Disclaimer: Sadly, even for Christmas, I will not receive the rights for Harry Potter. Ah well, there's always next year! For this year though, nothing is mine!
AN: Ladies and gentlemen, I now present you with my Christmas contribution to the plethora of entries arriving at this time of year! I literally scraped it together two days before Christmas so I hope all of you enjoy it! I'd like to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas right now. If you don't celebrate Christmas, I hope you have a great (insert holiday here)!! I hope everyone likes this one! As always, feel free to let me know what you think and feel about this work in a review! Cheers and Merry Christmas!
I now present you with…
Christmas Appreciation
December 18
"Remember, class." Professor McGonagall said near the end of her class. "Even though tomorrow is the last day of classes, you still have those AMS's (Applied Magic Scenarios) and that four page essay on Animagi due tomorrow. Class finally ended and the students filed out of the room.
Ronald Weasley, commonly known as Ron, shuffled moodily out of the room, "I've only finished the second problem on that worksheet! I'll be up all night!"
Hermione Granger snorted from beside him, "And whose fault is that, Ronald? If you had listened to me two weeks ago about finishing that assignment, you wouldn't have to worry about it."
"I'm almost done," Harry Potter offered from the other side of the redheaded boy, "But don't worry too much, Ron, I'm sure that Hermione would be glad to help you tonight, wouldn't you, Hermione?"
Ron laughed. Hermione frowned at the two boys and answered stiffly, "Of course." She then proceeded to march ahead of her so-called friends and stalk off back to the Common Room. The boys only watched her back recede into the distance. They glanced at each other quickly.
"What's gotten her knickers in a twist?" Ron ventured.
Harry simply shrugged.
Three weeks! Hermione though bitterly. It had been three entire weeks since the boys had last thanked her for anything. It wasn't just thanking her either, it had gotten to the point that they just assumed that she would help them! She helped them with their homework and took care of them when they were sick last week. Heck, this morning, she even poured a glass of pumpkin juice for Harry. And she had done all of this without even receiving a hint of a "thank you" or appreciation. The first week hadn't particularly bothered her. They were boys after all, and one can't expect to get everything one wants. The second week had miffed her a bit. But now, the third week, Hermione was caught in a tornado of emotions: sadness, anger, as well as confusion. She was both sad and angry that those two boys could be as inconsiderate as they were being. But she was also confused because she wasn't sure why she cared so much. Sure, she liked Harry a lot, but getting this upset about it just wasn't logical. And Hermione was used to being completely logical.
Hermione dropped her stuff off in her room and headed back down to meet up with the boys to go to dinner. She really needed a break to sort out her thoughts tonight.
~<>~
"Hermione!" Ron whined loudly. So much for that break.
Hermione sighed heavily from her seat and looked up at Ron. It had only been five minutes… "What is it now, Ron?" The brunette rubbed her eyes tiredly and lowered the book she had been reading to her lap.
"Can you check my work again? I'm not sure if I did it right." Ron answered.
Hermione groaned and glanced at the clock. 11:48. Great, just great. "Didn't I just explain it to you?" she asked tiredly.
"Well yeah, but that was problem 8, I'm on 9 now."
It was at this point that the third person in the Common Room at this ridiculous hour intervened. Harry quickly stood up, "Ron, why don't we give it a rest and finish it tomorrow morning."
The lanky redhead sprung to his feet, "That's the best idea I've heard all night! Let's go, mate." With that said, the two boys quickly exited without another word. Hermione remained on the couch. She looked sadly up the stairs to the boy's dormitory before turning back to the fire. Hermione set her thick book down on the small table in front of her and looked into the fire with a sigh. The fire flickered and sighed in front of her. Floorboards squeaked softly around the room and the winds whispered to the creaking trees outside. A lone tear traveled down her soft face and she looked up at the clock again.
11:59.
The bell suddenly rung brilliantly as the minute hand moved to finally become parallel with the hour hand. Six more days until Christmas. "All I want for Christmas is a little appreciation," Hermione whispered.
When the twelve tolls were completed, the room reverted back to pure and oppressing silence.
December 20
Harry and Hermione stood side by side. Ron faced the two of them with a smile on his face. The Hogwarts Express stood proudly in the midst. Smoke drifted lazily out of its smokestacks and it was glowing with a special holiday 'festiveness'. "Well guys, I'm off! You two have a Happy Christmas." Ron embraced Harry warmly before turning to Hermione. He caught her in a tight hug. "Thanks for everything Hermione." He whispered, "I really appreciate all of the help this year."
This caused Hermione to smile widely, "Your welcome, Ron." She hugged him back tightly, "You have a great Christmas with your family. Say 'hello' to your mum for me."
"Will do, ma'am." Ron saluted cheekily and winked at Harry. This being done, he turned and made his way onto the train.
