Advanced Summoning || A Christmas Special

This is five stories woven into one. They are separated by markers that I will bold and put in the document outline.



‘Twas the night before Christmas, and all through the school there rang the fierce expectations of one strict rule: be in bed before ten and just lay down your head, don’t wake up again or you’d get trash instead.

Lear, the Deputy Headmaster, enforced this rule back and forth, but at the same time, he also played Santa. He was busy stuffing the Hufflepuff stockings with coal (in order to burn them better, why not) and sneaking into every Common Room to devour cookies and spread jovial Christmas Cheer, or at least as much as he had left in his large body. His heart was rather hollow, but he faked it until he made it. The Headmaster dictated the mood of everyone else. 

Meanwhile, Dorian and Max had been sleeping in the Astronomy Tower - back in Thurston’s empty closet. Since their stint in the dungeons, Thurston had taken the two boys in like they were his own children, but with permission from Ackerley. The two of them had adjusted every telescope before the children came in every night and Ackerley even had the courtesy to let the two join the Professor’s Table...with one small caveat. They had to sit at a smaller kid’s table behind the Professor’s Table, not at the big table itself. Over time, the two had grown to have some interesting conversations, but Max was too busy investigating. Now, the two were snug in the closet, Max with his back turned away from Dorian, but both young men fully asleep. 

The nurse, Rosie Parker, was asleep in her bed, tucked away behind the other hospital wing beds. She dreamed of Benny and what wonderful Christmas he would have. Despite him being only nine years younger than the 31-year-old nurse, he still kept his sense of childlike wonder. It was an impressive feat for the twenty-something. Rosie hoped he was doing well down in the Potions room. Hopefully Valtome hadn’t driven him insane.

Sergei, though he was slowly growing ill, dreamed of teddy bears, Sorrel dreamed of plants, Fainauriel dreamed of world domination, and Ackerley dreamed of little dresses to put Solomon’s frog in. He had taken to using Solomon’s frog as his own since the death of Denise. Hopefully, everyone could have what they dreamed of for this magical Christmas. 

Yet, in this silence, there was a peculiar emptiness. Former Professor Anatole Evans had been gone from the school for the past four months after his fake Professor plan had quickly failed. Advanced Summoning had good as died within the school and the hearts of students who took the class in its short-lived history. Many of the students had forgotten entirely about his existence, but there was still a trio of two girls and a boy who believed they would be the heroes of this Christmas Eve: Kahlan Quinn, a sixth-year Ravenclaw, and two sixth-year Hufflepuffs, Attila Baggins and Xander Procoppio. That evening, they held a clandestine meeting in the Abandoned Toilets to bring themselves their own Christmas gift. 

“Lower your voice, Xander!” Kahlan said softly as the boy adjacent to her grew anxious. “We are the Saviors of Summoning, and we can’t get caught, especially by Santa,” she jokingly remarked. “Get up and close the door.”

Xander sulked and did as he was told. “Alright, alright. I just...I just can’t believe we’re doing this!” He grinned as the crew huddled around the toilet which smelled of rancid loads of unflushed poop and puke-worthy trash. 

Attila, on the other hand, shook her head. "No. No. We’re not summoning Anatole around a TOILET for Merlin’s sake! Let’s at least be nice to him!”

Kahlan and Xander quickly agreed. “What about the sink? I think that would work.” The Ravenclaw girl turned to Attila. “How much time do we have?” 

Attila searched for a clock. “I don’t know but I’m assuming-” she yawned, “not long. I woke up at three AM for this!” The girl pulled her robe closer. “Let’s get this over with!” She grew paranoid over every second they wasted...and she wasn’t sure how much longer she could take the stench before she lost the midnight snack she had eaten. Chocolate frogs were about to jump back out of her stomach. 

Xander inhaled deeply and controlled himself. “Alright, let’s do this. Just repeat it over and over.” He looked to the two girls. “Does one of you have a phone he gave us?”

Kahlan nodded. “Yes, but I’m really not supposed to have it out.” She grinned, taking it out and logging into the mysterious gray application. “Anatole...Anatole…”

“Anatole...Anatole…”

“Anatole...ANATOLE!” 

It was like they were summoning Bloody Mary or something, because the candle they kept went out and the mirror broke even more and a piece of it fell off. Xander leaped up and caught it, making sure it didn’t clatter onto the floor. The swift catch drew a bit of blood.

