A Leisurely Christmas

Christmas Eve arrived quickly. Everyone in the dormitory except Muya was going home, so Muya went to see them off, along with several other friends.

After the train departed, Muya went to ask Dumbledore whether Fawkes could help deliver some gifts. "Oh, child, Fawkes is a phoenix, not an owl."

Muya lowered her head in disappointment. "All right, then I'll have to borrow Hedwig from Harry. I hope Hedwig can carry so many presents." With that, she prepared to leave the Headmaster's office.

"Wait. Perhaps I should give you your Christmas present early." Dumbledore bent down and pulled out a cage from beneath his desk. Inside was a bright-eyed, energetic owl.

"But didn't they say we could only bring one pet?" Muya had happily reached out to take it, but suddenly remembered what the letter had said and pulled her hand back.

"Oh, but you keep your cat at home, don't you?" Dumbledore's words enlightened Muya. Right, she kept her cat at home, not at school.

Muya accepted the owl without hesitation and named it Miao Miao before leaving.

That evening, Muya watched Miao Miao deliver all the gifts, rewarded it, and then went to bed.

On Christmas morning, Muya woke up early. When she saw the mountain of gifts, she was so happy she nearly jumped up.

She hurriedly began unwrapping them.

The first one even had a special pattern on it. Oh, it was from the young master—a necklace, along with a letter. Put it away, put it away.

The second was from Snape: several Potions books. An introduction to Potions, beginner Potions, intermediate Potions, and advanced Potions. Good, good, put them away.

The third was from Cedric: a cake he had made himself. She loved it. Put it away and eat it later.

Candy from Harry, some cards from Ron, and two books from Hermione that she couldn't understand. Put them all away.

Fred and George had sent two very interesting alchemy toys, McGonagall had sent a Transfiguration book, and Neville had sent some snacks.

Sean had sent a pretty hat, Vester a beautiful hair clip, Theodore a bracelet, and Blaise a bottle of perfume.

Their Head of House had sent a potted plant, while the Ravenclaw Head of House had sent a complete book of spells. Hagrid had sent her a whole pile of unicorn hair.

Shalian and the others had all sent food.

She loved every gift. After getting dressed and finishing Cedric's cake, she ran to the edge of the Black Lake.

A gift box sat in a hollow by the lake, with "Calori" written on it. "Little wizard, I've received your gift. My gift to you is a mirror that allows us to communicate. You only need to pour a little magic into it, and you'll be able to see me. —Calori, who misses you."

Muya picked up the mirror beneath the letter. It looked like an ordinary makeup mirror. She poured a little of her magic into it, and the surface suddenly rippled outward like water, revealing a view of the Black Lake. It was indeed very dark; she could only see a single lamp shining.

Suddenly, Calori's face appeared in the mirror. He was still wearing the scarf Muya had given him that day. "Good morning. I'm glad you found my gift, and thank you for the land food you gave me—the strawberries and cucumbers." He held the basket containing the strawberries and cucumbers up to the mirror.

"I'm glad you like them. I also really like this mirror you gave me. This way, we can contact each other anytime." Just like a telephone. Pretty great.

If you enjoy this book, remember to add it to your bookshelf so you don't lose it next time.

Muya chatted with Calori for a while as she walked, then returned to the common room. The Hufflepuff common room was the most comfortable place in every season, and Muya loved that about it.

She decided to roast marshmallows by the fireplace while reading a romance comic she had brought from home.

About ten minutes later, Muya heard pages turning. She turned around and saw Vester sitting on the sofa. Vester happened to look up at her as well. "Hm? Did I disturb you?"

Muya shook her head. "No. So you didn't go home either, Vester!" She handed him a roasted marshmallow.

"Thank you. Yes. Actually, my parents aren't home, so there's no point in going back." Vester accepted the marshmallow and smiled at Muya.

That afternoon, under Vester's guidance, Muya finished all of her holiday homework. At dinner, she saw several identical sweaters at the Gryffindor table and found them amusing.

"Hey, did you all buy your sweaters together?" Muya walked over with pudding still in her hand.

"No, Little Badger." That was Fred, wearing a sweater with the letter "G" on it.

"Our mother made these for us." That was George, wearing a sweater with the letter "F" on it.

Besides Harry and Ron, there was another red-haired boy sitting beside them. He wore the same sweater and was awkwardly holding his forehead. "Is he your brother too?"

"Oh, yes. He's our brother Percy Weasley, one year older than us." Fred threw an arm around his brother's shoulders.

"And our esteemed Gryffindor prefect." George wrapped an arm around Percy's other shoulder.

"Oh, you two, let go of me!" Percy struggled to pry off the two people clinging to him like monkeys.

"Hello, Percy." After Fred and George moved away, Muya stepped forward to greet him.

Percy looked at her. "Mya Mu, right? Those two troublemakers mention you often. Whatever you do, don't learn from them."

"Hey, Percy, we can hear you," Fred and George protested unhappily.

Muya smiled. "I'll remember that, Percy."

Muya sat beside Harry and Ron and asked what they thought of the gifts she had given them.

"I really like the Wizard's Chess set you gave me, Mya Mu. Thank you so much." Ron thanked Muya sincerely.

"I like the Quidditch magazine too. Thanks, Mya Mu." Harry had still been amazed that morning that he had received so many gifts.

"Little Badger, we really like the gifts you gave us too." Fred and George each wore a red scarf embroidered with a chibi portrait of themselves and the first letter of their name.

Hearing that, Muya finally felt relieved. Luckily, she had asked around about the things Harry and Ron liked. It seemed she had made pretty reliable choices.

That evening, Muya planned another adventure through the castle. There were fewer people at school during the holidays, so she started early.

In a cabinet in the underground Potions classroom where books were stored, she found a Potions book labeled "Half-Blood Prince." It was filled with notes. After marveling at this diligent but unknown student, Muya went on to search elsewhere.