Time flew by quickly after Halloween, and before they knew it, it was almost time for Christmas. This year, Hermione wrote to her parents early, expressing her desire to spend Christmas at Hogwarts. During Christmas, they could visit Hogsmeade again, and it would be Hermione and Lin Yue's first time going to Hogsmeade during Christmas. Hermione believed she absolutely could not miss this opportunity.

Coincidentally, she wasn't the only one thinking this; her senior classmates, Cho Chang, Marietta, and Penelope, also had the same thought. Seeing that their junior's situation had improved, they naturally wanted to be by Lin Yue's side to spend this Christmas together. As for the trip to Hogsmeade during Christmas... the three seniors "thoughtfully" expressed that they would not go with Lin Yue and Hermione. They were quite certain that they needed to give the two juniors some personal space.

During the transition from Halloween to Christmas, the news about Lin Yue's consent form being signed by Lady Ravenclaw and Lady Hufflepuff spread completely. Now, apart from those who truly knew about Lin Yue's background—like the Ravenclaws, Hermione, Harry, Ron, and the professors—almost everyone else believed that Lin Yue was a descendant of Lady Ravenclaw and Lady Hufflepuff from who knows how many generations ago. As for the combination of these two ladies, no one dared to say anything about it.

So what if they were both ladies? Lady Ravenclaw and Lady Hufflepuff must have been very happy together. The only one who had any objections to Lin Yue's consent form was Filch. He seemed convinced that Lin Yue had used some improper means to get her consent form signed. He was also sure that she would inevitably do something else that violated school rules, so he took every opportunity to search for Lin Yue's presence in Hogwarts Castle, trying to catch her in the act of breaking the rules. Unfortunately, he couldn't even find Lin Yue, let alone catch her breaking any rules. Wherever Lin Yue was or wherever she was going, Filch's shadow would never appear.

As a result, Lin Yue herself was completely unaware that there was someone jumping around Hogwarts Castle every day trying to catch her breaking the rules, yet every day he came up empty-handed. Up until the day before Christmas, Filch still hadn't given up on this matter he was fixated on.

"Sigh..." After countless sighs, Hermione finally couldn't help but turn to Ron beside her. "Come on, Ron, I just sat down at the Gryffindor long table for breakfast, and I've heard you sigh so many times already. What on earth is going on? You can tell me, but can you please stop sighing all the time?"

"If you say it, maybe we can help you solve it. What good does sighing do?"

"It's Scabbers... it's Scabbers."

Ron raised his head with a troubled expression, looking at Harry, who was sitting across from him, and Hermione, who was sitting next to him.

"Scabbers? What happened to Scabbers?"

Harry, who shared a dormitory with Ron, asked in confusion, mainly because their roommates usually didn't pay much attention to Ron's pet rat, Scabbers. So it was normal for him not to know anything.

"He... he ran off to who knows where."

Ron pressed his lips together, and it was clear that although he had been constantly complaining about his pet rat, Scabbers, he actually had quite a deep affection for him.

"Ran off to who knows where? When did this happen?"

Hermione frowned, putting down her knife and fork and looking at him seriously.

"About... a week ago?"

Ron roughly estimated the time.

"This shouldn't be," Hermione shook her head firmly. "In the wizarding world, a wizard's pet, even if it leaves its owner, will return within a few days. It can't be gone for too long."

She had read this after experiencing Neville's lost toad incident in her first year.

"So..."

Ron shrugged, and the expression on his face seemed to be a bit sadder.

"Hey, Ron, think positively."

Harry patted Ron on the shoulder, comforting him. "Scabbers is already quite old; maybe it left you just to seek a richer, more colorful life in its old age."

It's true that your friends know you best. With Harry saying that, Ron's worries unconsciously eased a bit.

"You're right, Harry. Anyway, there are no signs that Scabbers is dead."

"I'll just assume it went out to have some fun."

