With December fully upon them, the weather took a turn for the worse, bringing frigid winds and heavy gray clouds that dusted the ground with snow. As the semester exams loomed closer, Harry found himself buried under a mountain of homework assigned by his professors, eroding any semblance of free time he might have had.
However, when the exams began, Harry quickly realized that most of them were far less daunting than he had anticipated. Potions proved challenging, thanks to Professor Snape, who seemed intent on making Harry's life miserable, but he still managed to achieve an Exceeding Expectations. History of Magic was another tough subject, yet he fared well there too, considering all.
With no plans to return to his relatives for the Christmas holidays—after all, he wouldn't exactly be welcomed—Harry chose to remain at Hogwarts. This earned him a few playful glares from the trio of chasers, as Oliver Wood had the brilliant idea to host all-day training sessions during the holiday break for those still around, namely Harry and the Weasley twins.
On Christmas morning, Harry indulged in a bit of extra sleep, waking up around nine. To his surprise, he was the first to stir. The Dursleys had never treated him to gifts, so he wasn't sure what to expect this year. But when he ventured into the common room, he found a pile of presents waiting for him under the tree.
Atop the stack lay a box of chocolate frogs from Hermione—somewhat unexpected, considering her parents were dentists—and a box of assorted candies from Draconica. Ironically, Harry had sent her a similar gift through Oliver Wood's trip to Hogsmeade the previous week. Neville had sent him a book about the magical properties of plants commonly found in Muggle life, while Oliver gifted him a booklet featuring advanced seeker moves, typical of the Quidditch enthusiast. As for the Weasley twins, their reputation for pranks made Harry cautious about opening their package.
His mind wandered to thoughts of whether his friends liked the gifts he had sent them. Hermione received sugar-free sweets; Neville got a Muggle book on curative plants—originally intended for Harry himself, but he figured his friend could benefit from it more. The twins had received a selection of prank candies from Zonko's; anything less would have surely invited chaos into Hogwarts during the holidays. Just as he was lost in thought, the trio of chasers descended into the common room. Turning to them, Harry said cheerfully, "Merry Christmas!"
Alicia, Angelina, and Katie exchanged glances and nodded, then approached him. Katie moved right in front of Harry and, rising onto her toes, gave him a warm hug that left him blushing. He couldn't help but notice that she wasn't wearing anything beneath her pajama top.
"Merry Christmas, Harry!" she said brightly, before Angelina took her spot. Much like Katie, Angelina wrapped him in her embrace, but with an added playful squeeze to his behind. Finally, it was Alicia's turn, and with a cheeky grin, she also hugged him close, her hand wandering almost too far down as well, driving Harry to an almost impossible shade of crimson. The trio of chasers left him stunned in the middle of the room to collect their own gifts.
"Hey!" the Weasley twins called out from the stairs leading to the boys' dormitory. "What about us, girls?" Alicia stuck out her tongue playfully at them before the girls scampered off, giggling. The twins attempted to get Harry's attention, but he was still reeling from the unexpected attention and hardly registered their comments. Eventually, realizing they weren't getting a response, Fred and George gathered their Christmas gifts and headed back to their own dormitory, likely plotting their next prank on either Ron or Percy.
Once Harry regained his composure after the unexpected "gifts" from the girls, he noticed a small package he had somehow overlooked. It was thin and light, and upon opening it, he discovered a cloak along with an anonymous note that read:
"Your father left it in my care, and I believe it is time to return it to its rightful owner. Use it wisely."
~/ *** \~
As soon as Harry read the note, a small spell beacon activated in the headmaster's office, alerting Albus Dumbledore that the invisibility cloak was now back in Harry's possession. The oath to his father, James, was the only reason this happened—otherwise, Dumbledore would have kept it for himself, despite being unable to unravel the cloak's true secrets. After all, he could turn himself invisible with a simple flick of his wand. Why squander his magic when he had access to such a splendid artifact?
"I wonder what you will do with it, Harry," Dumbledore mused, pondering how he might explain the significance of a certain magical mirror to the young Potter once the cloak's charm compelled him to seek it out.
