Closed Staff Secret Santa

[Katherine Alicastell]

December was always the most exciting time of the year for the students. With it came the conclusion of their exams, the joy of the Yule Ball, and an opportunity to return home to celebrate the holidays with friends and family. But what of the staff members of the castle? Those who put so much effort into each and every school year, but weren't nearly as rewarded for their troubles. Events for the professors, the healers and counselors, the groundskeepers and librarians, all were few and far between, which was why Katherine had decided to put together a gathering to help celebrate the festive yule spirit. A "secret santa" of sorts, as the tradition was referred to by the muggle people. Yule was a time of giving, and it had seemed like the perfect idea to bring the adults of the castle together to have a bit of well-deserved fun. Everyone interested had been given the name of a colleague to obtain a gift for, and their own name was given to another. Hopefully, no one would know who was buying what for whom until today.

On the second floor of the castle, only a few doors down from Katherine and Montgomery's offices, an unused room had been refurbished to suit the evening's festivities. It was the middle of Summer in New Zealand, but the room's interior carried with it a cool atmosphere - blue and silver tones, with the occasional crystalline snowflake dangling overhead, its glassy surface twinkling with a starry light every so often. A minimally decorated evergreen stood magically erected toward the center of the room, its top too high for the limited height the room offered. Instead, it curled down and inwards into a simple spiral, on which balanced a small cluster of fairies who had found their way inside, and were eager to add to the room's overall appearance.

Beneath the tree lay a long scarlet couch, atop which Katherine sat alone, a neatly wrapped gift folded in her lap. She wouldn't be alone for too much longer, she knew (Though two house elves were still roaming the room, making last minute adjustments here and there), the other members of staff were bound to arrive any time soon, with gifts of their own. The Headmistress was admittedly quite curious to find out what people would bring for one another. How well did her employees know each other? She herself wasn't particularly intimate with many of them, which had made participating in the event somewhat more difficult, but with a little help, the woman had finally figured out what to get for her giftee. Whether or not they'd be happy with it was another matter, but one could only hope.

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Those participating can feel free to arrive and gather around. Once enough people have arrived, you'll be free to hunt down your giftee and surprise them with whatever it is your character decided to get for them! PMs will be sent out after this topic is posted, so check your staff accounts!

 

[Professor Kahurangi Josephs]

Kahurangi had never been the best at picking out gifts for people, usually going the food and/or alcohol route, but when the time had come to sign up, she had bitten the bullet and put her name in for the secret santa. She wanted the chance to get to know her colleagues better, and surely with a list of interests she would be able to figure something out. To her dismay, though, the recipient of her gift had given quite a limited list, and she wasn't sure where to start with it. It had taken a long, uncertain shopping trip before Kahurangi felt like she had picked out something that hopefully her giftee would both enjoy, and not already own. Wrapped present in hand, she made her way to the room the staff had been told to gather in today. Kahurangi was a little surprised as she entered the room to be the first person here, but she greeted her boss with a smile and a small wave, heading over to where the woman was sitting. "Hi, Katherine. Enjoying the holidays?"

 

[Maria Madison]

Maria didn't get many chances to socialise with the actual Professors at Hogwarts, though that was partly her own fault. She didn't spend much time in the staff lounge, hiding away in her office. Most of that was due to the amount of paperwork her job entailed, when she wasn't seeing clients, but she would be lying if she didn't admit she avoided the staff room out of nerves as well. Professors Kingsley and Styx had been at Hogwarts long enough to remember Maria's own time as a student, and though she hoped she had long since faded into the recesses of their memories as one of many troubled children, it was still embarrassing to try to carry herself as a professional around people who had witnessed her immature, violent past.

Maria had sucked up her fears, though, to enter the staff secret santa. What better way to make some friends at work than by giving gifts? To her relief, her gift's recipient had had interests in common with Maria, and she hadn't had an especially difficult time shopping. She hoped to make a good impression as she made her way down to the room the staff were gathering in, smiling as she realised she had arrived quite early. "Hi." Maria said to the two women already in the room, her voice softer than usual with nerves. She crossed the room and took a seat, waiting for the recipient of her gift to arrive.

