The Approaching Halloween Feast

Dear Luna, dear Mr. Lovegood:

Only in the past few days did I learn that Halloween is not just a holiday for Muggles to have fun, but also the New Year of the ancient Celts.

It is said that on the eve of Halloween, which is the very day I am writing this letter to you, the boundary between life and death becomes blurred, and the Grim Reaper and ghosts will visit this world.

I feel this must be a rumor, after all, Hogwarts has quite a few ghosts... like Ravenclaw's Lady Grey.

Unlike Hufflepuff's talkative Fat Friar, Lady Grey is much quieter. She possesses vast knowledge and occasionally guides students with their homework.

Oh, right! Fred and George of the Weasley family also told me that something always happens on Halloween, and actually, I am looking forward to it a little.

If some wondrous encounter really happens today, I will write it into a story and send it to *The Quibbler* for publication. I hope Mr. Lovegood won't look down on my manuscript.

Wishing you and Mr. Lovegood a Happy Halloween.

Wizette Lovegood

...

Watching the shadow of Thor flying away with the letter in its beak, Wizette stood up and stretched.

By the time he finished writing this letter, he realized he had already been at Hogwarts for two months.

These two months had been incredibly rich. Aside from normal classes from Monday to Friday, there was Quidditch training on Tuesdays, along with private tutoring from two professors on weekends.

From a certain perspective, Quirrell and Snape were very similar.

Wizette could always sense academic brilliance from both professors during their tutoring sessions.

Quirrell had rich theoretical knowledge and a gentle tone when lecturing. Whenever Wizette encountered all kinds of doubts, he always received patient explanations from the professor.

Snape had vast knowledge, but his tone when lecturing was quite cold. At first, there were many scoldings, but after Wizette mastered the techniques, he became much quieter.

In any case, being able to access this mysterious magical knowledge made Wizette extremely grateful for the instruction of both professors.

Before even entering the Great Hall, Wizette could smell the sweet aroma of roasted pumpkin from afar.

The suits of armor in the corridor came alive; if students got too close, they would suddenly salute solemnly and shout, "Happy Halloween!"

Not only was there the smell of roasted pumpkin around, but massive pumpkins were also decorated everywhere.

These pumpkins were about one and a half meters tall, completely hollowed out and lit with candles. Some ghosts would hide inside, and once a student passed by, they would suddenly pop out to scare them.

Not only were the corridors filled with Halloween atmosphere, but the Great Hall was also decorated.

Black stage curtains cut into the shapes of castles hung on the walls, and Flitwick waved his wand, directing countless bats made of black cloth to fly through the air.

Perhaps infected by the festive atmosphere, Professor Flitwick of Charms was also beaming with joy, continuing to teach the Levitation Charm.

"Remember the gesture we practiced before, swish and flick... Yes! Swish and flick very gently! Then incant—Wingardium... Leviosa!"

He taught while demonstrating, "When you say 'di-um', that's when you start to wave your wand... Come, let's practice together!"

"Wingardium... Leviosa!"

The sound of uniform chanting echoed in the classroom.

"Not bad! Wizette's feather is flying very steadily! Just like your flying skills! Ten points to Ravenclaw!" Flitwick was never stingy with praise for students of his own house.

As for the key points regarding gestures and pronunciation, Wizette was already all too familiar with them. Moreover, this spell was not complex, so succeeding on the first try was normal.

The Ravenclaw students were used to this, treating him like a assistant, gathering around him to ask for techniques related to the Levitation Charm.

When Flitwick patrolled the Gryffindor students, he even gave Wizette a thumbs-up.

Compared to the harmonious joy of Ravenclaw, the "smell of gunpowder" among the Gryffindors was much stronger.

Seamus, impatient while casting the spell, accidentally set fire to the feather used for practice. If Harry hadn't been quick-eyed and fast-handed, the flames might have singed Seamus's hair.

Ron and Hermione were also very tense, and Hermione said in a high voice, "It's Wingardium... Le-vi-o-sa, that 'o' sound needs to be dragged out before you start the spell."

"Didn't you listen to the lecture? Just now, Professor Flitwick... I mean... maybe you're nervous, actually earlier you..."

Ron's face turned red, almost the same color as his hair. "If you're so good, you try it!"

"Fine!" Hermione did not refuse, rolling up her sleeves and waving her wand. "Wingardium Leviosa!"

"Well done!" Professor Flitwick looked at the floating feather. "Mr. Weasley, you must try harder! Learn well from Miss Granger, two points to Gryffindor!"

...

The bell for the end of class rang, and the students who finished the class breathed a sigh of relief, looking forward to tonight's Halloween feast.

Terry said mysteriously, "I heard that Headmaster Dumbledore bought quite a lot of sweets from Honeydukes!"

"As long as it's not Cockroach Clusters!" Anthony said casually. "I heard from the adults at home that Headmaster Dumbledore really likes Cockroach Clusters."

"I don't like Cockroach Clusters!" Michael seemed to think of an unpleasant memory. "As soon as it enters your mouth, it smells like cockroaches... Even when you chew, its legs will still wriggle in your mouth!"

Chris asked with a strange expression, "Have you eaten cockroaches? Don't talk to me in the future!"

"What are you saying! Who ate cockroaches?" Michael yelled, then started playing around with Chris.

Wizette looked at this scene with amusement, gently shaking his head.

Suddenly, Ron's voice came from behind. "Wizette... Are you going to the library today?"

"Of course!" Wizette nodded. "Are you looking for some materials? For Potions class?"

"Uh..." Ron's face turned red again, his tone stuttering. "I just wanted to ask you if you've seen Hermione."

Wizette shook his head. "No, did something happen?"

"I said some harsh words..." Ron's face looked as if it were on fire, turning a glaring red.

"I said it's no wonder she doesn't have a single friend... She really is as terrifying as a nightmare..."

Harry, standing beside him, added, "I saw Hermione crying. Then she skipped class! She wasn't in History of Magic, Transfiguration, or Charms!"

"With Hermione's personality, she would absolutely never skip class! So we thought... she might have met with an accident, so we want to go find her."

"Hermione? Is that the Gryffindor girl who often goes to the library?" Anthony and the others also gathered around. "She doesn't seem that bad, does she?"

Michael added with a laugh, "I think so too. Is it just because you Gryffindors are used to being lazy?"

"Different houses might have different lifestyle habits," Wizette said with a slight smile. "Ron, Hermione actually talked to me about you guys before."

Ron hurriedly pressed, "What did she say?"