Harry smiled down and Hermione and lightly took her hand. "I haven't seen that smile in a long time! I was wondering what had happened to it. What did Ron say that could make you so happy?"
"Something I hadn't heard in a long time." Hermione answered simply.
"It must have been something mature then!" Harry joked. Hermione laughed and Harry dragged her back up to the castle, "Come on, Hermione! We have an entire two weeks off from school! Let's do something fun!"
December 25
"Hermione! Wake up!"
Hermione was awakened from her happy slumber at some godforsaken hour. She checked the clock. It was only 7 o'clock. And on Christmas Day! The sun had barely gotten up. What sort of lunatic would wake her up now?
"Hermione! Don't make me come up there!"
Hermione rolled her eyes. That lunatic. It was Christmas already, and still only Ron had thanked her for anything. Harry still went about his oblivious self. Hermione dressed herself warmly and made her way down the stairs. When she emerged in the Common Room, Harry greeted her warmly. Delicious smells wafted from the small table near the glowing fireplace.
"What's this, Harry?"
"Breakfast, Hermione! No one else was awake yet, so I just decided to bring breakfast up for the two of us."
Hermione shook her head but a smile graced her face. "Of course no one's awake, Harry. It's only seven in the morning and we're on break."
"But it's Christmas!" Harry answered as if it made all the sense in the world. "Besides, I brought your favorites!"
Hermione grinned, "Ooh! Are those fresh scones?!"
~<>~
"Those were delicious, Harry! Thank you!" Hermione beamed happily. Nothing like a great warm Hogwarts breakfast to wake you up early in the morning.
"Anytime." Harry answered smoothly.
"Shall we open presents now, then?"
"No!" Harry answered quickly.
Hermione raised an elegant eyebrow at him. "Why not, Harry?"
"Let's wait until tonight for that. I want to prolong the excitement a little longer."
"But I really wanted to open one this morning!" Hermione pouted playfully.
Harry, thinking she was serious, pulled a package out of his pocket. "Well here then, Hermione." Harry grinned, "Why don't you open this one now. Then we'll come back tonight to open the rest of your presents."
Hermione smiled, "Sure, Harry. We'll do this your way, this year." She quickly tore the wrapping paper and discovered two gloves. "Harry!" she exclaimed, "these are just what I needed!"
Harry shrugged, "I remembered that you lost one of your gloves when we went out in the snow last week. I figured you could use new ones. Oh, by the way, I charmed them myself!" Harry said proudly, "They are completely indestructible and waterproof. I also put a permanent warming charm on them. Oh! And the best thing, you can change their color with a simple wave of your wand!"
Hermione smiled widely, "Thank you very much, Harry! This was very thoughtful of you."
"I try." Harry said with a wink. Hermione felt her insides slowly melting into a puddle of goo. Harry really could be sweet when he wanted to be. "Come on. Let's go try them out. There is fresh snow on the ground that's just begging to be tossed into your hair!"
Hermione smirked, "Best 3 out of 5?"
"You're on!"
~<>~
Nine games later, the two of them had finished playing and were making their way back into Hogwarts for a nice warm lunch.
"You cheated!" Harry claimed.
"No I didn't." Hermione said innocently, "My wand accidentally slipped into my hand and I said Wingardium Leviosa. It was purely coincidence!"
"You cheated!" Harry repeated.
"Psh." Hermione scoffed, "you should have dodged it anyways; you're just too slow!"
Harry growled and tackled her into the snow again. "Harry!" Hermione shrieked. Harry landed on top of her and his momentum carried his head forward. The two ended up far closer then he had originally intended. Their faces were merely inches apart. Hermione's face was flushed and she was breathing heavily. Harry's breath came out in little white clouds.
The two stayed in the same position for a long moment. Harry quickly scrambled off of the girl and helped her up. "Sorry." Harry mumbled softly.
"It's fine." Hermione answered. "Shall we go to lunch?"
"Right." Harry answered quickly. The two headed back into the warm castle.
"By the way, Harry. Thanks for the gloves. They work marvelously."
~<>~
The rest of the day flew by. Harry and Hermione spent their time having fun and spending time with the students that stayed at Hogwarts. Soon, dinner was over, and as Harry promised, it was time to open presents!
"Where are we going?" Hermione asked. Harry was leading her away from the Gryffindor tower.
"To open presents." Harry said simply. He had a certain glint in his eye that excited and scared Hermione at the same time. This should be interesting…
Eventually, Hermione began to recognize the hallway. It was one she and Harry had traversed many times in their time in Hogwarts. Hermione looked inquisitively at the striking boy beside her. "What's going on, Harry? Why are we going to the Room of Requirement?"
"You'll see." Harry answered shortly. Hermione could a flicker of a smile on his features though, and this caused her to relax-slightly. The two approached a completely innocent-looking door in the middle of the hallway. No one would spare it a second glance or find anything curious about this door. It was simply a door. Not a big deal.
