When she woke on Christmas morning, Niamh bolted out of bed and was halfway across the common room before she remembered that Harry wasn’t in his bed but in the hospital wing.  She felt a pang of loss and wrapped her arms about her torso, casting a sad glance towards the Hexer’s Corner.

“Oh, Harry…” she murmured.  “I miss you.”

“Mrow?”

Niamh blinked and looked down as something landed on her bare foot.  The cat she’d bought in Hogsmeade peered up at her, one ear twitching.

“Hey, cutie.”  She leaned down and picked up the tiny gray tabby, cuddling it.  The cat meowed and batted her hand with a paw.  “You hungry?”

“Mrow.”

“I’ll take that as a ‘yes’.  Let’s go get some breakfast then.”

“Mrow.”

Niamh chuckled and turned to walk back into her dorm, cat in hand.  She plunked the creature down on her bed then bounded over to Amanda’s bed, leaping onto the sleeping girl with a laugh.  Amanda let out a little shriek and tried to scramble away.  She then saw who it was and shoved her away.

“Niamh!”

Niamh grinned cheekily and chirped, “Good morning, sunshine.  Happy Christmas!”

“Happy Christmas,” mumbled Amanda.  “Can I go back to sleep now?”

“Oh, c’mon, Amanda!  It’s Christmas!  Let’s go.”

“Okay, okay…I’m up.”

“Yay!” yipped Niamh, jumping off of her bed.  She bounced back over to her own and threw open her trunk.  “Hey, Hed!  Hedwig!”

The black snake slithered out from under the bed and blinked blearily up at the dark-haired girl.

“Humans…insane.”

< The snake just called you insane, you know, > said Jardin, flapping his wings.

“Well, good morning to you too,” said Niamh, smiling at the raven.  Ever since the trip to Hogsmeade he had taken to roosting in her dorm instead of the Owlery.  “Now turn around, Jar.”

< What? >

“I’m changing.”

< So? >

“Jar,” growled Niamh and the raven sighed mentally.

< Fine, fine.  I’m turning. >

“Thank you.”

“Very much,” said Amanda as she climbed out of bed.  “It’s weird enough having you in here when we change.”

Jardin hunched down on his perch on Niamh’s headboard and rustled his feathers irritably.

< I never have to do this with Harry. >

“Harry’s a guy,” said Niamh and Amanda in unison.

< How observant of you.  Give the girls a Kewpie. >

“Mrow?” said the cat, blinking up at the raven.

Jardin turned his head over his shoulder to glare at the cat.

<Don’t even think about it, cat. >

“Jar!” shrieked Amanda, covering herself with her cloak.

< Sorry! >

Niamh just shook her head and finished pulling on a turtleneck.

/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/

“Happy Christmas, Professor!”

Severus blinked then smiled as he saw Niamh half hanging into his office.

“Happy Christmas, Niamh.  How are you?”

“Fine, sir,” replied Niamh, sidling into his office.

“No, really, child.  How are you?”

Niamh blinked then dropped the happy charade, a frown slipping onto her features.  She looked up at her Head of House and muttered, “Not at all well, sir.  I miss him.”

Severus smiled gently at her and said, “As do I.  But today is not a day to be sad.  It’s Christmas, child.  One of the most joyous times of the year.”

“Hard to be joyous, sir.  If I might say so.”

“I know exactly how you feel,” said Severus.  He rose from behind his desk and walked over to her, easing her out into the corridor as he closed the door to his office.  “But come.  Let us drown our troubles in the joy’s of Christmas and Albus’ eccentricities.”

Niamh chuckled and said, “I’m sure the Headmaster wouldn’t be thrilled at you calling him eccentric.”

Severus just laughed and said, “Ha!  That old man would delight in it.  Now come.  If I’m not mistaken, Rebecca will already be waiting for us.  And what of your friends?”

“Well, Amanda is going to wake up Ginny before she comes down here and Mika is supposed to go get Ron, Hermione, and Neville.”

“I see.  And they know to come down here, do they not?”

“Yes, sir.  But they don’t know where.”  Niamh blinked and added, “Even I don’t know where!”

Severus smiled down at her and said, “You’re about to find out.”  He muttered something in a language that Niamh thought she recognized.  She had heard Harry speaking it once…

“Huh?  Oh!” exclaimed Niamh as part of the wall in front of them slid away.  “A hidden entrance!”

Severus smiled and gave Niamh a gentle push forward, saying, “You head on in.  I believe all of your gifts and your friends are inside.  I’ll wait here for them.”

“Oh, okay.”  Niamh wandered on into his rooms and saw Rebecca standing over the fireplace, prodding the logs inside with a poker.  “Hello, Professor.”

“Oh.  Happy Christmas, Niamh,” said Rebecca with a smile.  “Where are the others?”

“They’re coming.  Holy Hades!  Are these all the presents?”

Rebecca smirked at the very large pile of presents sitting at the base of the small tree she had made Severus put up.  “Yes, I believe they are.  Have a seat, dear.  It might be a while before everyone is down here if I know anything about Ronald Weasley.”

Niamh laughed at that.

