Christmas Eve I (Bonus Chapter for Crazy Oregano, Thanks!)

The minor uproar at Hogsmeade hadn't completely subsided when Christmas was already fast approaching Hogwarts Castle. Most students had packed their suitcases and boarded the Hogwarts Express, which had departed early, to return home and enjoy their annual family Christmas holiday. The usually bustling castle was suddenly mostly deserted, with fewer people moving about in the corridors. Only the cold wind swirled snowflakes, gently brushing against the castle's stone walls, making a soft rustling sound.

The large windows of the Slytherin Common Room let in the emerald green of the lake, and the crackling fire in the fireplace warmed the dark green velvet sofas. Silver mistletoe and green ribbons hung from the ceiling, arranged overnight by the House-elf —though Professor Snape scoffed at it, no one dared to utter a word of disapproval in his presence.

Not many people stayed at school for Christmas, but Slytherin students always knew how to enjoy themselves. Someone brought several bottles of Butterbeer and plates of roasted nuts from the kitchen, and there was a large slice of cheesecake on the coffee table with "Kurama's Special" written on it. The common room was filled with the sweet aroma of cinnamon and caramel, mixed with the smoke from the burning wood in the fireplace.

Su Yu nestled in the largest armchair by the fireplace, with Kurama curled up on his lap, its tail covering its nose, fast asleep. Fa-jie sat on the armrest of the sofa to his right, one leg draped over the armrest, a glass of red wine swirling slowly in her hand. Ka-jie sat on the single sofa opposite him, a book titled "Advanced Potion-Making" open on her lap, her eyes occasionally glancing at the mistletoe hanging above the fireplace.

"I say," Blaise said lazily, leaning back on the sofa next to Ka-jie, one hand resting on the back of the sofa, the other twirling his wand, "Can't we have something new for Christmas? Every year it's the same old mistletoe, Butterbeer, exchanging scarves and gloves—isn't it cliché?"

"You have something new?" Malfoy poked his head out from the other side of the fireplace, his gray eyes full of mockery. "Last year you gave Pansy a box of Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans, a third of which smelled like earwax."

"That's a limited edition," Blaise said without changing his expression.

"Who would believe you?" Pansy stood up from next to Malfoy, walked to the coffee table, picked up a roasted chestnut, peeled it, and popped it into her mouth. "But where are Blaise and Callis? They haven't been seen all day."

"Callis?" Blaise's lips curled into a smile. "She said she was going to steal a few bottles of Firewhisky from the kitchen first, and would be back later."

"Steal?" Theodore Nott emerged from the shadows, a black-covered book in his hand, his expression as indifferent as ever. "The kitchen House-elf will give it to you; there's no need to steal."

"She likes the word 'steal,'" Blaise said. "She said it makes her feel more accomplished."

Malfoy snorted, and Crabbe and Goyle chuckled along. Goyle grabbed a handful of roasted peanuts, stuffed a handful into his mouth, and crunched them loudly.

"Eat slowly." Crabbe rarely spoke a complete sentence, but that was because he was reaching out to snatch Goyle's peanuts.

Goyle pulled his hand back and glared at Crabbe.

Su Yu was brushed across the face by Kurama's tail. He opened his eyes and saw Fa-jie looking down at him, the red wine swirling in her glass.

Kurama lifted her head from Su Yu's lap, yawned, and revealed two sharp teeth. She looked around, saw the cheesecake on the coffee table, jumped down, grabbed a piece with her paws, and carried it back to Su Yu's lap, taking small bites.

Pansy looked at Kurama, her eyes sparkling. "Kurama is so cute."

Kurama's ears twitched, but he ignored her.

The door to the lounge opened. Callis Selwyn walked in, her long, dark hair cascading over her shoulders. She wore a dark green robe that was tightly fitted at the waist, and high-heeled boots. Every step she took exuded an aura of "don't mess with me."

She was carrying two bottles of Firewhisky, the caps already unscrewed.

