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Harry James Potter had many names so far throughout his life.
The Boy Who Lived.
The Chosen One.
Hogwarts Triwizard Champion.
Undesirable #1.
Savior of the Wizarding World.
War Hero.
Junior Head Auror.
And now he could add matchmaker to the list.
Or at least he can if his plan works.
Which, he mused, had a fifty percent chance of either working out wonderfully or backfiring spectacularly. Both results might even get him hexed. He wouldn’t let that stop him—he was sorted into Gryffindor after all.
“All right everyone!” Harry said, gaining the attention of his coworkers and fellow Aurors. “As you all know, over the past week everyone who wanted to participate in the Secret Santa DMLE Gift Exchange wrote down their names and put them in the Sorting Stocking in my office.” He flicked his wand and the aforementioned stocking came floating over to him. “For those who have done so, please step up one at a time. The Sorting Stocking will give you your gift recipient. Please make your purchases before December twenty-second, the day of the annual DMLE Christmas Party. So,” he said, clapping his hands and rubbing them together excitedly. “who wants to go first?”
Ron Weasley stepped up. “I’ll go!” he said with a grin. Harry stepped back and waited, hoping he'd done the charm correctly. He had read about how the Triwizard Cup chose its champions and applied some of that to his own charmed stocking.
The Sorting Stocking glowed red and a slip of parchment flew through the air towards Ron. The redheaded Auror snatched the slip of paper and read the name to himself as a grin spread across his face. “Wicked! I got—”
“Don’t announce who you got,” Harry interrupted him. “That defeats the whole point of this Secret Santa business.”
Ron’s ears turned pink as everyone around them chuckled.
“Right, so, who’s next? Harry asked the crowd.
One by one, those who were participating stepped up and received their names. Harry was glad his Sorting Stocking was working perfectly; he just hoped that the small change he made to two particular entries was done correctly. If the blush upon one entrant's face and the hesitant smirk on the other were any indication, he was fairly certain his plan was officially in motion.
Hermione Granger sat at her desk, eyes trained on the slip of paper in her hand and the name written upon it.
Draco Malfoy.
O f course, she’d been given Draco for the Secret Santa Exchange. She wondered briefly if Harry had a hand in setting this up on purpose but quickly dismissed it. Harry was smart, yes, but he wasn’t a fool-a-magical-stocking-when-it’s supposed-to-pick-randomly smart. He could have received help, she mused, but it really didn’t matter.
What mattered now was that she had to buy a gift for Draco.
But what ?
What do you buy a wizard who can, quite literally, buy whatever he wants, whenever he wants?
The subject of her thoughts passed her desk as he walked by next to his partner, sending her a glance and a brief smile before continuing with his conversation as if he hadn’t just sent butterflies straight to her stomach.
In truth, those butterflies had been happening for a while now. Ever since he and Ron had been assigned as Auror partners, Draco had been hanging out with him and his friends at pubs or at their houses. It had been odd at first, but once she got to know Draco, she found she quite liked him.
A lot.
Hermione had a feeling he might fancy her as well—if the lingering glances and the way he always sat next to her at meals were any indication—but for some reason the blond had yet to ask her out.
However, if the past had taught her anything, Hermione knew that if she wanted something, she had to do it herself—and if that meant asking him out, then so be it.
Being his Secret Santa was the perfect excuse to buy him something that could also result in a date. But what could she get him that would be something he would enjoy and would want to take her along as well?
Chewing on the end of her quill, she saw Theodore Nott head towards Harry’s office—the two boys had gotten close once Draco had started hanging out with them, and the two of them had formed a relationship a few months ago. If anyone could help her come up with a gift for Draco, it would be Theo.
With a smile on her face, Hermione set off to nab Theo from Harry for a few minutes—after all, it was Harry’s silly Sorting Stocking that assigned Draco to her in the first place.
Draco patrolled Diagon Alley with his partner, though his mind was elsewhere. Thankfully, with the fall of Voldemort over five years ago, the most they usually dealt with were patrons who drank too much firewhisky and the occasional shoplifter.
With his hand in his cloak pocket, Draco’s fiddled with the slip of paper that had Hermione Granger written on it.
“Stupid Potter and his stupid Sorting Stocking," Draco grumbled to himself.
“What?” Ron asked as he peered down an empty alleyway.
“Just thinking out loud,” Draco said. “Trying to figure out what gift to give my Secret Santa assignment.”
“Who’d you get? Maybe I can help?” Ron offered.
“Hmm, Potter didn’t say we can’t talk about who we got with another person,” Draco mused as he pulled out the slip of paper and showed it to Ron.
