Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Harry Potter characters, obviously otherwise my name would be JK Rowling.
Challenge: Written for zarai88 for The Last Poison Apple's Christmas Fic Exchange
Author Note: The prompts for this were laughter and dust. I hope you like it zarai88 :) ive never really written anything like this before, its just cute and nice and something nice to read for the holidays, Merry Christmas :D
Draco Malfoy was storming through the castle spreading his Scrooge-like Christmas spirit everywhere he went. Everything about this holiday annoyed him. The stupid decorations that were attached to every wall, candelabra and surface, filling his vision with sparkles and tinsel and an indecent amount of foliage! If he wanted to feel like being outside then he would GO OUTSIDE, he just couldn't understand why you would drag all the trees and wreaths and garlands indoors! They messed with his allergies and they LOOKED STUPID!
And it wasn't just the décor that got on his nerves. It was the attitudes! Everyone changed around the holidays. Why anyone would think that he would want their blessings and Christmas cheer when he spent the rest of the year antagonising them he would never understand. Just because it was December didn't mean that everyone's relationship had to change. Having little Hufflepuff first years smile at him and wish him a Merry Christmas as he passed them in the halls was not right, especially when he had hung that very same first year on the statue in the Entrance Hall by his feet not two weeks before.
Draco couldn't wait for this year to be over and he could go back to the peace and normality of January. Draco couldn't believe his mother had decided to go off to France for the holidays and leave him in this wretched castle! It wasn't as if Draco enjoyed the annual Malfoy Christmas Party but at least at those things he was left in peace. The Ministry officials and Pureblood friends of his parents would nod at him in acknowledgment but no-one would dare mention Christmas cheer and absolutely nothing at those parties was merry, other than the Minister after he had one too many Meads. What Draco would give to be forced into his dress robes and paraded about in front of the pureblood daughters, if it got him out of this adolescent filled Christmas hell.
To make matters worse, Dumbledore had decided that he would introduce Magic Mistletoe amongst the other obscene decorations this year. Draco had read that muggles had a tradition that if you were caught under some mistletoe with someone you were obligated to kiss them, which is all well and good if you get caught under it with someone attractive, and even if you weren't there would be nothing stopping you from just walking away. Magic Mistletoe however is the worst of the worst! Not only does it stop you from walking away but the longer you wait to kiss the closer you get. Draco found this out when he was unfortunately cornered under it with Eloise Midgeon *shudder* After countless attempts to outrun the thing, burn it, banish it and destroy it, Draco ended up pressed up against her in ways he would like to forget. After this incident however flocks of girls started following him around trying to get caught under it with him. Which is ok when it's the pretty fifth year Ravenclaws; however it's not so good when it's the second year Gryffindors who haven't gotten out of their awkward phases.
The only time he could get any peace was first thing in the morning, which is why he found himself walking along the Charms corridor before the sun had even risen. He was heading for the Hidden Room that he had discovered the year before so he could have some peace before the hectic Christmas spirit infested the castle once more. He had almost reached the Hidden Room when he heard a noise coming from down the corridors. The snooty Prefect in him kicked in and he went to find whoever it was who was out of bed at such a time. In his mind he was running through all the different punishments he could inflict on the unsuspecting troublemaker. Detention with Filch? Sorting out Library Books with Pince? Spending the Christmas Feast cleaning his room? A smirk glistened on his face as he approached the door to the unused classroom. The door was slightly ajar so he could hear the noise much louder now. As he peered his head around the door he saw someone moving in the centre of the room and she was laughing, a high tinkling laughter like nothing Draco had ever heard before, it was so carefree and almost childlike. No-one Draco knew would ever make a sound like that. As he walked into the room he still couldn't see her face. She was skipping around the room trailing her hands along all the worktops. Her long platinum hair was swinging around her waist.
"Hello Draco Malfoy," she said without turning round.
Draco frowned, unaware how she could know who it was without even seeing her, especially when he couldn't tell who it was."What are you doing out of bed at this time?" he commanded.
"I could ask you the same thing!"
"I am a prefect of this school I have every right to be here!" He was feeling rather indignant as she still hadn't turned to face him.
"Im sure you do."
"Are you going you going to tell me what you're doing in here?" he asked.
She finally turned around to face him. It was Luna Lovegood. Luna had always baffled him. She always seemed to unaffected by other people. She lived off in her own little world. She was looking at him now with her big bright eyes that took up too much space on her face and her pale skin almost rivalled his own but she seemed to glow in a way that he did not. Even in the dark room she seemed to radiate in an almost ethereal way. "I'm here for the dust." She replied.
"The dust?" If there was one thing you could count on Luna Lovegood for it was Loony-ness. Dust? What kind of an answer was that!
"Yes, the dust. This room is never used so it has become the perfect place for this dust to settle."
"What's so special about dust?" he scoffed.
"But it isn't just dust. This is Magus Pulvis. Magic Dust." She said in a tone of wonderment that Draco decided she must be in a constant state of.
"Are you just making things up?"
"Just watch," she whispered. With a spin she lowered herself down to the floor so she sat cross-legged in the middle of the room.
Still with speculation across his face, Draco slowly walked towards her.
She looked down at her arm where she had three different watches strapped.
"It's time!" she whispered as she looked towards the window.
The light from the sunrise broke through the window in a bright shaft, almost blinding compared to the dimly lit room that they were in. As the light hit the floor where she was sitting the room began to stir. The hairs on the back of Draco's neck stood up as he could feel the rush of magic that was being released in the room. Almost as if in slow motion the dust that was covering the floor where she was sitting began to rise.
Draco stood transfixed. As the dust moved in the air it began to form shapes and patterns, twisting and turning about Luna as she sat in the centre of the room. It rotated around her, engulfing her in their dance through the air. Draco had never seen anything like this before. As each particle passed through the light it changed colour until the room was filled with purples and greens and reds and blues. Luna raised her hand to follow the movement of the dust and it spiralled around her incorporating her into the motion.
She motioned her hand over to Draco and the dust followed, creeping across the room towards him. He stood looking around in amazement as the multicoloured dusts collected and moved and reshaped around him. The wind created from Draco's movements made the dust speed up in its dance. The shapes became more intricate and extravagant and rose up in spirals towards the ceiling. Draco could feel the magic exuding from the dust as it passed by him, filling the room with an almost static current.
The room was now bathed in light, capturing every element of dust from the unused classroom, colour and movement filled the room and cast a sense of wonderment of the two students encapsulated in it.
Draco looked over at Luna who was swaying trying to take in as much of this amazing scene as she could. He caught her eye, and she gave him a look filled with such unashamed happiness and contentment that Draco couldn't help but feel at ease. All of a sudden the movement stopped and the dust fell and settled back on the surfaces.
"Magus Pulvis" Luna whispered as she smiled over at him. She rose up from the floor and tiptoed over to him. She carefully took his hand in hers and gently squeezed it. "Merry Christmas Draco Malfoy." She said as she turned to walk out of the door.
Draco looked around at the still and empty room. "Merry Christmas indeed."