Aren't you going home?

"As you wish, Professor."

Lin Yuan said no more, merely giving a polite nod before turning his gaze back to the bookshelves, searching for his next research target.

He knew that any further words would only touch upon the sensitive and fragile self-esteem of this "prince."

Knowing when to stop was the smartest approach.

Snape watched Lin Yuan's calm profile, gazed at his eyes that seemed capable of seeing through everything, and an indescribable chill surged within him once more.

This boy... how much did he actually know?

He felt like a naked person standing before a spotless mirror, all his disguises, all his secrets, laid bare.

This feeling filled him with unprecedented fear.

He lingered no longer, his black robes swirling as he turned and, like a shadow whose disguise had been pierced, quickly vanished into the darkness of the Forbidden Section.

Time flowed like clouds over Hogwarts, quietly passing.

The clamor of Halloween had long since faded, and the first snow, like an elf's feather, gently blanketed the Forbidden Forest and the distant mountains.

Warm fireplaces were lit within the castle, and students changed into thick winter robes.

The footsteps of Christmas grew ever closer.

For Harry, Ron, and Hermione, this period was filled with tense exploration and endless confusion.

They knew a great secret lay hidden behind the trapdoor on the fourth floor.

They also knew that Snape seemed to be coveting this secret.

But they were stuck.

They didn't know what that furry giant actually was, let alone what it was guarding.

After the commotion of the Quidditch match, Hogwarts welcomed deep winter.

White snow covered the castle's rooftops and the distant Forbidden Forest, turning the entire world into a snow-covered fairy-tale kingdom.

As Christmas approached, a warm festive atmosphere began to permeate the castle.

Twelve tall Christmas trees were erected in the Great Hall, adorned with glittering magical icicles and hundreds of candles.

The suits of armor in the corridors were enchanted to sing off-key Christmas carols on their own.

Even Peeves was uncharacteristically subdued, only occasionally hiding under the mistletoe to suddenly appear and startle passing couples.

For Harry, this was the first Christmas he had ever looked forward to. The Dursleys had never celebrated it properly with him, and this year, he would stay at Hogwarts for the first time, with his friends.

Ron and his brothers were also staying at school, as the Weasleys were going to Romania to visit their other son, Charlie.

Hermione was going home to reunite with her parents, but before leaving, she spent most of her time in the library, trying to find all the books on "powerful counter-curses" and "defense against the dark arts," preparing for their long-term war against Snape.

The friendship between the three grew stronger in the face of their common "enemy," and they were almost inseparable.

In stark contrast to their liveliness was Lin Yuan's usual solitude.

He seemed uninterested in the festive revelry. While other students played Wizard's Chess or exchanged Chocolate Frog cards in the common room, he was either alone in the dormitory or found in a corner of the library.

One snowy afternoon, Harry found him in the bell tower courtyard.

Lin Yuan stood in the center of the courtyard, without a cloak or any warming charms.

Snowflakes landed on his jet-black hair and shoulders, quickly melting into barely visible wisps of steam.

He closed his eyes, as if sensing the breath of the world with his entire skin, becoming one with the biting winter scenery, exuding an absolute tranquility that kept others at bay.

Harry hesitated for a long time before walking over.

"Aren't you cold?" he asked a foolish question.

Lin Yuan slowly opened his eyes, the flying snow reflected in his pupils, as calm as a cold pool.

"Cold is a sensory illusion," he replied cryptically. "When your spirit can transcend your body, the so-called 'cold' or 'heat' is merely information that can be ignored."

Harry didn't understand at all, but he still mustered the courage to ask the question in his heart.

"Lin Yuan, why... why are you always alone?"

Lin Yuan's gaze shifted from Harry's face to the snow-covered Forbidden Forest in the distance.

"Once you've seen a forest," he said softly, "you won't linger too much on a single tree."

His voice was light, yet it was like a stone dropped into Harry's heart, creating ripples.

Harry felt he understood, yet didn't. He felt Lin Yuan wasn't just talking about trees and forests, but about something grander and more distant.

"The holidays are almost here," Harry changed the subject. "Are you going home?"

"Home?" Lin Yuan seemed to chew on the word, a subtle curve appearing at the corner of his mouth for the first time, devoid of any mockery. The smile was distant, and a little lonely. "I don't have a home. Or rather, for people like us, where the heart finds peace, that is our Dao field."

After speaking, he fell silent again, closing his eyes, as if re-entering that inaccessible world that belonged only to him.

Harry didn't disturb him further.

He looked at Lin Yuan's solitary figure and suddenly felt that the loneliest person in the world might not be himself, who had lost his parents since childhood, but this boy before him, who seemed to belong to another world.

Soon, the Christmas holiday arrived.

The Hogwarts Express carried most of the students away, and the castle suddenly became empty and quiet.

This tranquility foreshadowed an unusual Christmas.

And Harry would soon receive a Christmas gift from the past, one that would change his life.

Most of the students in the castle, like migratory birds returning to their nests, had taken the Hogwarts Express back to their warm homes.

The usually bustling corridors were now empty and silent, with only the occasional patrolling professor and drifting ghosts adding a touch of life to the ancient building.

Gryffindor Tower was also exceptionally deserted.

The fire in the hearth crackled merrily, casting a warm, spring-like glow throughout the circular room.

However, only a handful of people occupied the vast space.

The five Weasley brothers—from Prefect Percy to the mischievous twins, down to the youngest, Ron—stayed behind because their parents were going to Romania to visit Charlie, who was studying dragons.

Harry Potter also chose to stay.

This was the first holiday he had ever looked forward to in his life.

At the Dursleys' home, Christmas had only ever meant making more storage space for Dudley's mountain of gifts and a pair of old socks from his uncle that never fit.

But here, at Hogwarts, he felt the atmosphere of "home" for the first time.

On Christmas morning, as the first rays of sunlight streamed through the tower windows and fell upon the scarlet carpet, Harry was awakened by Ron's excited shouts.

"Wake up! Harry! Look! Presents!"

Harry put on his glasses and sleepily looked toward the foot of his bed.

There, a small pile of gifts, wrapped in various ways, lay waiting.

He froze, a warm and unfamiliar emotion, unlike anything he had ever felt, surging through him.

He received a large box of sweets from Hermione, a hand-carved wooden whistle from Hagrid that sounded like an owl when blown, and a green sweater knitted by Mrs. Weasley, embroidered with a golden Snitch.

And when he unwrapped the last, most unassuming gift, wrapped in plain brown paper, he was utterly stunned.

A silver-grey cloak, as smooth and fluid as liquid, slid out of the wrapping and settled lightly on his bed.

"What is this?" Ron leaned closer, reaching out curiously. His hand seemed to pass through the air, directly touching the bedsheet beneath the cloak.

"My goodness..." Ron's eyes widened like saucers. "This... this is an Invisibility Cloak!"

Inside the wrapping was a plain, unsigned note, written in an elegant, unfamiliar script he had never seen before:

"Your father left it to me before he died. Now, it is time for it to be returned to its rightful owner. Use it well. Merry Christmas."

Harry's heart pounded violently.

He draped the cold, silken cloak over himself and looked down. His body vanished.

Ron let out a muffled gasp.

This was... a relic from Harry's father.

A legendary, true Invisibility Cloak.

In that moment, Harry felt a faint but real connection form between himself and the father he had never known.