Yule season had always been a favorite of Draco’s before they had turned into a nightmare.
When he was younger, his mother and father spoiled him rotten. There was always a grand tree and a filling meal before a lavish amount of gifts were bestowed upon him. It was the one time of year that his father held a real, true smile on his face and the young wizard had absorbed every moment that he could of it. Everything changed when the Dark Lord returned. Coming home from school to the megalomaniac in his home had dampened every bit of holiday joy that Draco had. There was no big, bright tree or delicious meal awaiting him, only darkness and nightmares.
It had been many years since then and yet, the Yule holiday always gave the Malfoy heir pause. With his parents in France and not returning until Christmas morning, he was alone with his newest family to continue on with the traditions they had been building on their own.
“UNCLE HARRY! UNCLE DRACO! IT’S ME! I’M HERE!” Rose called out as she skipped into the sitting room, a bright smile on her face. Harry’s own smile widened as he held his arms out wide, causing the little girl to squeal with pleasure before running into them. Hermione couldn’t help but watch with a fond look on her face as she entered the room.
“Rosie! There you are,” Harry beamed swinging her around dramatically eliciting peals of laughter from the curly-headed girl. “I was beginning to think you had forgotten about me.”
“Never ever Uncle Harry!” she giggled.
“Where’s my own little flower hmm?” Draco chuckled, kissing Hermione on the cheek. It wasn’t but a few moments later that Theo entered the room, with a quiet but shyly smiling curly-haired princess of his own. “There she is.”
Without any prompting at all, the four-year-old quietly made her way into Draco’s awaiting arms, showing him the new book she carried proudly. Harry and Rose had always had a very loud, dramatic relationship from the moment she entered the world. The young girl's personality was that of her father’s. Draco had been terrified of the little creature. But her twin sister Iris had stolen his heart from the beginning.
“I see how it is,” Theo scoffed, gently resting his hand on his wife’s back. “The girls are all you two care about.”
“Not all,” Harry smiled lovingly, carrying Rose in his arms as he walked over to Hermione and rested a hand on her swollen stomach. “How’s the little niffler doing in there hmm?”
“Really Potter?” the blonde wizard scoffed lovingly. “That’s what you’re calling our child now?”
“If I recall, it was you that didn’t want to know if the baby was a boy or a girl,” he pointed out, caressing the bump protruding from the witch.
“Mummy has been sick,” Rose pointed out and Theo snorted.
“What?” Draco asked, standing up with Iris in his arms.
“Mione you didn’t say anything to us!” Harry exclaimed. “What can we do? Do you need something to eat? You should sit. Draco get her favorite blanket.”
“Harry I’m fine,” she said gently, exhaling a small laugh. “It’s all very normal pregnancy symptoms. Especially a magical pregnancy symptom.”
“I’m still convinced that she is carrying twins for the two of you,” Theo joked, enlarging the small gifts he pulled out of seemingly nowhere and slipping them under the tree.
“Do try to remember that this is our child, not your genes that clearly were starving for attention and quickly impregnated your wife with two spawns at once,” Draco rolled his eyes.
“What is this racket going on in here hmm?” Sirius boisterously exclaimed as he entered the room, causing Rose to gasp.
“Papa! Papa!” she squealed even as Iris tried to get shh her.
“My beautiful flowers!” Sirius laughed holding his arms open as Rose squirmed to get down and run to hug him. With a few quiet whispers and smiles, Draco sat Iris down and she delicately ran to snuggle into his side while Rose barreled into him.
“It’s as if I don’t exist when he enters,” Harry grumbled and Theo just laughed loudly.
“Now you know how we feel Potter,” Theo smirked.
When the war had ended, Hermione had gone to Australia first thing to bring her parents back home. It was upon her arrival though that she had been informed of the grave news that while her parents had indeed made it safely to Australia, they had died just mere weeks before the young woman had come to retrieve them. When she had returned to London, the witch had been in a state. She wasn’t eating, sleeping, or speaking to anyone. Remus and Sirius had taken it upon themselves to support her and convince her to lean on them. She had become almost a surrogate daughter to them in a way, even walking her down the proverbial aisle when she married Theodore Nott. It was no surprise to anyone that her children would consider them their grandfathers, especially considering that Theo didn’t have any family left of his own.
“Snuffles Papa! Can we see Snuffles!” Rose giggled and even Iris smiled.
“Please Papa?” she asked quietly.
“After dinner my little flowers. Our dear Moony is awaiting us all in the dining room with Teddy,” he whispered conspiratorially to them before rising and leading them all out of the sitting room. They had resided at Grimmauld Place at first while everyone had been recovering and healing from the war. It was discovered rather quickly though that no matter how much time had passed, the scars and ghosts that lingered in that home affected them all.
