Archive of Our Own

~Gifted~

“Watch it!”

“Down a bit your end!”

“Ow!”

“Just move out of the way then!”

A cacophony of noise came from the eighth years’ common room entrance.  Neville, Seamus and Dean were struggling to levitate an enormous Scottish pine Christmas tree through the narrow doorway and into the shared lounge and kitchenette.

“Oh. My. Gods.  Boys!”  came the exasperated groan of Hermione from the table that sat under the window.  She was busying herself making garlands of paper chains in the four house colours to decorate the shared room.

“When I said to go and get a tree, I thought you might have given some consideration to the size of it!” she said, getting up from her seat and shaking her head in disbelief.

The boys levitated it clumsily over to the side of the enormous fireplace, brushing damp needles and branches into the face of Theodore Nott.  He was reclining lazily on the nearby sofa, reading a copy of Seeker Weekly.

“Godric’s balls!” he cursed as his magazine was knocked from his hands, dropping to the floor and revealing its true contents.  Hermione swiftly pounced on the rag, holding it at arm’s length with a look of abject disgust.  It turned out to be the risqué adult publication: Witches’ Snitches, that until that moment had been disguised as the innocent sporting feature by use of the Quidditch magazine’s cover.

“Really Theodore?” Hermione questioned as she tossed it back into his lap with revulsion.

“Merlin, it’s huge!” came a voice from the passageway that led along to the bedrooms and shared bathrooms.  Ginny Weasley was leaning against the doorframe staring at the tree with wide eyes as the boys slowly began to levitate it with great difficulty into an upright position.

“Why thank you, sweetheart!  It’s not the first time a witch has mentioned it,” Seamus quipped, flashing his eyebrows with glee.  “Harry’s not quite living up to the size of his fame eh?”

Both Ginny and Hermione rolled their eyes at the boys and their humour.  The redhead folded her arms challengingly, scowling at the boys as they guffawed among themselves. Their ridiculous tree was refusing to fit into place and came tumbling down, almost hitting Theo in the face again.

“Well Seamus, if your ability to get it up is anything to go by…” Ginny said with a smirk, “I think I’ll give it a miss.”

Hermione laughed down her nose at Ginny’s razor sharp tongue, before relenting to help the boys.  With a swift bit of wand work, she shrank the tree slightly and hoisted it firmly into a festive, brass planter that she had conjured earlier.  Sighing with satisfaction she stepped back to appreciate her handiwork.

“And now for the decorations!” she gushed, skipping merrily over to the table to retrieve a large box.  It was full to the brim, spilling over with baubles, tinsel and a merry mixture of mismatched trinkets and ornaments that had been brought in from all the eighth years’ respective homes.

The contribution of décor from all the different students gave Hermione a deep sense of satisfaction as she and the other girls set about dressing the tree’s scented branches. The mix of colours, wizarding and muggle items were a lovely symbol of the unity and acceptance that had gradually developed between them all during the course of their first term back at Hogwarts after the war.

Ginny began to busily levitate baubles, chatting merrily about the Weasleys’ plans for Christmas.  She could often be found hanging out in the eighth year common room, and was eagerly awaiting Harry’s arrival later that evening.  Hermione had organised a yule party for them all that was going to be held in the eighth year common room that evening.  She had spent weeks planning and preparing everything and was eager that the night would be the perfect end to their first term back at school.

Headmistress McGonagall had given her the go ahead and had also permitted some non-students to be invited along.  The invitations of course included Harry and Ron.  The boys themselves hadn’t returned to Hogwarts, having jumped at the opportunity to undertake their auror training at the ministry, and Hermione was looking forward to seeing her best friends again after nearly four months apart. Hermione’s friendship with Ginny and Luna had deepened as she shared classes with them but she often felt as though an essential part of Hogwarts was missing to her, without her best friends at her side.

The first term back at Hogwarts had got off to a rather tense start, with the arrival of Draco Malfoy and his Slytherin friend Theo Nott on the first of September.  It had taken several weeks for the group to get used to having the former Death Eater in their midst, some managing it quicker than others, given Harry’s testimony in his favour only a month earlier. 

There was still some residual tension and coldness Hermione noted, particularly from certain Gryffindors, but she had found it remarkably easy to strike up a friendship with her old enemy.  They had been paired together in several subjects, being intellectually matched, and she had quickly come to appreciate his sharp mind and dry wit.

~O~O~O~

Later that evening, Hermione was  alone in the lounge area, putting the finishing touches to the finger buffet that she had arranged with the house elves.  The wooden table that was mostly used by the students for studying or card games, was elegantly dressed with a festive green tablecloth.  The trays of sandwiches and finger foods looked tempting on their traditional golden platters and chargers.

The sideboard in the kitchenette that overlooked the lounge was a sight to behold.  Hermione had asked the elves to provide a festive punch for everyone and it sat proudly cascading down a magical fountain with ladles and chunky handled glasses all around.  However, this was also surrounded by a wild mixture of other bottles and cans of various other drinks that the students had provided themselves, ensuring everyone had access to their favourite tipple. 

Hermione swallowed nervously as she took in the veritable banquet of alcohol before her, knowing full well that the fridge was also chock-a-block with drink.   She wondered how she was going to manage to keep everyone from getting horribly drunk after she had assured the Headmistress that it was going to be an elegant and mature affair.

The lights were dimmed, making the fairy lights of the tree sparkle and twinkle festively, and a gramophone was playing gentle festive tunes in the corner.  Hermione had changed into an elegant, deep red dress and was nervously excited about the night ahead.

Just then, a pale, aristocratic hand shot from behind her, snatching a sandwich from the nearest plate. She swatted at it with mild irritation, whirling round to see the offender chewing triumphantly with a familiar sparkle in his eyes.