 

[Heath James]

Heath James had tried to come in early for the Secret Santa exchange, but of course people had arrived before him. However, he could still consider himself early by the few number of people that were there. He had his gift in his hand. It was an expensive gift, but he had made his parents front all of the cost for the gift. It still had been something that Heath had put a lot of thought into. He was a Muggleborn, so he knew the types of things that wizards found fascinating that were normal for him. His parents did question why he suddenly wanted money from them, but Heath just made up a simple lie so that they wouldn't have to think about now weird they though their son was because he was a wizard. The groundskeeper simply sighed and took a seat at a table with the gift for his person. He knew who they were, but he doubted that they would know who he was. He was nervous that the Headmistress was there. Authority figures always made him nervous.

 

[Jon Phillips]

Christmas was one of Jon's favourite holidays, and one he always went over the top for, so when a secret santa had been organized for the professors and staff at Hogwarts Jon had signed up for it immediately. Apart from basking in the festive spirit of christmas and cherishing the time he could spend with his family, gift giving was Jon's favourite part of the holiday. The thrill of searching for and buying what he thought was the perfect gift for someone, then waiting to see their reaction when they received it was unmatched in his opinion, and something he looked forward to on that day. He showed up to the meeting on the second floor with the small present for his giftee wrapped in vibrant red and white candy cane themed wrapping paper with a bright green bow as a finishing touch placed on the top of the gift, making it appear entirely festive and pretty. Jon looked to the other professors and staff already in the room and smiled, greeting everyone with an enthusiastic "Happy Holidays!" before he moved to an empty chair and sat down. He couldn't wait for more people to arrive so the gift exchanges could begin.​

 

[Ignacio Morales]

Gift giving had never been Ignacio's forte, a task that often caused his mind to go blank regardless of how well he knew the person the gift was for, let alone for someone he knew in passing at best. Thus a secret santa for the professors and staff at Hogwarts was not something Ignacio would have usually signed up for. But feeling the pressure to take part wanting to get to know more of the people he worked with in the school, and to stop himself from feeling isolated given his job required him to spend time outside and away from many of the professors and other staff that weren't fellow groundskeepers, he had signed up for it. At first he had no idea what kind of gift he should get, though as time passed and after asking Ruby for some help he found something he thought would be best, and showed up on the day to exchange gifts feeling confident in his choice. Ignacio quickly smiled at the staff members and professors in the room, before approaching a fellow groundskeeper and attempting to make small talk. "Hello Heath, how are you?" He asked as he sat down, the gift he brought still in his hands.​

 

[Bryce Chamberlin]

Professor Bryce Chamberlin sure looked forward to the Secret Santa among the other staff members. This would be a great opportunity to get to know everyone! He had a small present in his jacket since his gift was small enough to conceal easily. He could not wait to give the present to his giftee. He entered the second floor corridor and followed after the other staff members. He entered the room and was amazed by the decor. It certainly looked festive. He smiled as he found himself a spot to stand. He waved casually to the others, looking forward to what everyone had, and who everyone had.

 

[Cyndi Kingsley]

Professor Kingsley didn't need to spend too much time thinking about the gift for her Secret Santa. She knew the person extremely well. But there were other feelings that made purchasing the present for her assigned person difficult. Still, she got it done fairly soon after she'd received the name. Wearing a simple deep purple dress, the professor ent t d the room set for the event and smiled at her colleagues. The bag at her side, a rather large, very Christmassy affair, swung slightly on her side. It was large enough and had enough striped paper sticking out from it to fully contain her gift so she didn't have to worry about anyone peeking ahead of time.

Cyndi settled into a seat, her gift in front of her. It wasn't that she didn't know anyone else in the room, but these were the younger bunch of colleagues she'd never really spoken to much. And Kahurangi, who she did know better, was in conversation with their boss. The woman was content to simply observe the room.

