A/N: So, food poisoning is not fun. Just saying. Anyway, I seem to be better now, which is a relief! Also, I will be out of town this weekend so there is a small chance that I won't be able to update on Sunday but I will be taking my laptop with me so, if I have the time and wifi, I'll update. Otherwise, you guys will just get a late update next week. Have a great Memorial Day weekend and stay safe out there guys!

Tallyho!

Chapter 16:

The next morning, Draco woke to a bright light peering into the bedroom. He squinted as his eyes adjusted to the light change while looking for the source of the brightness. When his eyes finally focused, he saw that the curtains to the window were opened slightly which was allowing the light into the room. He groaned as he got up to close the curtains but when he looked out the window, his breath was taken away from him.

It had snowed all throughout the night and there was more snow on the ground than the night before. The powder on the ground was perfectly untouched and looked as if it were made of clouds. A light snow was still falling as the sky was a quiet sort of gray. He could have stared at the scene in front of him for hours.

"Beautiful, isn't it?" he heard a voice say as two small arms snaked around his midsection.

He threw open the curtains so that the light could fill the room more before turning around and wrapping his arms around Hermione. "Breathtaking. It looks like time stood still."

She nuzzled her face into his chest. "I wish it had."

"What do you mean?" he asked, his brows furrowing.

"I mean, I wish time would stand still. We could just forget about the war and Voldemort and the damn prophecy and just stay here forever. No trials, no tribulations, just us." She looked up at him.

He gave her a small smile and rested his forehead against hers. "Me too. If I could, I'd whisk you away from here as soon as possible. Take us to Paris or Rome or some place far away and never look back." He sighed and looked into her sad and frightened eyes. "But that will have to wait. I won't leave you. We're in this together now and I swear, Hermione, through hell or highwater, we will make it out alive. And then we'll go somewhere so far, no one could find us no matter how hard they tried. And if we wanted, we'd stay there forever."

Hermione smiled at him, unaware of the quiet tears falling down her face. Draco wiped them away and gave her a soft kiss which she returned with equal tenderness. "I love you," she whispered.

"I love you too." he replied.

They stood, embracing one another for a while longer before Hermione gave Draco a small smile and ran her fingers through her hair. "Merry Christmas, by the way."

Draco blinked. "I know it sounds ridiculous, but I forgot it was Christmas!" he chuckled. "Merry Christmas to you too." he smiled at her before kissing her. She smiled into the kiss before pulling back and sitting Draco down on the bed while she grabbed his presents.

"Granger," he started, awkwardly very aware of how this situation looked.

"Don't worry about not being able to get me anything," she said as she laid a couple of packages on the bed, "I may or may not have bought myself a present and just said it was from you."

Draco raised his eyebrows and chuckled. "Okay, and what exactly did I get you?"

She bit her lip. "A book."

He smiled at the brunette and opened his arms as she crawled onto the bed. She snuggled into his embrace. "What kind of book?" he asked.

"And Then There Were None by a muggle author named Agatha Christie. It's a murder mystery novel."

"Hm. Murder and mystery. Sounds exciting."

She giggled. "That's what I thought."

"Well…" he started, "before I open these, I have a confession to make."

Hermione sat up and looked at her boyfriend expectantly.

"I lied about something." he confessed.

Her brows furrowed in confusion. "What about?"

"The other morning when I said I was helping set up the Christmas tree; well, it wasn't entirely a lie because I was helping with that but that wasn't all I was doing. Earlier that morning, Potter and I went to Diagon Alley to go Christmas shopping."

Hermione's jaw dropped. "What? But, how? You're supposed to be dead and Harry's supposed to be in hiding!"

He chuckled and nodded. "I know which made it all the easier to go there. Potter created a disguise for me by changing my eye color and making my hair longer and darker then did the same for himself, and we were golden. We split up for about an hour while we did our respective shopping and not a single person recognized me. It was very comforting to be back in public again, even if I wasn't myself." He seemed nostalgic for a moment but then shook his head and got back to his story. "Anyway, when we got back, Potter changed us back to normal and the Weasleys showed up with the tree shortly after.

"So, long story short, I did manage to get a little something for you," he said as he opened the bedside table drawer and pulled out a small box. "And I can assure you, it's not a book."

