𝓣𝓱𝓮 𝓖𝓸𝓿𝓮𝓻𝓷𝓮𝓼𝓼 || 𝐋𝐮𝐜𝐢𝐮𝐬 𝐌𝐚𝐥𝐟𝐨𝐲

Chapter 13 - Gifts

Christmas is a time for love, cheer, family, and making memories. At least it was, until Ophelia was eight years old and Christmas changed forever. With her parents gone, Remus took on the challenge of Christmas, but it was never the same, despite his best efforts. The truth was he wasn't the most Christmas spirited of folk, and tried his best to imitate the wholesome Christmas' their parents had thrown year on year. But his efforts would never, and could never, live up to the legacy their parents had left behind. Sipping hot chocolate by the open fire, playing charades, opening thoughtful hand-made presents under the tree their father had chopped himself from the forest. The family effort of cooking the roast dinner, brisk nature walks on Christmas morning. Snowball fights and building snowmen when the country was blessed with a white Christmas. As much as Ophelia wanted Christmas to be magical, and whimsical, it just didn't ever seem to live up to the festive memories from the childhood ripped from her.

Ophelia woke lazily that morning, one eye fluttered open slowly, and then the other, blinking in the soft morning glow from her window. She yawned, turned over and rubbed the sleep from her tired eyes. She lay in bed a while, cocooned in her duvet and blanket, gathering the willpower to face the day.

Sitting up something caught her eye at the end of the bed. A small stocking hanging from the wooden bed post. Furrowing her brows in confusion she crawled forward and reached for the velvet stocking, pulling it onto the bed. It was green, the velvet soft, it had a white fur trim, and in silver embroidery on the front was the Malfoy crest.

Reaching inside curiously, yet hesitantly, her slender fingers touched upon a long slender felt box. Ophelia's stomach dropped, he didn't, did he?

Pulling it out she examined the green felt box, it was luxurious, expensive. On the top in silver foil was 'Miss Oakham'.

Ophelia clutched it in her fingers, not daring to open the box. How could he possibly buy her jewels, a bracelet most likely, what would his wife think?!

With a deep breath Ophelia opened it, its contents had her feeling rather silly, and presumptuous. A beautifully crafted silver quill. With it: a small rolled up note, secured by a little green ribbon.

Miss Oakham

Merry Christmas, thank you for everything you do for me. I'm sorry it's not what you wanted for Christmas, but I am only eight, and can't give you those things you said. I guess you can use this quill when you're teaching at Hogwarts.

Draco

Ophelia clasped her hand to her mouth as she took in the weight of the gesture on her heart. Underneath the spoilt, snarky exterior, truly was a warm, loving, thoughtful little boy. It killed her that neither of his parents truly appreciated or saw it.

***

Stepping out into the crisp Christmas snow, Ophelia began to walk towards the manor gates, it was a bit of a pain one could only apparate from outside the property, unless you were a Malfoy of course. Her boots crunched the snow beneath them as she wrapped her brown and orange plaid scarf around her neck.

"Miss Oakham!" The voice of Draco called. Ophelia looked about, but saw no sign of the boy. "Up here!"

Ophelia looked up to see the boy perched on a broom not too far away.

"It's my new broom! Do you like it! I'll come down and show you!" Draco shouted, as he descended down to the ground and dismounted expertly. "It's the finest broom they make, and look, it even has my initials carved in the wood! It must have cost my father a lot of money, I bet no one else got one of these for Christmas!" The boy bragged as he ran his hands along the broom. Ophelia opened her mouth to reply, but was swiftly cut off.