Chapter 366: It's Christmas!

Disclaimer:

Harry Potter and all its characters belong to J.K. Rowling.

I own nothing but the original characters I create.

Chapter 366: It's Christmas!

"How are things going here?" Harry asked as he sat down at the kitchen table.

"We're making pancakes!" Holly exclaimed with excitement.

"Yes, I can see that, Holly. But I was asking Victoria," Harry replied, turning his attention to the black-haired girl who was flipping another pancake.

"It's fine..." Victoria muttered, avoiding eye contact.

Harry observed her quietly. She still seemed a bit down, but that was understandable. He wasn't a mind healer, but staying with a kind family like the Potters was likely the best thing for her right now.

She hadn't asked for her wand or any of her jewelry yet. Harry knew she was incredibly smart, so she must have realized that the Potters would feel safer if she wasn't armed...or perhaps she had some hidden resources they didn't know about. Either way, Victoria didn't seem to harbor any harmful intentions toward them.

"You're really good at that," Harry commented, nodding toward the pan she was holding.

"She makes them just like you!" Holly added enthusiastically.

"Does she?" Harry said with a hint of surprise.

"I learned when I was little..." Victoria's voice trailed off, and it was clear she was recalling something unpleasant.

Just then, someone else entered the kitchen. "And shouldn't you be in school, young man?" Lily Potter asked, raising an eyebrow at her son, who had arrived unannounced at the manor.

But she wasn't too surprised. This wasn't the first time Harry had done this.

"I am, but today is December 25th, and I had to come see my family." Harry smiled, then glanced at Holly. "And to bring a present for someone in particular..."

"Presents!" Holly exclaimed, bouncing in place. She may have been eight years old, but her excitement for gifts hadn't changed one bit.

"Harry..." Lily began, her tone slightly reprimanding.

"I know presents are usually for the evening, but I have plans tonight," Harry explained.

Lily gave him a knowing look. "Are you going to the ball with Daphne?"

"Maybe," Harry replied evasively, avoiding the subject.

"You're dating Daphne?" Victoria perked up, intrigued. Daphne had been one of her closest friends since her first year. "Aren't you in Gryffindor?" she asked, noting the difference in houses.

"So?" Harry shrugged.

"Isn't that, like, against the norm?" Victoria asked.

"It is. But I've always been an unconventional person," Harry replied with a smirk.

"I wish you had brought Lyra," Lily said. "Victoria hasn't had the chance to meet her properly yet."

"She's trying her best to avoid me at the moment. It's probably better this way...gives Victoria some time to prepare before meeting Lyra," Harry explained.

"Why is she avoiding you?" Lily asked, her curiosity piqued.

"For several reasons," Harry said vaguely. There was still some awkwardness between him and Ginny, and today was also the day of the ball. Lyra was going with Neville, and she probably didn't want him to say anything that could scare her date. "I'm sure she'll tell you all about it during the summer."

"Hmm..." Lily stared at him, unconvinced.

"Where's my present? What did you bring me?" Holly tugged at Harry's robes impatiently. "Come on!"

"Alright, alright. Go stand over there," Harry instructed, pointing to the kitchen corner.

Once Holly was in place, he continued, "Now, close your eyes."

Holly closed her eyes a little but kept peeking.

"Cover your eyes with your hands and no peeking!" Harry insisted.

Once she did it properly, Harry extended his right hand forward and produced a dark hole in front of him.

From the hole, a small white golem emerged and stood before Holly.

Lily gasped. "What is that?!" Victoria wasn't referring to the golem...she was still focused on the strange hole that had appeared.

The dark hole vanished, leaving only the golem behind.

"Harry, how did you do that?" Lily asked, bewildered. She had seen dimensional containers before, but Harry had just summoned that construct out of thin air.

Harry turned to her with a mischievous grin. "Magic."

"Oh, come on..." Victoria rolled her eyes but kept her composure, trying to remain ladylike.

"Oh, come on!" Lily repeated, also rolling her eyes.

"Can I open my eyes now?!" Holly's impatience was reaching its limit.

"Go ahead," Harry told her.

"Whoa!" Holly stared at the golem in front of her. It was tall enough to reach her chin and made of pure white material. Its construction was extremely detailed, with many moving joints.

"Wait... this looks similar to those..." Lily began, recognizing the resemblance between this golem and the large white marble ones from Hogwarts.

"It is a bit similar, yes," Harry said. "I made it with Daphne's help. It's much more advanced than the previous one. It can follow complex orders and is also very strong." He handed Lily a small book. "We wrote all the instructions in here."

Victoria put down the pan she was holding and glanced at the golem as Holly began shouting random commands at it.

"What is it made of?" Lily asked, still examining the construct.

"Just stone. Daphne added a coating that gives it some special properties. That's also what gives it that color," Harry explained.

"Did you do the rune work?" Victoria asked, now inspecting the golem more closely.

"I did," Harry admitted.

"It's very sloppy," Victoria said bluntly.

Harry chuckled. "I've heard that before." He couldn't help but think of the old Luna, who also didn't mince her words.

"If you let me, I can make its movements a lot smoother. I could even make it dance," Victoria offered.

"Really?!" Holly's eyes widened in shock.

"How would you do that? Perhaps there's room to add an Ansuz rune over here," Lily suggested, getting a closer look at the golem.

Victoria seemed a bit surprised but nodded. "Yes, but it would be better if you..." The two of them began discussing ancient runes in detail.

"I have a new set of carving tools I haven't had the chance to try yet. Want to give them a go?" Lily asked.

Victoria nodded. "I would like that, yes."

Harry shrugged. "Well, you two go ahead and do that. I'll just—"

"I wanna see Goly dance!" Holly exclaimed impatiently.

"Goly again? You already have a golem with that name... don't you want to give this one a different one?" Lily asked her daughter.

"Oh, that's right," Holly realized, pausing to think of a new name while everyone waited.

"Whitey!" she declared proudly.

'Okay… she's terrible at naming things,' Harry thought with an amused sigh.

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