bioinnovel Chapter 324 The Ball
Chapter 324 The Ball
Chapter 324 The Ball
The heavy snow fell all night and only stopped at dawn.
The world was a blanket of white, as if only in this way could it be proven that Christmas had truly arrived.
Besides the heavy snowfall, the aroma of stew filling the air also enhanced the festive atmosphere.
Belvina, who woke up early, sat by the window, looking out at the white snow, holding a box the size of a fist in her hand.
This is a Christmas gift from Sirius Black, just like last year—an exquisite ladies' watch.
Perhaps Sirius's gift had a deeper meaning, but Belvina didn't want to rack her brains trying to guess.
All morning, Belvina stayed in her lounge, either sitting by the window gazing at the distant mountains or tending the fire by the fireplace. When the mood struck her, she would hum a few lines, all of them Christmas-related tunes.
Sometimes it's "A Christmas Carol," sometimes "Jingle Bells," the festive atmosphere is palpable, especially if she's not humming "The Bells."
It's even better.
She entertained herself like this until noon before Belvina finally left the lounge and went downstairs to the auditorium for lunch.
The Christmas lunch was lavish, with at least a hundred turkeys on the table, along with a huge pile of Christmas pudding and mountains of Kribitch Wizard Cookies.
As turkey is an essential Christmas food, Belvina symbolically took a small bite before pushing all the turkey meat on her plate to Bassheda.
To this day, Belvina still can't stand the terrible taste of turkey. In her opinion, eating turkey is worse than eating dry bread.
Without even looking up, Bassheda, who never refused anything offered, said, "If you won't eat this and you won't eat that, you'll starve to death one day!"
Having said that, Bassheda wolfishly picked up a piece of roasted potato, then opened her cherry-like mouth and stuffed the large piece of roasted potato into her mouth.
"That's what I love about you, darling," Belvina said cheesily. "Every time I see you eat, I feel like the food has been served its purpose."
Bassheda glanced sideways at him, then continued dealing with the mountain of food piled on her plate.
Belvina, on the other hand, set her sights on Christmas pudding and log cake, filling her stomach with sweets.
In the afternoon, Hogwarts came alive during the festival, with students coming out of the castle in groups and venturing outdoors into the snow.
It's impossible to get lively and active students to build a snowman; before one snowball is even finished rolling, another one is already flying over.
Soon, the students started playing in the snow, snowballs flying back and forth, and snowflakes dancing in the air.
Unfortunately, this is Hogwarts, where there are no strange rules about snowball fights, and no one knows what it means to be surrounded by enemies.
Back in the lounge, Belvina sat by the window once more, watching enviously as the students played together outside.
"Take him down, Fred! What are you doing? Take him down!" she muttered softly, her hands clenched into fists as if she were helping Fred.
Bassheda, lying on her side in bed, looked up from the Wizarding Weekly, glanced at Belvina, and then sighed helplessly.
"George!" Belvina continued muttering, "Ugh, why don't you just throw him? Can't you do an over-the-shoulder throw?"
Bassheda, flipping through the magazine, shook her head. She knew all too well that the point of Belvina's snowball fight wasn't the snow, but the battle itself.
"Yes! Let's do it!"
Belvina suddenly cried out, startling Bassheda with her unexpected shout.
"Put Fred down—bury him! Bury him in snow!" Belvina shouted excitedly, "Bury him—don't give him a chance to get up!"
Bassheda slammed the magazine shut and asked, "Who are you really on? You were just supporting Fred, and now you've had him thrown into the snow."
"I don't support anyone, they're all enemies," Belvina said. "Whoever falls, we'll bury them!"
His words were delivered with great momentum, displaying a heroic spirit of "the world is our enemy," as if the snowball fight were an extremely great battle.
Winter days are short, and before Belvina could enjoy the sights to the fullest, the sky began to darken. The students abandoned their snowball fight and returned to the castle in groups.
The boys laughed and joked as they changed out of their damp clothes, then into their formal gowns, ready to attend the ball.
The formal attire seemed to possess a magical power; the boys who had just been joking and playing around immediately became uneasy after putting it on, as if it were the first time they had ever worn clothes.
The girls weren't as nervous; they started dressing up early and did everything they could to make themselves more beautiful.
For a time, the common lounges of various colleges became a place for people to compete for beauty, with some outshining others and others being overshadowed.
Belvina and Bassheda were no longer as relaxed and languid as before; one moved away from the window, and the other put down her magazine.
Night fell unnoticed, and the grand ball that everyone had been eagerly anticipating would officially begin at eight o'clock.
By this time, the lobby was already packed with students, and they were no longer all wearing black robes; everyone had changed into colorful formal gowns.
Exclamations of admiration frequently rose from the crowd, especially when Fleur Delacour appeared in the foyer.
The stunningly beautiful Hibiscus wore a silver-gray satin robe that complemented her long silver hair perfectly, truly making her the most beautiful woman in the world.
