FicWad

Christmas was coming. How strange not to feel its spirit! Not even when all twelve trees, which Hagrid had dragged from the dark forest, were decorated, nor when the air smelled of cinnamon and Christmas sweets. Not even when presents started appearing in small towers. Elfy smiled at the beautiful necklace and the warm letter from her father. She shed a tear after reading her mother's letter, in which she criticized her irrational mindset and the missed opportunity of being with a great wizard. The package from her stayed untouched. One unsigned gift deserved her most significant interest, though. On a black velvet pillow, a mahogany wood box lay an astonishing hair comb made of white gold and generously sprinkled with snowy pearls. Her fingers ached to touch it, but her brain screamed, "Don't you dare before you know who sent it." She eyed the room as if searching for answers in the darkness of an empty portrait. Thinking some more, she closed the box and put it aside before noticing her neighbor.

"Ah. Presents." Draco's sulking gaze flew over her boxes. "Who is this from?"

"I do not know."

"Are you not going to try it on? Of course, I wouldn't expect that hermit-like you to even know the-" A slap across his face made him pause. The suddenness of Elvein's actions did not allow him to realize what had just happened. He looked at the girl, whose face had turned unrecognizable.

"Bastard! You bastard! How dare you?! What gives you the right to treat people like that? What are you trying to achieve? What are you proving? Don't you have an example? Remember your father! If you don't care to live and want to rot in Azkaban, do us a favor, do not wait till you ruin our lives. Go, jump from the astronomy tower! I defended you. I thought you were just unlucky that your parents poisoned your mind. That you were coerced into being the way you are! That you did not have a choice! And what are you doing instead? As if the war never happened, right? What is the point of having bright eyes if your soul is darker than this damn lake?!"

I am not an animal! I am a human being! This thought roared through her head. She could not tolerate it anymore. She spat her words in his face. She was ashamed, but the landslide had already happened, savagely running over intelligence and dignity.

It was too late now.

The harm was done.

...

It was past midnight when the firewhiskey-groggy Head Boy returned to his room. Shuffling along the dark hallway, he was in a hurry wondering if Elvein had found his present. He searched for the perfect gift for almost a month, choosing with a trembling heart in hopes that he would make her happy, that he would apologize and they'll finally make up. Seeing her cold treatment was like a splash of cold water. It turned him into a beaten puppy once again. He did not even remember what he said to her to upset her this much. She slapped him and told him all those horrible things, which had deep dark roots in his soul, long before she said them aloud. He could not remember how he turned away and left the room. Where was he going? The only ally he could think of at that moment was his owl, who must have been in owlery. He managed to get into the west tower, but his bird was not there. Unlucky even in this. He thought to himself and smiled bitterly. As he was trying to spot his bird on the dark horizon, Draco reached the top of the steep tower.

" ... jump from the astronomy tower... do us a favor.." Those thoughts rang through his mind, and he started to rock over the edge when cold fingers clasped around his chest and dragged him inside. The fragile girl could not hold his weight and fell onto the slippery floor, dragging Malfoy with her. She winced in pain but quickly rose, slamming Draco against the wall. She started screaming at him so vigorously that all of the owls left the tower.

"Have you gone mad?! How could you even think of such a thing?! Oh, Merlin! I did not even mean to say that! Never, ever, ever consider such a heinous act! Are you hurting? Endure! Do you think you are the only one in pain?! Wear your scars with pride! If life were so easy and painless, it would not have cost a pierced knut!"

Draco looked at the girl whose eyes were swollen with tears, whose face had the cutest shade of pink, who was grabbing her messy hair and was not calming down. And he smiled. She looked so real, so alive that he did not even notice when he reached down and pressed his lips against hers. There it was! The dreamy fireworks feeling. The girl shuddered and pushed her nails into Draco's arms, but even this pain he greeted with pleasure. Elfy's sobs, which he caught with his lips, made him want to die and be reborn. His hands slipped around her waist, just like snakes, and he pulled her closer. Her shivering body did not reject him but answered his affection with her punishing kiss. Moaning once, she pushed him away.

The fear in her eyes made Draco return to reality. She dragged him to their common room, slammed him into the chair, and went to her bedroom with loud, incomprehensible shouts.

That's it, Draco. The game is over. What else were you expecting? Anger found its way back to Malfoy's soul, reminding him of every cold gaze and every indifferent behavior, and he once again wanted to smash his hand on the wall. Through the open door, he heard how the girl was searching for something in her room, then screamed, "Petty!" With a familiar crack, a house-elf appeared and greeted her mistress.

"Good night, miss. What can Petty do for you?"

"Good night, dear. I'm so sorry for calling you, but can you ask my father to send one bottle of red?"

"Of course, miss." Another loud crack made the house-elf disappear. Then another one and she was back.

"Miss, your father tells you that this is the only bottle he will send till Easter. And that you should not worry so much, and be careful."

"Thank you, sweetheart."

"Is there anything else I can do for you, miss? You look very agitated."

"Nothing, dear. Maybe just a hug."

"Oh, with pleasure, Miss. You know, Petty will always be there for you, miss, whenever Miss needs me."

There was one final loud crack, and Petty the house-elf was gone.

The world has gone mad, for sure, thought Draco. Wizards were hugging elves, Draco was dragged around like a child, and Elvein was descending stairs with a bottle of wine and two glasses. She filled both vessels, put one in his hand, and told him to gulp it down.

When she saw Draco's skeptical look, she answered with an annoyed eye roll, "You were about to jump from the owlery, and now you are afraid of muggle wine?"

Draco agreed and chugged the whole glass of wine. His soul almost sighed and felt a little relieved. That made him curious, but he switched his attention to something more substantial.

"Is your father an elf or something?"

"No, he just owns a winery."

"What kind of parent sends alcohol to his daughter's school?"

"It helps," she shrugged.

Without any doubt, with every drop of drink, Draco grew calmer. "Helps with what, exactly? Why do you need this?"

"You are asking too many questions."

"You're right; I would be better off walking towards the astronomy or divination tower. What were you saying?"

"Stop it! I apologize for those words. I shouldn't have said that."

"Why? Is that not what you think?"

"Don't you even think of that anymore! Ever! Please." Elvein was looking at her hands and twisting her goblet of wine.

"Come on, even if I did do something, it would not be on you. Anyways, why does your father send you wine despite every bit of common sense saying not to?" Draco was dying of curiosity. This was the first time he had gotten a chance actually to get to know Elfy, and he was not going to pass it up quickly.

Elvein sat silently, then proposed, "Let's make a deal. Promise me; you will never try to... to do something that stupid. In return, tonight, I will answer all of your questions. With the sunrise, we will pretend this crazy night never happened."

"Wouldn't I be sold for cheap? Some answers for my life."

"Or else, I will tell your friends and family, and they will not leave you for a second. How's that perspective? "

Draco only now noticed that her knee was chafed, and her elbows bled.

"You know what? Go to the hospital wing and forget this nonsense." Elfy's indifferent gaze shifted to her abraded limbs, then she shrugged.

"It might leave a scar," added Draco.

"It wouldn't be my first or last ones." That caught his interest even more.

"Fine. Deal. Though do not forget, you proposed that." Draco had to call up his whole dynasty's deviousness, not to cheer victory.

"Why were you absent for almost a year? Then returned in the middle of the battle?" This was Draco's first question.

"I was homeschooled."

"Why?"

"Do you realize that tonight I am buying your life, and in return, you want an emotional, girly story?"

Satisfied that he had dug up something personal and hidden, Draco comfortably sat down on the sofa and opened his hand in agreement.