This is my entry for FanFic's Yuletide/Holiday Contest. The object was to take a prompt a reader "wished for" and write a one shot for it. The prompt had to include some kind of fandom or pairing. JustScarletRose requested a Dramione (Draco/Hermione) pairing including a Hogwarts Secret Santa and I hope this is close to what she was imagining. Cover by soundthealarm

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"This whole thing is utterly ridiculous."

Ronald Weasley was at the end of his rope. It was Wednesday, double dessert night, and it had somehow been ruined. Actually, he knew exactly how it had been ruined. And his so-called "friends" were no help at all.

"Calm down, Ron," Harry said. "It's not that big of a deal."

"Of course, you can say that. You picked Cho."

This was true. Some lucky star had smiled down on Harry Potter and allowed him to pick the name of Cho Chang, his one true love, for Secret Santa. Well, the girl he thought was his one true love. Whether or not this was true was yet to be determined. Having her for Secret Santa was the perfect way to figure it out. Sure, she had been sort of standoffish since their failed date in Hogsmeade a few months ago (a sleeping charm went wrong — don't ask), but he knew with the perfect gift he could win Cho's heart.

"It's not like I did it on purpose," Harry said.

"You charmed the hat; I know it!" Ron yelled, causing Harry to roll his eyes.

It took all Harry had not to retort "not from lack of trying," but he knew that would only make things worse. After the Goblet of Fire incident, everyone was suspicious of him. They just assumed that he had broken the rules. He was the Boy Who Lived! Why would he do that? His hormones weren't that crazy.

"Must you always act like a child?" Hermione asked, looking up from her book. It was The History of Magic, just a bit of light reading, as she always put it. "It's Secret Santa, not torture."

"It's torture when I get Pansy - bloody - Parkinson," Ron said rather loudly, causing several of their friends (and a few of their enemies) to turn towards them. He slumped lower in his chair and scooped some more food into his mouth. This situation was already messed up enough; he didn't need Pansy finding out he had picked her name out of the bloody hat. She would force him to buy her some expensive gift, that much he knew.

"I was unaware that Pansy's middle name was 'bloody,'" Harry said, grinning at Hermione.

"It's for dramatic effect, you arse," Ron said.

"Now, Ron, could you please define dramatic effect?" Hermione asked.

"Shut up, Hermione. Who did you pick anyway?"

"I'm not telling. It ruins the surprise." Even though Harry had grown up with Muggles, he was still as hopeless as Ron when it came to true holiday spirit, so she didn't expect them to understand. When she was younger, Secret Santas were always a highlight of the holidays.

"You got one of us, didn't you?" Harry said, leaning over in excitement.

Harry hoped she did have him. This Secret Santa thing was open to all of Hogwarts, who knew who could have picked his name out of that hat? It could be some crazy fangirl or even Malfoy. If Hermione had him, he was sure to get a nice gift. And better yet, he was sure she already had one for him, one she had picked out months ago. She was always thoughtful like that.

"No, I did not. The whole point of an inter-house Secret Santa is for everyone to get someone not in their house. Like how Ron got Pansy."

"Shut it," Ron interjected.

"Come on, just tell us," Harry said, ignoring Ron's remark.

"No!"

"Is it a Hufflepuff?" Ron asked. "Or one of those Ravenclaws that follow you around?"

"What? Ravenclaws follow her around?" Harry asked, furrowing his eyebrows. The three of them were together all the time, how could he not have noticed that? He made a mental note to ask Ron about it later. Well, once Ron had calmed down.. He was emotional enough already, and the suggestion of someone competing with him for Hermione's affections would send him into hysterics.

"No, it is not a Ravenclaw."

"Then that only leaves either a Hufflepuff or a Slytherin. Just tell us which one it is, please?" Ron begged.

"Yeah, come on, just tell us," Harry pleaded.

"Who I have for Secret Santa is none of your business. Now, I'm going to go study and you two," she said, pointing a deadly finger at each of them, "can go back to stuffing your faces."

Hermione slammed her book closed and stomped out of the Great Hall in her usual overly confident fashion while they could only watch her in defeat. No one else bothered to look up as she left. It was not uncommon to see Hermione leaving mealtimes in such a huff, especially if Harry and Ron were around to push her buttons. The only people who did look up were a few Ravenclaws, who were excited by her very presence. To the students of Ravenclaw, Hermione Granger was a god ― a sometimes scary and intense god, but a god nonetheless.