Right when the duo came upon the door, Harry quickly put his hands over Hermione's eyes. The brunette jumped in surprise. "Harry! What are you doing?"
Harry chuckled, "Don't worry, Hermione. Nothing is going to hurt you. I promise. Just trust me."
Hermione tried to relax at his words but she was still tense with anticipation for what might come next. She heard the door creak open and Harry nudged her on into the room. Harry led Hermione a little farther into the room before stopping her. Finally, after what seemed like ages, Harry moved his hands from before Hermione's eyes.
Hermione gasped.
The Room of Requirement had morphed into a very cozy and warm setting. A fire burned gently on the wall to her left and a Christmas tree stood proudly in the corner. Decorative emerald wreaths hung elegantly from the ceiling. What shocked Hermione, though, was the monumental stack of presents on the wall. They were carefully and colorfully wrapped and neatly stacked in piles that rose in accordance to their mass. "Harry, what is this?!" Hermione exclaimed.
Harry smiled. "Happy Christmas, Hermione."
"Are these all for me!?"
Harry nodded, "Yeah. 26 of them."
Hermione was completely shocked, "Why?"
"One for every day that I have no properly thanked you for being there for me." Harry answered simply.
"What do you mean?" Hermione asked. How could Harry possibly know that a little thanks was all she wanted?
"I know that I've been a horrible friend for the past four weeks. I guess I got so used to you always being there that I started to take your for granted. I'm sorry Hermione."
"How did you know this was what I wanted?" Hermione asked. "Not the presents or anything, but the appreciation?"
"Remember a week ago?" Harry asked. Hermione nodded. "I knew that you were pretty frustrated and that we had just left you in the Common Room. I was coming back down to make sure you were alright when I heard your wish…"
The fire flickered and sighed in front of her. Floorboards squeaked softly around the room and the winds whispered to the creaking trees outside. A lone tear traveled down her soft face and she looked up at the clock again.
11:59.
The bell suddenly rung brilliantly as the minute hand moved to finally become parallel with the hour hand. Six more days until Christmas. "All I want for Christmas is some appreciation," Hermione whispered.
After a moment, Hermione spoke. "You didn't have to do all of this, Harry."
"I know." Harry said with a smile, "I wanted to do something special for you though. I know that I put you through a lot sometimes."
"Why did we have to wait until now?"
Harry laughed, "Well, you can't expect Dobby to hand wrap all of these presents in a few minutes! And yes, I'm paying him!"
Hermione smiled back at the raven-haired boy. "Harry, not to ruin your present to me, but you only got me 26 presents."
"Right, what's wrong with that?"
"Four weeks, Harry. That's 28 days!"
Harry rolled his eyes, "I can do math, Hermione. Those gloves this morning were part of it." Hermione nodded in understanding. Harry continued though, "Now I have one more present to take care of."
Hermione was confused yet again. Harry just laughed, "You didn't think I was so cheap that I would make each glove an individual present, did you?" Hermione rolled her eyes and slapped him lightly on the arm before motioning for him to carry on.
Harry fully turned to face her. He took a deep breath and Hermione looked at him curiously. Before she would think again, Harry had leaned down and kissed her softly on the lips. Hermione gasped and just stared at him when he backed away.
Harry fidgeted nervously as Hermione stared at him, "Well, did you like it?" he prompted with a shaky laugh.
"What did you do to make Ginny tell you!?"
Harry was slightly taken aback, this wasn't the reaction he had been expecting. "Huh?"
"How did you know this was the other thing I have wanted to years?"
Harry laughed. She thought that he had made Ginny tell him that she liked him! "I didn't know!" he winked, "I just hoped that I would get lucky."
Hermione was silent for a minute. "So, what does this mean?"
"How about you go with me to the next Hogsmeade visit and we'll find out together." Harry offered.
"That sounds reasonable." Hermione said with a smile, "On one condition."
"What's that?"
Hermione pulled Harry into another kiss. When she finally pulled back, "I'll be allowed to do that whenever I want."
Harry grinned widely and pretended to think for a moment, "I dunno if I have time, Hermione. But I'll try to fit you in."
Hermione slapped Harry on the arm again and rushed into a warm embrace. "Thank you for everything, Hermione." Harry whispered.
"Don't think that gifts will get you out of every mess, Mr. Potter. You got lucky this time."
"Today's just my lucky day isn't it!" Harry teased.
"It is." Hermione agreed, "oh, and Harry…"
"Yes, Hermione?"
"I liked your last present very much. Very much indeed!"
AN2: Well, everyone, that's it! A little short, but I think it gets the point across nicely! As always, feel free to leave a review and let me know what you think! Have a wonderful Christmas and a Happy New Year, folks! Cheers!