Song: Everybody by Ingrid Michaelson

I walk into the Great Hall with the gifts I got for my friends, quite excited for everyone's reaction to them.

Susie, Hannah, Ernie, Justin, and I have gotten each other gifts since our first year, but this year seemed different with everything that has gone on. For instance, Justin still hasn't talked to me and is as stubborn as ever, but this didn't stop me from getting him a gift. It's been a tradition for so long, and I didn't want to leave anyone out no matter the circumstances.

Upon walking further into the Great Hall, I see Hannah, Susie, Ernie, Justin, and Zacharias sitting together at a table. They all look over towards me as I sit next to Hannah and set the bags on the table.

"Oh Libby, you made it! Are you ready to get started?" Hannah asks eagerly as she eyes up the gifts.

I give her a warm smile as I say, "Of course I am."

Reaching over, I grab the bag with silver snowflakes and hand it to her. She beams with joy as she opens up the bag and takes out a book about different magical plants and some chocolate frogs I had gotten her. I figured she could read about the plants, and then would have something else to talk about when she's with Neville.

"Thank you so much, Libby!" she says as she pulls me into a big hug.

After a few moments, Hannah pulls away to admire the book, and I anxiously hand Susie and Ernie their gifts as well.

"Libby, I love it! You are the sweetest," Susie says as she takes a beautiful white and gold pheasant feather quill and rainbow ink out of the bag I had given to her.

I glance over next to her, seeing Ernie take out the two bags of candy I had gotten him. He loves chocolate frogs, so when he saw them he yelled out, "yes!"

"Thank you, Libby. You're the best!" Ernie smiles at me, and I give him a genuine smile back.

I turn towards Justin to see him looking a bit wistful, but as I hand him a bag his expression changes to confused and quite shocked. He pulls out two bags of candy that are similar to Ernie's, but in them are his favorite candy; Fizzing Whizzbees.

"Um, thanks Libby. I—I didn't expect you to get me a gift," he says, obviously still in shock.

Before I can reply, Zacharias blurts out, "where's my gift?"

I shift my body to face him as I respond with, "Well, you've never really been apart of this, so I didn't get you one—" I then turn my direction back towards Justin as I answer with, "—and Justin, I couldn't just stop the tradition of getting everyone in our group a gift. Though we've had our moments this year, I still wanted to get you one."

He gives me a soft smile, and then starts to dig into his candy.

Zacharias has a face of what I assume to be annoyance, as he watches Justin indulge in the Fizzing Whizzbees.

We continue to exchange gifts, and everyone has given me one besides Justin. I sort of expected this to happen for obvious reasons, so I'm really not upset about it. I'm just glad I got him a gift, and maybe this would be a start to getting our old friendship back.

After we've all received our gifts from each other, we eat dinner with satisfaction and engage in conversation. It reminds me of years past, and the many memories we made doing this exact same thing. It's amazing to see how much our friendship has grown, and I realize how much spending time with them means to me.

Savoring the last few bites, I finish the delectable feast and walk back to the commons with my group. Hannah, Susie, and I are talking about Christmas and how excited we are to go back to family for the holiday.

We reach the entrance, and I do the password to get into our comforting, inviting common room. I really will miss it while I'm away, but I'm so excited to see Nymphi and my parents.

"I'm going to head to my dorm and read this book... thank you again Libby and see you later Susie," Hannah says, waving at both her roommate and I.

I wave back to her, plopping down on one of the soft sofas. Susie sits next to me, leaning back more into the cushions. There's a few moments of silence before she speaks up, "I've been meaning to ask you something."

"What is it?" I inquire, wondering what she could be talking about.

"Well, the Malfoy's have a ball at their manor the day before Christmas Eve, and my family goes every year, since both my parents are higher up in the Ministry—" I nod as she continues, "—and every year I'm dreadfully bored with no one but my parents to talk to. So, I guess, I was wondering if you'd be able to come along with me? " She gives me a hopeful look as she asks.

"Oh well I—um—" My mouth splutters out as I try to speak.

