Hogwarts Study Panel

Chapter 159: The Show

The good news is that Sheen has started preparing Christmas gifts.

The bad news is that he hasn't seen Professor McGonagall for two days, and even Professor Snape has disappeared.

He guessed that Professor McGonagall must be busy with that matter, but what about Professor Snape?
Sheen went to the cellar as agreed for the first time but did not see the professor.

Where did he go?
Only Sir Cadogan remained outside the cellar, trying to mount his pony. He was bruised and battered, and Sheen had no idea when he had been injured.

"Oh, little Green—that's exciting! I think there will be good news this Christmas, won't there?"
Even better news, of course, is that I once tried to persuade a fool to repent at the Tower of Gryffindor, but now! Ha! At least he doesn't have to go to the Tower of Ravenclaw.

Sir Cadogan walked away triumphantly.

Only the fat lady and Lady Violet knew what the gentleman was talking about.

It was another night of lightning and storm, and the cry of "Mudblood" destroyed all the possibilities for the two wizards.

The knight was just as furious as he had been the night before. He stormed into the cellar and roared awake the numb soul.

Going to the Gryffindor Tower to wait and apologize was perhaps one of the bravest things he did in his numb state.

The plump lady, biting into an apple, tripped the knight, and was still indignant.
"It's so sad, how could he, how could he compare to McGregor..."

Seeing her angry expression, Mrs. Violet had no choice but to agree:
"Don't worry, my lady, do you remember? She was also someone recognized by the knights..."

……

In many ways, the Ministry of Magic is like a makeshift operation, especially when it comes to Muggle wizarding orphans.

After learning about the news all day, the next day, Minerva McGonagall discovered that they were actually following Muggle rules.

Wizard orphans born in the Muggle world with unknown identities (especially those of Muggle origin) are temporarily taken over by the Muggle social system before being discovered by the wizarding world.

Even after being discovered, it was still taken over by the Muggle society, who were only responsible for enforcing the International Law of Secrecy to prevent the wizarding society from being leaked.

If he's lucky, this young wizard might find some relatives in the wizarding world; if he's unlucky, like young Tom, he'll just have to stay at Hogwarts.

There have been almost no cases of wizards adopting Muggle wizard orphans.

Streets in Croydon district piled high with garbage.

Minerva McGonagall's often stern gaze carried a hint of repression.

The director of Hollissett Orphanage broke out in a cold sweat; the "professor" in front of him was simply too intimidating.

Dressed in a green robe, with deep and captivating eyes, she sometimes felt as if her memories were being read.

"You mean, this is a very long process?"

Professor McGonagall felt instinctively uneasy.

"Of course, madam, we would be happy to let him go with you today, but the application, trial period and final adoption order will take at least a month."

Professor McGonagall left; she couldn't wait that long. If the Ministry of Magic didn't approve her proposal, some harmless Confusion Charms would be her answer.

Snow had fallen again at Holliss orphanage, and the children gathered together once more. The fireplace, though only a few pieces of firewood were burning, burst into flames after the figure in the green robe left.

The boys and girls with sallow complexions all crowded around.

"Oh, that's my Christmas wish!"

A little girl cried out in surprise.
"Santa Claus came by, and he lit the fireplace!"

The orphanage director scoffed from outside, unaware that a gloomy-faced, hook-nosed man had appeared before her. This time, it seemed her memories had truly been read.

So the number of figures heading towards the Ministry of Magic changed from one to two.

The orphanage director, Holliss, was left standing there dumbfounded, wondering if he was seeing things... by the fireplace.

“It’s Santa Claus!”

The room, perpetually smelling of disinfectant, was filled with a musty odor. In this gloomy place, the appearance of an old man with a white beard amazed the children.

"Oh—of course. Yes."

The wizard with the long, white beard said with a smile.

Can you grant our Christmas wishes?

A little boy came closer, his eyes sparkling.

"I...I'd like some more charcoal..."

Santa Claus laughed:
"Of course, that's a very nice Christmas wish, it should be granted..."

And so, embers actually began to burn around the edge of the fireplace.

"Oh my God!"

"awesome!"

Amid the children's excited shouts, the old man with the long, white beard smiled even more kindly.

His deep blue eyes gazed into the distance.

Logically, he shouldn't be here, but let's forgive an old man's curiosity—

Ah—he hadn't seen anything so interesting in decades…

Of course, this wasn't the only place that was bustling with activity.

The last week of Christmas was increasingly lively and noisy at school.

People were spreading rumors about the Christmas dinner, but Sheen didn't believe most of them—for example, that Dumbledore had bought eight hundred barrels of flavored mead from Rosmerta the Three Broomsticks.

Some teachers, like Professor Flitwick, seeing that the students were clearly distracted, simply stopped lecturing altogether.

He allowed them to play games during his classes on Wednesdays, while he spent most of his time talking to Sheehan about some details of spell theory.

At this moment, everyone in Hope Hut came over to listen, and Harry and Ron realized that Professor Flitwick knew about Hope Hut.

Seeing everyone making progress, his eyes almost squinted with laughter.

The other teachers will still do their jobs faithfully.

For example, Professor Binns' attention was not diverted by anything; he continued his arduous trek through his pile of notes on eccentrics—his classmates speculated that since Binns had not allowed his death to stop him from continuing to teach, trivial matters like Christmas could not possibly distract him.

In the Great Hall that afternoon, Sheehan and the others heard the rumors about the flavored mead again. Perhaps because Headmaster Dumbledore was always so dignified yet kind, everyone was unwilling to miss any opportunity to involve him, and the rumors kept spreading.

Sheen, thinking about how he needed to finish his roaring letter crafting practice that afternoon, kept pondering what his alchemical talent might be. He didn't really pay attention to it.

Ron's face turned red instead:
"I can drink five glasses!"

Once outside Hope Hut, he discovered he could lie, and it felt pretty good.

It felt just like playing wizard chess with Hermione, who only ever lost when playing chess, a situation that Ron and Harry both agreed was very beneficial for her.

Hermione would snort and leave with her book if she lost, but it was different with Sheehan; he would say something gentle:
"Ron, you're really good at this."

Ron was so excited that his face turned bright red.

　There will be one more update a little later; readers can read it tomorrow morning.
　　
　
(End of this chapter)