Chapter 382: Exchange
Chapter 382: Exchange
"Alright, students, please leave in an orderly manner—"
Professor Mcgonagall stood up to maintain order. After a burst of commotion, the young wizards filed out of the Great Hall, still arguing with each other.
At the staff table, Felix pulled out Madame Maxime's chair. "Oh, thank you", she said gracefully, rising and speaking softly, "Don't forget, you're a patron of Beauxbatons... You're always welcome to visit our carriage."
"Of course, Madame", Felix smiled.
He watched as Madame Maxime left with her students, the crowd parting to make way for her. At that moment, Hagrid approached.
"Can you take me with you?"
"Take you where?"
"When you visit, can you... can you bring me along?" Hagrid asked nervously, his eyes following the tall figure as she disappeared through the Great Hall's doors, his expression dreamy. "I mean, the Thestrals are a bit... problematic, and I need to ask her about it."
Felix gave him a strange look.
Hagrid immediately smoothed his hair and collar, "What's wrong? Is something off?"
"No", Felix said softly, "I'm just worried about those horses." Who knew if Hagrid might actually create some 'issues' to make his excuse seem more genuine.
At that moment, an angry voice sounded from the doorway—
"Yes, that's Harry Potter. Have you had enough?"
Felix turned to see Professor Moody facing off against the Durmstrang Headmaster. Moody's magical eye seemed particularly terrifying, causing Karkaroff and the students around him to turn pale.
But Karkaroff's reaction was clearly beyond the norm—mingled with anger and deep-seated fear. Felix was familiar with this expression; many people had looked at him the same way. So, Karkaroff was about to—
"Back down?" Felix mused.
Sure enough, Karkaroff didn't press the issue, waving his hand as if avoiding a plague and leading his students away.
The students who had been blocked behind others craned their necks to watch the Durmstrang delegation leave.
"This night won't be peaceful", Felix said.
"Indeed, I bet some students will sign up for the tournament tonight", Hagrid said dreamily, "Oh, by the way, do you have any good perfume recommendations?"
...
"Do you think Karkaroff and Professor Moody know each other?" Harry asked, following the crowd up the spiral staircase.
"Definitely", Ron said confidently, "Look at their expressions. It's so obvious. I bet they have some old grudge."
They returned to the dormitory, where Dean was waiting by the door, trying to suppress a laugh, "Harry, you need to come over here. There's a guest waiting for you..."
Harry walked over curiously. Niffler was sitting on his bedside table, surrounded by a pile of small, shiny objects—Galleons, a gold necklace, a temperature-stabilizing pendant, and a dusty hourglass...
Ron's eyes were glued to the stack of golden Galleons.
"Merlin's beard..."
Harry seemed to have an idea. He crouched in front of Niffler and asked tentatively, "You want to trade for that Muggle coin?"
Niffler nodded vigorously.
Ron was laughing so hard he almost fell over, grabbing Neville's four-poster bed to steady himself, nearly pulling down the curtains: "Oh, it has such a good memory! It's been two months since the start of the term, and it still hasn't given up..."
Harry hesitated for a moment. The Muggle coin was a memento of his countless apparitions, but now that he had learned magic, it didn't hold as much value to him, especially since it was given to him by Uncle Vernon.
He rummaged through his trunk, found the coin, and handed it to Niffler. "Here, it's yours."
Niffler immediately took the coin, its bright black eyes shining. It rubbed the coin's sharp edges with its small hands for a while, then seemed to make a big decision. It looked away and pointed to the pile of objects in front of it, indicating that Harry should choose one.
"No, thank you", Harry declined.
But Niffler insisted that he pick something, or the Dark Lord would nag at it endlessly.
"Chirp!"
It patted its chest, indicating it was there to make a trade.
Harry pondered for a long time, his fingers constantly moving, unable to make up his mind. Niffler watched his hand intently, visibly relieved when the hand finally picked up the unassuming hourglass. "Phew~" Niffler relaxed, gathering up its treasure and disappearing from their sight.
When Niffler was gone, Ron couldn't help but speak up for Harry. "Even if you didn't want the Galleon, the pendant box is pretty good too. I heard Fred and George talking about it; that little box can keep the temperature at the most comfortable level, so you wouldn't need to wear a cloak in winter."
Harry shook his head. "This is good too." He fiddled with the dusty hourglass for a moment and then placed it on the shelf.
"Sure", Ron muttered. "I doubt it's worth two sickles, unless it's an antique..."
The next morning.
Students gathered in a chaotic crowd. A thin circle of golden lines now marked the center of the floor in the entrance hall, and the Goblet of Fire stood on the Sorting Hat Stool, placed in the middle of the golden circle.
"They are being too blatant", Hermione said, looking shocked. In front of her, the Weasley Twins and Lee Jordan were eager, each holding a small bottle containing a thin layer of clear liquid.
She glanced beyond the crowd—Professor Hup stood nearby, leaning against the wall with a half-smile, watching them with folded arms.
"Just one drop", Fred said excitedly, drinking the Ageing Potion. "We're only a few months off."
"Right, let's set an example for you", George followed, drinking the potion and addressing Harry and Ron.
Hermione immediately glared at Harry and Ron.
The two of them looked away guiltily. They each had a small bottle of Ageing Potion hidden in their pockets. Ron stammered, "We prepared your share, Hermione, do you need it...?"
Hermione was speechless and turned her head away from them.
Harry didn't say anything. At the last minute, he hesitated, asking himself: If Fred and George really succeed, should he put his name in too?
The twins stepped into the age line and waved to Felix, who was smiling on the side.
"We love you, Professor", Fred said.
For a moment, Hermione thought they had succeeded, but then she heard a hissing sound. The twins were thrown out of the golden circle, and Lee Jordan hastily pulled back his leg.
The twins groaned as they got up from the ground, and the crowd burst into laughter—long white beards had grown on their chins. Even the twins couldn't help but laugh.
Felix walked over from the wall, examining them closely, and teased, "I heard about Miss Fawcett from Ravenclaw and Mr. Summers from Hufflepuff being sent to the Hospital Wing this morning. I thought there might be more young wizards who didn't believe in the age line, so I decided to stay and watch..."
Fred and George looked at him with resentment, their white beards fluttering comically.
"I warned you", Dumbledore appeared in the entrance hall, his voice low and amused. He approached, examining the twins' shiny white beards and said, "Any discoveries, Felix?"
"No one succeeded. A second-year wizard tried to throw a paper ball in, but the Goblet of Fire spat it out..."
Perhaps the Weasley twins' demonstration was too vivid. After the morning incident, no more underage wizards tried to cross the age line.
Hogwarts students watched eagerly as the prospective champions from the other four schools lined up to put their names into the Goblet of Fire. The blue-white flames licked at their fingers, burning intensely and turning red, spitting out sparks.
"Where are ours?" a young wizard asked anxiously.
"Here they come!"
Another young wizard said excitedly as Cedric, Roger Davies, Colin Creevey, and Angelina walked over, accompanied by the selected students.
One by one, they dropped their slips of paper into the Goblet of Fire, their faces filled with anticipation.
(End of Chapter)
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