Blaise Zabini here, and do I ever have a fuzzy warm Christmas story for you! So curl up with a hot cup of something strong for this one... Or get under a blanket with the one you love, either works for feeling the proper ambiance of the moment. Ever been given the best Christmas present of your life by a friend, who in fact wasn't even trying to give you anything in particular?
No? Well most people don't have experiences even remotely similar to mine. That's alright. This happened to me, though, a friend giving me the best gift I could ever ask for. He inadvertently gifted me on December Twenty-second, nineteen-ninety-seven when he asked if Gellert Grindelwald could hide out at mine for the holidays. Of course my parents were honored so they agreed. Gellert and I were already fast friends, so of course we were thrilled. How did I become fast friends with Gellert bloody Grindelwald, you ask? Well it happened like this.
The friend in question, a German dark wizard around ten years older than me by the name of Wolfgang Adler, cooked up a plan to free Grindelwald from Nurmengard so that he could help against Voldemort if it became necessary. Voldemort was really making a mess of the wizarding world by then, if you recall. Intelligent dark wizards like my family and Wolfgang who did not wish to follow Voldemort had to take action if only to protect ourselves.
We weren't at all interested in following a mad man, but in truth, none of us are particular followers of anyone other than ourselves. You know, we're the sorts who don't relish being told what to do and rarely work well with others. That's how our line of reasoning led right to Gellert Grindelwald. Didn't you find it at all strange that even the likes of Voldemort could kill Gellert Grindelwald so easily a few months later in March of Ninety-eight without him even putting up a good fight for old times sake? Grindelwald has more pride than that. Trust me, I'd know. I know him very well.
Voldemort was able to kill him so easily, because the old man in that cell in Nurmengard was not Gellert Grindelwald. He was an old German man who was coming down with dementia. He agreed to live out his last days in Gellert's place for a good cause in return for a hefty pay off for his rather poor family.
So as you see, it worked out for everyone! How we managed to set Gellert free is another story in itself, and at present, we're speaking of Christmas. Let's just say I helped with a few of my specialized enchantments that unravel magic, my family's house elf played a big role, and Wolfgang was the mastermind behind it all.
He freed Gellert and even gave him a very dark and illegal potion to restore his youth in exchange for Gellert's word that he would remain with Wolfgang and help us in any way necessary until Voldemort was dead. Gellert and I met the day he was freed, and as you can expect, we were very impressed with one another.
We are both amazing, genius, beautiful wizards, after all. As we have many similar magical interests and inclinations, we had plenty to talk about. He and I even began working on plans for some artifacts we'd make to keep everyone safe from Voldemort. Wolfgang allowed me to stay over so that Gellert and I could get to work at once.
We got to work, but we also got a bit distracted with one another... As in I kissed him when we were on a break from enchanting magical talismans. Before you go on about how much older he is, I am very sophisticated and mature for my age, I'll have you know! Not to mention that youthening potion made Gel even younger than Wolfgang expected, putting us at about the same age. His first night out of Nurmengard was spent with me as we explored one another in every way possible, including mentally, physically and spiritually, because trust me when the shagging is that good, it gets quite spiritual!
I need to explain something about myself and Gel. Neither of us connects to people easily, because most people aren't at all like us. They don't understand our interests or motivations, and most people aren't on our magical level. I am told that saying this sounds rude, but I'm just being factual and explaining why and how Gellert and I connected so fast.
We did connect very quickly, and I don't just mean physically. It was amazing how similar our thoughts were on...well most things. I made him feel secure after Nurmengard and he made me laugh, bringing me out of myself like no one else can. He needed security, and I needed to be more daring. We did that for one another, as well as keeping one another challenged and excited. I would've surely angered and offended my parents by asking to stay with Gellert at Wolfgang's for the holidays but luckily that wasn't necessary. Wolfgang had his own holiday plans that would take him out of the country, so he asked if Gellert could stay with my family. When my parents agreed, Gellert and I were over the moon.
My parents already had a pre-holiday ski trip planned, you see, so he and I would have plenty of uninterrupted time together, which is always a good thing for a new romance that begins on the holidays. Before I knew we were rescuing Gellert, I planned to go ahead to my grandparents in Italy and meet my parents there on Christmas Eve.
