The Holidays Came Fast

(Bringing a friend with them)

It was the beginning of the holidays. The time had flown by without a hitch, and my parents and I had decided I should stay at Hogwarts. My parents were visiting my great-uncle with my brother, and I didn't like my great-uncle very much. He seemed to have forgotten that I actually was older than four.

Almost everyone else was leaving. All my dorm-mates, and all my friends. Only a first-year Hufflepuff, a Ravenclaw boy in my year, Severus Snape, and I were left.

I had managed to convince Sirius that I needed the lesson plans for the next few weeks over the holidays, so I spent the first day or so Transfiguring teapots into tortoises, practising Cheering Charms, and learning about strange magical creatures and their properties, fire salamanders in particular. Professor Kettleburn had contacted for the first time, and told me that from what information he had received, I was ready for hands-on learning in Care of Magical Creatures. He had given me a batch of salamander eggs with specific instructions on how to care for them, and added that I should bring them to him in a month. I also had to translate a few papers of Ancient Runes into English, fill out five charts for Astronomy, and study names in Arithmancy. I finished the Third Year syllabus by midnight on 23 of December.

By then all twelve gigantic Christmas trees had been placed in the Great Hall. Enchanted mistletoe was drifting all over the place, never mind the fact that there were a minimal amount of people around. The suits of armour were actually shining, and I was distracted every half-hour by the delicious aromas coming from the kitchen. Peeves was zooming towards everyone in sight, pelting them with anything in reach.

It was quite a site to see the teachers levitating candles and globes and live fairies into place on the trees. Snow was strewn on the floor and anything that would stay still enough. Including me.

The whole air of the castle was festive, even though it was generated by mostly Dumbledore and a few of the other teachers. I was too busy with my studies to do anything about it right then.

Then, on Christmas Eve, I was awakened by a screech.

"Sanya!"

"Go away." I moaned, turning my head the other way.

"Sani Sani Sani Sani! Wake up! It's me!"

There's only one person I know of who's allowed to call me 'Sani', I thought. Devi. Devi? She can't be here. Can she? Devi was my best friend in America. When I had told her I was going away for a long while, she grilled me. I did my best to keep it a secret, but she found out enough to be sure and told me that when she went away to Massachusetts during the school year she was going to Salem School. Her parents were divorced and her dad was a wizard who lived in Massachusetts, so she went there.

"Devi? DEVI!" I sat straight up and pulled her into a hug. "How'd you get here? Why are you here?"

She looked like she always did, perfect in a sloppy way. Her dark hair was done up in a quick bun over her fair, slightly freckled face. She had on worn-out looking jeans and a sweater, purple robes levitated behind her. Devi was beautiful, breathtaking. She was short and hyper-active, always in a good mood. She got excited over the smallest things, and loved to scream in joy.

Devi jumped on my bed and landed sprawled on her stomach. "I got permission from the school to come here for Christmas and Valentine's. Dumbledore said it was okay, too." Devi always talked as if she was in a rush, her words tumbling from her mouth.

"Oh my God, Devi! You're really here! How are you? Oh my God!" Devi and I were always prone to fits of happiness around each other. We're quite calm and collected otherwise.

We babbled at each other for a while, with me pouring out everything that had happened since the last time I saw her, and with Devi burying me up to my ears with questions.

"Show me! Show me the castle and the secret passages and everything! I want to see everything! I want to see the Room of Requirement, the vanishing cabinet, the Gryffindor dorms, the dungeons, the Quiddich pitch, the Forbidden Forest, the owlery, and everyone in the castle. NOW!" Devi can be very, um, persuasive when she wants to be.

We spent the rest of the day skipping and hopping all around the castle, singing both Muggle and Wizarding songs at the top of our lungs, whether they were Christmas songs or not. Ode to Joy, Deck the Halls, Ye Merry Hipporgriffs, and a few choice other rock/pop songs, such as Merry Freakin' Christmas, Number One, Roses, Behind These Hazel Eyes, Breakaway, and many others. Devi and I got several dark looks from Snape and the DADA teacher, but it was all Dumbledore could do to keep from laughing at the sight of us. I remember going to sleep at about three in the morning, with the house-elves shuffling patiently outside our door, waiting to deliver our Christmas gifts.

I couldn't ask for a better Christmas, I thought as I finally fell asleep. It turns out I could have.