Author's Note: Happy Christmas, everyone! Enjoy two drabbles in one day!
Disclaimer: I do not own anything Harry Potter.
It was Christmas day and she was at the last place she ever expected to be on this day…the Leaky Cauldron. The winter holidays were always the hardest, ever since she and Ron broke up and she felt that she was no longer welcome at the Burrow. It was just too awkward for her to see Ron and his fiancé Lavendar, especially when only 8 months ago, Hermione and he were still dating.
She sighed as she rolled around the mug in her hand, taking a brief swig of her beer. Her parents were currently on holiday back in Australia, visiting all of their old friends. Hermione's relationship with her parents had been strained since the war. They still, five years after the war, didn't understand why she had to erase their memories of her. She felt that every time she saw them she had to make up for lost time, and always ended up leaving their house feeling emotionally and physically exhausted.
She guzzled down the rest of her beer. She couldn't stand being in her flat right now; it made her feel too alone. Crookshanks passed away only two weeks ago, but she didn't have the heart to tell anyone due to Ron and Lavendar's engagement announcement. She ordered a Firewhiskey from the bartender and quickly shot it down as soon as it arrived. Crookshank's passing was incredibly hard on her. He was her friend when people refused to talk to her and he was there for her after the war, after her breakup with Ron. She sniffed as a tear rolled down her cheek.
"My my my, what a pleasant surprise," a voice drawled from across the room. Her eyes widened as she spun around, hurriedly wiping away the tear. Just her luck.
"Merlin's beard, Malfoy, can't you leave me alone?" she snarled back as she assumed her original position on her stool. She ordered another Firewhiskey and heard him sit at the stool beside her. It was bad enough that she saw him all of the time at the Ministry. He always seemed to resort to pesky schoolboy ways. He would tease her, trip her, knock her files over, do anything to make her life miserable. She did notice that he never called her the dreaded word, but she figured that was because the Ministry started cracking down on Muggleborn racism.
Her Firewhiskey appeared. She reached for it, but was intercepted by another. Glaring at him, she was surprised to see him take her drink and down it like she had done just five minutes earlier. "You owe me another drink."
"Oh, keep your knickers on," was his snappy response. She sighed and flagged down the bartender once more. She concentrated attentively to the knot of wood on the countertop, ignoring the gleaming silver eyes that she could feel study her. Who was he to barge in to the one place she was hoping to have solace from the world, to not worry about those around her and how they felt. Who cares that it happened to be Christmas day. She furrowed her brow. "What are you even doing here, Malfoy? Shouldn't you be unwrapping the hordes of presents at Malfoy Manor?"
"Ah, Granger, who says I haven't already unwrapped them all? What if I wanted to spend time with my favorite Ministry witch?"
She rolled her eyes and slapped his hand away from her new glass of Firewhiskey. "Buy your own, Malfoy. I know you've got the money."
"Oh, so you've been keeping tabs on how much I'm worth? Interested in what I have to offer?" he replied back. She could just hear the smirk in his voice.
"I would rather die alone," she ground out angrily, glaring heatedly at the rows of liquor bottles on display behind the bar.
"You wound me," he cried dramatically, clutching his heart as if he were in pain. "If you continue to glare at those bottles like that, you're going to catch them on fire."
"Malfoy, will you shove off!" she exclaimed, directing her attention to him. "It's bad enough that I have to deal with you at work."
"But, love, you're beautiful when you're angry."
Again she rolled her eyes. "Flattery will get you nowhere, Malfoy. I know you're probably going to jinx my stool at any moment now, or something else stupid." She knocked back her Firewhiskey, momentarily enjoying the looseness she was experiencing with the liquor. "Now if you'll excuse me, Malfoy, I have places to go."
"And where is that, exactly?" he questioned, his silver eyes serious.
She huffed, miffed that he called her out. "It's none of your business, Malfoy," she shot back icily.
