MMM: And we've got another update here for you! I know the chapter title is pretty much the complete opposite of the current season, but hey- I'd have to wait at least 4 months before it is even somewhat accurate. Let's do this!

Ch. 10 Deck the Halls

December 25th, 1999

"Have a holly, jolly Christmas

"It's the best time of the year

"I don't know if there'll be snow

"But have a cup of cheer..."

Draco smiled at hearing Anya's sweet voice sing along to the Christmas song playing on the radio and he came down the stairs. As he rounded the corner to the kitchen, he found her dancing around by the stove in Christmas tree flannel bottoms and a cherry red tank top, singing into a wooden spoon as she prepared coffee and morning pastries on a tray. She was so care-free.

Draco could still hardly believe that this was his life now. It seemed like only last week that they moved in together, not five months ago. This house felt more like a home than Malfoy Manor ever had, and it was all because of this one woman before him, this witch with the most loving heart. He didn't know how he ever got so lucky, but he thanked every being above for this miracle.

Still smiling, Draco crept up behind Anya and wrapped an arm around her waist, leading her around the room as he swayed from side to side. Anya's giggles sounded like little bells and he spun her around before dipping her low. "Good morning," he greeted with a smile.

"Merry Christmas," Anya continued to giggle.

"Happy Christmas," he smiled as his gave her a quick kiss and straightened them upright. "So... Did ol' St. Nick come by for a visit last night?" he teased.

"Looks like," Anya teased back as he pulled back. Handing him a cup of fresh coffee, she grabbed her own and the tray of warmed baked goodies, and hurried off to the living room. "Come on! Let's go see what he brought us!" she cheered.

Draco remembered the Christmases he had as a child: sitting in the grand living room of Malfoy Manor with his mother, his father off on some business trip that he chose to go on instead of spending time with his family for the holidays, and those rare times where he actual was home, he would lock himself up in his office with work. Sometimes, Draco didn't even spend the holidays with his mother because she was expected to join her husband on his many trips, leaving their only child in the dark and gloomy mansion with no one but their servants to keep him company. Those were some of his most lonely memories that he ever experienced. But those were in the past and with hope, they would never come to light again.

Following Anya into the living room, he was enveloped with the warmth from the roaring fire in the fireplace and the clean smell of the pine tree. Anya was already sitting by the base of the tree, the multi-colored lights from the tree bathing her in a soft glow from behind. Most of the gifts at the bottom were to each other with a few from close friends and family: it was a smaller pile than the ones from his childhood, but there were more precious than anything.

"Draco?" The blonde wizard suddenly snapped from his daze to see Anya staring at him with a worried expression on his face. "Is everything alright?" she asked.

Giving her a smile, Draco walked over and sat beside her on the floor, grabbing the stockings off the coffee table as he went. "Never better," he told her as he handed her stocking over with another quick kiss. "So... Who's first?"

The stocking stuffers were mostly sweets and little necessities like travel-size shampoo and toothpaste. Draco's mother had sent Anya a lovely ruby pendant and Draco a few of his favorite cashmere sweaters. Anya's parents had sent them a book containing their famous family recipes- something that Draco would mostly likely be the only one to try to create. There were a few other gifts from Anya's friends and other family members but what really surprised Draco was the gift he received from Mrs. Weasley: a hand-knitted sweater that was the perfect replica of his old Slytherin Quidditch uniform, his last name knitted into the fabric with extra care.

"This is fantastic!" Anya cheered as she held up her new sweater from Mrs. Weasley: scarlet red with a golden outline of a crown resting just above a lion. Draco smiled. 'Gryffindor's Princess,' he thought, 'Just as I've always said.'

Anya's gift to him was something he'd never expected. It was a brand new leather briefcase, the black fabric polished to almost a mirror shine with gold buckles. "I got a job at the school library between my classes. Two- sometimes three- hour breaks almost every day adds up eventually. I figured it would come in handy seeing as you're going into law and politics," she explained.

Pulling her in, Draco held her close as he pressed a passionate kiss to her lips. "It's perfect. You are perfect," he gasped out when he eventually pulled back. He felt like one hell of a lucky bloke.

So it was only natural that Draco felt like he was king of the world when Anya opened her gift from him. It was an antique silver card holder with an intricate swirl design etched into the lid along with amethyst stones laid into it to make her initials. Flipping it open, tears began to slip from Anya's eyes when she saw the business cards he had made especially for her:

Healer Anya Collins

St. Mungo's Hospital

Her dream job.

"Draco... This is... I don't know what to say," she mumbled.

"That's more than enough," he reassured her. Taking her hand in his, he looked her in the eye. "Anya, I want you to get everything you want in life, no exceptions. I know that you'll be bloody brilliant as a healer and I'll support you every step of the way, now and always," he told her. He nearly fell back into the tree when she threw herself into his arms.

"Thank you," she whispered to him, thanking him for more than the little gift. Pulling back, his hand came up to her face and he wiped her tears away with his thumb before pressing yet another kiss to her lips. It was Anya who turned it into a passionate one this time, her arms draping around his neck as she practically climbed onto his lap and straddled his hips, Draco's back coming to lean up against the couch as one hand came to rake through her auburn locks, the other clamped with an almost bruising force around her waist.

"As much as I would love to continue this," Draco gasped out when they broke apart for much-needed oxygen, "I think we should clean up and get ready. Everyone will be here in about two hours."

Looking at the clock, Anya let out 'yip' and scampered off Draco's lap. "Oh boy!" she huffed as she ran her hand through her hair. "Ok, ok... So I'll clean up in here and put things away. You go in the kitchen and unwrap the platters. Do we have enough napkins? Do you think I bought too much wine? Where did we put those packs of juice boxes for the kids? Shoot!" she groaned when she stubbed her toe on the coffee table in her mad dash.

By the time the guests started to arrive, the house was impeccable, the hot hors d'oeuvres had just been pulled out of the oven and placed on heating trays to stay warm, and Anya and Draco were dressed. "Whew!" Anya sighed.

"Excellent timing Ms. Collins, as always," Draco smiled as he came up beside her and handed her a wine glass from which she took a hearty sip.

"Right back at ya, Mr. Malfoy," she grinned as she straightened the collar of his shirt. She noticed then that he was holding a sprig of mistletoe over her head.

"It's tradition," he smirked.

Anya raised an eyebrow. "Didn't you get enough smooching earlier?" she asked in a teasing voice.

"Never," he replied before swooping down.

MMM: And there we have it. We'll just chalk it up to 'Christmas in July'... Even though it's June.

Nancy (aka megamatchmaker)

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