[Disclaimer: I don't own any of this, because I'm not brilliant enough to come up with Harry Potter. But I own the plot line, and that's something to be proud of, no? =^-^=!]
"Hermione! Hermione! Wake up and come downstairs!" Hermione woke to a pounding on her door. She sat up, still in that half-awake half-asleep stage, and then realized why Harry was frantically knocking on the door. "It's Christmas!"
She jumped out of bed, ignoring the usual sting that the cold hardwood floors gave her feet. Glancing at Ginny, she was relieved to see that she was still asleep. They had talked about this the night before--Ginny made it clear that she preferred to give each friend their gift in private, and she wanted to catch up on some much needed sleep. With a sigh of relief, Hermione dashed into the bathroom to grab her robe and took the stairs to the common room two at a time.
"Finally! We didn't want to start without you, but it took a great deal of restraining Ron from the presents. I was afraid he might rip into everything if you didn't get here soon!" Harry smiled up at her from his posisiton on the couch that had been drug into the center of the room. The three rearranged the furniture in the common room the night before. They were three out of the six Gryffindors staying home, two others being 1st years who liked to sleep in, and the other one Ginny, who was sleeping in as well. They had the large room to themselves, but they wasted no time digging into the presents once Hermione showed up.
"All right! Thanks, Minny!" Ron had dove into his pile, fishing out Hermione's present first. She found a perfect present for him in a Quidditch shop in Hogsmeade--a giftbox that held small replicas of the Chudley Cannons, Ron's favorite team. He tore the lid off and removed them all, setting them up on the floor in front of him. The whole team looked up at him, shrugged, and sat down and began to converse with one another. Ron was mesmerized.
"No problem, Ron. I knew you'd love it." She looked over at Harry, who held the usual Weasley sweater, a tin of 'tarts' from Hagrid, a large box of Chocolate Frogs from Ron, and Hermione's present, an extension of the Broomstick Servicing Kit she had sent him two years before, for his birthday. Harry looked up at smiled brightly at his two best friends. "Thanks, Ron! This is what I need to complete my collection."
"Uh-huh," Ron replied absentmindendly. He didn't bother to raise his fixed gaze from the floor, where the the Cannons were doing the amazing feat of...nothing. Hermione giggled, and looked down at her own presents. Her mother and father had sent her a photo album, filled with pictures of America. Her parents smiled up at her from almost every photograph, and her eyes briefly filled with tears. She wished she could be with them, but if she wasn't with family, then at least she could be with friends. She wiped her eyes and moved the photo album aside and opened Harry's present.
"I thought you could use it, for the rest of the holidays and during the rest of the year. I know how hard it is for you to be away from your parents," Harry offered as an explination. His gift had been a stationary kit, filled with three bottles of different colored ink, a package of quills, and an exceptionally long roll of parchment.
"Thank you, Harry. I love it," she smiled back at her friend. She moved it aside, next to the photo album, and picked up Ron's present. It's weight surprised her, and she opened quickly. It was a brand new book, with the shiny silver title grinning up at her.
"'A Guide to Famous Witches'," Ron read, finally looking up from the Cannons (who were napping.) "You're going to be in it one day, so why not go ahead and let you read up on those you'll be in leauge with." Hermione smiled brightly, thanked him, and let him get back to watching the Cannons snore.
"I'm going to wake Ginny up, you guys. I want to give her my present first, so wait until I come back down, okay?" Harry stood up and grabbed a box out of his robe pocket. Grinning at his two friends seated on the floor, he dashed up the stairs to Ginny's room.
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"Oh, Harry, I just can't thank you enough!" Hermione smiled across the table at Ginny, finally awake. After Harry went back downstairs, grinning with delight at the reaction his gift had gotten, the other two went up and recieved their gifts from Ginny as well. Now the four were seated at the Gryffindor table, eating breakfast, blissfully alone.
"Oh!" A large tawny owl suddenly landed in front of her breakfast plate. It was unusual to recieve post on Christmas, so she figured it could be either bad news or something incredibly wonderful. She carefully unrolled the parchment around its leg, watching at the owl clicked its beak and flew away. She glanced at the name written gracefully on the outside of the letter, and then broke into a smile. "Here, Ron, I think this is for you," she said in a singsong voice.
"Waf's fis?" he asked, his mouth full of bacon. "Oh..." he swallowed his mouthful and excused himself. Hermoine waited until he was safely out of earshot to laugh.
"It's from Beatrice," she explained, leaning across the table to Harry. He, too, laughed, and Ginny broke into a grin.
"You think he's bad now? You should have seen him when she was in PERSON," she giggled. "Quiet now, he's coming back. He's very touchy about her, you know," she said softly, then smiled as Ron sat back down.
"Interesting mail, Ron?" Harry asked.
