A cold morning, it was. But Hermione rose with the sun and took the short walk to the prefects bathroom, letting herself soak for a while before getting ready for breakfast. She'd promised Draco she'd be there, and since she didn't stay last night, it was only fair. Her hair was almost beautiful now, she didn't worry about tangles or frizz as much, it stayed soft and light, cascading around her face in waves. She put on some light makeup, hoping to look a bright eyed and festive for the holidays. Changing into her carefully selected Christmas Eve outfit - a green, v-neck cashmere sweater she'd gotten last christmas, black leggings, and red flats - she really started to feel the change in the day.
Yes, It's Christmas Eve. She smoothed her hair. It's going to be wonderful. Lots to do, but... wonderful. She thought of Draco, and a wide smile grew across her face.
He was waiting for her with a paper and a place next to him at the table. He'd already begun eating by the time she stepped in, as most had, but he'd definitely been eating slow enough to save time to see her. He picked at a small mound of scrambled eggs as she slid in next to him.
"Good sleep then?" He turned towards her.
"Fantastic. Slept in a little late, but... I'm here now." She knew the truth - that she'd spent twice as long as usual getting ready - but she wasn't about to tell him that.
"Good. We've got a full day ahead of us. And a party to set up." He now set to actually eat his meal - she was there, that was all that mattered.
Before lunch, they gathered everything they needed. She'd gotten special permissions from McGonagall to allow him into the Gryffindor common room for just two hours to settle the details and help her move things to the room. She was frantic - rushing up and down the stairs at least a dozen times in the two hours - checking and re-checking everything she might need.
"We've got the streamers?"
"Yes."
"And the garlands."
"More garlands? Don't we have plenty in there already?"
"The garlands, Draco? Are they there?"
"Yes, they're right here. Don't fret, love."
Hearing him call her 'love' made her blush and calmed her slightly. She stammered out the next few things on her list:
"Crackers?"
"Check."
"And camera?"
"You carry a muggle camera still?"
She shot a glance at him. "Yes, I do. It's a tradition I intend to uphold - muggle photographs are easier for my parents to display at home."
"I think it's... sweet."
Another flush of the cheeks - Hermione was going to have a lot of trouble concentrating on throwing this party with him making comments like that all the time.
After lunch, they finished bringing all the necessary's down to the room. Once Hermione was fully twice-satisfied that everything was in its proper place, decorations went up, and hors d'oeurves began preparing themselves, and her work was nearly complete. There was only half an hour left until students and staff begun arriving, and Hermione wanted everything to be perfect, on time. Draco, rolling his eyes half of the time, obliged her OCD tendencies, setting everything to her exact specifications. His actions pleased her - he honestly seemed to care about nothing more than her happiness, and while she could sense that, she could not make herself believe that it was his only motive.
Finally, everything was ready. Everyone showed up almost at once, and yet Hermione appeared calm and collected - everything was in its place. Everything would be fine. She had to remind herself not to get up and check on everything at all times, but to enjoy the party and relax. Every once in a while, she would get anxious, and yet Draco always seemed to come in at those exact times, slipping an arm around her, causing her to relax at once. He'd pull her into whichever conversation was nearest, and their presence was welcomed at each group. They were the hosts, after all.
Hogwarts staff begun to arrive at 7. Those who had not left for their own homes, that is. Dumbledore, McGonagall, Flitwick, and even Hagrid managed to find their way to the room for an hour or so, chatting with students and marveling at Hermione's handiwork around the room.
"Oh, it was nothing really... I enjoyed it. And well, I got quite a bit of help from Draco." Hagrid stared, Flitwick choked on a mince pie, Dumbledore chuckled slightly and McGonagall flat out gaped at the two of them, attached at the hip. Beaming, Hermione nodded in her direction - she'd never been too fond of Malfoy, but Hermione would have to tell her later how wonderful he'd been. Hagrid, suddenly feeling sick, went back to his cabin. Flitwick joined a congregation of students across the room, and Dumbledore smiled at them both. "I see the Christmas spirit has done a bit of good for both of you... yes. I had a feeling something like this might happen." This time, it was Draco's turn to feel blood rush to his cheeks - he felt as if he'd been caught doing something bad.
