The Kitchens of Hogwarts

Although Malfoy's words in class had stung a bit, the truth was that Christmas at Hogwarts wasn't bad at all.

The children who stayed behind weren't lonely.

To create a festive atmosphere, the professors had long since begun decorating the ancient castle with all sorts of ornaments.

The walls were hung with garlands of holly and mistletoe, making the Great Hall look magnificent and splendid.

Twelve towering Christmas trees stood in various places around the room, some glittering with tiny icicles, others shimmering with hundreds of candles.

As soon as Glenn woke up, he saw a small pile of Christmas gifts at the foot of his bed.

Of course, in his current identity, aside from the Lehmann Couple, he had no other personal connections outside of Hogwarts for now.

So these were all from his classmates and a few professors he was closer with.

Blaise had given him a sack... just a little joke—he'd actually given him an ornate wand stand, perfect for resting his wand on during idle moments or when sleeping.

Daphne Greengrass had gifted him a box of fine chocolates, a nice little snack for leisure time.

Theodore had given him a brand-new quill, engraved with the Slytherin crest...

Professor Sprout had given him a copy of Complete Encyclopedia of European Magical Plants, along with a small booklet filled with dense notes...

Students from other houses had also given him gifts.

Probably because they often saw Glenn studying plants, Harry had given him a flowerpot, while Ron had given him some candy.

Hermione had given him Hogwarts: A History. From how often she flipped through it in the library and shared interesting tidbits, it was clear she valued this book highly.

But for Glenn, just in terms of the book itself, Hogwarts: A History wasn't all that appealing—it was the censored version approved by the Ministry of Magic back in the day.

As for why it was censored... well, that was anyone's guess.

If everything went smoothly, once future matters were settled, Glenn could give her one of his own original copies.

Of course, there were many other classmates' gifts he hadn't mentioned, but Glenn couldn't stay in his room unwrapping boxes all day.

Today, he still had things to do, like grabbing lunch first.

As for why not breakfast—it was a holiday, no need to get up so early.

"Glenn, Merry Christmas!" Harry said cheerfully in the Great Hall.

For him, not having to go back to his aunt and uncle's for the holiday was a huge blessing.

Ron hadn't gone back either, and the Weasley twins had also decided to stay—because their parents were planning to visit Charlie in Romania.

Who was Charlie?

Not knowing was fine. Though it was a bit unfair to say, in the eyes of other pure-blood families, the Weasley bloodline was like rabbits in a field—you never knew when another one would pop out of the burrow.

And Charlie was one of the first to pop out, the older brother of Ron and the twins.

A Magizoologist studying dragons in Romania.

"Merry Christmas." Glenn said with a smile. "Is that your new sweater?"

Harry was wearing a thick green sweater with a big 'H' on it, something Glenn had never seen him in before.

"Mrs. Weasley made it for me. Ron, Fred, and George each got one too. I heard every Weasley has one." Maybe still not used to receiving gifts, Harry looked a bit shy as he said it.

See, though impolite, the Weasley rabbit theory did have some merit.

In that short moment, Harry had become an honorary Weasley.

"By the way, Glenn, what did you give me?" Harry suddenly remembered the green potion he'd seen while unwrapping gifts that morning.

"Invigorating Potion. It's for injuries—sprains, fractures, that sort of thing. As long as you're not dead, one sip will keep you alive." Glenn said casually.

Hearing this, Harry was taken aback. He'd thought it was some kind of perfume or something.

But since Glenn sometimes did say surprising things, Harry didn't think much of it.

"I don't think I'll need it—Hogwarts is pretty safe after all—but I'll keep it safe." Harry nodded.

Well, that was debatable.

After all, this Headmaster Dumbledore seemed to care more about other things than student safety.

"Keep it on you for protection. You never know when it might come in handy. Have you eaten yet?" Glenn asked.

"Not yet... I was thinking of getting some jam tarts? Want to join me?"

Glenn accepted Harry's invitation to eat together.

But not in the Great Hall.

Leaving the Great Hall and the main room, they passed through a door, walked down a stone staircase, and arrived at a wide stone corridor.

Torches on both walls lit the corridor brightly.

Like the rest of the castle, the walls were covered with many decorative paintings, but the paintings rarely featured people—they were all of various kinds of food.

"Where are we going?" Harry asked, somewhat puzzled.

He found it hard to believe there was anywhere else to eat besides the Great Hall.

"We're here." Standing before a massive painting of fruit, Glenn pointed at the pear in the picture and turned back with a smile.

"..."

Seeing this, Harry was momentarily at a loss for words.

"Uh, Glenn, today's Christmas, not April Fools'."

"I know."

"Ah... right, I've got an Invigorating Potion here. Drink it to hold yourself together for now, and I'll go fetch Madam Pomfrey."

Hearing this, Glenn glanced at Harry.

What in the world was this bloke rambling on about? No wonder he sometimes drove Malfoy half to death whenever they bickered.

Without explaining further, Glenn reached out and tickled the pear in the painting.

The next moment, the pear squirmed as if ticklish, let out a giggle, and transformed into a green doorknob.

Grabbing the doorknob, he pulled it open with force, revealing a rather spacious room beyond.

The room's size and layout mirrored the Great Hall, with four long tables as well—though the tables were bare. Along the stone walls, countless gleaming kitchen utensils lined the space.

At the far end stood a brick fireplace, flames roaring, from which a faint aroma of roasted meat drifted.

But the most wondrous sight of all were the peculiar creatures populating the room.

They had large, bat-like ears, round eyes bulging like a frog's, short statures, long thin noses, and slender limbs. Tea towels stamped with the Hogwarts crest were draped over them like clothing.

Watching this astonishing scene, Harry's mouth hung slightly open, utterly incredulous.

"I spent a bit of time asking around with some Hufflepuff students—this is Hogwarts' Kitchen." Glenn introduced with a smile.