“Malfoy!”

“Looks good, Granger,” he replied trying to help himself to another but finding his way blocked by his friend.

“They’re for later!” she chided, grabbing him by the shoulders and turning him around and away from the table.   He walked away from her and perched on the arm of the sofa next to the Christmas tree, facing her directly.

Hermione took a moment to look him over.  He had certainly made an effort for the evening as requested and with little complaint, unlike the other boys who had groaned loudly about having to dress up in best robes for the evening.  Draco looked incredibly smart and extremely comfortable in his beautifully tailored robes as he gave her that warm and friendly smile that she had been beginning to develop something of an eager longing for.

“Relax Granger.  You’ve done an exceptional job of organising everything.  I’m sure we are going to have a most enjoyable evening.”

“Thanks,” she replied, feeling a small blush creep over her.

“Even the fact that Weaselby will be here shouldn’t put too much of a dampener on things,” he jibed, clearly enjoying winding her up, as he often did.

“Oh yawn,  Draco,” Hermione retorted with a roll of her eyes.  “Just behave yourselves will you?” she half demanded, half pleaded as he stood up to walk past her.

“Don’t I always?” he replied with a smirk.  He made his way to the small door that led to a little balcony overlooking the lake.

“You look lovely by the way,” he added quietly, without meeting her eyes as he passed through the door and outside, no doubt on his way out for a cigarette.

Hermione felt her blush returning tenfold at his appraisal of her appearance.  She sighed wistfully, staring at the closed door and began debating over whether she should follow him.  The urge to do so was quite overwhelming.  She quietly admitted to herself that she had developed some very strong feelings for the young Malfoy in recent weeks, but the thought of acting upon them filled her with disquiet. 

As she continued to turn over her feelings in her mind, she was shaken from her turmoil by the arrival of the first of the party guests.  Harry and Ron came bustling through the entrance with Ginny, followed by Luna and some other seventh years.  They too had bottles in their hands which Hermione eyed uneasily as she greeted them warmly, hugging her best friends.  Soon the other eighth years joined them from their rooms, signalling the start of the party in earnest.

The evening flowed enjoyably, as further people arrived and the food and drinks began to flow.  The room was filled with buoyant chatter as the music was turned up and the young witches and wizards mingled and laughed with relaxed good humour.

At ten o’ clock Hermione emerged from behind the Christmas tree, wearing a Santa hat and levitating a large chest that was filled with colourfully wrapped Christmas gifts. 

“Oh here we go!” Neville shouted, being the first to notice her arrival.

“Secret Santa time!” Parvati chimed, clapping her hands together and jumping up and down with delight.

“Gather round the fireplace everybody!” Hermione instructed with a large smile.   She had arranged for each guest to pull a name from a hat, being responsible for providing an anonymous gift for the person named.  They had then hidden their gifts in the box before the party or sent them anonymously to Hermione by owl so she could add them to the stash.

The boys had moaned about the Secret Santa idea at first, but soon perked up when they realised that they had free rein and could use it as an opportunity to have a joke or some fun at someone else’s expense.

Everyone piled onto the sofas, perched on the arms and settled on the rug, while others pulled up the wooden chairs from the table.  Draco and Theo remained standing at the back with a few others, observing the proceedings carefully. 

“Now don’t forget - you mustn’t tell anyone who you got a gift for.  It spoils the fun!” Hermione reminded everyone bossily before handing out the first gift which was for Luna.  She was delighted when she opened the small gift bag to find a pair of dangly earrings in the shape of dirigible plums in a dainty presentation box.  She beamed as she immediately put them on.

“They suit you, Luna,” Harry remarked with a warm smile.

“They’re lovely!  Thank you Santa!” she sang dreamily, shaking her head from side to side to enjoy the feel of them.

Neville’s gift was next.  He ripped open his squishy gift to find a pale green t-shirt which he held up against his chest proudly.

“Check it out guys!”

The t-shirt had the slogan: LOVE ME, LOVE MY MIMBULOUS MIMBLETONIA emblazoned across the front, with a cartoon of his favourite plant.  Dean and Seamus groaned. 

“You and that bloody plant, Nev!  I swear he’d marry it if it was legal!” Seamus quipped. 

“Yeah, Longbottom.  What exactly do you and that thing get up to in your room at night?” Theo asked with a dead-pan expression while Neville blushed at the implication.   

“Hey!  Leave Mimbsy alone, will you?” he grumbled, as everyone chuckled. Neville folded the t-shirt carefully.  “Thanks Santa” he added with a small smile.

Next was Hermione’s turn.  She had a little feel of the gift first, pursing her lips as she considered what might be inside. 

“It feels like it might be a book,” she suggested, before carefully peeling back the spellotape from the paper and taking her time to open the paper without tearing it. 

She was of course right.  Her gift was the newly released edition of Hogwarts; A History and a bookmark in the shape of a bookworm.  She immediately opened the book and began poring over its contents, becoming quite engrossed as she noted the newly added chapters about Albus Dumbledore and of course, The Battle.  Ron gave a loud cough to shake her from the distraction.

“Erm… Hermione?  Are you planning on giving out any more presents, or have we got to wait until you’ve read that from cover to cover?”

She looked up and glanced around at all her friends’ grinning faces, before realising what she had done.

“Oh! Sorry guys,” she said quietly with a blush before dipping her hand into the chest once more.

Hermione had been feeling rather nervous about this part of the evening, but found herself becoming more and more relaxed as gifts continued to be unwrapped and generally well received.  Everyone seemed to be really enjoying themselves and there was a happy mixture of sensible and thoughtful gifts, alongside the more humorous ones that kept everyone entertained.

