It snows on the first day of December. The flakes frost over the windows and leave streak of icy blue sunlight over the floors of the Ravenclaw common room.

Ana can admit that it's quite pretty. However, the next day is also the first day of exams, so she has no interest in joining several of her schoolmates as they waste their time having snowball fights and building snow forts in the courtyard.

Instead she's taking advantage of the extra space in the common room, spreading out over two of the tables as she rechecks notes and annotates a few extra books she's found in the library during the year. Eric's silver bracelet is still clasped around one wrist, and in her writing hand hand she's gripping the self-sharpening quill that Alasdair had gotten her, something that's proven quite useful in the past month.

The room is mostly silent, save for quills scratching across parchment and occasional murmurs between people studying together, though they keep to the corners. It's a comforting buzz of white noise and Ana gets through several hours of work before a hand lands on her shoulder and she's rudely pulled from her zone.

Eric smiles at her apologetically. "Sorry to interrupt, but it's dinner, and I'm pretty sure you're in the exact same spot you were when I left this morning which really can't be good for your body."

She grimaces but shuffles her notes into organized piles and slides them obligingly into her bag. "Alright, I could eat I suppose."

Eric has the decency to quiz her on topics he remembers being on his second year exams as they make their way to the Great Hall, and Ana is pleased that she's able to answer each of his questions with no hesitation.

"It's a lot better to study with other people I find." Eric observes as they sit down. "Notes are obviously well and good but as long as they're in front of you you can't really know if you're absorbing the material effectively or if you're subconsciously glancing down. You should study with your classmates sometimes."

Ana shoots him a look. They've had this conversation before. "You know full well how obnoxious everyone in my year is."

"I thought you said Shaun was alright?" He points out, wheedling intently.

She sighs. "He is but he's best friends with Fitzwilliam and Jerome and they're both irritating more often than not. Jerome especially."

Eric shakes his head. "You are one of the most judgemental people I know Ana. What are you going to do when we all graduate next year? Be alone for five years?"

Ana frowns at him. "I have Alasdair you know."

Eric looks like he wants to say something, but he bites it back as they arrive at the Ravenclaw table, which, Ana notes, is hosting more than just Ravenclaws.

Eric lights up when he sees the extra person seated there. "Laurel! I thought you were going to hold one last practice for the team tonight!" He quickly sits next to her, debate with Ana forgotten, and the second year rolls her eyes in annoyance as she takes the seat across from the two, next to Hannah.

"Can't compete with young love I'm afraid." Hannah notes teasingly. "How's studying going Ana? Need any help? My schedule is way lighter this year since three of my classes don't have mid year exams so I'm free to help out if you'd like."

Ana nods slightly. "If it's not going to impede your own studies." She pretends to not have been practicing the proper pronunciation for 'impede' for the better part of the year, but internally she's extremely proud to have used it correctly and clearly.

Hannah grins as dinner appears on the golden plates in front of them and begins to help herself. "No impediment at all. It actually would probably be good for me to review some of that stuff anyway, second year was forever ago it seems like."

Ana feels like that could have been a crack at her age, but Hannah has never been judgemental on that front - or any front that Ana has noticed - so she merely shrugs and carefully moves a rib onto her own plate. "Perhaps I could help you as well? I might not know the material but I can still help quiz you if I have the answers in front of me."

Hannah hums an affirmative around a mouthful of food, and adds a verbal assent as well once she's swallowed.

The next day dawns chilly and bright, and Ana is quick to dress and hurry down to breakfast so she can spend as much time studying for the afternoon Transfiguration exam as possible. Though she fully intends to once again obtain Os across the board, she's most determined to maintain her Transfiguration grades.

The sixth years have a morning Arithmancy exam, so Ana ends up at the table with only Horace and Josie for company, as Eric, Sarah and Hannah are all taking the class at a NEWT level.

'Transfiguration huh? What are you all learning this year?" Josie at least does her best to engage Ana, though honestly the second year would rather study in peace than talk with the two sixth years she has the least communication with.

"So far we've done some simple animate to inanimate transformations - beetles to buttons and such." She replies distractedly, continuing to idly twitch her wrist in the wand motions they'd learned over the past few months to ensure she wasn't mixing anything up with the new charms they'd worked on.

Josie shifts uncertainly in her seat. "Um, maybe I could quiz you? My first exam isn't until tomorrow so I have some extra time to help if you'd like."

Horace pouts and looks ready to argue against his girlfriend spending her free time with Ana instead of him, but he ultimately bites back any contentions he has and simply shrugs, focusing on his food.

Ana considers it carefully. She already has a few study sessions lined up with Hannah and Eric, but adding in more people wouldn't necessarily hurt. And she really does want to do well in this exam.

"If you're offering I certainly won't say no." She replies after a moment, and Josie grins.

"Great! Are you done yet? There's an abandoned classroom on the sixth floor that no one seems to know about-"

Horace makes a choking noise, and Josie turns to him with a frown. "Oh calm down Ace, did you think you were the only one I showed that room to? It really is great for studying in, she can use it when we graduate."

Ana gets a sense that Horace doesn't want her in this mystery classroom, but honestly she doesn't care what Horace wants. "That sounds nice. I'm ready now if you are."

Surprisingly, studying with Josie isn't as awkward as she'd expected. When not around her boyfriend, Josie proves perfectly capable of maintaining a conversation with no innuendos or subtle insults at all, something that Ana hadn't expected from their previous encounters.

"Jeez, I don't think you really needed me at all, you've got this down." Josie grins after about two hours of nonstop practice. "Certainly better than I was at your age. Have you thought about maybe teaching the other kids in your grade, or the first years? I think you'd be good at it."

Ana makes a face at the suggestion, slipping her wand back into her sleeve. "I fail to see how that would result in anything but a headache."

