A Certain Magical Hogwarts

At the center of a lavishly decorated room stood a massive octagonal wooden table.

A twelve-year-old boy sat at the table, engrossed in a book.

Not far from him were two enormous bronze statues of goddesses holding torches of wisdom.

Perched on the chest of one of these statues was an orange tabby cat, basking in the sunlight and snoozing soundly.

If the Hogwarts Library was known as the place with the largest collection of books, then this room could undoubtedly be called the most beautiful library in the world.

This wasn't an exaggeration.

The structure spanned two floors. Upon entering, visitors were greeted by a spacious hall adorned with Italian marble and plaster walls covered in countless gold leaf decorations.

Eight pairs of statues—each depicting Goddess Minerva, the goddess of wisdom—lined the hall.

Beyond the arched corridor at the back of the hall lay the grand library itself, a dazzling space exuding the classical grandeur of French palaces.

The ceiling soared 75 feet high, its colorful stained-glass skylights complemented by aluminum-foiled beams, complimenting a time centuries past when aluminum was valued more highly than gold.

This applied to both the Muggle and magical worlds alike.

After an indeterminate amount of time, Boba Tea finally woke up. The cat kneaded its paws lazily before leaping off the statue and landing on the table.

Surveying its surroundings, it realized there was no litter box in sight. Reluctantly, it decided to hold it in rather than make a mess in the library. It was far too refined a feline for such behavior.

William was holding one of Nicolas Flamel's alchemy books, an early work filled with a lot of whimsical ideas.

During his time with Nicolas, William had learned a great deal. 

Whenever he encountered a confusing concept, the old man would explain it in an insightful yet easy way, which benefited William quite a lot.

What truly stood out, however, was the array of items in Nicolas' massive laboratory, the old man had too much time in his hands and filled his laboratory with small items he made at will.

These alchemical creations became William's practice material. He was free to disassemble and study them, using their blueprints as inspiration for his own attempts.

How many students of alchemy had the luxury of dismantling rare alchemical artifacts for research? Only William could indulge in such extravagance.

This hands-on experience benefited William immensely. While his current mastery of alchemy was debatable, his perspective and understanding had risen to new heights.

Nicolas had also answered many of William's questions, including those concerning the unusual Professor Quirrell.

It turned out that Nicolas' Philosopher's Stone had already been depleted of its magic.

Dumbledore had borrowed the stone's remains to place in the Forbidden Corridor at Hogwarts.

Upon learning this, William felt a sense of relief as he had always been puzzled about the corridor's purpose.

Now it seemed that Dumbledore had cleverly used a fake Philosopher's Stone as bait.

As for who was behind Quirrell's actions, Nicolas had not disclosed that information.

But knowing that Quirrell was indeed suspicious, William decided to "greet" him properly once he returned to Hogwarts.

At that moment, Hermione burst into the room, grabbing William and dragging him outside in a rush.

Yawning, Boba Tea chose not to follow them and instead hopped onto William's vacated chair.

This was the sunniest spot in the library, and now it was all Boba Tea's to enjoy.

"Professor Dumbledore is here," Hermione explained breathlessly as they hurried along.

"Oh, so what? Why the rush?"

"He brought Christmas presents…"

Before Hermione could finish, William grabbed her hand and quickened their pace.

"..."

When they arrived, they found Dumbledore standing by the lake with Newt Scamander, admiring a small snowman on the ground.

This Christmas had seen only two light snowfalls, leaving Hermione unsatisfied. She had managed to build just one particularly small snowman.

The snowman held a stick as a wand, and in front of it was an even smaller animal figure.

"That's a Diricawl. Definitely a Diricawl, Professor," Newt declared seriously, bundled up in his thick coat.

Dumbledore studied it for a moment, frowning. "I think it looks more like a Fwooper."

"Professor Dumbledore, I'm a magizoologist—a professional. Please respect my expertise," Newt retorted.

"This can't possibly be a Fwooper. I've raised Fwoopers before, and they're not this ugly."

Dumbledore fell into thought, pondering what sort of creature it might be. Could it be… a Christmas turkey?

"It's a dragon," Hermione murmured, her face flushed. "A Ukrainian Ironbelly!"

Newt immediately stopped talking about his "expertise."

Dumbledore, ever the master of smoothing over awkward moments, kept his expression unchanged as he said, "Oh, a dragon! Now that you mention it, it does resemble one.

"I was just about to say it looked like a dragon myself."

Hermione glanced at him skeptically.

Dumbledore cleared his throat and spoke warmly. "I happened to be passing by to discuss something with Nicolas and thought I'd bring you two some Christmas gifts.

"The owl couldn't reach here, so I had to deliver them myself."

With a wave of his wand, Dumbledore conjured a pile of presents on the ground.

Most of them were for William; Hermione's share was smaller, though still more generous than what she had received on her birthday.

"Oh, and here's a gift from Professor Snape, William." Dumbledore pulled a small box from his pocket.

"He also asked me to pass along a message: he misses you and hopes you return to school soon."

"…"

Hermione stifled a laugh.

"Well, see you at Hogwarts, William, Hermione," Dumbledore said. "Take care of yourselves."

He turned and walked down a path, Newt following close behind.

"What did you give Professor Snape for Christmas?" Hermione asked curiously.

"Bawang anti-hair-loss shampoo. Haven't you noticed his receding hairline? This shampoo is perfect for him."

William had originally planned to give Snape Potter-brand Sleekeazy Hair Potion.

In the wizarding world, Sleekeazy was the equivalent of Head & Shoulders or Pantene in the Muggle world.

But considering that this shampoo was invented by Harry Potter's grandfather, Fleamont Potter, William decided against it.

No wonder Snape disliked washing his hair. Balding might have been one reason, but a deeper one was that the shampoo came from the Potters.

Liking it would've been absurd!

William opened Snape's package, frowning at the sight of bezoar inside.

"What does this mean?" Hermione asked.

"Uh, I think it's Snape's way of saying he might poison me someday, so I should always be ready… with an antidote."

Hermione: "…"

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