“Mione’ll get him up.  Trust me.”

Rebecca smiled and said, “I suppose I shall have to.”

/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/

“Presents!” crowed Ginny an hour and a half later after they all had treated themselves to the small feast Dobby and two other house-elves had brought them.

“Yes, yes,” said Severus.  “One at a time.  Much less hassle.”

“Severus, why don’t you have them out?” asked Rebecca.

“Me?  Well, alright…Miss Weasley, I believe this one is yours.”

“Thank you, Professor,” said Ginny as she took the proffered gift.  She ripped it open then grinned at Mika as she hugged a stuffed dragon close.  “Thanks, Mik!”

Mika flushed a slight pink and mumbled, “Welcome.”

Severus smiled slightly at the interaction between the two of them then picked up another gift.

“Miss Granger…”

“Oh!  Thank you, sir.”  Her expression saddened as she saw Harry’s familiar scrawl on the package.  When she opened it she found a note and a book on Charms.  Unfolding the note, she saw Harry’s spidery scrawl again.

Happy Christmas, Mione,

Hope you like surprises.  Just say ‘Magus’ over the book and you’ll get a big one.  But don’t do it in the presence of any teachers.  They’d confiscate it for sure.

Curious yet?

Merry studying,

Harry

Hermione smiled and tucked the note into her pocket.  She was definitely curious about what sort of book her friend would have sent her.

“Ah…Mister Weasley.  This is yours if I don’t mistake your mother’s handwriting.”

“Oh no,” groaned Ron, taking the package.  He opened it and held up a maroon sweater.  “Not again!”

Ginny chuckled and said, “You should tell her to stop sending maroon one’s.”

“I can’t!  She’d kill me!”

Ginny and Severus both laughed at that as Severus handed a gift to Mika.  The white-haired boy ripped the package open – which was from his father – to reveal what looked like a Foe-Glass.  He shook his head and muttered, “Thanks, Dad.”

“Heh,” said Severus, shaking his head as well.  He then handed a package to Rebecca before tossing a small one to Amanda, who deftly caught it.  Things went on like this for a while before there were only two gifts left; one for Severus and one for Niamh.

“There are holes in this box,” said Severus as he held it up, frowning at it.  He then looked at Niamh and asked, “What sort of creature have you put in here?  Not something of Hagrid’s, I hope.”

The dark-haired girl just laughed and replied, “Just open it, sir!”

Severus arched an eyebrow at her and said, “Ah, cryptic are we?  Well, then…”  He opened the top of the box and was immediately leapt upon by the tiny gray tabby.  “What in Merlin’s name…?”

“It’s a cat, Professor,” said Hermione.

“I can see that, Miss Granger.  And what made you think I needed such a creature, Niamh?”

Niamh shrugged and replied, “I thought she could keep you company, sir.  After all, most wizard have a pet and you don’t.”

“Hmm.  A ‘she’ is it?  Well then.  I suppose I’ll have to think up a name.”  He patted the cat’s head then nodded at the gift sitting on Niamh’s lap.  “Open that then.  I want to see what it is.”

“Who’s it from?” asked Mika, trying to peer over Niamh’s shoulder.

“It…it’s from Harry,” breathed the girl.  She stared down at the package for a moment before she slowly and very carefully removed the wrapping.  A moment later she was gaping down at the stereo her best friend had been working on for the entirety of the year before.  “Oh Slytherin…Harry, you ruddy bastard!  I can’t believe it!”

“Isn’t that a radio?” asked Rebecca.

“How do you know what a radio is, Becca?” asked Severus, frowning at her.

“My mother does live as a Muggle, Severus.  She happens to own a few.  They don’t work but she owns some.”

“Ah.”

“I thought Muggle eclectricy didn’t work here,” said Ron.

“It’s el-ec-tric-ity, Ron,” corrected Amanda.  “Electricity.”

“Whatever.”

“It will work in the castle,” breathed Niamh as she lifted the stereo free of its wrapping, revealing two CD’s taped to the bottom of it.  “He was working on it for a year, trying to get it to run off magic instead of electricity.  I…I guess he finished it.”

“What are those?” asked Hermione, peering at the CD’s.

“Uh…ooo!”

“What?” asked Ginny.

“NIN!  Let me up, I have to go kiss him!”

“NIN?” said Neville.

“Nine Inch Nails,” explained Amanda.  “What’s the names?”

“The Downward Spiral and Pretty Hate Machine.  Mmm, this is gonna be good.”

“Very interesting, Miss O’Feir,” said Severus but now I believe it is time for lunch.  We have been down here opening these presents for an hour.”

“I’m hungry,” mumbled Ron as they all started to leave.

“That’s the point of going to eat, silly,” quipped Hermione, hitting him lightly on the shoulder.

Niamh laughed and said, “C’mon, Mione, you know we have to explain everything to Ron.”

“True,” said Neville softly, earning a laugh from the others – including small chuckles from Severus and Rebecca’s vicinity.

It took Ron a few moments before he processed what had been said.

“Hey…”

“Oh, shut up and let’s go eat!” said Mika, giving the taller boy a playful shove forward.