Josie shrugs. "I find I learn things better when I'm able to teach them to others. But that could just be a result of having two professors for parents." She grins lightly. "Something to think about though, I really think you could help others in Transfiguration if you wanted to."

"Well I don't particularly at the moment." Ana responds curtly, and the subject is thankfully dropped, though Josie continues giving her looks every so often that Ana thinks she's going to get rater tired of rather quickly if they don't die out by the time school resumes in the new year.

The exam goes extremely well at least, and Ana allows herself a bit of time afterwards to sit on her bed and read through more of her birthday book, which Horace had in fact returned exactly on time and with no damages whatsoever.

Unfortunately, about halfway through her designated free time Evie shows up in the dorms, muddy and furious.

"It's absolutely ridiculous that they won't let me play! They let Finnigan play. Finnigan-I-hate-everyone-Marley gets to play in their stupid pickup game but I can't!"

It's easy enough for Ana to work out exactly what's going on, and honestly she doesn't care a whit. "Махай се." She grumbles, not bothering to use English. Maybe being told to sod off in Bulgarian will somehow get through to Evie in a way that English never seems to.

Shockingly enough, Evie goes silent for longer than Ana has ever heard in the year they've known each other. Of course, it doesn't last.

"What does that mean? You speak another language? Can you teach me? Or wait, was that a spell? What did it do?"

Ana feels annoyance twisting in her gut. Was Evie making fun of her? Obviously she spoke another language - she's used Bulgarian words in the past when she'd forgotten their English counterparts, and her accent isn't exactly what one would call subtle.

She ignores Evie's questions and grudgingly puts away her book. Clearly her break is being cut off early.

Evie frowns at the action. "Hey wait, are you leaving?" Ana doesn't reply, just checks that her bag has the correct textbooks in it and heads out to the library, leaving Evie and the mess that's always close behind her alone in the dorm.

Maybe if it had been someone else Ana might have felt a bit bad. But really, Evie needs to learn eventually how to not be a tactless mess and Ana has no interest in coaching her through that. Especially not when they're in the middle of exams.

The study session goes well, and she's joined in her corner of the library by Eric and Laurel about an hour in. They take turns quizzing her on dates and events for the History of Magic exam she has in the morning while simultaneously working on their own study material. All in all, a solid day's work and Ana falls asleep content and feeling more than prepared for whatever the next day wishes to throw at her.

As it turns out, what it throws is a surprisingly tricky History exam. Although Ana knows all the dates, the essay they have to write requires them to connect the events in a cause-and-effect manner that she hadn't been anticipating. She finishes with thirty minutes left over with which to edit, but her confidence is a bit shaken when she heads for lunch after they're all released from the testing room.

She can hear Evie talking to Jerome Boot behind her. "That was way easier than I thought it was going to be! I mean, just memorizing dates is all well and good but I can't always get their order perfect."

"Right?" Jerome agrees whole-heartedly. "Connecting things like that is how I study in the first place so I was done in only two hours! I usually never have time to edit my exams!" He sounds incredibly proud of himself, and something boils under Ana's skin that the two most destructive and least productive members of her house apparently had an easier time on the exam than she did.

Her annoyance is picked up by the sixth years at dinner that night - she'd skipped lunch to study extra for the Charms and Potions exams she had next, and likely would have missed dinner as well if it wasn't for her favorite prefect once again pulling her down to the Great Hall.

"Everything alright there Ana? You aren't overworking yourself studying, right?" Eric sounds concerned as Ana absently eats directly off the golden platters while going over her potions notes for the sixteenth time.

She waves him off. "I'm fine, just didn't do as well on today's exam as I wanted." She replies tersely, and he's smart enough to back down and leave her be.

She studies late into the night until, surprisingly, Sarah Poole finally snaps at her to 'get your to bed or you'll fall asleep in your cauldron tomorrow.' When she wakes the next morning she's a bit drowsy, but she pushes herself out of bed and grabs her bag - packed the night before with everything she'll need for the day - before stumbling down to the Great Hall and filling up on the heartiest foods offered.

Charms is scheduled during the morning, and though she's a bit disoriented still she knows she does well from the bright smile Professor Flitwick offers upon her easy and flawless execution of the Knockback Jinx. She's a bit more awake and generally feeling better about herself by lunch, and the Potions exam proceeds effortlessly for her - she makes a point to keep her cauldron well away from Evie. At Eric and Sarah's combined urging she goes to bed early instead of reviewing for the Astronomy final, though she does sneak a few minutes of review for Herbology, which she also has the next day.

She wakes up early, and admits to herself that the extra sleep was probably good for her, especially considering how late they'll be staying up for Astronomy that night. She reviews for Herbology further in the common room while waiting for the rest of the House to head down to breakfast.

Hannah is happy to quiz Ana on Astronomy during the meal, a class which Hannah is the only sixth year Ravenclaw taking a NEWT level in, and Ana is feeling more than ready for both exams by the time lunch rolls around.

She studies alone after that - the sixth years of course have their own studies to attend to, but she feels she does acceptably well on both of the tests, even if she is completely worn out by the time she walks out of the Astronomy Tower in the early hours of the next day.

The final exam is in the afternoon the next day, so she allows herself a few extra hours of rest before waking up and going over the material that Professor McCormack had told them was going to be on the exam (and really, what sort of teacher just told you exactly what to study? It was ridiculous!). Naturally the exam itself is effortless, and Ana finds herself more than ready to head home the next morning. After all, Eric is going to send her his OWL books to study from - she has plenty to look forward to.

Franziska walks to the train station with her friends the first morning of winter break.

"You'll write, yeah?" She pokes Kiera lightly in the side. "You promised."

"Don't worry your little head about it." Tonks grins. "I'll write ya, and I'll write her to remind her to write ya!" She promises, cheerfully tossing an arm around both Kiera and Franziska.

Franziska laughs. "I didn't completely follow that, but alright!"