Ron chuckled upon seeing the name. “Hermione? Really? I figured she’d be the easiest person to shop for,” Ron said.
Draco rolled his eyes as he put the paper back in his pocket. “I’m not about to give her a bloody book. The witch has nearly all of Flourish and Blotts in her flat as it is.”
Ron shrugged. “Don’t get her a book then. You have a vault full of jewelry, I’m sure you can pick something out that she’d like. Plus, maybe now you’ll finally do something about the fact that you fancy her and ask her out,” Ron said, elbowing Draco lightly.
It was true that Draco had begun to fancy Hermione, but he had good reasons as to why he hadn’t asked her out. Shaking his head, Draco sighed. “I’ve told you, I don’t think that’s a good idea.”
“And I told you that you’re being bloody stupid,” Ron said. “If she really had an issue with your mark, she wouldn’t hang out with you when we all get together. Even Harry agrees that you two are both being bloody stubborn and just need to together already. And if you’re worried about the fact that she and I dated, don’t. Hermione and I were better off as friends, and we only dated for a week before we came to our senses.”
Draco ran a hand through his hair. “All right, let’s say I do ask her out. Where could I take her that can also be a gift?”
“Hmm,” Ron thought aloud. “There’s a New Year's Eve game between the Tornados and Falcons. You can take her to that?” Ron suggested.
“She hates Quidditch,” Draco deadpanned. “Honestly, do you know nothing about the witch?”
Ron scratched his head sheepishly. “Oh, right. Well, there’s always other things you can take her to like a museum or library or something… Oh!” he said, snapping his fingers as a thought came to mind. “What’s that one play she kept talking about the other day? The Nut something…”
“The Nutcracker,” Draco said. “That’s a Muggle ballet show, right?”
Ron shrugged again as they passed by a sweets shop. “No clue. Hey, I’m going to pop in here real quick. Want anything?”
Draco sighed in exasperation. “How Susan deals with your constant eating is beyond me,” he said, waving him off. “Make it quick. We need to finish our rounds so we’re not late meeting up with everyone at the pub later.”
The following week at the DMLE Christmas Party, Harry gave himself a pat on his back. Everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves as they ate the Christmas treats and mingled with one another. Theo was there as well, looking dashing as ever, and the bespectacled Auror smiled as his boyfriend approached with two goblets in his hands.
“So, I’m pretty sure someone spiked the eggnog,” Theo said, handing Harry one of the goblets filled with the beverage. “Probably because I did it,” he clarified in a fake whisper, tossing Harry a wink.
Harry chuckled and rolled his eyes as he took a tentative sip. “It’s not bad. We’ll just have to make sure no one tries to spike the punch as well.”
“No promises,” Theo said with a happy grin, slinging an arm across Harry’s shoulders. “So, have you seen them yet?”
Harry nodded and tipped his goblet in the direction of their friends. “Yes. They’re over by his desk, talking with Ron, Susan, Dean, and Seamus. I’m going to make the announcement soon for gifts to be exchanged. Hopefully they got each other gifts that show that they fancy one another. Otherwise, we’ll have to think up another plan to get those two together.”
Hermione stood next to Draco, and every time his arm brushed against hers—which was happening quite a bit—her stomach fluttered and flopped. Any minute now, Harry would announce that it was time to exchange gifts, and she would have to give Draco the gift she bought for him.
“It’s stifling in here,” Draco said as he loosened his tie slightly.
“Agreed,” Hermione said, nodding.
He motioned towards the doors that led out to a covered patio, decorated in twinkling lights. “Want to get some air?”
“Oh, um… Sure,” Hermione said.
Draco motioned for her to lead the way then placed his hand on the small of her back ever so slightly as they walked through the crowd and toward the doors. Hermione shivered at the contact though she was feeling anything but cold.
Draco led her towards a bench where they both sat down with barely an inch between them, even though the bench was able to seat at least two others.
He ran a hand through his hair before clearing his throat. “So, I know Potter hasn’t announced it yet, but,” he reached into his suit jacket and pulled out a small, long box, “I wanted to give you your gift.”
Hermione’s eyes widened. “ You’re my Secret Santa?”
He gave a nod. “I am.”
The witch chuckled softly as she pulled out a small box from within her beaded bag. “Well, as it turns out, I’m yours as well.”
Draco smiled and Hermione swore his eyes twinkled. “Really now? What are the chances?” he mused. “I wonder if Potter’s silly stocking did that on purpose or if it was a coincidence?”
Shrugging, Hermione fiddled with the package in her hand. “I’ve no idea. But, anyway, here. She handed him his gift. "Open yours first?”
