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Chapter 47: Gifts - The Book of Friends
Chapter 47: Gifts - The Book of Friends
Time at school was heartbreakingly short, and before they knew it, the holidays were upon them once more.
As the first-year students lined up behind Hagrid to leave, the handful of students staying back watched enviously from the windows. But in truth, Ved envied them as well—they would have the school to themselves for two whole weeks, with free rein over the library and potion classrooms, easy access to professors for one-on-one tutoring, and practically everything they could ask for.
Ved sighed.
If it weren't for Fiona eagerly awaiting his return home for the past month, he would have loved to stay at school too.
Of course, coming home felt wonderful as well.
After being away for half a year, his parents' accumulated love and longing seemed to burst forth the moment they laid eyes on him. Fiona hugged him at least ten times a day and kissed his forehead affectionately at random intervals. Ferdinand was a bit more restrained, but he often ruffled Ved's hair or gave his shoulder an encouraging squeeze.
During his time at school, Ved had grown three centimeters taller. Due to all the stair-climbing and the exercises he did whenever he sat too long, his body had become stronger and more toned, with even a hint of abs beginning to show.
But all these positive changes were summed up by Fiona in two words—“You’ve lost weight.”
His mother caressed his face, her heart aching as she said, “You didn’t eat enough at school, did you? Wait and see, I’m going to prepare a feast for you today!”
And with that, she rolled up her sleeves and got to work.
Ved looked in the mirror—the eleven-year-old boy in the reflection still had a bit of baby fat in his cheeks, giving him a slightly round face that was rosy and full of health.
Ferdinand sat down next to Ved, his expression serious as he asked, “Ved, in your letters, you only ever shared the good and never any troubles. Now, tell me the truth—has anyone been giving you a hard time at school?”
Ved replied just as seriously, “No—that’s the truth. Ravenclaw is a peaceful house, and for the most part, my classmates only care about ability, not blood status. I’m at the top of my year in several subjects. Our Head of House, Professor Flitwick, likes me a lot, and so does Professor Moribund. He even invited me to his private party before the holidays after giving me two hours of alchemy lessons every week.”
“That’s good to hear,” Ferdinand said, a smile breaking through his serious expression. “It sounds like you’ve met some excellent teachers. Are you happy at school?”
“Of course,” Ved replied with a smile. “I’m very happy.”
…
Before Christmas, Ved sent out all his gifts. The next morning, he came downstairs to find the area under the Christmas tree piled high with gift boxes.
Fiona rushed over to him, hugging his head and planting a firm kiss on his forehead. “Thank you, dear,” she said happily. “I love the gift you gave me.”
Ved had sent her a bottle of beauty potion that he had brewed himself, an accomplishment that had earned Professor Snape’s approval.
Ferdinand nodded as well. “A fantastic magical razor. But is there a particular reason for the piece of parchment you included in the gift box?”
“That’s my independent alchemy project,” Ved said proudly as he pulled out a self-bound notebook from his pocket. On the cover were the words “Book of Friends” written in both Chinese and English. On the first page, the word “Family” was written in slightly larger font, followed by a line and the word “Name” in a smaller font to the right.
Ved took out two quills and handed one each to his parents. Then, he picked up his quill and wrote his name on the right side of the line.
“These three Books of Friends are linked. When I write down a name here, I can write a message—”
He wrote a line below the blank space—“Merry Christmas.
[Ved: Merry Christmas.]
"Oh, I get it now," she exclaimed. Quickly writing her name in the top right corner, she added: [Merry Christmas, sweetheart.]
The same words appeared on the parchments of Ved's father and Fiona.
Ferdinand nodded in understanding. "So it's like an online forum?"
Home computers had been around for many years, with prices as low as a few hundred pounds, so the Greys had naturally purchased one early on and were familiar with them.
"Yes, it's like an internet forum," Ved spread his hands, "but because the medium is just a piece of paper, it seems a bit more magical. It can't transmit video or audio, so it's not as good as the internet, but it's not affected by the magical field, which means that even when I'm at school, we can stay in touch."
To be more precise, the 'Book of Friends' was a magical version of WeChat. However, as equivalents like MSN Messenger, WhatsApp, QQ, and WeChat had not yet been invented, Ved's 'Book of Friends' seemed incredibly advanced for its time.
"I have to say, Ved, this is the best Christmas gift I've received this year." Ferdinand's eyes sparkled with delight. "But even better than that, it shows that you're truly learning at Hogwarts—I'm so proud of you, son."
Like most people using a messaging app for the first time, Fiona became engrossed in "online chatting." Even though Ved and Ferdinand were right in front of her, less than two meters away, she insisted on communicating through the Book of Friends.
Soon, the other pages of Ved's Book of Friends began to fill with text.
The second page was linked to the members of the SSC.
[Michael: Hello?]
[Padma: Merlin's beard, I can see the words you wrote!]
[Hermione: Can you all see what I'm writing? Oh my, it really works! How did you do it? I didn't see any similar spells in our books!]
[Padma: Forget the books, Hermione, it's Christmas! Let's just enjoy the moment.]
[Michael: Ved, I thought you were just starting to learn alchemy! You should've told me sooner that you created something this amazing!]
[Theo: I just read the instructions and figured out how to use it—it's incredible! This is the best magical item I've ever seen!]
[Ryan: ...I'm too shocked for words. Just writing this to prove that I saw it.]
[Neville: I fell off the couch in surprise, and my grandma thought I'd received some Dark artifact; she almost confiscated it.]
[Ved: Merry Christmas, everyone.]
His message was like a spark in a powder keg, and the group's replies came pouring in. They soon discovered that each line of text occupied a limited space, and each sentence would disappear after a second or two of viewing, with a maximum of fifteen lines visible on the page at once. Their "chat" had been forcibly rate-limited, preventing a situation where they'd have "999+" unread messages after just a few minutes.
Within minutes, they intuitively figured out how to send emojis, and it seemed like they wouldn't be stopping anytime soon.
Flipping further back, Ved found the third page was for his house-elves, and those with whom he was closer had received one. They cautiously tested writing on the parchment and repeatedly expressed their gratitude to Ved.
The following pages were for Professors Mori, Flitwick, Sprout, McGonagall, and Snape. Aside from Snape, who gave a "barely passable" evaluation, and Professor Mori, who confirmed his invitation for the day after tomorrow, the others praised his ingenious idea and offered to tutor him during the holidays.
(End of Chapter)
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