"Ah, well. It was nothing," he replied, the tips of his ears turning red. "I wish it would go ahead and snow."
Hermione, Harry, and Ginny looked up to where Ron was gazing. The enchanted ceiling
still showed the same bleak sky that had been hanging above their heads for days. It was getting to be rather depressing. Hermione leaned back, full to the brim with Hogwarts delicious food. "I think I'll go to the library. It'll be nice and peaceful, so I can get a head start on the essay Snape assigned. Anybody want to join me?" she asked her friends seated around her.
"Um, Hermoine? It's the holidays. Can't you think about something other than school work for once?" Harry asked jokingly. Hermione laughed, shook her head, and giggled to herself as she got up and left her baffled friends at the breakfast table.
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"Wow," Hermoine said to herself. She'd been in the library all day, and it was growing darker by the minute. The library had been deserted, except for Madame Pince, who was sitting at the desk, looking bored. She sat back in her chair, throwing her quill down in exasperation. It was absurd for Professer Snape to assign such a large essay, and she was beginning to realize that it was going to be harder than she thought. Sighing, with both exasperation and exhaustion, she gathered up her things and walked out of the library, determined to come back the next day and finish her work.
The dark hallways were dimly lit by the torches flicking every few feet along the walls. The shadows cast by the dancing flames had an odd kind of calming effect on Hermione's nerves. She stopped and leaned aganist the wall, stifling a yawn and rested her head aganist the cool stone. Her thoughts drifted back to the past few days:
"I met her over summer break, and she's very...well..."
"Oh, I wanna show you what I got for Ginny. I think she'll love it, don't you?"
"Everybody's got an angel...everybody but me."
Hermione reached up to wipe something from her face. The heat from the torch beside her must have made her sweat, or something...she couldn't be crying. She wiped something else from below her eye...she was crying. "It's so unfair," she thought outloud.
"Whats unfair?"
Hermione jumped and stifled a scream. She whipped her head towards the voice, and saw Malfoy standing in the door way of an empty classroom. She let out all her breath, and shook her head. "It's nothing," she answered.
"Wanna talk about it?"
Everything in Hermione gave out. The way that he leaned aganist the door frame, one arm up above his head, the way his eyes looked so inviting and comforting, the way his voice carried through the hallway and floated into her ears--it all just overwhelmed her. Every rational thought she ever had about how she could never be attracted to him, how nothing could ever happen between them--they all fled her mind. Holding back tears, she nodded and followed Malfoy into the classroom.
"I don't know what's the matter with me, Draco," she said softly. She felt so stupid! Why had she broken down? Why had she come in here with him? If anybody saw, they would be done for. All those rational thoughts that had escaped her sudeenly came running back.
"Well, I have something that might make you feel better. I...well I got you something for Christmas," he said. She looked up at him, surprised. Instantly her surprise faded into guilt, and regret.
"I'm flattered, Draco. But I didn't get you anything, I'm sorry."
"No, no, Hermione. It's okay. Just open it," he said soothingly. He handed her the brown package that he had drew out of his cloak. She took it from his hands, his fingers brushing hers. She noticed that he was turning pink.
"Oh!" Her breath caught in her throat. Wrapped in the brown paper was a small angel statue, perfectly detailed. The angel's eyes were closed, indicating that she was asleep.
"Wait, watch," Malfoy said. He cupped his hands under Hermione's and raised them to his mouth. He softly blew on the angel, and the marvelous statue started to sparkle as she blinked her eyes, sat up, and started to flutter towards the ceiling.
"Oh, Draco, it's beautiful," Hermione said, barely audible. "I...I don't know what else to say!"
"Hermione?" Malfoy's voice had lost its confident air, and he seemed to be struggling for words. "I...I overheard you talking to Harry at the Hogsmeade gates. I don't have an angel either." He raised his icey eyes to her cinnamon ones, and they locked gazes.
"Why...I mean, Draco...that's...we can't...why didn't you tell me?"
He didn't answer her, but instead drew himself up from the desk he was sitting on. Hermione couldn't look at him as he walked a few steps forward, coming to stand right infront of her. "Look at me, Hermione," he said softly. When she didn't raise her head, he hooked his finger underneath her chin and raised his eyes to hers. "I was too afraid to try," was his answer.
The next thing she new, Malfoy's mouth was on hers, and she found herself in the most passionate moment of her life. His hands circled around her back, sending shivers up and down her spine. Almost automatically her lips parted, his tounge running across her bottom lip. It was almost too much, she almost had to let go, but she couldn't. The need for air finally overcame their need for each other, and they broke apart. Hermione rested her head aganist Malfoy's chest, listening to his heart pounding, her breath the same rate as his. She realized that the warmth she felt in her dream was here, in his arms. She smiled to herself.