"She's not usually so tight-lipped," Ron remarked. He wanted to stop eating in retaliation ,but he was just too hungry. Besides, insulting him on Double Dessert Wednesday? That was a low blow, even for her.

"Um, yeah, she is. If Hermione doesn't want to talk about something, she won't. No ifs, ands, or buts."

"Who could it be that she wouldn't even tell us? It couldn't be that bad, right?"

"We're her best friends, why can't she trust us?"

To make one thing clear, Hermione did not like keeping things from her best friends. When you're as close with someone as she was with those two, you should be honest about everything. But she knew the only way to get them off her back was to tell them it was because of the tradition, even though it was because of so much more.

The halls were empty, and dinner would be going on for a while, so it was easy for her to find her way to the library. She loved the Gryffindor common room, but it was rarely ever quiet enough for her to be able to concentrate. Her strict studying procedure required a certain level of silence her classmates just couldn't meet.

But even though the library was quiet and her favorite table was available, Hermione still could not concentrate. She had told Ron to stop being a child, but in truth, she was as frustrated as he was. After all, he was not the only one who had picked a Slytherin name out of the hat.

Of all the names in the entire school, she had to pick someone who was incorrigible, arrogant, and altogether a bully. It couldn't have been she liked (or someone she didn't even know). Besides, he was so rich he already had everything he could ever want or need. The idea of having to spend time with him during the holiday party, even if it was only for the few minutes it took to give him his gift, made her feel sick.

She couldn't even to begin to describe what she felt when she read his name on the slip of paper. Those two words were all it took to fill her body with intense rage.

Draco Malfoy.

And as luck (or fate?) would have it, the bastard appeared and sat down a few tables away from hers.

/\/\/\

Draco Malfoy couldn't believe his bad luck. First, he was forced into this stupid Muggle tradition and then he had picked the name of one of his sworn enemies. The holidays were ruined in his eyes. Not that he had high expectations for them to begin with.

What could he even get Hermione Granger? A book? A trophy for "Most Annoying"? Some new friends? If only that were possible.

Maybe if she had been placed into Ravenclaw like she was supposed to, she would be almost tolerable. But the fact that she was Muggle-born — something that bothered his family more than him — and a Gryffindor, and therefore, friends with those imbeciles, was unforgivable. And let's not forget the time she had punched him in the face for no reason.

Besides, he had no time to go searching for a gift. He had an important test for Transfiguration coming up and his father would skin him alive if he failed a test in stupid McGonagall's class. So instead of enjoying Double Dessert Wednesday, he was in the library trying to study.

Even though he considered himself highly intelligent and even more adept at magic, studying had never been his strong suit. He either understood the topic when it was taught or it was a mystery to him forever. He supposed if he was going to compliment Granger on anything, it would be her ability to teach things to herself. If only she wasn't so bloody proud of it.

The only way he would be able to get through this test was to get some help. Not that he would actually say the words "I need help." He would simply have to find someone, preferably a girl, he could charm into teaching the subject to him.

Alas, the library seemed to be abandoned. Everyone else was either at dinner or making out in some corner. No one would be caught dead hanging out in the library at this point in the year ― tests or no tests. It was too close to the holidays for anyone to risk not spending time with their friends. Romance and gossip were in the air, and everyone was out to get some.

Upon further examination, Draco only found one other poor sap, other than the sleeping librarian, that was stuck studying like he was. To his dismay, it was someone who would not succumb to his charms even if he placed her under the Imperius curse. But he supposed it was also the perfect opportunity to actually talk to her and see what she wanted for Christmas. He would buy her the cheapest and least meaningful thing she wanted, or maybe just something he assumed she wanted. No one could possibly expect him to actually care if she liked what he got her, not even Granger herself.

With that in mind, he gathered his things and threw them down on Hermione's table. She looked up from her book in surprise, but in an instant, her look of surprise morphed into one of hatred. He grinned at her despite the glare, and made a big show of sitting in his chair. Her gaze was so unwavering he knew she had to be trying to make him feel uncomfortable. Luckily for him, it wasn't working. Okay, it was. But only a little.

"Hello, Granger," he said.

"What are you doing here?"