Harry and Ginny laughed in disbelief as they coincidently found themselves with matching Quidditch gloves from their Santas, while Seamus had a large leprechaun hat and beard and a bottle of elf-made wine.  When it was Theo’s turn he had rolled his eyes when he unwrapped a hardback copy of: What Witches Really Want: A wizards guide to female desires, before taking it quietly over to the kitchen to begin reading.

Parvati received a beautiful silk scarf, Dean an oversized mug for his favourite football team that had been filled with sweets and treats from Honeydukes, and Ron… Well Ron was left very red in the face as he unboxed a red, satin posing pouch, trimmed with festive white fur, with the words WHOMP MY WILLOW across the front in gold diamantes.

“Put it on! Put it on! Put it on!” the friends all chanted, clapping their hands and stamping their feet in sheer delight.

“You can piss off if you think I’m wearing that tonight,” he grumbled.

“Oh, so not tonight then.  But you will be wearing it some other time?” Ginny jibed.

“I think it’s lovely, Ron.  The colours really suit you.” Luna offered very seriously.

Everyone laughed and continued to taunt Ron until his ears turned pink. Hermione giggled with sheer delight as she glanced inside the chest to see only one small gift remaining.  Looking around she soon managed to ascertain who it would be for, noting that Draco was the only person to have not received a gift thus far.  She delved into the chest and retrieved the small, square shaped present, her face dropping to a scowl of confusion as her eyes noticed the name written neatly on the gift tag.

‘For Hermione’

“Oh!” she cried out, suddenly earning the attention of all the guests.

“What’s up Hermione?” Ginny asked.

“Something’s gone wrong!”

Parvati leaned over to see what had caused her friend’s dismay.  “Is that… another gift for you?”

“Yes!” Hermione replied sadly.  “How can this be?  I’m certain that I put everyone’s name in the hat!” 

“Maybe you made a mistake?” Dean suggested.  The room fell silent as Ron sucked in a whistled breath, eyes wide at Dean’s risky suggestion.

Hermione glared at Dean defensively.  “I definitely would have realised if I had written my own name on the parchment twice before it was put in the bag!  And now poor Malfoy hasn’t got a gift…”

She was interrupted by the sound of Seamus snorting derisively.

“Oh yeah.  Poor Malfoy!” he added sarcastically, taking a swig from his glass tumbler with a sneer.

“Granger,” Draco stated mutely, trying to interject.

“Seamus!” Hermione almost barked. “It’s not fair to have anyone left out like this!”

“Granger, it’s fine.  Just take the second gift,” Draco persisted.

“See? He’s not bothered.  Just take the gift Hermione, and we can get back to the party!” 

Hermione glared at Seamus again.

“Come on, Hermione,” Harry added softly.  “It’s just a little mistake.  Perhaps you can just treat it as an extra gift for the party organiser?”

There was a murmur of assent from everyone and Hermione briefly caught Draco’s eye.  She was horrified that he would be excluded from all the fun, but he gave her a brief, encouraging nod before reaching inside his pocket to pull out his cigarettes.

She huffed out a sigh, looking down once more at the beautifully wrapped, silvery package, tied with an elegant, dark blue ribbon.  Relenting she carefully pulled open the ribbon and lifted the lid as Draco began making his way towards the small balcony door. 

Her eyes widened at the beautiful and intricate gift inside.  It was the most unique and striking necklace Hermione had ever seen.  It had a fine, platinum chain, with a pendant made of eight small, equally elegant, inter-woven rings.  Each ring was set with different tiny, finely cut precious gemstones.

Luna hummed quietly at the sight of the jewellery.  “That’s a fine example of a gemanneaux pendant,” she remarked.

Everyone looked her way with surprise.

“A what, Luna?” Parvati asked leaning in towards Hermione to get a better look at the gift.

“A gemanneaux.  They were quite traditional among certain wizarding families for a time.  But they’re quite rare now.  There are said to be some ancient and powerful ones in the antiques and relics archive at the Ministry.  The magic that is instilled into the gemstones is usually quite something to behold.”

Hermione stroked her fingers delicately over the rings as they caught the light of the twinkling fairy lights.  “The magic?” she asked in wonder.

“Yes,” Luna explained.  “Each ring will be chosen by the giver to represent something significant and will have been charged with related magical properties to bestow upon the wearer.  So…”  she continued, coming over to sit cross legged on the floor at Hermione’s side.  “Let’s take a look at what you have here.”

Luna looked closely at each ring to explain their significance. 

“So this first ring looks like a Rainbow Moonstone, and that signifies a new start.  The second… oh that’s a beautiful quartz for intellect and the third is set with Jasper.  That represents justice of course.”

“Well of course,” Ron muttered sarcastically.  The boys’ eyes were by now totally glazed over, and they started to drift away from the fireplace, returning to their drinks and banter.  Most of the girls however, gathered around closer to listen to the remainder of Luna’s explanation.

“The fourth ring is set with blue topaz for friendship.  And… oh my favourite, Hermione!  A lapis lazuli set ring!  They signify truth.”

Hermione’s mind was whirling as she took in the beauty of her gift and the meanings behind it.   She was quite overwhelmed.

“This sixth ring here look, it’s different than the others.  It’s a band of solid Whitby jet.  They were traditionally used in times of loss or mourning.  And then finally, it looks like you’ve got an agate set ring for courage, and a garnet one for triumph.”

“It’s … it’s eight years at Hogwarts!” Hermione suddenly exclaimed.  “New start, friendship, truth… loss and… triumph at the end.  It must be!”

The girls nodded, impressed at her fast mind. 

“And Luna - you said the gems would have magic instilled within them?” Ginny asked, scooting along the sofa to also get a closer look.

