A swift breeze dashed through the streets as it danced with snowflakes after snowflakes. Eventually, the snowflakes landed onto the white cloud-like ground, huddled with the rest of their friends. Nearby, a group of children were pelting each other with balls of the compacted snowflakes as they laughed and fell to the ground. The sweet melody of Christmas carols glided through the cold air and landed into Draco Malfoy's cold ears.

Step after step, his shoes landed into the thick piles of snow. His socks were wet, and his feet were cold. The sounds of children's screams and the not-so-merry songs drowned Draco's mind until he couldn't hear himself think. It was a dangerous thing to be out at this time of the year. Christmas cheer had brainwashed everyone in the wizarding world but Draco.

Draco couldn't wait to be back at the manor. He hadn't wanted to leave, but an impromptu meeting had forced him out of his Christmas free zone. The manor was never decorated for Christmas, it was a breath of fresh air from the town's "gleeful" red and green facade. Draco didn't want any part of it.

As Draco walked through the town, he came upon the culprits of the Christmas soundtrack invading his world. They were huddled into a semi circle; each person of the choir held a piece of parchment which they read the lyrics off. Draco rolled his eyes at their gleeful expression.

"Sir!" A little boy tugged on Draco's suit jacket, stopping him in his tracks. "Would you like to sing with us?" the boy asked as he held out one of the parchments with lyrics on it for Draco.

Draco knelt so he was at the boy's level. He took the parchment from the friendly boy as he falsely smiled at him.

"No," Draco bitterly said as he ripped the parchment cleanly in half and dropped it to the ground. He sighed a sigh of annoyance and resumed his walk to the manor, not bothering to check how his answer had affected the boy.

Finally, the gates of the manor came into view. They opened for Draco as he approached then closed behind him. The path to the house had thankfully been shovelled of any snow by the house elves. At least they were good for something.

Draco was thankful to enter the warmth and silence of the manor. He had successfully escaped from the horrors of the outside world. Draco walked through the sleeping house until he reached the parlour where his mother sat. She did not look up from her book when Draco walked in, although she did pause from her reading to take a sip of her tea.

"Good evening, mother," Draco said as he took a seat on the sofa opposite his mother. A house elf appeared in the room with a cup of tea and kettle and discreetly placed it on the coffee table in front of Draco. The elf bowed and apparated away.

"Draco," his mother said as a greeting, "How was your meeting?"

Draco sipped his tea. "It was fine. Just the usual catastrophe at the ministry," he said.

His mother nodded and resumed her reading.

"Where is Father?" Draco asked.

"His room, staring out the window as usual," she replied.

It was true that Draco's father didn't have much of a life. During the war, his father had been spelled blind. The new disability had saved him from azkaban, but ended his life in a whole different way. His father's blindness mixed with his despair at losing the war and his purpose had turned the man into no more than a vessel with limbs. Now, he spent his days being carried from room to room by the house elves. It was a meaningless life, but Draco couldn't say he pitied the man. Draco's father had done it to himself after all.

Draco was torn out of his thoughts by the sound of a doorbell resonating through the house.

"Mother, are you expecting company?" Draco asked.

"No," his mother said, "Go check who it is, will you?"

"Yes of course," Draco replied.

Draco sauntered back through the halls to the front door where he could make out a shadow through the tinted foggy windows. He opened the door

"Merry Christmas! We are looking fo- Oh Malfoy."

Draco had thought his day couldn't get any worse, that the Christmas curse wouldn't be able to reach him from inside his home, obviously he was wrong. It wasn't even that there was a pesky salesman at the door. Draco wished it was that. No, it was Harry Potter.

"How'd you get through the gates?" Draco asked.

"Sorry, they were open," Potter said, "Anyway, this is a bit strange, but tonight we're going around and handing out food and presents to the homeless and homeless shelters. We're just gathering people up now. So, if you're interested…"

"No," Draco said.

Potter's gleeful face turned to one Draco knew much better, but it was also mixed with disappointment "Right, of course, I don't know what I was expecting. Goodbye then Malf-"

Draco slammed the door.

Draco descended back down the hall, but this time he went straight to his room instead of the parlour. He didn't feel like explaining the ordeal to his mother. There wasn't an easy way to say that the man who had ruined your family's life had shown up at your door asking for charity. Honestly, what had Potter been thinking? Asking Draco for help when he was the sole reason for the state of his family. Draco supposed he couldn't be too mad at the man. Potter was the saviour of the wizarding world after all, and it seemed he was still up to his golden boy antics.

Once he was in his room, Draco collapsed onto the plush chair that stood in front of his roaring fireplace. He pushed off his shoes and socks and propped his feet by the fireplace so that they would properly dry. He peeled off his blazer jacket as well and threw it to the other side of the room where the house elves would retrieve it later.

Finally, Draco could have some peace and quiet. He wanted nothing to do with carolers, nothing to do with snow, nothing to do with Potter and nothing to do with Christmas. The only thing that would've made this perfect was a cup of tea, but he had unfortunately left his in the parlour. Draco snapped his fingers and called upon an elf.

"My tea," he said to the creature.

The elf bowed before apparating away, and a couple moments later, it reappeared with Draco's tea in one hand, and a strange box in the other.

The elf placed the tea on the side table next to Draco's chair, but even though the elf's duties were done, it didn't leave.

"Um sir?" the elf asked.

"What!?" Draco demanded, his annoyance seeping through his tone.

"Well, um, we elves made sir a gift for Christmas, from all of us," the elf said before handing Draco the strange box he had pondered over before. On further inspection, Draco found that it was wrapped in hand towels and parchment paper. A makeshift bow made of what looked like a vine from the garden tied the whole thing together. "We elves would really appreciate it if sir would accept our gift."

Draco frowned down at the box. He apprehensively unwrapped the vine from the box before peeling off the napkins and parchment, revealing a surprisingly normal looking cardboard box. Draco lifted the box's flaps to reveal a lump of wool inside. He picked up the lump to see that it was not in fact a lump but was actually the most hideous sweater Draco had ever laid his eyes on.

Each sleave was made from a different colour wool, the left sleeve turquoise and the right was half magenta half yellow. The back and the front were also different colours, the back being neon green and the front being pure white. A peter pan style collar with red piping cut off the neck and, on the stomach, a large Christmas tree with house elf heads as ornaments was badly stitched on.

It was disgusting.

"What is this?" Draco sneered.

"A gift, for sir," The house elf repeated. "All the house elves pitched in."

"Well," Draco said as he held up the sweater, "You can tell the house elves to stop messing around and wasting our time and resources and to instead GET BACK TO WORK!"

Draco tore the flimsy sweater in two before throwing it on the ground.

"GET OUT!" he yelled at the elf.

The elf made a squeaking sound of distress before hurriedly apparating away.

Draco sat back down on his chair. His face was red, and he was breathing heavily from his outburst.

"Draco…"

"I TOLD YOU TO LEAVE." Draco yelled as he turned his head back to the direction of the voice to scold the elf.

When he turned his head, he was shocked to see that it hadn't been an elf that had called his name. It was a woman.