~/ *** \~
Studying the cloak, Harry found it incredibly thin and feather-light, almost as if it were woven from air, yet it felt ancient and remarkably preserved. Intrigued, he decided to see if the rumors were true about its capabilities. As he donned the cloak, he glanced at his reflection in a nearby mirror and barely contained his excitement—everything covered by the cloak appeared to vanish!
"Whoa!" Harry exclaimed, realizing he possessed an invisibility cloak! He had learned about these during his studies, yet this specific cloak contradicted everything he knew. Traditional invisibility cloaks were made from the fur of demiguise and certainly not from such delicate, ethereal material. Moreover, even the most effective invisibility cloaks typically lasted no longer than fifty years, while his looked as if it had existed since before King Arthur.
Realizing that the cloak would serve him best if kept a secret, Harry carefully folded it, picked up his other gifts, and headed to the dormitory to stow it away in his trunk.
By the time he made his way to the Great Hall for dinner, a nagging voice urged him to try on the cloak. It beckoned him to explore the castle after curfew. As the whispers grew insistent, Harry surmised it was likely a compulsion, a magical charm placed upon him by the cloak.
Unsure of how to detect such charms, the young Gryffindor decided to attempt to dispel any magic affecting himself or the cloak, especially anything that may have been placed in the last twenty-four hours. It seemed like a daunting task, but he suspected the compulsion originated from the cloak.
Once in the dorms, Harry retrieved it from his trunk and, hoping to eliminate only the compulsion, pointed his wand at the cloak.
"Finite incantem!" To his surprise, the spell worked, releasing a faint bluish wisp of magic from the cloak. Wearing it once more, Harry was relieved to discover he remained invisible. Just to ensure the compulsion was entirely negated, he cast the same spell on himself and anything else that might have carried the charm. An hour later, he was relieved to find the persistent voice urging him to explore the castle had vanished. Now free from the spell, he began to ponder who might have placed it. The only person who came to mind was the headmaster—after all, he was the one who had brought the Philosopher's Stone into a school filled with children, his motivations shrouded in mystery.
~/ *** \~
That night, Albus Dumbledore sat hidden in a corner of an unused classroom, waiting for Harry to 'accidentally' discover the Mirror of Erised. Unfortunately, the boy never arrived. Dumbledore rationalized that perhaps it was just the first night, and Harry had simply wandered elsewhere in the castle. The compulsion wasn't powerful enough to force a student to the mirror instantly, yet he hoped the boy would eventually find his way there.
"Oh well, perhaps tomorrow," Dumbledore thought as he downed a potion to replenish his energy after a sleepless night. As headmaster, he needed to project an image of liveliness and readiness, setting an example for the students.
However, Harry did not come to the mirror the following night either. Dumbledore's concern grew that his compulsion had failed. It was imperative that Harry found the mirror; after all, how could he hope to protect the stone without understanding the object it would ultimately be placed inside? Dumbledore wasn't certain that Harry Potter was the prophesied one. Meanwhile, Neville Longbottom seemed an unlikely candidate as well.
After the third night passed without Harry's visitation to the mirror, Dumbledore resolved to check on him discreetly. To his astonishment, he found only the faintest traces suggesting that Harry had ever been under the charm. The boy had detected the cloak's compulsion and dispelled it somehow. Slightly unsettled yet undeterred, Dumbledore considered that a more subtle compulsion should do the trick, and he discreetly cast a new charm on Harry during lunch. This one would take a couple of days to take effect, granting the headmaster some much-needed rest that night.
~/ *** \~
On December 30th, while working on his Potions homework before dinner, Harry realized he needed to visit the library for some ingredients listed in the larger tomes. He grabbed his trunk and set off for the library, but after pausing for dinner, he discovered he couldn't finish his essay before Madam Pince locked the library until January 2nd.