"Well, yes Professor... I suppose that's all due to Hermione though. She is the one who put all of this on."
"Ah, yes, but if I am not mistaken, you Draco are the one who funded the entire thing, and still bought gifts for everyone in the castle. You have quite a bit of effort put into this, as well."
He turned his head, this was the first time he'd ever been pointed out for doing something nice. "I suppose so. It's not that big of a deal, really..."
"Ah, but it is. You know that."
And with that, Dumbledore left them to themselves, chuckling to himself as he walked away. Ah, it is Christmas in the heart that puts Christmas in the air.
Around 8:30, the last of the staff left. The students all gathered around the fireplace, the fire inside it casting a warm, rosy glow on each of their faces. Hermione had informed them that they'd all have to head to bed at 9 - it would be a long day the next day, starting early, and the earlier to bed, the better. The group had grown, so much now that every student in the castle was at least present, if not greatly participating. Hermione and Draco stood in front, passing a present to each person around them. Everyone opened boxes and bags to find things they loved and wanted. There were smiles, and hugs, and great cheers as the last gifts were opened. Hermione held her breath. All had been well so far, it had not been about material items and she was not about to let it become that yet. She opened a gift in a small box - it was a Honeyduke's gift certificate that someone had cleverly folded up to fit into an oddshaped box. She laughed as Olivia waved at her across the room and threw her a "wonder who did that one..." look. Avery, sitting beside her, shrugged - he must have bought it for her, since she couldn't go into Hogsmeade as a 2nd year. The girl was nothing if not creative. Draco settled into a chair. As requested, nobody had bought him anything, and it was just as he liked. He sat back and enjoyed watching everyone else's faces as they opened their surprises. Not shockingly, a few people opened their gifts from him, and were shocked at his generosity. Hermione flipped on Christmas tunes for the last few minutes before everyone left. They collected their new things, hugged each other, and set off to their dormitories, each of them excited for the next morning.
Once again, she and Draco were the last two in the room. He helped her clear the last messes before flicking his wand to unplug the christmas lights. One flick too many happened though, in what might or might not have been an accident, and the lights to the entire room went out, leaving nothing on but the tree lights and the small fire left. Hermione gasped aloud - it wasn't quite so dark with such a large tree, but it was still a shock. He laughed a little at her surprise, but did not immediately move to turn the lights back on. It was almost 9, she wanted to hurry to be done soon, but take her time so to spend more of it with Draco. The debate in her head was killing her. At last, she finished the rest of the mess and fell back into a chair. There were still a few minutes left before she had to leave. He sat down on a couch and beckoned to her, she smiled and obliged, snuggling in next to him.
He ran his fingers gingerly through her hair. "Well, that went well."
"Yes, I suppose it went alright..."
"Alright? That was spectacular, Hermione. Everyone had a wonderful time." He pulled her in closer and she smiled. He really did appreciate what she was doing.
"Well, I guess so... at least we're finally done cleaning. There's so much to do tomorrow, and it's Christmas, and I didn't want to clean early, and..."
"I think you have a tradition to break."
"What?"
"There is a tradition, you, are about to break."
"You must be joking. What did I miss?"
"That's what you're about to find out. By breaking another one."
He knew she could not resist. She honestly thought she had forgotten something that night, and in some ways she had, but it was not what she was expecting.
"How? What are you talking about, Draco? Now's not the time for games..."
"Ah but 'Mione, now's the perfect time for games. It's Christmas. Lighten up." He moved aside carefully so not to bump her off, and walked to the tree. He dug underneath it for a moment before pulling out a medium sized rectangular box, wrapped in brilliant metallic silver paper and wrapped up with a green bow.
"It's from a Slytherin, what other colors did you expect?" She rolled her eyes at his comment.