"That's the spirit! Tomorrow is Christmas; everyone should be happy."

Harry nodded with a smile and lowered his head to finish an entire sausage.

"Do you need me to bring anything back for you, Harry?"

After adjusting his state, Ron looked at Harry, who was focused on his breakfast.

Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

"Um... could you bring me back two bottles of Butterbeer? I'm really getting a bit tired of pumpkin juice at Hogwarts."

"See, Harry, you think so too," Hermione immediately chimed in, raising her eyebrows at Harry as if she had found a supporter.

Harry raised his hand to touch his nose, "Yes, having only pumpkin juice all the time is really a bit monotonous."

"Alright, I'll bring you back Butterbeer, lots of Butterbeer."

Hearing Ron's words, Harry's brow twitched twice as he thought of the large bag of snacks he had left under his bed, barely half of which he had eaten.

"Don't buy too much, really."

He looked sincerely at Ron, who nodded seriously in agreement.

As their casual chat came to an end, Lin Yue arrived at the Gryffindor long table accompanied by three senior girls. Hermione, who had already finished her breakfast, stood up with a smile and took Lin Yue's hand.

"Let's go, let's go explore Hogsmeade together."

"Okay." Lin Yue responded in a flat tone, mechanically nodding her head.

Led by Hermione, they arrived at the entrance of Hogwarts Castle, where Filch was already standing.

Seeing Lin Yue approach, he pressed his lips together, seemingly wanting to say something but hesitating to speak.

During his moment of hesitation, a gust of wind suddenly began to blow in from outside the gates of Hogwarts Castle.

It made him unsteady on his feet, " This's insane, this's absolutely insane..."

Filch muttered quietly, "Just go, just go quickly, don’t dawdle."

Seeing that Filch had no intention of stopping them any longer, Hermione let out a sigh of relief and led Lin Yue out of the gates of Hogwarts Castle.

Looking at the surrounding landscape covered in white and the snowflakes falling like goose feathers from the sky, Lin Yue suddenly remembered the times she had snowball fights with Harry and Ron, and built snowmen with the three senior girls.

As these memories flashed through her mind, a smile appeared on her lips.

"What made you so happy?"

Still walking alongside them, Cho Chang turned her head to gently ask Lin Yue.

"I was thinking about the snowball fights with Harry and Ron, and the scenes of building snowmen with the seniors."

"That scene... was very, happy."

Although she stumbled a bit, Lin Yue still expressed her thoughts.

She could feel that this was how she truly felt; she was very happy, so she wanted to say it out loud.

"That was beautifully said."

Penelope gently brushed the snowflakes accumulated on Lin Yue's hat and smiled as she complimented her.

"I'm just speaking the truth."

Lin Yue's voice remained stiff and awkward, but it was clear that no one would treat her as she used to be anymore.

As they entered the boundaries of Hogsmeade, the three senior girls tactfully separated from Lin Yue and Hermione.

Looking at her two not-so-young junior sisters, Penelope raised an eyebrow.

"Cho Chang, Marietta, I think you two would enjoy wandering around more on your own."

"I'll just go find a place to explore by myself. Have fun!"

Without giving the two seniors a chance to respond, she turned and strode away.

Marietta watched her retreating figure, her mouth opening in vain as she tried to say something that only came out half-formed.

"Actually, we could... go together."

Raising her hand to scratch her head, Marietta looked perplexedly at Penelope's quickly disappearing back.

How strange. If it was because Senior Penelope found them annoying, she wouldn't believe it for a second.

But if that wasn't the reason, then why wasn't Senior Penelope joining them in exploring Hogsmeade?

Could it be... "Is Senior Penelope in a relationship?"

Marietta's eyes sparkled as she poked Cho Chang beside her.

Suddenly faced with such a question, Cho Chang was taken aback.

"What, what?"

"A boyfriend! Is Senior Penelope dating someone? That's why she isn't exploring Hogsmeade with us. Of course, it could also be a girlfriend."