"You can be my angel, Hermione," he whispered into her hair.
Outside, it started snowing.
"Hermione! Hermione! Wake up and come downstairs!" Hermione woke to a pounding on her door. She sat up, still in that half-awake half-asleep stage, and then realized why Harry was frantically knocking on the door. "It's Christmas!"
She jumped out of bed, ignoring the usual sting that the cold hardwood floors gave her feet. Glancing at Ginny, she was relieved to see that she was still asleep. They had talked about this the night before--Ginny made it clear that she preferred to give each friend their gift in private, and she wanted to catch up on some much needed sleep. With a sigh of relief, Hermione dashed into the bathroom to grab her robe and took the stairs to the common room two at a time.
"Finally! We didn't want to start without you, but it took a great deal of restraining Ron from the presents. I was afraid he might rip into everything if you didn't get here soon!" Harry smiled up at her from his posisiton on the couch that had been drug into the center of the room. The three rearranged the furniture in the common room the night before. They were three out of the six Gryffindors staying home, two others being 1st years who liked to sleep in, and the other one Ginny, who was sleeping in as well. They had the large room to themselves, but they wasted no time digging into the presents once Hermione showed up.
"All right! Thanks, Minny!" Ron had dove into his pile, fishing out Hermione's present first. She found a perfect present for him in a Quidditch shop in Hogsmeade--a giftbox that held small replicas of the Chudley Cannons, Ron's favorite team. He tore the lid off and removed them all, setting them up on the floor in front of him. The whole team looked up at him, shrugged, and sat down and began to converse with one another. Ron was mesmerized.
"No problem, Ron. I knew you'd love it." She looked over at Harry, who held the usual Weasley sweater, a tin of 'tarts' from Hagrid, a large box of Chocolate Frogs from Ron, and Hermione's present, an extension of the Broomstick Servicing Kit she had sent him two years before, for his birthday. Harry looked up at smiled brightly at his two best friends. "Thanks, Ron! This is what I need to complete my collection."
"Uh-huh," Ron replied absentmindendly. He didn't bother to raise his fixed gaze from the floor, where the the Cannons were doing the amazing feat of...nothing. Hermione giggled, and looked down at her own presents. Her mother and father had sent her a photo album, filled with pictures of America. Her parents smiled up at her from almost every photograph, and her eyes briefly filled with tears. She wished she could be with them, but if she wasn't with family, then at least she could be with friends. She wiped her eyes and moved the photo album aside and opened Harry's present.
"I thought you could use it, for the rest of the holidays and during the rest of the year. I know how hard it is for you to be away from your parents," Harry offered as an explination. His gift had been a stationary kit, filled with three bottles of different colored ink, a package of quills, and an exceptionally long roll of parchment.
"Thank you, Harry. I love it," she smiled back at her friend. She moved it aside, next to the photo album, and picked up Ron's present. It's weight surprised her, and she opened quickly. It was a brand new book, with the shiny silver title grinning up at her.
"'A Guide to Famous Witches'," Ron read, finally looking up from the Cannons (who were napping.) "You're going to be in it one day, so why not go ahead and let you read up on those you'll be in leauge with." Hermione smiled brightly, thanked him, and let him get back to watching the Cannons snore.
"I'm going to wake Ginny up, you guys. I want to give her my present first, so wait until I come back down, okay?" Harry stood up and grabbed a box out of his robe pocket. Grinning at his two friends seated on the floor, he dashed up the stairs to Ginny's room.
**************************************************************************
"Oh, Harry, I just can't thank you enough!" Hermione smiled across the table at Ginny, finally awake. After Harry went back downstairs, grinning with delight at the reaction his gift had gotten, the other two went up and recieved their gifts from Ginny as well. Now the four were seated at the Gryffindor table, eating breakfast, blissfully alone.
"Oh!" A large tawny owl suddenly landed in front of her breakfast plate. It was unusual to recieve post on Christmas, so she figured it could be either bad news or something incredibly wonderful. She carefully unrolled the parchment around its leg, watching at the owl clicked its beak and flew away. She glanced at the name written gracefully on the outside of the letter, and then broke into a smile. "Here, Ron, I think this is for you," she said in a singsong voice.
"Waf's fis?" he asked, his mouth full of bacon. "Oh..." he swallowed his mouthful and excused himself. Hermoine waited until he was safely out of earshot to laugh.
"It's from Beatrice," she explained, leaning across the table to Harry. He, too, laughed, and Ginny broke into a grin.
"You think he's bad now? You should have seen him when she was in PERSON," she giggled. "Quiet now, he's coming back. He's very touchy about her, you know," she said softly, then smiled as Ron sat back down.
"Interesting mail, Ron?" Harry asked.
"Ah, well. It was nothing," he replied, the tips of his ears turning red. "I wish it would go ahead and snow."
