devil's Snare in Herbology class.

…

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