"No hello? I, at least, said hello. How are you? I'm fine, thank you for not asking. You look nice." He only said this to piss her off, but the more he thought about it, the more he realized that she did look sort of nice. Her hair didn't look as bush-like and her clothes were smart, but not too smart. She looked like a girl instead of a teacher. So yes, she looked very nice.

"Hello, Malfoy," she said, sarcastically. "What are you doing here?"
"Well, it's a library so I thought I would study." She rolled her eyes.

"What?" he asked. "You don't believe I study?"

She placed her book down beside her and stared at him. "I'm in here almost every day and you're never here. So, as a matter of fact, I know you don't study," she said, pronouncing the words slowly like he couldn't understand what she was saying.

"Who says I don't study somewhere else?" he countered, slightly annoyed. "There's always the Slytherin common room or some quiet corridor."

"Well, I know you don't study in your common room. All that Crabbe and Goyle talk about are the activities that go on in there." Hermione wrinkled her nose in disgust. He laughed, thinking of all the things that went on that she didn't know about.

"Are you keeping tabs on me, Granger? I knew you had a crush on me, but that's crossing over to stalker behavior."

"Oh, piss off, will you?"

"Why so harsh? You're never going to have a chance with me if you're so mean."

"You know what Malfoy? You can study all you like. I'm going to go somewhere else." She started gathering her things to prove her point. He grabbed her bag to stop her, accidentally grabbing her hand in the process. She gave him a weird look and he instantly let go.

"Come on, Granger, don't let me scare you away. I'll be quiet, I promise." She gave him a wary look but conceded nonetheless. She even went as far as to continue reading her book, even though he doubted she was actually able to concentrate on what she was reading. He had that effect on people.

"So, what are you doing for the holidays?" he asked brightly.

"I thought you said you were going to be quiet," she said, not looking up. What book could be more interesting than him?

"Just answer the question."

"I'm going home."

"That's good," he said. There was a moment of awkward silence before she finally spoke

"What are you going to do for the holidays?"

"I'm going home as well. Crabbe and Goyle are staying here and I kind of wish I was doing the same."

"Why?"

"The Malfoys aren't exactly into holiday cheer."

This was true. Although, the Malfoys did get a Christmas tree every year, they had never once picked it out or decorated it themselves. The house elves did that. Only the most basic decorations went up around the house, and there was definitely no fanfare on Christmas morning. It was a stark difference to the brightly colored fun that students found at Hogwarts. But asking his parents if he would stay at school over the holidays, of all places, was unheard of. It would only lead to arguments, and Draco had already lived through enough.

"And at least if I stay here, I can do whatever I like whenever I like," he said.

"Don't you do that anyway?" she asked, her gaze so strong it made him shift uncomfortably in his seat.

"That's how I live my life," he finished. He looked her straight in the eye. If she insisted on looking at him like that, two could play at that game. And he always won every game he played.

/\/\/\

Hermione was incredibly confused. She had just come down to the library to try to study and get this Secret Santa thing out of her head, but instead, she had the bane of her existence come and sit down across from her. Who knew why he was actually down here, but what she did know was that it wasn't so he could study. The boy thought he was just so charming and had convinced himself that no one could resist him. That couldn't be farther from the truth.

And now he was staring at her. True, she had stared at him first, but that was just to make him uncomfortable. Did he really think he could make her uncomfortable by doing the same? Sure, it was working, but she wasn't going to let him know that. He may be one of the most stubborn boys in school, but she was never one to back down from a fight.

In the end, though, it was Hermione that who looked away first. She prepared herself for Draco's inevitable smirk and sarcastic comment about how much better he was than her. But instead, he looked confused and glanced around the library, which was still empty. What was with him? Her confusion only increased when he said:

"So what are you asking for for Christmas?" It was an awkward and obvious way to change the subject, but she decided to ignore it.

"I'm not sure yet."

"You really have no idea? Come on, Granger, you have your whole life planned out, but you don't know what you want for Christmas? It's in less than two weeks, surely, you have some idea." She had to admit that that was a good point.

"Well, if you must know, I would like some books."

"Books? Why am I not surprised?" He sat back in his chair and ran his hand through his hair in true Draco fashion, causing her to cross her arms over her chest in true Hermione fashion. They all had their little habits.

"What? I'm not allowed to like reading now?" she accused.

"You're allowed to like reading, but I hope you're more creative with your Christmas gift than just 'books.'"

"I am more creative," she said defensively.