The boys began to envy Roger Davis of Ravenclaw, who was standing next to the beautiful Fleur, his fawning manner resembling that of a high-class sycophant.
The amazement at Hibiscus had barely subsided when Viktor Krum appeared with his dance partner.
Who is the girl standing next to Krum?
This is the first question that comes to most people's minds; it seems like no one has ever seen her at Hogwarts.
Even Harry and Ron didn't recognize the girl's identity, nor did they realize that the girl standing next to Krum was Hermione Granger, whom they spent every day with.
As eight o'clock approached, more and more students gathered in the lobby, and the Hogwarts faculty and staff seemed to have planned it in advance, appearing in groups.
Dumbledore, Professor McGonagall, the caretaker Filch, Mrs. Pins, and the lone Professor Moody walked into the hall with a limp.
After a while, the crowd in the hall gasped again as Mrs. Maxim appeared in a flowing pale purple dress, standing beside her was Hagrid, who was equally enormous.
The moment the two enormous professors appeared, they cast a huge shadow.
Some students couldn't help but fantasize about how tall Hagrid and Mrs. Maxim's children would grow if they married.
A moment later, the crowd gasped in surprise once again.
The boys' exclamations were a compliment to the ancient runic sweetheart, Basilda, who made a stunning appearance in a red dress, as sweet and sexy as a peach, making people want to take a bite.
The girls' exclamations were praise for the dashing, handsome middle-aged man. Sirius Black's good looks need no introduction; what captivated the girls was his unique charisma—noble and elegant yet with a touch of roguish charm—and the girls were all hopelessly drawn to his eyes.
Then, Belvina and Lupin appeared.
The impoverished Professor Lu Ping of everyone's memory is gone, replaced by another handsome middle-aged man.
Lupin had styled his hair specially for tonight's ball, which made him look younger, and a refined, gentle smile graced his face.
It gives people a feeling of gentleness and refinement.
And Belvina, dear Professor Blake, was probably the most unique one tonight, her style of dress being the complete opposite of all the other women present.
She was wearing a white stand-up collar shirt with shimmering silver pendants, paired with pure black culottes. A black satin robe with silver threads embroidered on the collar and cuffs was draped over her shoulders. With her long, straight black hair flowing like a waterfall, Belvina tonight possessed both feminine grace and masculine heroism, outshining not only many girls but even the boys.
When the Blake siblings stood together, the crowd crammed into the foyer gasped in amazement once more, lamenting the injustice of creation.
Hearing the gasps of the crowd, Sirius suddenly seemed a little lonely, as if he were thinking of his best friend James, or perhaps Regulus.
This feeling of desolation came quickly and went quickly. After composing himself, Sirius quietly moved to another spot, placing Bassheda next to Belvina.
Instantly, the people crammed into the lobby all shared the same thought: it wouldn't be so bad if the two men next to them disappeared.
Professor Black is charming and handsome, Professor Bablin is sweet and sexy—what a pity!
Just when everyone thought the combination of the two beautiful professors would dominate the entire event, the truly explosive moment arrived—Paul Bernard appeared on stage with his dance partner.
The crowd crammed into the lobby was stunned, their jaws dropping and their glasses shattering on the floor.
This is because Professor Paul Bernard's dance partner is not a human being at all, but a new alchemical doll that he has painstakingly crafted.
Professor Bernard walked slowly with his alchemical doll, vividly demonstrating what it means to love what you do; even his dance partner could be an alchemical creation!
Wherever he and his masterpiece went, people gave way and whispered among themselves. Almost everyone was discussing the lifelike alchemical dolls, marveling at how the alchemy professor truly lived up to his reputation.
"This looks so real! It's exactly like a real person!"
"Yes, if you look closely, you can even see the capillaries under the skin!"
"I'm really looking forward to the dance later, and I wonder if this thing will make my body stiff when I dance."
"I don't think so. Look at the way it walks, it doesn't look stiff at all, and its posture is more charming than many girls."
Listening to the murmurs around him, the flamboyant Professor Bernard felt quite satisfied. The crowd's praise made his deliberate last appearance worthwhile.
"Good heavens! I've decided to cut ties with Paul, he's terrifying!" Bassheda exclaimed in astonishment, her huge cherry-like mouth probably big enough to fit a whole apple.
"Indeed," Belvina agreed wholeheartedly. "I'm really afraid he'll do something stupid next."
For example, marrying an alchemical doll, or transferring one's soul into the doll's body.
"Of course, if he's willing to let me invest, then pretend I never said anything," Belvina continued.
She hadn't given up on her collaboration with Paul Bernard and remained dedicated to contributing to the health and medical advancements of the wizarding community. "Wait a minute!" Sirius frowned. "This thing's proportions, its appearance... I feel like I've seen it somewhere before!"
"You know what, I feel the same way," Lupin chimed in. "But I don't know anyone like that, absolutely none."
"Page three of The Sun, do you remember?" Belvina reminded softly.
Sirius and Lupin suddenly realized.