Now that I'd have pleasant company at home I told my parents we'd just wait there. They could come back for us and we'd all go to Italy together. They left on the twenty-second, and would return home on the twenty-fourth. Gel and I planned to spend much of our time making cunning and complex magical devices to defend and protect us all, and we did. My family's house elf, Bramble, remained with us to prepare meals and such. My parents had been gone for a few hours when Gel and I took a break from our work to have some holiday tea and pumpkin glazed gingerbread that Bramble brought into the library for us.
Bramble placed the tea tray beside our towering, brightly decorated Christmas tree so Gellert and I brought our chairs over.
"This is nice," Gellert breathed, his beautiful blue gaze moving from the decorated tree to the plate of neatly sliced gingerbread.
The look of shock on his face didn't quite match those words, and I leaned forward in concern, placing a hand on his arm. "Are you alright," I asked quietly, and blinking he nodded.
"I am more than alright. It is just honestly difficult to believe this is all real sometimes," he admitted, gaze dropping in discomfort and embarrassment to his lap.
As we are both tall and thin, he was borrowing some of my clothes until he could get some of his own. He'd arrived the previous day in tattered prison robes, and now wore a pair of my black slacks and a green winter sweater that looked marvelous against his blonde curls.
"They drugged me in Nurmengard so I couldn't escape, you know. I had too many fever dreams to count, and so many were vivid. In some I watched in horror as all my followers were executed, and in others I escaped and even won. The world was entirely different, all as a result of my efforts. It was wonderful. Then I'd wake up, my body a mass of cramps from the hard stone slab which they so kindly allowed me for a bed. I suppose I just keep waiting to wake up again."
He drew in a shuddering breath and I reached for his hand. I'm not one to lend comfort, as to be quite honest, it doesn't come naturally to me. When you love someone, though, that changes everything, and comforting Gellert was the most natural thing in the world. I was glad to do it any time I thought it was needed, or any time he reached out.
He clung tightly to my hand as our eyes met. "If you weren't real, I don't think I could handle it," he said, his lightly accented, husky voice suddenly constricted with emotion.
"I swear I'm real and I'm never going anywhere," I promised.
He chuckled, his body relaxing as Bramble entered to top off our cups of ginger spiced Christmas tea. "During the hard times, when I feel almost too happy and begin to wonder if this can truly be real, it's actually Bramble who helps me the most," Gellert confessed.
I frowned, somehow a little affronted by this. "Not me," I asked, as neutrally as I could.
Gellert chuckled again. "No. You're something my mind could entirely make up to soothe my soul in that prison. Someone just like me to understand my every thought? A partner in all things? Of course that may not be real! But a grumpy house elf whose expressions constantly make me wonder if he's considering poisoning me, doesn't exactly fit that picture of perfection. My family had a Kobold growing up, so house elves aren't something I'd think of dreaming up."
I nodded in understanding. Wolfgang, also from Germany as was Gellert, had a Kobold servant rather than a house elf as well. "In that case, I no longer feel insulted," I said with a laugh.
"Never," Gellert said warmly, drawing me close for a kiss that had my usually icy self feeling all things warm and fuzzy.
Bramble cleared his throat pointedly and set the tea pot down with a bang. The look he gave us plainly said that we were being extremely unseemly to carry on so over proper tea.
Gellert grinned. "Yes, it's that expression precisely," he said happily. "Thank you, Bramble."
With a huff, the elf left the room, though he did grin at Gellert over one shoulder as the door to the library swung shut behind him. At least I thought it was a grin, though Bramble grinned so rarely, it could've just as easily been a grimace. As we enjoyed our tea, the conversation turned to complex magical theory of enchantments, our favorite topic.
As we talked, I eventually found myself growing distracted by the evocative picture Gellert made beside the towering fir that was our Christmas tree. It was lovely, he was lovely...
"What are you staring at," he suddenly asked with a laugh. "Do I have pumpkin frosting on my face?"
"If you did, I'd get it off," I drawled. "You do not, though. I was just thinking how beautiful you look beside that tree." Those were words I never ever would've said until Gellert, but now the honest compliment came out as naturally as breathing.
