~ * Christmas at Hogwarts * ~

Yes, for a very select few, it was Christmas at Hogwarts. People like a few extremely zealous teachers who wanted the peace and quiet to get some work done, a handful of younger students whose families couldn't have them at home for some reason, and a handful of the older ones who had managed to convince their parents to let them stay at the castle where they could spend time running around in almost total anarchy.

Arthur was one of the ones who weren't wanted at home.

Not that he even wanted to be home. What did he care if his own mother specifically asked him NOT to come back for Christmas because they didn't have enough money or space now that Scott was married and Owen's wife was pregnant, and Peter had been allowed to take the bigger half of their old room.

He'd rather be at school for the holidays, thank you very much. He wasn't some sad sack like the other students who were staying behind because their parents were taking the opportunity to go on vacation without kids. No, if his parents hadn't told him not to come, he would have asked to stay behind anyway. He was actually glad they brought it up first.

And he had Morpheus, his lovely owl, so it wasn't at all as if he was on his own. Just because he was noticing how quiet it was around the castle didn't mean he was lonely – it just meant that loudmouth Alfred Jones wasn't around to cause a ruckus. And that was a good thing.

Definitely a good thing.

The problem with spending four days repeating that to yourself over and over again meant that when Arthur received a letter from Alfred, he had to pretend, even to himself, that he wasn't delighted about it.

So when he returned ffrom lunch in the Great Hall and saw Tony, Alfred's peculiar silver owl of indeterminate species, sitting on his pillow with a scroll tied to his leg, Arthur had to physically restrain himself from leaping across the dormitory in one go and snatchng the parchment hungrily. Instead, he walked over with calculated calm (perhaps even awkwardly slowly, to prove to Tony that he didn't care), and gently untied the sloppily folded parchment from Tony's leg (when he really he could have torn it off like Christmas wrapping), and he swore for a full 25 seconds when Tony bit his finger and flew off (instead of swearing just once and devouring the letter as he really wanted to do).

Hey Arthur! the letter began. Arthur rolled his eyes for no particular reason other than it was his natural reaction/defensive mechanism when dealing with his American classmate.

What's up? Do they say that in England? "What's up?" I'll listen out for it when I come back. I've never really noticed. There's tons of things my parents keep asking me about life in Britain, but I just never noticed. I guess I am as oblivious as you always say, huh? I should pay more attention so I can tell them better stories when I come home next time.

The fact that Alfred had admitted he was oblivious and Arthur was right about something made Arthur feel like he was in control of this situation. So he didn't really think twice about it as he sat on the edge of his bed, clutching the letter carefully and reading more.

But it's not like I'm a total idiot. I have plenty of detailed stories about life at MAGIC SCHOOL, but my parents are actually way more interested in the fact their son now lives in Europe. It's like they don't care that I know how to fly, I've pet a unicorn, I can shovel the driveway with a flick of my wand, or that I can make someone belch on command(I can't wait to use that on my aunt Maude at Christmas dinner!)

Anyway, I never write letters, so you're hella lucky! XDD

(Did he just use an emoticon in a hand-written letter?! Arthur swiftly cursed himself for even knowing what an "emoticon" was – wizards shouldn't know such stupid things about the Muggle world, but damn Alfred must have gotten into his head more than he realised. At least some of his schooling seemed to have gotten into Alfred's head, too - his grammar and spelling was much better than it was when he first arrived at Hogwarts last year. It was a wonder what a few lectures from Professor McGonagall and rewriting a few pieces of homework three times could do for you.)

I would have emailed you or IM'd or something but….no technology at magic school. I still say that's totally lame – especially since I now have to take way more time to WRITE a letter and my family's all like "Ooooh, Alfred! Writing a love letter?" (Arthur's heart practically leapt out of his mouth and fell onto the paper.) As if love letters are the ONLY kind of letters?! People write OTHER kinds of letters, too, you know! I mean like THIS one. This is just a friendly letter! Even though you say we're not friends. But we've known each other for like 2 years and we're definitely friends, you're just being a Grinch.

OMG! DO you even know the Grinch?! I have to…DAMMIT! I can't even SHOW it to you 'cause there's no fricking TVs at school! RARGH! Okay, you'll just have to come to my house for summer vacation or something. Then I can show you all the things I'm always talking about that you don't know 'cause you're an adorable little wizard.

…Um…okay, I meant "wizards who don't know about Muggle stuff are adorable." Not like: "you, Arthur, are an adorable little wizard, personally". I would scratch out that sentence, but it would look messy and you'd probably use some amazing spell to undo the scratches and see what I'd written anyway. And there's no way I'm re-writing this whole letter just for that. This is my good parchment!