Hermione chuckled as she took the box into her hands. She untied the small bow that was on top and opened the box carefully. She gasped when she saw what was inside.

It was a small gold locket in the shape of an oval with flowers engraved on it. Her eyes teared up as she saw what was written in the inside:

For the light in my darkness. DM.

She looked up at him, teary eyed, and smiled. "Draco, this is- this is beautiful. I love it."

He smiled, causing his eyes to light up. He leaned forward to help her put it on but was soon distracted by the kiss Hermione was giving him. When they pulled out for air, they kept their foreheads together. "Thank you," she whispered to him.

He simply smiled. "Anything for you." he replied.

She pulled back as her eyes grew curious. "Were you able to get your mum anything?"

He nodded. "I bought her a pocket watch. It's gold with a green facing and has a flower design on it in diamonds. Nothing too fancy."

Hermione chuckled and shook her head. "What?" Draco asked.

"If that's nothing too fancy for you, I'd hate to see your definition of extravagant."

He shrugged. "What can I say? We Malfoys enjoy quality at all times."

She rolled her eyes and placed one of Draco's gifts in his lap. "Your turn."

He chuckled at her and carefully unwrapped the paper. The first gift was a set of sheet music with different songs for him to play on the piano. The second gift was a beautiful silver wrist watch with black facing and silver roman numerals for the numbers. On the back there was an engraving: For my silver fox. With all my love. Hermione.

He smiled at the gifts. "These are amazing. And so much more than I expected. Thank you."

Hermione smiled and caressed his face as she pulled him in for a kiss. He kissed her on the forehead as she opened the rest of her presents from the Weasleys and Harry. Ginny got her a book on famous muggle-born wizards who became very successful in the muggle world, Ron got her a container of Bertie Bott's while Harry got her a coffee mug that changed colors when the liquid was hot or cold. Fred and George gave her a package that said Caution: Don't Open Inside! She and Draco looked at each other apprehensively and pushed it far away. Last, was the traditional Weasley sweater. Hermione laughed as she opened the wrapping and found two sweaters this time.

"Oh, Merlin, no." Draco said as Hermione held up his sweater. It was blue with a large yellow D on it while Hermione's was red with a large yellow H on it. She pulled hers on immediately while Draco stared at his horrified.

"Draco, it's a sweater, not a dragon."

"It might as well be considering it's a Weasley sweater." he said.

"What's wrong with a Weasley sweater?" she said, holding back her laughter.

He looked at her incredulously. "Seriously? It's a Weasley sweater! What's not wrong with this?"

Instead of getting angry with him, Hermione just rolled her eyes and smiled. "Draco, you should be flattered that Mrs. Weasley made you a sweater. She doesn't do that for just anyone, you know. It means that she likes you."

"Well, I'm starting to wonder if it was better when they didn't like me." he muttered.

"Just try the sweater on. It may change your opinion." she encouraged.

He muttered to himself as he picked up the sweater and twisted it around in his hands. He groaned and relented by throwing the sweater over his head and putting it on. It was itchy at first but as he relaxed into the material he found it to be very warm and comfortable. Sure, it wasn't the highest quality of clothing but the fact that Mrs. Weasley had hand-made it gave it a sentimental factor that none of his other clothes had. He wasn't aware there was a small smile on his face until he heard Hermione chuckle.

"I told you it would change your opinion." she said.

He rolled his eyes. "It's not the highest quality but it's not bad."

She shook her head. "You know that not everything is matter of high quality, Draco. Sometimes it's about what goes into something instead of what the result is."

His eyes softened. "You always find a way to humble me. I do like it, okay?"

She bit her lip and smiled. "I knew you would. Mrs. Weasley's going to be so happy when she sees you in it."

His eyes widened. "What?! No way am I wearing this in front of anyone else!"

"Why not?"

"It's… weird. And it doesn't feel right to wear one. I'm not really the Weasley's favorite person."

Hermione gave him a small smile and took his hands in hers. "Draco, you realize that by inviting you to join us for the snowball fight last night, they've grown to like you. I think they've liked you for a while now, since you started coming to Order meetings. And now that everyone knows about you and me, well, it just gives them a reason to get to know you better and like you even more."

He blew a piece of hair out of his face. "So I take it you're going to make me wear this so Mrs. Weasley can see it?"

