Merry Christmas Mr. Malfoy (Book 1)

Chapter 8 : Christmas Colours and Trees

Christmas Colours and Trees

"Where are you going?"

Hermione looked up, glancing over to the couch to find Draco sitting comfortably, book in his lap, watching her fix her scarf. She was unaware that Draco had snuck back down to the Common Room and had promptly spent a lengthy period of time going over his thoughts.

He knew why she'd been crying in her room, or at least had an idea of why, and he had spent a good five minutes resisting the impulse to go off and kill a certain Weasel. He had no clue where this sudden rage came from; he'd never felt so furious towards the Weasel before when Hermione had been hurt and this new feeling confused him.

The confusion had caused his thoughts to become momentarily erratic, increasing the perplexity and inhibiting him from establishing a fine line of thought. There were too many questions moving around in his brain right now for him to think clearly.

All he knew was that Hermione had been hurt and it bothered him.

Maybe it was some weird acquaintance thing...

It had been only a minute before she showed up at the bottom of the stairs when he'd finally cleared his mind enough to establish a plan.

Said plan had not yet been established by the time she showed up, so he had less than thirty seconds to come up with something rational and inconspicuous.

Now, what a better way to establish a plan by asking a certain brunette, dressed for going outside, where she was going.

He was so smart he frightened himself at times.

He watched her fidget with her scarf, playing with the end while he saw the emotions play in her eyes. Her eyes, he noticed, still glistened from unshed tears.

He felt something weird happen, almost as though a piece of was him torn off and ripped to shreds before his eyes. It was the strangest sensation and he knew that if he dwelled on it, it would only distract him from the task at hand.

"Granger, are you going to answer my question?" He marked his page and shut the book, turning to face her.

She was chewing on her lower lip, a habit he was starting to detest more and more. Her eyes darted about, as though searching for some answer she couldn't find. He could see the distress, the worry, and the fear in her eyes; knew that, if he were close enough, he could hear her pounding heart and smell the anxiety. She was nervous, embarrassed, and afraid that he could discover what she had been doing moments prior to this encounter.

Unfortunately for her, he already knew; he'd been watching from the doorway, unable to do anything but think over what her actions had done to his body and mind.

He was beginning to dislike the weird changes his body was going through. It was too uncomfortable, too strange, and far too unusual for it to be considered normal.

"I suppose it wouldn't hurt," she sighed, her voice thick from tears, softer and hoarser. "I was planning on going down to Hogsmeade to do some shopping."

He arched a brow. "Shopping for what? We already spent the whole day at Hogsmeade yesterday. You didn't get to finish buying enough random shit?"

Ignoring the annoyance in his voice, she replied, "I was with Ginny all day, so I couldn't buy her Christmas present. Besides, I wanted to get some decorations."

"Decorations?" he choked, eyes widening with fear. "But...for what?"

She smiled; she was enjoying this little conversation with him. It made her forget all of Ron's words and actions, helped alleviate her somber mood and distract her. It was...nice.