The whole room fell silent, except for Attila. “Is he coming?”

Suddenly, the door flung open and all the students gasped. “WHAT?!?!” 
    
Kahlan sternly whispered, “Quiet! It’s like 4 AM, and we don’t want to get caught!” Xander and Attila shot the disheveled 31-year-old a thumbs-up. “Alright?”
    
Aristotle nodded. “Alright, alright. Why the heck did you all summon me?” He shook his head and rubbed his temples. “I was SLEEPING!”

Attila rose to her feet from her knees and folded her hands behind her back. “We want you back, Anatole. We want Advanced Summoning back. The school just hasn’t been the same.” 

Xander continued. “Yeah. I don’t have a class to look forward to. It’s so boring being a wizard, and I’m almost out of this school. I want some spice before I go into my last year.” He sighed, approaching Anatubby. “We’re sorry for summoning you, but we just thought that we’d give ourselves a Christmas Present that we really wanted.”

Anatole was clearly enraged. “That’s the thing! I don’t want to be back here! I want to be back by the coast and living my life. And, since you guys summoned me, I can’t be un-summoned. I have to walk all the way back to the coast! Do you know how far that is?”

Attila and Xander shook their heads while Kahlan gasped. “That’s a long way, isn’t it! Many, many metres away... wow... you really walked all that way?” Antelope nodded.  

The Hufflepuff girl took another breath. “We’re sorry, but can you just stay with us for a few more hours? Until Christmas Day is over? You can stay in the Hufflepuff Girl’s dorm! We have an extra space!” 

Anti-Mold glared at Xander. There was no way he was staying in the Girl’s dorms. He didn’t need to break more rules. “Xander, your dorm it is.” 

Xander groaned. “But I can’t! There’s no space!” A few glares from the girls quickly altered his mindset. “Fine, I’ll take him. I’m sure the Hufflepuff guys will love you.” 

Kahlan grinned. “Perfect! Now, let’s get out of here before Santa or a Prefect catches us. The sun’s about to come up.” She motioned for them to follow her as she tucked her device in her pocket when Anatole wasn’t looking.

The Saviors of Summoning (featuring Anatole) dashed out of the Abandoned Toilets. Kahlan hastily bid goodbye since she was going back up to Ravenclaw while the other three were going to Hufflepuff. “Good luck, and Merry Christmas!” 

The other three waved back and proceeded down the hallway, Attila leading the line. Anatole was fascinated with the upper reaches of the school, especially since he hadn’t seen much besides the lower level when he taught the Dark Art. It had been years since he saw the entirety of these halls. Attila forced him to pick up the pace. They had to get back to the dorm before sunrise. 

On the other end of the hall, there was a different pace of footsteps. Calm, rhythmic and stern, fourth-year Prefect Edie Knaggs paced through the hall, on her rounds. She had pleaded to Ackerley and Lear to let her take the night shift, and accept they did. Exempt from all classes, she slept for much of Christmas Eve to take part in the nightly surveillance. She was one reason Anatole wished never to come back. Everyone feared Edie.

Her sentient ear picked up on some other hurried footsteps from around the corner and she smirked with delight. This was her Christmas gift - busting some unruly students out before dawn.

Attila, the front of the line, heard the even pace and turned to her companions. “Xander, tap out the password and get in the door. Alpheus--that’s our Head of House, by the way,” she mentioned to Anatalo, “-- is probably still asleep. Take Anatole with you. Go! Quick! I’ll get busted.” 

Tolebird was unsure how much he could trust these students, but the way Attila phrased it, the plan sounded alright. Xander did as instructed and tapped on the barrel for entrance  and the two of them fled into the Common Room, Anatole still asking questions. 

Attila sacrificed herself and dashed around the corner, running into the small, strict Edie. “Oh! Hi, Edie!” Attila attempted to baby-talk her way through the Prefect. “I didn’t expect you to be up this early!”

Edie yawned. “I was on patrol for FOUR HOURS, Baggins. Four hours. And surprisingly, you’re the first student who I’ve happened to run into this fine evening.” Edie always talked so strangely, and some days, Attila swore it reminded her of Professor Valtome. “Here, fine... wow... I’ll give you a pass now. Where are you going?”

“To History of Magic,” Attila quickly remarked, “I forgot a book and need to study.”

Edie shrugged. “Oh well, it’s Christmas. Go ahead. BUT! If you see any other evildoers around, let me know!” She pointed a fine finger at the brown-haired Hufflepuff. “Alright, goodnight.”

