Chapter Ninety-Two: Christmas Gift

The Hogwarts Express departed at six in the evening and arrived at King’s Cross Station at midnight.

That schedule was hardly ideal, for the young witches and wizards had no time to enjoy a proper supper at school, and by the time they reached their destination they were usually both sleepy and hungry.

There had once, however, been historical reasons for it.

It was said that the Hogwarts Express had once set off at eleven in the morning on December twenty-fourth, Christmas Eve, just as it did at the start of term.

Yet the journey to London’s King’s Cross Station took some six or seven hours, so by the time the train arrived, evening had already fallen.

With the students’ families scattered far and wide, many Muggle households and those not skilled in Apparition were forced to travel home by ordinary means. As a result, many families living farther from London were likely to miss the Christmas Eve feast.

For that reason, numerous parents petitioned Hogwarts, and the departure time was eventually pushed back to the previous evening. In this way, even though the train arrived very late at the station, the children still had an entire day to make their way home, leaving them no chance to miss the Christmas Eve banquet.

...

The night sky after the snowfall was especially clear, and by the time the Hogwarts Express reached King’s Cross, the heavens were strewn with stars.

Xiven said farewell to his three roommates and left the carriage.

With no luggage to burden him, he stepped down with ease and made his way onto the platform.

Passing through the special brick wall marked with “Platform Nine and Three-Quarters,” Xiven finally entered the interior of King’s Cross Station.

It could only be said that King’s Cross was indeed one of Britain’s busiest railway stations, for even in the middle of the night it remained thronged with people.

Xiven searched through the crowd and soon spotted Sandrine.

It had to be said that Sandrine was far too easy to pick out in a crowd. She stood beside a wall in a plum-colored overcoat, her bearing elegant and her gaze unwavering. Her noble air was plain to see; though dressed in Muggle clothing, she still seemed strikingly out of place among those around her.

Passersby nearby could hardly help noticing her, which made her crease her brow in irritation.

Xiven hurried over with a smile and waved.

Only then did Sandrine smooth her expression. She came over and hugged him.

“Why are you dressed so lightly? Aren’t you cold?” The moment they met, Sandrine began fussing over him.

“I’m not cold,” Xiven said, glancing at his thick sweater and padded coat, unable to see anything remotely light about his clothing.

“Dressing so lightly, you’ll catch a chill before you know it,” Sandrine said, plainly refusing to believe him. “Let’s hurry home. You’re still young, so don’t let yourself get chilled!”

Helpless, Xiven let Sandrine tug him out of the station, and the two of them found a secluded alley and headed down it.

In that empty lane, the house-elf Millie appeared, and in her shrill little voice she said respectfully, “Honored young Master Xiven, it is a pleasure to see you again!”

Millie was young for a house-elf, and since Xiven and Sandrine treated her well, her skin was not as rough and wrinkled as that of most house-elves. Instead, it looked quite smooth. Coupled with her rather clever features, she had something distinctly cute about her.

“Hello, Millie!” Xiven said with a smile and nodded, sending Millie into a burst of delighted excitement.

“All right, Millie. Take us home at once,” Sandrine said quickly, anxious that Xiven might catch a chill.

“Millie obeys, Madam!” Millie answered at once.

Then she took Xiven and Sandrine by the hands, one in each of her own, and with a sharp crack the three of them vanished from the spot.

...

Like every other pure-blood estate, the Rosier family manor was protected by an Anti-Apparition enchantment for safety’s sake. Sandrine therefore could not bring Xiven home by Apparition herself, and could only leave it to the house-elf Millie.

The moment he got home, Xiven relaxed and sprawled across the soft wool carpet, feeling his whole body grow languid, so comfortable that he did not even want to rise.

Indeed, no matter how good life outside might be, once one returned home, it always felt as though every burden had been lifted away. Exceptionally light, exceptionally easy!

...

He slept deeply and dreamed well that night.

The next day, Xiven spent several more hours finishing the alchemical items he had not yet completed, then tucked them into different gift boxes.

Since he had not been studying alchemy for very long, the presents he made were fairly simple alchemical products. Most were just purchased items to which he added a bit of ancient runic structure, forming rudimentary magical circuits so they possessed a small portion of an alchemical item’s properties.

He had originally wanted to make each of his roommates a container with expanded internal space, but after thinking it over, he dismissed the idea. Unauthorized use of Expansion magic was illegal, and besides, his own abilities were still limited, making such a container difficult to control properly.

After some consideration, he prepared each of his three roommates a delicate silver wristband engraved with the same runic circuit; once activated with magic, it would glow green, which was very beautiful indeed.

Just imagine: several young witches and wizards from the same dormitory heading out at night, all activating their wristbands and glowing green together. Perfectly in step, exactly as roommates should be! Of course, Xiven would never admit that he had simply been too lazy to think up more gift varieties.

As for Aleshiona’s gift, it was a custom-made scenic snow globe. The transparent glass sphere was filled with a shimmering liquid, within which stood a miniature Hogwarts Castle.

Xiven had personally inscribed a runic circuit into the gift. When its magic was activated, countless points of light would drift down from the top of the globe until they vanished above the castle.

In addition, Xiven mischievously gave Miranda a handsome and elegant pair of metal spectacles, believing she could do away with the black-rimmed glasses that made her look so stiff and severe.

As for Dumbledore’s gift, Xiven hesitated for a long while between a book and sweets before finally coming up with something original: a mystery sweet box! Different flavors of candy would be placed inside and shaken up, and when the box was opened, one candy would be selected at random. Xiven felt it suited Dumbledore perfectly.

Professor Slughorn’s present required far less thought. He simply had Sandrine help him obtain a certificate granting half-price at the family’s affiliated shops, and then sent it off by owl.

To deliver all the Christmas gifts, the family’s Jabi and several other owls were kept busy beyond reason. Just after returning home, they had to make another trip, which earned them discontented hoots.

Xiven chatted contentedly with Sandrine, a calm smile on his face.

The annual Christmas holiday was almost here, and tomorrow it would arrive at last!

...

...