As expected, when the quick arrival of December came to Hogwarts; snowfall and lfizzards came with it. Herbology lessons were cancelled and theory lessons took place in classrooms inside the castle due to the heavy snow and wind but the Artic weather conditions didn't stop the students from putting on their winter cloaks and heading outside to have a snowball fights with their friends. Andromeda and Ted were often together, going for a walk in the grounds when the snow had stopped, studying in the library and walking to class together. They had both come to consider the other as a good friend and Andromeda had even met Ted's girlfriend Delia, although Andromeda found the girl perfectly nice, she wouldn't exactly see herself hanging out with her friend's girlfriend due to the paranoid looks the girl gave her.

In the middle of December, Andromeda left the Slytherin common room on a Saturday morning to meet Narcissa in the entrance hall. It was the last Saturday before they were due to return home for the Christmas holidays and they had both agreed to go Christmas shopping together. They were yet to buy their parents and Bellatrix a gift and she considered herself lucky that this time she got to decline Nott's invitation due to her betrothed being forced to go Christmas shopping with his sister Jemima.

"Morning Cissy." Andromeda greeted.

Narcissa pulled her cloak tighter around her as they joined the queue to sign out. Andromeda stared at her sister, knowing that Narcissa was in a mood and something was bothering her.

"What's wrong Cissy?" she asked.

Narcissa raised an eyebrow, "As if you do not know." her sister hissed.

"Tell me." Andromeda pressed.

Narcissa walked up to the caretaker, signing the two of them out before stopping at the front doors of the castle. The two pulled the cloak fastening tighter before wrapping their scarves around their necks.

"Well?" Andromeda questioned.

Narcissa looked around, making sure that nobody could eavesdrop.

"You spend all your time with that mudblood boy you met at the start of term, have you no shame? Everything that our parents have taught us and you befriend one of them? It appears, Andromeda, that you are a liar to the beliefs you claimed to share with us; your family and friends." Narcissa sneered.

"I don't spend all of my time with him and just because he has a different background to me, why shouldn't I be friends with him?" Andromeda questioned.

"That is precisely the reason! He is from a different world to us. He does not belong to our world having no experience with magic until Dumbledore turned up on his doorstep on his eleventh birthday and told him about it. Muggles are filth, the bottom of the pile and they need to be crushed."

Nothing more was said on the subject as they both wrapped their scarves up to their noses and braced the stormy weather outside. Both holding on to the other as the wind tried swept violently toward them, trying to knock them over into the thick layer of snow that was beneath their feet. When they finally reached the village, they decided to put their discussion to one side and get their Christmas shopping over and done with.

The snowfall had eased up by the time they had exited the new jewellers that sat on the high street, having purchased their mother a pair of diamond earrings but had failed to find anything that would live up to Bellatrix's tastes.

"Perhaps we could convince father to take us to Knockturn Alley? We may be able to find something for Bella in there." Narcissa suggested quietly.

"Possibly, maybe we could go when he picks us up from King's Cross? It is a good place to find Bella a Christmas present." Andromeda agreed.

The girls moved on to Honeydukes, deciding to get the busiest shop out of the way with and their friends presents. When they entered the sweet shop, Andromeda ended up separated from her sister as she searched for some fizzing whizzbees. She had come to learn that Ted rather enjoyed this sweet and he had told her of the time he had first taken one, when he was home for the summer holidays. His parents had become fascinated even more with the magical world after seeing their son float in the air for a minute.

She grabbed on of the remaining bags off the shelf and continued through the crowded shop to find Narcissa. She found her sister already at the till so she gave Narcissa the fizzing whizzbees and soem money and decided to exit the shop to wait for her sister. It had stopped snowing and the harsh winds had calmed down to a slow and icy breeze but the snow had left a thicker layer of snow on the ground than it had when they had left the castle. When Narcissa emerged from the shop, she handed over Andromeda's one and the two walked up the high street once more.

"What shall we get father?" Andromeda asked.

"Mother wrote to me last night saying that father's quills are getting a little worn out so I thought we could go to Schrivenshaft's?" Narcissa suggested.