 

[Jacqueline Styx]

Professor Jacqueline Burke had spent a bit of time searching for a gift for her Secret Santa. She didn't know the person well, albeit she didn't know many people at the school well. She had sought Kalif's help even though he had refused to participate. The brunette woman entered the Professor's Common Room with the neatly wrapped present in her hands. She took a seat in the circle and waiting patiently for the event to begin.

 

[Madlyn Ateara]

Unless they were family gatherings, Madlyn rarely partake in these kinds of events where everyone exchange gifts with one another. It's an odd tradition, especially if you were new like her and didn't know everyone well enough to image an ideal present for your giftee. Even knowing Professor Kingsley and Styx during her time at Hogwarts, Madlyn couldn't picture an appropriate gift for them. It took days for the light bulb to lit up before Madlyn went to work on crafting these gifts. She wasn't always creative, never as good as her own dear father, sister Jackie and Chante. Madlyn worked what she could manage and came up with a gift items that were easy to create and used a protected charm so they hold and not collapse over time. Madlyn wrapped the gifts in soft tissue and place them in Chante's old blanket, one she hand washed and made it look neat. Madlyn folded the gifts inside the blanket and wrapped a ribbon to keep it all together. This may be a giveaway for her gift, but she was pleased with the results. Madlyn arrived in the enchanted room dressed in the best attire she owns. She wore jeans, a grey knitted sweater, brown boots, and grey hat that went fitted with her sweater. "Merry Christmas Everyone," the tall woman greeted with a broad smile.

 

[Professor Matt Alcott-Ward]

The idea of holding a secret Santa with the staff was a great one, and Matt had been happy to participate. He wasn't entirely sure about his gift, but knew there was nothing he could do about it now except apologize if it wasn't what the person actually wanted. So he tried not to worry about it too much as he made his way into the room. Plenty of his colleagues were already there, and Matt smiled as he looked around. He made his way over to Jon, taking a seat next to him. "Enjoying the holidays?" He asked the younger man with a smile.

 

[Professor Grace Holland]

As Grace stepped into the room filled with her coworkers, she felt oddly nervous. It was her second year working here, and she was by no means the newest addition to the staff, but she still felt a bit like a newbie. Turning twenty earlier in the year hadn't changed the fact that she was still the youngest staff member as far as she knew, though she was also proud of her achievements as a teacher in these first two years. Grace had been happy to participate in secret Santa, knowing that it was important to join social events. She hoped her gift was a good one, but she was fairly sure it would be as the list she had received had been very simple. Grace stayed near the edges of the room, observing the other members of the staff talking together. She didn't see anyone she wanted to approach yet, and decided to wait a little before attempting to socialize.

 

[Stefan Archer]

Stefan was not one to usual involve himself in school matters, but the offer to take part in something christmas related had been equally spurred on by his wife, she had suggested he take the time and maybe try to involve himself a little more in the school goings on. He had initially thought against it, he didn't think that getting involved in some of the school affairs would really benefit him all that well, but in saying that, he had wanted to give it a try and see if he couldn't do a little more in this school, more that wasn't just tidying up after the kids that visited the library. He had been working at Hogwarts for quite some time so there was no reason why he couldn't now at this point attempt to get involved in it. The librarian walked into where the gift exchange was supposed to take place and he could spot easily the different professors and the few members of staff that he knew from being in the school so long. He smiled a little shyly at most, and found himself just a spot in the room, and hoped that this wouldn't be as bad as he thought. He could imagine that what he'd brought was good, good enough at least and he was actually quite happy that he had chosen in the end to take part. ​

 

[Professor Misha Haden]

