Christmas Break came up and it seemed as if time was running really fast. It was almost as if the school term had just started and now Christmas was upon us already.

As Mum had called us all home for the break, I was in my office, packing my things. My mind was elsewhere as I had been a bit perturbed ever since Dobby informed me that Draco used the Room of Requirement very often, and he was not focusing on his studies, unlike what he had claimed.

Now I wasn't sure whether I should believe Harry's assumption or let it slide for the time being.

If Draco had really become a Death Eater, that would explain his strange behavior. But there was still no proof to accuse him of what happened to Katie.

Thinking of Katie, she was still at St. Mungo's so I thought that on Christmas Eve, I would go to visit her along with the twins.

My dainty office was a mess due to all the stuff that needed packing. Old habits die hard, I guess. I had just stuffed my books in the trunk when I heard a soft tap on the door.

I flicked my wand to open the door and was surprised to see Malfoy.

"Would you spare me a few seconds of your time, Miss Weasley?" He asked and even his voice was choked, reflecting the turmoil within.

His voice was so different from the self-infatuated drawl I recalled from the past years. But then we were at the brink of war and a lot had changed. Draco too had changed just like the world around him was changing drastically.

I cleared the pile of papers on my desk and made room for him to settle down, "Not a favorable time for a visit, I'm afraid. But do take a seat."

He mildly observed the packed trunk and the current situation of my premises, "are you leaving?"

"Yes, I am going home for the Christmas break."

"Home, I see," the word escaped him as if he yearned to know its meaning. I guess home meant very different things to me and Draco.

For me, my home was the Burrow, a warm and loving place where my family was there to accept me with open arms. And for Draco, I don't know if the cold walls of Malfoy Manor felt like home to him or not.

"Are you staying here for Christmas?" I asked to keep the conversation going.

"Maybe. I usually go back for Mother but she has been very busy these days."

Right... 

"You also seem to be very busy these days," I remarked, observing the change in his expression.

"You could say that." He did not elaborate on it further. And why would be tell me? Plus he had no idea I had tasked Dobby to spy on him so I refrained from asking further lest he got suspicious.

Suddenly, I noticed that my photo album was open on my desk and his eyes had flickered to it. I quickly picked it up and put it away because that album contained photographs from my time travel, a secret that not many people knew.

He was smart enough to take the hint as he spoke in an apologetic tone, "I know I shouldn't have intruded. I knew you wouldn't be glad of my unwanted presence, I apologize."

That politeness in his behavior felt almost pitiable.

"You'll learn in life that sometimes the presence of a well-known enemy is much more comfortable than that of an unknown friend," I recounted an old saying to him, watching the amused expression break the frown on his face.

"But I have never considered you an enemy," he replied.

"Neither have I."

it was almost as if we were talking in codes, understanding what the other meant to say without having to say it out loud. 

"I thought you hated me," he voiced out, a hint of surprise lacing his tone.

"Hate is a strong word. And people change, I don't dislike you as much as I did earlier." 

I don't think I have hated him ever but after what happened last year, that dislike I had toward him faded as well.

His lips parted and he looked as if he was about to tell me something very important. But before he could do so, he clenched his jaw shut again, forcing down the words that were about to escape him.

"What did you come here for, Draco?" I asked when he didn't say anything else.

He sighed softly, "I guess I was looking for a safe space to take my mind off everything else that's going on."

I remember telling him on his last visit that he was welcome in my office whenever he needed to talk or just a safe space to breathe. It seemed as if he was taking me up on that offer.

"You were about to tell me something?" I tried to carefully ask him.

"Yes, but I can't."

Right then his soft grey eyes reminded me of a memory that I used to picture before creating a Patronus. Those same grey irises that I had seen on the little boy and his sister who he called Thia.

Then I recalled Draco had once said that he and his mother knew me from before I came to stay with my family. Narcissa had said something similar back when I encountered her at the Quidditch World Cup.

They must know something about that memory, there had to be a link.

"Draco," I spoke up, taking him by slight surprise, "Did you ever know someone by the name of Cynthia?"

He stiffened but didn't reply, a response that only made me more convinced that he knew what I was talking about.

"When I first created my Patronus, I had used a memory of a girl and a boy playing together. They were probably siblings. I don't know why I had that memory locked away in my brain." He was listening closely to my words but the sorrow in his eyes seemed to be increasing. "The boy called her Thia and I think her name was Cynthia. I even saw a woman before everything faded. it's just a glimpse but it was the only happy memory I had at that time to create a Patronus."

He did not reply even then, but from his eyes, it was clear he was intentionally silent. It was almost as if he wanted to say something to me but was holding back out of fear or uncertainty.

"You know what I'm talking about," I gave it one last try, "you're keeping silent but you know."

He lowered his head in a nod, retrieving that sorrowful gaze, "Of course I do. But I can't tell you."

"Why?"

"People only store their own memories," he remarked vaguely, "this Cynthia, it could have been you. Or it could have been a dream, one that ended. That's all I can say."

Strange.

"I felt that girl was me in some other life."

"Could be."

That talking session with Draco wasn't going anywhere. He seemed adamant not to tell me whatever he knew about Cynthia. And no matter how much I persisted, he wouldn't budge.

Draco was stubborn, at least that hadn't changed.

It was about time that I left. The Floo Network was ready and my stuff was all packed. I was supposed to take my bag with me while the trunk would come to the Burrow later.

"It's time you should go back," I told him, "I have to leave now."

"Oh... Merry Christmas in advance then."

"You can send me a letter, I'll reply," I told him, feeling the need to say something that would comfort him.

At that moment, he looked so forlorn that it reminded me of the terrible days when I had been depressed after Sirius' death.

Right then, it seemed as if his soul was as broken as mine. But unlike me, he didn't have anyone to confide in. 

He was alone and misunderstood. Isolated and suffering as I could see from the paleness of his features and the haunting look in his eyes.

I searched his eyes for an answer but he dropped his gaze to the floor.

But before he could leave, I gave him some advice that I thought he needed at the moment. "Can you remember one thing for me? Hope can be found in even the darkest of times only if one remembers to turn on the light."

I had heard Dumbledore say that once. And it was the only advice I could give to Draco at the moment despite wanting very much to help him.

His eyes softened and a very slight smile played upon his lips, "Thank you. I will remember that."

***