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"So who sent this?" Harry asked, puzzled, picking up the small gift box.
He peeled back the wrapping and found another layer of brown greaseproof paper. The second he saw the color and texture, Harry knew exactly who it was from.
Charlie!
"I got one too," Ron said. Harry turned and saw Ron holding an identical square box.
Ron glanced at him. Truth be told, he felt a little guilty—he hadn't even thought to get Charlie anything. Besides, he and Charlie weren't nearly as close as Harry and Hermione were.
The two boys tore into the boxes. Inside each one sat four eggs, roughly the size of pigeon eggs.
"Bird eggs? Is he trying to make me hatch a pet or something?" Ron muttered. He picked one up, stripped off the paper, and revealed the dark shell underneath.
"Chocolate eggs?!" Harry gasped. He immediately started peeling one of his own.
Ron didn't wait. He popped the whole thing straight into his mouth.
Crunch—
The shell cracked. The next second Ron jumped straight up in shock.
Harry spun around. "What happened?!"
Ron's cheeks puffed out. He pointed frantically at his face and made muffled noises.
Harry leaned in. Ron finally opened his mouth.
Hiss—hiss—
A tiny snake coiled around Ron's tongue, hissing straight at Harry.
Before Harry could react, Ron's tongue flicked and he swallowed it down in one gulp.
Only then did Ron stare at Harry, looking slightly green. "What was in there?"
Ron shuddered at the memory—the slimy, wriggling thing sliding across his tongue.
"A snake," Harry said. He looked down at his own hand. "So these are snake eggs?"
He pinched one of his chocolate eggs to test the theory. It cracked open.
Peep—peep—
A tiny sparrow poked its head out from under a piece of shell, blinking curiously.
"It's a sparrow!" Ron stared at the little bird, then stuck out his tongue. "You got lucky."
Harry laughed. "Eating a snake isn't the end of the world."
"No thanks. Unless I'm Malfoy. If it were me, I'd want a lion to pop out."
"Lions don't lay eggs," Harry pointed out.
"They don't?!" Ron looked genuinely shocked.
Harry opened his mouth, then gave up and tossed the chocolate sparrow into his own mouth instead.
"Never mind. Let's see what else you get."
Ron's attention snapped back. He nodded and cracked open another egg.
Crunch—
"Ow!" Ron yanked his hand back. A miniature crocodile had clamped its jaws around his fingertip.
"Since lions don't lay eggs, why do crocodiles?" Ron shouted, angrily shoving the tiny reptile into his mouth.
Harry burst out laughing. "This is brilliant."
It didn't seem to have any magical bonus inside, but the random animal surprise alone made it hilarious.
He'd already decided to corner Charlie later and ask when these would go on sale.
As for the last three chocolate eggs, Harry planned to save them for later.
After they finished opening the rest of their presents, Harry and Ron messed around with the Weasley twins in the common room for a while before heading downstairs together.
The feast started at noon. The moment they stepped into the Great Hall, everyone froze in awe.
A hundred turkeys were stacked high on the tables, surrounded by endless platters of bacon, sausages, lamb chops, steaks, pork chops, and every sauce and drink imaginable.
It was even more extravagant than the start-of-term feast or Halloween—especially with so few students left in the castle.
Harry spotted Charlie right away. He stood at the head table across from Professor Flitwick, swirling a goblet of what looked like orange juice.
Charlie tilted his head and asked, "Professor, isn't this a bit much? A hundred turkeys—can we actually eat them all? Or are some of them just illusion magic?"
"Ha!"
Snape snorted from beside Flitwick. He shot Charlie a look. "Why does everything sound so cheap when you talk about Hogwarts?"
"I just think it's wasteful if it's only for show."
"Oh—" Professor McGonagall covered her mouth and chuckled. "It's sweet of you to worry, dear. But none of this will go to waste. It's not just for the students and professors."
"What do you mean, Professor?" Charlie asked.
"The house-elves get to enjoy the feast too. They simply refuse to eat with us. Once the banquet ends, all the leftover food returns to the kitchens."
"They wouldn't dare eat with us," Snape added flatly. "Not unless they were trolls instead of house-elves."
Professor McGonagall continued without missing a beat. "Even with a feast this lavish, we still expect basic table manners. No wasting food."
"Of course, I know you wouldn't. Otherwise you wouldn't have asked."
"I see," Charlie nodded. That settled one small question in his mind.
He chatted with the professors for a few more minutes, then picked up the hat from the table and raised his glass. "Merry Christmas, Professors."
"Merry Christmas, my boy," Professor Flitwick replied, lifting his frothy beer mug.
Soon the rest of the professors and students arrived.
Dumbledore stood in the middle of the head table and gave a short Christmas blessing.
The feast officially began.
At the Ravenclaw table, Charlie pulled a Christmas cracker.
Bang! A loud pop exploded in a cloud of blue smoke and streamers. A tall top hat appeared in his hands.
"Whoa, there's a gift inside?!" Charlie stared at it in delight.
The very next second he felt something strange on his head.
Thump!
Alice leaped down onto the table, clamped her teeth onto the brim of the top hat, and shook her head wildly like she was trying to tear it apart.
She was far too small—the hat could easily fit her inside—but she kept yanking at the brim, barely managing to lift it.
After a while she gave up. With one final shake she flung the hat under the table.
Then she jumped after it and landed with a heavy thud right on top of the hat like a mountain crashing down.
Once that was done, she sprang back up, landed on Charlie's lap, and started head-butting his stomach.
"Oh no, someone's jealous~" Charlie scooped her up. Her legs kicked wildly in the air while her red eyes glared at him.
"Hey, don't be like that. Look at them." He turned Alice toward the head table.
Dumbledore had swapped his pointed wizard hat for a purple lace bonnet covered in huge flowers.
Professor McGonagall's witch hat was gone too, replaced by a black top hat.
But that only made Alice struggle harder in Charlie's hands.
"All right, all right. No more hats." Charlie rubbed her face and set her gently on his own head.
For the rest of the feast, Alice showed zero interest in leaving Charlie's head.
Even when he filled a plate with crisp carrots, lettuce, and broccoli salad for her, she didn't spare it a single glance.