I would love to accompany her, but at the same time, I really don't know if I want to be going to Draco's house especially after our little moment up in the Astronomy tower. Plus, I'd like to spend as much time as I can with my sister as I haven't seen her in months.

"If my sister isn't home by then and my parents agree to it, then perhaps."

She squeals in delight at my answer.

"I—um—didn't say for sure...plus, I'm uncertain if my parents will let me since I'll be telling them about it so late..."

"I'm sure they'll agree...I can have my parents reassure them that you'll be just fine with us," she says with a wink, to which I hesitantly smile at. Susie is my best friend, so surely if I'm able to, it wouldn't be that bad... right?

Just then, Ernie, Justin and Zacharias walk in. Ernie immediately spots us and rushes over, squeezing himself between Susie and I on the sofa. I shift a bit to the side, letting out a laugh as he throws his arms behind both of us. He leans further back, letting out a sigh with a smile.

"Thanks again for that candy, Libby! I'm absolutely stuffed."

I laugh a bit as he pulls Susie closer to him. "Of course, Ernie."

Justin and Zach make their way over towards us; Justin awkwardly shoots me a smile as he sits in the chair next to my end of the sofa. Zach, like he usually does, stands around giving us a bored look.

He's someone that I'll never understand or care to like; ever since our first year, he's been quite a jerk.

"You didn't eat all of it already, did you?" Susie asks, giving Ernie an incredulous look.

"Yeah..."

She shakes her head at his response. "Didn't even offer me any? How rude." She jutts her lip out playfully, leaning out of his embrace and turning her head. She's teasing him, but I don't think Ernie is getting that as his face drops and turns red.

"I-I—I was meaning on—er—I—I have your gift up in my room-"

She giggles at his spluttering of words, standing and pulling him up with her. "I'm teasing you, Ernie. Show me to your room then—" his mouth drops before she quickly adds, "—to grab my gift."

Her cheeks are now as red as his, and I can't help the laugh that escapes my lips. I even hear Justin snicker at his best friend's flustered expression. Zach lets out a huff before walking away towards the boy's dormitories.

Good riddance.

"I'll talk with you tomorrow, Libby!" Susie waves over her shoulder as her and Ernie head up towards his Prefect suite, leaving Justin and I in the common room. There's an awkward silence until both of us speak up.

We both stop talking, and let out a laugh.

"You go first," I suggest before he clears his throat. He's leaning his elbows on his thighs, darting his gaze around: I can tell he's nervous.

"I just wanted to say thank you again for the gift...I wasn't expecting it." His dark brown eyes finally look up into my lighter blues; brown eyes I had loved looking into months ago.

Now, silvery gray is what I see in my fantasies.

"Well of course. Like I said before, I wasn't going to stop our tradition because of...whatever happened between us." His eyes dart down as a guilty expression etches his features.

He glances back up at me, letting out a sigh. "I'm sorry, Libby. I should've never assumed anything. It wasn't right of me. I have been acting poorly towards you, and for that, I wouldn't be surprised if you hated me."

I lean closer towards him, placing a hand on his shoulder.

"I don't hate you, Justin. I don't think I could ever truly hate anyone." The corner of his mouth quirks up at that. "And thank you for apologizing. It means a lot to me. Let's just start over, as friends. No more ignoring or awkwardness between us, okay?"

He nods subtly at this. I squeeze his shoulder reassuringly before standing up. "I best get up to my room and pack. I'll see you tomorrow. Goodnight, Justin."

As I begin walking away, he says, "Libby—" which makes me stop in my tracks and face him, "—there were no other girls. I had made that up because I was upset."

I smirk a bit at his confession. "I figured as much."

He rubs the back of his neck awkwardly, before saying, "yeah...I've never been the best liar, huh?"

I laugh at this, shaking my head. "No. You're quite easy to read, Justin. But that's a good thing, I think."

"You think? Oh boy..." he laughs, shaking his head, a genuine smile forming on his features. "Goodnight, Libby."

I wave before turning back around and heading up to my room. After walking in and closing the door, I begin to pack.