Pofessor Misha Haden would always be happy to participate in any celebration which could be an occasion for him to get drunk. Though he knew it would be a mistake for him to get too drunk nowadays with a new daughter in his life, but it only meant that he would likely have someone to get drunk with when she eventually turned seventeen, so he just had to wait a little while. A number of other things had changed too, he actually had plans for the holidays that didn't just involve him sitting alone in his flat because he refused to go home. He was going to his daughters for the day and it was going to be so good. He had been working with his old fling to make their relationship work and though there were no longer any feelings between them, Misha felt like he had rediscovered an old friend, one he just happened to share a daughter with. He had a poorly concealed wrapped gift in his hands as he walked into the secret santa exchange room, and then looked around the room. he spotted Heath, the groundskeeper who had spotted him with marmalade on his face and he winked at the other man. But there was no Kalif?! Where was his best buddy?! Surely he would want to take part in such a celebration. Instead though he wandered over to the divination professor and smiled, "Hi, Bryce right? Divination? I'm Misha, Charms," he knew this boy had probably once been in his class at hogwarts but they were equals now and he felt like he should make an effort with the newer professors. ​

 

[Josephine Arora]

Josephine was one of the newest additions to Hogwarts staff, and hadn't had the chance to really connect to anyone aside from her fellow nurses. She knew Hezekiah a little from a talk they had before the man was even hired at Hogwarts, but hadn't talked to him much recently. Josephine hoped that participating in this event would help her feel more at home with her colleagues, and she had taken care to find a nice present for the person she had been assigned. She smiled at a few people as she entered the room, and found a seat. She didn't want to interrupt any of the conversations happening right now, and she was happy to wait a for a bit while people arrived with their gifts.

 

[Aspen Faye]

Aspen was incredibly excited for the Staff Christmas party. She knew it was supposed to be just a secret santa handover, but it definitely was going to be a party if she had anything to do with it. Aspen had chatted here and there to a few of the Professors and staff, but she hadn't made a friend yet per-say, and though after Ellie's death, she did find herself wanting more alone time, it did suck not having a friend. Today was definitely the day where it was all going to change! Aspen entered the room with her present, a huge grin on her face, before finding a seat and waiting for the festivities to begin.

 

[Lillian Sword]

This would be Lillian's first Christmas as a Hogwarts professor, a thought that felt strange to her, but filled her with a certain warmth. She had been trying to get to know her colleagues better this year, and to a certain extent she had succeeded, but the thought of a secret santa still made her nervous. Nevertheless she had entered, wanting to challenge herself, and maybe make new friends. Lillian entered the room with her brightly wrapped gift in her hands, and looked around. The wintry theme of the room was familiar and natural to her, though she thought it a little odd that Katherine insisted on it here in the Southern hemisphere. Everyone Lillian knew was already busy talking to someone, and she felt too awkward to join a conversation, so she hovered near the doorway, still a little uncertain among the other staff.

 

[Hezekiah Mowry]

Hezekiah was especially nervous about this day. He was very worried that his person would not like their gift. He was also worried about what he would get considering what he wrote on his form. He had been very vague because he was not a picky man when it came to gifts. Hezekiah did not have a lot of friends, and he wanted to change that. It was similar to how his daughter was going through a revelation period at the moment, which he was thankful for. He just hoped that Professor Phillips did not have any bad news to give him, especially after she silenced a second year! The man sighed and walked into the room and was astonished by its decorations. It was the middle of summer, but the room had a great feel to it. The man just stood in the back awkwardly holding his gift.

 

[Irene Holland]

Irene stepped into the room where the staff party was held. She could not wait for the holidays to start as this would be their first holiday with the twins. It was most likely her second or third year in the school as library staff but this was the first for them to have the Secret Santa, Of course, this made the woman so excited that she went all out for her secret santa. Carrying the box with her, she joined her colleagues who were already there and gently set the box down on the table. The contents were breakable and she did not want it damaged before they got to the receiver. She smiled at the people present, "Happy Christmas,everyone!", she greeted. Her secret santa was already there and her excitement even grew more.​

 

[Sarah Harrington]

Sarah hadn't spent much time before with her fellow staff at Hogwarts. Most her work kept her up all night when everyone else was doing rounds or sleeping. She walked into the room and looked around finding her secret santa wasn't easy with the amount of staff in the room. She carried a festively wrapped present in her hand and a smile on her face. It was exciting time of year, even if she hadn't really celebrated Christmas since she was a little girl, her husband had been getting her back into the holidays over the past few years, saying that wizards did celebrate Christmas and it was a good family tradition for them to have with their girls. She held the gift wondering when she was meant to give the present and wondered which staff member standing around had her. She thought she had done very well for her giftee.