“Yes that’s right.  So for example, the Whitby Jet ring will likely have been steeped in comforting magical properties to counter the loss that they represent.  But the more positive ones will likely carry the characteristics which they represent, so friendships will be strengthened, a new start will be successful.  That kind of thing.”

“That’s an amazing gift, Hermione,” Parvati said quietly.  “Here, let me help you to put it on.”

Hermione passed the box to Parvati as she held her hair up, allowing her friend to fasten the chain around her neck.  She touched the cold rings with her fingertips as they lay against the skin of her chest.

The girls all agreed that it looked even more lovely on, and Hermione went over to the small mirror that hung near to the main entrance of the common room to look at her gift.  Looking at her friends in the room behind her in the mirror’s glass she eyed each of them covertly as they returned to the party chatter and drinks.  The music had been turned back up as everyone settled in to the remainder of their night of revelry.

Neville had pulled his t-shirt on over his robes and was wearing it proudly.  Harry looked like he was trying to encourage Ron to do the same with his posing pouch.  Parvati and Ginny had started to dance.  Seamus was sat on the sofa, sipping firewhiskey and wearing his leprechaun hat and beard, like it was the most normal thing in the world.

“Thanks Santa,” she whispered quietly to herself, as her mind began to work away at solving the mystery of the gift-giving mix up.

~O~O~O~

A little later that evening, Hermione had disappeared into her room and was rummaging around in a small lockable apothecary chest that she kept hidden away in her wardrobe.  It housed a great number of vials of varying shapes and sizes that clinked merrily as she searched for one in particular.

“A-ha,” she announced quietly to herself, as she lifted a small, narrow vial and held it up to the light, revealing its clear liquid contents.  She closed the lid to the chest and locked it with a wandless colloportus, before standing up and going over to her dressing table. 

She looked at her reflection in the mirror, questioning the actions that she planned to undertake.  A moment of doubt flickered through her mind and she glanced down at the potion, turning it over in her hand anxiously.  Did she dare do something so morally questionable?

She looked up again at her reflection and eyed the gemanneaux pendant carefully.  Whoever had pulled Draco’s name from the hat had either bought her the necklace or the book gift, rather than playing by the rules and getting a gift for him.  She huffed frustratedly, quickly removing the necklace and laying it down on her dressing table next to her newly acquired copy of Hogwarts: A History.  Taking a mollifying breath, she tucked the tiny glass vial of potion away into her bra and headed back out into the common room with a confident and determined stride.

She quietly made her way over to the kitchenette and poured herself a glass of the elf-made punch that continued to flow cheerfully in the fountain on the kitchen side.  Despite it being the choice of many of the party guests that evening, the drink showed no sign of reducing in quantity.  No doubt a handy bit of elf-magic, Hermione assumed.

She turned slowly, eyeing the other guests carefully over the top of her glass as she sipped the spiced and fragrant drink.  She had a good idea which of them would have taken the greatest issue in buying a gift for Draco.  He had conveniently been the one to make the most noise when she had protested about the unfairness of the situation with the gifts.  He was currently sitting on one of the sofas, wearing his ridiculous leprechaun hat and laughing raucously at something or other.

Seamus was not the most forgiving of characters, and could be very judgmental at times.  Hermione remembered clearly the long antagonism that had gone on between Harry, Ron and Seamus back at the beginning of fifth year.  Yes, if he was willing to behave like that towards one of his own fellow housemates, she could see that he would have little problem in purposefully leaving Draco out of the gift giving. 

Added to this was the fact that Hermione could not recall seeing him strike up a civil conversation with Draco, or even simply pass the time of day with a greeting or a simple ‘How are you?’ in the months that they had been back at school.

With a huff of determination, she turned to look at the array of bottles and vessels that were strewn across the counter.  Her eyes gleefully spotted that there was only one bottle of firewhiskey to be had, as she recalled that she had seen Seamus enjoying the drink a little earlier.

With a satisfied smirk to herself, she pulled it over, uncorked it and poured three careful drops of potion from the vial that she had accioed from her cleavage.  Recorking the whiskey to discretely invert and mix the liquids, she grabbed a glass and then poured a generous measure, before she turned briskly and made her way over to Seamus to offer him the drink.

“Seamus.  Care for another?” she asked, offering the glass towards him tentatively.

“What’s this, Hermione?  Trying to get a fella drunk now are you?” he asked, cocking his eyebrow suggestively.

Hermione felt her insides turn over at the implication, but realised that if she played along, she would more likely be successful in getting him to partake of the potion-laced drink.  She took a coquettish step towards him and tucked a wayward curl behind her ear. 

“Just trying to be a good hostess, Seamus,” she explained, giving him her best attempt at a flirtatious smile.

She stepped closer and perched herself gently down on the sofa at his side.  Her heart was pounding heavily in her ribcage as she turned to face him.  Seamus turned and stretched his arm along the back of the sofa behind her, seemingly both surprised and pleased at her sudden interest in him.

At that moment, Draco quietly entered the kitchenette, having just returned from the bathroom.  He made his way over to the side and retrieved his glass, before turning to face the room.  His eyes roamed around at the guests before falling on the familiar head of Hermione as she looked to be getting rather cosy with Finnegan next to the Christmas tree.  Clenching his jaw, he whirled around to recharge his glass, before stalking coolly out onto the balcony for a much needed cigarette.

“You’re looking very pretty tonight Hermione,” Seamus said looking her over from head to toe. She inwardly squirmed, still proffering the glass towards him.

“Thank you.”

Just take the damned drink.  Just take the damned drink, she silently urged, smiling awkwardly at him.