Although he was close to completing his work, Harry deemed it unreasonable to delay finishing it for a couple more days. With no access to the books he needed—Madam Pince didn't allow books to be checked out—he was uncertain what to do… Or rather, could he employ the invisibility cloak to sneak back into the library and finish his work? It seemed a clever idea, so he decided to give it a try.
Completely absorbed in his work, Harry lost track of time and after several hours realized he was well past curfew. As he prepared to leave, cloaked in invisibility, he spotted Professor Snape patrolling the library. Moving as quietly as he could, he edged towards the exit.
Luck seemed to elude him this night as he discovered Filch waiting outside with his cat. Unsure if he could slip by them undetected, Harry opted to bide his time, hoping they would move elsewhere. He began wandering through the darkened corridors of the castle, almost as if his feet were leading him.
Before long, he found himself in an unused classroom piled high with desks and chairs against the walls, and drawing his gaze was a grand mirror, stretching to the ceiling, gleaming in an ornate gold frame, balanced on clawed feet. An inscription adorned its top, "Erised stra ehru oyt ube cafru oyt on wohsi." At first glance, the text seemed unintelligible, but as Harry focused, he realized it was English—just jumbled, with spaces rearranged.
"I show not your face, but your heart's desire." He whispered the inscription in awe... Intrigued by what his own heart might desire, he stepped before the mirror. The reflection that greeted him took his breath away.
The mirrored version of himself looked to be around eighteen years old and held a young woman in his arms, her features blurred but her hair depicted as blonde. Flanking them were two adults: a striking red-haired woman with bright green eyes—just like his own—and a tall, thin man who, if not for the hazel eyes and slightly graying hair, could pass for an older Harry. The couple waved cheerfully, while the girl nestled closer to mirrored Harry's chest.
"Mom… Dad…" Harry breathed, finally recognizing who the adults were. Though he had never seen any photographs, the descriptions provided by Hagrid and other professors made it easy for him to connect the dots.
As Harry glanced back into the mirror, his reflection had transformed. Now, a couple of older adults stood behind his parents, presumably his paternal grandparents—his grandfather resembling his father without the glasses and appearing older. Alongside them, another couple, likely his mother's parents, graced the scene as well—his maternal grandfather with dark brown hair beginning to gray alongside a pretty woman with reddish locks. In the shadows loomed older versions of Neville, Hermione, the chasers, and professors McGonagall and Flitwick, with Hagrid too. Buried in shadows at the back were additional figures he couldn't recognize.
"Family and friends..." Harry whispered. "That's what my heart desires most." Suddenly, he was jolted back to reality by the sound of someone settling onto a desk. Whipping around, he spotted the headmaster seated in the corner.
"So, you have discovered the wonders of the Mirror of Erised," Dumbledore said, rising to greet him.
"S-Sir... I didn't see you there," Harry stammered, half fearing the old man would reprimand him for being out after hours.
"It's amusing how being invisible can make one nearsighted," Dumbledore replied with a gentle smile. "You've grasped the significance of the mirror; it shows our heart's deepest and most desperate desires. Given your lack of knowledge about your family, you see them here in the reflection. Though they may be gone, they live on in your heart. And while a family of your own is a dream worth pursuing, this mirror offers neither wisdom nor truth. I implore you to avoid seeking it again; after all, countless individuals have squandered their lives fixated in front of it, and I wouldn't wish for my student to become one of them." Harry nodded. "Very well. Why don't you don that admirable cloak again and head to bed?" Dumbledore thought privately, "I'm relieved that his desire is family and friends. The world wouldn't survive if he followed in Tom Riddle's footsteps."
~/ *** \~
Lying in his bed later, Harry pondered the strange path that had led him to the mirror in the first place. It struck him as odd that he had wandered so far from the dormitory, prompting him to suspect it might be another result of a compulsion—likely the one that had been placed on him and not just the cloak. He quickly cast a magic canceller on himself once more, releasing another wisp of magic into the air.
"That old…!" Harry cursed softly as he realized that the headmaster had orchestrated the entire mirror encounter. It would take time before he could trust Dumbledore fully again.