“Goodnight, Edie.” 


    
“MAAAAAX! Max, Max, Max Max!” Dorian Gray woke up at the crack of dawn and opened the closet door, bugging his colleague. “It’s CHRISTMAS! You hear me, Christmaaaas!” He flipped his hair and paraded into the Astronomy Tower, greeting Thurston with a giant hug. “Thurston! It’s Christmas!”
    
Thurston huffed. “Hm. You’re right. It is Christmas.” He attempted to ignore the thirty-something who was suffocating him with a hug, but it grew harder by the second. This dumb Gray was giving him love, and he couldn’t resist it. “Alright, fine. I’ll hug you back. It’s Christmas.”
    
Max Avery arose from the closet with terrible bedhead and a loud groan. “Dorian, please don’t wake me up like that again. I think I’m going deaf in that ear now.” 
    
Dorian rushed back to the closet to pull his friend to his feet. “Good morning, Max! It’s Christmas!” Max rubbed his eyes. Dorian really was like a stereotypical kid on Christmas. “Aw, come on. You know you like Christmas! And especially Christmas at Hogwarts!” He motioned to the grandeur of the Astronomy Tower. “This is the best time of the year, isn’t it! They make the best food now, and everyone’s happy! There’s not a single downer on campus!” Dorian’s energy suddenly depleted. “Well, you know what, just get up, you old bloke! Can I have your phone? I need a Christmas selfie!”
    
Max handed over his work phone to the eager man and walked over to Thurston, the ginger-haired Astronomy Professor. “He said it, didn’t he. It’s Christmas.” The investigator held out his arms. “Thurston, I need a hug. You seem a little down.” He smirked. He knew what he was doing: being nice. It was unheard of!
    
A jubilant grin spread across the Professor’s face. “Hm. Max, what’s come upon you? Christmas spirit?” 
    
The Avery chortled. “Guess you could say that. Then again, you are the man who gave Dorian and me a second chance. That’s one of the best gifts you can give me.” Thurston ran into Max’s arms and they hugged. Max muttered in a hushed tone, “Well, that and some information. Thanks for that too.” The investigator let go of Thurston and turned to Dorian, who was still modeling with Max’s phone. “Dorian! C’mere, I’ve got a present for you.” Max grabbed a present off a table and handed it to Dorian. “I got this back in the last town before I got here, but I need you to do one thing before I hand it over, ‘kay?”
    
Dorian was like an obedient puppy. “Yeah? What do you want me to do?” 
    
“Put my phone down.” Dorian ran outside and dangled Max’s work phone over the edge of the railing. “Not like that, you idiot!” 
    
Dorian giggled. “Alright! Alright.” He placed the phone on the table where the present was. “Now may I have the present?” 
    
Max sighed. “Alright, here you go. Enjoy. It’s fragile though.” 
    
Dorian went to town on that present, ripping it open and gasping at the box. “A PHONE?!?!? You got me a PHOOOOONE?!? A new one, not this crappy model like I have now?” 
    
Max smiled. “Yes, it’s a phone.” He knew Dorian like the back of his hand. Honestly, he could get the guy anything and he’d love it like it was his child. “Now, do you have anything for me?”
    
Dorian went over to the table and made Max close his eyes. He placed a finger over his lips and ushered to Thurston. He placed his old phone in Max’s hands. “Merry Christmas.”
    
Max just shook his head, realizing that the wallpaper on Dorian’s old phone was a modeling photo of him. “Merry Christmas, Dorian Gray.”


    
Sorrel Wright, Sebas Cazarez and Ackerley Blackburn woke up to three identical notes lying on their bedposts. 
    
“Dear Ackerley, Sebas and Sorrel,
Please join me in the Greenhouse when you wake up for your gifts.
With Love,
Solomon “Santa” Lear.”
    
The obedient Professors made their way to the Greenhouse where they found their Deputy Headmaster in a terribly made Santa suit with three gifts lying beside him. Ackerley’s box had a few holes in it and Sorrel’s was in a rather large box. Sebas’s was completely normal. 
    
“Now, Lear, what’s this about? Can I just get my gift already?” The curly-haired Herbology Professor crossed her arms. “And what was with the strange notes?” 
    
Solomon chuckled, stroking his beard just like a jolly old elf would do. “I wished to make your Christmases special with a bit of a ceremony. I hope you don’t mind,” Solomon noted, standing up. “First up, Sorrel Wright.”
    