He grinned. "Well thank you very much. I've never been told that before, but I look very forward to you telling me so every year from now on." Picking up the last slice of gingerbread, his grin widened, mischief sparking in his eyes as he ran it over his lips. "Is there frosting on my mouth now," he asked.
"Indeed there is," I murmured, and leaned forward to claim his lips with my own. He tasted delicious. I took my time removing the frosting, and by the time I had finished, we were both flushed and breathless with desire. "I think you'd look even better under the tree than beside it," I realized. "What do you say? You're the only present I want this year, and I'd very much enjoy unwrapping my gift right now."
Gellert chuckled, gaze moving from my face to thoughtfully study the tree. "I think we're just what that tree needs to complete the holiday celebration for which it was made," he proclaimed.
Soon we lay together on the soft fur rug that my mum spread under the tree each year. We unwrapped one another, removing clothes in-between heated kisses and caresses as the branches of the tree spread over us in all their festive glory. The sight was truly one to behold if I do say so myself. It. Was. Hot!
"From now on, the sight of a Christmas Tree is going to get me in the mood without fail," I groaned, running a hand through Gellert's soft golden curls as my lips trailed kisses down the elegant arch of his neck.
Gellert grinned, nodding. As one hand traveled down my body, causing my breath to catch, his gaze became distracted by something on the tree.
"What," I demanded.
"Just those two ornaments," he said thoughtfully. "They look so soft. I was thinking, if we truly wish to make the experience festive, we could use them to decorate ourselves." His hand traveled even lower to illustrate just where the decorations should go if I didn't already know...which of course I did.
Groaning I arched needfully into his hand, before forcing myself to follow his gaze. The two ornaments in question were the only plush ones on our tree. One was a pair of reindeer antlers connected by a red ribbon which hung them from the tree. The other consisted of two snowman heads, each head looking like a fluffy snowball wearing a top hat and sporting a pipe in its mouth. The ribbon that suspended them from the tree was white like snow. Never before had either ornament seemed lascivious to me, but suddenly they were the most erotic things I'd ever seen.
"Which do you want," I asked.
"I'll take the snowmen, because I want to see you in the antlers," Gellert said, his sensual tone causing shivers to travel down my now naked spine. We wasted no time in lovingly tying the ornaments by their respective ribbons to one another's balls. The soft plush against my skin felt delightfully naughty. "That looks amazing," Gellert murmured, his heated gaze sweeping my body.
"Indeed it does," I agreed, though my eyes were on his. "So very festive."
"Come take your present," Gellert invited, and when he spread his arms wide, the incredible contrast of his lithe naked body under the glittering tree caused me to throb almost painfully with need.
"Oh gods," I murmured against his mouth as I spread myself over him.
When it comes to who's on top, as it were in this relationship, Gellert and I actually take turns. We've discovered that both...angles have their perks and we enjoy savoring every bit of what we can do for one another. I planned to enjoy the tree with him all night, taking him first, then allowing him to have me as well.
Conjuring cream from my bedroom I slowly, tantalizingly used it to make us both ready. By the time I was done, we were gasping and grinding against one another nearly like animals with a great deal of Christmas spirit. When I at last slid into him, we both threw our heads back, moaning out our desire unconsciously as one. It felt as if the world moved under us, compressing everything down for a single moment. Our shags were always amazing, but this was particularly special as I'd known it would be. Our mouths crushed together as our bodies rocked against one another, driving us toward ecstasy.
It turns out that there is nothing like a piercing shriek to kill an oncoming orgasm. The scream rang out again as Gel and I sprang apart with shouts of shock. The sound was definitely coming from the throat of a woman. Bramble didn't scream, and he didn't sound like a girl besides. My parents were gone, so it couldn't be my mum.
It was then that Gel and I took in the fact that our surroundings had drastically changed. We were in a sitting room, though it wasn't ours. It was smaller and far less formal, decorated in shades of bronze and blue. The scream rang out again and I whirled to see a tall thin red head wearing earth brown robes covered in silver stars. She held a staff in one hand which she imperiously waved, while screeching something at us in what sounded like Gaelic.
