"I've got presents!" Harry exclaimed in surprise, crouching down beside the pile of parcels.
He had not expected to receive anything at all. Yet, when he woke up the next morning, the first thing he saw was a small mound of packages at the foot of his four-poster bed.
"You don't usually receive gifts?" Kevin asked, sitting up and stretching. "I thought this was a mandatory side quest that every player triggered."
"No," Harry said, beaming. "This is the first time!"
"Well, take a look at the surprise I've prepared for you."
"You gave me... a new pair of glasses?" Harry asked, opening Kevin's parcel. "These... look exactly the same as my current ones."
"I crafted them based on your current prescription, but the enchantment is far from simple," Kevin said, feigning profundity.
"Er... thanks? I suppose it's always good to have a spare," Harry said hesitantly.
"Try putting them on," Kevin urged.
Harry shrugged, took off his old, taped-up glasses, and slid on the new pair given by Kevin.
"Whoa!" Harry exclaimed with delight. Everything seemed sharper, crisper.
"They look like ordinary spectacles," Kevin explained, "but they are actually equipped with Eagle Eye, which grants a +5 bonus to Perception. It means you can see objects fifty feet away as clearly as if they were right in front of your nose. Also, under certain circumstances, they display numerical values above a person's head. You can guess what those mean later."
"So I can wear them in Quidditch without breaking the rules!" Harry said excitedly. "Or to be precise, I won't get caught. Thanks, Kevin! This is amazing!"
"What did the '0' mean when it appeared above your heads just now?" Harry asked suddenly.
"That effect can only be triggered once a day. Figure it out yourself; let's keep a little mystery in the game." Kevin winked.
Ron glanced at Harry enviously, then tore into his own pile of gifts—a much larger pile, as the Weasley family was extensive. He found the package Kevin had left for him. Inside was a quill that looked quite ordinary.
"What does it do?" Ron asked eagerly.
"It writes," Kevin answered casually.
"That's it?" Ron looked somewhat disappointed.
"Yes... but it's fully automatic. It's my own invention. You just tap it against a piece of parchment to activate it, and it will automatically transcribe what you are reading until you finish the text or exceed 2,500 words. I imagine this will be critically useful when you're copying Hermione's notes. It can even turn pages automatically."
"Blimey." Ron looked at him as if he were a long-lost blood relative. "That is brilliant. From now on, you are my brother. My half-brother, at least."
"However, it has a cooldown—it can only be used once a day. And when not in use, keep it away from blank parchment to avoid accidental triggering. I call it the +5 Plagiarism Quill."
"What is 'plus five'?" Ron asked, puzzled.
"It's nothing. It originally represented the item level, but in this context, it usually represents the power of money."
"You're talking nonsense again, but you're still my brother," Ron said, waving his hand magnanimously.
Kevin began sorting through his own loot. First were the books Hermione had given him. (She had dutifully prepared different books for each classmate).
"Self-Assessment and Correction of Mental Health?" Kevin raised an eyebrow. "It must be because her parents are doctors that she gave me such a clinically suggestive book."
The model broomstick Harry gave him was a miniature Nimbus that could hover up and down on its own, but refused to move horizontally. Kevin suspected Harry was alluding to his disastrous performance in flying lessons. He made a mental note to prank the Boy Who Lived later.
Neville had sent a box of chocolates in various flavors; the rich aroma made one's mouth water immediately. Kevin popped one into his mouth.
Ron's gift was a bag of curiously shaped beans. Kevin tasted one; it was salty and oddly astringent.
"Don't eat that! It's rat tonic for Scabbers!" Ron's warning came a second too late. Scabbers, who was snoozing in Ron's pocket, poked his head out and squeaked indignantly, as if to say, 'You're taking food out of my mouth?'
Finally, there was Hannah Abbott's gift: a bundle of indescribable, tangled yarn. It took Kevin a long moment to recognize that it was probably, perhaps, theoretically intended to be a scarf.
If I don't want to end up mangled like this scarf, I should immediately give Hannah her Christmas present in person and grind my Reputation back up,Kevin told himself.
Harry—now wearing a bright green sweater knitted by Mrs. Weasley—reached for his last parcel.
Something fluid and silvery-gray slid out of the paper and pooled on the floor, shimmering like liquid light.
Ron gasped. "I've heard of this stuff," he said in a hushed voice.
"It looks like a cloak." Harry picked up the shining, silver fabric. It felt strange to the touch, like water woven into silk.
"It's an Invisibility Cloak," Ron said, a look of pure awe on his face. "I'm sure of it—try it on."
Harry threw the cloak over his shoulders and vanished instantly.
"I don't think I'm invisible," Harry said skeptically, looking down at his missing body. "Here, you try." He handed the cloak to Ron, who accepted it reverently. As soon as Ron draped it over himself, he vanished as well.
"There's a note!" Kevin exclaimed. "A piece of parchment fell out of it!"
Harry pulled the cloak off Ron and grabbed the letter. It was written in narrow, loopy writing he had never seen before:
Your father left this in my possession before he died.It is time it was returned to you.Use it well.A Very Merry Christmas to you.
There was no signature. Harry stared at the note, bewildered. "Who could have given me such a precious gift?"
"I know," Kevin said with a flash of inspiration. "Santa Claus. The real Santa Claus. Only an NPC of his caliber could craft such high-level Legendary items."
Harry and Ron exchanged a glance, tacitly agreeing to pretend Kevin hadn't said anything.
"Where do you think Hannah is right now?" Kevin asked suddenly.
"She mentioned at dinner yesterday that she was going to stay in her dormitory all day unless..." Harry hesitated.
"Unless what?" Kevin pressed.
"Unless someone dies."
"The situation seems critical; I must make haste," Kevin muttered, then rushed out of the boys' dormitory.
Kevin ran straight into Fred and George in the common room. They were both wearing blue Weasley jumpers, one with a large yellow 'F' woven into the front, the other with a 'G'.
"Merry Christmas! Where are you rushing off to so early in the morning?" Fred greeted him. Thanks to the initial on his sweater, Kevin could finally tell the twins apart with certainty.
"I must go to the girls' dormitory, find Hannah Abbott, deliver an apology gift, and save an innocent life. Time is of the essence," Kevin said in one breath.
"Judging by your manic expression, you look more like you're about to take a life than save one," George retorted.
"And you can't get into the girls' dorms, mate," Fred added cheerfully.
"Impossible. Don't Hermione and Hannah come into the boys' dormitory all the time?"
"Life is cruel like that," Fred sighed, shaking his head theatrically. "The founders added a glitch to the code: girls can come and go freely in the boys' dormitories, but if a boy tries to go up the girls' stairs, the steps turn into a slide."
"Unless you have our assistance," George continued with a grin.
"I beseech you, oh great pranksters of Gryffindor. I am desperate," Kevin pleaded, clasping his hands together. "Please help me."
"Why should we help you? What's in it for us?" the twins asked in unison.
"Ron said I'm his half-brother now because of the quill I gave him," Kevin said hopefully. "So that makes me your brother too, right?"
"Fair point. It seems Ron is being taken care of by you," Fred mused.
"Alright, little brother. We have three strategies to infiltrate the girls' dormitory," George said, beckoning him closer. "Come here."