Chapter 20 - 20: 20: Christmas is around the corner

Harry tried to focus on the task at hand, attempting to ignore Malfoy's presence by keeping busy. He knew that no matter how much Malfoy provoked him, he couldn't let this Christmas lose its deserved joy. He was genuinely happy to stay at Hogwarts for Christmas. Meanwhile, Ron's parents planned to visit Charlie in Romania, and the Weasley brothers, still at school, had nowhere to go, so they also stayed at Hogwarts for Christmas. After Potions class, they left the underground classroom, only to find their way blocked by a huge fir tree at the entrance to the Great Hall. Hermione, sharp-eyed, spotted the giant feet peeking out from under the fir and immediately greeted him enthusiastically, "Hello, Hagrid~" "Hello, Miss Granger. Christmas is coming soon. Are you staying at Hogwarts too?" Hagrid responded. Hermione shook her head. "I'll be taking the Hogwarts Express home tomorrow to spend Christmas with my parents." Ron also poked his head through the fir branches. "Hello, Hagrid. Do you need help?" "Oh no, Professor Greengrass has already helped me with most of the work, but thank you anyway, Ron," Hagrid said gratefully. Just then, Malfoy said coldly in his usual arrogant tone, "Can you not block the way? Weasley, want to earn some pocket money? Right, the gamekeeper's hut is truly a luxurious palace compared to your house." "You!" Upon hearing this, Ron, who already disliked Malfoy, immediately flared up and lunged at him. "Weasley!" Snape's cold voice came from behind them. Ron released Malfoy's collar but was still panting angrily. "Professor Snape, he was provoked," Hagrid said, putting down the fir tree he was carrying on his shoulder, revealing his snow-covered head from among the leaves. "Malfoy was insulting Ron's family, that's why he did that." "Regardless, Hagrid, fighting is against Hogwarts' school rules." Snape coldly swept his hollow eyes over them. "Gryffindor will lose five points because of this. You should be glad I didn't deduct more, because this isn't the first time." He stared at Harry, Ron, and Hermione with a warning look, then coldly commanded, "Now, all of you, get out of here." Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle, with triumphant smiles on their faces, roughly pushed through the fir branches, jostling and shaking fir leaves all over the floor, leaving Harry, Ron, and Hermione standing there, filled with indignation. "Just you wait. I'll deal with those guys sooner or later!" Ron said through gritted teeth, watching the backs of Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle. "Wait a moment..." A calm voice came from inside the Great Hall, stopping Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle in their tracks. "If the three of you can't restore this fir tree to its original state, then you'll have to go to the Forbidden Forest and cut down a new one for me yourselves." "It's Professor Greengrass!" Hermione recognized the voice immediately. She squeezed past Harry and Ron to the front and saw Professor Greengrass stopping Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle and saying something. Harry and Ron exchanged glances, a gloating smile appearing on their faces. "Professor, I don't understand..." Malfoy said, a little confused. "This year, I'm in charge of decorating the Great Hall and the Christmas tree. So, strictly speaking, this fir tree you damaged belongs to me," Sagres said calmly. "But it was blocking the way..." Malfoy tried to explain, but Sagres raised his hand to interrupt him. "That's not a reason for you to destroy it, now, is it?" He stood squarely at the entrance of the Great Hall, even blocking Snape at the bottom of the steps. "Now, either go to the Forbidden Forest and cut down a new one for me, or each of you will lose five points." Snape immediately showed a hint of sarcasm upon hearing this. He pulled out his wand disdainfully, and the broken branches and leaves on the ground instantly returned to the tree. "Sagres, it's just a few leaves. Slytherin will not lose points because of this." "It seems protecting students from your own House has become second nature to you, Snape," Sagres said calmly. Without waiting for a response, he continued, "Then, Mr. Malfoy, you will lose five points for insulting a classmate." With that, he ignored the now-gloomy Snape, waved his hand at the fir tree blocking the way, and guided it to float into the Great Hall. "Haha, that was so satisfying..." Ron said happily to Harry and Hermione. "Too bad he didn't take more points off!" "Look at their faces—they're really ugly," Harry whispered. "By the way, Hagrid, can you still not tell us who Nicolas Flamel is?" Hermione looked at the gradually departing Slytherin group, then turned to ask Hagrid expectantly. "Forget about it." Hagrid seemed somewhat agitated. "What that dog is guarding has nothing to do with you." "We just want to know who Nicolas Flamel is—unless you can tell us," Ron interjected eagerly. "That would save us the trouble, though we really don't have anything else to do anyway," Harry added cleverly, trying to get Hagrid to relent. "Listen, I won't tell you. Don't even think about it!" Hagrid resolutely refused, his tone leaving no room for negotiation. "Alright then, it seems we'll just have to find the answer ourselves." Hermione, Harry, and Ron exchanged smiles, then quickly ran toward the Hogwarts Library, leaving Hagrid alone, watching their retreating figures with a displeased expression. "What's wrong, Hagrid?" Sagres asked the distressed Hagrid while waving his wand at the Christmas tree. "Ah, nothing, Professor," Hagrid quickly replied. He watched Sagres calmly wave his wand to decorate the Christmas tree, feeling very envious, and immediately forgot his recent unpleasantness. More than a dozen tall Christmas trees were arranged in the Great Hall, each adorned with uniquely styled decorations. Some had icicles, some candles, some magical firecrackers, and some small gift boxes. Hagrid took down a small gift box, opened it, and found a brand-new pair of dragon-hide gloves. This made him very happy, but he soon realized that with his large hands, it would be difficult to wear these gloves. "This is truly... such a pity," Hagrid muttered as he held the gloves in his hands. "Perhaps these gifts are meant for Young Wizards." Sagres had just finished decorating the Great Hall when he noticed Hagrid's predicament. As he passed by, he casually tapped the gloves in Hagrid's hands with his wand, and the gloves, originally sized for Young Wizards, immediately enlarged. Hagrid tried them on and found they fit perfectly. "Thank you very much, Professor Greengrass!" Hagrid said excitedly. "This is the best Christmas gift I've ever received!" "It was nothing," Sagres replied with a smile and a nod. After finishing the decorations in the Great Hall, he rarely returned to his office. With Christmas approaching, he had many letters to send—though he considered it quite unnecessary.