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Chapter 5
Christmas Cheer
Disclaimer: I don't own the lovely boys and girls of Harry Potter. JK Rowling does. Ugh, what I wouldn't give to be her (but only for a day). ^_^
AN: Two chapters at once! (This and chapter 6). What a bonus! Well, not really. I have up to chapter 14 written, but I've been going back through what I have so far to see if I've missed something. It just depends on how fast I can check for mistakes. ^_^
Thanks to Phoenix and aqualaria! I really appreciate the comments (make me feel all warm and fuzzy!)
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Christmas dawned with a soft light coming through the window. A bleary green eye opened as a ray of golden red peeked through the slightly open curtain around his bed. Harry's mind drew a blank for a moment as he groped for his glasses.
Seeing the pile of presents at the end of his bed, the day clicked in his brain. A sad feeling crept over him when he realized that nobody was here to share the wonder of opening the gifts. For the first Christmas Ron wouldn't be here. He had sent his friend's present with Ginny, and Ginny's with Ron to make sure that they got it but couldn't peek. Harry had sent Hedwig off with Hermione's yesterday, and his owl had returned with a present attached to her leg from his friend. He shook off the maudlin thoughts this brought up and reached into the pile, grabbing Ron's present.
Ripping the paper off, he discovered a curious little globe that gave a soft glow. Harry picked up the card attached.
Harry-
This is a Roam Globe - the equivalent of a snow globe (at least this is what Hermione told me). Look at it for a couple of seconds and you'll see a place you want to go see.
Happy Christmas!
Ron
With a wide smile on his face, Harry peered into the globe. The glow became brighter for a split second before showing the Burrow, snow falling gently to the ground as a poof of smoke came from one of the bedrooms. He laughed as he realized that it was the twins' bedroom. He was sad for a second as he wished he was there. Harry knew he was safe here, but he still wanted to be with his friends today.
Sighing silently, he opened Hermione's gift and found a book. 'Typical Hermione,' he thought as he looked at the plain, black cover. Nothing marred the surface, intriguing him. Harry opened the cover and found faint letters on the first page. Also inside was a note to him.
Harry,
I know you must think I'm crazy for sending you a book, but I thought you would like this. It's a book on curses and counter-curses, but they're a lot harder than what we've been taught in Defense Against the Dark Arts. I talked with Professor Steele, and she said that she would be willing to teach what she could out of this book if you wanted her to.
Make sure that you don't go anywhere without a teacher and Happy Christmas,
Hermione
Harry shook his head. He should have known that she would say something like that. Still, he would look through the book before talking to the DADA teacher about it.
Opening his other presents he found a large batch of fudge and a pullover from Mrs. Weasley. He wondered if Ron was fussing about his maroon pullover as he pulled the green jersey over his head. Eating a piece of fudge, he opened the present from his godfather and found a large assortment of sweets from Honeydukes. The letter inside was what counted as Sirius said that he and Remus Lupin would be back the day before New Year's to see him. Harry read between the lines and guessed they would have another meeting with the rest of those in their group. He got the usual treacle tarts from Hagrid, who never noticed they were hard as rocks. From Remus he got a picture of his dad and mum from when they had been in school. He had gotten it from somebody - he couldn't say who - who had known them in school. The two were laughing madly as they stood under a piece of mistletoe, and as he watched they gave each other a happy kiss. Harry reached over and grabbed the album that always rested in his nightstand and carefully placed this picture in it after taking one last glance at the cheerfully waving pair.
He went to sweep aside the wrappings when he noticed a little present lying almost unnoticed at the foot of the bed. The soft gray-colored wrapping glistened as it hit the weak sunshine coming through the window, giving it a silver sheen. Curious, Harry pulled the paper off to reveal a small crystal hanging from a silver chain. He couldn't think of where he had seen something like this before, but he was sure it'd come to him.