“Finally!” Sorrel complained. “I’ve been waiting all year.” She came up and heaved her present onto the adjacent table. “This is a heavy one, let me guess, is it a tree of some sort? Maybe a bush, or maybe it’s a year’s supply of artisan coffee. I could do that too.” 
    
Solomon laughed. “Well, what are you waiting for? Open it!”
    
Sorrel did as she was told, pulling up a chair to rip the present open from the top. “OH, so it is a tree! So much for coffee,” Sorrel jested. 

Solomon chortled at her comment. “The coffee was too expensive. This tree would have to do, don’t you think?” 

Sorrel smiled. “It’s actually a fine specimen, isn’t it boys?” All of them nodded at the arching tree. “Has some character of its own...I...I LOVE IT!” She grinned. “Thanks, Lear. You’re the best Deputy Headmaster.”
    
“Hey!” Ackerley called back, since he was Deputy Headmaster before that Headmaster retired. It was a long, endless cycle. 
    
“Next, Sebas Cazarez.” 
    
Sebas came up and grabbed his gift, which was rather small and seemingly normal-sized. “Let me guess, let me guess…” He glared right into Lear’s eyes. “I swear, Lear, I swear. If you gave me another one of those ties that you gave last year... I…”
    
Solomon snickered. “You’ll have to open it to see.”
    
Sebas smirked at Lear, ripping open his gift to find a slim box. “You got me thigars?” 
    
Santa shook his head. “You have to open that box too, Cazarez. I would never just give you a box.” 
    
The former Professor shook his head. “This is unactheptable.” He opened the small box Lear had supposedly given him and found a small little bowtie, plastered in crabs and unicorns. Sebas smiled and wrapped it around his neck. “Aw, Lear. You know me too well, my friend. Too well.”
    
Solomon grinned. “Ho ho ho...and last but not least, Ackerley Blackburn!” As Ackerley came up to receive his gift, Lear placed the box in his hands. “This one’s very fragile. Take good care of this one, Ackerley.”
    
Ackerley nodded at Lear. “I will, Lear. I will. Whatever you say.” Carefully and strategically, the Headmaster neatly pulled the paper off the box, kneeling in order to get the right angle. Sorrel laughed. Ackerley was so methodical. 
    
When he popped open the box, a blurry brown figure jumped out and clung to his turtleneck. Ackerley screamed once he noticed what it was: a brown tarantula, the exact same species as Denise! He hugged the spider, looking in the box and finding a small set of spider-sized clothes, complete with eight armholes. “Thank you, thank you, thank you! A million times merci!” He rose to his feet and patted Solomon on the back. “Thank you so much.”
    
Just then, a gray-haired elf man burst through the door. “Ah, Lear! That’s where you were located! The greenhouse, I should have known.” Professor Valtome strode past all the joyful Professors and made a beeline straight to Lear. 
    
“Valtome, what is it you need on this fine day?”
    
Fainauriel sighed. “Why, it’s just that I found myself a dubious troublemaker in the halls after curfew! This was while I was on patrol last night, as you might have assumed. What sort of blasphemy is this?” 
    
Solomon raised his bushy eyebrow. “Hm? Who was it?”
    
“Miss Baggins. She is in your office when you’re done with...whatever preposterous activity you are partaking in. I find no use in your Brobdingnagian gift-giving frivolity.” He shook his hand, spitting out the greeting with scorn. “Merry Christmas.” 
    
The other Professors gulped as Fainauriel slammed the door. Sorrel shouted some nasty word at him for slamming the door of her precious greenhouse. 



Sixth-Year Kahlan was able to catch a few bits of shut-eye before she was woken up by frantic rapping at her dormitory door. Sleepy-eyed, she arose, dragging her feet to the door with an audible grumble. “So much for beauty rest. What do you want, Zeus.” 

Zeus Jones was a quirky Sixth-Year Ravenclaw and fellow former student of Advanced Summoning. If anyone was Anatole’s biggest fan, it was him. He had been longing to find some sort of memoir to remind him of the Dark Art’s days in the dingy classroom. Kahlan didn’t like him that much and thought that he would have been a hindrance to the fellow saviors, so she refused to invite him. “Well, it’s Christmas, Kahlan. I just wanted to tell you, well...Merry Christmas.”

