PV Alyss Gilmour Toast to the Holiday!

December 25th, 2024	The Great Hall
“English”	“Gaelic”

For many, Christmas was a time of great joy. Often involving family traditions, well received gifts, and happiness all around. It was a time when, if snow were on the ground, many children would rush outdoors to frolic in the shared excitement. Christmas brought great cheer, with decorations going up sometimes a month before, a well dressed tree the center of it all, atop of which a great big star was placed. It was a time for family reunions, hugs and laughs and kisses, with enough love to envelop all. This was how Christmas should have been. How it was supposed to be. Unfortunately, that was not always the case.

From Alyss’ youngest memory, Christmas involved a great deal of joy and cheer, but perhaps some stress as well. She didn’t quite understand it all, especially when she was young. Although she was still quite young, it had occurred to her why Christmas was often accompanied by smiles plastered onto faces and her parents silent tears into the others arms. Alyss remembered the countless Christmas’s, in which she didn’t receive everything on her wishlist. It’s not like she expected to. They just couldn’t afford everything, and so she began to stop asking for any extravagant gifts. Instead, she would be the sappy and adorable daughter and granddaughter, asking for extra hugs, kisses, and hot cocoa.

Among the arms of her loving family, she didn’t care as much about the material possessions she could never quite grasp. It always stung a little when she watched others get everything, but that was never the case for her. This year was different though. Not only did she not expect much, but this time she didn’t even have the love of her parents and grandparents to make up for it. No, nearly everyone went home for the holidays, leaving people like her without many acquaintances.

Alyss walked into the Great Hall, eyes glancing around in wonder. No matter how many times she had seen the magic and beauty of Hogwarts, it never ceased to amaze her. Not only did she marvel at the architectural genius that must have designed this, but also at the festive atmosphere that had been created via the decorations that adorned the room around them. Mistletoe hanging from the doorways, garlands hung on the walls. The entire hall had been transformed into a Christmas acceptable atmosphere, with or without her parents.

Alyss entered with awe, before gazing at the tables for an open seat that wasn’t too far from other people as not appear as an outcast, but also not too close as to appear desperate or like a stalker. Sitting a few feet from a Gryffindor on the other side of the table, Alyss decided that this was an appropriate position to occupy, and began snacking on some of her favorite treats: Belgian waffles. It was as she was chowing down, that she overheard a few words from the lion seated a few feet to her left and across from her. Catching the tail end of her sentence, Alyss brightened up. “I can’t believe it’s Christmas either! You have any of your gifts yet?” She asked, seemingly having locked onto this person as someone whom she could spend at least breakfast with to dispel the loneliness.

Made by Kim Sato

Date	:	December 25th, 2024
Color code	:	Written|Thought|Said

Sere's daydream was broken by a voice from the left side across her as if responding to the random words came out of her mouth. She turned towards the source of the voice and found a familiar girl. "Oh, hi! Alyss, right?" That blond hair and freckles, Sere couldn't possibly forget one of the duelists she moderated not too long ago.

Thinking about that duel, "You look good. Have you recovered fully after last week's duel?" Sere glanced at her empty left side -either it had been empty since earlier or the student who had been on her left had left- shifted her butt to be right in front of Alyss, pulling her toast plate to follow her. "Well, this is better. Felt too far to chat earlier."

"So you're not coming home for Christmas too," Sere mumbled, "About Christmas gifts thingy... Umm, I've never really written down my wishes to be fulfilled specifically at Christmas," Sere did hear that many children her age wrote down their wishes and someone called Santa Claus would give Christmas gifts to those who did nice throughout the year. If that was true, imagine how much money Santa Claus had, possibly much more than the amount that her parents had.

Sere shook her head, she was thinking too much and too far. She turned her attention back to Alyss, "Did you do that? Make a list of your wishes? What do you want as Christmas gifts this year?" She waited for a response while taking a bite of her toast.

Interacting with: @Alyss Gilmour

December 25th, 2024	The Great Hall
“English”	“Gaelic”

Although Alyss was the kind of person who would often forgo social cues, or break social norm without batting as eyelash, it was always startling to watch someone do it to her. Sere was clearly quite talkative, immediately beginning a conversation that could prove to be lengthy. At most, Alyss expected a “No, not yet! And yourself?” But instead, she asked how Alyss was doing, following it up to remind Alyss of the context of her question, a time she remembered clear enough on her own.

