This year, many people had stayed at Hogwarts over the Christmas holidays, Harry noticed as he walked through the corridors on his way to the Great Hall. Ron and Hermione were at the Weasleys' but Harry had decided to stay at school and spend his time in the library to do some research. He had stayed there during the Christmas time once before and back then, the school had been almost completely empty. This time, however, it almost seemed as if no one had left.
There was a Christmas party going on in the Great Hall, and when Harry entered it, he couldn't suppress a grin. Professor McGonagall was dancing with Professor Flitwick; it was the oddest couple he had ever seen before. But they seemed to be having a good time; at least the uncharacteristically loud laugh coming from Professor McGonagall suggested it.
Harry walked over to the buffet and filled one of the golden goblets with punch, sipping it as he leaned against the table. Watching the other students interact with their friends made him feel lonely for a moment and wish he had gone home with Ron and Hermione – but the feeling was gone a moment later when Luna joined him and asked him to dance.
It turned out that dancing with Luna was not only physically exhausting but also hilarious; he loved that she didn't care what anyone else thought of her. After a moment of embarrassment, Harry had decided not to care what he looked like either, and had tried to imitate her movements, which were odd to say the least.
Now he was out of breath and needed some more punch, so he took Luna over to the buffet where they sipped another round of drinks. He felt a little dizzy, and suddenly wondered if the teachers' cheerfulness was because someone had spiked the punch. He concluded that it was a definite possibility.
He didn't have the time to contemplate this further as he was pushed aside rudely by someone who apparently wanted the Hogwarts Punch Experience, and he whirled around and came face to face with Malfoy who was sneering at him. "Let others have some too, Potter. You don't own this place."
Harry's eyes narrowed and he was about to punch the living shit out of Malfoy when Luna squealed. "Oooh, mistletoe!"
Caught off guard and a little confused, Harry turned his head and looked at her questioningly, then glanced up when Luna pointed. Several bunches of mistletoe had been floating around the room all evening, and now one of them was hanging above his head – and Draco's.
"Kiss!" Luna chirped; Harry had to drag her away from that punch; it obviously made her delusional. There was no way in hell that he was going to kiss Malfoy, which he instantly informed Luna of. Malfoy huffed; obviously just as displeased at the prospect of kissing him as Harry was.
"But you have to!" Luna protested in a sing-song voice, smiling mysteriously. "You will have to if you want to leave this room at some point. You won't be able to move until you've kissed Draco."
When Harry's expression got even more confused, she looked at him patiently and explained, "It's charmed, you see? It will hold you right there until you kiss Draco. Or until he kisses you, I suppose. And you're standing in front of the punch, so you will have to move at some point," she pointed out, and Harry groaned. How was it possible that Luna always knew everything? And whose stupid idea had it been to charm that bloody mistletoe?
He looked at Draco whose face had paled a bit; he looked very uncomfortable. "Don't you dare, Potter," he hissed.
Harry shrugged and raised his hands in defence. "What am I supposed to do? I don't want to stay here with you for the rest of the night – or my life. So get over it, Malfoy, and come here."
He was pretty sure it was the spiked punch that gave him the courage to lean forward and peck Draco's lips. He wiped his mouth the moment he pulled back, then tried to move… but he couldn't. He looked at Luna in exasperation. "I kissed him! What the hell is this?"
Luna gave him a look. "That's what you call a kiss, Harry? My, my, no wonder you don't have a girlfriend."
She smiled sweetly, then danced off, leaving Harry and Draco alone. Harry groaned in frustration. "This is all your damn fault," he snapped, glaring at the other boy. "If you had asked me to step away from the buffet for a second instead of pushing me, none of this would've happened."
Draco looked outraged. "So it is my fault that you think you're the king of the world and don't make room for other people? Well, thanks, Potter."
He sneered and folded his arms over his chest, turning away from Harry. Harry stared at the white-blond back of Malfoy's head for a moment, then turned around as well, and grabbed another punch. He might as well take advantage of being this close to the bowl – and alcohol was definitely necessary if he was going to have to stay this close to Malfoy for a longer period of time.
A few minutes passed, and more and more people came by the buffet to demand a drink, and eventually, Harry just moved the bowl over to his right side because they were obviously not going to move anytime soon. Damn Malfoy and his god damn stubbornness.
After what felt like hours of silence, Malfoy heaved a sigh. "What are you doing here anyway? I thought you always spent the Christmas holidays with the insufferable redheads?"
Harry turned his head and glared. "Well, I'm not there this year."
Draco snorted and gave Harry a determinedly mean grin. "Aww, did they abandon you? No wonder; even they are better than you."