"We'll write too." Donaghan promises as he and Cian catch up to the girls. "And you won't be alone, right? Leona and her siblings will be staying over break as well."

"Heck yeah! Patrick and Sarah are both freaking out over NEWTs so they're staying to study, and me and Eddie are staying because we felt like it." Leona tosses herself onto the mini dog pile Tonks had started, resulting in all four girls toppling to the floor.

"Are you doing a goodbye hug without me?" Henry sounds distinctly sad, though his subsequent decision to toss himself on top of the group doesn't win him any sympathy points.

"Urgh, get off you lot!" Tonks attempts to sound angry, though Franziska can see that she's smiling from the bottom of the pile.

"Guys come on, we'll miss the train." Ever the voice of reason, Donaghan helps Henry haul himself off the pile, and Cian reluctantly allows Leona to use his leg to get into a sitting position.

Once everyone is standing again, goodbyes are more formally exchanged, and Franziska and Leona wave eagerly as the train chugs back towards King's Cross.

"Well then, what shall we do first?" Leona turns immediately to Franziska once the light snowfall hides the train from view. "You're the veteran for staying at school over break - what festivities await?"

Franziska grins. "First things first, you need to meet my friends."

As expected, Leona already vaguely knows the other second years who stay over the break, but she's only too happy to dramatically reintroduce herself to each of them.

Fitzwilliam is rather taken aback by Leona's general loudness, while Nabila simply looks resigned to it. Brandon however is only too happy to be just as ridiculous in kind - when Leona executes an overly dramatic bow in greeting he responds with an even more elaborate one that causes him to lose his balance and fall over completely.

Leona burst out laughing. "Oh this is going to be fun! I ought to stay over break more often in the future." She grins over at Brandon as he struggles to sit up. "So is this it then? I admit I'd thought more people would be staying over break."

Fitzwilliam shrugs slightly. "Finnigan is still here, but he's not very social."

Leona tilts her head. "Oh, is that sir grumps-a-lot?" She suddenly perks up. "I know him! We're paired in Potions this year. He's fine if you don't mind doing all the talking."

Franziska can't help but snort rather inelegantly at the rather apt description, and Brandon barks out a laugh as well.

"I like you, you can stay." He decides cheerfully. "Alright gang, I say we head to the courtyard and put the other years to shame with our fort building capabilities!"

"What ho!" Leona agrees immediately and is bounding off, leaving the rest of them with little choice but to follow.

Nabila falls in next to Franziska. "I admit i'm not sure about how I feel having a female Brandon around." She frowns, and Franziska can only laugh.

"I hate to tell you this Nabila, but Leona might actually be worse."

The afternoon is spent out in the snow, initially building a fort but eventually Brandon and Leona are distracted and somehow start a snowball war with some of the older students that are still at school. Fitzwilliam spends most of the match cowering behind their fort, but both Franziska and Nabila help with defense despite Nabila's complaints on the subject.

They return to the Great Hall for dinner wet and shivering, but extremely cheerful for the most part. Fitzwilliam does run off to the Ravenclaw Tower first, citing a desperate need for a shower, but Nabila merely shrugs off her sopping outer robes and tosses them carelessly on the Gryffindor bench before deciding for the group that they'll be sitting at the Hufflepuff table for dinner.

Leona is thrilled by the apparent rule-breaking, until she's informed very firmly by Franziska that no rules are being even slightly bent by the Gryffindors - and Fitzwilliam, when he returns to join them - sitting at a table other than the one designated for their house.

"So you're saying I could just walk over to the Slytherin table and sit down and there would be zero repercussions?" Leona frowns. "That just seems wrong."

Brandon gags. "Why you'd even want to sit there is beyond me, Slytherins are awful."

"And there would likely be repercussions in the form of the Slytherins not taking kindly to your presence." Fitzwilliam points out quietly.

Leona rolls her eyes. "My brother is a Slytherin you know." She says, feigning offense for all of twenty seconds before laughing. "Though he's a complete prick so really that's no surprise."

They move on to lighter topics as dinner appears on the golden platters, and Fitzwilliam uncertainly looks over at Franziska as they do, waiting until she notices and smiles over at him.

"Hey, what's up?"

He shifts a bit awkwardly in his seat before replying. "Um, did you want to maybe do our Astronomy homework together again? It's supposed to be clear tomorrow night-"

Leona cuts him off enthusiastically. "Oh, that would be awesome! Astronomy is so boring, and I'm always so tired during that class, we could totally help each other out! Fitzy you're a genius!"

Fitzwilliam looks vaguely nonplussed, but Nabila and Brandon both agree to join the outing as well so he remains silent.

"Haha, your friends are fun, we should hang out with them during regular school as well." Leona remarks later that night as she and Franziska get ready to sleep. Her hair is falling in wet ringlets around her face, and when she shakes her head the droplets fly onto Franziska's bed.

Franziska merely tosses a new towel over her comforter. "I look forward to when we learn the drying spell." She notes wryly. "But yeah, they're pretty cool. Nabila spent time during the summer at Kiera's farm and they had a pretty good time from what I hear." She smiles faintly. "And I spend time with Fitzwilliam pretty often. He's part of my study group."

Leona grins over at her. "And what about Brandon? He's the most fun for sure!"

Franziska laughs. "I see him around school sometimes, but I guess we usually only hang out during Winter Break now that you mention it."

"Well, we'll have to fix that." Leona decides cheerfully as she pulls on a nightgown and tosses herself onto her bed. The two girls have moved their bunks so that they're right next to each other, that way they can chat late into the night without having to raise their voices above a whisper.

"I suppose. He's kind of a troublemaker though." Franziska notes. "Remember how many house points Aidan lost last year because of the pranks he pulled with Brandon and Charlie?"