Hermione, Harry, and Ginny looked up to where Ron was gazing. The enchanted ceiling
still showed the same bleak sky that had been hanging above their heads for days. It was getting to be rather depressing. Hermione leaned back, full to the brim with Hogwarts delicious food. "I think I'll go to the library. It'll be nice and peaceful, so I can get a head start on the essay Snape assigned. Anybody want to join me?" she asked her friends seated around her.
"Um, Hermoine? It's the holidays. Can't you think about something other than school work for once?" Harry asked jokingly. Hermione laughed, shook her head, and giggled to herself as she got up and left her baffled friends at the breakfast table.
******************************************************************************
"Wow," Hermoine said to herself. She'd been in the library all day, and it was growing darker by the minute. The library had been deserted, except for Madame Pince, who was sitting at the desk, looking bored. She sat back in her chair, throwing her quill down in exasperation. It was absurd for Professer Snape to assign such a large essay, and she was beginning to realize that it was going to be harder than she thought. Sighing, with both exasperation and exhaustion, she gathered up her things and walked out of the library, determined to come back the next day and finish her work.
The dark hallways were dimly lit by the torches flicking every few feet along the walls. The shadows cast by the dancing flames had an odd kind of calming effect on Hermione's nerves. She stopped and leaned aganist the wall, stifling a yawn and rested her head aganist the cool stone. Her thoughts drifted back to the past few days:
"I met her over summer break, and she's very...well..."
"Oh, I wanna show you what I got for Ginny. I think she'll love it, don't you?"
"Everybody's got an angel...everybody but me."
Hermione reached up to wipe something from her face. The heat from the torch beside her must have made her sweat, or something...she couldn't be crying. She wiped something else from below her eye...she was crying. "It's so unfair," she thought outloud.
"Whats unfair?"
Hermione jumped and stifled a scream. She whipped her head towards the voice, and saw Malfoy standing in the door way of an empty classroom. She let out all her breath, and shook her head. "It's nothing," she answered.
"Wanna talk about it?"
Everything in Hermione gave out. The way that he leaned aganist the door frame, one arm up above his head, the way his eyes looked so inviting and comforting, the way his voice carried through the hallway and floated into her ears--it all just overwhelmed her. Every rational thought she ever had about how she could never be attracted to him, how nothing could ever happen between them--they all fled her mind. Holding back tears, she nodded and followed Malfoy into the classroom.
"I don't know what's the matter with me, Draco," she said softly. She felt so stupid! Why had she broken down? Why had she come in here with him? If anybody saw, they would be done for. All those rational thoughts that had escaped her sudeenly came running back.
"Well, I have something that might make you feel better. I...well I got you something for Christmas," he said. She looked up at him, surprised. Instantly her surprise faded into guilt, and regret.
"I'm flattered, Draco. But I didn't get you anything, I'm sorry."
"No, no, Hermione. It's okay. Just open it," he said soothingly. He handed her the brown package that he had drew out of his cloak. She took it from his hands, his fingers brushing hers. She noticed that he was turning pink.
"Oh!" Her breath caught in her throat. Wrapped in the brown paper was a small angel statue, perfectly detailed. The angel's eyes were closed, indicating that she was asleep.
"Wait, watch," Malfoy said. He cupped his hands under Hermione's and raised them to his mouth. He softly blew on the angel, and the marvelous statue started to sparkle as she blinked her eyes, sat up, and started to flutter towards the ceiling.
"Oh, Draco, it's beautiful," Hermione said, barely audible. "I...I don't know what else to say!"
"Hermione?" Malfoy's voice had lost its confident air, and he seemed to be struggling for words. "I...I overheard you talking to Harry at the Hogsmeade gates. I don't have an angel either." He raised his icey eyes to her cinnamon ones, and they locked gazes.
"Why...I mean, Draco...that's...we can't...why didn't you tell me?"
He didn't answer her, but instead drew himself up from the desk he was sitting on. Hermione couldn't look at him as he walked a few steps forward, coming to stand right infront of her. "Look at me, Hermione," he said softly. When she didn't raise her head, he hooked his finger underneath her chin and raised his eyes to hers. "I was too afraid to try," was his answer.
The next thing she new, Malfoy's mouth was on hers, and she found herself in the most passionate moment of her life. His hands circled around her back, sending shivers up and down her spine. Almost automatically her lips parted, his tounge running across her bottom lip. It was almost too much, she almost had to let go, but she couldn't. The need for air finally overcame their need for each other, and they broke apart. Hermione rested her head aganist Malfoy's chest, listening to his heart pounding, her breath the same rate as his. She realized that the warmth she felt in her dream was here, in his arms. She smiled to herself.
"You can be my angel, Hermione," he whispered into her hair.
Outside, it started snowing.
