Hogwarts: My Grandmother is the Queen

In the days that followed, Henry's schedule was extremely full every day.

When he doesn't have classes, he usually learns new spells or reinforces spells he's already learned in abandoned classrooms.

Every afternoon at four o'clock is the fixed time for afternoon tea. Sometimes he drinks tea by himself, and sometimes he invites a few of his Slytherin classmates or Hufflepuff classmates to join him, to strengthen their relationships.

During Quidditch training, Captain Flint's attitude towards him changed from observation to "You're a fucking genius."

Henry's flying skills are steadily improving, and his tactical adjustments based on his observations from the sidelines are being adopted by the team more and more frequently.

He remained low-key and never stole the spotlight, but the members of the Slytherin team began to truly regard him as one of their own, a young but clear-headed reserve player who made outstanding contributions to the team.

He also had Lucy order a Nimbus 2000 broom from Diagon Alley. As the saying goes, "A skilled craftsman must first have the right tools." Without a good flying broom, how could he compete with Potter?

Of course, he also writes letters to his family on weekends, sometimes chatting about everyday things, and sometimes about what has happened at school recently.

The festive atmosphere in the castle grew stronger day by day. Pumpkin lanterns that would laugh strangely on their own hung in the corridors, swarms of bats floated on the ceiling, and the armored figures were enchanted, suddenly banging on their shields or letting out a dull sigh when no one was passing by.

Peeves thrives in his element, appearing and disappearing unpredictably. He enjoys stuffing sticky spider-shaped gummy candies into students' hats or suddenly imitating Professor McGonagall's scolding from around the corner, scaring the freshmen out of their wits.

The funniest time was when they somehow got hold of a giant spider and threw it in Ron's face.

It is said that Ron was so frightened that he screamed wildly and ran away faster than Nimbus 2000.

Henry maintained his usual routine, except that when he went to the Room of Requirement to practice his spells, he had to be more careful to avoid those overly decorated corners where prank props could easily be hidden.

The afternoon tea with the Slytherin circle continued as usual, and the conversation inevitably turned to everyday events.

"Flint said that we need to increase the intensity of training after Halloween," Draco said, stirring his tea with lots of milk with a silver spoon, his face beaming with excitement. "He said we can't let our guard down just because of the holidays."

"Indeed, the first game is coming soon." Henry picked up a small scone. "But what concerns me more is, have you noticed that one of the professors hasn't been playing quite right lately?"

Pansy immediately lowered her voice: "Professor Quirrell? You can smell his garlic odor from across the hall now! And his stuttering has gotten worse. Yesterday in Defense Against the Dark Arts class, he tried to explain what a resurrected zombie was, and he almost tripped over the rope on the poster."

Daphne added softly, "I also heard that last night some Hufflepuff students heard what sounded like a large animal dragging a heavy object, along with a low whimper, near the east corridor on the fourth floor, but Mr. Filch went to check and said he found nothing."

Is the restricted area on the east side of the fourth floor?

Henry's heart skipped a beat; it seemed Quirrell had already taken the bait Dumbledore had set.

But here's the question: if Draco hadn't provoked them with a fake duel, would the trio have even discovered the trapdoor in the fourth-floor restricted area?

"The castle is really old, so it's not surprising that there are always strange noises," he said calmly. "However, we should definitely be more careful at night. Haven't the prefects repeatedly warned us not to wander around after curfew? Especially to stay away from secluded corridors and stairwells."

Draco didn't seem to care: "As long as we don't run into anything really troublesome, like trolls or giant spiders."

He made what he thought was a funny joke, but Pansy and Daphne both frowned, clearly not believing that such dangerous things would exist at school.

Evening, before the banquet.

The auditorium was enchanted, presenting an extravagant and lavish festive atmosphere.

The ceiling turned black, twinkling with simulated starlight and comets with long tails, while thousands of magically conjured bats hovered below.

Giant pumpkin lanterns floated in mid-air, their hollow mouths gaping open, and the flickering flames inside made them look unpredictable.

The long table was already set with festive appetizers: eyeball-shaped meatballs, spider-shaped cheese platters, and wizard drinks with strange green bubbles, among many other things.

The Slytherins, dressed in neatly pressed dark green house robes, entered one after another.

Henry sat with Draco, Pansy, and Daphne, while Theodore, as always, chose a quieter spot further away. Henry appeared to be observing the Great Hall's decorations, but his eyes were constantly glancing at the teachers' section.

Dumbledore, dressed in a deep purple robe adorned with silver stars, was smiling and talking to Professor McGonagall beside him. The latter remained serious, but seemed somewhat dissatisfied with the plate of mummy fingers in front of her.

Professor Snape was expressionless, like a black sculpture, only occasionally glancing at the Gryffindor table with a look of disgust that even a fool could see.

It was unusually noisy in Gryffindor, where the Weasley twins seemed to be demonstrating some new prank, eliciting bursts of laughter.

Harry and Ron sat together, engaging in lively conversation with Seamus, Dean, and others.

Henry noticed that Hermione was not with them and seemed to be absent from the party.

The banquet officially began, and Dumbledore's brief and witty toast drew rounds of applause and laughter.

The food quickly filled the plates, and the atmosphere in the auditorium became even more lively.

Henry ate slowly, maintaining a proper demeanor.

“Speaking of which,” Pansy said after taking a couple of bites, “I heard the Hufflepuffs talking about Charms class today. It seems like there’s some infighting among the Gryffindors.”

"It's that know-it-all girl, isn't it?" Draco asked with a hint of schadenfreude. "No wonder I didn't see her at the Gryffindor longstand..."

Henry didn't stop what he was doing because of the discussion. Instead, he slowly and methodically used his knife to cut the mummy's finger on the plate—which was actually just a sausage that had been made into this bizarre shape.

This is an opportunity; perhaps I can talk to Dumbledore about it later?

He was unaware of the conversation that took place in the principal's office a few days prior, and even if he had, he wouldn't have cared.

Dumbledore wouldn't worry at all that he would become the next Tom, because it was neither necessary nor likely.

Henry felt that unless Dumbledore's head was syrup-marinated, he couldn't possibly be wary of him, the prince of the Muggle world.

Why?

Nonsense, I have a family, a whole big family.

Of course, Henry wasn't trying to gain attention or favor with Dumbledore; he wasn't some ordinary transmigrator. Nor was he trying to befriend the trio, who were actually quite troublesome.

The real purpose was to get to know Hagrid through the trio.