The Christmas holidays sped by in a dazzling memory of pure bliss. Draco and I spent the last two weeks in the room in the Leaky Cauldron. Every morning, we would eat breakfast wherever we could find it, and then find ourselves somewhere, doing the amazing things that muggles couldn't. He even took me to a Quidditch match. During the nights, we would both do our holiday homework together, comparing notes.

The day before we were scheduled to go back to Hogwarts,I was casually licking an ice cream piled three scoops high, which rather than made me cold, filled my mouth with cinnamon and a warming kick of gingerbread. It was therefore unfortunate when something hit my leg, and it went splattering over the poor victim who had tripped.

"Oh, God, I am so sorry..." I began, when I realised I recognized the recipient of the sundae. "Harry?" I asked, suddenly very aware of Draco behind me. "And who is this?" I asked, reaching out and patting the big black dog by his side. It closed its eyes and wagged its tail at my touch, but suddenly opened them again, peering at Draco and growling, backing away. It seemed like it recognized him.

"Sorry, this is Snuffles. He really doesn't like... uh... people." he said cryptically. He seemed to like me well enough.

"Whatever, I'll see you tomorrow in potions," I said smiling. Draco practically had a heart attack when he heard that. He jerked violently behind me in response. I held his hand soothingly. It clenched mine tightly. We walked away.

"Why were you so friendly to him?" He asked, angrily, "Don't you know what a filthy blood traitor he is?"

"I'm a blood traitor too," I reminded him, "As are you." Draco raised a hand to his chest as if I had accused him of murder.

"Were you not my boyfriend with an extreme liking of Coca-Cola?" I asked teasingly. He seemed to relax, laughing a bit. I smiled at him.

Me and Draco arrived early to Platform 93/4 the next day. We quickly found a carriage and I sat down while Draco put his things in the prefect carriage. He returned shortly, promising not to go until some other friends of mine had arrived. Unfortunately, that friend was Pansy.

"Oh, hello Drakey, how was your Christmas?" she asked in an unbearably whiny voice.

"It was... uh... fine." was all he said. They stood for another moment, draco awkwardly shifting from foot to foot. She looked at him expectantly. Finally, I sighed. If Pansy wanted to say something, she would bloody well say it, whether we liked it or not.

"How was your Christmas, Pansy?" I asked with as little enthusiasm as possible. She ignored my lack of energy and began a passionate- and very detailed- description of her passing in Italy. We were only on day two of the holiday when, half an hour later, Stella came to our rescue.

"Stella, you're here! I was just telling Draco and Angie here about my travels..."

"Sounds fascinating," interrupted Stella, sarcasm evident in her voice. Pansy harrumphed and crossed her arms.

"C'mon, Draco, let's go to the prefects cabin, I've had quite enough of Stella anyway." She stormed off, steam practically coming out of her ears. Mind, if she had been eating some if the Weasely sweets it might have been.

"I'll see you later," said Draco with a wink, and then rolling his eyes and slumping forward, trudging in the direction Pansy had gone.

"What was that?" asked Stella, and eyebrow raised.

"What?" I asked innocently.

"That wink. I saw it. Are you two..."

"Are we what?" Was it that obvious. Did it matter if it was?

"Oh, come on Angie, I'm you're best friend. Are you?"

"Maybe just a little," I said, and we both began to giggle. It felt like a weight off my chest.

"So, what's it like? Going out with Draco? He's never really had boyfriends, only ever... playthings. People he kept to entertain him."

"Well I am no plaything,"

"What makes you so sure?" asked Stella, concerned. She just didn't understand.

"Because I love him," I said, amazed at myself as the words left my mouth, amazed by the confidence they carried. I looked at Stella, but she was not smiling at me as I had expected. Her eyes were raised, looking at a figure behind me. Her mouth was slightly ajar.

I turned to see Blaise in the doorway. He had changed since the last time I saw him. He was bulkier now, he had lost that last bit of softness in him. His eyes had deep hollows beneath them, but most prominent were the eyes themselves. They held no more of their previous light, they were dead.

"Stella, Angeline," he said, courteously, taking up a seat beside the window. He spoke little when Stella inquired after his family and how he was doing, and soon we all just gave up talking. The journey back to school was silent and tense.

The thing about holidays is that once they are over, it is as if they never happened. Teachers will once again dominate your life with homework, your peers will once again take up any time left and sleep makes itself scarce.

It was two weeks in that I realised my amazing holiday spent with Draco might well have been a dream, as my mind was so overloaded with work I could barely remember it. The last two weeks had been a blur. There had been a break out in Azkaban, and many of the most dangerous Death Eaters had escaped, and yet my upcoming potions test somehow weighed far more heavily on my mind.

We were sitting in Divination when Umbridge's head popped up through the trap door. I wondered what she could be doing here, she had already completed her inspection.

"Miss Tralewny?" she asked, purposefully neglecting the word professor.

"Uh, yes?" she asked, startled.

"May I have a word?" she asked, annoyingly childlike.

"Well, well yes I suppose," she said.

"Well, the thing is, Miss Tralewny, I- well the Ministry actually- feels that you are no longer fit for your post here. We wish for your departure immediately."

Professor Tralewny spluttered.

"Are you... firing me?" She asked, dumbfounded.

"Well, yes. Pack your things and leave immediately."

Then, Tralewny snapped.

"You vile woman. You will pay for this, you'll see. In the black wings of theastrals will my revenge be exacted. You are a beast, no more than swine, and you deserve to rot in..."

"That is quite enough!" squeaked an exasperated Umbridge.

"Nothing will ever be enough for you, you evil, abhorrent woman. You are a wretch, a blemish on the face of the very Earth, and none of us can wait till the day we may be rid of you. I am going to Professor Dumbledore immediately. He ought to bend your saggy behind back into shape!"

Umbridge followed dumbly, stunned. She looked as if she was about to explode, but had nothing to say. As the trapdoor closed behind her, the whole classroom fell silent.

"That. Was. Awesome." I said, and the whole class began to cheer for our beloved Divination teacher.