Leona shrugs. "He got just as many impressing the teachers with his million and ten questions." She replies cheerfully, sitting up so she can look over at Franziska. "And you have to admit, seeing Snape's hair bright pink was hilarious." She adds with a wicked grin.

Franziska does have to laugh at the memory. "Fair enough. But still, I hope those three will ease up a bit. I'd like to actually win the House Cup at some point while we're here."

Leona hums an idle agreement and the two lapse into silence, and eventually into sleep.

The next day they have breakfast at the Gryffindor table, and between Leona and Brandon they manage to instigate a food fight within ten minutes of the rest of the students arriving.

Franziska at first is terrified that the teachers will punish them, until she sees Headmaster Dumbledore himself playfully flick some of his eggs at Walter Crowell, while Professor McCormack gleefully sends sausages flying around the room.

Fitzwilliam runs off for a shower as soon as the group manages to escape the food storm they'd stirred up, while the rest of them head for the Gryffindor common room.

Leona eyes the red and gold decorations critically. "Not as nice as Hufflepuff." She decides after a moment. "But I suppose it will do."

"Well we wouldn't know, you lot never let us into the Hufflepuff common room!" Brandon complains. "It's like some secret clubhouse or something, honestly."

Leona shrugs in mock innocence. "Off limits to anyone but Hufflepuffs, sorry. Not our fault our standards are higher when it comes to who we let into our common room." She grins at Brandon's loud protests, and then yelps when he lobs a pillow into her face.

"Oh it is on! Get over here you damn yank, let's see how you fair at close range!" Leona grabs one of the other pillows in the room and begins chasing Brandon around the space, attempting to smack him in return.

Nabila sighs. "Well at least they can keep each other occupied. Want to work on the Herbology assignment?"

They fall into a similar routine for the next week, with Leona and Brandon causing mischief while Franziska, Fitzwilliam, and Nabila usually work on their homework. However, every so often they get caught up in the whirlwind caused by their two friends.

The most prominent incident occurs the day before Christmas. It starts innocently enough, with Leona suggesting they check out the greenhouses to see whether they've been decorated for the holiday. It very quickly goes downhill from there.

Upon discovering the greenhouses barren of any festivity, Leona declares that they'll just have to fix the distinct lack of cheer themselves.

"Maybe they just haven't put up the decorations yet?" Franziska points out uncertainly as Leona bounds towards the woods in hunt of something to decorate with. "I mean, Hagrid only just took the tree for the Great Hall in earlier today-"

But Leona has a mission, and Franziska knows that when her roommate has set her mind to something it's rather difficult to sway her away from it.

So they traipse around the edges of the Forbidden Forest, collecting anything that looks even slightly decorative and at some point Leona gets them all singing Christmas Carols. It's all good fun until they actually start trying to decorate - and Leona breaks into the greenhouse to grab some flowers she'd spotted through the glass exterior.

They don't notice anything at first, but Leona's screams certainly get their attention rather rapidly.

Franziska leads the charge into the greenhouse, only to stop short in genuine terror. Leona has been backed into a corner by a plant that looks a bit like a very overgrown Venus Flytrap, complete with jagged fangs dripping a sap-like substance.

"I'll get a teacher." Fitzwilliam whimpers, backing up rapidly before being grabbed by Nabila and pinned with a glare so fierce it makes Franziska shiver as well.

"You'll do no such thing, I refuse to get in trouble for this." Nabila snaps. "Come on  you guys, we can handle this."

Her and Brandon both whip out their wands and advance on the creature, and after hesitating for a brief moment Franziska follows them. Fitzwilliam stays in the entryway, scared stiff but reluctantly resisting the urge to find an adult.

"Hit it with a stunning spell!" Nabila decides, calling out so Leona can hear the order as well. The brunette shakily fumbles her own wand out of her pocket, and the four of them all fire at the plant together. It shrieks and pulls back just long enough for Leona to dart past it and back out of the greenhouse, Franziska and the Gryffindors hot on her heels.

Nabila is the one to slam the doors once they're all out, panting and still pumped up on adrenaline. After a long moment Leona suddenly bursts into somewhat hysterical laughter.

"Oh man, and here I thought Herbology was the least dangerous class we took here!" She chokes out, and the rest of them start laughing as well, more from residual energy than any actual mirth at the situation.

"I vote we go inside and ask the house elves for hot chocolate." Franziska decides once they've somewhat recovered their wits, and the group quickly agrees, abandoning the greenhouse project to be found by a very confused teacher the next day.

They stay inside the rest of the day, nursing hot chocolates and idly exploring the castle. It amazes Franziska that even after an entire year at school there are still so many corridors and passageways she's never seen before.

During dinner that night, a few late post owls soar overhead. Franziska doesn't pay them any mind at first - none of them are over the Ravenclaw table anyway.

However, one of the largest owls, and one of the strangest looking ones, wheels around for a moment above the Hufflepuff table, before diving down, landing on top of Franziska's chicken and helping itself rather haughtily.

Franziska shrieks.

Fitzwilliam looks startled as well, jumping back to avoid the bird getting too close to him. Nabila however looks absolutely thrilled as she leans over the table to offer the giant bird a scratching behind the wings, which the owl is only too happy to oblige.

When she's recovered, Franziska hesitantly reaches out to remove the note tied around the owl's leg. He accommodatingly lifts his talon to allow her better access.

The note is short, simply noting that the owl is a male and that he's Franziska's combined Christmas and birthday present, since they hadn't sent her anything in September when she'd turned thirteen.

Franziska looks up at the owl again, lost for words.

"What are you going to name him?" Nabila asks excitedly. "This is a Powerful Owl. These are rare, you know? They breed in Australia, and are one of the only bird species where the male is dominant, did you know that? I am so jealous." She keeps the owl's head, much to his pleasure.

Franziska regards the owl for a moment, before grinning. "His name is Rudi, after Germany's forward for the national team." She decides.

