Author's Note: I wanted to write something for the holiday spirit and every idea I had I found other stories that did it, and probably did it a lot better. Than I was going through my old movies and found "It's A Wonderful Life" and was like, you know, there are a lot of small things in the Harry Potter books that Draco was a part of and possibly would have made a big difference if he wasn't there. So then this idea was born and now I'm writing it. Also thanks toGhostStar54 for beta reading this. I do hope you enjoy it. And as always, please review.
There's a lot of joy and laughter coming from inside the house. The warmth from the rowdy bunch barely makes it to the edge of the porch. Draco is sitting on the front steps with a glass of eggnog. Its only his third glass, but because Hermione makes them strong, he's more than a little tipsy.
He's sitting their contemplating what was said inside. Despite it seemingly being pleasant, just less than an hour ago, it was actually full of tension. He is currently going over what he could of said to prevent from possibly ruining Hermione's Christmas when she walks outside and sits next to him.
She grasps his hand and squeezes it tightly. "Draco, please come back inside. You're going to get sick if you stay out here."
He looks at her like he's looking at her for the first time. She's always been able to take his breath away. Like the Weasley's said earlier, he doesn't deserve her. "I rather get sick. Go back inside and enjoy the time with your friends and family." He tries to urge her back inside where those that deserve her love are.
"Draco, what's wrong? You know I want to spend the holiday with you. Being in there doesn't make me as happy as being with you is. So please, come on, we can leave if you like, we just have to say goodbye to Teddy. I just want to spend Christmas with you." She wraps her arms around Draco and rests her head on his shoulder.
He pats her hair. The booze is starting to really hit him. Maybe I'm more than tipsy, he says to himself. He's trying to get his thoughts in order and put them into words but all that comes out is nothing. The words lodge in his throat. He takes a deep breath and sighs loudly. She looks up at him. She has unshed tears in her eyes. He thinks,no he knows, what he's about to say is the best thing he can do for her. For once, he's going to do what's best for everyone else instead of being selfish.
"Hermione, go back inside. They are more important than me. You'll be happier in there. Please just go." He brushes her off and quickly gets up. He starts walking away and doesn't turn back to her cries. He can hear her sobbing but he keeps reassuring himself that he's doing what's best.
When he turns to apparate away, she is looking at me with tears streaming down her face. Just as he's about to disappear he hears the faint sound of her voice. Draco.
"Aberforth let me have another shot." Draco is even more drunk than he was before sitting at the bar of the Hog's Head.
"No, Mr. Malfoy. You've already had eight, and I don't even know how much you drank before you got here. But I refuse to listen to you talk about a bushy buck-tooth beaver for another second. You really need to get home." Aberforth is all but pushing Draco out of the pub.
Draco starts to wander the streets of Hogsmeade. He hasn't been here for a while – too busy working. The last time he was here was during the summer. Hermione wanted to visit Hogwarts before the hustle and bustle of school started. Like always, he followed her along while she regaled stories of their school years. When he reaches the Shrieking Shack, he recalls the story of how Professor Lupin was a werewolf and how she tricked him. She was always brilliant, and he knew it then.
He was such an idiot back then. "How can you love her; for years she was everything you despised!" The words just continued to echo in his mind. He does love her, and that's why he had to let her go. He walks into the shack and wonders if the dried blood is that of his beloved godfather. Was this what is what it was like for you? Loving Lily? He tries not to cry for the loss of his old potions master or for the love that he never had returned. He recalls the time Hermione told him the story and how it took everything in his power to refrain from breaking into sobs.
He walks through the tunnel that leads to Hogwarts. "She'd be happier with me, you know. She wouldn't have to deal with all that pureblood society." The first ball that Hermione attended with him at the Manor was rough. Not only did they have to face the demons of what happened there the last time she "visited" but she felt the need to not only impress his parents but all those that were in attendance. She was always a brave Gryffindor and held her head high, but that night I heard her crying herself to sleep. Weasley was right; she wouldn't have to subject herself to the sneers of those who wrongfully think they're better than her.
He runs out the exit trying to avoid being hit by the Whomping Willow. "It would have been better if you never came into her life." Maybe they were right. Draco starts to ponder running into the tree and letting it pound him to death. It could be worth it. She'd have to forget him and then Weasley can console her and then she'll be happy.
Just as he turns around to head back towards the tree he hears a distinct female voice, "I wouldn't if I were you. It will hurt." Draco jumps in surprise. He looks around for the voice but sees no one. He looks back at the tree. Yah, it would hurt.
