Author's Note: Merry Christmas! Since I don't know for sure if I'm going to have time to update again before Christmas (I probably will, but just in case…) this chapter is a Christmas themed chapter. Sorry to those of you who don't celebrate Christmas and also to those who may be reading this in July. :)

Chapter 16: The Joys of Giving

Thanks to Teddy, Nick made friends very quickly. He had joined Teddy's circle of friends, and they had welcomed him just as quickly as Teddy had. The group included Michael Wood, and Alex and Amanda Muellenton, all three Gryffindors from Teddy's year.

Michael was the son of Oliver Wood, a famous Quidditch player. Like his father, he was tall, and had light brown hair. Michael was very competitive and was an exceptional Quidditch player. He made the Gryffindor team in his second year, playing Keeper.

Alex and Amanda were twins. Alex had curly blonde hair and brown eyes. As he was the practical joker of the group, Alex never waited until April fool's day to play a prank on someone. Every once in a while, Alex would drag his friends into trouble with him. Teddy, who was more serious and obedient, was always trying to discourage him from making mischief, but it never worked. His sister, Amanda, was very much a tom-boy and preferred to be called Mandy. Her straight, dirty blonde hair barely reached her shoulders. Mandy often participated in her brothers pranks, although Alex was always the ringleader. Both twins enjoyed Quidditch, even though neither had made the team yet.

At the beginning of the 2011-2012 school year, two more friends joined the group. Victoire Weasley was the eldest daughter of Bill and Fleur Weasley and the niece of Harry Potter. As she was part veela, Victoire had long, flowing blonde hair, and looked just like her mother. In her later years at Hogwarts, many boys found her attractive. She, however, only had true love for one boy, even if it would take her a while to realize it. She and Teddy had been best friends since they were very young, and almost every adult you asked would say they would make a good couple.

Jenna Jacobs was a girl Victoire met on the Hogwarts express. Her long, straight, strawberry-blonde hair fell several inches past her shoulders, and her eyes seemed to change from blue to green, depending on the day or what she was wearing. Like Nick, she was shy around most people she didn't know, but loved to laugh while with her friends. Jenna's father was originally from England, but moved to the United States, where he met Jenna's mother, a witch who had been attending one of America's wizarding schools. Shortly after Jenna's tenth birthday, her father managed to convince her mother to move the family back to England, so that Jenna and her eight-year-old brother could attend "the best school for witchcraft and wizardry in existence. So now, here she was, an All-American girl surrounded by the young witches and wizards of the UK. Both she and Victoire had been sorted into Gryffindor.

On the first day of Christmas break, Alex and Mandy had invited friends over for a Christmas party, which would take place between two and ten p.m. that night. Nick was really excited about going, and since it wasn't a full moon, I allowed him to go. Besides, it gave me time to shop for Christmas gifts.

I knew exactly what to get Nick, but shopping for Jason was proving to be more difficult. For Nick, I was able to find a young Great Horned Owl, which he could keep as a pet. After wandering around Hogsmeade for a while, an idea for Jason's present finally came to me. It came straight from the heart, and I had a feeling Jason would enjoy it.

At eight a.m. sharp on Christmas morning, I awakened the gentle but recognizable feeling of Jason's lips against mine. I opened my eyes to see Jason bending over me with a huge grin on his face. Nick must have let him in.

"It's about time, Luci." Jason teased. "I had to kiss you five times to get you to wake up."

I smiled. I had been just been dreaming about that, but apparently, the kisses were real. "Merry Christmas to you, too." I said with a laugh.

"Come on, sleepy head, get dressed." Jason replied. "Nick and pancakes are waiting in my office."

I laughed again. "Well, then, you'd better leave. I'll meet you there."

Jason sighed. "Alright, but hurry up." He said, giving me another quick kiss before leaving the room.

I had a simple outfit picked out for Christmas. It included a plain red sweater, a black skirt, and black nylon tights. I was almost fifty-two years old, after all; I didn't need anything fancy. I pulled my long, raven black hair back and brushed my teeth, and then I was ready to go.

After breakfast, Jason, Nick, and I opened our presents. From Jason, Nick had received a book titled Five Hundred Things I will Never Use Magic For (Or at Least I won't get Caught Doing), which he found completely humorous. Nick had given me a pair of garnet earrings, – as the deep red colored stone that happened to be my birthstone – and to Jason he gave a device that could find wands wherever they were hiding, as Jason was always losing his wand during class.

My present to Jason was a hand-knitted quilt. I had sewn together small, one foot by one foot squares together. On the top right hand corner were the words "I am…" written in large letters. On all of the other squares were phrases such as "a valiant, true Gryffindor with a heart of gold", "one of the best Defense teachers Hogwarts has ever seen", and "the most special, romantic man on Earth". Some of the squares had pictures – memories – instead of words.

"Thank you so much, Luci. I will treasure it always." Jason said, and gave me yet another kiss. Nick looked away awkwardly as we did so. "Now, open yours."

I smiled and began to unwrap my gift. It was a book, but not just any book. This one was hand-made, and was titled "Ten Things I Love About You". Skimming through the book, I saw that the ten reasons were being counted down. They were:

10. Your Raven black hair

9. Your intimidating black eyes

8. Your dazzling smile

7. Your stubbornness

6. Your modesty

5. Your ability to comfort me when I need it most

4. Your ever-lasting trust in me

3. Your excellence as a Potions mistress and deputy headmistress

2. Your extraordinary mothering abilities

1. The fact that you're crazy enough to love me back

The book was also filled with memories that brought tears to my eyes when I looked at them.

"Do you like it?" Jason asked as I gently closed the book.

"No…" I whispered. Jason's face had the saddest look of disappointment on it I have ever seen. I smiled. "I love it."

Jason kissed me once again, longer this time. Nick must have beginning to get uncomfortable, because finally he said, "Uh…Mum? What about my present? From you?"

I smiled at me twelve-year-old son. "Did you honestly think I forgot about you?" I asked with a laugh, and got up to lead Nick to his present.

It wasn't long before Nick found out where we were going. He ran to the Owlry and found his owl right away, indentifying it by the tag on its cage that read, "Merry Christmas, Nick! Love, Mum."

"Thanks Mum!" Nick cried and gave me a giant hug. That Christmas really was the best one yet.