As I'm packing though, I find myself smiling that at least I've gained my friendship with Justin back. Although he has his moments, he was always a good friend of mine, and I really hated losing that friendship. He had been the second person to introduce himself to me upon our first day at Hogwarts, and ever since then we had become really close. When our hormones started to "act up" last year, we found ourselves getting closer, and one day he had kissed me.

We dated for a majority of the year last year, but, like I have said before, we broke it off because he wanted more and I was still hesitant.

I'm happy we've gotten over this bump in our path of friendship.

...

"Owl me right away once you know...okay?" Susie says, giving me her usual bone-crushing hug. The Hogwarts Express has made it to Platform 9 3/4 , and we're now all departing for our short Christmas break.

She pulls back as I let out a, "I will, don't worry." I glance around, not seeing Nymphi anywhere, and my heart begins to sink a bit.

She smiles at this before saying, "I'm sure she is okay." I turn my attention back to her as she grabs back onto her small luggage set. Her eyes are soft as she reassuringly places a hand on my shoulder.

"I hope so." I hear someone call for Susie. "I'll see you soon." I smile at her as she adjusts the bags in her hands.

"Sooner than later," she winks as she says this before walking away. I stand awkwardly around the platform, waiting for one of my family members to pick me up. As I'm waiting, I look around at all the students reuniting with their loved ones; parents eagerly chatting with their kids, asking how school has been so far, while friends hug each other as they part ways for the break. I find myself smiling at how joyful everyone seems.

Well...most everyone.

My eyes find a familiar platinum-haired boy, with a black, leather suitcase coming off the train. He doesn't see me right away as he glances around the platform, most likely looking for his parents.

His face is sullen, as if he's hating the fact that he's heading home. The thought sends a pang to my heart. I could never understand never wanting to go home as it's full of warmth, love and comfort; I feel the most at ease when I'm home.

He's getting closer with each step, and before he spots me, I call out to him.

"Draco!" I'm not sure why I do this considering what happened the last time we talked.

He's only a couple meters away as his gaze locks in on mine, his expression lightens up a bit as he walks closer. I see him shift his eyes around cautiously as if he's trying to make sure no one is watching him approach a Hufflepuff willingly.

As he nears, he says, "mummy and daddy forget to pick you up?" A smirk forms on his lips, most likely thinking he hit a nerve.

"No...but it looks like yours have," I retort back, wiping the smirk right off his face. A sad expression fills his features, but it's immediately covered up with a scowl.

"Is that the best you can do, Tonks?"

Just as he says this, I spot my parents standing aways down the platform, still searching for me. I feel a tad upset that it isn't Nymphi picking me up, as it means she may not be home for Christmas.

I wave over my parents who finally see me; they're smiling as they begin to walk over towards us.

Turning to him with a soft smile, I say, "have a happy Christmas, Draco."

His eyes shift down towards the ground before glancing back up at me with a stone cold face.

"I'll try." His voice is sour and full of bitterness before walking away. I pity him, honestly. It's clear he doesn't want to go home; not even the joyfulness of Christmastime seems to help.

"Libby, dear!" my mother's voice rings out; the sweetness of her tone shakes the sadness that encompassed my aura moments ago.

I drop my luggage before wrapping my arms around her smaller frame. My father circles his arms around us, and we all embrace each other for a few seconds before pulling away.

"How's school been so far, kiddo?" my dad asks, picking up my luggage for me.

His sandy blonde hair is mostly hidden under a fedora. Although he is gleeful at the moment, I can tell he is quite drained: most likely from work. Being a Muggle Expert at the Institute of Muggle Studies can be quite tiring, I would assume. He is one of the top ones as well, as he is Muggle-born, and those who are Muggle-born can usually give a lot more expertise on Muggle world things.

"It's been going well...a bit stressful because of the O.W.L.S this year. How have things been with both of you? How're things at the Ministry, mum?" I turn my head towards my mother who lets out a shaky breath.

"Things are going oddly well considering what happened with...you know. Dora told us that they've been following many of those speculated in being..." she glances around before whispering, "Deatheaters."

My mother gives me a hesitant smile, clearly holding back information since we are still in public. We're currently walking through the train station, heading to the Floo Network station nearby to get home.