"How so?"

"I don't just want books. I want a very specific book."

"Do tell," he said, his eyes lighting up a little at the prospect of knowing what to get her.

"Well, there's this book I've wanted since I learned I was a witch. I've been trying to find it for years, but it's rare."

"Just tell me the title, Granger," he said.

"It doesn't have a title. It's Merlin's book. You know the one that used to be in Dumbledore's office?"

"That old thing?" he said in recognition. "Isn't it still there?"

Hermione shook her head. "Dumbledore got drunk one day and decided to sell it to some collector. It's been traded around to different booksellers ever since."

"And you want it why?"

"It belonged to Merlin!" she screeched. She looked like she was going to say more but stopped herself, realizing where she was. She couldn't believe she was letting Malfoy goad her to the point of yelling in the library. Not that it mattered, there was still no one around. Even the librarian had disappeared.

"Why would I not want it?" she whispered.

"Because it's just full of a bunch of old runes. No one even knows what it says," he said dismissively.

"Still, I would like to have it. If I got that for Christmas, I would want nothing else."

"Oh, really?"

"Really," she replied, her eyes intense.

"Interesting..." he said.

"What do you want for Christmas?" she asked. If she had to deal with this conversation she might as well get the information she needed.

"Don't worry about it."

"Why won't you just tell me?" she asked. "I told you about mine. Open up for once." She was probably too forceful, but she decided that she didn't care very much.

"Because there's no reason for you to know."

"What reason do you have for having me tell you?"

"A gentleman never tells," he said.

"Since when are you a gentleman?" He rolled his eyes as a response. Hermione accepted defeat and went back to her book. After everything that had transpired, she felt unsurprisingly uncomfortable.

It wasn't that the situation was uncomfortable; it was actually sort of comfortable. Draco had gone back to his own book and seemed involved in his studies but she couldn't stop concentrate. They looked too chummy, like it was their routine.

Soon, it had gotten to the point that she just had to get out of that library. So she gathered her things, making sure not to disturb the boy across from her, and made her way out without saying goodbye. It was rude not to say anything as she left, but she was so nervous she was practically running by the time she made it to the corridor.

Her nervousness subsided a little when she was out of the room, but some of it still lingered. It settled onto her shoulders and she couldn't get it to go away. That was the longest conversation she had ever had with Draco Malfoy, and she didn't know what to make of it. Of course, that might have been because she had nothing to compare it to.

She would just have to brush it off. Yes, that would work nicely. It usually wasn't healthy for people to bottle up their feelings, but she decided that this would be an appropriate time.

If only he had told her what he wanted for Christmas. That's the only reason she had suffered through the conversation in the first place, and he hadn't even told her. Her only hope now was the trip to Hogsmeade in a few days, the day before the party and Secret Santa reveal. When she got to Hogsmeade, she would find a gift for Malfoy. She just had to.

Feeling a little better, Hermione decided to retire to the Gryffindor common room. Before Malfoy had arrived, she had been studying for her Transfiguration test, but now she was just too exhausted to try to learn the material. She figured she had earned the right to relax a little.

The common room was almost empty when she arrived, which was odd. The only people around were Dean and Ginny. Dean was doing homework on one side of the room, and Ginny was on the other side pretending that she wasn't staring at him. Hermione planned to slip past her and escape to her room, but that was ruined when Ginny saw her and came bounding over..

"Hermione!" she squealed, crushing her in a hug.

"Hey, Ginny. How are you?"

"I'm good! Oh my gosh, I'm so excited for Hogsmeade! I totally have to get something for my Secret Santa." Under Hermione's guidance, Ginny had fallen in love with Muggle TV shows. Hermione had tried to show her only the British shows, but Ginny had somehow found her way to the American ones as well. Now, she talked like she was a preteen in an after school special.

"Me too. What are you thinking of getting?"

"No clue. I'm going to wait until I, like, get there."

Hermione grimaced. "Lovely. Um, I'm just going to go and hang around and see if I find something that works."

"Don't go off by yourself! That's, like, so lame. Come and hang out with me and we'll help each other."

Hermione knew that Ginny was coming from a good place, but she knew she couldn't go gift shopping with her. There was no way she could a) trust Ginny to keep the fact that she had Draco for Secret Santa quiet or b) be any help with picking out a gift for him.