Hermione smirked and nodded. "Fine," he said, exasperated. "I'll wear the bloody sweater."

She smiled and gave him a quick peck before grabbing some clothing and going to take a shower. When she finished, Draco jumped in as she got ready. Since the bathroom was occupied, she conjured a mirror in the bedroom to get her hair under control. Just as she finished, he walked back in with a towel around his waist. He came up behind her and helped her put the locket he gave her on before wrapping his arms around her waist. She smiled at him before tucking the necklace into her shirt which caused Draco to cock his head in curiousity.

"I love the locket, but I want to keep it to myself for now. I'm not quite ready to share it with the rest of the world yet. Right now, I just want it to be between us." she explained.

He nodded in understanding and kissed the base of her neck. "So since I heard voices downstairs, I'm assuming the Weasleys are back?" he said.

She nodded. "I think so."

He groaned and rested his forehead against her shoulder. She chuckled. "You won't be the only one wearing a sweater, you know."

He huffed. "But… I just…"

She turned around and rested her hands against his bare chest. "You what?" He shook his head. She could tell he was struggling with his thoughts. "Draco, you know you can tell me anything."

He sighed and rested his forehead against hers. It wasn't easy for him to let his walls down but when he did, it was for Narcissa or Hermione only. He knew neither would judge him for the feelings he kept hidden but that didn't mean that he was going to just release them whenever he wanted. This was one of those times, though, that his wall was down and he wasn't sure he'd be able to keep his feelings inside. He was silent for a moment before he finally confessed his thoughts. "I don't belong." he whispered. "I barely belonged amongst my friends at Hogwarts and I sure as hell don't belong here with the Weasleys. I've never been one to be accepted immediately by families and seen as one of their own. I've always been a loner; I've never been one who's belonged in a family. Not even my own, really."

Hermione eyes softened at Draco's confession. He lowered his eyes in shame at his confession. Hermione lifted his chin so he could look at her. "You belong with me." she said. His lips curved into a sad half crooked smile but it didn't reach his eyes. It broke her heart to see that after all this time, he still didn't see how important he had become; not just to her but to the Order and to their cause. She was starting to wonder if he'd ever see how important he really was. She could only hope she would be able to change his view.

"You belong." she promised. "You became one of us the minute you walked into this house with me. You've been a part of the Order for a while now and now you've been accepted into the Weasley family. I know it's a lot to take in, but believe me, you belong here."

His sad smile grew into a happy one as his eyes lit up a bit at her. She smiled at him and kissed him in which he replied with fervor. She tidied up the room as Draco got dressed, putting the present the twins got her on the bedside table as she was unsure what was inside it still but frankly, she wasn't sure she wanted to know. When Draco was dressed (Weasley sweater and the watch Hermione gave him included) they walked downstairs together hand in hand. He let her hand go as they reached the hallway and nodded for her to go ahead without him. She smiled at him before going into the dining room. Draco took a deep breath before doing the same.

A majority of the Weasleys, Narcissa, and Harry were sitting at the dining table with Hermione standing behind Ginny picking a strawberry off her plate in which the redhead stared at her incredulously for. Ron was the first to notice Draco's entrance.

"Oh my God, Mum, you weren't kidding!" he said.

Everyone looked at Draco who immediately felt self conscious and crossed his arms over his chest as if to hide his sweater. Hermione bit her lip out of nervousness for him as Harry started laughing. "I have to admit, Malfoy," he started, "that sweater is very becoming on you."

Draco rolled his eyes. "Don't you start, Potter."

Harry simply chuckled while Ginny and Ron seemed to be struggling for words. "Not one word, Weasley," Draco said, "not one word." The two redheads laughed causing Draco to roll his eyes. He didn't notice Mrs. Weasley was next to him until he heard her speak.

"Are the colors all right, dear?" she asked. "I wasn't sure what colors you liked so I went with something that I thought would be neutral."

He gave the woman a small smile. "The colors are just fine, Mrs. Weasley. It was very thoughtful of you to think of me. Thank you."

Draco had no warning as the breath was taken out of him by one of Mrs. Weasley's bone crushing hugs causing the rest of the Weasley family to laugh while Hermione beamed. She looked over to Narcissa who was smiling and gave her hand a squeeze in which the blonde returned. When Molly released Draco from her grip, she ushered him to take a seat at the table while she got him a plate of food. Ginny, who was sitting right across from him laughed as he gathered his breath.

