December had arrived, and heavy snow began to fall at Hogwarts.
The fireplaces in the Castle classrooms had ignited on their own; presumably, the House-elves were worried about the Young Wizards catching a cold and had lit them during the night.
Although it was still a bit cold in places without fireplaces, compared to the large Durmstrang ship on the lake and the massive Beauxbatons carriage by the Forbidden Forest, this chill was nothing.
Seeing the carriage and the ship swaying precariously in the cold wind, one couldn't help but wonder how cold the people inside must be when they slept at night.
Hopefully, they had Spells to keep their rooms warm.
The Beauxbatons Abraxan winged horses, however, were living quite comfortably.
Hagrid fed them pure malt whiskey every day, and this group of alcoholic horses drank even more fiercely than humans.
Hagrid was happy to have such a group of drinking buddies, and lately, he reeked of alcohol during class.
Those Blast-Ended Skrewts had grown to nearly two meters long, their shells were getting thicker, the fire sprayed from their tails was becoming more powerful, and they still tasted delicious.
But Charlie could no longer take action during class; it was too easy to be discovered.
Hermione had been very busy lately.
Not only did she have to attend classes and do homework for Charlie, but she also went to the kitchen every day to chat with the House-elves, understanding their needs and thoughts.
Charlie felt she was like a neighborhood committee official chatting with old men and women at the village entrance.
The House-elves were quite willing to chat with her, as long as she didn't mention anything about freedom.
After learning the content of the second task, Charlie completely gave up; there was no need to even give Harry special training.
However, what surprised Charlie was that Harry had actually started putting pressure on himself.
After Charlie told him the content of the second task, he had been researching how to move freely underwater.
It seemed the experience of the first task had completely stirred up his competitive spirit.
Krum, as always, rarely appeared; Hermione said she often saw him in the Library.
As for Fleur, ever since the incident in the corridor last time, she had never approached Charlie on her own again.
Every time they ran into each other in the Castle, she would quickly lower her head and walk away, with a silk scarf wrapped around her neck.
On this day in Herbology Class, Charlie walked into the Greenhouse right on time and found Ron sitting in the corner with a long face.
Hermione glanced at Charlie, then quickly looked away, burying her head in organizing her textbook.
Charlie walked over.
"What's wrong? Who owes you money?"
Harry opened his mouth to say something, but Professor Sprout had already clapped her hands, signaling everyone to be quiet.
He could only shake his head and whisper.
"I'll tell you after class."
"Today we are going to learn how to safely collect venom from a Venomous Tentacula." Professor Sprout pointed to the row of writhing, deep purple plants in the center of the Greenhouse.
"Remember, you must absolutely not let your skin come into direct contact with the Venomous Tentacula, otherwise it will swell up immediately; in serious cases, you will need to go to Madam Pomfrey for treatment."
She held up a small bottle.
"The venom must be squeezed out from the spikes; this requires a certain amount of strength and technique. Everyone put on your dragon-hide gloves, and start working in pairs."
There was a rustling sound in the classroom as students put on their thick gloves.
Charlie looked at the Venomous Tentacula he had been assigned; its vines were writhing restlessly, and a faint green light was oozing from the spikes.
"What should we do?"
Neville, who was paired with Charlie, asked enthusiastically.
"Isn't it easy to collect the venom?"
Charlie drew his wand directly, a Cutting Curse flashed by, and the entire Venomous Tentacula was severed at the root.
"Char..."
Neville was startled by Charlie's actions, but quickly covered his mouth to avoid disturbing him.
Charlie ignored his reaction and pointed his wand at the severed end.
The green venom poured out from the cut like toothpaste, flowing precisely into the bottle.
In less than ten seconds, the bottle was full.
Then, he waved his wand at the severed Venomous Tentacula, and new vines immediately emerged from the cut, growing at a speed visible to the naked eye, and it returned to its original state a few seconds later.
Other students were still carefully pinching the spikes with their gloves, trying to squeeze out a single drop of venom.
And Charlie had already capped the bottle and placed it on the table.
Professor Sprout walked over, looking at the bottle filled with venom, and then at the Venomous Tentacula that had recovered as before.
She opened her mouth, but in the end, she just sighed.
"Charlie finished first, five points to Hufflepuff." She paused.
"However, please be more gentle next time; after all, these plants also have life."
"Okay, Professor."
Charlie nodded obediently, but he would do it again next time.
Neville was stunned by Charlie's operation, his eyes wide open.
But he quickly realized that only Charlie could do such a thing; if it were him, he would have to honestly follow what the Professor taught.
"You do it."
Charlie left the remaining Venomous Tentacula for Neville and lay down on the table to catch up on sleep.
Professor Sprout didn't bother him; in any case, Charlie had already over-fulfilled the tasks for this class.
Neville carefully put on his gloves and began to squeeze the spikes of the Venomous Tentacula according to Professor Sprout's method.
After the class ended, exclamations rang out one after another in the Greenhouse.
Many students had large, swollen patches on their arms because they accidentally touched the Venomous Tentacula.
Charlie woke up, too, and stretched.
Professor Sprout looked at the swollen students and shook her head helplessly.
"Just go to Madam Pomfrey to get some medicine to apply, and remember to be more careful next time."
Harry came over at this moment and said to Charlie in a low voice.
"Last class, Professor McGonagall told us something..."
"But before you go to the hospital wing..." Professor Sprout suddenly clapped her hands, interrupting Harry.
"There is some news that needs to be announced to you. Gryffindor students may already know, but the Yule Ball will be held this year."
Harry looked at Charlie helplessly and shrugged.
"That's what I wanted to say."
"This is a traditional event of the Triwizard Tournament, and it is also a good opportunity for us to interact with foreign friends." Professor Sprout continued.
"The ball is only open to students in the fourth year and above. Everyone must invite a dance partner and wear dress robes."
Ron's face fell instantly, and he looked like a wilted eggplant.
Charlie finally understood why he was so sad.
His dress robes looked like the clothes the grandmother next door wore when she got married.
Professor Sprout clapped her hands and continued.
"The ball will be held at eight o'clock on Christmas night, and the location is in the Great Hall."
Her gaze fell on Charlie, and she specifically walked up to him.
"As a champion, Charlie needs to open the dance with a partner. This is tradition, and the other champions are the same."
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