"Coming, coming." Blaise stood up, took the bottle, and asked, "How long were you gone?"

"Getting impatient?" Callis raised an eyebrow and sat down next to Blaise. "The kitchen House-elf insisted I try their new eggnog, which took a while."

"Is eggnog tasty?" Pansy asked.

"It's too sweet," Callis said. "I had them add two spoonfuls of cinnamon powder before it was even palatable."

Fa-jie glanced at her. "You're commanding the kitchen House-elf?"

"A suggestion," Callis corrected. "I meant a suggestion."

Theodore emerged from the shadows and sat down in a chair on the other side of the fireplace. He never put down the black book in his hand, but his gaze kept glancing towards the door, as if he were waiting for someone.

Olivia is staying on campus this year too, but she was dragged to her Ravenclaw friends' Christmas party tonight and said she'd be there later.

"Stop waiting." Malfoy glanced at Theodore. "You're practically a statue waiting for your husband. Come on over and have a drink with us!"

Theodore's expression didn't change, but he turned a page in the book.

Blaise poured everyone a glass of Firewhisky. Kurama went over to smell the whiskey, wrinkled his nose, and buried his face between Su Yu's legs.

"Seriously," Callis picked up her glass, took a sip, "What are your plans for Christmas this year? We can't just sit here in the lounge doing nothing."

"Dumbledore will be hosting a Christmas party in the Great Hall tomorrow at noon," Pansy said. "We can go out for a snowball fight in the morning. In the afternoon—"

"A snowball fight?" Malfoy scoffed. "That's something Gryffindor do."

"So what do you want to do?" Pansy asked.

Malfoy thought for a moment. "Let's build a snowman."

Callis was the most lively person at the gathering. Always full of energy and brimming with novel ideas, she was now completely uninhibited. She strode to the long table in the lounge, waved her wand, and chanted Silent Spell. In the blink of an eye, the table was filled with all sorts of exquisite pastries: cinnamon cookies coated in icing, scones filled with raspberry jam, chocolate cake sprinkled with nut pieces, and plates of crystal-clear magical candies that burst with different fruity flavors when bitten into, and even popping candies that bounced slightly. Each one exuded an enticing sweet aroma.

"Don't all just sit there! It's rare for everyone to stay on campus, we can't just sit there blankly, can we?" Callis propped her hands on the table, speaking rapidly, her eyes crinkling with a mischievous and enthusiastic smile. "I've prepared a lot of fun things, I promise you won't be bored!"

Blaise immediately raised an eyebrow, leaning back lazily on the soft velvet sofa, a playful smile playing on his lips. He smoothly replied, "Oh? What brilliant idea has our Miss Callis come up with this time? Don't tell me you're up to playing a trick on someone again. I don't want to get locked up by the professor with you." His tone was teasing, but his eyes were full of indulgence.

"What do you mean by teasing? This is holiday fun!" Callis glared at him, but wasn't angry at all. Instead, she became even more interested. "Let's play Silent Spell -passing game first. Whoever makes a mistake will receive a small punishment. How about it? Don't worry, the punishment will be really fun and won't cause any trouble."

Ka-jie sat gracefully on one side of the sofa, her posture still elegant and upright, showing no sign of slackness even in her leisure time. She gently adjusted her long robe, picked up a delicate cookie, and said calmly, "Okay, but you have to follow the rules and not make a mess of the lounge."

Draco, naturally unwilling to be outdone, slightly raised his chin, with his usual arrogance. "Let's play, how could this game be difficult for me? But if I win, you all have to follow my orders." As he spoke, he didn't forget to glance at Theodore beside him, his tone carrying a subconscious competitive edge.

Theodore remained as taciturn as ever. He sat quietly on the single sofa in the corner, having been engrossed in a book. Upon hearing this, he merely glanced up and gave a soft "hmm," acknowledging his agreement to participate in the game.

