Chapter 17
"Quidditch really is a good game. Why do most Muggle-borns dislike it so much?" In an openly upbeat mood, I thought about the match that had just ended between Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff. The proud ravens hadn't managed to snatch a victory from the feisty badgers this time, but it wasn't as if I was bothered.
The main thing was that it had been genuinely fun, and the couple of Bludgers that actually hit their targets only improved my mood. Watching the chaos on the pitch was truly entertaining, so I didn't share the House's gloomy atmosphere at all.
"You don't look very upset about Ravenclaw losing," Draco Malfoy found me halfway to the castle, this time walking only with his squires. "Care to share the secret?"
"Hello to you too, O fearsome dragon of the dungeons," I waved cheerfully, not hiding the amusement in my voice as the Slytherin once again started stretching his words in that mannered way. "The secret is simple—I've never been a fan of my House, so the loss doesn't bother me. I even made a little money at the book!"
"You… bet against your own House?" Goyle looked surprised and even frowned. Over the last few months he'd started acting freer around me, realizing that playing the loyal bodyguard to the Malfoy heir in my presence wasn't strictly necessary. Crabbe, for that matter, wasn't far behind him.
"What? No, of course not. Even the ravens, tolerant of other people's oddities, would peck me to death for that. I bet on the Bludger. More precisely—on the 'miracle ball' actually knocking someone down," I kept laughing, pleased not by the winnings, but by a good day. I'd only placed the bet for company anyway; I never had much interest in that kind of thing.
"Ahem… that's very unusual," Draco coughed into his fist, clearly about to say something sharper, but holding his tongue in time. The Quidditch fan in him still looked offended. "But now at least I understand why you were so cheerful during the Slytherin–Gryffindor match…"
"Yeah, I didn't support anyone then either. I was just hoping for something spectacular," I nodded, letting the boys match my pace as we walked toward Hogwarts. "By the way, Draco—are you going home for the holidays?"
"Huh? Yeah. Spending Christmas at Hogwarts doesn't sound appealing," the young Slytherin looked a little surprised by the sudden topic shift, but answered quickly anyway. "What—are you not going home?"
"I've got nothing to do there right now. I'd rather keep researching in the library," I waved it off, casually reminding him I didn't really have a family to celebrate Christmas with. "But that's not why I'm asking. Remember when Daphne and I talked about trace charms and how to get around them?"
"Mm. You need a clean wand," Malfoy understood at once, remembering our old conversation.
"Yeah. I don't need it right now, of course, but I might not get a better chance. I don't want to be panicking before summer trying to find myself a normal magical focus," I nodded, giving him a slightly awkward smile.
I could buy a wand on my own without Ministry trace charms, sure, but… it wouldn't be convenient. So after thinking it through, I decided to ask Draco for help—he had far more freedom in that area.
"Mm. I'm glad you thought it through and came to me first… I think I know exactly what I'll get you for Christmas now," the pale blond boy smiled brightly, and for a moment he looked like a truly worthy son of his father—assuming everything I'd heard about Lord Malfoy from sources other than Draco and his friends was actually true.
"I'll be very grateful. I'll write you all the exact parameters later… and I'll definitely find a proper gift in return," I smirked, quickly thinking what I could use to repay something that valuable. Buying him some random magical trinket wouldn't be enough. In polite society, gifts between friends were supposed to be balanced…
And I already had a few ideas of what could help Draco in the near future. He was, after all, a big fan of Potions and always tried hard in that class, eager to meet the expectations of our professor and his private tutor at home… So I'd help him.
Not directly, of course. I was still far worse at Potions than Malfoy. But I could probably get him a full set of notes from older Ravenclaws. I'd recently done something similar for myself, buying transfiguration notes from graduated ravens through a prefect.
Deciphering someone else's handwriting was often a special kind of suffering, not to mention the random jumps between topics and the lack of structure in some essays and notes. But for getting a broader view of a subject and deepening personal understanding, other people's notes were often better than anything else.
For exact formulas, theory, and small nuances, textbooks were still best. And refusing books just because you'd read someone's notes was pure stupidity. You couldn't judge an almost-scientific field based on a loose retelling by someone who wasn't even the greatest specialist. But the usefulness of other students' notes was real, which was why I didn't hesitate long in choosing Draco's gift.