Harry-
Please wear this at all times. The crystal will warn you when danger approaches (but not necessarily of big things).* DO NOT TAKE IT OFF!*
AeN
Harry looked at the elegant script on the parchment again. He wondered why she had sent such a thing. Still, he trusted her enough and put it on.
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The Great Hall was splendously decorated as the trees sparkled and shimmered under what seemed to be thousands of fairies. The teachers were dressed for the occasion, making Harry glad that he had gotten new dress robes earlier this year since he had grown out of his old ones from fourth year. Looking around, he spotted Draco off to one side, sipping a glass of punch as he watched some of the teachers mingle. He looked at Dumbledore, who, for one of the few times since Voldemort had risen the second time, looked totally relaxed. He had told everybody he wanted them to relax, since it was starting to look like the next battle would be coming soon.
The evening they had drawn names Harry had fallen asleep rather quickly when he had gotten to bed. He had been exhausted by the events of the last couple of days, enough that Madame Pomfrey had wanted him to stay another night in the infirmary. Instead he had shaken her off and trudged back to the empty Gryffindor tower. That night he'd had a strange dream in which he was flying without his Firebolt. It had seemed strange at first, but he had grown to like the feeling as he soared about the grounds around the school. The sound of sobbing had caught his ear and he had flown towards it. As he did so, he recognized Draco as he curled around himself at the base of a tree leading into the Forbidden Forest. In his hands lay a crumpled piece of paper, twisted and ragged as he held it loosely. Harry stepped towards him but the other boy didn't notice him.
The piece of paper fell to the ground as Draco curled up into a ball, turning to the other side as his body shivered. Something flowed over Harry then, but he wasn't sure what it was. He was confused at the concern he felt for his enemy.
'Is he really my enemy?' a little voice asked.
He didn't know how to answer that. Instead, he bent down and picked up the paper and smoothed it out with one hand. He started to read, eyes growing wider at the words written. Harry got to the bottom when he felt he was being watched. Looking down, he found that Draco was no longer there. In his place lay a small cat-like creature that began to rub against Harry's ankles.
He picked it up and it started to purr in his arms. The small creature nuzzled against his neck, the small, wet nose cold against his warm skin. Harry was startled when it disappeared, leaving his arms empty and held out from his body. Self-consciously he moved them to his side before he noticed something around his neck. Nimble fingers rubbed the skin where the animal had rubbed, finding a finely wrought chain with something dangling on the end.
At that point he had woken up, sweat dripping down wet hair into his eyes. Harry's chest had felt on fire for a second before his breathing settled into a more normal pattern. He quickly wrote down what the paper had said in his dream before he forgot it, and was astonished at what it said. Reading it in the cold light of day, he had become inspired for the gift he was to give.
Now, as he walked over to the single, large round table in the center of the Great Hall, he was nervous, waiting for Draco's reaction. He also wondered who had gotten him, and once again the spectre of Snape floated around his brain. It would be just his luck that the Potions teacher had drawn his name.
"Hi, Harry." He turned to see Aeryn beside him, a small animal in her arms. The creature's coat was a smoky-blue color, the shiny fur glowing as she softly stroked it.
He could feel his eyes get round when it hit him that this was the creature from his dream. Looking up at her, he saw a twinkle in her eye as she turned to look at the rest of those gathered. "This is a kneazel," she said in a soft voice. "They can sense when you are surrounded by friends and by enemies. When they purr, you're around someone that has good feelings towards you, but they will defend you if someone is threatening you."
Harry looked at her again.
"Her name is Circe," Aeryn said as she held the kneazel towards Harry. "Would you like to hold her?"
Not really sure, he hesitated. Suddenly his arms were full as the kneazel squirmed in his arms, settling into a comfortable position around his shoulders. Harry could feel a rumbling sensation across his skin as Aeryn quietly laughed.
"She really likes you, Harry," she said. "You are one of three people she will do that to."