Rudi seems to like the name, as he gives a low humming sound as he helps himself to the remains of Franziska's dinner.

The rest of the meal is spent fussing over Franziska's new pet, and they end up taking him with them when they head up to the Astronomy tower after dinner to work on their homework.

All in all, Franziska thinks it's an excellent start to the holidays.

Rajani knows she wants to go Christmas shopping as soon as possible this year. While there's of course no need to get her family anything, she wants to exchange gifts with the rest of her year, as all of them celebrate the holiday.

However, when she arrives home she finds her parents are both entirely too busy to take her into town. Her father is caught up in something at work and her mother is busy corresponding with several of their connections for a reason that Rajani can't quite work out.

On the eighth day of sitting in her room, numbly scanning the same sentence in her Hindi book she realizes that there is one other adult in the house who she can ask to take her.

She knocks uncertainly on Sahana's door. Her sister has once again locked herself up in her room, sending her owl Sita out at least once a day. Rajani is starting to question whether her sister is really only writing her roommate, or if there's someone in her life that their parents might not approve of.

Sahana takes a minute to answer, but she does eventually pull open the door. "What?" Her tone is clipped, and Rajani very nearly turns tail and abandons the mission, but she manages to steel herself and look up at her sister.

"Um, I was wondering if you might want to go into town to do some Christmas shopping? You could get something for Mayra, and I wanted to find things for my roommates." She looks up hopefully, and Sahana sighs.

"Not right now, but tomorrow, okay? I've got some things to do and we should ask mother first." She's clearly distracted, but at least she hadn't said no, so Rajani counts it as a win.

"I'll ask mother now!" She says quickly. "I promise I won't bother you the rest of the day either. Thank you so much."

Sahana just hums as she closes the door again, and Rajani rushes down the stairs as elegantly as she can manage around her excitement.

"Mother? Are you busy just now?" She taps lightly on the study door where her mother is once again penning a letter while the family owl Vishnu waits patiently on the perch over the desk.

Vandana looks up, slightly disoriented before she focuses on her daughter in the doorway. "Ah, Rajani, of course dear, what is it?"

Rajani takes a few steps further into the room before speaking again. "I was wondering if it would be possible for Sahana and I to take a trip into town to purchase gifts for our friends? I was hoping to find something for Queenie Shacklebolt since we've become very good friends." She knows it's a bit manipulative dropping the Shacklebolt name, but she really wants her mother to agree.

It does the trick, as her mother is immediately focusing her full attention on Rajani. "Why I think that's a wonderful idea! In fact, I've been arranging a special surprise but I suppose it does no harm to tell you now - we'll be spending Christmas day with the Shacklebolts and Slughorns this year. I believe you having a gift for young Queenie would be ideal. See if Sahana couldn't get something for Kingsley as well while you're out, would you?"

Rajani is only too eager to agree. Surely Sahana can find something for her fellow prefect easily enough, and if she can't Rajani will look for something herself.

Sahana stops by her room that night after supper and tells Rajani to be ready by eight the next morning, a request Rajani happily complies with.

They apparate into town and Sahana hands Rajani ten Galleons.

"Meet back here in five hours, alright? I'll find something for Kingsley."

Rajani tries to object - she may have been excited to go out but she doesn't want to be alone - but Sahana is already hurrying off, leaving Rajani to pocket the Galleons and nervously walk out into the square.

She gets a few side-eyes from the other shoppers, but no one tries to stop her or demands why she isn't with a parent or other adult, and she eventually relaxes enough to pull out her shopping list and begins searching for the perfect presents.

Eugene is easy enough - she drops into the broom supply store and gets him a technique book for beaters. She's sure he probably has something similar already, so she's sure to get the most obscure one they have.

Clary is next, and Rajani decides on a book detailing the proper ways to climb a tree. If Clary wants to share stories of getting stuck in trees, she can handle some ribbing about it.

After those two it gets a lot trickier. She eventually settles on a bracelet with a snake charm on it for Lennox, to compliment the one he'd gotten her the year before, which she's kept clasped around her wrist since receiving it. She suspects she may be getting a new charm for it from him when she gets back to school.

She doesn't really intend to get anything for Finn, since they really aren't very close, but when she spots a book on the history of Muggle-Magic relations she knows instantly that he'd probably enjoy it, and she has plenty of spending money left. So she purchases the book, along with a few self-sharpening quills for Elspeth, who she does want to buy something for but really has no idea where to even begin with the sullen girl.

Finally she has to face the bottom of the list, and the two hardest purchases yet. Queenie's gift needs to be absolutely perfect, since her mother will likely be furious if it's anything less, and after the brilliance of Clary's gift the year before Rajani has a lot to live up to.

She decides to focus on Queenie's gift first, since she probably will have to spend a decent amount of money on it if last year's pendant is any indication. She wanders around the town, regularly checking the time to make sure she doesn't miss her sister's deadline, and looking into shop windows in hopes something will strike inspiration.

And eventually, something does. A simple, elegant black jacket with some silver ornamentation is added to her pile of gifts after triple checking that it's a good size. It will be a bit large for now, but she's confident Queenie will grow into it and be able to wear it for longer than a few years.

With only a few Sickles left of the initial ten Galleons, Rajani is hoping for a miracle to appear and magically direct her to the perfect gift for Nia. However, after wandering for nearly an hour - leaving only thirty minutes left in her designated time - she's still at a complete loss as to what to get. Reluctantly she starts heading back to the meeting point, wondering how she'll explain having gifts for everyone else in the group but not Nia.

Sahana is already at the meeting point when a desolate Rajani arrives, carrying a wrapped package that Rajani assumes is for Kingsley.

"Did you get everything you wanted?" Sahana seems to be in a distinctly better mood than she had been before they'd separated. "Oh, and have you had lunch yet? I'd think you're probably pretty hungry if you didn't."