"Congratulations, you're officially a member of the Weasley family." she teased.

Draco just groaned and looked at Hermione. "You could've at least warned me about the hug." he said.

She laughed. "I could have, but where would the fun in that be?"

Narcissa laughed at the exchange between her son and his girlfriend. She realized that she and Hermione were still holding hands and she gave it a light squeeze. "By the way, Hermione, thank you so much for that book you gave me. I broke into it a little bit this morning and I'm already very intrigued."

Hermione lit up. "Oh, I'm so glad you like it! I wasn't sure if you had heard of it or not, but it's such a great book, I decided to take a chance."

Narcissa nodded. "I hadn't read it before but from what I've read so far, it seems wonderful."

"What book?" Draco asked, brows furrowed.

"Rebecca. It's one of the muggle books I gave you."

He nodded but before he could speak the back door opened and the Weasley twins walked in covered in snow but huge grins on their faces. "Hermione!" George said when he saw her. "Have you opened our present for you yet?"

"Considering it said not to open indoors, no. Why?" she asked.

"Good!" Fred said. "Because we realized we gave you the wrong gift! The one we gave you was supposed to go to Charlie. Fortunately, we caught our mistake in time before we sent yours to him."

Hermione chuckled. "Thank God. I was scared something was going to jump out at me if I opened it."

"Well, you're not far off." George said.

She laughed as she ran upstairs to get the package. When she came back downstairs, she was in for a shock. "Oh my God!" she exclaimed.

George had taken off his jacket and exposed his Weasley sweater. Except there was one problem: it was at least two sizes too small, to the point that his midriff was showing. And he was strutting around proudly without a care in the world. Hermione doubled over in laughter.

"W-what?" was all she managed to get out.

"Mum mixed up our sweaters this year," Ginny explained, "and George refuses to switch back. So I get the oversized sweater while he gets the one that's way too small for him."

"And I look fabulous!" George exclaimed causing Ginny to laugh.

"Yeah, keep telling yourself that." she joked.

As Hermione wiped the tears from her eyes from laughing, she handed the package over to Fred who gave her a package of Peruvian Instant Darkness Powder from their shop as well as a container of Candy in a Can. She looked at the candy container suspiciously before Fred threw his hands up in surrender.

"We didn't jinx any of it, I swear."

She raised an eyebrow until Ginny calmed her nerves. "He's telling the truth. They gave me one too and all the one's I've tried on Harry and Ron have had no side effects so I think we're okay."

Harry and Ron looked at Ginny horrified. "We were your guinea pigs?!" Ron exclaimed. "But I'm your brother!"

"And I'm your boyfriend!" Harry exclaimed.

Ginny just gave them an innocent smile causing everyone to laugh. Hermione thanked the twins for their gifts and ran back upstairs to put them away before coming back down to enjoy Christmas with her second family and boyfriend and his mother.

After breakfast, everyone sat around and talked as a fire roared in the fireplace and music that Harry and Hermione called "swing music" played in the background. At one point, a song called In the Mood came on and Harry asked Hermione to dance since they were the only two who recognized the song. It was a complete disaster though, as Harry was never a very skilled dancer which led to him looking absolutely ridiculous. Finally, Ginny got up and intervened, moving Harry aside, as she and Hermione got into places and began to dance together. It went well, at first, until both kept trying to lead the other which created another disaster and eventually causing the two of them to fall over and land on top of poor Ron who had the misfortune of breaking their fall with his body.

It wasn't until later that evening, when he was playing a game of Wizard's Chess against Ron, that Draco had an epiphany: Hermione was right. He did belong here. With people who cared about him, made him laugh, and made Christmas sweaters for him even when it was least expected. He understood why Hermione and Harry loved the Weasleys so much; they may have been loud and crazy but that's what made them special. They loved one another deeply, even when making fun of each other, and was always there to support one another. He looked at his mother and shared a smile with her as he saw that she was thinking the same thing. The Weasleys had become a part of them now.

They were people they'd be able to rely on, people they could trust and vice versa.

An extended family.

And damn, did it feel good to belong.

P.S. Of course, Draco got a Weasley sweater! It's kind of required! Hope you enjoyed it!

Stay Golden!