 

[Aeon Summers]

This year, Aeon found he didn't have all that many friends left when it came to his colleagues. With how many came and went, he had to ask himself, what was the point? He didn't have the time to maintain relationships outside of the school, and starting a new friendship only for that person to leave a year or two later felt like a waste of time. To be frank, it wasn't all that easy to even begin friendships in the first place at his age. The more years that passed, the more difficult it seemed to be to bond with other people. They all had their own stuff going on, himself included, and there wasn't enough room for new additions.

Still, the animagus signed himself up for this winter event, despite the fact that his mother was the host. He wasn't exactly fond of supporting anything that woman did, which was a lot given that she was the damn headmistress, but as long as he didn't pull her name out as the giftee - and, phew, he hadn't - there was little to no issue. What was an issue was figuring out a gift for the person he did receive. He'd been given something to work with, as he assumed everyone else had, but the suggestion hadn't been anything particularly special, which was what he wanted his gift to be. Nothing too fancy, considering he wasn't super best friends with anyone he worked with, but he certainly wanted to give something a little more significant than say, a new pair of socks, or a batch of homemade cookies.

Stepping into the room, Aeon carried with him a gift box that was deceptively bigger than the actual gift itself. It had become something of a habit to try and ensure that gifts weren't easy to try and guess, with how often Ellie and Lysander tried to figure out what they were getting for Christmas based on shape alone, and that habit had bled into his colleagues gift, as sure as he was that they weren't going to try and shake the box around before opening it to guess what it was. The man gave a few brief greetings and seated himself, fingertips drumming restlessly on the surface of his box. This style of gift giving between coworkers was a first for him, and he wasn't all that sure what to make of it.

 

[Katherine Alicastell]

Katherine returned Kahurangi's greeting with a pleasant smile and a wave of her own, glad to see someone arriving so soon. "Whenever I can find the time." She responded, not at all seeming unhappy by the fact. Holiday wasn't a word in the Headmistress' vocabulary, and quite frankly that was how she preferred it. She needed her breaks from time to time, as anyone did, but that's all they were - breaks. Too much free time felt like time wasted. There was always something to be done, and the woman needed to keep herself busy to feel content. "And yourself?"

It was a relief to see that it wasn't taking too long for everyone to arrive, knowing how some had a habit of straggling to any sort of get together, if ever showing up at all. Then, of course, there were a few faces she knew weren't going to be appearing that evening, seeing as they hadn't signed up for the gift exchange in the first place. Kalif's absence was hardly a surprise, and probably for the best, though it was a pity Montgomery had also chosen not to participate, given that he was supposed to be her right hand, and an event involving so many members of staff was exactly the sort of thing she expected him to make an appearance at. That said, she hadn't been as involved with him as she could have over the past semester, at least, in terms of his personal life. She wasn't even sure if he was still taking his potions. The woman made a mental note to check-in and see where he was up to, but for now, there were other people to tend to.

Exchanging pleasantries and the like, Katherine waited until it seemed as if just about everyone had arrived. She allowed for plenty of time for anyone lagging to catch up, and everyone else to get through their chats before she stood and called for attention. "Good afternoon everyone, and thank you for coming. I know its quite a busy time of the year, but I am sincerely glad that so many of you are here." With one semester come to a close and another to prepare for, there was a lot going on, and that wasn't taking into account the fact it was the season of gift giving for so many people, who were rushing around figuring out what to get for family and friends - and now colleagues, on top of that. "Its important for us all to take the time to get to know one another, and to join in on the festive spirit at this time of the year. I know not all of us have the opportunity to do so. Hogwarts is first and foremost about its students, and throughout the year that is primarily the focus, but there would be no students if not for the hard work each and every one of you put in, both professors and the other members of staff who help to guide them and keep the school running as best it can. So, a big thank you to everyone here, and those that couldn't make it, for all that you've done over this year, the years in the past, and the years to come."