Pansy sat obediently next to Draco, carefully arranging the snacks on the table and occasionally handing out candy to those around her. With gentle eyes, she quietly cooperated with everyone, occasionally whispering a few words of agreement, making the whole scene more harmonious.

Seeing this, Callis immediately excitedly set out the rules of the game: everyone would form a circle and pass a floating crystal ball using Silent Spell, without making any sound or touching it with their hands. If the crystal ball fell, shook too much, or the spell was cast incorrectly, it would be considered a failure, and the loser would have to draw a pre-prepared penalty slip and complete the small task on it.

The game officially began, and the suspended crystal ball was steadily passed among the crowd under the Silent Spell of everyone. At first, everyone was extremely cautious, and their movements in controlling the magic were precise and stable. However, it wasn't long before Callis began to play tricks. While passing the crystal ball, she secretly used a tiny bit of magic to interfere with its trajectory, deliberately making it more difficult for the next person.

Blaise saw through her little trick at a glance, but remained calm. Instead, he increased his control over his magic, catching the crystal ball steadily while simultaneously setting a small trap for Callis. The two passed it back and forth seemingly calmly, but in reality, they were competing with each other, causing Draco to lose his focus and almost drop the crystal ball. Fortunately, he reacted quickly and stabilized his magic, preventing a laughable blunder.

Throughout, Ka-jie remained calm and composed, her control over magic incredibly precise. No matter the trajectory of the crystal ball, she effortlessly caught it with Silent Spell and then smoothly passed it on. Fa-jie, on the other hand, appeared remarkably relaxed. Her magical power seemed gentle yet exceptionally stable, and even when occasionally disturbed by Callis and Blaise's little tricks, she could instantly neutralize them.

Not long after, the first person to make a mistake appeared— Draco, unable to resist criticizing Blaise's little tricks, was momentarily distracted, causing his magic to become slightly disordered, and the crystal ball shook violently, almost falling.

"Draco made a mistake! He'll be punished!" Callis clapped her hands excitedly, her eyes full of schadenfreude, and quickly handed over a stack of pre-written punishment slips.

Draco's face stiffened slightly. Reluctantly, he pulled out a slip of paper, opened it, and read, "Recite the Slytherin Code three times in a funny tone." Looking at the note, he felt helpless, but a bet's a bet. He cleared his throat, deliberately adopting a strange tone, and haltingly, yet with a touch of arrogance, recited the Slytherin Code three times. His awkward yet endearing manner caused everyone present to burst into laughter, instantly filling the common room with cheerful sounds.

With Draco's opening act, the game atmosphere grew increasingly lively. Next, Callis, in her eagerness to tease Blaise, made a mistake, causing the crystal ball to wobble slightly, resulting in a penalty. Her punishment was to "hand a pastry to everyone present and say a personalized blessing." She readily complied, deftly carrying the pastry plate and handing out pastries to everyone, her blessings laced with teasing. When handing a pastry to Su Yu, she respectfully greeted him with "Merry Christmas, Chief," eliciting another round of light laughter from the crowd.

Blaise wasn't spared either. During a moment of mutual interference with Callis, they both made a mistake and were punished. Blaise's punishment was to "imitate Professor McGonagall's tone of voice." He instantly dropped his carefree demeanor, put on a serious face, and imitated Professor McGonagall's stern and authoritative tone, instructing everyone to obey the rules. His lifelike imitation made everyone laugh uproariously.

During one of the relays, Pansy couldn't help but laugh at Blaise's imitation, causing her breath to falter and her magic to slightly malfunction, resulting in the crystal ball shaking and a regrettable mistake. Her punishment was to "sing a short Christmas carol." The little girl's cheeks flushed slightly, and she shyly began to softly sing a gentle Christmas carol. Her voice was soft and melodious, exceptionally beautiful. After she finished, everyone applauded, and Draco thoughtfully handed her a Butterbeer to help her relax.

Throughout the entire game, only Su Yu, Ka-jie, Fa-jie, and Theodore did not make any mistakes.