I nod along before asking, "speaking of Nymphi...when will she be home?" At this, both my parents look at each other with saddened expressions before turning to me.

"I don't think she'll be home for Christmas this year...she's been tasked with some harder cases...at least that's what she owled us last," my father says with a pout.

My face falls significantly at the information. Even though I'm happy to be home with my parents, it won't be the same without my best friend. Whenever she left during the summer, the house was oddly quiet and not as exciting.

"Oh," is all I mutter out. My mother instinctively wraps her arm around my shoulders, pulling me closer to her. Her warmer vanilla scent seems to soothe me a bit.

"She may be able to come home...it wasn't completely set in stone." Her remark gives me hope as I look up and give her a small smile.

"I hope so..."

We continue walking and chattering about my schooling and fun times with my friends. My mother talks about the latest Ministry gossip with me, with my dad butting in every so often about his dislike for Cornelius Fudge and the way he has handled recent situations. Once we are home, I bring my suitcase up to my room, unpacking my things before heading down to enjoy dinner with my parents.

After helping my mom set the table, we finally sit down and eat.

"Mum, dad..." Both turn towards me, my father in the middle of shoveling more beef and potato stew in his mouth whilst my mother is taking a drink of some water. "Since Nymphi won't be here...I thought I could possibly spend some time with a friend. I--um--I was invited to go to the Malfoy Manor Christmas Ball with Susie and her parents."

My father, after swallowing the large helping of food, says, "I really don't like the Malfoys—"

"—when is it?" My mother cuts him off with a curious look in her eyes. Her behavior seems odd to me as she never cuts my father off like that. He only gives my mother a strange look before averting his gaze back to me.

"Um well you see...it's tomorrow—"

"—why didn't you tell us earlier?" My mother speaks up again; she's clearly not happy.

"I would have, had I known earlier. Susie just told me before we left for break here." I answer before letting out a sigh and continuing. "I understand if you wouldn't want me to go since I'm asking so late, but Susie doesn't have anyone to converse with there. I figured since Nymphi isn't here, it'll be nice to keep her company. Plus, I would stay with her and her family the whole night."

My mother's face softens at my words. She has a sweet spot for Susie as Susie is the friend that always has been incredibly respectful and kind. Her family is also close with mine ever since we were first years, so I feel like she may let me go.

My father, on the other hand, is going to be a tougher nut to crack.

His bushy brows are furrowed, clearly not liking the idea of me going to the Malfoy's place. He's always disliked the Malfoys as he said Lucius, back during their days at Hogwarts, would bully him for being Muggle-born.

The Malfoys are incredibly prejudiced about one's blood status. It's been like that for years apparently.

"I don't know. The Malfoys are not the kind of family I want my daughter being around. I know you'd be with Susie and her parents, but the fact you're in his home does not sit well with me," he remarks with a sour expression.

I nod along, my gaze dropping to my almost empty bowl of stew.

Before I can say anything more, my mother says, "Ted...I'm sure she would be fine. Bob and Barabra will keep a good eye on her. Plus, Dora won't be here...it would be nice for her to spend some time with Susie."

I stare at my mother with wide eyes, surprised that she's almost insisting that I go.

My parents lock gazes, almost having a private conversation with their eyes. After a couple of silent seconds, my father looks at me with a defeated look.

"Fine. You may go. Just stick with them, aright? I really don't trust the Malfoys."

I softly smile at my father. "I will! Thank you! Thank you!" I glance between him and my mother with an appreciative smile.

"Now, go owl Susie before it's too late," my mother suggests with a playful wink. I nod with a quick smile before getting up from the table.

"Once I owl her, I can help with the dishes, mum," I quickly say before bolting up to my room.

As I make my way into my room, I hastily grab some parchment from my desk and an older quill with a pot of ink. I write out my quick letter which just details that I am able to come to the ball with them, but, while finishing up the letter, I can't help but to wonder if I even should go.

I'm going to see him there. It's inevitable as it is his house.

I promised my father I would stick with Susie and her parents, but what if Draco somehow coaxes me to go off with him?

What if he wants to speak with me... in private?

What am I even thinking? Like he'll do that.