The Best Christmas Gift

December 15th, three days until the Christmas holidays.

Harley, Ron Weasley, and Hermione didn't pay much attention to this, however; they poured all their energy into tomorrow's exam. Ron spent a week going to He Shenyan every night for tutoring, and after that, his study progress finally caught up a bit.

At the very least, he could understand Harley's notes now. The trio no longer wandered around the playground or the lake; aside from attending classes, they spent their time soaking in the library, frantically reviewing the Basic Theory of Magic compiled by the professors, wishing they could fully digest every single punctuation mark.

December 16th, the day finally arrived.

The exam lasted only an hour and ended quickly. After putting down his pen, Ron let out a long breath. As that breath escaped, it was as if the bones had been pulled from his body; he slumped back into his chair, staring blankly at the ceiling with lifeless eyes.

"God, I can't believe I actually did it."

Harley and Hermione weren't doing much better than him. The frantic studying over this period had left all three of them physically and mentally exhausted. They slumped in their chairs in the same posture, also letting out a sigh.

Hermione said, "If it weren't for the professor's help, you might have really failed."

Ron curled his lip. "You can drop the 'might.' I didn't expect the professor would actually be willing to spare a week of his free time to teach me the lessons he'd already covered."

Harley didn't speak; she looked like she was deep in thought.

Snape was practicing hard in front of the mirror.

"If you don't mind. Christmas. If, you don't mind. We could, if you don't mind, for Christmas..."

"Sigh."

He suddenly sighed, discovering that even practicing in front of the mirror, he couldn't bring himself to say the words. But what else could he do?

The Christmas holidays were fast approaching, and he didn't want Harley to return to that place again.

Snape simply sat down. On his desk lay a Compendium of Basic Spells and his notebook, which was densely packed with notes. Most of them were about the connection between the soul and the body.

This once dark and damp office had now become spacious and bright. The fireplace, which had sat unused for years, was now basically always burning with flames. Magic candles were lit on the walls, filling the room with warm, bright light.

Behind Snape, there was even a blue curtain hanging—it was something Harley had specifically bought and gifted to him.

"Knock, knock, knock." The office door was rapped upon. He didn't know who would be knocking on his door at this hour.

"Come in."

A red-haired girl walked in; it was Harley.

Snape sat up straight immediately, his expression softening unconsciously. Harley smiled with some embarrassment, and she said carefully, "It's like this, Professor. I don't want to go back to my uncle's house for Christmas. Can I stay at school for the holidays?"

"Of course you can. I mean, why wouldn't you be able to?"

Snape answered immediately, secretly deciding that he would also spend Christmas at the school this year. In the past, he would have chosen to buy some alcohol and get dead drunk at home, but this year, that wouldn't be necessary.

"Besides, you don't actually need to come and discuss this with me. You only need to tell the prefect," Snape said.

"But I felt... it would be better to tell you, Professor."

The girl's voice carried a hint of suppressed excitement before she left.

Snape looked at the closed door and muttered to himself, "Wait a little longer, just a little longer."

"It will be soon."

He Shenyan was grading exam papers. He didn't use magic, but graded them by hand. This was a form of respect, and he felt he had to do it—otherwise, how could he be considered a qualified teacher?

These students didn't let him down, nor did they let themselves down. Everyone passed, and Ron Weasley even achieved a great score of 97. After finishing the papers, He Shenyan looked up at the clock on the wall; it was already five in the afternoon.

He wasn't interested in these holidays, but he didn't intend to spend them just sitting in his office either.

He stood up and draped a black robe over his shoulders, planning to take a stroll in the Forbidden Forest.

A few days ago, he had the Acromantula tidy up its offspring. There were still quite a few magical creatures in this world that exceeded his expectations, such as those Unicorns and Centaurs. This made him a bit curious—could I get a dragon to study?

Dumbledore told him he could get one after Christmas.

He Shenyan strolled along. There were many students on the path, but they all looked right through him. He Shenyan was growing increasingly fond of this little trick that allowed him to lower his presence.

He walked all the way into the deep, dark Forbidden Forest.

At five in the afternoon, even in England, known for its gloomy weather, there was still a bit of sunset lingering in the sky. However, once he stepped into the Forbidden Forest, the sunlight vanished entirely.

The trees here had no leaves, stretching their bare, twisted branches to wind toward the sky in the darkness, as if they were screaming.

He Shenyan walked inward just like that. He would stop from time to time to look at the plants glowing with magical light, but his main goal was to find a Unicorn to observe.

He closed his eyes, and when he opened them again, his pupils had turned pure black. In his current vision, the world was simply divided into black and white. There were scarlet footprints on the ground, guiding him in a certain direction.

Those footprints stretched deep into the Forbidden Forest. Under a slope, he discovered a snow-white creature. It had a golden horn atop its head and a body of pure white, even emitting a faint glow in the darkness. Its white hair draped over its neck, looking sacred and inviolable—though, it depended on the person.

Just like now, He Shenyan canceled the little trick and revealed his form. The Unicorn didn't flee immediately; instead, it walked slowly toward him, its eyes filled with undisguised curiosity.

It walked slowly to He Shenyan, lowered its head, and He Shenyan reached out to touch it, feeling a special warmth. It was like soaking in a hot spring.

He laughed. "Do you think I am in pain?"

It stared at He Shenyan with those eyes and rubbed its head against him.

"Oh, there is no need for that. I am not in pain."

He said, but the Unicorn still didn't stop its actions. The golden horn atop its head was emitting specks of golden light, attempting to dispel the pain in He Shenyan's heart.

"No, you don't understand. This isn't pain; it's nostalgia."

His smile vanished. He stroked the Unicorn's head with focused patience, yet he wasn't looking at it, but rather staring at the empty space beside them. "What is nostalgia?"

"It's hard to explain to you, as it is a human concept."

"Are you very curious?"

"Fine, my literary skills are quite poor, but I will try to describe it for you."

He Shenyan said, "It is like a fish forced to leave the water. Although this fish has evolved in the process and can survive on land without needing water—perhaps it is no longer even a fish—it still yearns for the bottom of the lake."

"It misses its family, its friends. It misses every little detail of that place, and if possible, it wants to take one last look at that place before it dies."

The Unicorn stood quietly in place, listening to him speak, then nudged him again.

"You want me to ride you?"

He Shenyan was somewhat surprised, but the Unicorn nudged him again, as if urging him on, so he had no choice but to mount. The Unicorn carried him and ran off in another direction.

The Unicorn carried him at great speed through the Forbidden Forest until they reached the edge of a lake. He dismounted, and the empathetic creature nudged him once more. He Shenyan laughed. "No, no. I am not a real fish. You brought me to the lakeside."

His words came to an abrupt halt.

Because that Unicorn was creating a spectacle for him with the glowing horn on its forehead.

The lake began to boil, and countless fish leaped from the water.

On the opposite bank, a group of Unicorns was slowly emerging. Each of them had their horn glowing, and the magic surging from those shimmering horns formed a vast, golden curtain of light, illuminating the entire surface of the lake as bright as day, lighting up even half the sky.

Amidst this warm, golden radiance, the Unicorn nudged him. The lonely man lowered his head, pressed his forehead against the Unicorn's, and whispered, "Thank you. This is the best Christmas gift I have ever received."

The Unicorn let out a joyful cry, stepped across the golden curtain of light on the water's surface, and joined its companions. The light slowly faded, and they gradually disappeared into the depths of the Forbidden Forest on the far bank.

He Shenyan stood there for a long time.