Disclaimer: Harry Potter, not mine.

A/N: This is a modified version of this chapter, which has had the citrusy content trimmed for FFN. If you'd like to read the original, you can find it on AO3 under the same name and username.

Chapter 3: In the End

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The following week passed in a somewhat dreamlike state. They spent most of it in each other's company, and Draco, who had allowed himself a temporary reprieve from the appeal, simply couldn't get enough of her. Hermione, for her part, was more willing to traipse around the castle at odd hours of the evening and allow him to kiss her in shadowy corners than he would have believed previously.

New Years Eve drew upon them abruptly, bringing within it several feet of snow and ice. The snow had piled so high during the night that it had buried half the front door, and Professor Flitwick had been forced to melt it by precariously hanging out of a second floor window before the door could be opened.

"Are you sure you wouldn't like to go to a rave, Granger?" Draco said, watching Flitwick perform complicated movements with his wand from across the way. "Looks like Flitwick's nearly got the door open."

"We're doing Christmas on New Year, Malfoy," Hermione reminded him.

"We can exchange gifts tomorrow. We can open them in the morning, and pretend Santa brought them," he added, smirking.

"I'm not going to a rave, Malfoy."

Draco sighed. "If you insist, Granger."

"I don't suppose," she said saucily, "you're backing out because you haven't got me anything?"

"Dream on, Granger. I've got you something, and it's bloody excellent."

"Is that so? I can't wait to see it."

She smiled at him, causing his heart to speed up once more. It was hours yet until their planned activities that evening, but as he stepped deliberately into her personal space and heard her sharp intake of breath, he thought he had some ideas for how they could pass the intervening time. She didn't seem to have any objections.

The Room of Requirement glittered like Santa's bloody sleigh when Draco stepped inside it that evening. Perhaps Granger had thrown a Reverse Bedazzling Hex on the walls, he considered, as he stared around the shimmering room.

The first noteworthy item was the snow, which was drifting down gently from the ceiling. It did not seem to be cold or wet, however; in fact if he stretched out his hand to try and touch it, he could not feel anything at all. Some form of visual conjuring spell, then.

In the far corner of the room stood a gigantic evergreen tree, which stretched out to the ceiling, and was covered with immeasurable glittering balls and baubles and garlands, and was sparkling with multi-colored lights. A single present, beautifully wrapped, lay beneath it.

The walls of the room were festooned with additional glittering lights. There was a fireplace, in which a fire was dancing cheerfully, with several squashy armchairs and a couch spread out around it. A small circular table, set for two and groaning with the weight of various strange looking dishes, was standing in the right side of the room. Hermione stood beside it, clad in a silvery dress, smiling brightly as he drew near.

"Did you do all this, Granger?" Draco said, mildly impressed.

"I contributed, but I can hardly take credit for everything. We are in the Room of Requirement, after all."

"Of course," he said, stepping further into the room. The door closed behind him, sealing the two of them away. "Well, nice Christmas tree."

"It's a New Year Tree, Malfoy," she said, smirking.

"If you say so," he said, stepping up to it and dropping his own gift at its base. He glanced over at the table. "So, what are all these?"

She grinned again. "Traditional Russian holiday dishes. Olivier salad. Shuba herring salad. Beef jello–"

"Beef jello?! What, in the name of Merlin, are you feeding me, Granger?"

She continued smirking and chose not to answer, as if inviting him to find out on his own. He stepped up to the table, sighed, and sat down. He hoped it all tasted better than it sounded.

Thank Merlin… it did.

The chiming of the grandfather clock startled them out of the conversation they had been happily ensconced in as they worked their way through the strange and delicious dishes – Draco had decided he rather liked the beef jello, though he was loath to admit it, as it just seemed like an utterly bizarre thing to be fond of.

"Nearly midnight!" Hermione said, lowering her wine glass back down onto the crisp white tablecloth and reaching for the bottle of champagne. "I can't wait to see your 'bloody excellent' present."

"I assure you, it's impossible to top," Draco said lazily as he slipped the bottle out of her hands and popped open the cork. It went flying off somewhere into the distant ceiling with a loud pop. "Don't feel too bad when whatever you got me doesn't measure up."

She smirked, holding out two champagne glasses for him to fill. "I'm going to need to do something about that ridiculously large head of yours."

The clock chimed midnight, the sound echoing through the room.

"Cheers," Draco said brightly, clinking his glass to hers.

"Happy New Year!"

They raised their glasses to their lips, looking at each other over the rims as they downed the fizzing golden beverage.

"Shall we snog, Granger?" Draco said, putting down his glass. "That's the New Year way, is it not?"

"I don't believe the Russians do it that way."

"Well," he said, grabbing her by the arm and pulling her to him so sharply she let out a gasp, "I don't see why we can't be a little multicultural."'

"I suppose," she said softly, gazing up at him. "After all, differences of habit and language are nothing at all if our aims are identical and our hearts are open."

"Do not," Draco said, tracing a finger across her chin, "quote Dumbledore to me while we snog, Granger."

She let out a short laugh. "I won't."

"Good," he whispered, still holding her gaze. The golden brown layers of her eyes shimmered in the firelight, drawing him in. She had grown silent, and he could hear the steady rhythm of her heart and her sharp intake of breath, as he drew closer and pressed his lips against hers.

She kissed him back hungrily, her lips fighting for purchase against his, and the taste of her – chocolate, and champagne – overwhelmed him as he gripped her tightly in his arms, pressing her against him, his hands sliding down to her waist, feeling the shape of her.