“Yep, I’m fine now! Nurse worked her magic!” Alyss exclaimed, forcing a smile upon her face, which had quickly fallen in remembrance of her duel. She didn’t like being reminded of her failure to remain on the piste, being quite competitive and always up for a challenge, it was disheartening to be reminded of how she performed when her competence was put to the test.

The snake soon found herself face to face with the moderator for that very duel, given she had ended up scooting closer as to maintain a better conversation. Alyss nodded in acknowledgment over the lion’s remark of staying over for Christmas, not offering much of an explanation otherwise. No one needed to know about the letter she had received, and the tearful breakdown that followed. That was her business, and hers alone. Alyss soon snapped herself out of it, a polite smile placed on her face.

It was a surprise upon hearing that Sere had never written down her wishes, one Alyss responded to with a shocked expression accompanied by a “Really?” This was a fascinating subject to Alyss, given that they were at the age in which Alyss was fully aware that Santa did not exist. But she was aware of a multitude of her peers that would argue that fact with the piercing glare resembling a dagger, so she had begun to tread carefully around the subject. “Never wrote a list to dear Ol’ Saint Nick?” She asked in a joking tone, as to ensure that no matter what Sere believed, Alyss had her bases covered.

“I told my parents via owl about a few of the gifts I wanted, just to make their job easier.” She explained, a genuine smile gracing her face once again, eyes looking past Sere as she reflected on herself writing said letters, handpicking the gifts that she was pretty sure were cheap enough that they could buy them, and not asking for too many, which could stress them out a bit. “I just asked for a book or two, another satchel, and… oh! Some fluffy yarn and a crochet hook, I’ve heard it would be a fun hobby to get into! Getting yarn regularly may become a problem, but I’m sure I can find a spell to help me with that!” Alyss explained, face lighting up as she explained. She had always enjoyed watching her grandmother knit, so when she heard of a variation that only required one hook that might be easier, Alyss was all ears.

“Is there… or, I guess was there anything specific you wanted today?” Alyss asked as to continue the conversation, tilting her head slightly to emphasize her curiosity in a subtle manner.

Made by Kim Sato

Date	:	December 25th, 2024
Color code	:	Written|Thought|Said

"Nope. Never." Sere blinked, "Is that something weird? Maybe I'm a weirdo." She had never followed the trend of writing letter of hope to Santa during Christmas like what her peers did because she didn't think it made any sense, but when she came across this kind of conversation, the girl needed to confirm the plausibility of her mindset.

"Ah, right. Asking our parents sounds more realistic." Sere nodded in agreement. She was intrigued by the things Alyss had asked her parents for. Books? She didn't need to ask her parents about this on special occasions, neither did satchels. Her parents would be more than happy to buy her a bunch of reading material and school supplies as long as she continued to excel in her academics and not waste her time doing useless things (playing and having fun, Sere's parents considered those as useless) with her peers.

"The gift that I want..." Sere answered immediately, just everything that came up on her mind right now, "One of your self-crocheted items to hang on my satchel?" That was definitely not something she could get today. "If I had to think about what I want today... Maybe a lemon raspberry cupcake or some fruit-flavored ice cream. I could only think of food when you asked me what I wanted right now."

The girl took another bite of her toast, chewed and swallowed before asking, "Do you have any food you like? Or something you usually eat on Christmas?"

Interacting with: @Alyss Gilmour

December 25th, 2024	The Great Hall
“English”	“Gaelic”

It had truly never occurred to Alyss that perhaps others didn’t believe in the silly tales about a jolly old man who handed out presents, given that she had always accepted that her parents would never lie to her. That was, until she discovered her parents had mistakenly signed the present she asked from Santa, leading her to consider the possibility of deceit. “Wait, did you seriously never believe in Santa Claus? Ever?” Alyss questioned, leaning forward in her seat. “Your parents never tried to hide it, friends never attempted to reveal the magic to be fake?” The disbelief in Alyss’ tone was very much present, and it was no coincidence that in that moment she widened her eyes in wonder, as if trying to imagine the world from that perspective.

“My parents tried their best. I just outsmarted them.” Alyss giggled a little at the thought, her little 9 year old self finally defeating the myth she had lived with for years. The thought of never staying up trying to catch Santa, only for your parents to threaten that he wouldn’t show up if she wasn’t sleeping. That put her to sleep like a light, and if she was being honest, might still work. “Well, I’m sorry you never grew up with the spirit on Saint Nick, but if you must know, it is a foundation built atop lies! He’s fun to believe in, until you realize just how many people were lying to you!” Alyss was clearly still upset by this, though could laugh about it now, as a smile cracked upon her face.

