Fred and George struggled to their feet, and the moment they saw each other's white beards, they burst out laughing again.
"Good morning."
Dumbledore emerged from the Great Hall and greeted the twins in an amused tone.
Everyone turned to see the elderly Headmaster studying Fred and George's beards with great interest.
"Good morning, Professor Dumbledore," the twins said in unison.
"I did warn you," Dumbledore said with a pleasant smile, gesturing towards their beards.
"Of course, Professor," the twins replied, nodding repeatedly. "But practice is the only true test of theory."
Dumbledore raised an eyebrow.
"And what was the result?"
"Apparently," they said together, rubbing their chests, "the truth has quite a kick."
Dumbledore laughed again and gave them a knowing look.
"I suggest you both go to Madam Pomfrey at once. She is already treating Miss Fawcett and Mr Summers. They arrived before dawn, equally determined to add a few years to their age."
"All right, Professor. We'll go now."
The twins grinned as they made their way through the crowd towards the Hospital Wing.
Ron stared after them in disbelief and quickly pulled the Ageing Potion from his pocket.
"Er... can I return this?"
"No refunds or exchanges once sold!" George shouted without looking back, tugging at his beard. "You'd better start thinking about what Christmas present you're getting us!"
Hearing this, Ron looked dejectedly at Harry and Hermione.
Harry patted him sympathetically on the shoulder, while Hermione wore an expression that clearly said he had brought it upon himself.
Sagres and Dumbledore left together. As they passed the trio, Sagres stopped in front of Ron.
"A friendly reminder, Mr Weasley," he said, pointing to the Ageing Potion in Ron's hand. "You are currently holding a gift worth three Galleons."
Ron froze for a moment, then suddenly understood. A delighted smile spread across his face.
"Right! I've already got a gift worth three Galleons."
He shook the bottle of Ageing Potion, his eyes gleaming.
"Thank you so much, Professor Greengrass."
Sagres said nothing more and continued through the crowd with the elderly Headmaster.
As the morning grew brighter, the festive atmosphere inside the Castle became even more lively.
Students from the various schools explored Hogwarts' Halloween decorations in small groups: the ghost ship sailing across a sea of blood, the vine-covered gravestones that told stories, and the skeletal fairies wandering the corridors.
Meanwhile, many Hogwarts students curiously visited the visiting schools' unusual means of transport.
Several adventurous Gryffindors marvelled at Durmstrang's magnificent ghost ship, while a group of Hufflepuffs enthusiastically praised the tents beneath the wings of Ilvermorny's Thunderbird magical construct.
The Headmistress of Uagadou and the Headmaster of Castelobruxo also led their students to the Great Hall to register.
Harry, Ron, and Hermione took advantage of the free morning to wander towards the edge of the Forbidden Forest.
Beauxbatons' Abraxan horses gleamed with a pearly sheen in the sunlight, while Ukarlo's enormous rainbow serpent lay lazily coiled on the grass, its colourful scales reflecting a dreamlike halo.
"It's beautiful," Hermione murmured admiringly as she watched the giant serpent's scales change colour beneath the sunlight.
"I think it's a bit frightening," Ron said with a shudder.
"It is a little frightening," Harry admitted, "but it really is beautiful."
The three stood watching for a while before Harry suddenly had an idea.
"Do you think I could use Parseltongue to..."
"No!" Hermione interrupted immediately.
"Don't even think about it!" Ron shouted at almost the same moment, terror written across his face.
"All right."
Harry wisely raised both hands.
"I thought you two might think it was a good idea..."
Keeping a safe distance, they slowly circled the area before eventually reaching the serpent's head.
A crowd had already gathered there.
They immediately spotted Goyle's broad, wall-like figure. Looking more closely, they unsurprisingly found Malfoy among the group.
His back was turned towards them, his distinctive platinum-blond hair gleaming brightly in the sunlight.
Malfoy seemed completely unaware of their arrival. He was happily chatting with several students from Ukarlo School of Magic.
"...So the change in the colour of its scales isn't just for camouflage, but also reflects its emotions and magical state?"
One of the Ukarlo students nodded and explained in fluent English.
"Exactly. When it's calm, the colours become soft, like a rainbow after rain. When it's excited or alert, its scales flash with a dangerous red light..."
Harry and his two friends watched the unexpectedly harmonious scene from a distance and silently agreed not to disturb them.