"You idiots," she accused, switching to English. I wasn't sure that the switch was much of an improvement. I frowned but before Gel or I could speak, she was continuing. "You've set off the portkeys! Now everyone will believe there is an emergency and show up here just when Filius's family is set to arrive."
"Excuse me, where are we, and who are you," Gellert asked, quite calmly considering the circumstances.
"I am guessing Professor Flitwick's quarters at Hogwarts for the where bit," I murmured, beginning to feel very unhappy with the situation.
"That's right," the professor in question said as he calmly strolled into the room. "I would say ten points to Slytherin, but considering the circumstances, I hardly think it would be appropriate."
"That's alright," I said dryly.
"This is my wife, Finna," professor Flitwick introduced. "It's nice to make your acquaintance, Mr. Grindelwald, though I must confess that I'd have preferred your clothes to be on."
"That's entirely understandable," Gellert said, nodding gravely. "If it helps matters, we didn't intend to make a social call. The last thing we recall, we were at home under our own Christmas tree."
Professor Flitwick frowned thoughtfully. "You touched the ornaments together for some reason, I presume?"
"Yes, quite a lot," Gellert confirmed, lips twitching in spite of the situation. "I assume we should not have done so?"
At that, I couldn't help letting out a small snicker that I managed to hastily turn into a cough.
"Indeed," Flitwick agreed. "Those particular ornaments are portkeys that when pressed together, activate to bring a large group here so long as everyone in the group is touching. Those of us working to keep ourselves safe from Voldemort have agreed to use my quarters at Hogwarts for a meeting place in case of emergencies. Once one is activated, others will be alerted, so that's why my dear wife said that others will be showing up."
As if on cue, more witches and wizards began to appear, holding portkeys of their own. Millicent Bulstrode along with Wolfgang and her parents suddenly stood beside the door, glaring daggers at me and Gel. Some of my parent's friends arrived next, their presence sharply bringing home the point that Gel and I were still quite naked.
"Well we can just tell them it's been a misunderstanding, and they can all go away," I said frantically to an impressively unruffled Flitwick.
"You are so going to pay for this," Millicent informed, her tone deadly. "You prats are..."
But she was interrupted by the arrival of my parents. That's when things got really unpleasant. Rather than racing us home, considerately wrapped in their cloaks, both began berating us for being perverts and befouling their Christmas Tree as well as humiliating them in front of everyone and ruining their trip along with Christmas itself. I hardly saw how we'd ruined Christmas as it was only the twenty-second of December, but I was wise enough not to comment.
"I'm removing the portkey charm from those," My father thundered, flicking his wand in angry jabs at the ornaments on our balls. "You both can keep them, because no one else is ever going to want to touch them after where they've been. We shall just make new portkeys and find an even better hiding place entirely out of your reach!"
"We are sorry for disrupting everyone's holiday for such an embarrassing false alarm," my mother said, turning to address the room at large.
By then everyone working in our group was present, including Snape, who looked a mix of horrified and disgusted. I was aware of the allegiance of everyone, though I hadn't met Flitwick's wife before. Currently it didn't seem that Gel and I had impressed her much. My mother called Bramble, and with a crack, he was before her in an instant. At sight of Gel and I his eyes went round and he began to choke.
"Good," My mother said. "You were unaware. I need for you to get us all home, please." Her hands shot out then, one slender hand tipped with sharp red fingernails latching on to my naked shoulder while the other did the same with Gellert's. My father took her arm, and Bramble took his in turn. In an instant we were home again, in the library beside the Christmas Tree that had started it all. "Get to your room," My mother snapped darkly. "I don't want to see either of you until after Christmas! It's the least you deserve!"
Though this was quite unfair, we apparated upstairs without a word. You may find it strange that Gellert Grindelwald allowed my mum to boss him around, but if you are, you don't know my mum!
To be shut in one's room on Christmas should be illegal! Where is the holiday forgiveness, after all? It's easy to talk the talk, but apparently walking the Christmas walk is more difficult for some than others. Ah well we still have our ornaments, and I have a wardrobe practically begging to be transfigured into a Christmas tree for the holidays.
