Chinese Biting Cabbage

"Shocking! A wizard tried to rob Gringotts—the most heavily guarded underground vault in the world!"

The next morning in the dining hall, Glenn read the Daily Prophet in one hand while sipping his coffee.

He had to say, the Wizarding World's newspapers were pretty poor quality.

That short headline contained three glaring factual errors.

First, it wasn't shocking.

Second, by the time a newspaper said someone had tried to do something, it had already happened.

And lastly, what was so heavily guarded about Gringotts?

Glenn folded the newspaper and checked the time.

There was still nearly half an hour before his first class, so he had plenty of time.

Still, he had better get going.

From the outside, Hogwarts always looked like the same old castle. In reality, though, its 142 staircases shifted constantly. Some were wide and spacious, others narrow and cramped, and some led to different landings at random depending on the time.

So if you hoped to sleep in a little and arrive at class just in time, you would probably end up standing outside the classroom as punishment.

Sebastian had once taken it upon himself to set a good example on this matter, and had consequently been appointed as a door guard by the professors for more than a week straight.

Every time Glenn saw Sebastian's resolute expression as he stood guard outside, it spurred him to set off early again.

Sometimes Sebastian complained that this wasn't very brotherly of him, but whenever that happened, Glenn came down with a condition known as selective deafness...

Ahem. Back to the point.

Slytherin's first class was Herbology, shared with Ravenclaw.

Their teacher was a short, plump witch named Professor Sprout, who was also the Head of Hufflepuff.

She would lead them to the greenhouses behind the castle to study Herbology, learn how to cultivate strange plants and fungi, and find out what they were used for.

Just as Glenn had imagined Hogwarts' Herbology teacher would be, Professor Sprout was kind and sunny, with a gradual, step-by-step approach to teaching.

For that reason, Professor Sprout didn't have the first-years do any hands-on work in their first lesson. She simply outlined the year's curriculum and introduced some basic Herbology theory.

"Excellent work, Mr. Howard!" Professor Sprout called out happily during class.

"You've summed up Dittany's basic characteristics very clearly and explained what it's used for. Ten points to Slytherin!"

As the first question of their first lesson, Professor Sprout awarded far more points than usual.

Amid the applause, Glenn lost his status as the one who had joined the team with a head start.

Slytherin was back on the same starting line as the other houses.

After class, Glenn didn't hurry off. He stayed behind in the greenhouse.

"Mr. Howard?" Professor Sprout noticed Glenn hadn't left. "Is there something you need?"

"Well, Professor, I'm very interested in Herbology."

"Ah, that's wonderful, Mr. Howard." Professor Sprout clasped her hands together with a beaming smile. No professor could dislike hearing a student praise the subject they taught.

"Judging by how you did in class, I imagine you have some background in it."

Glenn didn't deny it. He smiled. "Yes. Before classes began, I read a little about Herbology. But your lively lessons have made a deeper impression than the books."

Professor Sprout's smile grew even wider. If they hadn't been around other people, she would have been in such a good mood that she might have hummed a little tune.

When the moment seemed right, Glenn asked, "Professor, I was wondering whether students are allowed to grow magical plants of their own at Hogwarts?"

"Oh, certainly. Just submit an application to me." Professor Sprout smiled and nodded.

She was more than happy to help a student who was so interested in Herbology that he wanted to cultivate magical plants himself.

"If it's nothing particularly rare, the greenhouses have plenty of seeds. Glenn, what sort of magical plant would you like to grow?"

At that, Glenn fell silent, putting on a hesitant look.

"Um... What do you think of Chinese Biting Cabbage?"

In the Slytherin Common Room, Blaise watched Glenn approach with a flowerpot in his hands.

"Glenn, is that... a potted plant?"

Glenn set the pot on the table and poured himself a glass of water.

"Yes. Professor Sprout let me grow some magical plants in the dormitory."

"Oh."

Blaise turned his attention back to the letter in his hands.

"What for? To cultivate your temperament?"

He nonchalantly ran his hand over the fuzzy leaves. "What are you trying to grow?"

"Chinese Biting Cabbage," Glenn said, setting down his glass.

"Oh, very Hufflepuff of you..."

Before he could finish, Blaise yanked his hand back and jumped up from his seat.

"Biting Cabbage?!" He stared at the classmate he'd known for barely a day, unable to believe his ears.

Other people might not know, but Blaise's mother had grown a few at home.

Though they were plants, they were more vicious than most animals.

If raised well, they could take down a lion in just a few bites. Their bite was stronger than that of several crocodiles combined.

"Professor Sprout actually let you grow one of those in the common room?!" he shouted, drawing plenty of attention.

Glenn didn't answer right away. He simply poured the water he hadn't finished into the soil in the pot.

A strong performance, measured words, and a humble attitude could always make a good impression, especially in the naturally interactive relationship between a teacher and a student.

So when Professor Sprout heard what he wanted to grow, she immediately...

Of course, there was no way she would approve.

Even if he came across as the greatest Herbology prodigy the school had ever seen, Professor Sprout wasn't about to let a first-year grow a dangerous magical plant like Biting Cabbage on the very first day of term.

It had to be a process. He would at least need to prove that he could grow the plant safely.

So what Professor Sprout had given him wasn't Chinese Biting Cabbage, but a harmless beginner-level magical plant: Dittany.

Only after he had grown it successfully and shown the results to the Herbology professor would she let Glenn try cultivating more challenging plants.

Once Blaise learned it wasn't Biting Cabbage, he let out a sigh of relief and sat back down in his armchair.

"If I count your joke, then you've given me two 'surprises' in a single morning."

Glenn picked up the Dittany from the table, preparing to put it back in his private dormitory room.

"The second one? Then what was the first?"

"My dad died."

Blaise snorted and crumpled up the letter that had arrived by owl.

"To be precise, my fifth wealthy stepfather died after a Biting Cabbage bit through his throat..."