Christmas

I awoke slowly to a quiet room. Stealing a glance at the cot in front of the closet, I noticed that the occupant was already gone, the bedclothes rumpled, pajamas carelessly tossed on the floor.

Yawning, I woke up, again feeling the boxes I had hidden under the mattress.

Christmas.

I went over to my trunk and rummaged through it until I had found my brush and a hair tie. Quickly, I pulled my hair back in a tail. Tossing my brush back in my trunk, I went back to the mattress and extracted the three boxes.

Padding silently to the door, I opened it and headed out into the living room. The twins were sitting in front of a Christmas tree, sipping a morning cup of coffee. Apparently, the twins had found coffee a superior substitute for tea in the morning on a trip to France to visit Fleur with Bill.

"Morning, Hermione" Fred said with a sleepy grin.

"Morning, Fred…George. When did you get a tree?"

"I set it up last night after you two went to bed" Fred answered. He smirked at George who I then noticed was blushing again.

"It's a lovely tree, Fred." I was smiling. Now it really felt like Christmas to me. What is it about decorations that make the Holiday?

"Now that you're up, shall we open our presents?" George asked.

"You didn't have to wait for me, you know." I was unsure why they had, after all, Ron and Harry never did.

The first thing we opened were presents from Mrs. Weasley. "Did you guys tell her I was staying with you?" I was confused…and concerned. I hadn't thought anyone would tell my secret.

"No, she sent them by owl, and the owl must have found you" Fred answered.

I noticed that George was being really quiet this morning and looked at him curiously. "You OK, George? You're being kind of quiet."

"I'm fine Hermione. Just not awake yet."

All three of us opened our presents from Mrs. Weasley at the same time. As usual, we all got sweaters. Fred's and George's were both matching (of course) and knitted of a lovely, soft, deep blue. Mine was a rich golden brown. There were also several kinds of cookies that she had baked that smelled delicious.

We all smiled and pulled our new sweaters on, although I quickly began to feel too warm and pulled it back off.

As I was tugging it back over my head, the hem caught on my tank and pulled it along with the sweater, exposing a fair bit of skin before I noticed the breeze and pulled my tank back down. When I finally got untangled from the sweater I noticed that once again George was blushing, although he wasn't looking at me…

Next I opened my present from Ginny, which was a pair of earrings with beautifully enameled dragon charms that she had apparently found at the dragon reserve gift shop. As I put them in, I noticed that the dragons moved to curl up against my ears. It was then I noticed that there had been a note included in the package.

Hermione-

I thought these earrings were really cool and decided to get us matching pairs. They curl up around your ears and keep them warm in winter. Better than earmuffs! See you next week. Hope your Christmas is going well.

Miss you,

Ginny

"Nice earrings." Fred grinned at me. I noticed he had opened a few more presents from his siblings. I looked at George and saw he was a little slower than his twin at making a dent in his stack.

"Thanks. Your sister has great taste."

"Yeah, she always has. In everything but boys."

"Any boy in particular you didn't like, Fred?"

"I didn't like any of them…at least not while they were dating my kid sister!"

I chuckled at this. Harry and Ron had gotten me books, of course.

Harry's book was on traditions in the wizarding world. I decided this would be useful. Maybe it wouldhelp me escape some social blunders. Especially if I wanted to work for the Ministry after graduation. Assuming there still was a Ministry by then and Voldemort hadn't completely destroyed the wizarding world.

Even after six and a half years, I still felt like an outsider in the wizarding world. There were so many things that people raised in it took for granted. I know Harry felt the same.

Ron's present to me was a book of charms for witches. This seemed a little out of character for Ron. But then, I think he was confused about me (and girls in general)in a lot of ways. I mean, we were best mates, so when we were dating, things were really awkward. I couldn't tell if this gift was supposed to be an acknowledgement of my being a girl, or a put down on my lack of girliness… It was certainly a book I had never read before. Maybe that was the point. He wanted to be sure to get a book I hadn't yet read? I didn't know if I would ever use any of the charms in this book. A lot of them were for make-up or hairstyling. There was a shaving charm, too, I noticed as I flipped through. Oh…a section of contraceptive charms…was he trying to hint at something?

"What the hell book is that?" George was leaning over my shoulder looking at Ron's present.

