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“You’re staying back for me, right?” Luka asked in an amused tone as he leaned against the nearby stone walls of the Slytherin dungeons. His arms were crossed behind his head,a smug look resting on his face.
The Ravenclaw girl in front of him was not happy. She let out a huff as she walked up to him, grabbing his collar as she pulled him down to her level. Annoyed bluebells met with mischievous teals as the boy let out an amused chuckle.
“Feed your ego as much as you want, Couffaine. I told you earlier, too, I just want to see what Hogwarts’ Christmas looks like.” The girl reached forward to wrap his silver-green scarf tight around his neck, causing him to choke and splutter for air as she spoke.
She giggled, her laugh a birdsong to his ears. As Luka recovered from his coughing fit, he straightened up to give her a smug look. “Marinette, you’re in Year Six. You could have seen the Christmas celebrations the next year, as well.”
“I-I…” Marinette sputtered for words, before harrumphing as she crossed her arms over her chest, turning away from him. “Fine! You win! But can’t a girl just want to spend her one magical Christmas with her boyfriend?”
“Of course she can. I just wanted to feed my eg- OW! ”
“There, better,” Marinette hummed in appraisal as she dusted her hands, causing Luka to pout as he rubbed at his injured shoulder.
“Rude. Anyways,” He looped an arm around her waist, pulling her close. She let out a sigh as she snuggled into his side. “I remember telling you to stay away from Slytherin dorms. So, why are you here? I could have come over to pick you up.”
“And remained stuck arguing with the wise raven at the door ‘cause you suck at solving riddles?” Marinette giggled. “Nah, I care for your dignity too much, Star.”
He hummed appreciatively. “That’s sweet of you, Heartsong, but still, please stay away from the Slytherin quarters as much as you can. You know how snakes are…” Luka’s voice trailing off as he noticed a fifth year Slytherin ogling his girlfriend. He wrapped his arm tighter around her shoulder, hissing at the insolent junior and causing him to flee.
“Luka,” Marinette whined as she cupped his cheek softly, causing him to look down at her. “Hey, it’s okay.”
“Well, you’re not the one with an Aphrodite for a girlfriend.”
He chuckled as her cheeks flamed up, his breath hitching at her wicked smile and the way she looked up at him through her eyelashes. “Well, I might or might not have duelled with a few people to make them keep their claws off my boyfriend.”
“And that, along with your seductive charm, makes me wonder why you’re not a Slytherin,” Luka commented in a low voice before pressing his lips to hers.
She sighed into the kiss, melting against him before breaking the kiss. Luka let out a whine, causing Marinette to laugh. “You big baby, we’ve got a celebration to attend.”
“Aww, but kisses after the party, pretty please?” He pleaded, and Marinette bopped his nose softly.
“We’ll see, love. We’ll see.”
“Okay, when you said Christmas Party, this was not what I had expected it to be.”
Luka’s heart melted at how cute his girlfriend looked with the stars in her eyes as she took in the view of the Great Hall. There were large decorated fir trees, mistletoe, and holly put around the area, with snow falling from the ceiling. The Slytherin boy couldn’t help the small chuckles that escaped his lips as Marinette tried to catch the snowflakes on her tongue, before letting out a surprised squeak.
“It’s dry! And warm!”
“It’s magic, Cupcake,” he commented with a small laugh, ruffling her snow-covered hair.
She giggled as she took his hand and practically dragged him to the Ravenclaw dining table. Usually, students ate with their respective houses, but it was Christmas, a time to cheer and mingle with folks.
The Headmaster gave some short festive speech that Luka didn’t care about; he was too busy staring at the love of his life. As soon as the Feast was announced, the table was laden with delicacies. There were mouthwatering roast turkeys; mountains of roast and boiled potatoes; platters of chipolatas; tureens of buttered peas; silver boats of thick, rich gravy and cranberry sauce. The flaming Christmas pudding and the special eggnog were a delight of their own.
Luka couldn’t help but laugh at Marinette’s expression when she had picked up a Wizard Cracker, only to have it explode and leave her covered in blue smoke and surrounded by cute, little, white mice. He also prided in how red he had made Marinette go with his comment about snakes and mice (though the punch he received afterward was a little less appreciated).
After dinner, the tables were cleared and the students delighted themselves in exchanging gifts, friendly duels, and snowball fights. Luka stayed at a distance, watching Marinette sing carols with some enchanted suits of armor. The party was fun, but he was starting to get fidgety. He had never been a fan of gatherings and had spent most of his Christmases in his dormitory, all by himself and his guitar. But he wasn’t going to let his anxiety come in the way of giving Marinette the Christmas she deserved.
Marinette looked at him, and he tried to give her his best smile. Though when she dropped the fake snow in her hands and marched up to him, Luka was sure he had not been convincing enough.
“Is everything okay, Lu? You seem off,” Marinette asked, brows furrowed, loving concern laced in her voice.
