A Professor of Magic at Hogwarts

Chapter 71: Christmas Presents

"Felix Harp found the idea feasible." Through this simple attempt, Felix saw even more possibilities. He believed that with enough effort, he could achieve a level of enchantment akin to the slumbering guardian statues in the castle.

However, he didn't believe he could create something as intricate as the Sorting Hat or a magical diary.

The latter was different, of course, being a Horcrux that contained a fragment of Voldemort's soul. But the Sorting Hat? Its predecessor was merely a hat of Godric Gryffindor, not specifically crafted for sorting students.

In Felix's imagination, perhaps during a shared afternoon tea, the four founders had questioned each other's "talent selection methods." To resolve their disagreements, they decided to use a "wisdom-infused magical creation" for sorting.

And thus, the Sorting Hat came into being. The Sorting Hat had endured for millennia, always present. It could communicate with people, possessed its own memories and personality, and in a sense, calling it a true lifeform wasn't an exaggeration.

This brought to mind magical portraits that could also interact with people.

Some simple portraits, like Sir Cadogan within the castle, possessed limited intellect and couldn't engage in complex, organized conversations.

During his school days, Felix had experimented and found that the boastful knight could only provide seven distinct responses, such as bragging about his glorious feats or challenging to a duel.

Yet some portraits exhibited a remarkable level of magic—they could interact intricately with the outside world and retained a considerable amount of memory.

To his knowledge, this included the portraits of past headmasters within the Headmaster's office at Hogwarts, as well as portraits of some ancient pure-blood family ancestors.

This was because the portrait's owner imbued them with significant memories and magic, allowing these portraits to retain a personality similar to their original selves. But only similar; they weren't true life forms.

The greatest distinction lay in the fact that the personality of the portrait wouldn't change over time. It remained fixed at the moment of its creation, much like a complex interactive program.

This was fundamentally different from the Sorting Hat...

"The Sorting Hat undoubtedly conceals greater secrets!"

...

Dawn of Christmas arrived. Felix Harp emerged from his room dressed neatly. Underneath a small Christmas tree in a corner of his office, a pile of variously shaped Christmas presents had accumulated.

Roughly estimating, there were nearly a hundred of them.

Moreover, there were several packages still on their way. During the time he was steeping his tea, three owls flew into his room through the window he deliberately left open last night. One of them had clearly flown a considerable distance, carrying a small, exquisite gift box in its beak. It landed exhaustedly on his desk.

Felix had to administer a few drops of potion to it before it recovered its vitality.

After consuming a few pieces of biscuit, the brown owl hopped towards him and lightly pecked at his fingertip with its sharp beak. "Do you want me to open the package?" the owl seemed to inquire, tilting its head at him and extending a claw, which held a small metal cylinder.

Felix opened the cylinder and extracted a rolled-up parchment from inside—

"Dear Mr. Felix Harp, my Wolfsbane Potion has finally been perfected. Just as 'White Elegance' arrived at your place, I submitted the official formula to the Ministry of Magic. Barring unforeseen events, I shall soon be awarded the Order of Merlin—Second Class, at the very least! I hope you'll attend the ceremony. Enclosed with this letter is a bottle of my latest Wolfsbane Potion for your discerning palate."

Signed, Damocles Belby.

Felix Harp swiftly wrote on it, "It would be my honor. Kindly inform me of the proposed date, and I shall attend punctually. P.S.: Your Order of Merlin is well-deserved."

He placed the note back into the metal cylinder. "You've done well, White Elegance." The owl drank a bit of water and then spread its wings to depart.

Felix opened the exquisite gift box, revealing a vial of potion. He uncorked it and sniffed lightly, "Hmm, still as foul-smelling as ever. Couldn't he consider adding a touch of sugar? Or is making potions unpalatable a quirk of all accomplished potion-makers?"

He placed the potion into the ring on his left hand, adorned with a green gemstone. Then, he enthusiastically began unwrapping his presents.

A significant portion came from his book fans and pen pals, mainly in the form of greeting cards. Felix sorted through them and set them aside temporarily. The rest were gifts from Hogwarts professors and students.

Dumbledore had gifted him a personal alchemical manuscript—a compilation of his insights on alchemy. In return, Felix had given the headmaster a Muggle book titled "99 Inventions that Changed the World," along with a pair of knee-high wool socks embroidered with red lions.

Professor McGonagall presented a book titled "Quidditch Teams of Britain and Ireland," introducing the Quidditch teams of the British Isles and their various achievements. The book also contained a plethora of Quidditch maneuver illustrations.

It seemed she wanted to draw Felix into the realm of Quidditch enthusiasts.

Hagrid had gifted him a homemade short dagger, quite rough in craftsmanship, but with a rather special material—a unicorn horn.

"Tsk." Felix clicked his tongue, unsure of what to say.

Professor Flitwick gifted him materials on ancient magic and invited him to discuss related topics whenever he had time. Felix readily sent a reply.

Professor Snape's gift was a transparent vial, no larger than a thumb, containing around a milliliter of clear liquid.

"A highly effective Veritaserum, you've truly outdone yourself, Professor," Felix said with amused delight. "I hope you'll also appreciate my gift." Felix had given Snape a set of Muggle primary and secondary school laboratory equipment, including measuring cups, scales, and droppers.

He thoughtfully included a copy of "Code of Conduct for Chemical Experiments (Children's Edition)," replete with illustrations, to ensure the professor wouldn't find it incomprehensible.

Many of the young wizards at Hogwarts had also sent gifts. His assistant, Miss Granger, sent him a deep green knitted scarf. Harry Potter sent a large bag of chocolates, and Ron Weasley sent a box of buzzing Honeydukes candies.

The most amusing gift came from the Weasley twins. It was a pair of wooden figurines hugging each other—a couple. They seemed rougher in texture than Hagrid's short dagger, and their facial features were merely painted on. Following the instructions, Felix tapped the head of the male figurine, and it yelped, after which the two figures began to perform a shaky, awkward dance.

Though the twins explained it as an African "Round Dance," Felix chose to outright ignore that.

Aside from these, some lesser-known young wizards also sent gifts. Justin Finch-Fletchley, for instance, had sent a splendid feathered quill pen, equipped with multiple functions.

Felix spent an hour to complete his letter-writing and gift-responding duties.

He entered the Great Hall, where scattered young wizards occupied four elongated tables.

On the Christmas trees, adorned with silver frost, hung various fascinating trinkets. Magic-imbued mistletoe and holly garlands dangled from the ceiling, releasing magical snow that drifted down.

Professor McGonagall and a few other professors were busy decorating the Great Hall.

"Need any help?" he asked.

Professor McGonagall straightened up, "Oh, no need, we're nearly done." She waved her wand, attaching a long ribbon of colorful fabric to the Christmas tree. Turning to him, she said, "I quite liked your gift, Felix."

Felix smiled. He had given Professor McGonagall a half-human-sized magical puppet, intricately designed with a variety of circuits that allowed it to take on two forms—besides its humanoid form, it could transform into a majestic lion.

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