He won twice, while the classmates won once. Compared to Hagrid's large barrel of expensive gifts, the gifts from the other little wizards seemed more like a case of small gifts rich in sentiment.
Ian was quite amused while unboxing.
The twins gave him a gift box filled with candies, which Ian dared not eat. This gift, along with the "sister's original underwear" from the nighttime little wizard class, was placed in the Room of Requirement, perhaps to be discovered by someone in the future who might find the things he "forgot" there.
"It's not that I'm picky about them; it's just that my sense of crisis is strong."
Ian continued unboxing gifts. Compared to these two gifts with uncertain danger levels, the complete set of collectible cards given by the Chocolate Frog boy made him appreciate the perks of being a factory heir.
Seemingly frugal on a daily basis, the boy could only use Chocolate Frogs as tuition for the little class, yet he can so readily gift such a precious card set; surely, his family background resembles that of a spicy prince in the magic world.
"The little wizards from Ravenclaw mostly gifted books, which I love." Ian had already opened the seventh book, the enthusiastic Senior Sister Penelope gifted him "Merlin's Legend."
His two roommates also gifted books; one was "Fantastic Beasts in the Pot," and the other was "Secret War: Following the Struggle of That Man."
All are good books you can't buy in Diagon Alley.
Perhaps it was fate secretly reminding Ian, as his next gift box unveiled the "Fantastic Beasts Distribution and Sentencing Standards" given by Qiu Zhang.
"..."
Ian felt that perhaps his academy friends had some misunderstandings about him. Luckily, the professors did not misunderstand him, his excellent interpersonal relationships even garnered gifts from all four heads.
Professor McGonagall gifted a delicate brooch with the emblem of Transformation Technique in the field of magic; perhaps it embodied her expectations for Ian in the domain of Transformation Technique.
Similarly, Professor Flitwick gifted Ian a notebook filled with insights from Magic Curse studies, based on his personal experiences. The raw, unpublished notes were rich with valuable content. Professor Sprout's gift was a tool maintenance kit, her fondness earned by Ian's helpfulness to Hufflepuff students.
"My dear uncle surprisingly didn't gift me a Magic Potion." Unboxing the last Hogwarts head's gift revealed an alchemy tool imbued with the Iron Armor Spell.
Clearly purchased.
Ian reckoned Snape was concerned that the current threats to Hogwarts might affect him. Clearly, Snape had no idea Ian was still plotting to burn Voldemort again. This concern felt akin to Ian worrying that overly greasy hair might hasten Snape's hair loss.
"I hope my dear uncle will like the shampoo I gifted." Naturally, Ian wouldn't settle for buying a ready-made Porter Shampoo to splash onto Snape's head. Instead, he concocted quite a bit of magic herbal shampoo himself, generously using many cherished ingredients from Snape's personal collection.
No idea if post-gift Snape would frantically check his cupboards.
"Let me see what my best friend sent me!" After unwrapping everyone else's gifts, Ian placed the final gift box in front of himself.
This was Aurora's gift.
As Ian's oldest and closest friend, the gifts he sent Aurora included a "Book of the Snake Language," and a work crafted from the Resurrection Stone's raw form.
Though it definitely couldn't facilitate communication between Aurora and other souls in the Misty Illusion Realm, the "Ring of Patronus" would undoubtedly strengthen the connection between Aurora and her Patronus.
After all.
The existence of the Patronus itself is closely tied to the Misty Illusion Realm. Ian also recalled Aurora practicing for a long time, struggling to truly cast the Patronus Charm and connect with her Patronus.
This gift was surely far more time-consuming and effort-intensive than those sent to Dumbledore and Grindelwald—all they received were wizard chess sets, uniquely designed by Ian.
Each chess piece was adorned with skins way cooler than those of the League of Legends Hall of Fame, each costing thousands—turning pawns into World of Warcraft green-skinned beastmen and tall elves.
The modifications didn't end there.
Knights' steeds were swapped with Nightmares and Unicorns, one bearing Frost's Sorrow, another wielding Fire Joy—red side's king brandished the Elder Wand as Dumbledore, while black side's king was Grindelwald. Ian even added battle special effects, making them fabulously well-crafted gifts.
Undoubtedly.
With time and effort spent exceeding that of the "Ring of Patronus."
"The Resurrection Stone and my ring are both made of that stone, equating to me gifting my best friend a Deathly Hallow!"
With an eager heart, Ian unwrapped Aurora's gift.
He remembered how during egg-foraging trips in the Forbidden Forest, Aurora mentioned she had readied a Christmas gift for Ian, a treasure secretly pilfered from Grindelwald.
"Let me see what the treasure is!"
Ian unwrapped it violently.
Yet.
Expecting to find some type of sinister Dark Arts Props, he only unveiled a small, exquisitely made item, shimmering with a metallic sheen.