Alyss completely missed Sere’s comment about asking parents being too realistic, still entirely hung up on Santa Claus. She was able to click with the conversation again once she heard mentions of a crotcheted item of hers. “Ha… while I appreciate it, I don’t even know if I got it yet! Or if I’ll be any good at it. I’ll have to practice before I can hand them out to anyone, thank you though!” She beamed at the prospect of getting good enough that people would actually want some of her art. That was be spectacular.

Alyss did make sure to “Ooh, yum!” at the other girls cupcake choice, nodding along. While she had never tried that flavor, it sounded pretty good. And so did ice cream, though it was a little cold outside to be enjoying ice cream regularly. “I mean, we usually just had a turkey that we froze from after Thanksgiving, but there was a lot of hot chocolate in our household! It was definitely one of the most important drinks, possibly followed by some of the hot tea my mom liked.” Upon beginning to open up and having a good conversation partner, Alyss found herself talking a good amount, happy to continue yapping as much as the next person.

Made by Kim Sato

Date	:	December 25th, 2024
Color code	:	Written|Thought|Said

Deep conversations discussing about Santa's existence were certainly not the typical of Sere's family. The girl knew all about Santa was only a made-up story when she heard too many illogical things from her peers every holiday. Well, basically, it was more or less the same as Alyss: she outsmarted them. Sere also agreed that all the stories about Saint Nick were quite interesting to hear, and there was nothing wrong with listening even if she didn't believe in it.

Sere felt like her stomach wasn't full yet, especially since the conversation went to food, so she made another blueberry & peanut butter toast and took another bite. "I'm not a big fan of sweet foods, nor drinks, but I always drink the dark one," Implying the dark chocolate variant as the base ingredient of the drink they were talking about, "The leftover turkey from Thanksgiving? I see..." Her family never did that. Rather than reasons related to economic classes or something like that, this was more... ironic. Before entering Hogwarts, Sere was almost always picked up by her grandmother for Thanksgiving and celebrated the event with several neighbors. Her parents was too busy to perfecting everything in their hospitality business before the high season came. They celebrated Thanksgiving together with Sere only two or three times in her life. Even on Christmas, her parents' business trip often prolonged so they weren't home in holiday. Yes, she was alone for almost every end-of-the-year.

Before her mood became too blue, Sere cleared her throat and changed the topic, "Do you have anything to do in this Christmas? I mean, here in Hogwarts, today, do you already have a plan?" The British-Korean girl folded her hands on the table, "If you do, can you tell me? I spent too much time reading and doing my homeworks. Nothing else came into my head, any interesting activity to spend in this holiday. I need some inspirations."

Interacting with: @Alyss Gilmour

December 25th, 2024	The Great Hall
“English”	“Gaelic”

Alyss had a grin plastered upon her face, genuinely delighted to have a companion. Perhaps she had been feeling lonely after all, as she didn’t think that someone to talk to would mean so much to her. Alyss shifted her food around the plate, scraping the utensil with upon the plate as she searched for the perfect bite, the slight noise going unnoticed as she focused on the words escaping from Sere’s mouth. “Oh, I’ve never really had the dark chocolate kind. Only ever the normal one or milk chocolate, and I’ve always enjoyed it.” The girl smiled, moving to rest her head atop her right hand as she set down the fork.

Perhaps she sounded too desperate, or poor? Sere’s reaction to Alyss’ leftover turkey comment left the girl mentally scrambling for a moment. Was that abnormal? But it seemed like Sere, too, had a bit of an abnormal experience with the Christmas time. Finally, she muttered a “Yeah?” in response, maintaining a polite and friendly demeanor, only her eyes showing the conflict raging through her mind as they flicked down to her plate, seemingly more interested in the abandoned food glazing over her fork, before at long last finding their way back up to the person sitting across from them.

“Uhm…” Alyss murmured, shifting once more away from the propped position her head had been in and instead to sitting up again. “I mean, I plan on playing around in the snow, opening gifts… nothing huge, it’s not as if I can really go to Hogsmeade.” Alyss shrugged lang with the non-committal response, a slight expression of apology settling upon her face. “I suppose I should be doing my homework, but eh, it doesn’t feel right. I’ll hopefully find a friend or two to hang out with for the evening.” Alyss spoke once more, rolling her eyes as she thought about homework. During a holiday? Definitely not. That simply wasn’t acceptable.