“Why don’t you keep that for yourself sweetheart?” he suggested, nodding towards the glass in her hand before his gaze returned to linger at her chest.  Hermione bristled slightly, trying her hardest not to show it.

“But, I poured it for you,” she argued, offering the glass to him once more with a broad, fake smile.

“No, no.  You see, I don’t really like firewhiskey, Hermione.  It aggravates my stomach.”

Hermione blinked in confusion.

“You don’t..?  But I saw you drinking it earlier…”

“No love.  I’m drinking Irish Moonshine,” he announced, suddenly reaching down the side of the sofa and producing a bottle and glass that until then had been hidden from her view.  He poured himself a large measure of the liquor, that looked very similar to firewhiskey.   He then proceeded to explain what he thought were the drink’s finer qualities, not a word of it actually registering in Hermione’s brain.

Shit.  Realising her error, she was suddenly brought back from her racing thoughts as Seamus clinked his glass against the one in her hand and sidled closer to her.

“Cheers, Hermione,” he said, bringing his glass to his lips and maintaining eye contact with her in a very disconcerting manner as she stared at him in horror.

“Oh.  Erm, sorry Seamus, I just… I just need to …” she trailed off as she slid away from him and stood quickly up from the sofa, marching hurriedly across to the kitchen side to retrieve the bottle that she had tampered with.  Ginny was at the punch fountain refilling her glass, when Hermione suddenly bumped into her, grabbing and uncorking the bottle of whiskey and pouring its remaining contents down the sink, along with that of her glass.

“Arses,” she muttered to herself as she turned on the tap and watched the amber liquor swirl down the plughole.

“Hermione?” Ginny asked, watching her friends’ bizarre actions with a confused smile.  “What are you doing?”

With a sigh, Hermione pulled Ginny in closer and quietly confessed all to her friend.  Ginny’s large, brown eyes went wide with surprise at the news of her straight-laced friend’s daring plot.

“So… if it’s not Seamus’ whiskey, then who the hell does it belong to?”

~O~O~O~

Out on the balcony, Draco was lighting his second cigarette as he eyed the silvery moonlight shimmering magically across the black lake beyond.  He took a warming sip of his firewhiskey as he enjoyed his moment of solitude.

Just then, the balcony door opened quietly and he was joined by his friend Theo, who he immediately offered a cigarette to.  The pair stood in companionable silence, puffing out clouds of smoke into the freezing cold winter’s night for a minute before the door opened once more and Harry made his way out to join them.

Draco took another large swig of his drink, still rather uncomfortable around Potter after he had spoken in his defence during the trials.

“Oh.  Hi guys.” Harry said tentatively on seeing the pair.  “Just felt like I needed a breath of fresh air.”

“Can’t handle your drink eh, Potter?” Theo asked as Harry made his way forwards to stand with them.

“Ha.  No,” he countered with a chuckle.  “My drink handling is quite up to scratch, thank you.  Although I don’t think I’d manage too many glasses of that elf-made punch that’s on the go in there.”

“Yeah me neither,” Draco agreed.  “I remember when Dobby made some at my mum’s Yule dinner when I was thirteen.  I had one glass and got totally legless and ended up taking a piss in my father’s wardrobe…”

Theo and Harry froze and stared at Draco who seemed equally horrified at the confession he had made.  Theo immediately burst out laughing and slapped Draco on the back. 

“Fuck me, I bet he was happy?!”

Draco gave a short, nervous laugh, before shooting a glance at Potter who was looking straight ahead at the lake with a bemused smile. He shook his head, not quite sure why he had felt the need to confess such a thing to Potter of all people, before taking another swig of his drink.

“That’s quite a view you guys have got here isn’t it?” Harry said after another short pause, taking in the dark Scottish landscape all around.

“Not bad,” Theo agreed, taking a drag of his cigarette.  “Although us snakes are used to having a view of the lake, albeit an underwater one.”

“True,” said Draco.  “I do miss seeing the merpeople, though.  There was one I had a major crush on back in fifth year…” he trailed off again in horror at his unintended admission.

“That’s…nice?” Harry offered, with a look of shock and mild disgust.  Theo looked again at Draco in amusement. 

“Ah, so that’s why you always used to insist on having the bed closest to the dorm windows, then?” he asked, nudging his friend with his elbow.  “You perv, Malfoy!”

“Look, she was really fit looking and had a cracking set of tits.  I spent many a night trying to imagine the sex though.  I mean just how would that work… SALAZAR’S BALLS!” he complained, cutting himself off abruptly, his eyes wide in horror.

Harry at this point was shaking with laughter, as Draco looked at Theo and then down to his half empty glass.

“Truth serum,” he whispered.

“What?” Theo asked also glancing down in horror at Draco’s glass.

“Fucking Veritaserum!” he hissed quietly, throwing the glass’s contents over the side of the balcony and slamming it down angrily on the ledge.  “I need to leave.  Now.”

Harry wiped his eyes as he eventually recovered from his fits of laughter, having not noticed the pairs epiphany. 

“Bloody hell Malfoy - you really are drunk aren’t you? Any other surprising little crushes you feel the need to share with us tonight?  Any other inter-species fetishes?”

Draco immediately opened his mouth to answer but was abruptly thwarted by Theo who clapped his hand over his mouth and loudly shouted; “I think you’re right, Potter!  Young Malfoy here’s had a bit too much to drink.  I’m just going to get him some water and send him off to bed…”

Draco’s muffled further confession was made inaudible as Theo steered him awkwardly back towards the balcony door.  Harry turned and watched the pair’s curious antics in confusion and amusement, as Draco wrestled his head free from his friend’s grasp.  As they approached the door, Theo and Draco both noticed Hermione and Ginny talking in the kitchen through the small window.  They froze instantly.