"All right, Ginny, I'll hang out with you. It'll be a girl's day out." The look on Ginny's face was so happy that Hermione didn't regret her decision. Sure, she would have to find a way to ditch her once they got there, but at least for right now she was able to make Ginny happy. She would worry about the rest later.

/\/\/\

Draco was also feeling very confused about their situation, but he wasn't doing as good of a job brushing it off. He had sat down at her table only to get help with Transfiguration and to find out what she wanted for Christmas, but now he couldn't get her out of his head, and he wasn't just talking about the fact that she wanted Merlin's book. He knew in his gut that this wasn't normal, but he couldn't bear to admit it to himself just yet. Besides, if this meant something, what could that mean for his relationship with Granger? Or his friendships? Everything he knew?

Not only could he not stop thinking about her, but he also couldn't stop thinking about that damned book. He had wanted to know what she wanted for Christmas and she had told him, but it had to be a very rare (and most likely very expensive) book. He knew the easy solution would be just to get it for her ― he could certainly afford it ― but he feared it would seem too meaningful. And that would confuse him even more.

But would it confuse her? Not that it mattered, her feelings were the least of his concerns. He had plenty of other things to worry about. Besides, it's not like she cared about his feelings... did she?

He shook his head vigorously. He was just being ridiculous, completely and utterly ridiculous. All he could do was to get this out of his head and buy her some inexpensive book. Getting her a book would show that he wasn't a complete asshole, but it wouldn't make it seem like he cared about her at all. It was noncommittal. He liked being noncommittal.

Feeling much better, Draco made his way back to the Slytherin common room and braced himself for the people he called his friends. He hoped that none of them would be around, but had no such luck. Crabbe, Goyle, and Pansy were all waiting for him the moment he walked in. This wasn't too surprising, none of them could survive without him.

The group was still as annoying as ever, always full of judgment and condescension. He didn't understand why they were always like that; they had nothing to be proud of. Except for maybe the fact that they were friends with him. He supposed that counted.

Today, their topic of conversation was the school trip to Hogsmeade. It was in a few days, timed perfectly with the party the following day and was most likely meant to help the students pick out thoughtful gifts for this stupid activity. But all his "friends" wanted to do was goof off and terrorize the other students. Sure, it was Slytherin tradition to threaten people, but he just wasn't up to it. He didn't want to have to explain to these idiots that he had gotten Granger for Secret Santa. He knew what they would say.

Which meant that he had to sneak off to find her stupid gift. He had hoped they would be too lazy to come with him to Hogsmeade, but obviously, they had some energy left in them.

But for all their stupidity and shortsightedness, sneaking away wouldn't be easy. The three of them seemed to have some kind of radar when he was concerned and wouldn't just let him walk away. They wouldn't hold him hostage or anything, but would definitely ask a lot of dangerous questions. And Draco Malfoy didn't answer questions he didn't want to answer.

It seemed like he would just have to sneak away as soon as he could and buy the first book he found. Hopefully, it would be some novel she might like or some boring biography of one of her heroes. But if it were just some random textbook she would just have to deal with it, or she might actually like that. Granger was weird that way.

He would just have to wait and see.

/\/\/\

When the day of the party arrived, Hermione was in a much better mood. It seemed like everything was looking up, and nothing could touch her. All her troubles of the past week or so had gone away like magic (if only there were actually a charm for that) and she was ready to have some fun.

And why was she in such a good mood? It was, in true Hermione fashion, entirely because of a book. A wonderful, wonderful, book.

Like she planned, she had gone to Hogsmeade to search for a gift for Draco. It was relatively easy to get rid of Ginny — she went running after Dean Thomas as soon as he so much as smiled at her — but the gift buying had been harder. But in the end, she was pretty sure she had made the right choice. However, that wasn't what made her happy. When she was in the bookstore buying Draco's gift, she saw Merlin's book. Not only was it there in the bookstore, but it was also being gift wrapped!

Naturally, she immediately went over and started interrogating the worker who was wrapping it. He wasn't much help, but he did tell her that a boy from Hogwarts was the one who had bought it. He couldn't remember what the boy had looked liked, but knew he had gone down the street while the worker wrapped up the book and said if she wanted she could probably find him.

That was all it took for Hermione to abandon Draco's gift on the counter so she could run down the street in search of any boy in Hogwarts robes that looked like he would appreciate Merlin's book. Every boy she saw seemed to be in Hogwarts robes, but when she spotted two boys she recognized, she concluded that it had to be one of them who bought the gift.

