Preparing Christmas gifts was a bit of a headache.
A thousand years ago, things weren't this complicated. Most of the focus during the holiday season was on the grand feasts—according to Muggle Church traditions, people had to go through nearly a month of fasting before Christmas, only to then launch into twelve days of revelry once the holiday began.
Feasts, balls, festivals, jester performances… Though entertainment options were far more limited compared to modern times, people still did their best to enjoy themselves.
After all, for common folk, this was one of the few joyful times of the year. It was just that this cycle of hardship followed by indulgence wasn't exactly healthy.
Gifts were much simpler back then. Godric liked all kinds of armor, weapons, and protective gear; Helga favored recipes and rare ingredients; Rowena could be satisfied with books; as for himself, Rhys had no strong preferences—he would accept anything given to him.
After careful consideration, Rhys prepared suitable gifts for his friends.
Daphne and Astoria went without saying—Rhys gave Astoria a serpent-shaped bracelet enchanted with the same protective spells as Daphne's necklace. When it came to preparing self-defense tools for his students, he wouldn't play favorites.
For Daphne, his Christmas gift was a quill with automatic Latin spell-checking. Her attempt at translating that Latin manuscript last time had deeply 'impressed' Rhys—so much so that he felt giving her this quill was an urgent necessity.
He simply didn't have the energy to give the girl another Latin grammar lesson—better to just give her a quill that could correct her mistakes!
Hermione, the little girl acknowledged by Ravenclaw, would naturally receive a gift as well. Rhys bought her a few fairy tale books from the wizarding world, hoping she could relax a bit amid her studies.
As for Harry, who had tried to have a "heart-to-heart" with him last night, Rhys also prepared a gift—a broomstick maintenance kit. He was certain Harry would love it. Whether or not a well-maintained broomstick would unleash even greater performance and lead to Gryffindor crushing Slytherin in Quidditch? Rhys figured that wasn't his concern—either way, it's just a game.
For other young wizards he knew or was familiar with, Rhys also prepared appropriate gifts, ensuring that no one was left out.
However, a certain lonely old ghost confined underground was destined to receive no Christmas presents—because even if Rhys sent one via owl post, no unlucky owl would be able to break through the dungeon's seals. Rhys believed Rowena would understand. After all, they hadn't really exchanged gifts much before, had they?
By the time the last gift was sent out by owl, it was already late at night. Rhys returned to his bedroom and drifted into sleep with anticipation.
He was quite looking forward to what gifts he might receive—after all, who could resist the temptation of tearing open a present?
The next morning, as soon as Rhys sat up in bed, his eyes were drawn to the pile of gifts under the Christmas tree.
Though he wasn't lacking in wealth, and these presents were hardly necessities, the joy of receiving gifts itself was what truly mattered.
Rhys unwrapped his gifts one by one, smiling as he carefully put them away. The gifts from Daphne and Astoria were buried at the bottom.
Astoria's package looked quite bulky, and as soon as Rhys picked it up, he could tell it was likely something like clothing.
Upon opening it, he found that the little girl had knitted him a scarf.
Though it didn't have any intricate patterns, the stitches were neat, and the silver-green color combination was quite appealing. It was clear that she had put a lot of thought and work into it.
Rhys happily tried on the scarf and found it quite comfortable. He immediately decided to make it part of his regular wardrobe.
The last package was from Daphne. Her package was round and plump, and as Rhys picked it up, he narrowed his eyes—could it be…?
When he unwrapped it, a misty crystal ball rolled out.
Rhys: "?!"
Honestly, he was startled at first—he thought Daphne had somehow managed to repair the shattered Ravenclaw crystal ball!
But his rational mind quickly dismissed that as impossible.
Even with his magical abilities, such a feat would be an extremely difficult undertaking with a low success rate. If Daphne had secretly managed to fix the crystal ball in just half a semester, Rhys figured he would march straight to the headmaster's office with his wand in hand and demand that Dumbledore step down immediately.
After carefully examining the crystal ball that Daphne had given him, Rhys was genuinely surprised. While it was far from matching the Ravenclaw crystal ball, it was still quite exquisite.
The inside of the crystal ball had been enchanted with an Undetectable Extension Charm, and within it was a miniature model of Hogwarts Castle.
"Haha. Her mastery of the Undetectable Extension Charm is becoming more refined," Rhys mused, recognizing Daphne's progress from the craftsmanship of the crystal ball.
After carefully storing away all the gifts from his friends, Rhys stepped out of his bedroom.
The moment he did, he was met with a startled exclamation— "Professor Flitwick's prize turned out to be this thing?!"
Hmm?
Rhys turned toward the source of the voice and saw Daphne standing at her bedroom door, looking utterly bewildered while holding a long, slender package.
Her hair was loose, her feet bare, and she was dressed in only her nightgown, clearly having just woken up to open her presents. The package in her hands had been partially unwrapped, revealing the head of a broomstick peeking out from within.
"Is this some kind of twisted joke?!" Daphne threw up her hands in exasperation. "I'm terrible at flying on a broom!"
Two consecutive championship wins in the dueling tournament, and the grand prize turned out to be… a flying broomstick!
The young wizards on the Quidditch teams would surely be envious, but for Daphne, this was utterly useless—perhaps even a little insulting. After all, her greatest weakness was flying on a broomstick.
"Just unwrap it completely first," Rhys suggested, holding back his laughter. "Maybe it's not as bad as you think?"
Once the packaging was fully removed, a broomstick was revealed—so sleek and elegant that even Rhys had to admit it was stunning. Along with it came a letter.
Dear Miss Daphne Greengrass,
I hope you like the broomstick inside this package.
This is the latest model developed by a broomstick company owned by a friend of mine. It's said to be the best-performing broomstick on the market, though it hasn't been released for sale yet. He gave me one, and I decided to pass this one on to you as the prize for winning the dueling tournament.
As a trade-off, if you win first place in future dueling tournaments, there won't be any more prizes for you—haha!
—Filius Flitwick
Daphne: "…"
"Pfft—Bahahaha..." Rhys burst into laughter. "Well.. ehm. You could take advantage of the Christmas break to practice flying more," he suggested. "A broomstick like this should be pretty stable."
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