Allen was utterly confused.
He sat at Hufflepuff's long common room table, surrounded by bright yellow ribbons and all sorts of black decorations, the traditional colors of Hufflepuff.
At this moment, the Hufflepuff common room was hosting a rather unusual celebration. According to them, it was to properly celebrate Allen's recovery after suffering serious injuries.
But Allen knew the truth very well, this kind of "celebration" wasn't new to them. They were just using his recovery as an excuse to openly burn through the school's budget.
If there was any difference this time, it was that, for the first time, an outsider had been welcomed into the Hufflepuff common room: Annie.
Speaking of which, Hufflepuff's common room was arguably the most down-to-earth… or the most ridiculous.
Just as Helga Hufflepuff herself had once declared when founding Hogwarts and dividing the houses: Hufflepuff accepts everyone. That's why it had grown to become the most populated house in the entire school.
As the saying goes: "With a big enough garden, any kind of flower can bloom." And indeed, in Hufflepuff, you'd find all kinds of quirky young witches and wizards, each faithfully inheriting the founder's spirit and boldly venturing down the wildly magical path of eccentricity.
What's more, since Hufflepuff tended to enroll the highest number of Muggle-born students each year, it was no surprise that traces of Muggle culture often popped up in the house.
Which brings us to Allen, staring blankly at a very familiar item in front of him.
It was a small pot of curly noodles with a few bits of chopped green onion floating on top. A thin layer of red chili oil shimmered on the surface, releasing a scent Allen knew all too well.
That's right, it was instant noodles!
And not just any kind, pure, unenhanced, no-added-veggies, original-flavor instant noodles with just two seasoning packets!
The kicker? This "culinary masterpiece" had been donated by a well-meaning little Hufflepuff to celebrate Allen's recovery from the hospital!
Watching Annie eat with a blissful "Wow, this is delicious!" look on her face, Allen's soul nearly crumbled.
No way. Annie from my house can't possibly be this easy to feed!
And it wasn't just Annie. Even the other Hufflepuffs complained that Leon, the one who'd brought the noodles, was too stingy, there wasn't nearly enough to go around. Everyone only got the tiniest taste, except Allen and Annie. Since Allen was the recovering patient and Annie was a guest, they each received a small pot to share.
Leon, however, defended himself with a deeply aggrieved expression. This, after all, was the only other "dish" he could make besides boiling water! If it hadn't been for Allen's discharge, he never would've sacrificed his entire stockpile of precious noodles.
As Allen watched these maniacs scrambling over noodles, he quietly slid his pot toward Annie.
In that moment, he silently made a resolution:
Before the main plot kicks off next year, I'll take Annie to China over the summer. Please let the Ministry's international travel restrictions for wizards not be too strict.
Thinking about the bland British food he'd shared with her until now, and seeing how excited she got over a pot of instant noodles, he felt strangely guilty.
Given the current state of his not-so-fat wallet, Allen glanced up and whispered an apology in his heart to Hagrid:
"Hagrid, I'm sorry... But Annie is just too cute. To scrape together travel money, I had to take a tiny bit of venom from one of your spiders. I'm sure you won't mind, right?"
Of course, a little bit of instant noodles wasn't nearly enough to satisfy a group of still-growing young witches and wizards. Soon, more dishes were brought out by a few Hufflepuff students in charge of cooking, and Allen could finally start enjoying a proper meal. Compared to the instant noodles he'd grown tired of long ago, he much preferred this spread.
From the corner of his eye, he noticed the student cooks heating a small pot with their wands again. That familiar aroma wafted through the air once more, this was the first time Allen had seen someone reserve instant noodles for themselves without worrying about food safety.
••┈┈┈┈┈༓┈┈┈┈┈•••
The joyful party went on for a while, but eventually, it was interrupted.
Midway through the celebration, an emergency notice came from within the school.
Professor Sprout entered the common room, her face filled with worry, this was the first time Allen had ever seen her personally enter the student dormitories.
Upon seeing the chatting young wizards, the kindly professor's furrowed brow relaxed slightly. She didn't even glance at the food on the table, this kind of casual feast had been a Hufflepuff tradition for years.
"All students, return to your dormitories immediately and bring everyone from the common room to the main hall!"
Her tone was sharper than anyone had ever heard from her. The command was quickly carried out. Those who had stayed in their dorms to revise or avoid crowds were soon ushered out.
Professor Sprout began a headcount, scanning the students one by one. The crowd started whispering among themselves. The professor had never called such a serious gathering before, what on earth had happened?
When she got to Annie, who wasn't from Hufflepuff, Professor Sprout clearly hesitated. Then she glanced at Allen standing beside her, nodded, and said:
"Child, don't return to your own dormitory just yet. You'll come with me. I'll personally escort you back to the Slytherin common room."
Allen's heart skipped a beat.
What had happened?
Professor Sprout was going to personally escort a student?
But she didn't offer any explanation. After confirming the final headcount, she visibly relaxed. Then came the real shocker:
"All students are strictly forbidden from going out alone. First to third-years must be accompanied by older students when moving around the school, with at least three students per group and at least two upperclassmen present.
Fourth-years and above may only go out in groups, no fewer than three people.
And absolutely no one is allowed to leave the common room at night, not even to the nearby kitchens."
Following that, Hufflepuff's two prefects were called out for a private briefing. As the professor's enforcers, they would be responsible for making sure the new restrictions were upheld.
Fortunately, Allen had a good relationship with one of the prefects. After a bit of probing, and swearing on Merlin's name that he wouldn't tell a soul, the prefect finally revealed a piece of news that shook Allen to his core.
Earlier today, this very weekend,
A student from Slytherin...
Had gone mad.
A/N: The phrase "With a big enough garden, any kind of flower can bloom" means with enough space, support, or opportunity, all kinds of people or ideas can flourish, even those that might not thrive in smaller or more constrained environments.
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