Rajani honestly hadn't even realized it was lunch time, she was so busy being worried about gifts. Her stomach growling it's annoyance answers Sahana for her, and she blushes at the uncouth noise.

Sahana surprises her when she simply laughs. "Thought not. Come on, I have some money left over, we can grab something at the café."

Rajani follows Sahana to the nearby restaurant and she orders a simple sandwich. Sahana however, doesn't get anything.

"Did you already eat?" Rajani questions as they wait for her food to arrive.

Sahana nods. "Yeah, just something light before we met up. So did you find everything? You didn't answer earlier."

Rajani shows Sahana the gifts she's managed to find, and notes her frustration at not finding anything appropriate for Nia.

Sahana hums thoughtfully. "You should talk with your friend, Queenie. I'm sure between the two of you you'll come up with something."

Rajani hadn't thought of that, and it cheers her up somewhat. "That's true. I guess mother told you about our Christmas plans then?"

Sahana nods distractedly. "She did. I think it's nice that our parents are finding friends again here in England."

Rajani stays quiet after that, and Sahana doesn't make any further attempts to create conversation either. When they return to the house, both girls retreat to their rooms and Rajani spends the evening wrapping her gifts.

In the days leading up to the Christmas gathering Rajani focuses on finishing all the assigned homework from school, so she won't have to worry about it when she sees Queenie and Eugene. It's distracting enough that she almost doesn't mind the fact that despite being at home with her family she feels rather lonely.

But it doesn't matter when Christmas morning finally dawns bright and early and Rajani springs from her bed and puts on a nice red dress that she had set aside especially for the occasion. Red was Christmas-y after all, and she adds her silver flower pin in her hair as adornment. Combined with the charm bracelet still latched onto her wrist, she thinks she cuts quite the striking figure.

Her mother agrees when she sees her youngest daughter descending the stairs. The elder Misras both look distinguished in black and silver, and Sahana looks lovely in a forest green gown. Rajani feels quite grown up.

"Well, let's be off then, we don't want to be late." Vandana gestured for Rajani to take her father's arm and the four apparate to the Shacklebolt manor.

Queenie is waiting just inside the doors and she grins broadly when Rajani steps in.

"Raj! Hey girl, get over here. Let me help you with those." She takes one of the two gifts that Rajani is clinging too and grins when she spots her name on the label. "Aw, you got me something? You didn't have to, we're swapping at school with the others right?"

Rajani smiles and follows her friend down the hall, leaving the adults and older kids to chat in the foyer. "I know, but since I'm here anyway I figured why not? You can open it later if you want. And hey, speaking of gifts, do you have any ideas for what to get Nia?"

Queenie laughs. "Dang, I was hoping you would. That little sheep you got her last year was a of genius, I don't think we're ever going to top it." They finally stop when they reach a living room. A beautiful - and in Rajani's opinion overly extravagant, though she doesn't say so - tree stands in the center of the room, and presents are scattered beneath it.

"Here, we'll leave these with the rest for now. Come up to my room, Bagheera misses you, and I honestly don't feel up to playing princess today. I think I'm coming down with a head cold."

Rajani jokingly shies away. "Gross, keep your germs away from me!" She laughs, but follows Queenie up several flights of stairs to a bedroom that really does look like something that would fit right in in a castle.

"Wow Queenie, nice place." She sits down on the bed and is immediately greeted by Queenie's black cat, who curls up on her lap and begins purring contentedly as she scratches under his chin. "Yes, hello Bagheera, I've missed you as well." She coos indulgently.

Queenie laughs at the sight. "Honestly, I think he likes you better than me. I'd be hurt if I didn't totally get why."

Rajani laughs as well, shifting slightly so that circulation to her legs isn't completely cut off by the cat sprawled across her lap. "I'm flattered. So when is Eugene supposed to arrive?"

The two chat about school and toss around ideas for what exactly to get Nia for Christmas. They're no closer to an answer when Eugene arrives, bearing gifts and dressed up in the most ostentatious suit that Rajani has ever seen. She can't help laughing when she sees him, and he tosses the jacket over her head in retaliation.

"Hey, you try saying no to my mom when she's on rampage." He grins and pets Bagheera, who mews softly, pleased with the attention, but refuses to budge from his spot on top of Rajani.

"Little snob." Queenie laughs fondly as she gets up to give Eugene a hug in greeting. "Not you. Well," She steps back, grinning. "Actually that does apply to you pretty well."

Eugene mocks offense. "And here I brought you presents. If this is the thanks I get-"

The girls laugh and Queenie hits him with a pillow before he can dramatically storm out of the room. The three stay chatting on the bed until they're called down for lunch, comparing notes on their homework and continuing to try and decode the puzzle of what to get Nia for the holidays.

The meal is passed silently by the three youngest members of the gathering, and they excuse themselves as soon as their plates are cleared and retire to the sitting room to gather around the tree.

"Hey, happy birthday by the way." Queenie pipes up suddenly, grinning over at Eugene. "I can't believe you two are both teenagers now, you make me feel so young."

Rajani feels a moment of shame that she'd forgotten the twenty fifth was Eugene's birthday as well as Christmas, but they never exchange birthday gifts since it would be entirely too difficult to do so she dismisses the guilt rather quickly. "It's really not very different from twelve." She notes idly. "At least so far as I can tell."

The rest of the attendees join them not long after and they settle in to exchange gifts. Queenie ends up being the one to pass them around, being the youngest in the room.

Rajani gets a lovely green pendant from Queenie, one that's quite similar to the one she'd gotten the other girl the year before, and they both put them on for the rest of the evening. Eugene gives her a book on Quidditch strategies, and she can't help grinning despite her father's obvious dislike of the gift.

Queenie is thrilled with the jacket and drapes it regally around her shoulders since it's too large to put on properly, and Eugene immediately starts skimming his new book when he opens it, much to Rajani's relief. She sees her mother beaming at the positive reactions out of the corner of her eye.