Without anything more to really say, the woman got to her feet and raised her wrapped gift. "Well, without further ado, let the gift giving begin! I'll start us off." Secret Santa was something of a muggle tradition, and one Katherine wasn't exactly the most familiar with. She knew bits and pieces, but to her knowledge, the secret part was simply not knowing who was getting you a present until the last moment, rather than it remaining a secret the entire time, which didn't seem very fun at all. The woman found her recipient (Not that she had to look. everyone was right in plain view) and held out the neatly wrapped box. Unlike some, she hadn't shopped for her gift. It wasn't all that easy to get in a store, particularly in the southern hemisphere at this time of the year. Rather, one of the house-elves in the kitchen had been kind enough to knit it themselves. "Merry Christmas, Mr Philllips."

Spoiler: Gift

An ugly knitted Christmas sweater, depicting a kiwi bird with reindeer antlers on its front. Christmas trees spatter the background. The sleeves and bottom are circled by random muggle objects (A lightbulb, a car, mobile phone, screwdriver and basketball among them. Its plain that it was made by someone with no actual knowledge of the muggle world.)

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Sorry for the delay. Hope everyone had a great Christmas!

 

[Professor Misha Haden]

Misha was very eager to just get started, they were allowed to finally give the presents they had bought to the right place. Misha smiled as he adjusted the bought gift he had in his hands and held it in front of him. He glanced about the room, it was easy to spot that within the room there was still no Kalif, he couldn't believe that Kalif wouldn't come to such an event - he was such a people person. The charms professor did spot who the gift he had was from. The history professor for the younger years. Lillian Sword, she seemed nice enough, though Misha had never really spoken too much to her, maybe Misha needed to spend a little time broadening his friendship circle with some of the other people. The professor had always just been Jon's friend or Kalif's friend, even if that was entirely one sided. "Lillian, here," he said once he got close and held it out to her "Merry Christmas," the professor said. He'd had bought a muggle book of aerial pictures of historical sights. He figured that would be a good enough gift for her, hopefully something that the woman would like. He was very hopeful that she would like it. He had put some effort into it. Had tried his best with it. ​

 

[Stefan Archer]

Stefan hadn't been too sure what to get his secret santa, he'd never really been much of a gift giver outside of his family. It had been at the suggestion of his wife that he get something like wine. He'd never touched alcohol himself, fairly put off the drink due to his history with it during his childhood, which had taken him quite a while to then be able to find something specific for the gift itself. Eventually though he had picked a bottle of what he'd been assured was very good whisky, from Ireland, it was peaty and deep according to the box. It wasn't something he would ever touch but this was for someone else, he wouldn't need to drink any of it. Once the headmistress had allowed them to get started on the whole process and then looked to the person he knew it was for, since finding out whom he had for the event had made the decision to look up who the person was, he was vaguely aware of who most of them were but not always necessarily by name. The man easily spotted him, he spotted the younger man, Heath James and then walked towards him. He had a gift bag, which was pretty obviously shaped for an alcoholic bottle. He hadn't really wrapped it, just put a little bit of wrapping paper at the top. "Heath, Merry Christmas," he held out the gift for him and hoped that the other man would like it. ​

 

[Professor Kahurangi Josephs]

Kahurangi smiled at Katherine's response, glad that she didn't feel as intimidated talking to the woman as she had in her first couple of years teaching. "Pretty good, always busy with the whānau*." She smiled. Kahurangi had lost track of how many nieces and nephews she had now, and it always made Christmas a busy, fun time of year, getting everyone together. She sat back, listening as Katherine began the gift-giving, and waited for other people to start giving their gifts before getting up to hand her own off. With all the time Kahurangi spent in the library she had become fairly familiar with the head librarian, though she didn't know how many actual conversations she had had with the man. Choosing a gift for him had been difficult, but she was fairly sure she had managed to settle one something he was unlikely to own. As she reached him though, Kahurangi's step faltered as she realised he was already engaged in giving someone else a gift. Hesitating on the spot, Kahurangi waited for him to be finished before making her approach.

*Whānau - Family