Home, Christmas Gifts

Grafton Manor.

Penelope sat at her desk in her bathrobe, pushing up her gold-rimmed glasses with one hand while rapidly signing and annotating sheets of paper with her pen in the other.

In previous years, she would stop everything on Christmas Eve and spend all her time with her nephew.

Lucien was practically raised by Penelope, who had never married and had no children of her own, and she regarded Penelope poor orphaned nephew as her own child.

But in a letter a few days ago, Lucien said he might not come back for the holidays.

So after a ritualistic Christmas Eve, Penelope went back to work.

She's actually been very busy lately, especially in the months since Lucien started school.

It wasn't just a family affair; it was also a storm in Eastern Europe that caused global shifts in the global landscape.

Lucien had already chatted with her about things over there, and he would occasionally mention it in their correspondence during this period.

Penelope initially didn't take it seriously enough, but as events unfolded, she could almost "see" the scale of the storm.

"That behemoth really will disintegrate..."

"Coo--"

With an echo of a cry, a gray-brown owl, seemingly ordinary at first glance, flew into the room.

Penelope was already quite used to this; her letters and emails with Lucien were all delivered by these birds.

Penelope had already opened the drawer and taken out a box of snacks specially prepared for these postmen.

But the owl didn't pounce on the food in her hand; instead, it perched on the table, tilted its head slightly, and just watched her.

Penelope couldn't help but feel suspicious when she noticed that the owl hadn't left any envelopes or packages this time.

"You're not just an ordinary owl, are you?"

She was used to these birds delivering letters from her nephew, so her first thought was that they were owl messengers unique to that magical world. But this one in front of her... could she be mistaken?

After careful observation, Penelope noticed that the owl's eyes were a rare dark green.

Just like the color of his nephew's eyes after he awakened magic.

This piqued Penelope's interest, and she even considered keeping the owl as a pet.

"Sigh, I wonder if little Lucien is having a good time at that magic school?"

"Xiao Bao has grown up too; he no longer wants to go home for Christmas."

"Yes, Lucien is already eleven years old this year. In another two or three years, we can start looking for a fiancée for him, from the Grafton family..."

For some reason, the owl quietly turned its head away, even turning its head a full 180 degrees due to its species characteristics.

Um, should I change back?

He asked Liuguang to use Apparition to take him home overnight, hoping to give his aunt a little surprise.

How did I end up hearing these things so easily?

And isn't the nickname "Xiao Bao" supposed to be stopped after the age of six...?

Penelope was wondering which girl would be a better match for her nephew when she saw the owl suddenly leap off the table, its body swaying in mid-air.

"Lucien!"

Penelope gasped when she saw her familiar nephew suddenly appear before her, transformed from an owl. The pen in her hand fell onto the carpet.

It was still that cute and handsome face, with those unforgettable dark green eyes.

Her hair had grown a bit; the dark blonde hair that used to reach her ears was now below her chin.

Lucien was just about to greet Aunt Penelope and wish her a Merry Christmas.

Before she could even speak, her aunt pulled her into her arms.

After only a second of hugging, Lucien said in a muffled voice:

"Auntie, I'm 11 years old now, not 6 anymore."

Penelope released Lucien, but then pinched his cheek and smiled sweetly.

"He was called Xiaobao when he was 6, and now he's 11. Should he change his name to Dabao?"

"Um... whatever makes you happy."

Lucien blushed, a rare sight for him.

Merry Christmas, Aunt.

Merry Christmas, Lucien.

The two moved to the tea room, where the servants had already prepared light snacks and tea.

Although the maid, Loxia, was very curious about when young master Lucien had returned.

But since her master didn't say anything, she wouldn't presume to ask.

Merry Christmas, Loxia.

Merry Christmas, Master Lucien.

Then Lucien pulled a tube of lipstick from his pocket; it was a magical lipstick he had concocted using potion-making techniques.

Safe and edible, light and moisturizing, and doesn't easily fade. Even Muggle without magic can use it.

Loxia took the lipstick with both hands and quickly glanced at the color of the lipstick under the semi-transparent casing.

She felt that the color the young master had given her was too flashy and inconvenient to use at work.

But Loxia was still very happy. The young master would give them small gifts during holidays, which they thought they could use when they went out with friends during their breaks from work...

The next second, Loxia couldn't help but blink, because the color of the lipstick had changed, becoming the shade she wanted most!

Noticing Loxia's expression and the change in her lipstick, Lucien smiled.

"What? Do you prefer this shade?"

Upon hearing the young master's words, Loxia's face flushed slightly, mainly because her superior had noticed that she seemed dissatisfied with her previous expression.

Of course, she was just embarrassed, not scared.

Young Master Lucien wouldn't criticize them for such a trivial matter.

This made people overlook the question of why the lipstick changes color, simply assuming it was a high-end gadget for wealthy people.

Lucien waved gently, signaling Loxia not to worry and indicating that she should leave first.

Once only the two of them were left in the tea room, Penelope couldn't help but feel a little curious.

"That color-changing lipstick, is that magic too?"

"And your transformation from an owl into a human, just like Professor McGonagall who visited before, is magic really that amazing?"

Lucien nodded.

"That lipstick is an application of potion. Potions have a wide range of applications, including the Wizarding World..."

"There's also the Transfiguration animals; it's a form of Transfiguration..."

Penelope listened with great interest to Lucien's explanation of these magical concepts.

For a young wizard, the secrets of magic certainly don't extend to their guardians, since guardians need to know where their children will go to school and what they will study.

In cases like Lucien's, where there is a large number of servants, the International Statute of Secrecy are relatively lenient.

As long as you don't directly reveal the existence of magic to anyone other than your guardian, it's fine.

They were allowed to come into contact with some minor items related to the Wizarding World.

That's why Lucien gave Loxia that magic lipstick, and he believed that his aunt would explain things to Loxia later.

Also, don't underestimate modern people's ability to accept things.

Lucien guessed that Loxia would most likely think of lipstick as a high-tech product or something, and wouldn't associate it with magic or anything like a fairy tale.

After chatting with her aunt about school life for a while, Lucien started taking out gift boxes from her bags.

These were all magical Christmas gifts he had prepared for his Aunt Penelope.

While her aunt unwrapped the gifts with a smile, Lucien also served as a thoughtful and responsible guide.

"Auntie, when you're busy, you can make yourself a cup of this. It's good for boosting your energy..."

"If you have insomnia, just suck on one of these..."

"This is for whitening and brightening, although you probably don't need it..."

"This..."

"Aunt, don't worry, these things I prepared will work normally even without magic."

As Penelope was unwrapping the gifts, she suddenly tapped her forehead lightly, her brows furrowing slightly.

"Oh dear, I didn't know you were back. I had your Christmas present sent to school by owl."

"It's alright, Auntie, I'll see it when I get back tomorrow."

"By the way, can you tell me in advance what this surprise is?"

Penelope continued unwrapping the gift her nephew had prepared for her, saying casually:

"A contract, you like reading, don't you?"

"I built you a library."