“Merry Christmas, Zeus,” Kahlan blankly commented. “I don’t have a gift for you, just in case you were wondering.”

“No! That’s not why I’m here,” Zeus muttered, “I heard about your summoning. You brought back Anatole?” His eyes shone with wonder. 

Kahlan shushed him. “Hush! I don’t know how you heard but,” she lowered her voice, “yes, he’s back. He’s in the Hufflepuff dorms. I summoned him in the Abandoned Toilets last night.”

Zeus narrowly managed to hold in a scream. “Oh my LORD, Kahlan! That’s incredible! C... Can I meet him?” 

The girl sighed. “Yes, if you get dressed and clean yourself up a little. Then you can go see him while everyone’s down in the Great Hall for breakfast.” 

Zeus pumped a fist. “Will do! Meet you back here in a second?” Kahlan nodded.  

Meanwhile, Xander woke up to Anatole grumbling under his bed. None of the other boys in his dorm had woken up yet, but Xander was mentally preparing himself for when they did. It would be better to introduce Anatubby to the pack than just keeping him like a secret. After all, it was hard to keep a thirty-one year old hostage a secret. “Good morning, Hufflepuffs! I have a little present for you all!” Xander’s voice rang through the dorm and woke up every Hufflepuff in the room. They usually found Xander obnoxious, but that was beside the point. “Anatole, get up here.” The former Professor rolled out from under Xander’s bed and stood up, dusting himself off. “Meet Anatole: Hogwarts Alumni and Former Professor of Advanced Summoning.” Xander grinned, treating Anatole like his prized possession. 

The Hufflepuff guys muttered to each other and finally, one piped up, “What’s Advanced Summoning?”

“Long story, kid. Please don’t ask.” And A Pole was rather stern in his statement, at first striking fear into the Hufflepuff guys. They slowly got out of bed and approached the stranger. “Only here for today only, make use of me.”

“Wait, if you’re a Professor, I need to let you know something.” A dark-haired Hufflepuff motioned to a blonde one. “Jimmy Johns got burned last night when we were practicing Incendio and roasting chestnuts over it. Jimmy? Are you okay?”

The blonde one nodded. “Yeah, I’m fine! If John can survive a whole burning, I can survive this one!”

Anatole shook his head. “Doesn’t look like it, kid. Your finger is roasted. Someone call Rosie.” The disheveled man took a seat on the bed. 

“Wait, you know Nurse Parker?” Xander was wide-eyed.

“Long story as well. Met in school.”

All the Hufflepuffs were shellshocked. Jimmy looked at his finger and looked back at Anatole, suddenly realizing the time. “Guys! We’re late for Christmas Breakfast! Come on, let’s go!” And just like that, the horde of Hufflepuffs got dressed and left the room, each one saying goodbye to Anatole. Jimmy was stupid enough to give Anatole a high five with his burnt finger. He later screamed in pain.  

Xander sighed when Anatole asked him if he was going to breakfast himself. “No, I’m staying here to watch you. You’re Hogwarts’s best kept secret, you know. No one ever talks about you.”
Anatole shrugged. “Advanced Summoning is that to the Wizarding World. There's only a select few who know about the practice, and that's why I came to teach it.” 

A hard, quick series of knocks came on the door to the Common Room. “Anatole! Anatole!” Zeus was outside with Kahlan, anxiously waiting for Xander to let them in. 

“Xander? Are you in there?”

“Yeah, I am, just wait!” Xander motioned for Anatole to come with him, and they met the two of them outside. “You seriously brought Zeus too?” 

Kahlan sighed. “I just need to make his day since I didn’t get a gift. I’ll just share my gift with him. It will work, right?” She giggled. “Zeus Jones, re-meet Anatole Evans.”

At first, Anatole didn’t recognize the student, but once Zeus wrapped his arm around the man, he recognized it. Oh, right, he was the mischievous Ravenclaw. “Antanol! How are you?” 

“Well...I’m fine, I suppose? It’s...very good to see you again. I missed you all, but not the school.” 

This strange reunion in the hall proceeded with random hugs and even more random wisdom, that is, until Nurse Parker came along, hearing word of Jimmy’s wound. “Where’s Jimmy? Is Jimmy in there?” Then, she saw him. “A….Anatole? You’re back?” 

“No! No, I’m not. I’m just here for the day since these two summoned me.” He pointed to Kahlan and Xander, still trying to swerve around Zeus’s strange hugging. “But... it’s good to see you too, I suppose? You look as good as ever.”