Maybe she doesn't really get Christmas or what it's supposed to be celebrating, but Rajani can say for sure that she enjoys it.

As it always is, returning home is a mixed blessing and curse for Myr. On the one hand, he's missed his family terribly and he's always happy to see them again. On the other, it means he has to once again field questions about the magical world from Cadi and deal with his Uncle Cyril being weirder than normal.

His mother picks him up from the train station alone and explains that Cadi is helping their uncle in his curio shop for the afternoon, and that she wants to spend some proper mother-son time together before launching into the holidays.

Myr is grateful for it, and he's also glad he'd decided to let Owen stay with Brandon over the break - he doesn't think his kitten would much appreciate being stuck in a carrier for any longer than absolutely necessary.

They stop off in a small diner and he lets his mother order for him before they settle in.

"So tell me how school has been going. I know you write us all the time but I want to hear it directly from you." She smiles encouragingly, and it's all too easy to launch into stories about the pranks Brandon and Charlie have been pulling, and to talk about Connor and Rosie and training with the Gryffindor reserves.

"Connor says that if I keep up my current rate of improvement I'll probably make the team next year." He says excitedly. "I was hoping I could practice in the backyard while I'm here, so I don't lose any of my technique."

Aster smiles. "Of course you can Myr. I'm sure your uncle would love to help you out as well, I believe he mentioned being on the team himself when he was at school."

Myr hums acknowledgement. "Some of the exercises we do need more than one person so that would be great actually."

They continue chatting over lunch, and his mother surprises him when she suggests that he invite some of his friends over for New Years.

"Mom, are you sure? Our house isn't exactly big, and most of my friends are, well, kind of destructive." His mind flits briefly over the melted cauldrons and burning curtains their dorm room has been subjected to during the year.

Aster smiles lightly. "I'm sure they'd be on their best behavior, and it would only be a few days before you all went back to school. Think about it and tell me if you invite anyone, alright? Cadi's boyfriend will be over as well so you don't need to feel awkward about having people over."

Myr nearly chokes on his food. "Cadi has a boyfriend? Why didn't she say anything in her letters?"

His mother looks surprised for a moment. "I honestly thought that she had. His name is Dylan, they've been together for about a month now."

Myr frowns, wondering why Cadi wouldn't have mentioned the guy in her letters, but he decides to simply shrug it off and ask his sister about it later when he sees her at home. The rest of the lunch is spent detailing some of the more ridiculous antics of his classmates, including Evera's quest for revenge that had occurred after the Gryffindor-Slytherin Quidditch match that had put her brother in the hospital wing for a week. The quest had subsequently put her in detention for the same amount of time, but Myr has to admit it's an entertaining story now that he's not stressing about her causing property damage.

They return home just after three, and Myr has time to unpack and get a bit of his reading for school done before Cadi and their uncle arrive a little after five thirty.

Myr is quick to ditch his Transfiguration textbook in favor of hurrying to the kitchen to greet them.

"Myr!" Cadi grabs him in a hug when he approaches. "How are you? There's so much I have to tell you."

"I'd say." He replies somewhat dryly. "Who's Dylan?"

Cadi is immediately blushing. "Mom! Why'd you tell him?" She glances back over at Myr, at least having the decency to look shamed at leaving him out of the loop. "It's not really serious yet, and I didn't think you'd care. No offense Myr, but there are some things I don't want to share with my twelve year old brother."

Myr tries to not be offended, but he can't help it. He and Cadi have always been pretty close despite the four year - nothing had ever been too private or girly for her to not share it with him before. But he smiles anyway.

"That's fine. I guess I just won't tell you when I get a girlfriend then. Only fair."

Cadi looks incredibly relieved. "Thanks Myr, I knew you'd be cool. You'll meet him in a couple weeks anyway. So hey, tell me about what you've been learning at school!"

Myr lets the topic change happen, and he does his best to explain the spells and potions he's been working on. In return Cadi tutors him in the math and Muggle history that he's missing out on at Hogwarts over the next few weeks. She even gets him some workbooks for Christmas, and Myr is self-aware enough to be a bit embarrassed by the fact he's happy about getting textbooks as gifts.

He spends most of his days out in the backyard. Uncle Cyril sets up privacy charms to deter the neighbors from snooping and the two fly around the backyard, working on Myr's form. Cyril has quite a few useful tips about how to stay on the broom and the best ways to take tight corners that Myr is only too happy to work on.

Evening are spent in the living room with hot chocolate, sometimes sharing stories but more often doing homework or reading. All in all, his break goes by rather quietly.

Then New Years approaches and he decides that he is going to invite some of his friends, against his common sense.

It takes some time to decide who exactly he'd be alright bringing home to his mother, but eventually he sends Uncle Cyril's owl off with three letters inviting his housemates to his for the last few days of break.

Holly Kiddell is the first to respond with a resounding positive, and a very long rant about how annoying it is to have to watch Laurel and her new boyfriend Eric being disgustingly cute all the time. Fiona is next, confirming that she can come but that she'll likely have to return home to get her things before they head back to school.

Charlie takes the longest to reply, and Myr is starting to wonder if his letter was somehow delivered to the wrong person by the time his response finally arrives via the Weasley's ever disastrous owl Errol.

The Great Grey Owl bounces off of their window and proceeds to pass out on the ground below it, so Myr has to go outside to retrieve the poor creature. He lets Cadi fuss over the molting mop of feathers as he retrieves the letter attached to Errol's leg.

Hey, sorry it took so long to reply, I had to wear my mum down. But I've got the all clear, so I'll see you on Wednesday! Oh, and Bill is coming too. I hope that's alright, he says he'll keep out of our way as much as he can.

Myr grins. "Mom! Is it okay if Charlie brings his older brother Bill for New Years?"