Alyss once more put her focus on the waffles, and stuffed the perfect bite into her mouth— waffle, whipped cream, strawberry, syrup… It was heavenly. If the food for the rest of the day was this good, Alyss would be perfectly fine, with or without her family surrounding her, no matter how saddening that felt. She took a quick deep breath, eyes closing for a split second, hardly longer than a blink. Tears of homesickness disappeared. Did it hurt, very much, that she felt abandoned at her magical boarding school? Yes, absolutely. However, she’d be fine. She’d make friends, and there was no need to feel sad. “I suppose you don’t have any concrete plans, given you’re asking?” Alyss followed up, trying to remain present in their conversation. No one noticed her momentary bout of pain. No one would understand it, either.

Made by Kim Sato

Date	:	December 25th, 2024
Color code	:	Written|Thought|Said

The conversation about food and hot drinks -chocolate and tea- passed by just like that. Sere could see Alyss's mood change when she talked about the leftover turkey, but the overall ups and downs of their conversation made it impossible for Sere to point the exact cause. She looks uncomfortable. Is it because of her own memories? Or is it because of something I said? Sere could only speculate within herself.

"Hogsmeade?" Sere leaned forward, lowering her voice. "I heard that Christmas feels ten times better there... and ten times colder too." The Gryffindor girl leaned back to her position. "I really want to go there! It must be so fun wandering around the shops. We don't have much decent entertainment at school lately." Yup, books were the only things that kept Sere entertained, and luckily she was easily entertained by this things. But someone like Alyss must have been bored to die by now. "I've also heard that some of our peers have snuck into Hogsmeade. Have you ever done that?" She asked with a pure, curious tone.

"If our homeworks could do themselves, I'd definitely choose other, more lively and enjoyable activities," The idea of becoming the inventor of a homework-solving spell popped up in her mind, "unfortunately not." She was sure Alyss would eventually get hers done as well, no matter how wrong it felt to her.

"You're right... I definitely, definitely have no plan." Sere emphasized the word 'definitely'. "I didn't even realize I needed a company more than I thought. Hanging out with a friend or two for the evening sounds like a good idea. Maybe playing some board games or, simply, chatting..." Sere's talkative side slipped out naturally. It always did when she felt comfortable. The extrovert just hoped Alyss wouldn't mind a sudden flood of words.

Interacting with: @Alyss Gilmour

December 25th, 2024	The Great Hall
“English”	“Gaelic”

Talking with Sere made everything feel normal. She didn’t seem to pick up on Alyss’ mood changes, and instead just seemed…happy. Which, come to think of it, Alyss did that a lot too. Bringing the mood up was something that came naturally to her—but only when she wasn’t the one feeling down. Sere continued to talk, and the Slytherin was content to let her—it’s not as though she could add much to the conversation. That was, until Sere broached a question that Alyss had to respond to with little more than a sly smile.

“I've also heard that some of our peers have snuck into Hogsmeade. Have you ever done that?”

“Well…maybe.” Alyss replied with a smirk and a wink, very much exhibiting the traits stereotypical of her house. “Hogsmeade is certainly really nice. At least, that’s what I’ve heard.” Alyss continued, giggling slightly as she finished.

The topic moved to homework doing themselves—something Alyss could absolutely get behind. “Someone should invent a quill that does that! That just writes in the right answers, so that we can focus on other things.” Alyss nodded, shifting in her chair as she thought of such a thing. It would certainly save her some time. Would she necessarily learn all the concepts and techniques that she was supposed to learn through said homework? Perhaps not. But it Alyss didn’t mind.

“Maybe we could get together later, then? Play some of those board games, or something?” Alyss proposed as she finished off her breakfast. Sere had just mentioned getting together with friends, despite her lack of a plan for the day. “Obviously if you would rather not, that’s cool too!” Alyss quickly said, eyes widening as she tried to give both herself and her partner a way out of the plans. “I mean, you seem great, and I’d love to if you would.” were the words she finally settled upon, leaning back as she gave a content sigh. The food was good. The conversation was good. This had been a surprisingly nice morning, given that she’d began it with the quietly sad knowledge that she was alone for the holidays, for the very first time. And she’d hated it. This conversation reminded her that she had friends in many places. Maybe things weren’t perfect—but Alyss could get them as close as she could.