Disclaimer : The Harry Potter universe was created by J.K Rowling. I'm just a dreamer.
The former members of Dumbledore's Army held two unofficial gatherings each year: one on Victory Day, May 2nd, and another on New Year's Eve. We always met at Harry's house, mainly because it's the largest space available. However, this New Year's Eve would be unlike any before, all thanks to Parvati Patil.
Hermione, inspired by Voldemort's journal, devised a similar means for all DA members to communicate. It would light up whenever a new message arrived, and this innovation came to life a couple of weeks before Christmas.
Parvati P. : Hello! Anyone interested in Secret Santa?
Lavender B. : Yesss !
Padma P. : Sure.
Hermione G. : May as well. We're already in the middle of present shopping anyway. But I'm not organising.
Parvati P. : No one asked you to...
Neville L. : What's Secret Santa ?
Hermione G. : Basically, each of us is going to be a Secret Santa and will be assigned someone to whom we're going to give a present.
Lavender B. : Thank you Hermione...
Parvati P. : Anyway, anyone else interested ?
Parvati P. : Hello ?
Hermione G. : Who isn't interested ?
Dean T. : Well…
Parvati P. : Don't you dare !
Harry P. : We're a bit busy at the office.
Ron W. : Yeah, with Christmas and everything, it's going to be a pain.
Parvati P. : Thank you Ron. I hope you won't be my secret santa.
Ron W. :You don't even know if we're going to do it or not.
Hermione G. : Anyone else not interested ?
...
Parvati P. : YAY ! We're doing it then !
Hermione G. : We should set a budget.
Parvati P. : I was getting to that. Thank you...
Ginny W. : Hermione, I thought you weren't organising ?
Hermione G. : Sorry...
Parvati P. : So, Lavender, Padma, and I are going to work on the list, and we'll communicate to each of you whom you're supposed to give a present to.
Padma P. : And the budget shouldn't exceed 4 Galleons. Anyone opposed to that?
...
Parvati P. : It's settled then! We'll get back to you later!
Cho closed her DA journal and sighed. She hadn't been participating much in the group discussions lately. In fact, she was trying very hard to make herself as small as possible. Ron had only just started talking to Harry again. Despite Hermione's assurances that no one was blaming her, she couldn't shake the feeling that her presence wasn't entirely welcome. Ginny, being a Weasley, was well-liked among the DA members while Cho had always been seen as Marietta's best friend. People were just starting to come around to the fact that she was dating Harry again.
Harry and Ginny were seen as the ideal couple—a modern echo of Harry's revered parents. And then, they broke up. Initially, there was widespread curiosity about the reasons behind it. But when it happened that Harry rekindled his relationship with his former girlfriend, the timing—four months after his breakup with Ginny—became inconsequential. Suddenly, the narrative painted him as having left Ginny for Cho. Needless to say, the media wasn't very kind to Cho. Despite knowing the truth, the DA members were closer to Ginny than to Cho. They made genuine efforts to embrace her, but an unseen barrier seemed to persist between them.
Parvati's owl arrived late the following day, carrying two pieces of parchment tied to its leg—one addressed to Harry and the other to her.
Rather distractedly, Cho opened her parchment. Her heart sank as she read the name written on it: Ginny Weasley. Of course, fate had a twisted sense of humour.
She was tasked with finding and giving a present to her current boyfriend's ex-girlfriend—the one everyone believed he had dumped for Cho. The one she had been avoiding for months because of the unwarranted blame placed on her. The one the media adored due to her resemblance to Harry's mother; a comparison the media loved. What on earth could she possibly gift her?
« Who did you get? » asked Harry from his seat by the fireplace.
« It's meant to be a secret, remember? »
« I forgot.» Harry smiled sheepishly. « I was just about to tell you mine. »
He scrutinised her face carefully; it was hard to keep anything from him. « Are you alright? Did you get Ron? »
Cho chuckled. Her rapport with Ron Weasley wasn't the best. For Harry's sake, he was making a real effort to get along with her. But apart from Harry and perhaps Quidditch, they shared little in common. Moreover, he was still convinced that Cho had taken his best friend away from his sister. But since Harry had suggested Ron, it wouldn't take him long to put two and two together and guess that she had drawn Ginny.
« I'm alright, don't worry. » She reassured. « Let's just say it's someone I don't know very well and with whom I have little in common, so finding a present is going to be a challenge. »
« So it's not Michael. » He grinned.
Harry knew that the only DA member she was close to was Michael Corner, whom she used to date, and who had also been with Ginny. She chuckled inwardly. She had quite a bit in common with Ginny Weasley: two exes, a love for Quidditch—although Cho's passion had settled and not transitioned into a professional career—and apparently, a temper. 'Well, it couldn't be that hard to find a Christmas present.'