Christmas morning arrived quietly.
Alexander finished breakfast in the Great Hall — warm pastries, eggs, and pumpkin juice — before heading back toward his dorm.
He opened the door…
His bed was buried.
Presents — stacked, piled, and scattered — covered the blankets from end to end.
Alexander blinked and said.
"…Well. That's new."
He stepped inside, closing the door behind him before approaching the mountain of gifts.
He picked up the largest box first — wrapped neatly in deep blue paper.
From his parents.
He opened it carefully.
Inside was a moving photograph.
The picture showed his mother and father standing together, waving at him. His mother smiled warmly while his father adjusted the camera before leaning into the frame.
Tucked behind the frame was a letter.
He unfolded it.
Missing our Son Alexander,
We're sorry we couldn't be with you this Christmas.
Please don't forget our faces — even if work has kept us apart this year.
We love you very much and will make this up to you soon.
Stay safe. Stay brilliant.
Love, Mom and Dad.
Alexander stared at the moving photo for a long moment.
His thumb brushed the edge of the frame as his parents waved endlessly from within it.
"…Yeah," he murmured. "I won't forget."
He set the photo gently on his desk before moving to the next gift.
From Cho:
A beautifully crafted, magical snow globe of London.
When he shook it, tiny flakes swirled around miniature moving landmarks — the Thames shimmered, Big Ben chimed faintly, and little enchanted lights flickered along the streets.
Alexander smiled.
"She'd pick something elegant…"
From the Weasley Twins:
Multiple brightly wrapped boxes.
He opened one.
Candy.
Another.
More candy.
A third.
Even more candy — some of it fizzing, popping, and attempting to crawl out of the box.
He snorted.
"Of course they did."
From his roommates:
Even more sweets.
Chocolate frogs. Sugar quills. Exploding bonbons.
Alexander stared at the growing candy pile.
"…I'm going to lose teeth at this rate."
From Professor Flitwick:
A neatly wrapped academic package.
Inside were two books:
Advanced Charm Reinforcement Theory
Paths to Becoming a Dueling Champion
Alexander's brows lifted.
"Professor…"
It made sense.
Flitwick only gave personal gifts to students he was especially close to — or impressed by.
Alexander felt a quiet pride settle in his chest.
Then one final letter caught his eye.
From Mr. Schmander:
Alexander opened it curiously.
Alexander,
Your custom briefcase is nearly complete.
Final enchantments are being layered now.
You should receive it soon.
— Schmander
Alexander's eyes lit up.
"Oh, that's going to be useful…"
He folded the letter carefully, already imagining the briefcase's capabilities.
As he looked over his gifts, a thought crossed his mind.
In the novels he had read before coming to Hogwarts…
The main characters always exchanged gifts with every professor.
Even Dumbledore sometimes.
But reality was different.
He had only received one professor gift — from Flitwick.
And that was simply because they were close.
Alexander shrugged.
"Novels exaggerate everything anyway."
He then thought about the presents he sent to his family and friends.
For his parents:
A data sheet documenting his research on how biased — and racist — the Sorting Hat's sorting criteria seemed.
Matching Ravenclaw winter scarves.
A heartfelt letter telling them how much he loved and missed them.
For Cho, the Weasley Twins, and his roommates…
He grinned.
Each received a limited-edition motion photograph:
Alexander beating up the Sorting Hat.
Yes — he had Peeves secretly take the pictures.
He had then used a developing solution potion to animate the photos so they looped endlessly — the Hat flailing dramatically while Alexander stood victorious.
He had made extra copies…
But kept those for himself as memories.
"They'll love these."
For Professor Flitwick:
His personal Lumos enhancement notes.
A respectful letter of thanks.
A motion picture of him beating up the Sorting Hat.
Alexander didn't expect Mr. Schmander to send him a letter. So he prepared a return letter for Mr. Schmander.
He included:
A long letter about his Hogwarts experience.
Naturally, a photo of him beating up the Sorting Hat.
Alexander sealed the envelope with satisfaction.
As the owl package left later that day, Alexander returned to his dorm window.
Snow still fell.
The castle remained quiet.
But for the first time since break began…
He didn't feel alone.
His desk held his parents' moving photo.
His trunk held gifts ready to be delivered.
And somewhere out there, his friends would be laughing at enchanted pictures of his Sorting Hat "victory."
Alexander smiled faintly.
"Yeah… not a bad Christmas after all."