"Harry! Ron!" she called. They turned around with panicked looks on their faces. She rolled her eyes. Who did they think was calling them? She ran over to them anyway.

"Hey, Hermione," Harry said brightly.

"What's wrong?" Ron asked.

"Nothing!" she said excitedy. "Have you two been to the bookstore today?"

Ron shot an uneasy look to Harry. "Yes. We, we, uh..."

"We were there a few minutes ago," Harry interjected, helping Ron out (since apparently he had lost the ability to speak).

"W-why?" Ron asked, his face turning almost as red as his hair.

"No reason. I was just curious."

"All right..." Harry said.

"Okay, well, I have lots of important Christmas shopping to do. See you two later!" And with that, Hermione ran back to the bookstore. Thankfully, Draco's gift was still waiting on the counter where she had left it. Merlin's book, however, was gone, and so was the worker. She would just have to settle for what she could assume she had seen.

And what did she assume? Ronald Weasley had bought her that book. She had been dropping hints for months ― no, years ― and he had finally gotten it for her. It had to be him since he and Harry were the only people other than her parents that she had told. And Ron was so nervous; it was so obvious!

Hermione knew what this had to mean: Ron liked her. She had suspected this for a long time, and her suspicions were practically confirmed during the Yule Ball last year. She had developed feelings for him over the years and had been getting ready to tell him. This seemed like the perfect opportunity. She would give Draco her gift, take hers from whoever had her, and then find Ron. She would confess her feelings (she knew he would be too nervous to admit them first), and he would reciprocate and give her the book. It would be perfect.

It was time for Hermione to get ready for the party and she was practically skipping on her way to the common room. She couldn't wait to get up there because as soon as she was ready, she could go to the party and have the time of her life.

Her plan, however, was interrupted by a group of Hufflepuff girls that were crowding the corridor. As a result, she had to go through the other corridor, the one that unfortunately led to the Slytherin common room. She hadn't been down this particular corridor in a long time and slowed down to study her surroundings. Hermione Granger was nothing if she was not curious. But she had to hurry it up when she heard some Slytherin students making their way towards her. She wasn't particularly in the mood for their narcissism.

She turned the corner in a hurry and tried to get away before any of them could see her and start making comments. This was supposed to be her perfect day and she didn't want to be banned from the party just because she punched some kid in the face. She already got in trouble for that two years ago! But as she turned the corner, she ran into what she thought was a wall. That is, if walls were blonde.

"Watch it, Granger," Draco said gruffly. Surprisingly, this relaxed Hermione. She liked it better when he was disagreeable. It was what she was used to.

"You're the one who ran into me."

"Yeah, right." He glared at her for a second, but then his eyes softened a little, making her stomach twist. Like she said, she liked it better when he was disagreeable.

"Are you going to the party?" he asked, surprising her.

"Of course," she said, nodding her head. "I wouldn't miss the Secret Santa exchange for the world."

"I should have figured that," he muttered. On any other day, she would have rolled her eyes and walked away, but there was something different about it. He wasn't saying it to be a jerk; he seemed to be almost friendly. Her stomach twisted up even more.

She was prepared for him to walk away after that, he surely must have had something better to do than talk to her, but instead he leaned onto the wall beside him.

"Since it's basically time for the reveal, whose name did you pull for Secret Santa?" he asked.

"I'm not telling you!"

"Why not? Friends tell each other stuff like that."

"Except we're not friends," she said, furrowing her eyebrows.. He grinned in response. What was with him?

"We could be. I'm not entirely opposed to the idea."

"Have you gone insane?"

"Perhaps," he said. She pushed past him to continue down the corridor.

"I'll see you at the party, then?" he asked, yelling after her.

"I suppose," she yelled back. Her good mood had deflated a little, but what replaced it was confusion. Something about her interaction with Draco made her feel the urge tell someone about it. She wanted to grab someone and tell them every single minuscule of detail. Every word, every smile, every move he had made. She didn't know why.

But then she realized something that made her stop in her tracks. Could she have feelings for Malfoy? No, that was impossible. But what other explanation did she have for what she was feeling right now? It was probably just nervousness. Yes, that was it. She was just nervous about telling Ron about her feelings, and she was projecting that onto Draco.

