Chapter 95: Another Christmas

Tracking down Moaning Myrtle was no simple task.

When you didn't need her, she was always in the cubicle of the second-floor girls' bathroom. But when you did need her, she might have flushed herself down the pipes to anywhere—the prefects' bathroom, or even the Black Lake. After all, flushing herself down the toilet was one of her favorite pastimes.

In the weeks leading up to Christmas, this task became an exhausting ordeal for the four of them. They had to wait for Myrtle to return to the girls' bathroom, all while avoiding teachers and other students for extended periods. The four of them had to sneak in together, and to avoid Harry and Ron being mistaken for peeping toms, they had to be extremely cautious. But in a school with seven years' worth of students, stealth was nearly impossible.

Finally, the term drew to a close.

A heavy silence, as thick as the snow blanketing the grounds, enveloped the castle. But instead of feeling stifling, it was comforting. Gryffindor Tower was almost entirely empty, giving Orli and her friends free rein to play Exploding Snap as loudly as they pleased without bothering anyone. They even dragged the armchairs and sofas in the common room closer to the fireplace, turning it into the warmest and coziest spot in the castle.

On Christmas morning, the world outside was cold and dazzlingly white. Hermione woke up bright and early, eager to wish Orli a "Merry Christmas." This year, they didn't even need owls to exchange gifts. Hermione handed Orli a long, elegant box tied with a satin ribbon. Orli eagerly tore it open to reveal a beautiful quill in a gradient of lavender hues, seemingly crafted from swan feathers.

Excited, Orli jumped barefoot out of bed, gave Hermione a big hug, and rummaged through her bedside table for her own gift. She had prepared a silk camisole nightgown with delicate lace trim for Hermione. When Hermione held it up against herself, her cheeks turned as red as holly berries.

Several other small gift packages sat on their bedside tables. The two girls sat cross-legged on the floor, happily tearing through the wrapping paper together.

Hagrid had sent each of them a bag of treacle toffee. Orli thought the sticky sweets might yank her teeth out and decided they'd be better off softened in the oven before eating.

Harry's gift was a set of potion bottles, each with a uniquely designed stopper.

Ron had given her a copy of The Autobiography of Libatius Borage. Borage was a world-renowned potions master, famous for authoring Advanced Potion-Making and Have Yourself a Bottled Bonanza.

Mrs. Weasley's gift was a set of six witch lip glosses. They appeared in an array of bright colors but transformed into different shades of red and pink when applied. Orli had seen them in a mail-order catalog before and knew they weren't cheap.

Tucked inside the wrapping was a Christmas card. Mrs. Weasley had filled three paragraphs with warm, motherly concern for Orli, followed by another two paragraphs reminding her to always balance her budget.

Over the past half-year, the little potions enterprise had been running smoothly. The twins no longer spent much time brewing potions themselves. Instead, they used their trips to Hogsmeade to discreetly gather ingredients from various sources and brought them back for Orli to process. This new system was far more efficient. As far as Orli knew, not only were the twins' personal savings flourishing, but they were also regularly sending money home to support the family. However, over the past few months, the twins had become more elusive than ever. They often huddled together in secret, whispering and conducting mysterious experiments, leaving everyone else scratching their heads.

Orli picked up a very light, small paper package labeled "Fred & George." The package was smaller than the palm of her hand. Curious, she tore it open, only to find a single piece of shortbread inside.

# Hermione

"Fred and George pranking you again?"

Hermione asked, noticing the lone, pitiful cookie.

# Orli

"Who knows..."

Orli felt a flicker of irritation. She had carefully selected a pair of high-quality safety goggles for each of the twins, hoping they wouldn't hurt themselves during their experiments. And in return, they gave her... a cookie?

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