She let a soft moan escape her lips as she drew up for air, turning her head slightly, and he trailed his lips across her jawline, making his way down her neck as she tiled her head back and pulled him closer, making his heart speed up considerably. The slightly flowery smell of her hair was driving him mad. He allowed his hands to trail up, across her flat stomach, until they reached the swell of her breasts. She let out a sharp gasp as he trailed them across her nipples, which stood our sharply against the fabric of her dress.

"Hermione," he whispered, his voice filled with longing, her name soft on his lips.

He glanced up at her, breathing heavily, catching her eyes again. Her lips were parted slightly, and her cheeks were flushed as she stared back at him.

"It seems… you want to do more than just snog," she managed, trailing one hand across his chest.

"Only if you want to…"

She seemed unable to speak, but she nodded softly, never breaking eye contact.

It was all the invitation he needed. He pushed his lips against hers once more, and she moaned louder against his mouth as he cupped her breasts again, swirling his thumbs over her nipples. She pressed herself against him, trailing her hands down along the length of his body, brushing her fingers lightly against the front of his trousers, exactly where he ached for her touch.

He pushed her backward, pressing her against the wall as he pulled the dress down off her shoulders, caressing her exposed breasts. She pressed harder against him, until he could feel the heat of her pressing against his own. Throbbing with desire, he wanted her right then, more than anything. He wanted to rip her clothes off and cast them aside, and fuck her right here, against this wall, and he nearly lost himself as he imagined how it would feel, if he slid inside the hot wetness of her… how her legs would feel, locked around him.

But it was their first time… their first time, damn it.

He forced himself to draw back, to gaze into her eyes as he grasped her hands.

"What's wrong?" she panted.

Without speaking, he pulled her along, to the couch before the fireplace and pushed her down onto it softly. She lay there, her hair spread out carelessly in a messy tangle, her eyes shining. Her silvery dress seemed to sparkle with a thousand lights.

She was so beautiful, he didn't have the words to do it justice.

Instead, he slipped his shirt over his head and let it fall softly to the floor. She reached out with one hand, drawing it across his bare chest as he dropped down to the couch above her, pressing his lips to hers once more.

It was not exactly midnight when they finally approached the New Year Tree, but it was not yet two in the morning, so as far as Draco was concerned, they really weren't that far off.

"Here it is, Granger," he said, taking his carefully wrapped present and offering it to her at last. "My bloody excellent gift. Enjoy. I do hope you'll still have time for me."

"I'm intrigued," she said seriously. "I mean, another present, on top of the one I just got? New Year might just be my new favorite holiday."

Draco stood back, watching as she carefully removed the wrapping paper. He really was pleased with his gift selection. It had taken him nearly all week to track it down, but it was, he knew, perfect for Granger. She would be shocked. She would pleased. She would want to return to snogging him immediately in gratitude.

"A notebook?" she said quizzically, unearthing the small, brown book at last. She did look somewhat shocked, or at least surprised, but she did not look altogether pleased. She flipped it open. "A blank notebook?"

She did not, any longer, appear to be in any mood for snogging whatsoever. Well, he would have to rectify that. Apparently, Granger had never seen a Biblio Omnis before.

"Ah, but it's not just any notebook," he said pleasantly. "Oh no, Granger, no, this little notebook can present to you any story. You can transfer the contents of thousands of books to its pages, and then you can peruse them all at your leisure, at any time. You can transfer the entire library to this book, in fact. Good, isn't it?"

Hermione looked at the book and then at Draco, who was wearing a satisfied smirk, as if altogether positive that she could not possibly top his present and should be altogether floored by it. She raised her eyebrows.

"So basically," she said, "you got me a kindle."

"What the bloody hell do you mean?"

She grinned at the affronted look on his face. "A kindle, Malfoy. A Muggle device that lets you load multiple books on it at once. It's an electronic gadget. Quite a nice one, too. I have three of them."

Draco stared at her, mouthing silently for several seconds, before finally coming up with, "Yeah, well, this one doesn't need batteries."

Her grin grew wider. "How on earth do you know what batteries are?"

"I'm not a complete recluse," Draco said, rolling his eyes.

"Right, well, thank you, it's very sweet!" she said, smiling. "Thoughtful, too. Now, open mine!"

She picked up her present, which was slightly larger than his had been, and shoved it in his hands, watching with barely contained enthusiasm as he ripped off the wrapping paper.

Once unwrapped, he stared at it just as quizzically as she had done, tilting his head slightly.

"Is this… what the Muggles call a skateboard, Granger?"

She smirked. "Yes, Malfoy, it is."

"And what, pray tell, do you expect me to do with this?"

"Well," she said, still smirking, "I thought perhaps we could ride it. Together, if you like."

"Do you even know how to ride a skateboard, Granger?"

"I do not," she admitted.

"Well, neither do I," he said. He had no qualms admitting it, now that she had made the first concession. "So, tell me why the bloody hell you thought this might be a good gift, considering neither of us knows how to ride it, and there's about three feet of snow outside?"

"Oh, I imagine we'll figure something out," she said brightly.

And they did, indeed, figure something out. The skateboard was not altogether necessary, but they looked back on it fondly, years later.

Hermione's magic kindle did get a fair bit more use – a fact that rather pleased Draco and his overlarge head – but both gifts were remembered warmly. Christmas would soon become a time for family, when Narcissa joined them the following year, and for every year after that.

But New Year stayed theirs, and theirs alone.

A/N: Thanks so much for reading After Midnight! And I absolutely appreciate all the follows, likes, and especially reviews - thank you! Again, if you guys want to read the whole lemon, it's on AO3. It's my first attempt at one actually, so that was fun.

Anyway, totally shameless plugging, but if you enjoyed this and want to check out some of my other stuff, Trading Places is my passion project, and it would totally make my day if you guys wanted to give it a shot! :)

Rina