Time passed quickly after Halloween, and in almost the blink of an eye, it was time for Christmas.
This year, Hermione wrote to her parents early, stating that she would spend Christmas at Hogwarts.
During Christmas, they could visit Hogsmeade again. This would also be the first time she and Amanda went to Hogsmeade during Christmas, and Hermione believed she absolutely could not miss this opportunity.
Coincidentally, she wasn't the only one who thought so; the three seniors, Cho Chang, Marietta Eckmore, and Penelope, all felt the same way.
Seeing that their junior sister's condition had improved, they naturally wanted to be by her side during this Christmas now that she was doing better.
As for the trip to Hogsmeade during Christmas... the three seniors were all very "considerate" and stated they would not go with Amanda and Hermione.
They were certain that they should leave a bit of private space for their two juniors.
During the period between Halloween and Christmas, the news that Amanda's permission slip was signed by Lady Ravenclaw and Lady Hufflepuff had spread completely.
Now, except for the Ravenclaw Little Eagles, Hermione, Harry, Ron, and the Professors who actually knew the truth about Amanda's background, almost everyone else thought Amanda was a descendant of Lady Ravenclaw and Lady Hufflepuff from many generations down.
As for the combination of these two ladies, no one said anything, nor did anyone dare to say anything.
So what if they were both women? Lady Ravenclaw and Lady Hufflepuff must have been very happy together.
The only one who still had some complaints about Amanda's permission slip was Filch.
He seemed determined that Amanda had used some improper means to get her permission slip signed.
He was also certain she wouldn't be able to resist doing something else that violated school rules. Therefore, whenever he had the chance during this time, he tried every possible way to search for Amanda's figure within Hogwarts Castle.
He attempted to catch evidence of her breaking school rules, but unfortunately, let alone catching her in the act...
He couldn't even manage to see Amanda herself again.
Wherever Amanda was, or wherever she was going, Filch would never appear.
Thus, Amanda herself actually had no idea that there was a person "jumping up and down" in Hogwarts Castle every day trying to catch evidence of her breaking school rules, only to come up empty-handed every time.
Right up until the day before Christmas, Filch still hadn't given up on the matter he was so sure about.
"Sigh..."
After who knows how many sighs, Hermione finally couldn't help but turn to look at Ron beside her.
"Please, Ron, I just came back to the Gryffindor Table to eat breakfast once, and I've already heard you sigh more times than I can count. You can just say what happened, but can you please not keep sighing like this?"
"If you tell us, maybe we can help you solve it. What's the use of sighing all the time?"
"Scabbers... it's Scabbers."
Ron looked up with a miserable expression at Harry sitting opposite him and Hermione sitting beside him.
"Scabbers? What's wrong with Scabbers?"
Harry, who shared a Dormitory with Ron, asked somewhat confusedly. It was mainly because they, as roommates, didn't usually pay much attention to Ron's pet rat, Scabbers.
So it was normal for him to know nothing right now.
"He... he ran off to somewhere unknown."
Ron pursed his lips tightly. It was clear that although he had constantly complained about his pet rat Scabbers before...
In reality, he still had quite deep feelings for Scabbers.
"He ran off to somewhere unknown? When did this happen?"
Hermione frowned, putting down her knife and fork as she looked at him with a serious expression.
"About... a week ago?"
Ron gave a rough estimate of the time.
"That shouldn't be," Hermione shook her head categorically. "In the Wizarding World, even if a Wizard's pet leaves its owner, it will return within a few days. It's impossible for it to be gone for too long."
This was something she had read in a book after the incident where Neville lost his toad in their first year.
"That's why..."
Ron spread his hands, the expression on his face seemingly growing a bit more sorrowful.
"Hey, Ron, look on the bright side."
Harry patted Ron on the shoulder, comforting him. "Scabbers is already very old. Maybe he left you just because he wanted to pursue a richer, more colorful life in his old age."
As they say, your friends are the ones who know you best. After Harry said this, the worry on Ron's face unconsciously dissipated a bit.
"You're right, Harry. Anyway, there's no sign that Scabbers is dead."
"I'll just assume he went out to play on his own."