Right?

The more she thought about the party, the more she wondered: who had her for Secret Santa? She had been so wrapped up in her own personal drama it hadn't even occurred to her to find out. But now that she had thought about it, she couldn't stop. It was killing her.

She was disappointed knowing that it wasn't Ron, for he had gotten Pansy. Something about him getting her for Secret Santa and getting her Merlin's book was just so romantic. But she knew there was no way it was possible. She just hoped it wasn't someone who hated her like Pansy or Draco.

It had taken her so long to get to the common room that she had to start getting ready immediately. And even though she rushed, all of her friends were ready before her. She told Ginny to tell Ron and Harry to go on without her; she wanted to make an entrance. But Ginny was forced to wait for her as she got ready, growing more and more impatient by the minute.

But she decided it was worth it. Her dress was fantastic ― it even rivaled the one she had worn to the Yule Ball ― and her hair was styled to perfection. Even Ginny, who was extremely pissed off, had to admit she looked lovely.

Her only fear was that Ron wouldn't notice how much time and effort she had put in. She knew it wasn't his usual style, but she wanted him to compliment her on how she looked. All she wanted was just one little comment, and then she would be happy. If only Ron were the only one she wanted to notice her.

She couldn't stop thinking about Draco and how grand he would probably look. Oh, how wonderful it would be for him to see her and say "you look nice, Granger," or if he actually called her Hermione instead of his usual Granger.

She blinked repeatedly and clutched her head. What was wrong with her? She was better than this petty drooling. He hadn't given her any reason to believe he felt anything for her.he was blowing everything out of proportion. They had had only one or two conversations, she assured herself, it meant absolutely nothing. If only she believed that as much as she wanted to.

But she had no time to analyze this further. She fixed her dress and hair one more time, grabbed Draco's gift, and left to go meet Ginny in the common room. It was time to go to the party.

/\/\/\

Draco was dressed and at the party more than a half an hour before Hermione. But unlike Hermione, he had not been looking forward to it. His friends were annoying, he was wearing stupid dress robes, and he had spent more galleons than he would like to admit on a book. He just wanted to get this night over and done with.

On any other day, he would have left early, but the Secret Santa thing had foiled his plans. He, at least, had to stay until Granger showed up so he could give her her gift. Then, he could get the hell out of there. The only good thing about having to wait for her was the fact that he had seen how uncomfortable he had made her earlier that day. She had looked so flustered and her face was flushed, it was utterly adorable. Not that he would ever say that out loud, but he thought it just the same.

Even though his friends had tried to get him into the holiday spirit, Draco was standing alone by the wall, waiting for Granger to arrive. He could see Potter and the Weasel across the room, but no sign of Granger. He didn't understand how this could be possible since he had assumed that the idiots couldn't survive without her within a five-foot radius. For the first time in her god damned life, Granger had to be late. He figured she had to have some kind of sixth sense for when her actions made things inconvenient for him.

He was still watching the idiots when Ron looked up from his punch and dropped it in shock. He was watching something, or rather, someone, who had just walked through the door. It was a girl, but Draco couldn't see her face. He didn't pay much thought to it; the Weasel was always crushing on some rodent, so it wasn't worth dwelling over.

But he couldn't stop staring at the girl. By now she was over by the boys and had her back to him. He didn't know what she was saying, but it was making quite the effect on the idiots, who were still staring at her. He figured she had to be pretty something for them to stare like that. She did look beautiful. At least, her back and hair did. Why would she want to waste her time with the Weasel?

When the girl turned around, you could have knocked Draco over with a feather. It was bloody Hermione Granger. Of course, he knew that Granger wasn't ugly, he had noticed she was cute before after all. But he definitely never would have guessed she could look like that.

She was turning around the room, looking for someone. He couldn't tell who. It had to be whoever she had for Secret Santa, judging by the box in her hand. He had no idea who she might be looking for, but if he was being honest with himself, he was a little jealous of whoever it was. Especially if that someone was a guy. He couldn't imagine what it would feel like to have her see him and walk over like he was the only one in the room.

What was he thinking? He didn't like Granger and even if he were stupid enough to have feelings for her, she would never have feelings for him.

And that's when an amazing thing happened.

They met eyes across the room and instead of glaring at him or looking away, she smiled. She was actually genuinely happy to see him.

Then an even more amazing thing happened.

