Queen of the Yule Season

Chapter One

QUEEN OF THE YULE SEASON

By: tweety-src-clt9

Chapter One

Hermione Granger, the twenty-three-year-old ultimate nerd, has always been at odds with her cousins, Ophelia Rose and Elizabeth Ann. They are the two daughters of her Uncle Henry, her father's older brother. While Daniel and Henry are very close to each other, Hermione and her cousins are polar opposites.

Lia and Lizzy enjoy all things girl – boys, hair, makeup, and fashion. On the other hand, while she occasionally enjoys girly topics, she is more focused on politics, philosophy, and well, changing the world little by little. Hence, they are bound to clash. As little girls, they compete about the silliest things. They used to show off to each other by comparing who had better grades, who performed better in ballet and piano, things like that... Since the two sisters share the same interests, it had always been a Lia and Lizzy versus nerdy Hermione show. If the contest is related to academics, then the two sisters never stand a chance against her. However, if it's a battle about who had more boys fancying them, who had better hair, who had better clothes, then her dorky awkward self loses to her drop-dead gorgeous cousins.

When she got accepted into Hogwarts, she was so relieved that she no longer had to be in the same school as them. However, the mystery of her school had always been used as ammunition against her. Since they say that they haven't heard of her school at all, then maybe, she's not as smart as she claims to be. Because of that, even in the summer, she continues to study courses in the non-magical world just so she could get a perfect balance of magical and muggle knowledge. She even managed to sit her A-levels and after restoring her parents' memories, she got into a prestigious law school. She actually had a smug look on her face when she told her annoying cousins that she got a scholarship to study law in Oxford.

And now, her cousins have been using another way to make her feel bad about herself. Since she is the clear winner in terms of career and academic success, they're now going on and on about the blokes they are dating just to emphasize her lack of a boyfriend. During family gatherings, they constantly brag about the blokes they are dating while hinting that she must be so lonely since she's been single for so long.

Last Christmas, she made the mistake of bringing Harry to her family's favorite restaurant where they ran into Lia and Lizzy. Since she couldn't lie to their faces, what with her parents there, she introduced Harry as her best friend from school. And well, Harry being, er, Harry, her cousins immediately bothered her about the hot bloke with the perfectly tousled hair and the most gorgeous pair of green eyes.

Growing up, she could always remember a horrid Yule tradition she shares with her cousins. Well, they started it. And given that Hermione Granger never backs down from a challenge, she became an unwilling participant. Every December, her cousins would always try to best her as the family's princess of the Christmas season. Sometimes it's about who is the most applauded while performing for their families and friends, sometimes it's simpler, like who wore the better dress. She usually loses in the looks department but if the challenge is about the performing arts, especially in music, she usually wins.

This year, her cousins want to up the ante. This year the stakes are so high that Lia and Lizzy are calling the winner, the Queen of the Yule Season given they're too old to be princesses (according to them). Pretty dramatic, yes! But her cousins always did have a flair for sensationalized drama.

Anyway, long story short, her cousins wanted Harry. As a courtesy to her (since they claim that she saw Harry first), they will be giving her until the 31st of December to change her status as Harry's best friend into his lover, girlfriend, whatever... Just as long as she becomes romantically involved with him, she wins. If she succeeds, she'll be the Queen of the Yule Season. If not, she would help her cousin (whoever amongst the two, she didn't know) score a date with the handsome green-eyed bloke.