Christmas Feast

The Christmas dinner on the second day proceeded as scheduled.

This was the first time Xiwen had truly experienced the Christmas atmosphere of Hogwarts —the castle walls were covered with colorful torches, illuminating the corridors in a vibrant display; the floors, walls, and even the ceilings were spotless, and the entire castle looked as if it had been thoroughly cleaned by the university.

The open space outside the castle was covered in snow. Because there weren't many students staying at school, there were only a few scattered footprints and a few snowmen that everyone had built together. The little wizards had dressed the snowmen up with Santa hats and snowman capes, making them look very cute.

The place with the strongest Christmas atmosphere is undoubtedly the Great Hall at Hogwarts.

Many mistletoe plants were planted inside the Great Hall; they were enchanted and floated in the air.

In England, this plant is often believed to have the magical power to create new life and grant fertility. Xiwen accidentally saw several older couples kissing under the mistletoe, completely oblivious to the stares of those around them.

Besides mistletoe, there were twelve Christmas trees in the Great Hall, all of which Professor Kettleburn cut down with his saw.

The Christmas tree was wrapped with rings of shimmering ribbons, from which hung small gift boxes—Christmas presents prepared by the faculty and staff for the young wizards!

Because there were relatively few students staying on campus, the Christmas banquet did not continue the tradition of having four tables set up by the deans. Instead, a smaller table was prepared and placed in the center of the Great Hall so that all the teachers and students could sit together and mingle.

On the dining table sat a large bag of wizarding firecrackers. Professor Merrythought stood kindly beside it and lit one, from which burst forth numerous hats, Wizard's Chess, and even lively little white rabbits. The little rabbits were Professor McGonagall's Transformation and would not harm real rabbits.

Strangely enough, most of the younger professors at Hogwarts have families and choose to go home for Christmas. But Headmaster Dippet and the four Headmasters are mostly single; they seem to treat Hogwarts as their home and stay in the castle all year round.

However, as the flag bearer of the Wizarding World against Grindelwald, Dumbledore missed this year's Christmas party.

Grindelwald made a public appearance at the Polish Ministry of Magic during the day, and Dumbledore was urgently summoned to support him.

Of course, in Xiwen's view, Grindelwald definitely intended for Dumbledore to spend Christmas with him...

When Xiwen arrived at the dining table, Professor Slughorn warmly pulled him to sit down beside him and began to inquire about his well-being.

During his conversation with the professor, Xiwen noticed that Riddle was sitting to the professor's right. However, he was not surprised, because given Riddle's background as an orphan, it was not surprising that he would choose to spend Christmas at the school.

"You didn't go home either, Rozier?" Riddle asked first, quite surprised to see Xiwen.

"Professor Kettleburn invited me to watch their play rehearsal, so I stayed," Xiwen said with a smile to Riddle.

Upon hearing the word "drama," a fleeting hint of guilt flashed in Riddle's eyes, but it was quickly caught by Xiwen.

"What's wrong? Don't you like watching plays?" Xiwen asked, somewhat puzzled, unsure of the look in Riddle's eyes.

"It's normal that little Tom doesn't like theater," Professor Slughorn chimed in from the side. "I'm not a big fan of this kind of performance either. I really don't understand why Herbert has so much enthusiasm for it, putting on several plays every year."

"It's not that I dislike it." Riddle quickly composed himself, putting on a gentle and polite smile, and said to Xiwen and the professor, "I'm just a little curious about theater."

At 8 p. m., with all the professors and students seated, the Christmas dinner officially began!

The wizard's colorful firecrackers were removed from the table where everyone was seated, and then countless plates and bowls of all sizes appeared out of thin air. From these plates quickly emerged an incredibly lavish feast.

One hundred plump roasted turkeys, mountains of roast meat and boiled potatoes, large platters of small sausages, bowls of peas tossed in butter, and plates of thick, rich meat sauce and cranberry sauce appeared. In front of each wizard, a cup of flaming Christmas pudding also emerged.

"Before the banquet begins, you can check your Flaming Christmas Puddings." After all, it was the grandest festival of the year, and Headmaster Dippet, unusually, no longer maintained his usual serious demeanor, but instead smiled easily as he spoke to everyone.

"There's a Silver Sickle hidden inside each of the three cups of pudding. It's said that whoever finds this coin will have good luck!"

Xiwen picked up his fork and poked at his pudding. Finding no Silver Sickle hidden inside, he nodded in satisfaction. He certainly didn't want money that had passed through so many hands to end up in his food.

For Xiwen, a Sickle is nothing, but a Silver Sickle is a fortune for many other young wizards.

Everyone excitedly poked at their puddings repeatedly, hoping that the Silver Sickle appear in some corner they hadn't noticed. After finishing their puddings and still not finding it, they turned to asking their classmates around them, wanting to know which three lucky students had gotten the three Silver Sickle.

Beside Xiwen, Professor Slughorn also poked his pudding with great interest.

"Looks like I'm not one of those lucky ones after all," the professor said with a smile, showing no displeasure whatsoever. His round face and the two wisps of mustache above his mouth made him look like a walrus when he smiled.

Just then, a crisp metallic clang came from Professor Slughorn's right side.

The professor and Xiwen both turned to look at Riddle, as it was Riddle's fork that made the metallic clanging sound as it pierced the pudding.

"Good luck, Tom!" Professor Slughorn exclaimed excitedly, as if he himself had won the coin. "Let us see it!"

Riddle nodded slightly, then took out his wand and cast a Summoning Charm on the coin in the pudding. The Silver Sickle flew out of the pudding and landed in his hand.

Riddle then used a Cleaning Charm to clean the coin, and then showed it to Professor Slughorn and Xiwen.

Professor Slughorn gave Riddle an exaggerated praise for his luck and his excellent spellcasting.

A moment later, the ownership of the other two Silver Sickle was also determined: they belonged to Charlus Potter, a sixth-year Gryffindor student, and to a minor third-year Hufflepuff wizard.

Headmaster Dippet personally led the way, picking up drinks and celebrating with everyone as the three lucky winners received the coins.

With such a lively opening event, the rest of the banquet was filled with laughter and joy.

Of course, the young wizards at Ravenclaw House were a little unhappy because their school hadn't received a single Silver Sickle...

However, the slight unhappiness did not affect the joyful atmosphere at all.

Amidst laughter and chatter, Professor Birley, full of energy, walked onto the makeshift stage at the front of the Great Hall and bowed to the audience.

"Ladies and gentlemen, please enjoy the Hogwarts Drama Club's performance of 'The Fountain of Fortune'!"