It was a mean thing to say, but for some reason, it didn't come out as sharply as Malfoy's usual statements. Harry looked at him, heaved a sigh and proceeded to ignore him for another few moments before his patience was finally reaching its end.
"Do you actually want to stay here for the rest of the night?" he sighed, turning back to Malfoy. "Let's just get this over with, all right? I was sure the fucking charm would break at midnight, but it's past twelve and we're still here. So just… Let's just do this, all right?"
A brief look of panic crossed the other boy's features before he grimaced and stared at Harry. "You're behind this, aren't you?" he suddenly asked. "What teacher would force their students to bloody kiss? It's you! It's all you! You charmed that bloody mistletoe because you've been wanting to kiss me ever since you first saw me, haven't you? I should've known!"
Harry stared at him; it was just like Malfoy to come up with such a crazy theory to demonstrate how unfairly everyone was treating him. He rolled his eyes and sighed, then shook his head. "Whatever, Malfoy." Then he cupped the back of Malfoy's neck and pulled him close, pressing their lips together in a hard kiss. Draco struggled and tried to push him away, but Harry was stronger and wrapped his arms around Malfoy, keeping his lips firmly pressed against the other boy's as he trapped Malfoy's arms.
Malfoy kept his lips pressed tightly together but then suddenly he seemed to give in, and Harry used that brief moment to slide his tongue into Draco's surprisingly willing mouth. The teachers wanted a real kiss? He would give them a real kiss. He closed his eyes and slid his hand into Malfoy's hair, cupping the back of his head to hold it in place as he deepened the kiss. For another moment, Draco's hands were still pressing against his chest, trying to push him away, but then suddenly they stopped and he wrapped his arms around Harry's waist, pulling him closer as they snogged passionately.
Neither of them noticed the mistletoe slowly floating away, the stunned looks on their classmates' faces, or the knowing smile on Luna Lovegood's lips as she waved her wand and undid the charm on the mistletoe that had been hanging above the kissing rivals. She had known about their mutual attraction for a while, and knew they just needed a little push. And the fact that they were still kissing and that the kiss was growing in heat and passion just proved that she had, once again, been right.
Harry finally had to break the kiss to gasp for air, and he stared at Malfoy, seeing his own look of horror reflected on the other boy's face. They stared at each other for a long moment before they both let go of each other at the same time, taking a step back. Harry's cheeks were flushed and he rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly, not knowing what to say.
"Hey, it worked," he said then, nodding up at the now clear ceiling of the hall where no mistletoe was to be seen.
Malfoy looked up as well, then stared back at Harry, wiping his mouth. "You're disgusting, Potter," he said, but it sounded weak, and as he turned around, he hesitated briefly before walking away determinedly. Harry looked around and bit his lip, then followed the other boy as he exited the Great Hall. He kept his distance as he followed Malfoy out of the castle and into the chilly December night.
Malfoy stepped away from the entrance of the castle and took a breath, muttering something under his breath. His shoulders slumped and he rubbed his face, and Harry suddenly felt something that he had been feeling for a while now, whenever he'd watched the other boy. Something odd that made him want to wrap his arms around Malfoy and make all his troubles go away.
And since the effects of the booze were still clouding his judgement, he did just that, sliding his arms around Malfoy's waist from behind and pulling him flush against him, ignoring Malfoy's protest.
"Let go of me, Potter," Draco said, his voice sounding weak and shaky.
"No," Harry just said, pressing his chin against Draco's shoulder, breathing him in. Suddenly, all of those pushed down feelings seemed to wash over him, and he tightened his arms around Malfoy unconsciously, never wanting to let go. Malfoy relaxed against him, and Harry used that moment to turn him around and cup his cheeks, staring into those deep grey eyes.
"Potter-," Draco started but was cut off when Harry brushed his lips over his again, his eyes fluttering closed as he kissed Draco deeply, and much more gently than before, but not less passionately. He let out a sigh of relief when Draco answered the kiss tentatively, clearly still worried that Harry was going to push him away any second and laugh at him.
After a while, Harry's gentle kisses seemed to reassure him, however, and he slid his arms back around him, kissing him back confidently, their bodies pressed together.
They stood there like that for a while before Harry drew back and brushed his lips over Draco's pointy nose, and his closed eyelids; feather-light kisses whose affection surprised both of them. Then he pressed his forehead against Draco's, and swallowed hard.
"Merry Christmas, Draco," he whispered; it seemed the appropriate thing to say – especially since he didn't know what else to say.
Draco was silent for a moment, then Harry felt long, elegant fingers tangle into his hair and tighten for a moment before he seemed to give in and whispered, "Merry Christmas, Harry."