“Oh fuck,” Draco groaned.  “Don’t let her talk to me like this, Theo!”

Harry’s interest was instantly piqued at this, and he stepped forwards in curiosity as Theo quickly withdrew his wand and cast a hurried Silencio on his friend.

“What..?”  Harry began to ask before being abruptly cut off.

“Sorry Potter, nice chatting to you!” Theo blurted out before slapping his hand back over Draco’s mouth for good measure, and bundling him towards the door.

Hermione and Ginny were busy scouring the room with eager eyes, desperately trying to spot who had been drinking the firewhiskey and wondering if they would notice it was missing, or worse still - if they had taken some whilst Hermione was occupied with Seamus. 

At that moment, the balcony door abruptly opened to reveal Theodore Nott, who hurried across the kitchenette.  He was bundling an uncharacteristically shaken-up Draco Malfoy along with him, who he appeared to be gagging with his hand.  They quickly turned along the corridor to the bedrooms. Harry’s curiosity it seemed, had got the better of him and he too trailed along behind them.

“Hey!  Guys?  Are you going to tell me what exactly you two are up to?  Nott!  Malfoy?!!”  he demanded, as he tried to get their attention.

“Too much to drink Potter, I told you!” Theo retorted without stopping or even turning to answer Harry directly.

Hermione and Ginny stared at the chaotic sight as it passed them by, before making brief eye contact with each other.  They took a moment to observe the other guests’ reactions.  Some simply laughed and shook their heads at the seemingly drunk antics of the former Slytherins before returning to their drinks and revelry.  Others it seemed hadn’t even noticed at all. 

Hermione and Ginny gave each other a discreet nod, before casually making their way to the doorway and sneakily tiptoeing along to the bedrooms in covert pursuit.

The three boys crashed through Malfoy’s bedroom door in a chaotic haste, Harry firmly slamming the door shut behind them and casting a counter charm to Nott’s earlier Silencio. 

“What the hell is going on here, you two?” he demanded, purposefully keeping his wand in hand in a show of authority.

“I need to stay away from her.  She can’t know!” Draco blurted out as Theo winced at his friends’ confession.

“Who?”

“Granger.”

“Hermione?!” Harry bellowed, angrily.  “Why?  What the fuck have you done to her Malfoy?!” he shouted, taking a step towards the pair.

Theo instinctively stepped defensively in front of Draco who had lowered himself dejectedly to sit on the edge of his bed with his head in his hands.

“He’s not done anything to her Potter, you sanctimonious arse. So just back off will you?”

Harry huffed incredulously.  “So why the need to stay away from her?  I swear to Merlin I will have you put in Azkaban if you’ve done anything to hurt her…”

“He’s been drugged with truth serum for fuck’s sake - no doubt some stupid Christmas prank gone wrong,” Theo explained as Harry’s eyes widened in surprise.

“You’ve got ideas well above your station haven’t you, Potter?” Theo continued vehemently.  “Well you’re not an auror yet rookie, so why don’t you just take your wand and…”

“I’m in love with her, you moron!” came Draco’s desperate sounding confession from the bed.

Harry and Theo both turned slowly to look at Draco who now had his eyes screwed up in regret.  Theo rolled his eyes and shook his head at the big old mess that was unfurling before him as Harry stood as motionless as a basilisk victim, gaping openly in disbelief.

Just outside in the corridor, Hermione and Ginny were doing pretty much the same thing, having been listening in by means of an amplifying charm.  The magic was working a treat thanks to the fact that none of the boys had thought to ward the room.  Hermione’s hand had flown to her mouth to stifle her gasp at Draco’s sudden admission and she was glaring at Ginny with wide eyes.

“You’re..?  You’re in love with her?”  Harry repeated, incredulously.

“Madly.  She’s all I fucking think about.”

Theo sighed and went over to perch on the edge of Draco’s desk.

“It’s true, Potter.  He’s been pining over her all term.  Of course his little crush began years ago.”

Draco’s eyes flew to Theo’s with an outraged glare, which his friend didn’t even deign with a response as he continued.

“He used to deny it but we could all tell.” 

Harry turned abruptly to Draco.  “That can’t be true?”

Battling against the effects of the potion, Draco squirmed before admitting defeat.

“Yes, it is true.  And then she went and testified for me in the Summer, and then got partnered with me in three fucking subjects this year, so it’s just got stronger and stronger and FUCKING BOLLOCKS!” he roared, cursing the unavoidable impact that the Veritaserum was having on him.  “I can’t believe that I’m spilling my guts to you, Potter!”

He stood up and faced Harry fully, holding his arms out slightly in an open and pleading gesture.

“Potter, I’ve been drugged with truth serum.  Please, please I’m asking you not to tell her! You can’t tell her!”

“Why not?”

“He thinks she might go and do something all noble and Gryffindoresque, like agreeing to date him just out of pity.  Or as a means of waving the fucking tolerance and unity flag,” Theo explained with a sarcastic drawl.

“And I don’t want to ruin my friendship with her, Potter.  I value it too much,” Draco added quietly.

Harry let out a loud breath and rubbed the back of his neck, awkwardly. 

“But, you’re in love with her, Malfoy.  It’s not just a crush anymore is it - you said it yourself.  You’ll be miserable all year won’t you?  And what if she starts dating someone else..?”

“Then I’ll just stay in my room ‘til July.”

“Malfoy!”  Theo groaned.  “Don’t be a dick.  Always so fucking dramatic, aren’t you?  I bet you anything that extra gift Hermione got was from you.  Wasn’t it?”

“Yes.”