Aster calls a muffled affirmative from where she's getting ready for work. The curio shop always gets a bit busier during the holidays so she has to work more hours than usual.

Cadi looks up in interest at the information. "Bill is coming down? Charlie's mentioned him once or twice but it'll be nice to have a face to put to the name." She pauses, and then grins somewhat deprecatingly. "Same for Charlie actually. We've owled a ton but I've never actually met the kid."

While it's not news that Charlie and Cadi are in contact - Cadi often responds to both of them with one owl while they're at school - it still feels a little weird to Myr that one of his friends is also friends with his sister. "Yeah, it'll be cool for you to finally meet." He agrees out loud.

The days leading up to his friends' arrivals move agonizingly slowly, giving Myr plenty of time to fret about his magical life and his normal life getting even more tangled up than they already are. However, the decision has already been made, and he'll just have to live with any consequences that may arise from it. And his brain is quite helpful at providing the worst possible consequences available.

Finally December thirty first dawns, and he's greeted by Fiona and Holly barging into his room armed with gifts and shouting demands that he wake up.

"Jeez, when did you two get here? And who let you into my house?" He groans as Holly drops directly on top of him with no shame at all.

"Your mom let us in! We flooed to your Uncle's like you said to and then came right over. Come on grouchy, come open your gifts and be social before Charlie and Bill arrive and turn everything into Quidditch." Holly whines in her usual over dramatic way, and Myr begrudgingly pushes her off and sits up in bed despite not wanting to face the chilly morning just yet.

"Alright alright, I'm up. Get out so I can change." He grumbles good naturedly, and the girls laugh as they race back out and down the hall.

Myr struggles into the first sweater he can find and a pair of worn jeans and thick socks before padding down the hall after them. He finds Cadi squealing excitedly over a tiny dragon that's sitting in her hand, idly puffing smoke.

"Lookit! Fiona brought him, she says it's a specially enchanted figurine." Cadi hoists the small dragon into the air. "She got one for Charlie too but I got first pick since he's not here yet."

Myr is glad to see that his usually quiet and introverted sister is getting along with his friends, but he's not sure it's a good idea to have a mini dragon running around the house. "It won't burn anything down will it?"

Fiona smiles in understanding. "Don't worry Myr, I showed her how to deactivate and reactivate the charm so it won't be wandering around without supervision." She promises. "Now come see your gift wouldya? I'm excited to see if you like it."

When Myr sees the long, thin box that Fiona is gesturing to he knows immediately what it is, though he doens't get his hopes up in case he's wrong.

However, when he opens the gift, sure enough, a simple broomstick is nestled inside.

"It's a Cleansweep 200." Fiona says happily. "Not the best or newest broom on the market but still better than the school ones I'd think."

Myr hugs her excitedly. "This is amazing Fi! You really didn't have to."

She grins as she returns the hug. "Hey, if we're gonna be a team, I need you to be able to keep up don't I?"

"Gosh dang it NO QUIDDITCH." Holly whines miserably. "I have to hear enough about it at home!"

Myr laughs but relents, and they soon find themselves listening to Holly go on about the internship she'll be starting with her father in the summer. Cadi in particular is absolutely fascinated by the workings of wands and the two girls end up conducting their own conversation while the rest of them slip away.

"When do you think Charlie and Bill will get here? We'd probably have enough people here for a small pick up game." Fiona notes as she and Myr laze on the floor in front of the fireplace. He's polishing his new broom while she thumbs through the copy of Quidditch Through the Ages that Myr had permanently borrowed from his Uncle. "And you and I could work on our teamwork."

Myr smiles. "I think we'd only have enough people for one beater per team, though we don't actually have any bludgers to use if we did play a game."

Fiona frowns. "Right, I forget sometimes that you're Muggleborn like me." She sighs. "We need to meet up at a wizarding family's house next time."

Charlie and Bill arrive a few hours later, accompanied by Uncle Cyril who's extremely excited to see Myr's new broom and agrees that a small game would be a fun way to pass the evening.

Holly's complaints on the subject go unspoken this time as she's still wrapped up in conversation with Cadi. The two girls had paused briefly to greet the Weasley boys when they had arrived, but were very quick to fall back into their own world of wand woods and cores.

The group gathers in the backyard and Cyril again puts up wards to prevent the neighbors from seeing the group.

They end up just tossing a makeshift Quaffle around in a version of the keep-away game the reserves team is so fond of. Naturally Fiona and Myr are the best, and once they figure this out they start actively trying to position themselves so they can always pass to one another.

Finally the group heads back inside thirty minutes before midnight. Aster is sitting with Cadi and Holly and all three have steaming cups of hot chocolate piled high with marshmallows. Cyril is quick to magic up five more cups for the chilly group and everyone settles in to chat and count down to the start of the new year.

"You think 1986 is going to be any better than 85?" Charlie asks as he sits next to Myr.

Myr glances over at him. "85 wasn't so bad." He replies, and the furrows his brow. "Actually 85 was pretty smooth sailing overall. I'd appreciate 86 being much of the same."

Charlie laughs. "You would. I'm hoping something dramatic happens to liven things up, school has been so boring this year!"

Myr immediately tenses. "No helping it be more interesting." He says, and Charlie just laughs loudly.

"No promises my friend."

Myr wants to retort further, but Cadi excitedly calls that there's only a minute left until midnight.

That's when Myr realizes her supposed boyfriend had never shown up. He nods to Charlie before getting up and walking over to his sister.

"Hey, where's this Dylan I was supposed to meet?" He tries to keep his tone light and hopes that the question won't put Cadi in a bad mood.

She shifts uncomfortably. "Something came up with his grandmother so he couldn't make it. You'll meet him over the summer probably." She assures him, just as Charlie and Fiona start the final countdown.

Myr enters the new year with a twist in his gut and the feeling that the year is going to be one to remember. Whether or not that's a good thing he really isn't sure.