Andromeda nodded in agreement and the two sisters walked quickly to the quill shop, entering and browsing at the range of quills that the shop sold. Narcissa was rather taken with a white peacock quill whilst she had found an orange fwooper quill that she quite liked. After deciding to buy their father both when they couldn't decide between the two, the sales assistant took their money and placed both quills in separate black velvet boxes before placing it in a carrier bag and handing it to them.

"Well that is mother and father done, just Bella left now." Narcissa said, shivering at the cold as they left the shop.

But Andromeda didn't get a chance to reply as they headed to the The Three Broomticks for a butterbeer, Ted called her as he exited Zonko's joke shop with Delia and made his way over to her.

"Dromeda, are you coming?" Narcissa questioned as Ted continued to walk over to them.

"I can't ignore him Cissy, it'd be rude." Andromeda answered.

"It is nice to see where your priorities lie." Narcissa sneered as she started to walk off.

"Narcissa, wait. You can talk to him-"

But her sister laughed cruelly, "Oh Andromeda, if you think I want to socialise with a mudblood then you do not know me at all." she said and walked off towards the pub alone.

"Hello Ted." Andromeda greeted, once her friend and his girlfriend caught up to her.

"Doing some shopping?" Ted asked, nodding to the bags in Andromeda's hand.

"Yes, I've just finished my parents and a few friends." Andromeda replied.

She didn't fail to notice the filthy look that Delia was giving her, she didn't understand why or what she could have done to receive a look like that from Delia.

"Ted, I'm going to the pub. I'll see you later." Delia declared.

"Don't go on my account." Andromeda said.

"I have friends to meet." Delia said sourly.

Andromeda looked away awkwardly as Delia placed a rather enthusiastic kiss on Ted's lips before she walked away, smiling triumphantly. Ted looked at Andromeda apologetically about his girlfriend's odd behaviour.

"If I didn't know any better, I'd say she didn't like me." Andromeda guessed.

"She doesn't and I could say the same of your sister." Ted chuckled nervously.

"Narcissa takes more after Bellatrix than she does with me." Andromeda explained.

Ted nodded, "Delia thinks you're like Bellatrix. That you befriended me to humiliate me later on to impress your Slytherin friends." he said

"I'm nothing like Bella." Andromeda scoffed.

"I know that." Ted assured her.

There was a moment's awkward silence and smile between the two friends as the snow started to fall again, only lightly this time. Andromeda handed over the Honeydukes bag to Ted, deciding to give it to him now incase she didn't have a chance to before she went home for the holidays.

"It's a Christmas present."

Ted smiled at her as he took it, handing over his own identical bag from Honeydukes to Andromeda. She took it and thanked him but looked at it quesionably.

"I got you something as well."

In the distance they watched as a group of second years started a snowball fight and Andromeda felt a little envious at the amount of fun they seemed to be having. She had never participated in one, having never been allowed to by her parents and Bellatrix had always made sure that she followed their parents rules when she started at Hogwarts. Ted saw the look on her face and scooped a tiny ball of snow into his hand before throwing it at her with a delightful laugh.

"What was that for?" Andromeda shrieked.

"The look on your face Dromeda, it seems that you want to have fun but are forbidding yourself from doing so." Ted replied.

Andromeda shrugged, "Blacks are ladies. Once wen I was six, we were at a summer brunch with the Malfoys. My father caught me doing cartwheels in my dress and said that if he ever caught me doing something that unlady like again, he'd forbide me from going to Hogwarts. It's just the way I've been brought up." she sighed unappily as she remembered the memory.

Ted looked at her sympathetically, everyone should be entitled to a little bit of fun every now and then. Andromeda included, no matter what her background was. A thought suddenly occurred to him. He bent down and scooped up a bit of snow again. Andromeda looked at him curiously and with a huge grin on his face, threw the clump of snow into her face. Andromeda frowned and then stared at him evilly as her face grew red from the cold contact of the snow. She bent down and grabbed a handful of snow before standing back up again and throwing it back in Ted's face.

Both of them grinned at each other as they rushed down to the ground to form another snowball and Andromeda ran up the high street as Ted chased her. For what seemed like an hour, they both sneaked up on each other and laughed during their snowball fight. For the first time in years, Andromeda felt gleeful at how much fun she was having with her newly formed friend.