Quickly, I shut it, hoping he didn't seem me lingering in the section on contraceptive charms. "Ron's gift was a book of things girls should know about like make-up charms. I guess he doesn't think I'm feminine enough…"

"Nonsense, Hermione. You're just you, and fine the way you are. Ron's a prat, you know. You shouldn't take him too seriously about stuff like that…he's totally clueless about girls..." Fred was sniggering at Ron's gift as he handed me a large box from my parents.

I opened the box carefully since it seemed quite heavy. Removing the lid, I began lifting out new clothing. Usually, I didn't worry much about clothes. If they were clean and fit, they were fine. I liked having a few nice outfits for when I really wanted to dress up, but generally, I just wanted to be comfortable.

Then I remembered a conversation I'd had with my mother last summer about how I needed to start dressing nicely as I would soon be graduating and on the job market. I needed a new look to make a good impression. It was after that discussion that I had bought the bottle of potion to tame my hair.

The clothing she had sent me for Christmas was a combination of some new, fun, trendy stuff of the type I usually avoided but that Ginny and Lavender and Pavarti all loved, and a couple of serious looking business suits which would look smashing under the new dress robes in the very bottom of the box.

I guess this is a hint…both from Mum and Dad, and from Ron. I need to act more grown up and more womanly. I need to take back control of my life…

Carefully, I folded the clothing and put it back in the box to take back to the bedroom to be packed in my trunk for school.

"This one's from me." Fred smiled.

I opened it to find a..well..I wasn't sure what it was. It seemd to be a tee-shirt. But with Fred, it was never safe to assume.

"Our latest invention. Mood clothes. When you wear them, they change color based on your body temperature and pulse and blood pressure, as well as your pheremones. Tells the world what kind of mood you're really in. Especially great on dates. We are thinking about making them occasion appropriate. Got the idea from those muggle mood rings...and improved on them a bit, of course...there's a simple charm that allows you to select what range of moods you want to display...directions are in the box."

"Huh, thank's Fred. If I ever what to be totally at the mercy of the world and wear my feelings literally on my sleeve, I'll be sure to wear it..." I wasn't really sure what to make of this gift...

Fred and George had finished opening their presents, but there was still a small box under the tree.

When I had finished putting my gifts away, George reached under the tree and pulled out the box.

With a slight hesitation, he handed it to me. He looked at me with a nervous smile as he watched me open it.

Nestled inside was a gold medallion on a chain. Looking at the figures pictured on it, I noticed that it was a religious medallion. The lettering was in Arabic. It showed a young man slaying a dragon.

"I got that when I was traveling in Egypt for the shop. St. George is one of the catholic eastern rite saints. Apparently he killed a dragon. I got the medallion because of his name, and because I liked it as a souvenir. But I decided to give it to you. I hoped you'd wear it and think of me. Especially with the play on names…. you know… Draco-Dragon? I'd be happy to kill that dragon…"

I don't think I'd ever heard George ramble quite this badly.

"George, it's perfect. Would you?" I asked him as I handed him the necklace. I turned around and lifted my hair, presenting my neck for him to hook the necklace clasp. I noticed he seemed to be trembling as he encircled my neck with first his arm, then the necklace.

Once it was hooked, I looked at it closely, and smiling, turned to George and gave him a big hug. "I love it."

Sitting back down, I pulled the matching boxes from the table beside the chair I had been sitting in. I handed one to Fred and one to George.

They both looked at me and opened their boxes, and then both of their jaws dropped as they removed the handcrafted rings. I giggled, seeing their matching expressions.

"You guys know, well, you have become my best mates. Even more than Harry and Ron. I feel so close to you. And while I know I can never really repay you for everything this last week, I wanted to give you both a token of how much you mean to me. There is a hair in each of those rings from all three of us. If any of us are ever in danger, the rings will glow. They're charmed. I…well…I hope you like them…and don't think I'm being too forward or pushy…."my voice trailed off…

"Hermione, they're….amazing. I have never seen anything like them… I don't even know what to say…" Fred was speechless.

"Mark this day on the calendar, I don't think I've ever seen Fred speechless before!" I said with a laugh.

George was just looking at me. Meeting his eyes, I smiled. I put on my own ring and walked over to him.