He starts to walk off towards the lake. He sits at the banks of its shore. He tries to skip rocks against the water. Hermione was always good at this. He remembers her teaching him and Teddy the one time they babysat him. He hasn't been able to play with his little cousin for months now. The rocks he throws quickly sink into the water barely even skidding more than twice. A tentacle comes out of the water and Draco watches the ripples from the Giant Squid's movement. Maybe I can just walk into the water and the Squid will drown me.
Death is all he can ponder now. He really thinks that the end of his life would bring the world the happiness that they seek. The Merfolk may attack me and end this misery.
He hears the sounds of footsteps. It's pass curfew during the winter hols; no one should be around right now. "Why are you so intent on ending your life?" He turns around to see a ghost. Well, it can't be a ghost considering she isn't translucent. His jaw hits the floor and he's at a loss of words.
"Wow, cousin, if I knew this is what I had to do to shut you up I would have died sooner and came back to scare you." She sits down next to him and starts skipping rocks. She's even worse than Draco. She has no aim. Some of the rocks end up behind them in the grass.
Finally knocked out of his stupor, Draco draws his mouth shut. He tries to figure out what's going on. When no answers are forthcoming, he simply asks, "Nymphadora. What are you doing here?"
"Firstly, call me Tonks. You know I hate my name, I'm sure that's worldly knowledge. I did see that my mother placed it at my grave. Please make sure that Teddy knows never to refer to me as that." Her face is full of remorse and she's trying to hold back tears.
"He calls you mother, so don't worry. What's second?" This is his first conversation he's ever had with her and he doesn't want it to be one that is melancholy. He has dealt with enough crying women for the day.
"Oh yes, secondly, I'm here as your guardian angel. I need my wings. Severus won't let me live it down. It's not my fault that I tripped and knocked over the damn gate. I'm clumsy, you'd think they knew that up there before letting me in, but no, clearly I was mistaken." She quickly jumps up and starts pacing in front of where the two were seated.
Draco is dumbfounded. A guardian angel? Wings? Severus? What's in the name of Merlin was going on? "Excuse me?"
"Oh, sorry. Of course you wouldn't understand. Basically, I have been watching you. I'm supposed to keep you from following through this dumb idea you got into your head. Severus says hello by the way. He appreciates you thinking of him earlier. Well he didn't say it in those exact words. He was visiting with me and Remus while I was watching and you could see it in his eyes. So he said it with his face. Let's put it that way."
Now Draco was really confused. She was watching him? Remus? That's what Hermione always called Professor Lupin. Aah. "Ok, so what are you doing here exactly?" Draco's head was reeling. He wasn't sure if it was from all the drinking or the poor explanation his cousin was giving him.
"I already told you. I'm your guardian angel. I need my wings. Come on, weren't you second at school?"
He scoffs at her. For a first conversation, this wasn't the best one. Maybe this was a booze induced vision? Too bad he was going to avoid Hermione like the plague; she'd get a good laugh. Teddy would enjoy the story of his mother too, now that he thought about it. "Ok, I'm still confused. Can you please explain?"
"Ok, I guess let me start from the beginning. Don't look at me like that, I don't mean the very beginning. But from the beginning of this." She waves her arms around to gesture what Draco thinks to be her as an angel. But he's still not sure. He's giving her an incredulous look as if he doesn't believe her.
"Just stop looking at me like that and listen! Basically Remus and I are there right? And for the most part he just watches Teddy. We appreciate you being there for him, by the way. But that's beside the point. Anyway, Remus was assigned George. And that was hard. He didn't take Fred's death very well at first." Draco tries to recall those days. It was during his and his father's trials. It was also when Hermione forgave him. "And then Severus, the lucky sod! He just waltzes into the gates and instantly has wings. He doesn't need to be a guardian angel to get his. He isn't a junior guardian angel, noo, he had to live his whole life watching over Harry Potter and help save the day and he already has wings. So you can only imagine how upset I am being the only one that's still a junior guardian angel. I swear to you it's just like being an Auror all over again."
Tonks is nearly screeching now. Draco's headache is still there and he's pretty sure it's because of her. All this guardian angel business is making him seriously consider the booze induced vision idea more. He goes back to looking at the lake while she goes on and on about living with Lupin and being visited by Snape. He wonders what Hermione is doing right now. Is she still crying? Or did Ronald Weasley step in already to save the day? How is Teddy? Did he open the gift they gave him this year? Does he like the training broom? Aunt Andromeda will be livid at first, but he doesn't care. He won't be here for much longer. Living without Hermione isn't the life he wants but he wants her to be happy.
"Will you please stop thinking that the world will be better without you? Seriously, you're such an idiot." Draco looks at her hand like she's crazy. If anything, I'm the crazy one. I'm talking to my cousin for the first time ever and oh, yah, she is also supposed to be dead. "Come on, I want to show you something." He grabs her hand to get up and follows her away from the lake.