546 Christmas(2)

"As the person the box is bound to at the moment you can reset it by pressing that symbol there." Nick said pointing out the deathly hallows symbol on the boxes side. "I think I got it." Harry said with a nod. "You sure you aren't playing favorites , I just got a blade while he got that complicated looking storage box?" Ron asked teasingly. "I gave each of you a present that I believed you would find most useful for your endeavors. Harry seems to be leaning towards being an auror and thus will need an easy to access storage means that would be difficult for others to use."-

"You instead are on the path of veritology and so I gave you a carving blade that improves the wood you carve with it. Hermione got a quill that writes out your thoughts with a bit of discretion of course. Tracy got a few primers on weaponry and forging while Daphne got a runic engraver of my own design with the entire elder futhark alphabet preprogramed into it for easy runic writing. As for Mina she got some hydras blood from my island." Nick explained calmly.-

"You have a hydra!?" Ron asked in shock. "There is one on my island yes , aggressive little bastard attacks anything that gets too close to the pond which is why that area is closed off." Nick said with a huff. He could see why the species originally went extinct as if they all acted like that then they probably made pests of themselves by hoarding important watering holes causing them to be hunted down to the last. It probably didn't help that their bodies were full of useful ingredients. Venom , scales , gall , blood , eyes and brains were all highly useful things to wizards.-

"Those have been extinct since over a thousand years ago , how in Merlins name did you get it?" Ron asked curiously. "It was originally a horned water snake actually but due to the conditions on my island it managed to awaken its ancestors bloodline and turn into a hydra. Sadly the other horned water snakes on the island didn't follow it's lead so I only have the one." Nick said with a shrug. "It's a good thing no one knows you have it or a lot of people would come after you to get it." Ron said seriously.-

That was also true given how messed up humans tend to be when profit was involved , a flaw wizards shared as well. Moving on from that they got to see the gifts from the normal lot such as Sirius , Lupin and each other. Nicks gifts were amongst the most extravagant but considering he made them himself or harvested them personally in the case of the hydras blood that was par for the course. Most of what Nick got was books or food which made him chuckle as it seemed to be what everyone agreed he liked.-

They weren't wrong though as he did indeed enjoy those things above most others. He enjoyed pushing his knowledge to new heights just as much as he did the subtle nuances of flavor that came from food. The gifts the other two got were more varied as their interests weren't as focused as his but they still enjoyed the candy gifts that they got. There was one present however that Nick wasn't expecting to get that if anyone else knew the sender of might get him arrested , Grindelwald. The man sent a card that was actually very ordinary for a christmas card as he just wished a happy holiday and the usual well wishes.-

The gift however only made Nick sigh as it was a small log of the Hawaiian fern that Olivander had recommended for the fire salts. 'Of course he was aware that I was looking into getting some of this.' he thought as he put it away for later. "What sort of wood is that?" Ron asked seeing the log before it was placed in the realm. "A type of Hawaiian fern that grows near volcanoes , it's a very unpopular wood for wands due to how picky it is." Nick said casually.-

"Who sent it?" Harry asked curiously. "A fan of my work." Nick answered vaguely without lying. "Why don't I ever got rare wood as a gift?" Ron complained and they laughed. After that they went to breakfast and everyone was chatting about the stuff they got. All of Nicks friends were pleased with his gifts which was perfect to him considering he barely spent more than a day getting them ready. The rest of the day after that was spent with them hanging out and generally relaxing as they waited for the ball to get set up.