Last chapter! Thank you all for reading, and have a Merry Christmas! =)

Chapter 8

The next morning, Christmas Eve, Draco expected to find every last decoration gone, but when he walked into the living room, he was shocked to see the room decorated ever-festively. And what shocked him the most was his parents standing near the Christmas tree. His mother held out a small ornament, and his father looked at it.

"Don't you remember?" she asked him. "Draco made this one, as well as all these ones here."

Lucius nodded. "Yes, I do remember. I remember him getting evergreen tree branches all over the carpet in my study as he made this one. He was only five, I believe."

Draco didn't know what to make of this. He thought about everything he told his father the day before as he tried to sleep last night. He figured that his father would still be adamant about hating Christmas, but here he was, discussing ornaments with his mother.

"Draco!"

Draco snapped his attention to his mother. "Yes?"

"We were just talking about all the ornaments you've made. We figured that we could follow a tradition and make some more."

Draco creased his brows. "Make more ornaments? I thought we were going to get rid of all the decorations."

"Things have changed. Go find Helena. She can help as well."

"You're not sacking her?"

Narcissa looked to her husband, giving him a look, then back at Draco. "No. She's staying right here."

Draco noticed his father look off to the side, like he wasn't pleased with the idea. But nonetheless, Draco smiled and went off to find the maid who changed their home from gloomy and dismal to bright and cheerful.

The snow crunched underneath Draco's boots as he, his parents, and Helena, trudged through their property to find small fir branches, pine cones, holly, or anything that could be turned into an ornament. He eyed his father. What does he think about this?

"Lost in thought?"

Draco looked over at Helena, who trudged in the snow right next to him. "Not too much."

"I think your father is warming up to the Christmas festivities. I heard him and your mother talking earlier this morning. She was saying how much fun she's had over the past two weeks, and how happy she's been. I suspect that conversation was pretty similar to the one you had with your father yesterday."

Draco eyed her for a moment. Her brown curly hair was loose and bouncing around her head as she walked, and her bright hazel eyes seemed green with the snowy background. And her rosy lips curled into a smile. She was indeed beautiful. More than any girl he's seen. More than Astoria.

"Yes," he let out, his cheeks warming up at her attractiveness. "It was a little similar."

"Well, I think it worked—at least in some degree. Your father's out here with us. Probably something he wouldn't have done before, and for a reason he would think ridiculous."

They both looked over and saw both Narcissa and Lucius stop at a smaller pine tree and clip some branches off. Narcissa had Lucius hold them as she retrieved a few pine cones. He still didn't look all too thrilled.

"I think he's just going along with it now," Helena said. "And that's progress."

Draco looked back at her. "Helena."

"Yes?"

He stopped, as did she. She noticed his expression. "What's wrong?"

He slammed his gloved hands in his coat pockets. "I guess I... I'm just glad that you don't have to leave."

She smiled, and Draco was very temped to lean in and kiss those lips of hers. "I'm glad, too."

That gaze held, and only when Draco took a step to her, both their names were called and they were brought back to their activity. They laughed and walked on and found more branches, twigs, holly with berries, and other little things that could be made into ornaments.

That night, they added some of their new ornaments to the main tree in the living room, and distributed some of them to the other Christmas trees in the other rooms. Draco really wanted to talk to Helena privately, but was always pulled away by either of his parents. Giving up, he spent the evening with his parents in the drawing room, drinking Helena's hot chocolate, eating gingerbread cookies, and talking about Christmases when Draco was young.

He hoped that this tradition kept on going. He hoped he could see his mother and his father enjoying themselves at Christmas. Admittedly, the holiday grew on him, too, more than he thought. Thanks to Helena.

Christmas Day. Draco hopped out of bed before the sun even came up and practically skipped to the lighted Christmas tree in his room. Child-like happiness coursed through him at seeing brightly wrapped gifts under the tree. He didn't waste any time. He tore open each one of them.

After opening his new marble chess set, the newest spells book that he's wanted since his first year at Hogwarts, and a box of his favorite German chocolate truffles, he noticed something on the tree that wasn't an ornament that he nor Helena had put up. It was a small gold envelope. Draco took it off and sat crisscrossed on the floor in his pajamas.

"What's this?"

He opened the small envelope about the size of a business card holder. A small paper was inside. On it was written, in curvy handwriting, two small words:

Tell her.

Draco stared at the note for a moment. What did this mean? Tell who what? Draco thought for a moment. St. Nick definitely wrote the note. His job is to ensure that everyone is happy and gets what they want at Christmas time.

It came to him. His heart pounded at the thought, of the one thing that he wanted to do the day before, but never had the chance to.

"Alright," Draco said to St. Nick, wherever he was. "I'll tell her."

Draco got up and changed out of his deep blue pajamas and headed downstairs to the living room. The tree was all lit up, and, standing next to it, was Helena. She looked up at it, a smile on her face. Draco gulped at how radiant and beautiful she was, wearing not her maid's outfit, but a formfitting red sweater and black slacks.

She turned her head. "Draco."

He walked up to her, hands in his pockets. "Happy Christmas."

"Happy Christmas to you, too. Did you open some presents already?"

"I did. There were a few under my tree."

She smiled again, which sent his heart through a loop. "That's wonderful! I see a few here addressed to me. I can't wait to open them."

He walked up next to her, and he could smell her rosy scent. His heart pounded hard against his chest, and he felt his neck heat up. He stared at Helena as she gazed at the tree. She noticed him staring at her.

"What?"

He didn't waste a moment. He took her waist and pulled her close to him. A little gasp escaped her as he leaned in and caught her mouth with his. It was so soft and warm, and oh so inviting. He wrapped his arms around her slender form and took advantage of her inviting mouth. His pulse rose when she responded and kissed him just as passionately, and entwined her arms around his neck.

He never thought that he could feel this happy in his life, especially with his current circumstances. He found himself not wanting to let her go just so he could continue feeling this happiness.

The kiss slowly stopped and Helena looked back at him. "Wow..."

"Yeah, I know. Um... there's something that I need to tell you. Something that St. Nick reminded me I should do."

"Oh? And what's that?"

His mouth lifted in the corner. "You drive me mad. You have made me the happiest that I can remember being. And I mean genuinely happy. I don't know how my Christmas would've turned out without you here."

Tears glistened in her eyes. "I'm so glad, Draco. And... to say the truth... I'm mad about you, too. I've fallen for you pretty hard, and I think it all started when you first came to Hogwarts and I saw that stark blond hair of yours."

He held onto her tighter, which brought her face closer to his. "You have made me and my family so much happier. You helped me forget the horrid things going on in my life, what I have to for the Dark Lord... I don't know how to thank you for that."

"I'm glad, Draco. And you helped in it, too."

He smiled. He was about to make contact with her mouth again when they heard someone clear their throat. Both looked over to find Draco's parents standing there in the entrance to the Livingroom, both in their pajama robes. Narcissa was smirking.

"For mercy's sake, you two," Lucius said, "are you going to snog or are we going to open some gifts?"

Both Draco and Helena laughed and stepped apart from one another. "Absolutely," Helena said gleefully, and all of them gathered around the Christmas tree. Draco's heart shot through the roof with happiness at seeing smiles on both his parents' faces. He glanced at Helena.

His family couldn't have received a better Christmas gift.