They turned and strolled casually along the path towards the gamekeeper's hut.
To their surprise, Hagrid looked completely transformed today.
He was wearing a neat grey suit with a double-breasted waistcoat and a matching overcoat. His hair and thick beard had been carefully combed, and there was even a faint scent of cologne about him.
"Hey! You've finally come!"
Hagrid eagerly invited them inside, his voice full of delight.
"I thought you'd forgotten the way to my place."
"Sorry, Hagrid," Hermione said apologetically. "We've been really busy this term."
Indeed, compared with the previous two years, they had visited Hagrid's hut far less often this year.
Hermione was completely absorbed in studying spells and had almost no free time, while Harry and Ron had become somewhat more sensible than before. At the very least, they now occasionally found time to read their textbooks between all-night games of Wizard Chess.
Of course, there was another reason that was less convenient to mention: the Blast-Ended Skrewts Hagrid had been breeding.
Not only were they extremely unpleasant to look at, but they were also highly aggressive.
Almost every student who had taken Care of Magical Creatures had been injured by them, and even Hagrid himself was covered in wounds, with eight of his ten fingers bitten.
The inside of the hut still looked unmistakably like Hagrid's home. All sorts of things were piled about haphazardly, making the place rather cluttered. A patchwork quilt covered the wooden bed in the corner, a huge copper kettle sat over the fire, and strings of cured ham and dried birds hung from the ceiling.
"Hagrid, your clothes..." Hermione asked curiously after sitting down, looking over his unusually formal outfit.
"Oh, these," Hagrid said, somewhat embarrassed as he fiddled with a button on his waistcoat. "I wrote to Professor Nixia for advice on the whole outfit. Except the cologne, of course. Couldn't get hold of any magical men's cologne."
He turned towards the three of them, looking unusually nervous.
"How do I look?"
"Fantastic!" Hermione said seriously.
For once, even Harry and Ron did not disagree.
The water in the copper kettle came to the boil, and Hagrid poured them some tea. The conversation soon turned to the Triwizard Tournament, and his enthusiasm for the event was no less intense than theirs.
"Just you wait," he said with a grin. "It'll be a sight like you've never seen before. The first task is... ouch!"
He suddenly clapped a hand over his mouth, his eyes widening.
"Nearly let it slip again!"
"Go on, Hagrid!" the three urged, clutching their enormous mugs.
But Hagrid only shook his head mysteriously, his cheeks turning red.
"Can't say. Dumbledore specifically told me not to. But you'll find out soon enough. I promise it'll be spectacular!"
In the middle of the conversation, Hagrid suddenly glanced nervously out of the window and sprang to his feet.
"Oh, blimey! Nearly forgot! I've got to go and meet Madame Maxime. Promised I'd show her the greenhouses!"
He grabbed a bunch of fresh flowers from the table and practically rushed out of the door, leaving the three of them staring at one another.
A moment later, however, he came back in, pulled a small shard of broken mirror from the table to check his reflection, and turned towards them again.
"Do I look all right?"
"Very good!" Harry said quickly.
"Brilliant!" Ron agreed at once.
"Couldn't be better!" Hermione said firmly.
"Good."
Hagrid put down the mirror and turned to leave, but two seconds later he pushed the door open again, hurriedly grabbed the flowers he had forgotten, and stuffed the mirror into his coat pocket.
"See you at the feast! Remember to lock up when you leave. Key's under the mat by the door."
With that, he hurried off again.
Hermione suddenly remembered something and ran to the doorway to call him back.
Under Hagrid's puzzled gaze, she drew her wand and lightly tapped the slightly wilted bouquet. The flowers instantly regained their vivid colours and looked fresh and full of life again.
"Oh, thanks, Hermione! Clever little witch, you are."
Hagrid beamed in delight before jogging away.
Harry and Ron came over to stand beside Hermione, watching Hagrid's retreating figure with confused expressions.
"What's got into him?"
"Isn't it obvious?" Hermione rolled her eyes helplessly and turned back into the hut.
"What's obvious?" Ron asked, still completely baffled.
Harry thought for a moment, then suddenly understood.
"Hermione probably means... he might be in love."
"Who?" Ron looked blank. "Who's in love?"
Harry smiled but said nothing.
Ron hesitated.
"Hagrid? Who would he be in love with?"
"That's obvious too."
"Oh... you mean Madame Maxime!" Ron finally realised.
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