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-Christmas – Great Hall, breakfast-
'This is the first Christmas I've spent at Hogwarts' I thought, looking around and seeing the Great Hall completely decorated, impressing me with the beauty of the place.
'Hmm, maybe this is the famous magic of Christmas' I hummed.
It was breakfast time and the great hall was almost completely full of students, which was very rare, but I couldn't say it was surprising.
Many students hadn't returned home for the Christmas holidays because of the Yule Ball, and we were also hosting students from the other two schools at the castle, so it wasn't a surprise to see that there were so many people at Hogwarts.
But shaking my head I stopped thinking about it and decided to focus on the conversation of my friends, who were talking about the Christmas presents they received this year.
"Oh, was that the Christmas present your parents sent you?" Anthony asked Padma, who was playing with a gold disc the size of her palm.
"Yes" she nodded with a happy smile.
"Huh? But what is this?" Stephen asked with a strange expression, "Because to me it just looks like a simple disc."
"This is a retractable model" I answered for her.
"Retractable model?" he tilted his head in confusion.
"Yes" Padma nodded, "This disc is a magical retractable model, and when you unlock it it reconstructs itself and becomes some monument or landscape, and they are usually sold to tourists in souvenir shops" and saying this she placed her hand over the disc and spun.
And then a metallic unlocking sound sounded from the disc, which began to move and rebuild itself, and within seconds the disc transformed into a miniature gold replica of a monument that I quickly recognized as the Taj Mahal, which in the future will be recognized as one of the new 7 wonders of the world.
"This is the Taj Mahal, a historic Mausoleum that my family and I visited this summer vacation" Padma said, placing the model on the table and playing with it, "When we were in the Tal Mahal souvenir shop I saw a model similar to this one and I really liked it, and I think my father noticed this and decided to buy me one like it, only magical"
And the Indian girl then smiled, "And I'm glad I got this as a gift, since I really wanted it."
"And why did you want it?" Lisa asked curiously.
"Well, usually my dad is very busy with work, which is why we don't go on many trips with the whole family" she began to explain, "But this last summer he took some time off from work so we could spend time together, and when we returned to India we visited several tourist attractions there, including the Taj Mahal, and that was one of the summers I had the most fun and enjoyed"
And listening to her explanation, my friends and I looked at Padma, who was looking at the model with a soft smile, and we couldn't help but smile too.
"Well, I don't know about you, but now I want a magical model too" Stephen commented.
"If I'm not mistaken in that trinket shop in Hogsmeade they sell models of Hogwarts, I just don't know if they are retractable like this one" Michel said, with a finger on his chin.
"Hmm, you know you can make a magic model yourself, right?" I said, drawing attention to myself, "You just need to build the model model and then do a little enchantment work on it."
"You talk like it's easy" Terry snorted.
"Because it is" I shrugged.
However, I don't think any of my friends agreed with me, as they just looked at me with a frown.
'''Damn magical prodigy''' they thought.
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-At the Greengrass Mansion-
[POV – Third Person]
At the Greengrass family mansion, the family of four sat around a table drinking coffee, enjoying each other's company as they chatted and ate happily.
"Uhm, tell the boss this pie is really good" Tori said with a look of satisfaction as she filled her mouth with blackberry pie.
"Swear? I didn't even realize you liked it" her mother, Elizabeth, commented amusedly, looking at the plate where the pie was and seeing that it was almost completely eaten.
And beside her, her husband looked at his youngest daughter with his mouth open, 'How did such a small girl manage to eat a big pie almost entirely?!'
And while her parents looked at Astoria in a mixture of amusement and surprise, the fourth member of the family looked at her sister with narrowed eyes.
'Strange, Tori doesn't usually eat that much... And actually she shouldn't, especially not something as unhealthy as pie' she thought, frowning.
But as she looked at her family's little joy bomb Daphne realized that she wasn't showing any signs that her illness was affecting her or making her weak.
And reflecting on this, the eldest daughter of the Greengrass family realized that since the beginning of the school year her sister has been showing a significant change, seeming more energetic, lively and strong.
