The Hogwarts express started to slow down, Hermione threw her stuff into her bag and as soon as the train stopped she ran off it and darted towards the school. Hermione heard footsteps behind her but didn't want to turn around and see who it was.
"Hermione" A voice shouted, she carried on running.
"HERMIONE"
She didn't have time for whoever was shouting to her. The footsteps were right behind her and suddenly there was a hand on her waist. She turned around and saw Draco, bright red and breathing heavily.
"Draco" Hermione laughed.
Draco looked up and raised an eyebrow.
"You didn't stop. I called you"
"I thought you were just another student! I was running to see you!"
"More like running away from me!" Draco pretended to pout.
Hermione gave him a small punch.
"Don't you be annoyed with me mister or I'll go straight back home"
Draco smirked at her and held her close
"I've missed you, Granger"
"I've missed you too, Blondy"
Draco looked at her, confused. "Blondy?"
"I'm trying out new nicknames for you"
"Okay, but not 'blondey'" Draco paused "Or anything extremely cute like 'dway dway' or 'Dracokins'!"
Hermione laughed. "Aw, my little Dracokins"
"Shut up"
Hermione kissed Draco on the cheek. "Come on, lets get up to the castle, I'm freezing"
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
The great hall was beautiful. There were twelve Christmas trees , festoons of holly, mistletoe and other brightly coloured decorations.
In the middle of the amazingly decorated hall was one table with a few professors and few students, two of which included Hermione and Draco. Dumbledore had stated that it would be silly to all sit at different tables and that since there were so few of them they should sit together and celebrate Christmas.
Draco and Hermione sat next to each other, Crabbe and Goyle sat next to Draco, -Hermione later referred to them as Draco's bouncers-.
After everyone had finished their mouth-watering dinner and eye-melting desert, Dumbledore stood up.
"I think, it's time for crackers."
He clapped his hands and instantly patterned crackers appeared on the tables in front of then.
There was rather a lot of noise going on in the great hall as several crackers went off almost simultaneously. Hermione picked up the christmas cracker nearest her and held out the other half to Draco. When Draco didn't respond to it, she cocked her head at him.
"Draco?" Hermione asked.
Draco looked up at her.
"Have you ever done a cracker before?"
Draco continued to stare at her.
"Do you know how to use a cracker?" Hermione asked slowly
Draco tried to keep a straight face but ended up laughing.
"No Granger, the concept really is baffiling. Do you hit it with your wand? Do your pound it with your head?"
"Oh shut up!"
Draco carried on laughing.
"I thougt you were a childhood- deprived child!"
Draco wiped a tear from his face and tugged on the cracker. A bang as loud as a canon went off and they were surrounded by blue smoke, as the smoke cleared they could see Hermione had won the cracker, the prize and the hat.
"Haha! Beat that Draco! In your face!"
Hermione's boasting didn't last long, no sooner than the words escaped her mouth she had noticed what her prize was, several white mice which promptly scampered from the table leaving her without a prize. This caused Draco to once again, burst out laughing.
"Oh haha. Let's just get your cracker done!" Hermione sulked.
"Not until you put your hat on!" Draco cried.
"No, I'm not putting it on!"
"Go on, everyone else has!"
Hermione looked around and indeed, everyone had an hat on. Professor Dumbledore had a flowered bonnet on, Professor McGonagoll had a top hat on and to Hermione's amusement Snape was the only one not wearing a hat. His was lying on the table next to him, it was a hat topped with a stuffed vulture. Hermione smiled as she remembered Neville's boggart.
She picked up the flower pot hat and plonked it on her head.
"Happy now?"
Draco smiled "Yep"
Draco picked up his cracker and he and Hermione pulled it and another loud bang erupted.
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Draco and Hermione were wandering around the castle, when Draco took Hermione's hand. Hermione looked down and smiled to herself.
"What are you smiling at?" Draco asked.
"Nothing" Hermione paused "Draco?"
"Yes?"
"Tell me about Christmas at your house, what do your family usually do?"
"Well, I wake up and my mum wishes me a merry Christmas and then I get gifts which I don't even want and are way too expensive. Then I go into the living room and wish my father a merry Christmas and shake his hand."
Draco paused.
"My parents don't understand me, they don't understand that I don't want all this stuff. I'd rather just spend time with them, you know i've never had an actual conversation with my father? We don't get along. The only time we talk is when he talks to me about my studies and how I'm not doing any good. My mother tries I guess, most of the time I just end up in my room wishing I was anywhere else. I hate when people say they're 'going home for christmas' because it reminds me that I don't have a home. I have a house that I can go to, but not a home."
Draco stopped once again, he seemed to be holding back tears.
"Most kids went to bed with a bedtime story, The wizard and the hopping pot, Babbity Rabbity and her cackling stump, the tale of the three brothers. I was told bedtime stories were for babies and weaklings, and the occasional story I did get was about how muggles and muggle-borns were evil and wrong. My family doesn't tolerate weakness, if you show a sign of being weak you get punished for it. Malfoy's don't believe in giving your crying child a hug, if you're hurt you just get back up again and carry on. You fight until you die, that's one of the motto's I was bought up with."
Draco had tears in his eyes and his fists were clenched tight. At that moment Hermione saw what Draco really was, a boy. A scared little boy who didn't have a childhood.
"Draco, I...." Hermione faded out. She didn't know what to say, there was nothing she could say.So she just sat there and held his hand until morning.
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And that's it! Thank you for reading, I'm not sure how good this chapter is because I'm falling asleep as I have been writing it so I'll look over it again tomorrow. Once again, all characters are JK's and not mine. Comment and shizz if you like it. Love always, Briony.