She started walking towards him in just the way he had imagined. Their eyes were locked and she was walking towards him like they were the only people in the room, like he was the one person at that party she wanted to see. She left Potter and the Weasel behind, not bothering to stop to explain anything to them. She didn't even notice their obvious confusion. All she seemed to be thinking about was him.

As she did this, the oddest sensation came over him, and he couldn't quite figure out what it was. It was the feeling he got when Snape called on him in class and when his father asked him what he was doing to protect the family name. Nervousness. Bloody Granger was making him nervous by just looking at him. What had she done to him?

His sole consolation was that she looked nervous as well. He didn't really know what to expect since he had no clue why she was coming over to him in the first place.

"Hello," she said.

"Hello."

"Here." She handed the gift in her hand to him. He took it, completely confused. Why was she giving him a gift? But then he remembered. The Secret Santa! He had completely forgotten. With a stiff arm, he handed his own gift to her.

"What's this for?" she asked.

"The Secret Santa. I had you, and you had me. Who knew?" Suddenly, he was sweating and couldn't stop pulling on his collar. He sounded like an idiot.

"Oh. Yeah, I forgot about that." She looked at him expectantly, like she needed his permission to open the present. He nodded, and she ripped off the wrapping paper like she couldn't bear to see the ugly wrapping any longer. He couldn't really blame her.

But her expression changed when she saw what was under that ugly wrapping. Feelings of excitement and happiness were evident on her face as she began to have a panic attack from excessive joy. He grinned down at her, amused at the sight before him. But when she looked like she was ready to pass out, he focused on his own present in an attempt to distract her. There was no reason for her to cause a scene in the middle of the party.

She watched him with amusement as he carefully peeled off the wrapping on his gift. It looked like it had taken her so much time, he couldn't just rip it off.

He did have to hand it to her; her gift was perfect. It was an autobiography by the Seeker of his favorite Quidditch team, one of his personal heroes, and it was even signed by the author. He usually didn't care for books, but this was one he could actually see himself enjoying.

"Of course, you'd give me a book, Granger," he said.

"I'm a little predictable," she said sheepishly.

"Maybe just a little."

"But you like the book, right? My predictability wasn't all for nothing?" she asked, hopefully.

"No," he said with a straight face.

"No, you don't like it?" she asked, slightly worried.

"I don't like it." Her face instantly paled.

"I love it," he said. Realizing what he had done, she quickly sobered up and glared at him.

"That's not a very nice thing to do, Malfoy."

"I've got to have my fun, Granger. But I do have to hand it to you, your predictability definitely paid off." She rolled her eyes, but was smiling too much to look truly annoyed. The smile went away when she looked down at her own book.

"Thank you, Draco. For the book," she said so softly he could barely hear her.

"You're welcome, Hermione. Thank you for mine."

When he called her by her first name, it was like a light bulb had gone off over her head. The look she was giving him was so full understanding and feeling ― a feeling that he couldn't bear to name ― that he wanted to say that she was wrong, he didn't feel that way about her. But as he was looking at her, he realized that it wasn't entirely true.

Finally, she looked away and he did his best not to show his disappointment. As she started to go back to her friends, he grabbed her arm before he could realize what he was doing.

"Yes?" she asked, curious as to what he had to say. He waited a moment, searching the room for any reason he would have for stopping her. Finally, he looked up and saw his answer.

"Look," he said. "Mistletoe." Some little psychic had hung a perfect piece of mistletoe right above they were standing. He was relieved he hadn't noticed it before, that alone would have made him stand elsewhere. But now it was paying off.

Not waiting for a response, he took the book from her hands and placed it and his own gift on a nearby table. Once they were out of the way, he took her face in his hands and placed his mouth on hers.

As soon as he did this, he began to panic. What if he had misread the signs? What if she still hated him? He wasn't prepared to be rejected in such a public way. He had no way to backtrack or any witty retorts to throw at her. Draco Malfoy was completely vulnerable.

But in the end, he didn't have to worry about all that. Hermione did, in fact, look a little panicked when he pulled away, but she did not start yelling at him or run away. Instead, her look of confusion turned into a smile, and she pulled him in for another kiss. Nothing else had to be said, they both just knew.

They knew they would eventually have to talk about their feelings and figure out whatever this was, but for that moment, it didn't matter. It was the start of something new, and they both knew it. That was enough.