Arthur had managed to survive the "you're an adorable wizard" thing. But now he found out that this was Alfred' good parchment he didn't know if he'd make it to the end of the letter. He didn't even know the American HAD good parchment. And Alfred was using it on him, as if the letter was special? And Alfred was writing him a letter just to chat! This thought hit Arthur suddenly with the weight of a hundred years of denial suddenly crashing down around him. Alfred complained about 5 inch essays – he'd never usually hand write something voluntarily! But he was writing to Arthur. Just to say…..

Well, calm down now, Arthur. Maybe there was a point to the letter which would explain everything. Trust Alfred to go off on a tangent and not bother planning out his letter beforehand.

Anyway, that's awkward, so let's change the subject.

I'm just writing to say Merry Christmas, and also to sort of keep you company while you're stuck at school. I know you wanted to stay there, so I'm sure you're having loads of fun…reading, and...studying, and…sewing without anyone making fun of you.

But I know the people who were staying behind too aren't that interesting. And since there's no one as interesting as ME, I thought if you ever get bored and need something to do or want to chat because it gets quiet, then I give you complete permission to write to me. Christmas at my place is fun and busy, but…there's times where I'm kind of sitting here like "Nobody around me understands me anymore." I mean my family loves me, and they understand me as a person. But the magical world is such a big part of my life now, and I can't really share it with them except for a few party tricks. I have to always be careful not to do magic outside of the house, and if anyone comes over who doesn't know I go to Hogwarts, then I have to shut it off completely. It's getting pretty depressing that I have to hide such a big part of myself. I'm stuck between two completely different worlds, and I love them both but it always feels like I don't completely belong in either one. When I'm at Hogwarts I stand out for being Muggle born and always saying and doing weird things, and when I'm at home IN the Muggle world, nobody understand when I talk about school or the wizarding world.

It's not like I'm unhappy though! I mean I love magic and I love my Muggle family, so it's not like I'm all suicidal because my life is too awesome. It's just…hard to make it all fit together sometimes.

Sorry, I'm getting super emo right now. I'm not trying to get all philosophical - it's just weird being away from school and everyone, since I live there with you guys 24/7, and it's so different from being back at my old house.

So, if you ever get bored and want to write to me, that's totally fine. I know you're probably having an awesome time having free reign over Hogwarts. Dude, I would so have explored the forbidden section in the library and tied stocking to all the Giant Squid's tentacles by now. Maybe I'll stay next Christmas and we can have some fun together?

I mean only if we're still such good "not friends" next year, and you still let me hang around you. Not hang around with you because, as you always say, you hate being associated with me and you think I bring down the Gryffindor's reputation by acting like a moron - and I just hang around you without your permission, only so I can bug the hell out of you, and not because I actually like you.

And you say I'm the oblivious one. You can't even tell when two people are best friends. Jeez Arthur! I really shouldn't have left you on your own for the holidays – you're so oblivious you probably went out in summer clothes and froze to death, or studied so hard you forgot to eat and died of starvation, or…

Actually, you should probably definitely write me a letter back right now, just so I know you're still alive. I need to know you can still survive without the hero around after all!

Merry Christmas Arthur!

TTYL

Or I guess WTYL

Love Alfred

P.S. (Okay that "love" thing was just a reflex. I didn't mean to be really awkward – again. It's just I've been helping mom write Christmas cards to family, so I've been signing everything "Love from the Jones family" like she told me to. So I finished writing this letter and just by accident wrote "love" like I've been doing for days. She should just stop asking me to write those letters, because she keeps complaining about my hand writing. That's why I tried especially hard to make this nice and neat. Or at least legible. Because mom just slaps me on the head for bad writing, but I know you'd legitimately disown me and then burn me at the stake or something. So I hope you noticed/appreciated my nice writing!)

Yes. Arthur had noticed. And appreciated, despite himself. It really shouldn't have made him feel so appreciative and gooey – it was just handwriting for Gods, sake! But…well, appreciating Alfred's handwriting was just one of many new worries he had after finishing that letter.

Another worry was that when he did, in fact, finish reading, he realised he was clutching the parchment tenderly to his chest, and was lying on his back on his bed with his legs drawn up and toes curled uncomfortably.

And another worry was that Alfred was right: they were best friends. And Arthur hadn't even noticed.

Another was that he was dreadfully excited and nervous about summer vacation.

Almost too excited and nervous to jump up and put pen to parchment and write Alfred a reply. Luckily, the urge to scold the American for his poor letter writing abilities and use of text speak in wizard mail managed to see him through.

A/N: I was at work on Christmas Day because Japan + work = true love. But a few other USUK fans made some HPverse USUK posts, and I jumped on the badnwagon to entertain myself at work for a while.

Meri kurisumasu!