Howard and Kona in the center of the classroom were still awkwardly dancing, even without music, but they were twisting energetically.
"She's just like that. When we were little, if I didn't reply to her letters, she would get very anxious and send several letters in a row, urging me to write back."
"Sometimes, if you do something she doesn't like, she'll get angry and ignore you," Gary said, looking at Alfrina's eyebrows and eyes. In reality, her features weren't that delicate, but Gary found them very comforting. "But this childishness fades quickly, and then she'll pull you to play together again."
"She's very controlling, nostalgic, and loves to be a leader giving orders..."
"You know her very well," Lily suddenly interrupted Gary.
"I'm just more detail-oriented," Gary said with a wry smile. "I'm always very sensitive to other people's emotions..."
"Then you should know..." Lily frowned.
"Some things, even if you know them, you can't say directly," Gary said, feeling a bit parched, and poured himself another butterbeer. "We're still too young."
"Then when will we be considered grown up?" Lily asked, a hint of sarcasm on her fair face. "Are we supposed to wait until we're seventeen and adults?"
"..." Gary remained silent. "I don't want her to regret it."
"So you're stringing her along now? And comforting yourself with your so-called calm consideration?" Lily was a bit annoyed, her voice growing louder.
Over there, Howard and Kona's dancing rhythm actually synced up, and they twisted their bodies, performing ugly dance steps.
"I'm not stringing her along," Gary said in a deep voice.
"Perhaps. I just hope that when you truly figure things out, you won't regret it." Lily stood up, embracing Alfrina.
"You watch Howard and Kona. Go to your common room first." Lily placed Alfrina's left arm over her own left shoulder, then put her right arm around Alfrina's slim waist and walked out of the classroom.
Gary took out his wand. "Scourgify." The messy bottles and clutter on the table vanished, and those troublesome thoughts also disappeared, leaving the tabletop clean.
"Let's go, let's go." He separated Howard and Kona, cast a Levitation Charm on both of them, and then walked forward, holding one in each hand.
"How does one distinguish between rationality and sensibility?" The eagle-shaped door knocker emitted a pleasant sound, but the question sounded a bit harsh to Gary.
Lily looked back at Gary with a teasing expression. "Sensory perception leans more towards one's inner self, based on subjective emotions, while rational thinking involves analyzing the surrounding environment, people, and other factors to draw conclusions based on normal thought patterns," Gary said expressionlessly.
"Makes sense," the door knocker said. The common room door opened. Since the team lost the game today, the students had already gone to bed early.
At this moment, the common room was dim, with only the crackling sound of the fire burning wood in the fireplace. As the few of them walked in, the firelight illuminated their faces, casting long shadows on the walls. The half-length white marble statue of Ravenclaw was still there, its eyes deep and full of wisdom.
"This is my first time in your common room." Lily placed Alfrina on the sofa. Alfrina turned over, snuggled deeper into the sofa, and continued to sleep.
"Can I look at these books?" Lily's gaze fixed on the bookshelf in the common room.
"Just don't damage them," Gary waved his hand. "These all belong to Professor Flitwick."
...
→
The first match testing the new Quidditch rules sparked heated discussion at Hogwarts. Everyone was very satisfied with the current intensity of the games, even finding the Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw 'chicken pecking' matches incredibly exciting.
Most people began to look forward to the big battle after Christmas—Gryffindor versus Slytherin.
Gary's team continued to refine the rules based on the first match, raising the value of penalty shots to twenty points to curb malicious fouls by players.
During the Christmas holiday, Gary and James returned to Godric's Hollow, which was covered in white snow, adorned in silver, and filled with a strong Christmas atmosphere.
On Christmas Day, Gary woke up early and began unwrapping the gifts piled high at his bedside.
Christmas gifts are given once a year. Many classmates, with whom Gary only had a nodding acquaintance, also sent pastries and chocolates. To his surprise, Lockhart even sent a large bag of Chocolate Frogs, with a thank-you letter attached to the packaging.
Gary opened it and read it. It was nothing more than the usual 'turning over a new leaf and becoming a better person' content. He casually set it aside.
Beneath it were gifts from a few good friends, which also lacked novelty. In the past two years, they had given all the gifts they could, and now the gifts were all the same, just like the gifts Gary gave them.
However, at the very bottom was a box wrapped in black paper, signed "Eugenia Jenkins, Chair of the Ministry of Magic's Education Reform Committee."
It was a gift from the current Minister for Magic. Gary carefully unwrapped the gift, finding a stack of brand new textbooks inside.
Gary casually picked up a book and opened it. On the flyleaf was a message from the lady:
To Mr. Gary Shafiq, member of "A Maverick Pig": Thank you for your proposals regarding the reform of the Defense Against the Dark Arts curriculum in magic schools. We have established a new department, the Education Reform Committee, to revise the textbooks, incorporating some of your proposals and correcting errors and ambiguities within them. Upon completion of the revision, we have decided to present you and your friends with a set of new textbooks to express our gratitude, and we hope you will continue to strive and offer feedback on our work.
Wishing you academic success and a happy and harmonious family.
Eugenia Jenkins, Minister for Magic, Chair of the Education Reform Committee
Gary closed the book and began writing a letter. Cardy, who had been delivering gifts all night yesterday, was now so sleepy he was dozing off in his cage, his head bobbing.
Woken by Gary, Cardy was extremely displeased, staring at him with unmoving black eyes. Only after Gary gave him a bag of premium owl treats, which Howard had just sent, did he reluctantly carry the letter and fly away.
The Minister for Magic personally wrote the message, which was a great encouragement to Gary. He was already thinking about working for the Ministry of Magic after graduation.
Fourteen-year-old Gary was still a long way from working, but there was an immediate advantage: any changes to Quidditch League rules within Britain required the approval of the British and Irish Quidditch League Headquarters.
This long-named department belongs to the Sporting Goods Department of the Ministry of Magic.
Considering the current situation, Gary could infer that Ms. Jenkins's current goal must be re-election, and she could use all means to achieve this goal.
The Quidditch rule changes they organized would certainly be taken seriously by her.
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