“I-I’m fine.”
She caught his hand, and he frowned slightly. He hadn’t been aware that he had been spinning his ring all the time.
“You know you can’t lie to me, Luka.”
He didn’t say anything. Marinette simply let out a huff, before grabbing his hand and dragging him out of the hall.
“Marinette, where are we going?” Luka asked, surprised.
“Out of here,” came the muttered reply.
Luka stayed quiet, letting his girl take him wherever she wanted to. The cool, frigid air nipped at his cheeks, proving to be a welcome respite to clear his thoughts. Ahead of him, Marinette wrapped her scarf tighter around herself, snuggling into it.
They stopped near the Great Lake, which was frozen over in the cold. Luka turned to give Marinette a questioning look, and she merely shrugged her shoulders as she took out her wand. Walking towards the body of water, she bent down and touched the surface with the tip of the wand.
With a quiet mutter of “Glacius,” and a blue flash of light, a large portion of the lake froze over.
“Marinette?”
She turned to look at him, her cheeks flushed. “You love ice skating, and I didn’t get you some nice present, so…”
He walked over to her, settling down beside her as the snow crunched under his feet. He gently cupped her cheek, feeling her nuzzle into the warmth of his gloved hands. “Melody, you being with me is the best present I could’ve ever asked for Christmas.”
She giggled before waving her wand over his shoes and hers, turning them into skates. He shakily got to his feet before extending a hand out to her. She took it bashfully, and he pulled her flush against himself, smirking at her.
Luka carefully got onto the ice, testing it before nodding at Marinette to get on. She approached the sheet of ice unsteadly, nearly stumbling, but he caught her in the nick of time. She flashed a smile at him, lighting up his entire world. Slowly but steadily, Marinette started to get the hang of skating, laughing as she glided along the ice.
Her enthusiasm was infectious, and as they held hands, Luka expertly twisted his arms a bit. Marinette let out a surprised squeak as she was pulled into a spin and picked up into the air. She gave him a flabbergasted look that had him chuckling, before she laughed along with him as she spread her arms and legs out, enjoying the feel of the cold winter air on her face.
He got her down and spun her around once more, pulling her down in a dip as they skidded to a stop. She looked up at him with a sad smile, causing him to cock his head to a side in question.
“I’ll miss you, Lu.”
“It’s the matter of only a year, Melody.”
“A year without you ,” she whispered forlornly. “What if… what if you find someone better than me?”
“There’s no one who can compete with you, Mel.”
“Still?”
Luka let out a sigh, straightening her up. Marinette looked shocked and hurt, but he simply raised a finger, asking her to wait as he reached into the pocket of his coat. Finding what he needed, Luka subtly pulled a box out of his pocket, hiding it deftly from Marinette’s curious gaze. He had had the box on him for a few weeks now, in hopes of not losing it. He had wanted to give her the present on his graduation day, but given Marinette’s impatience…
He took a step back before getting down on his knee, grinning at the gasp Marinette let out as her hands flew to her face.
“I know we’re young, I know we’re idiots, but we’re young idiots in love, ma cherie . And I don’t want that to change between us, ever. I wanted to save this for the graduation, but since you’re so insistent, I won’t mind doing this early. So, Marinette Dupain-Cheng,” he brought the box out from behind, opening it to reveal a necklace that lay inside, “Will you accept this promise necklace and allow me to be your dorky snake, forever?”
He let out a deep breath. “There’s really no one else for me but you.”
“You,” Marinette gasped, tears glimmering at the corner of her eyes, “You sneaky snake! I thought you were going to propose!”
“Is that a good thing or bad thing?” Luka asked nervously, rubbing at the back of his neck.
“Of course it is a good thing, you doofus!” Marinette squealed, wiping at the tears that had managed to stream down her cheeks. “I-I… you’re such a sap.”
“I’m your sap,” he answered breathily, before snapping back to attention. “You didn’t answer my question yet, though”
“Do I really need to, Star?” Marinette huffed in joy. “Of course the answer is a yes!”
Luka let out a whoop of joy, before getting the necklace out of the box hastily. “M-May I?”
“Of course,” Marinette whispered, brushing her hair to one side.
Hands shaking, Luka draped the necklace around her neck, lightly kissing her shoulder before pulling away. She giggled, turning to wrap her arms around his neck. He kissed her forehead, pulling her close to himself as he leaned his forehead against hers and let out a happy sigh.
“Look, it’s snowing!” Marinette whispered in awe, causing Luka to glance up. He stuck his tongue out a little, catching some snowflakes. It was cold and wet.
“And this time, it’s real.”
“You dork,” Marinette giggled, and Luka laughed along. “What did I do to deserve you?”
“Said yes to my proposal?”
“It wasn’t a proposal. My parents are not gonna accept this unless there’s a ring in the package.”
“Or a baby in the carriage?”
“That’s it. No more kisses for you till graduation.”