Harry caught the twinkle in her eye again. "Me... and you?" he asked.
Aeryn nodded. "And your Headmaster." She chuckled. "Circe feels totally relaxed around you. She doesn't even do that to Dad and my siblings. I read somewhere that it's a sign of total trust between the owner and the other person."
Harry opened his mouth to ask a question when Dumbledore requested everyone to find the seats with their names in front of. Walking over to the table, he felt like he was wearing some fur scarf as Circe nuzzled his neck. Finding his spot, he sat down across from Draco. The blond boy lifted one pale eyebrow in question, but didn't say anything.
He cringed when the seat to the right of him was pulled out. Christmas was not going to be fun when he saw that Snape had to sit next to him. The Potions Master gave a snarl to him and then ignored him. Well, that hadn't been so bad, but Harry wasn't going to let himself hope any more than he had.
He sensed, more than saw, Snape get stiff when Aeryn sat to Draco's left.
'When did I start thinking of Malfoy as being Draco?' He suddenly realized that he had been calling him by Draco for several days now, even in their brief conversations.
"Happy Christmas, Draco. Harry," Aeryn said. Harry saw her eyes twinkling again as she looked directly at Snape. "Happy Christmas, Severus."
The Potions Master threw his hardest glare at the woman, who gave a wide smile in response. Privately Harry wondered if the ability to throw Snape off his stride was hereditary. Snape seemed to be as speechless as he was when Professor Steele tossed something, seemingly mild-mannered, at him. He hid his laughter at that, but saw Draco's shoulders start shaking, as if he, too, found it funny.
Harry ignored Snape, just as Snape paid no attention to anybody else. He found he was enjoying himself much more than he had thought, as he talked to both Draco and Aeryn. She told them a funny story that had happened to her when she had been in school in the US when one of her roommates decided they should study in the library one night. She and her three friends had almost been caught in the Restricted Section, but had led their caretaker on a merry chase all over the campus.
Draco had actually offered a story about one of the Slytherin Quidditch team practices, when his old captain, Marcus Flint, had gotten ambushed by the Weasley twins. Harry could believe that Fred and George had done something like that. Only because Ron'd had to learn how the twins thought had the three of them avoided walking into one of their traps or pranks.
Soon the food disappeared from the table and everyone looked expectantly at Dumbledore. The Headmaster stood, his long beard and hair shining in the soft light overhead as some of the fairies seemed to scatter. Harry saw the familiar twinkle in his eyes that he had seen so often the last couple of days and was truly happy for the first time since he had opened his presents this morning.
"I hope that everybody is sufficiently stuffed from this wonderful feast," Dumbledore began. "Now, I'm sure that you all are anxious to exchange gifts. You are to guess who got you the gift you get." Another happy twinkle crossed his eyes as he sat down and the gifts from under the tree floated to each person.
Harry gazed down at the package he had gotten. The paper was a soft yellow with faint red streaks through it. As he watched a small golden globe appeared and started to move across the paper, the rest of it changing to the color the sky was at mid-summer. He quickly looked at the others around him and his breath hitched when he realized that Snape had gotten a package wrapped in the same paper he had received his pendant in. Green eyes were met with twinkling blue-green ones before they lowered back to their respective gifts.
Opening it carefully, he discovered that it was a small box made of glass like one of the windows in the Great Hall. Nestled inside was a small package of parchment, a quill, and a bottle of ink. He looked at the ink and saw that it was made just for him, and that it would write in whatever color his mood indicated. Harry stared at it for a moment. As far as he knew, the ink would have to have something of his to make it. He remembered that much from potions.
It was a little unsettling to know that one of the people here had something of his. Whatever it was was buried deep in the bottle, more likely a strand of hair, but it was distressing to say the least. Yet, at the same time, he realized how much work this was. Whoever had given him this had put a lot of thought into it, even if they didn't know it was very special to him since he liked to write - a lot. Just the week before Hermione had teased him that instead of playing Quidditch he should write a book about it.