"I'm going to change into some of my new clothes, and then start cooking our Christmas dinner. Thanks again for the medallion." I gave him a hug. A moment later, he hugged me back. Smiling up into his blue eyes, I gave him a quick peck on the cheek. Turning, I smiled at Fred and saw him give me a small wink beforeI left, heading for the door.

As I scampered out of the room, I didn't notice that George's eyes never left me, or that his hand went to his cheek where I had brushed my lips against it. Fred did, though.

"George, remember, take it slow…" was all he said.

I did my best to make it a Chrsitmas Dinner to remember. Many of the dishes I made were traditional for my family, and I made them in the muggle way, since the twins had a fairly well equipt kitchen. Some things, though, I did with magic like I had learned from Mrs. Weasley.

This morning after I had left Fred and George to put away their presents, I had changed into one of the new outfits from my parents. It was a little tighter and lower cut than anything I would usually wear. It felt especially strange in comparison to the baggier clothing I had been wearing since...it...happened. The soft brown pants were quite snug, almost to the point of uncomfortable, and were cut to cling to my hips, although they were loose and flared out a bit over my calf muscles. The red shirt I selected (it was Christmas, after all) was also quite tight. Much to my dismay, I found that when ever I stretched up to reach something in the cabinets over the counter that my navel was exposed. The fabric the shirt was made of, though, was very comfortable; soft and easy to move in. Even if it was low cut and clung to my curves.

Ah well, I did feel more grown up in my new clothes.

The twins were busy playing with their gifts and relaxing on their day off, and so didn't see me until I called them in to eat.

"Guys, dinner is ready!" I called them.

I heard them coming. A moment later, the door opened and the twins burst into the room.

"Hermione! You out did yourself! This looks delicious!" Fred was clearly excited. Apparently, Fred is a typical man, the way to his heart is through his stomach.

"I think you could rival our mother!" George said, also lavish in his praise.

I blushed at their effusiveness. "Well, let's eat." We all sat down and started passing dishes of rolls and potatos, creamed spinich and carrots, and of course the traditional leg of lamb with mint jelly. Once we'd had our fill and cleared the table, I brought out the desert course of cream puffs, a bouche de noel, and plum pudding, which Fred flamed for me. Again we ate until not another bite would fit down our throats.

At this point, the three of us stumbled into the living room and returned to our seats from earlier. George poured us each a brandy, and taking a small sip, I relaxed into the warmth and comfort that is only present in the company of good friends, a good meal, and a comfortable chair. None of us felt any need to talk. We just sat in compaionable silence, looking at the tree. It was the most relaxed I'd been in a week. Probably in more than a week, actually. I felt really good for a change. The twins also seemed to be relaxing. Before long, Fred was dozing. He had, after all, stayed up late the night before putting up the tree.

"George, I'm going to bed now. Should we wake Fred?"

"No, he'll wake up on his own. I have learned never to awaken him unless there is an emergency."

"Oh. Okay, then." I stood up, noticing the George's eyes never left me. But instead of heading to the door, I gave in to my impulse, probably brought on by the brandy, and slowly walked over to him instead. I decided, in the minute, that I was not going to play the denial game that Ron and I had enjoyed for 6 years.

When I reached his chair, I bent down so that we were face to face. Looking directly into his deep blue eyes, I whispered "Happy Christmas, George," before brushing my lips against his in a hint of a kiss. Straightening back up, I smiled down at him before turning and walking from the room. I walked into the bedroom and took my pajamas out, going back into the bathroom to change. A few moments later I emerged, returning to the bedroom, to find it still empty.

Well, that was going to all the hints he'd get. If he were interested, he'd have to take the next step himself. After all, he had always been brave enough to do so with girls at school. I can't imagine that he was less capable now that he was out of school and an adult (well, legally, anyway...).

Sighing, I climed into bed, pulled up the covers, and using my wand, turned out the lights.

A/N: Hoped you liked it. I don't know how long the next chapter will take.

Celeste Noir, if you're serious about betaing, please send me an email. My email is on my profile page. I tried to get yours, but it bounced...

The next chapter is going to be the New Years Chapter, and will likely contain some sexual content. SO if you don't want to read it, be warned...

Thanks for all the reviews, you guys sure know how to stroke a girls ego...