"That's the spirit. Tomorrow is Christmas, so everyone needs to be happy."
Harry nodded with a smile and lowered his head to eat a whole sausage.
"Do you need me to bring anything back for you, Harry?"
His state of mind having adjusted, Ron looked at Harry, who was eating breakfast.
"Hmm... please help me bring back two bottles of butterbeer. There's only pumpkin juice in Hogwarts, and I'm really getting tired of drinking it."
"So you think so too, Harry!"
Hermione immediately arched her eyebrows at Harry, as if she had found a supporter.
Harry raised a hand to touch his nose. "Yes, having only pumpkin juice all the time is indeed a bit monotonous."
"Alright, I'll bring back butterbeer for you—lots of butterbeer."
Listening to Ron's words, Harry's brow twitched violently as he thought of the large bag of snacks currently under his bed, not even half-finished.
"No need to buy too much, really."
He looked at Ron with a sincere gaze, and Ron nodded seriously in agreement.
The casual chat ended, and Amanda arrived at the Gryffindor Table accompanied by the three seniors. Hermione, who had already finished her breakfast, stood up and took Amanda's hand with a smile.
"Let's go, let's explore Hogsmeade together."
"Okay," Amanda responded in an indifferent voice, nodding mechanically.
Led by Hermione to the gates of Hogwarts Castle, Filch was already standing there.
Seeing Amanda step forward, he pursed his lips tightly, seeming as if he wanted to say something but didn't quite dare to speak out.
During the time he hesitated, a gust of wild wind actually began to blow inward from outside the gates of Hogwarts Castle.
It blew him so hard that he was unsteady on his feet. "Crazy, crazy..."
Filch muttered in a low voice, "Just go on, all of you, go on quickly. Don't dawdle."
Seeing that Filch no longer intended to block them, Hermione breathed a sigh of relief and led Amanda out of the Hogwarts Castle gates.
Looking at the silver-clad surroundings and the snowflakes like goose feathers falling from the sky, Amanda suddenly remembered her past experiences of having snowball fights with Harry and Ron, and building snowmen with the three seniors.
As these memories flashed through her mind, a trace of a smile surfaced at the corners of her mouth.
"What did you think of that made you so happy?"
Cho Chang, who was still walking with them, turned her head to look at Amanda and asked softly.
"I thought of the scenes from before when I had snowball fights with Harry and Ron, and built snowmen with the seniors."
"Those scenes... were very, happy."
Although she was a bit halting, Amanda still spoke the thoughts in her mind.
She could feel that this was exactly what she thought, that she was indeed very happy, so she wanted to say it out loud.
"Well said."
Penelope gently brushed away the accumulated snow on Amanda's hat and praised her with a smile.
"I'm just telling the truth."
Amanda's voice was still stiff and rigid, but clearly, no one would treat her as being in her former state anymore.
Upon entering the vicinity of Hogsmeade village, the three seniors very "tactfully" separated from Amanda and Hermione.
And looking at these two juniors of hers who weren't exactly small anymore, Penelope also raised an eyebrow.
"Cho Chang, Marietta Eckmore, I think the two of you would probably enjoy wandering around more on your own."
"I'll go find somewhere to stroll around by myself. Have fun."
After saying that, she didn't give the two seniors a chance to react at all, turned around, and strode away.
Marietta Eckmore looked at her back, opening her mouth somewhat fruitlessly, only half-finishing the words she hadn't managed to say just now.
"Actually, we could have... wandered around together."
Raising a hand to scratch her head, Marietta Eckmore looked somewhat confusedly at Senior Penelope's rapidly receding back.
Strange. If someone said Senior Penelope was tired of them, she wouldn't believe it for the life of her.
But if that wasn't the reason, then why wouldn't Senior Penelope wander around Hogsmeade with them?
Could it be... "Is Senior Penelope in love?"
Marietta Eckmore poked Cho Chang beside her with eyes sparkling.
Suddenly asked such a question, Cho Chang was completely stunned.
"W-what?"
"A boyfriend! Has Senior Penelope gotten a boyfriend? That's why she's not wandering Hogsmeade with us. Of course, it could also be a girlfriend."