A soft gasp reached his ears from across the table and he looked up into Draco's confused eyes. The boy was holding the small, delicately cut crystal dragon that Harry had gotten him with shaking hands.
His thoughts shot back to the shop where he had found it in Hogsmeade. At first glance the figurine had seemed Muggle-made until it had curled up in his hands when he had picked it up. The letter that he had read in his dream had addressed Draco as 'My dearest little dragon.' It had been written in a feminine hand, and Harry knew it had been from his mother.
Grey eyes looked wildly around the table before they met concerned green eyes. Draco's face lit up for a second before he looked down at the dragon, which had spread its glass wings. They reflected and refracted the light from the fairies, throwing the table into a dream-like relief.
Somehow Harry knew that the other boy wouldn't look up again for a while and he looked next to him to see what Aeryn had gotten. A pleased look on her face let him know that she was happy with the small book on potions she had gotten. She was already avidly reading the little book, flipping through the various pages.
He turned his attention to the man beside him and was astonished by the bewildered look on his face. In his hands lay a sheaf of paper that moved ever so slightly, as if he were trembling. Harry stared at him for another minute before Snape seemed to collect himself and his eyes scanned the table. Harry dropped his eyes as Snape looked at him but raised them when he felt like the man was far past him down the table. He wasn't quite sure if he saw it, but it looked, to him, like Snape was actually happy.
Curiosity filled him before he remembered that he had to figure out who had gotten him his gift. He was looking at each of the teachers out of the corner of his eyes, trying to decide who had given it to him when a sudden thought came to him. Hermione had said that bit about his writing when they had been in the infirmary that last day before she and Ron had left for the holiday. At that time only Dumbledore and Draco had been there that was now in this room. An idea raced through his head as Harry thought why the table was so curiously matched. He knew that Aeryn had given Snape his present from her subtle reaction, and he was placed across from Draco, whose name Harry had pulled.
Harry looked up at Dumbledore and gave him a quick smile. The pale blue eyes set in his face twinkled merrily back at him. Now he knew that it had to have been Draco who had gotten him his present, and he felt awed at it. In the back of his mind he knew that they weren't quite friends yet, but he knew he wanted to be. They had fought for far too long, and it also looked like Draco would need friends in the upcoming months. The hardest task would be to convince Ron and Hermione of the same thing.
Dumbledore stood again. "Now it's time to see who got you these wonderful gifts," he said in a cheery voice. "I suggest you look across the table and find your exchange partner."
Harry looked over at Draco and found the blond's mouth open in astonishment. He smiled at the other boy, a soft smile of appreciation. "Thank you, Draco."
Draco closed his mouth and swallowed hard enough that Harry could see it. A slight tint of pink painted his cheeks as he nodded at Harry. "Po... Harry, thank you."
A gasp pulled them from their stuttering thanks. Next to Draco Aeryn was holding her stomach, an anxious look on her face as she thanked Snape for the book. Both boys looked at the Potions Master and found a strange look on his face before it closed up. Harry's heart fell as he felt Snape harden himself against the present he had gotten. He abruptly stood, jarring Harry in the process. Circe, disturbed from her perch, hopped across the table to Aeryn, where she assumed the same position she had held on Harry's shoulders.
Harry watched Snape stalk from the Great Hall, leaving a heavy silence in his wake. He turned to Aeryn and saw shining eyes as she tried not to cry. He felt everybody's eyes move to where the three of them now sat before a quiet murmuring again filled the large room.
"I thought he'd like it," he heard Aeryn quietly say.
"Aeryn?" Draco's question pulled both her and Harry from each other. "What did you get him?"
"I..." she hesitated and took a deep breath. "It's maps to various libraries in and out of Europe where they have the best potions sections."
Harry turned to Draco, who looked as confused as he felt. Why would knowing that he got the present from Aeryn make him react like that?