It wasn’t until Harry had gone to Gringotts to claim his title with the help of his godfather that the location of Potter Manor had been revealed and passed to Harry. Sirius wasted no time at all demanding that they all relocate immediately. It was conveniently large, allowing for the comings and goings of the many people that had stayed with them over the years.
Things changed though when Hermione brought Theodore Nott home with her unexpectedly. The man was clinging to her as if she was the pillar holding him together and looked at her as if she was the most precious gift on earth. But along with Theo, came Draco Malfoy. It had taken time and a lot of growth on both of their parts before Draco and Harry were ready to admit the attraction that had always simmered below the surface.
“How are you feeling really Granger?” Draco asked quietly as the others walked in front of them, talking and laughing about any and everything. Hermione and Draco’s friendship had been a shock to everyone, especially when it came to light that she had been seeing the Nott heir in secret since their sixth year and that Draco had been helping them keep it a secret. While Harry was her best friend and always would be, she and Draco had a bond that was different. They didn’t caudle one another but were fiercely loyal and protective. It became clear that their friendship had played heavily into the reason that Draco has refused to identify them that night at Malfoy Manor, why Lucius and Narcissa had laid their wands and the Order’s feet, begging for asylum and offering anything and everything they knew about Voldemort and his plans all while still appearing to stand loyally at the man’s side. They had proved to be better double agents than Severus Snape had ever been.
“I’m alright,” she smiled softly, squeezing his hand gently. “I had worse morning sickness with the girls. I will say the cravings with this child though… out of this world.”
“Don’t forget the bouts of accidental magic you’ve been having,” Theo piped in, smiling lovingly at his wife before winking and carrying on his conversation with Iris.
“Accidental magic?” the blonde wizard looked at her, eyes wide.
“It seems you and Harry are going to have a very magical baby,” she answered, smiling brilliantly and leaving him unable not to return the gesture.
The subject of surrogacy had been a topic that Draco and Harry had put off for the longest time. It had taken so much time for them to finally express their love to one another, selfishly they had wanted to hold onto just one another for as long as possible. It had been sickening really according to Pansy and Ginny. They were in their own little world the majority of the time, only letting their family and closest friends into it for short periods of time. All of that changed when Hermione had fallen pregnant with the twins.
While Hermione Granger was the brightest witch of her age, Theodore Nott was nearly as brilliant as his beloved wife. They had known early on that due to the dark magic from Dolahov’s curse and the torture at Malfoy Manor, having a baby traditionally was something that was higher improbable. That was until Theo took it upon himself to become a healer. Once he had graduated, he used to knowledge of potions and spells and his experience as a healer to create the first magical treatment to reduce the effects of dark magic on the body. His potion allowed his wife's cursed scars to begin to heal and the dark magic dissipated from her body. Within six months, the diagnostics all showed little to no lingering magic in her body. Shortly after the news, she had fallen pregnant with the girls.
The day the twins were born was a day Draco would never forget. He had seen the love and adoration Theo had for Hermione but it wasn’t until he saw them with their newborn children that he realized he longed for that. He wanted to have those moments with Harry. Still, he waited and bided his time. It wasn’t until the twin's first birthday that he approached the topic with the love of his life. Harry had been hesitant at first, claiming he was enjoying being a godfather and that he wasn’t ready to give up his freedom with Draco yet. Not to mention they were both Aurors and raising a child in that environment was something he wasn’t too keen on. It was a year later when Harry had been injured on a case and the girls had brought him freshly baked biscuits and get-well-soon cards that he admitted to Draco that he wanted children with him.
Wasting no time, Draco left the Aurors claiming that had more money than they would ever need, there was no reason he needed to be working and risking his life every single day. Long nights were spent debating on who would father the first child and if they could trust a complete stranger to carry said child for them. It had Pansy and Neville that had suggested finding someone that they knew to carry the child for them. Immediately both men knew that if anyone was going to do it, they wanted it to be Hermione.
“You know if you need anything, even if it’s just someone to take the girls off your hands for a few hours, you can always owl me,” he stated as they entered the dining room.
“I know,” she whispered before smiling at Remus and kissing Sirius Black’s cheek. Dinner was a festive, joyful affair. Teddy and Rose attempted to outtalk the other while Iris whispered with her Uncle Draco. It was warm and loving and everything that every adult in the room had ever wished for. After dessert was eaten and the children were tucked into bed, Christmas eve night was left with the adults. Remus and Sirius were cuddled up together on the chaise by the fire. Sirius had his head in his lover's lap while Remus read contently, stroking the black curls of the man he loved. Theo was holding Hermione close, swaying together as the gramophone played music softly.
Tucked into Harry’s side, Draco couldn’t help but smile with contentment. Soon they would have their own little one to share Yule with and he couldn’t wait.
“Happy Christmas Draco,” Harry whispered, his soft lips brushing against Draco’s. Inhaling the familiar scent that was his love, he smiled happily, caressing his cheek.
“Happy Christmas Harry.”