She shook her head. “I’m just here for Jimmy. Xander, where’s Jimmy? Jimmy Johns?”

“Breakfast,” he remarked. Like that, Nurse Parker exited, only quickly waving to Anatole before exiting down to the Great Hall. Xander grimaced and turned toward the former Professor. “Story?”

“I left her for a while and she got mad at me. That’s all.”

Kahlan appeared sad for him and Zeus finally stopped hugging. “You really seem to have relations with everyone here, don’t you?”

Tolie nodded. “Relations... relations... relations!” Anatole had a little revelation. “Do either of you know where Sergei is?” 

“You mean Professor Yornikovych? Oh yeah, he’s in his office. Bedridden and a little sick. We have a sub, and she’s supposedly BLIND!” Zeus didn’t have much consideration when he said those words. 

“You know what, kids, this’s been fun and all, but I’ve got to go down and see Sergei one last time. Maybe bring him some coffee or chamomile tea, you know, like the first lesson.” The outcast smiled and adjusted his wrecked collar. “Merry Christmas, kids. Merry Christmas.”

Just like it was the end of a sappy Christmas movie, the kids waved as Anatole departed. Of course, Xander ran back after the Professor. “Ana...rolwee? Will you be back?”

Casserole smiled. “I’ll be back, alright. You can summon me anytime, but leave me be for a bit.” With one final wave, Anatole turned around the corner, shouting one last greeting of “Merry Christmas!”

The pupils called back, but then Kahlan turned to Zeus. “Well, there goes our Christmas miracle.”



Anatole slowly crept downstairs to the classroom where he used to teach the forbidden class. He dragged his hand along the dingy walls, sorrowly realizing that they had removed all the cans and all that stood in the room was his desk. The bag of phones was back at his coastal home, but still, he had flashbacks to teaching the class. All he had on him was his own phone and his wand. “Boy... look what they did to this place.” Anatalo shook his head and pulled out his phone. “They cleaned it up, which is good, but they kept the window and the desk.” At first, he considered that they were making it another Potion-storage room based on its location, but it just held a different vibe.
    
He logged into his account and stared at the blank gray screen with a small text box at the bottom. With a heavy inhale, he attempted to summon Matilda. “Imagine a world like that.”
    
Anatole waited a moment or two, but nothing happened. She never appeared in the classroom, though he had quoted Ariana Grande. Matilda Barrows must have been gone for good.
    
With a sneeze, Anatole wiped off his screen and attempted to summon the man of the hour: Sergei Yornikovych. The summoner hoped he would still be possible to summon, because sometimes when a target was gravely ill, “:eye emoji: We meet again.”
    
He waited, and at first the Bulgarian did not appear. Anatole grew worried.
    
Sergei is on his deathbed, he stares up at the ceiling and sees a light. He is ready to pass on beyond the Veil and closes his eyes. But much to his dismay, he is instead summoned to Anatole Evans' classroom and feels the weight of a thousand Babushkas on his back. He then proceeds to curse in Bulgarian at his old student for summoning him as he was about to leave this godforsaken plane... 
    
Anatole watched as the Bulgarian fell from the ceiling and grimaced. He cursed to himself but pulled out his present for Sergei, a small little teddy bear. Slowly, he approached the angry old man and placed it by his side. “Uh... hi Sergei, it’s me, Anatole, and uh... I just wanted to say…”
    
The old man was still ranting and raving. “Шибан Задник! По Дяволите! (F***ing A******! Damn it!)” He had a wild look in his eyes as he snatched the teddy bear up and spit right on Anatole. “Never come back!”
    
And A Pole felt the spit and conceded to the best way he knew to escape Hogwarts - that window right there; he was about to use the same escape window he had used many times before. “Alright, I hear you, Madman! Enjoy your bear...uh...sorry for summoning you?”
    
Sergei continued to curse as Anatole sprinted towards the window, bounding up the wall and cracking the window once he left. The Transfiguration Professor tossed the teddy bear at the window, but it hit the window and bounced back. “Anatole Evans! Get back here right this instant!” He pulled out his wand and pointed it at the window, but Anatole shook his head. 
    
“Uh, no thanks. Merry Christmas!” Anatole heartlessly called to the dying man, sprinting off into the grounds and off the campus for one last time...or at least, until he was next summoned. 

FIN.

R.I.P. Sergei Yornikovych
(and all fallen staff members)