Draco gave his present to her as well. “How about at the same time?”
Biting her lip, Hermione nodded. She untied the ribbon on her present slowly, eyeing Draco as he unwrapped his box. She carefully watched his reaction as he opened the lid.
He pulled out two pieces of paper. “Quidditch tickets?” he asked, looking at her questioningly.
Hermione nodded. “Yes. I know your favorite team is the Falcons and they have a game against the Tornados on New Year's Eve. You probably already have plans that evening, maybe even to that same game, but I was thinking, or rather, hoping that maybe you can take me with you. That's why I gave you two tickets. Of course, if you’d rather take someone else, that’s entirely your choice! I just thought that maybe we’d have a good time together and—”
“You want to go with me to a Quidditch game?” Draco interrupted, seemingly amused at her rambling.
“I… Well, yes,” she said, her cheeks heating.
“I thought you hated Quidditch?” he asked.
“I don’t hate it,” she defended. “I just find it dull after a while. But, I’ve never gone to a game with you and thought maybe we’d have a good time… together.”
His eyes found her and the skin around them crinkled slightly with his amused smile. “Hermione… are you asking me out?” he asked.
Hermione took a breath and nodded. “Yes, I believe I am.”
Draco smiled, nodding toward the gift in her hands. “You still need to open my gift to you.”
Hermione glanced down at her forgotten present. “Oh… Right.” She finished untying the bow, letting the silver ribbon fall to the ground. She lifted the lid and smiled at the two Nutcracker tickets tucked inside.
“The Nutcracker,” she said, smiling at him. “You remembered?”
“Well, you did mention it once or twice,” he said, nudging her with his shoulder affectionately.
Hermione ducked her head as she blushed. “I suppose I did.” She chanced another glance at him and found that he was watching her. “Do you plan on taking me?”
“Well, like you, I gave you two tickets in hopes that you’d take me, but if you wanted to take someone else—”
“No!” she blurted. Blushing once more, she cleared her throat. “I mean, no. I’d rather like if you took me.”
“The only tickets I could find were for Christmas Eve. Will that be okay?” he asked.
“So, we’d be spending Christmas and New Year's Eve together?” she asked curiously though she couldn’t stop smiling.
“If you’d like, yes.” Draco reached over and entwined his fingers with hers. “I’d very much like to spend as much time with you as possible,” he admitted quietly.
Hermione leaned forward and kissed his cheek. “I’d like that very much.”
“So, it’s a date?”
“I think it’s two dates, actually,” she teased.
Draco chuckled as he stood, tugging her up along with him. “I suppose we should thank Potter and that stupid sock of his,” he said as he lead her back toward the party, his hand never leaving hers.
“I suppose we should,” she agreed with a chuckle.
One Year Later
“I’m telling you, it’ll work,” Harry argued.
“Harry, do you really think forcing the Sorting Stocking to make Ron and Daphne each other's Secret Santa will get them together?” Hermione asked skeptically. “That’s a bit of a stretch, don’t you think?”
She and Draco were at Harry and Theo’s flat for dinner. They had retired to the living room for some drinks when Harry told them of his plan.
Harry shrugged, finishing up his work on his charmed Sorting Stocking. “Well, it worked on you two, didn’t it?”
Draco’s eyes widened as he looked at Hermione then back to Harry. “Are you saying you actually set it up so we got each other last year?”
“Yup,” Harry said with a wide grin. “You’re welcome, by the way.”
Draco rolled his eyes before resting his arm across Hermione’s shoulders, tucking her into his side. “Whatever. We would have gotten together sooner or later. It had nothing to do with that stupid sorting sock of yours.”
“Sorting Stocking ,” Harry corrected, earning himself another eye roll from Draco. “And if I hadn’t assigned you two to each other, you would have never spent last Christmas Eve and New Year's Eve together, which started your whole relationship in the first place,” Harry said knowingly.
Draco opened his mouth to argue, but Hermione placed her hand on his knee. “He does have a point,” she said with a sheepish smile. “I had fancied you for a while but never worked up the courage to tell you until I was assigned you for the gift exchange.”
Draco grumbled and blew out a sigh. “I suppose it did finally get me to stop dragging my feet as well. But I swear I had been thinking of asking you out for a while, I just didn’t think you’d accept.”
Hermione leaned forward to kiss his lips softly. “I know, love. But, thanks to Harry’s Sorting Stocking, it finally happened.”
“And now look at you two,” Theo said, coming in from the kitchen with plates of dessert floating behind him. “Happily in love and engaged to be married. All thanks to my Harry… and his Sorting Stocking.”
The End