Snowflakes in a Storm - [Scorose]

Chapter One: Left alone for Christmas

Dipping my quill in the small pot of ink that laid beside my parchment, I sighed. Today had been a stressful day. Getting ready for NEWTs was starting to become serious - every professor had started giving us practice exams to do in lessons and out of lessons and I was already behind as it was. 

The quill scraped the parchment as I wrote notes from a Herbology textbook that was open in front of me on a page about Bubotubers. We'd learnt about them sightly in our third year of school but we had starting going into much more depth on them and I didn't understand anything about them. But let's all be honest, who other than Professor Longbottom actually gives a crap about Herbology? I certainly don't. I chose it as my safety choice for my NEWTs, thinking it would be easy. Of course, that's what happens to everyone. They choose a class that they think will end up being easy and then it turns out to be one of the hardest subjects. I suspect it has some psychological element to it; the one you least care about is the one you struggle with most because you don't find it interesting - and I, like so many others, have made that fatal mistake.

Anyway, today had not only been stressful because of NEWT revision, I'd also received a letter from my father informing me that I will not be able to return back to the manor for the Christmas break with no explanation why, so that means spending an unwanted and highly unnecessary amount of time with the Weasley family.

The only member of that family I can tolerate is Albus, and that's purely because he was put into Slytherin with me in our first year and I have had to learn to live with him, since he is, after all, my dorm-mate and there's nothing I can do about it. I don't mean to complain though, Albus is really one of my best friends, if not my best friend. He's laid back, he's cool and he's a right laugh when you get past his shy, annoying Weasley/Potter shell. I'm sure some of the other members of that clan are the same, but I don't have the time or patience to get past that stage with them.

The Christmas holiday begins tomorrow so my father, being the lovely man he is, has left it until the last minute to inform me of this misfortune, after I had already packed and made plans with some of the guys to meet up during the holiday. I'm sure it won't be too bad though, I can just spend the whole time in the common room. I have been tempted to write a letter to reply to my father, but I've learnt over my seventeen years of life that he does not appreciate it if I tell him what I think, if it does not agree with what he thinks. If I were to write a letter complaining about the lack of explanation, or just the fact that he left it so late to tell me, I may not be allowed back to the manor during the summer either.

At least I have Albus for the holidays. That's one person I can tolerate.

---

I stirred in my bed and yawned, opening my eyes drearily and turning to look out the window that was directly right of my bed in the dormitory. It was quite light outside, the sky was a bright blue and the sun was shining but the ground was invisible, covered by a deep layer of practically untouched white snow. I sat up, tired and wiped my eyes before looking around. I was alone in the dormitory. Shrugging, I climbed out of bed and pulled on my dark grey dressing gown over my boxers and white tank top that I wore to bed and slipped on my slippers that were placed neatly at the foot of the bed.

I walked out of the seventh year boys dormitory and down the stairs to the common room. In there were three younger students, a first year sitting with her feet in front of the blazing green fire and two fourth year boys playing wizard chess, they looked at me then went back to their game. I was confused. Had everyone gone home already and how late was it? Had I slept in?

Not taking too much notice of the empty common room, I made my way out of the common room and across the school to the kitchens, still wearing my robe and PJs. I walked in and saw no one but a few house elves cooking the dinner that would be served tonight to the staff and students that were still here. When none of the house elves noticed me I coughed to get their attention and they looked up at me.

"Oh, sorry Mr Malfoy, sir. We didn't see you there, sir." One very timid-looking house elf said to me before another began talking.

"What can we do for you Mr Malfoy, sir?" The little house elf asked and I shrugged.

"Whatever." I said and they looked at each other confused and I rolled my eyes. "Just some breakfast... some toast will do." I told them before mumbling under my breath. "Stupid house elves." I had been raised in a manor full of house elves serving on me hand and foot, each of them were just as bad as the ones back home. They needed strict, specific orders or they were useless.

After I had eaten my breakfast, I tiredly headed back to the Slytherin Common Room. On my way back I bumped into probably the most annoying, big headed and frustrating student who has ever graced the halls of Hogwarts - Rose Weasley. She knew just how to push my buttons and she sure as hell seemed to get a kick out of doing so.

"Just woke up, Malfoy?" She said, pointing at my attire and my messy blonde hair which is normally swept neatly to the side, with a book and her wand in her other hand.

"I may have." I replied, shrugging and putting my hands in my pockets. "Weasley, where's your cousin?" I asked, referring to Albus.

"Which one? I have 10 cousins." She said in her usual smug tone.

"Albus." I told her, I was too tired for her shit this morning.

"He's at home."

"What?" I asked, surprised.

"Him, Lily and James went home for the holidays. So did all my other cousins actually." She told me. I was frustrated that I'd have to spend the whole holiday on my own without Albus, but at the same time it was quite the relief to know the rest of the Weasley clan wouldn't be here either.

"So why are you here?" I asked.

"That's none of your business." She told me, before walking off. I went back to the common room and stayed in there until dinner.