Christmas Special 2011

Part 1

Another Christmas had come to Malfoy Manor. The halls and rooms were a splendor with sparkling decorations and enchanted features. Holly, ivy, pine, and poinsettia brought warmth to the cold stone floors and accouterments. In his lavish bedroom, the youngest Malfoy – only eight - was tended to by the flock of nannies bustling around him.

"Master Draco, your mother wants you to wear these dress robes for this afternoon's party." One young attendant pleaded with the pint-sized blonde as he struggled from her grasp.

With a pout, the boy stormed away to a corner and blew long strands of hair out of his face. Arms crossed, he defiantly kicked the foot of an armchair. It was past morning and he was still clad in pajamas and fuzzy slippers.

"Master Draco, I expect your father will not be pleased if he finds you absent from the dinning hall too long." An older nanny chose her words cleverly.

The attendants waited and watched as Draco visibly considered her words. After thorough consideration, he sulked, lifting his arms up to be redressed. With returned smiles, the nannies swarmed and adorned him with robes of the finest cloth and shoes of the best make. When they were done, he looked like a small prince. But in many respects, being the heir of the Malfoy family was even better.

When they were done, the blonde turned to a mirror and mimicked his father's typical preening routine. Hair drawn back and tied with a blue silk ribbon, he was the image of refinement. With a satisfied nod, Draco turned on his heel and marched out of the room with a smirk. Lined up at the bottom of his staircase were house elves and maids to be commanded.

"Where is my father?" The eight year old questioned regally.

Curtsying, the maid on the farthest end divulged the answer.

"In the dining room, Master Draco." She said.

He darted off down the lined path, his tiny robes billowing in his stride like quiet whispers. The great doors opened easily, revealing his father in conversation with a familiar merchant. Aware of his own status, Draco quietly walked with dignity to stand at his father's side.

"Bandleby, you of course know my son, Draco." Lucius said, aware of his progeny's arrival.

The other man's face brightened up, the wrinkles of his skin arching most prominently on his forehead. This man, Draco thought, was afraid of his father.

"Of course, of course! How could I forget the young master? The spitting image of you, Mister Malfoy." The merchant revealed a toothy grin.

Pleased, Lucius patted his son's head. "Draco, Mister Bandleby and I have business. Go find your mother." He said.

Hiding his disappointment, the young blonde nodded and wandered off to the kitchen. It was empty, save for the makings of a feast that covered every surface. Mischief sprung up from his childish whims. Dancing on his tiptoes, Draco reached up to grab a tray of sweet pies off the counter-top. His fingertips coached the tray towards him. 'Closer,' Draco yearned as his mouth began to water. 'Justalittlemore…'

A loud crack from outside the kitchen door startled Draco as he fell backward. Linen table cloth grasped in his hand, the tray and other goods tumbled all over the young wizard. Lobs of pudding streaked down his blonde head. A grimace and tears betrayed the loss of dignity the blue-eyed boy felt while he sat amongst the mess he had made. Any minute someone would be along to shame him for his blundering, Draco thought sickly. Beyond the stinging tears, the boy was surprised to see a rattled cage at his feet. Its occupant was a lone fluffy creature he had never seen.

"What are you?" Draco asked.

The animal merely wiggled its nose at him and stared. Instead, the creaking of the kitchen door answered him. With nimble haste, the blonde wizard scooped up the cage and tore around the backside of the prep station. In its shadow the boy hid.

"Oh dear! Master would not be pleased with Dobby." The house-elf moaned at seeing the mess. "Well, what Master doesn't know can't hurt Dobby."

With a couple snaps of his knobby fingers, Dobby cleaned up the culinary chaos. Draco's breathing was shallow as he listened intently for a chance to escape without detection. Glasses clanked against each other as the house-elf magicked them onto a floating tray and poured a spicy smelling liquid into each. The door swung open, and Dobby was gone again. With a breath of relief, the hiding little wizard looked down at the caged bucktoothed fellow.

"I think they mean to cook you for dinner." Draco said. "I can't image you'd taste very good." Compassion tugged at the boy's heart. It was a weakness, he thought. But all the same, Draco could not bear to see the creature come to harm.

On his feet, the eight year old crept slowly at first towards the back door. The glass pane in it viewed the outside garden. With a surge of boldness, Draco dashed for the doorknob and in turn hurried through the opened threshold. The cage rattled with every stride. In a few minutes, he had reached the tree line of the woods on the Malfoy estate. That was the safest place, Draco thought. He set the cage down and opened its latched door.

"C'mon…" Draco commanded, "Out you stupid thing."

But the white, floppy eared creature would not budge. The pint-sized wizard eyed the furry animal as he snuck his hand into the cage to coax it out. Searing pain caused Draco to cry out as sharp teeth dug into his palm. Instinctively, the boy drew back his hand and clutched it with the other. The tiny assailant hopped from its confines to stare at the howling blonde.

"What are you looking at?" Draco cried.

The white mass of fur looked up at him almost apologetically. Draco scowled at the cute little patch of black on the creature's ear. It was hard to stay cross.

"Go on then." The blonde whimpered. "Go find someone else to bite."

After crouching frozen in place for a moment longer, the little animal hopped away. Finished with his quest, the young Malfoy collected himself and walked back to the house feeling worse for wear. Along the way, he angrily kicked a basketful of turnips next to the garden path. The pain was making his head go foggy. With his uninjured hand, Draco turned the doorknob and shuffled into the room. Once more, the smells of the kitchen filled his nostrils.

"Draco!" The boy heard his mother gasp. Narcissa Malfoy hurried over to him.

"Look at you! What have you been doing? Are you alright?" She paused. "Is that pudding in your hair?" With a snivel, Draco lifted his bitten hand to show her, to which she clucked and cooed.

"There, there… it will be alright." She said. With a flick of her wand, the wound was healed.

"I'm sorry Mum." The boy's bottom lip trembled.

Narcissa smiled at him reassuringly. "No harm done." She said. "But we really should get you cleaned up."

Draco calmed down and took a deep breath. With a little more motherly magic, he was returned to a state of tidiness. Not a speck of the night's menu items remained. The next second, Narcissa hurried him into the Dining hall. Some guests had already taken their seats along the lengthy, joined tables and were engaged in conversations. Smiles turned on, the pair made their way to the head of the table to sit on either side of Lucius. The Malfoy family patriarch called on all his visitors to be seated. After the dull shuffling of chair legs had finished, the tall blonde wizard stood and rose his glass high.

"A toast," said Lucius, "to the prosperous year behind us and the glorious one before us. May we rise and never fall."

The party echoed their host's sentiments and drank up. Lucius reclaimed his seat and the feast appeared before the diners for review. Important witches and wizards of various ages chatted and enjoyed the decadent banquet. Wine and warming drafts flowed freely. Draco, though, was content to nibble at some roasted ham from the plate his mother made up for him.

"Narcissa," Lucius asked, "what happened to the rabbit pie?"

His wife paused for thought. Glancing at her son and then her husband, the sharp witch smiled.

"It must have already gone, darling." Narcissa sniffed and returned to her meal.

Disappointed, Lucius accepted her answer and reluctantly returned to his rabbit-less dinner. Draco peeped cautiously at his parents before averting his eyes. Something about their conversation made his stomach warble nervously. Were they talking about that bothersome creature, the boy wondered, was that a rabbit?

Koiame: I hope you are enjoying this Christmas special. Thank you all for reading my stories. There is more to come! Part 2 should be up within the next couple days. Please let me know what you think so far. And have a wonderful holiday!