Hearing Xenophilius's voice, both Wyzett and Luna jumped in surprise, then shared a conspiratorial smile.
With a mischievous wink, Luna flitted past Wyzett like a butterfly. "Dad! I'm here! Merry Christmas!"
"Aha! My darling, Merry Christmas!" Xenophilius called out in his usual exuberant tone. "Fresh off the press—my new storybook! Dark Shadows in the Fortress! The Wizard's Last Dance!"
The title alone made Wyzett chuckle. He'd always admired Xenophilius's flair for naming things.
Though the book's content and illustrations were by him and Luna, hearing the title made him want to open it right away and see what whimsical tales lay within.
Wyzett stepped forward and handed over his own Christmas present—a beautifully restored ancient book: I Saw the Brain, the Flying Freshwater Plimpies!
The book chronicled a wizard's adventure: on his quest to collect water from the River Lethe, he stumbled upon the elusive Freshwater Plimpies. The pages were filled with exquisite illustrations of these creatures.
According to the book, Freshwater Plimpies are floating beings, shaped like brains, and can be used as a potion ingredient to enhance the effects of Baruffio's Brain Elixir.
Thanks to a single Plimpy, the wizard became a renowned supplier of Brain Elixir—only to go bankrupt once he ran out of Plimpies...
This gift had been Luna's suggestion; she was certain her father would love it just as much as she did.
The peaceful night passed, and Wyzett was finally awakened by a commotion at the window.
Several owls perched outside, clutching parcels in their talons and tapping insistently on the glass with their beaks.
As soon as he let them in, more owls swooped in behind them. In no time, a mountain of packages had piled up at Wyzett's bedside.
He'd received gifts from many people. Professor McGonagall's gift was a notebook, focused on magical fundamentals, filled with her personal notes and annotations.
Professor Flitwick had also sent a notebook, this one full of theories about wandless magic and exercises for practicing nonverbal spellwork.
Professor Sprout's present was a pouch of seeds—specially bred Christmas Cactus, whose vines would sway and change color with the seasons.
Headmaster Dumbledore's gift was a delicate locket, engraved with a phoenix. When opened, it played a soft echo of Fawkes's song. Inside the hidden compartment was a slip of parchment: "May this help you when you need it most. Wishing you a truly magical Christmas."
Wyzett folded the note into a lucky star, tucked Luna's fortune potion inside, and packed the locket with unicorn tail hair bandages to cushion everything.
He shook his head with a smile, finally understanding Hagrid's sentiment. "Such soft tail hair—perfect for protecting something precious!"
Hagrid had sent his own gift too: a pillow, barely the size of a fist.
A note was pinned to it: "Wyzett, Merry Christmas! The pillow's stuffed with Occamy down. Give it a tug—stretch it to whatever size you like!"
To Wyzett's surprise, Molly Weasley—mother of Fred and George—had also sent him a present: a sky-blue jumper and a box of chocolates.
Embroidered on the jumper were the large letters "WL," and tucked inside was a thank-you note: "Wyzett, thank you for saving my three children. This is just a little token of our gratitude. Merry Christmas!"
Mr. and Mrs. Weasley were in Romania visiting Charlie for the holidays, so all four Weasley brothers were spending Christmas at Hogwarts this year.
The chocolates were a Romanian specialty. Wyzett popped one into his mouth—it was richer and more bittersweet than a Chocolate Frog, perfect for keeping him awake on long winter nights.
His friends had sent gifts as well—mostly magical sweets. He managed to fill a total of seven candy jars with all the treats...
"Take a look at my wand—what do you think?"
At the Hogwarts staff table, Professor Flitwick was directing his wand to slice a sausage with practiced precision.
Professor Sprout leaned in for a closer look. "It does seem a bit shinier than usual, doesn't it?"
"And more responsive!" Flitwick beamed. "Wyzett gave me a premium wand care kit! It's the first time I've ever received such a thoughtful present from a student!"
Sprout smiled. "No wonder you're so pleased. For a former dueling champion, that's a rather perfect gift, isn't it?"
"He gave me a Christmas present too—a plant harvest calendar, just released by Flourish and Blotts. I'll put it to good use straight away!"
"He must have sent gifts to all the professors," Flitwick mused, glancing at Professor McGonagall. "Minerva, what did you get?"
"A tea set," Professor McGonagall replied, setting down her knife and fork. She pictured the set, decorated with flowers, green leaves, and tiny cats. "It's quite lovely."
"Would you care to try some Muggle sweets?" Dumbledore appeared at the table, giving it a gentle tap. The surface transformed into a fruit bowl overflowing with colorful candies.
McGonagall eyed him warily. "Albus, just how much... candy did Wyzett send you?"
Dumbledore grinned. "Seven whole boxes! Every flavor you could imagine! I never realized Muggle sweets changed so quickly—these are truly fascinating!"
McGonagall pressed her fingers to her temples. "I seem to recall Madam Pomfrey warning you to watch your..."
"How could I possibly disappoint Wyzett's thoughtfulness?" Dumbledore said, popping a blue-wrapped sweet into his mouth.
"I highly recommend these Pop Rocks! Toss a handful in and it's like there's a duel going on in your mouth!"
He picked up an egg-shaped chocolate. "This one's fun too—Muggles hide little toys inside. There are cars that zoom off when you pull them, dolls that wind up and move on their own..."
As Dumbledore extolled the wonders of Muggle candy, Snape arrived at the staff table.
He eyed Dumbledore's antics with a look of disdain and sat as far away from him as possible.
Flitwick flicked his wand, levitating a chair over to Snape's side. "Professor Snape, Wyzett must've sent you something as well, right? Knowing him, he'd never leave you out."
"A gift? Yes, I received one," Snape replied in his usual low, clipped tone. "A set of useless potion equipment. And a bottle of Draught of Peace."
"The Draught of Peace was a disaster—his technique was clearly flawed. I wrote him a letter pointing out every mistake."
"I see..." Flitwick murmured. "So your Christmas gift to Wyzett was... constructive criticism on his potion?"
"Think whatever you like..." Snape said, tapping the table. A plate of bacon, sausages, and buttered bread appeared before him.
Flitwick let out a sigh. "That's certainly... unique. You hardly ever give gifts at Christmas. Has the letter been sent already...?"
~~~~❃❃~~~~~~~~❃❃~~~~
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