"I suppose I'll have to open it... I don't usually forget things, you know... I'm usually very precise."
He snorted. "Yeah, I think I've figured that bit out myself thanks." She swatted at him, then turned back to the present.
Once she'd taken great care to pull off the paper and ribbon - she'd save both of them and use them for something else, they were too good to waste - she revealed a black, unmarked box. Curious, he waved a hand as if to encourage her to keep going.
She pulled off the lid and found layers of purple tissue. And once those had been removed, she had no idea what to feel.
In the box was a set of pajamas, though it was nothing like she'd ever owned. Personally, she stuck to sensible choices, like sweats and oversized shirts or thermals. These, however, were magnificent.
"I remembered you saying something about special pajamas. And I looked in Hogsmeade but I couldn't find anything decent, so I owled out to have them delivered, I was lucky, they've just arrived today."
The red silk shirt was long sleeved and cut to fit a woman's body - her particular size body. Checking the tag, she blushed - he'd known exactly what size to get her, measurements wouldn't be too hard with the time they'd been spending together. The pants were a matching red silk, with a drawstring waist and red slippers to match. The entire ensemble was sewn with Gold thread - Gryffindor colors.
"Red and Gold?"
"I figured you might not appreciate green and silver as much, but don't think I didn't think about it for a while..." he winked at her. "But what do you think?" His tone suddenly changed, he was actually afraid for a moment that she might not like them.
"It's completely unexpected, Draco, but thank you, and I love them! I absolutely adore them! To tell the truth... they're quite different than most things I own, and quite a bit nicer as well, but they're marvelous." She beamed, and he beamed back. He'd had this planned out since the moment she told him about the pajamas, as he had with many of her other presents...
Rising to leave, she hugged him, her arms staying wrapped around him and her body staying pressed against his for an extended amount of time.
"Thank you again, Draco... this is amazing. All of it."
And in that moment, he knew she meant more than the pajamas. He walked her to the dormitories, kissed her goodnight, and then ran to his bed as fast as possible. He could not wait to wake up in the morning and begin Christmas...
Hermione put the box on her bed. She stared at the contents for a moment before lifting them out. The silk was soft and cool against her skin. She changed into them, relishing the feel of the fabric. They warmed her almost instantly, and she thought immediately of Draco. She raised her hands to put her hair up, and heard a noise from the breast pocket on the shirt - there was something inside it. Curious, she reached down and plucked out an odd little piece of paper. Upon further inspection, she dropped it as if it was white hot and jumped, taking several steps back. It was a simple red paper heart. It had been folded in half, as most people had been taught to do in lower grades as children. She laughed, crossing the room again to pick it up. Through the light from the heater, she could see there was writing on the back. She flipped it over.
Hermione,
The past week has been nothing short of amazing. Until this, I'd never had a real Christmas, and even though it isn't quite the day yet, I feel like I've had enough happiness to last years, just after this week with you. Only time and patience will tell what will happen when term resumes and life in the castle goes back to normal - but it is a serious Christmas wish of mine that you are with me for it, that you are mine. It's been a whirlwind, and I think we are the two who least expected it, (though Dumbledore seemed to have picked up on something, did you notice?) but we can be happy. It might take a bit of convincing but... just, let me know if you're up for it. I wish you the merriest Christmas of all. Hope these keep you warm until the next time I see you.
Yours if you'll have me,
Draco.
A tear escaped, running quick down her cheek and dropping off her chin onto the box in her lap. This was the sweetest, most amazing thing that had ever happened to her, and it was coming from Draco Malfoy. Tossing the box into her trunk, she fell back under the covers, comfy in her new pajamas. With a flick of her wand, the light was out, but even in the darkest night, her bright smile would be visible to all. Lying in bed, Hermione got a sudden stroke of genius - yes, she knew EXACTLY what to give Draco for Christmas, and it didn't require much planning at all. With a laugh, she also sighed. That was probably a good thing. She thought she'd had enough planning for a lifetime.
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