I didn't have time to hesitate anyway. The Ravenclaw–Hufflepuff match happened only two and a half weeks before Christmas break. I needed to secure the gift before everyone left for home, or I risked ending up in an unpleasant—or at least awkward—situation.
Luckily, by then I'd managed to meet and talk with many Hogwarts students, and with nearly everyone in my House in particular… More accurately, nearly every Ravenclaw had tried in one way or another to meet me, and plenty of students from other Houses too. They didn't always come directly, often going through mutual acquaintances, but either way…
Many people wanted to look at the famous hero, even after the initial frenzy died down. So I ended up introduced, one way or another, to most of the students, carefully memorizing names and basic details, while also making a point of greeting or at least nodding to those "familiar" faces.
That alone was enough for people to label me one of the most sociable students in Ravenclaw. And in my situation, that "sociability" was very useful—I managed to get the notes I needed in just a couple of days, and a little later I decided to find something similar for Daphne as well. She had helped me with information more than once over the last half year, so she deserved a proper gift too.
In that sense, I would've liked to give something to Draco's other friends too, and it wouldn't hurt to show gratitude to a couple of my own Housemates… and maybe even the prefects, and one girl from Hufflepuff… But no.
This year I simply didn't have enough for everyone. Let them settle for standard, harmless gifts that didn't obligate anyone. This Christmas was already going to cost me a fortune, and for Napoleon—my personal feathered mailman—it would turn into a full marathon across Britain.
Still, as practice showed, this approach to maintaining connections in the magical world was correct. I had to step away from my own plans for a while to deal with the holiday fuss, but on Christmas morning, I didn't end up giftless either.
Most of what I received was simple and not especially useful, but some people—like Pansy Parkinson, Draco's main friend—sent me genuinely interesting things, like books and amusing artifacts. Daphne gave me a self-writing quill and special parchment that could transfer whatever you wrote onto it into any magically linked book, notebook, or scroll.
In short, I wasn't left disappointed. On December twenty-fifth, I spent until noon sorting through packages… which was exhausting, because accepting gifts without checking them for nasty surprises was risky business.
At least the inspection charms weren't very difficult. Daphne taught them to me back in October, when she first started explaining certain traditions and rules of proper wizarding behavior… I managed almost without trouble. In the end, I destroyed only three letters and one strange package—one I didn't even dare open.
By that point, I'd already found the main "gift" of the day anyway, so I didn't touch the strangely "buzzing" package in my magical sense from an unknown sender. It was probably some not-so-safe joke from Fred and George. So no thanks… I already had enough gifts for my first Christmas in the magical world.
"Hm. Truly completely invisible. Hard to believe," I examined the invisibility cloak, familiar to me from my previous life. It was pleasant to the touch, breathable, and genuinely comfortable to wear. Too large for me, but it would fit an adult wizard perfectly… I could go raid the Restricted Section right now and no one would even notice.
"Although no, I definitely shouldn't rush… and there's nothing I need in the Restricted Section yet. Not to mention, I'm still not fully sure how well this cloak hides me from magical detection," I thought, already running through possible tests for the artifact in my head, trying to cool my excitement.
Luckily, the question of how to test it without outside help—since I didn't want to show this treasure to anyone yet—killed my enthusiasm quickly. Honestly, despite having plenty of acquaintances and even "friends," including some Slytherins, I couldn't name a single person I'd trust with the secret of my cloak.
No one needed to know I had an obviously unusual—or at least very high-quality—invisibility cloak. In the worst case, I'd postpone proper testing until summer. I already had a clean wand, and Dudley, even in the worst scenario, wouldn't fully understand the value—or uselessness—of magical clothing.
"Yeah, not a bad plan… and over the next six months I'll have time to study and practice detection charms for hidden wizards. It won't be wasted. Relying entirely on my sensitivity to magic isn't wise," I decided, hiding the cloak in my trunk.
It wasn't that I wouldn't use it at all. For night walks around Hogwarts, it would be perfect… But sneaking into the Restricted Section or other Houses' common rooms was out of the question for now. Especially since I didn't really need that. I could get into plenty of places without invisibility. I'd even visited the Slytherin common room a couple of times. The fame of Harry Potter had its pleasant moments—especially if you didn't run from them on purpose.
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