“But you didn’t get a gift, Malfoy.  So that means…”

“Yes bravo, Potter.  Never were quick on the uptake, were you?  I pulled my own name from the hat, and I was fucking glad I did.  No one in that room, save maybe Granger herself would have wanted to get my name, so I just saved them the trouble.  I decided to get Hermione an extra gift instead.  Merlin knows she deserves it and it gave me an excuse to  give her something special without her knowledge.”

Harry let out another puff of air as he digested all that had been shared with him.

“Fucking hell, Malfoy.  You’ve really got it bad, haven’t you?”  he said in consolation.  “Look, I suppose I’ll think about not telling her, ok?  As long as she doesn’t get hurt, that’s all I care about.”

Draco sat sullenly back down on his bed and ran his fingers through his hair. 

“Just…  Can you leave me alone now please?  Before I go confessing how much I really wanted to be your friend when we met in first year…OH FUCK!!”

Harry gave a tight lipped smile to Theo before going over to pat Draco on the shoulder in a further consolatory gesture.

“It’ll wear off soon, Malfoy.  And don’t worry.  I’m sure everyone out there assumes that you’ve just got spectacularly drunk on that elf punch - just like when you were thirteen, eh?” he added with a smirk.

Draco growled in annoyance and Theo couldn’t help but chuckle inwardly at the image of his friend relieving himself in Lucius’ closet of luxurious dress robes.  Harry suddenly stiffened in realisation.

“Actually…. SHIT!  I’d better go and find out if anyone else’s drink has been spiked.  Things could get very messy out there!”  And with that, he marched towards the door. 

Upon hearing the sound of Harry’s footsteps approaching, the girls quickly turned and fled to Hermione’s room which was directly opposite, before Harry had chance to catch them.

~O~O~O~

The girls closed the door smartly and Hermione effortlessly threw up a silencing charm as they listened to the sound of Draco’s bedroom door closing and Harry’s footsteps fading away as he returned to the party beyond.  They both let out a simultaneous sigh of relief before walking in unison over to Hermione’s bed and sitting silently side by side for a few moments.  It was Ginny who broke the silence first.

“Holy shit, Hermione,” she stated mutely.

Hermione was blushing furiously as her heart pounded heavily in her chest.

“He’s… He’s…”

“He’s madly in love with you!  Draco sodding Malfoy of all people!  Gods, Hermione, did you have any idea?”

“Erm.  No?” she answered with a lilting tone that betrayed her.  She turned to look at Ginny with a grimace as her friend eyed her pointedly.

“Okay, well maybe a little bit.  But it seemed so unlikely, you know, given our past?”

“So what gave him away?” Ginny asked.  “Before tonight, I mean?”

“Just… little things.  I notice him looking at me.  Quite often actually.  He’s very attentive towards me - like he knows how I take my tea and he remembered my birthday.  And earlier he told me that I looked lovely.”

“And now the necklace,” Ginny added, going over to fetch it from the dressing table and dropping it into Hermione’s hand.    “It’s bloody gorgeous ‘Mione.”

Hermione held the necklace and stroked it delicately as the gemstones twinkled up at her.    “This is just so messed up,” she stated quietly, deep in thought.

“So?  What are you going to do about it?” Ginny challenged directly.

“What am I..?  Well, what can I do?  He doesn’t want me to even know about his feelings!”

“That’s true,” Ginny added with a nod.  “But then again, he doesn’t know about your feelings either does he?” she added, so very matter of factly that it made Hermione startle.

“My feelings?”

“Yes, Hermione, your feelings.” Ginny countered in a sarcastic, sing song tone.  “You want to see the way you always  go all gooey-eyed when you talk about him.  And the way you went apoplectic when you thought he had been left out of Secret Santa on purpose!  You really care for him and I do believe that’s not all you feel?”

Hermione stood and strode over to her dressing table, placing the necklace down gently and staring at her friend in the mirror’s reflection.  After a moment’s consideration she finally let out a sigh of relent.

“Yes.  Okay, Ginny you’re absolutely right of course.” 

She turned around to face her friend once more, perching on the edge of her dressing table.  “And you know what else is true?  When Draco was in there explaining all about the crush he’s had on me since we were younger?  That could’ve been my confession!”

“What?” Ginny asked, her brow furrowed in confusion.

“Did you ever notice how he just dropped the mudblood insults after third year?”

“No…”

“Well he did!” she interjected as she continued her tirade of confession.  “He just stopped directing his smart mouth at me.”

“Well I guess we know why now don’t we?”

“Yes.  But when he stopped being so mean to me, that’s when I started to see how infuriatingly attractive he was.  And intelligent.”

“He was still a colossal prick to your friends, though!” Ginny protested.

“I know!  I know!  And I felt bloody awful about it, Ginny.  So I kept my own crush well hidden.  Merlin, it really upset me to see him so broken in sixth year.”

“And since then?  This year?  You’ve reignited your crush by getting close to him, despite everything that happened during the war?”

“You know I don’t hold him responsible for any of that Ginny.  You heard my testimony.  And Harry’s…”

“Yes, okay, okay.  I get it!” Ginny replied holding her hands up in surrender.   “You’ve got to tell him, Hermione,” Ginny added softly, standing and walking over to her friend.  Hermione let out a sigh and smiled wanly at her friend.

“You in the very least like him, and thanks to your very dodgy drink-spiking antics, he’s let it be known that he’s totally and utterly in love with you.”

Hermione nodded in acceptance.  She felt a wave of guilt wash over her at the thought of what she had done to him.

“So, I’ll ask you again, Hermione.  What are you going to do about it?”

~O~O~O~

It was well past midnight and the party had quietened down significantly.  Some guests had made their way home or back to their own dorms and the guests that remained were now lounging around sedately, feeling well and truly intoxicated by the effects of all the alcohol they had consumed in their revelry.

