Aemilius walked outside, into the cold of winter. In a couple days it would be the holidays and most of the students would be home snuggled in their nice warm beds, sharing the holiday season with their family. He let out a sigh. Of course he was staying here at the school. It wouldn't be too bad. He was sure there would be others who would be staying, though he was sure he wouldn't be able to stand them.

No he would prefer to go see Egypt with his mother like last year. That was fun. His mother decided that this year she would go up north. To Antarctica. Aemilius knew from a young age that his mom was crazy, he never really knew how crazy until he received her letter stating that 'she found a lead on an ancient wizard treasure buried somewhere in Antarctica. Despite how crazy it might seem, Aemilius wanted more than anything to go with her. It would have been better than staying in the empty castle. When he asked his mom if he would go, she told him that 'it would be far too dangerous and that staying at the castle would give him a chance to make some friends'.

Aumilius kicked the snow on the ground. He wished his mom would understand that he had little to no patience with others. It was hard for him to make friends, let alone keep them. He slumped down near the edge of the lake, under one of the large willow trees. There was a lack of snow there, though it was a bit wet.

He wanted to have a Christmas, one that he wouldn't forget any time soon. If he had an amazing one, maybe his mom would want to join him next year, he thought to himself. He grinned at the thought. When he was little he remembered waking up early in the morning, seeing the house completely covered with decorations that were not there the night before. His mom would be waiting for him, looking even more tired that usual. He wanted a Christmas just like that.