"No need to get defensive, Granger. I overheard Potter and Weaselbee talking about how you weren't planning to visit them at Weasel lair." She crossed her arms across her chest, refusing to look at him. "They also mentioned that you weren't going to see your parents either. So, where are you going?"
Tears blurred her vision for a few moments as she tried to regain her composure. "What do you care? I can go wherever the hell I want."
"I know about your cat, too."
"God damn it, Malfoy," she cried out, tears falling, "What are you, ghost of Christmas past? Leave me the hell alone. Go back to your perfect life, with your perfect family and leave me be!" She threw some Sickles on the counter and stumbled a few steps before running into a hard chest. Hands grabbed her arms and steadied her.
"Like hell I'd let you leave in your condition. You can't apparate right now."
She struggled in his hold, cursing under her breath. "I'm fine. Now let me go!"
Her breath was forced out of her lungs as he snaked his arms around her, crushing her to his chest. "Will you stop struggling, Granger? I'm not going to be held responsible for you getting yourself splinched."
She pushed against his chest as best as she could, but he wouldn't budge. "Let me go, Malfoy. I won't leave." She attempted to move her feet, but found them stuck. "I can't move my feet."
"Well, I'm glad that you're comfortable here," he drawled, his eyes glinting in amusement. She shook her head.
"Seriously, Malfoy, my feet won't move. Did you jinx me?"
"No," he said slowly, looking up and groaning. "I know why you can't move. Look up."
She glanced up and noticed the innocent plant hanging from the rafters. Mistletoe. However, unlike Muggle mistletoe, the two caught underneath wizard mistletoe were stuck until they kissed. This was the last straw. She shrieked in frustration and began pound her fists into his chest. "This is all your fault. You planned this, didn't you?"
"Granger, I had no idea-"
"You must have! Why else would you have come here?"
"Granger, trust me-"
"You just came here to rub in all the happiness in your life to my miserable holiday-"
"Hermione!" he yelled, finally gaining her attention. "I promise that I had no idea about this. I would have never let it happen if I had known."
"Because you wouldn't want to kiss a Mudblood, right?" she questioned bitterly.
His eyes widened. "What? No that's not-"
She did something she never thought possible in front of Draco Malfoy. She burst into tears. She just couldn't take the stress of the holidays, the inadequacy she felt with herself, the loss of her beloved pet. It was all too much for her right now, and Malfoy being here seemed to exacerbate everything worse. She continued on crying, uncaring as to what the ferret was doing. She was surprised when she felt his grip tighten on her, having forgotten momentarily that she was still in his embrace.
When she started to collect herself, he pulled away from her slightly. She refused to look at him, trying to brush as many tears away as possible. She was shocked when he tilted her chin up to have her meet his gaze. His silver eyes lost their amused glint, and almost seemed concerned.
He brushed away a lock of hair from her eyes and smiled slightly. And then he kissed her.
His lips were surprisingly warm for a cold person she assumed he was. And he knew how to kiss. He wasn't forceful, but soft and gentle. She was caught off guard for a few seconds before responding back, closing her eyes and clutching his shirt. He broke off quicker than she was hoping for. She searched his gaze while catching her breath.
"I didn't want it to happen like this because I wanted our first kiss to be because you wanted to, not for it to be forced."
She blinked up at him. "You want to kiss me?"
He chuckled as he brought a hand to her face, cupping her cheek. "You silly little witch, I'd love to snog you senseless, but I don't believe you're ready for that yet." His lips descended on hers once more. The kiss lasted longer this time, his lips caressing hers in a way that made her toes curl. She pulled away slowly, biting her lip as she fluttered her eyes open.
He smiled a genuine smile while rubbing his thumb across her cheek. "Happy Christmas, Hermione," he said, giving her one last quick peck. He released his hold on her and she mentally shook herself. She watched him leave and plopped into the nearest chair. Happy Christmas, indeed!