Draco quietly opened his bedroom door and craned his neck along the corridor to find it pleasingly empty, before making his way bravely back towards the common room.

He had ascertained that the Veritaserum had worn off by getting Theo to ask him a simple question.  Theo had unfortunately used it as an opportunity to worm some juicy information from him in the hopes that the potion was still in full effect.  Having asked Draco what kind of underwear his mother wore, he swiftly found himself on the receiving end of a stinging hex to the groin and a string of profanities.  Yes, the truth serum was well and truly dead.

Draco was desperate for a cigarette, and made a stealthy journey through the lounge towards the balcony door. He rolled his eyes heavily as he clocked Harry and Ginny snogging passionately on the sofa and reached inside his pocket to retrieve his packet of smokes.

“Malfoy!” came the slurring voice of Ron Weasley from the table.  He appeared to be making his way through all the leftover sandwiches, clearly suffering from a case of the munchies and needing to soak up the booze he had consumed.

“You feeling better, you lightweight?” he asked with a grin.

Draco paid him little attention and continued on his way, a small smile of appreciation flickering across his lips as he realised that Potter had done the decent thing and not gone shooting his mouth off about his predicament.  He sucked in a refreshing breath of cold air as soon as the door closed behind him and without looking around, swiftly put a cigarette to his lips.

“Draco?”

Draco started with surprise at the sound of Hermione’s voice and turned abruptly to find her approaching him from the shadows.  He quickly snatched the cigarette away from his mouth, knowing full-well that she wasn’t a fan of smoking, before schooling his face into an expression of well-practised, cool indifference.

“Granger.  Thought you’d turned in for the night?”

“No.  I couldn’t.  I… I had to speak to you,” she added, her voice full of trepidation.  Draco quirked an eyebrow at her questioningly.

“Oh Draco.  I’m so sorry! It was me.  I was the one who spiked your drink!”

Draco froze and stared at her unmovingly.

“I don’t know what you…”

“It was me,” she interjected before he had chance to deny the events of the evening.  “I spiked the wrong drink.  I was convinced that Seamus had messed up the Secret Santa and I wanted the truth.  So I put Veritaserum in what I thought was his drink.  But… it turns out…”

“It was mine.”

“Yes. I’m sorry.  I’m so sorry.  But… I also need to talk to you about something else.  You see…” she trailed off, her fingers grasping and fidgeting with the fabric of her dress skirt as she nibbled her lip nervously.  “You see… the thing is…  I know.”

A pregnant pause filled the air as Draco continued to appraise her vague confession, a feeling of dread gradually creeping over him in assumption of what she was about to confess.  He gave a short laugh down his nose as his lips curled into that wry smile she loved, in an attempt to diffuse the situation.

“You know?  Granger, there’s a lot of things you know in that enormous brain of yours…”

“I know how you feel about me!” she blurted out, before drawing in a breath and holding it in anxious anticipation.

Draco’s eyes darkened as his face hardened to a stony expression.  He let out an angry huff, before turning to stare out across the lake.

“Potter, I take it?”

“No!  Please don’t blame Harry.  It was Ginny and I.  We were eavesdropping and… we heard everything.”

He let out a short laugh and shook his head incredulously.  He couldn’t believe the bad luck he was having.

“Well, well.  You have had a busy night haven’t you?” he said with textbook sarcasm before turning to look at her once more.  He found her pretty brown eyes staring up at him pleadingly, and felt his insides melt at the sight.

“Well, the night’s not over yet, Draco,” she stated, challengingly.  “So, in the spirit of fairness…” she added reaching inside her dress and pulling out a small vial and drinking its contents before she had chance to change her mind.

“What..?” Draco asked in surprise, watching her swallow heavily.

“Veristaserum” she explained with a brief lick of her lips.  “I think it’s only fair, don’t you?”

“Wh.. Why?”

Hermione took a step towards him, their bodies close and the warm feeling of his breath caressing lightly against her skin.  “You didn’t want me to know.  You think that any reciprocal actions that I might manifest will only be out of some notion of post-war rebuilding.  Or worse… out of pity.  This way you can know my true intentions.”

Draco stared down at her, meeting her serious gaze with incredulity, not daring to surmise where this might be leading.

“Draco.  I love my gift,” she began quietly, not taking her eyes from his as she gently touched the gemanneaux pendant that now hung delicately around her neck once more.  “It broke my heart to learn that you had none.  So I have a sort of gift for you now.”

Draco’s eyes momentarily flitted down to her hands, expecting to see a present or package of some sorts.  He froze abruptly when she moved even closer and reached her hands softly upwards, one resting on his chest as the other went higher to caress the back of his neck.  She smiled gently and shook her head.

“It’s not wrapped under a tree.  It’s something longer lasting than a bottle of elf wine or a new scarf.”

Her eyes glanced down at his open lips as he took in a breath and pulled her closer, holding her hips firmly as she pressed up against him.  Their lips met in a tentative union and she felt an instant connection as he let out a little gruff sound of satisfaction. They both poured months of pent up feeling and emotion into that kiss, building up in fervour and passion as their mouths opened and they explored each other eagerly. Draco’s hands travelled upwards, caressing the soft curves of her body.  He buried his fingers in her hair, holding her in place as though worried she might run away at any moment.

The sound of an owl hooting in the distant forest disturbed them from their embrace and they broke apart, foreheads resting together as they drew in lungfuls of the cold night air to catch their breaths.

“That really was truth serum, Granger?” he asked tentatively, not certain that he really wanted to hear her response.

“Yes.  They call it the ‘Season of Giving’, Draco.  Well here I am.  I’m yours.”

And before she realised what was happening, the truth serum took complete control and a final whispered confession fell from her lips.

“I love you.”