In short, she looked healthier.
And Daphne knew that she wasn't the only one who had noticed this, as her other classmates had also commented on her sister's change.
'Hmm, something must have happened' she thought, 'And I have a feeling Tori knows what it was'
And with that thought in mind Daphne decided she would find out the truth.
"Tori" she called her sister, who turned to her.
"Yes?" Tori asked, still keeping the same happy look.
"Aren't you feeling tired? Or sick?" Daphne asked, confusing the younger Greengrass.
"Uh…no. I'm not feeling tired or sick" she replied, looking at her sister with a strange expression.
"Are you sure?" Daphne insisted.
"Yes..." Astoria said slowly.
And all this questioning of her sister started to sound strange to Astoria, who looked at Daphne with suspicion.
"Hmm, interesting" Daphne said, with a calculating gleam in her eyes.
She then crossed her arms and leaned back in her chair, "You know, I noticed a few weeks ago that you seem more energetic and healthy than before... Did something happen to you?"
And that question made Tori freeze momentarily, "Oh, nothing happened" she replied with a tight smile, trying to remain calm.
'She's lying' Daphne realized.
"Really?" she narrowed her eyes, "Because to me it seems like you've changed a lot, and I don't remember the last time I saw you suffering because of your 'condition'."
"And by the way, I also don't remember seeing you going to the hospital wing for your weekly check-up when we were at school."
And at this moment Astoria began to feel nervousness growing inside her.
"Err... well..." Tori started to say while looking away, "I don't know what you're talking about..."
And Tori then looked at her parents and noticed that they were also looking at them, and she could see the worry in their eyes, as well as confusion and suspicion.
"Tori?" Her father called her softly, "What aren't you telling us?"
"Nothing dad" she replied, but the look on his face showed that he didn't believe her.
"Honey" her mother grabbed your hand on the table, "What happened? You know you can tell us everything, right?"
And looking into her mother's worried and loving eyes, Astoria began to give in.
She knew that Daphne's questioning and suspicions were just because she cared about her, and seeing her parents and sister, the only family she had that she loved dearly, looking at her worriedly, she knew she couldn't keep hiding the truth.
'I-I... I don't think I can keep lying to them' she thought, before the image of a happy and playful boy with amber eyes flashed in her mind.
'Ethan already said he doesn't mind if I tell someone the truth, but I still don't know what my family's reaction will be' Astoria pursed her lips.
'I'm scared that once they find out the truth, my parents will try to bother Ethan and end up causing some problems for him'
And Tori's fears and worries were not unfounded, as she knew very well how incredible and shocking Ethan's feat of curing her Blood Malediction was.
All the past generations of her family, her parents, her sister and even herself have searched for a cure for this curse, but they have never been able to find anything.
And now, a boy who wasn't even part of her family simply appeared and cured her with some mysterious method, completely eliminating the Blood Malediction that had tormented her for so many years.
And because of that it was obvious that his family would want an explanation of how a random boy managed to do something that not even the most experienced and powerful wizards in his family could.
'I don't know what to do...' Tori thought, sighing as she lowered her head.
She then felt her mother squeeze her hand lightly, and looking up she saw her family looking at her with concern.
And seeing this, Astoria began to remember all the times her parents and sister took care of her.
She remembered them staying up all night at her bedside when she was in pain, them feeding her when she was too weak to do it herself, them staying sleepless nights because they were in the library researching her illness to try to find a cure.
And she also remembered that they never gave up on her, always helping her, encouraging her, making her feel loved and important.
And all these things made Astoria realize how important her family was to her, and that helped her make her decision.
"I'm going to tell you the truth" she said, making her family focus entirely on her.
And seeing that the three's attention was on her, Tori then took a deep breath, "I am cured of Blood Malediction" she said calmly.
"What? I didn't hear you" Sebastian said, and Tori lifted her head to look directly at her family.
"I said I'm cured of Blood Malediction!" she repeated loudly.
...
...
...
...
"""WHAT!?""" the other three members of your family exclaimed in shock.
End.
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