Cho Chang fiddled with her right hand's fingers, her gaze firmly fixed on Penelope's back.

The senior's "help" indeed felt considerate, especially since she had deliberately created a situation for Marietta and herself to be alone.

But given the current situation!

It was obvious that Senior Penelope had already noticed her feelings for the person beside her.

Yet this person, the one involved, was completely oblivious!

And was even thinking about whether Senior Penelope was in a relationship.

If it weren't for the fear of truly scaring her off, she might have said something.

Cho Chang really wanted to push Marietta down into the snow and then kiss her hard to shut her mouth, which was always talking nonsense.

"Ha..." Cho Chang let out a long breath and put a smile back on his face.

He reminded himself silently to maintain elegance and to stay gentle.

He reached out and linked arms with Marietta, saying, "Stop guessing. If Senior Penelope really is in a relationship, she would definitely tell us."

"That's true..."

Marietta nodded thoughtfully, and then she stopped dwelling on it and followed Cho Chang into Hogsmeade to explore.

With the experience from the last time and having Lin Yue, who had constructed an entire model of Hogsmeade in her mind, by his side.

Hermione finished buying the ink and parchment she needed in less than ten minutes. Both items were nearly used up, as for the quill... Hermione glanced at Lin Yue beside her, a faint blush slowly appearing on her face. The feather from Lin Yue's Animagus form, a Velociraptor, was very durable. After using it for so long, there was still no sign of wear and tear. Of course, this was definitely also related to Hermione's daily maintenance and care for it. When she used this quill, she was always extremely careful. However, she definitely wouldn't stop using it, because she felt that would betray Lin Yue's good intentions. Moreover, holding the quill made from Lin Yue's feathers while doing her homework, feeling her presence at all times, wasn't that a wonderful feeling?

After buying these essentials, Lin Yue let them float behind her and Hermione without moving her hands, and then followed Hermione to the Honeydukes candy shop to enjoy two free Christmas candies. After that, they entered the Three Broomsticks pub to have a drink to warm up. As soon as they entered the pub, Lin Yue instinctively scanned the surroundings, and when she spotted someone in one direction, her gaze clearly froze, staring intently at that person.

"Lin Yue, what's wrong?"

Hermione asked in confusion, following her gaze. When she saw that person, her eyes not only froze but she also gasped sharply.

"Merlin's open-toed sandals! How did Harry end up here?!"

Hermione lowered her voice, looking at Harry in disbelief, and across from him sat none other than her other friend, Ron.

So what were these two guys up to behind her back?

Hermione felt a wave of helplessness; after all, it was Christmas, and she could understand Harry wanting to come out and relax.

But... he should at least be wearing the invisibility cloak, or at the very least, use a wizard hat to cover his face.

And now, here he was, sitting there so openly.

Not to mention whether someone would notice and report him for being in Hogsmeade without permission; that was a minor issue.

What if Sirius Black saw Harry? What would they do then?

Thinking this, Hermione's hand had already reached for her robe pocket, clearly preparing to use some spells to help Harry hide.

Lin Yue saw Hermione's movements and reached out to press her hand down, her voice flat, "Drawing out the wand is too obvious."

"The probability of being noticed will increase by twenty percent."

"Hermione can leave it to me; I can cast spells without a wand and silently."

"Okay." Hermione nodded in complete trust and walked with Lin Yue towards Harry and Ron.

"Good morning, Harry, Ron."

Lin Yue greeted politely, and Hermione also said hello to the two boys.

"Good morning, Lin Yue... Hermione."

The two boys swallowed hard, feeling a surge of guilt in their hearts.

Once seated, Lin Yue lightly tapped her fingers on the table, casting an unnoticed charm that covered their booth.

With another tap, she silently and wandlessly moved a small Christmas tree from nearby, placing it solidly outside their booth to completely block the view of others.