Cho Chang twiddled the fingers of her right hand, her gaze fixed firmly on Penelope's back.
The senior's "help" did indeed feel considerate; after all, she had even specifically created a condition for her and Marietta Eckmore to be alone.
But given the current situation!
It was very obvious that Senior Penelope had somewhat seen through her feelings for this person beside her.
Yet this person, this very party involved, knew nothing at all!
She was even thinking along the lines of whether Senior Penelope was in love.
If not for the fear of actually scaring her, or even scaring her away...
Cho Chang really wanted to pin Marietta Eckmore down onto the snow right now and then kiss her forcefully to shut that mouth of hers that was talking nonsense.
"Phew..." Cho Chang let out a long breath, a smile once again hanging on her face.
Must maintain elegance, must maintain gentleness, Cho Chang reminded herself silently in her heart.
She reached out to take Marietta Eckmore's arm. "Don't guess blindly. If Senior Penelope really were in a relationship, she would definitely tell us."
"True..."
Marietta Eckmore nodded thoughtfully, then stopped dwelling on it and directly followed Cho Chang to wander further into Hogsmeade.
With her previous experience plus having Amanda beside her, who had constructed a model of the entire Hogsmeade in her mind...
Hermione took less than ten minutes to finish buying the ink and parchment she needed.
These two items were almost used up. As for the quill... Hermione glanced at Amanda beside her, a hint of pink slowly spreading across her face. The Deinonychus feathers from Amanda's Animagus form were very durable.
After using it for so long, there was still no sign of wear and tear at all.
Of course, this was certainly also related to Hermione's daily maintenance and care of it.
When she used this quill in her daily life, she was careful, careful, and careful again.
But she certainly wouldn't not use it, because she felt that doing so might fail Amanda's kind intentions.
Moreover, while doing homework, holding a quill made of feathers from Amanda's body and feeling her at every moment while writing... wasn't that feeling good?
After buying these necessities, Amanda, without even moving her hands, let them float behind her and Hermione. They followed Hermione to Honeydukes Sweetshop to eat two free Christmas candies, then entered The Three Broomsticks pub, preparing to have a drink to warm up.
As soon as she entered the pub, Amanda's gaze instinctively scanned the surroundings. After seeing a certain person in a certain direction, her gaze clearly paused, staring fixedly at that person.
"Amanda, what's wrong?"
Hermione asked, not understanding. Following her gaze, when she saw that person, not only did her eyes freeze, but she also took a sharp breath.
"Merlin's open-toed sandals! How did Harry end up here?!"
Hermione lowered her voice, looking at Harry in disbelief, and sitting opposite him was none other than her other friend, Ron.
So what had these two guys done behind her back again?
Hermione felt a wave of helplessness in her heart. Actually, it was Christmas, so she could understand Harry coming out to relax.
But... he should at least be wearing his invisibility cloak, or at the very least, use a wizard hat to cover his face.
Instead, as things stood, Harry was just sitting there quite openly.
Setting aside whether someone might discover and report him for coming to Hogsmeade without permission—which was a minor matter—
What if Sirius Black saw Harry? What should be done then?
Thinking this, Hermione's hand had already reached into her wizard robe pocket, clearly preparing to use some spells to help Harry hide.
Seeing Hermione's movement, Amanda reached out to press down on her hand, her voice devoid of any ups and downs. "Pulling out your wand is too obvious a movement."
"The probability of being noticed will increase by twenty percent."
"Hermione, you can leave it to me. I can use wandless and silent spellcasting."
"Okay." Hermione nodded with complete trust and walked toward Harry and Ron with Amanda.
"Good morning, Harry, Ron."
Amanda greeted politely, and Hermione beside her also said hello to the two boys.
"Good morning, Amanda... Hermione."
The two boys swallowed, a feeling of guilt welling up in their hearts.
Sitting down in their seats, Amanda lightly tapped the tabletop with her finger, and an Ignoring Charm covered the booth where they were located.
With another tap of her finger, a wandless and silent Apparition brought over a small Christmas tree from not far away.
It firmly blocked the outside of the booth where they were, completely obscuring any possible gazes from others.
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