Written for the monthly one-shot exchange, for Fire The Canon. Prompts used: SeamusLavender, teddy bear, and I was only supposed to pick one genre out of family, fluff and romance, but it kind of ended up being a mix of all three.
This kind of got away from me, it was supposed to be much shorter but eh, I love Seamus with Lavender, and I love the idea of them as parents. Oh, and happy Valentine's Day (it's honestly just a coincidence that I happened to finish this today)
XO, Karo
"All right, you two. No running, and no touching anything. And stay within sight of me. Understood?"
Seamus looked down at his children, holding their hands lightly in front of the swinging glass doors of Gertrude's Gifts, a large, bustling shop in the Carkitt Market off Diagon Alley. Gus, the older of the two, was practically jumping in place with all the energy of an nine-year-old, a toy wand clutched tightly in the hand that was not holding his father's. His sandy blonde hair stuck out at odd angles, as Seamus had been unable to convince him to brush it before they left their home.
"Da, can we get some ice cream after?" Gus asked excitedly. His sister, holding onto Seamus' left, nodded in agreement. Her hair, in sharp contrast to her sibling's, was clean and prim, a long, darker pleat resting against her back. She was only seven, yet Seamus marvelled at how alike she was to her late mother, despite Lisa having died of cancer when Katie was just two. The little girl was already much more calm and collected than Gus ever was and ever would be, and Seamus thanked his lucky stars for it every day. He had a hard enough time taking care of them both and working for the Ministry full-time.
"Yeah, ice cream! And then can we go see the animals?"
Seamus squeezed her hand, nodding. "Yes, if you're good. Okay, you know the rules. Let's go."
Even though it was early morning still, the shop was busy; witches but mostly wizards were streaming in and out, and Seamus sighed at the sight. He should have known that he wouldn't be the only man left scrambling to find a suitable Valentine's Day gift the day of. He held onto his children tightly as he led them inside the colourful, whimsical store, teeming with chatting and laughing patrons.
"What are we here for, again?" Gus asked, a whine already tinting his tone. He was like his father – he hated being in confined spaces, needed room to stretch and hop and run, and Seamus could see that the many people in robes swirling around them were making him anxious.
"We have to find a gift for Auntie Lavender, remember? The faster we can do that, the faster we can get ice cream."
Seamus was really terrible at giving gifts. He had tried, he really had, to catalogue information about Lavender in his mind since they had begun dating only six months ago, but now, faced with what seemed like endless rows and knick-knacks and home décor, all those little pieces of knowledge seemed to float away. Gus was looking around in front of him, having quickly let go of his hand to look at the most interesting of objects, but Katie had stayed by his side, pointing out things here and there she liked.
"What about that, Da?" She said, pointing to a pink fluffy teddy bear that had the words 'I love you' embroidered in red on it, and which giggled when you tickled it. Seamus grimaced.
"Oh, sweetie, I don't think so. Let's keep looking." As he said it, he felt a tug on his jacket behind him. It was Gus, and behind him stood Lily Luna, the youngest of the Potter family, her bright red hair bobbing as she bounced happily.
"Da, Da, look who I found!" Gus cried, brandishing his fake wand at Lily, who was the same age as him, and who attended the Patils' home school with the Finnigan children during the week.
"Lily!" Katie cried, hugging the older girl.
"Seamus, don't tell me you're getting that for Lavender," Seamus heard. He looked up to see Ginny walking toward them, pointing to the girly bear Katie seemed to have grabbed when her father wasn't looking. Though Lavender may have loved it when they were younger, war, motherhood, marriage and divorce had matured her into a thoughtful, driven, warm woman – not the kind who would appreciate a giggling stuffed bear. Seamus widened his eyes and shook his head, smiling.
"No, I think Katie's just taken a liking to it." Ginny hugged him and planted a firm kiss on her cheek. "What are you doing here? You're not at work?"
"Oh, it was Luna's birthday yesterday, and I forgot to get her something. Lily wanted to tag along," Ginny said, nodding toward her daughter, who currently was chatting excitedly with Katie and Gus, their heads bowed together. She looked around at the bustling shop. "Though I've begun to regret the decision to come today."
"Yeah, well, I regret it on the best of days. Any plans for tonight?"
Ginny laughed, crossing her arms. "Not really, Mum's taking all the kids, you know how she likes a full house, so Harry and I'll just have ours to ourselves. A luxury, really, especially now that Teddy's all but moved in. You?"
"We've got dinner reservations at seven. Dean's watching ours. Help me out though, will you? I need something for Lav. I'll buy us all a round of ice cream," he finished loudly, and Gus's head shot up, face beaming.
"You're hopeless," Ginny said, sighing dramatically, and the young girls giggled.
"On the contrary, Mrs. Potter. I'm very hopeful."
::
Later that day, Seamus was cooking a quick supper for his children, his gift for Lavender wrapped up on the small table by the door. He'd chosen a delicate set of teardrop earrings and a candle that changed scents depending on your mood – well, really, Ginny had chosen, and he had paid. Now, he was chopping carrots and keeping a close eye on his children in the open living room attached to the kitchen. Katie had taken out the sketchbook and bright colours Dean had given her for Christmas, her new teddy bear perched on the coffee table watching her, and Gus was playing with the action figure versions of the members of Dumbledore's Army, spewing sound effects.
"Da, Gus is playing too close to my colours!"
"Am not! Hey, she's pinching me!"
"Angus, leave your sister alone. Kathleen, don't touch your brother. You two are going to have to smarten up when your uncle Dean comes to watch you!"
"Daaaaa!" the two cried. They hated when he used their full names. Just then, the fire place burned green and the aforementioned uncle Dean walked out, shaking off the ashes from his coat and spelling them away.
"What are you two rascals whining about?" Dean said, his tone teasing. Seamus rolled his eyes – Dean never was one to announce his visits.
"You're early, we don't need you 'til seven," Seamus said, throwing the carrots in a pot of boiling water and turning to lean against the counter, facing his friend.
"Yeah, about that –"
Katie had jumped up, her most recent drawing in hand, waving it at him.
"Look, Uncle Dean. I drew our house!"
Dean's face lit up; he was always so happy to see Katie using his gift. "Yeah? It's really nice. I particularly enjoy the shading you did here, in the corner. You must be using the techniques I showed you last week." Her chest puffed up in obvious pride, and she returned to her work.
"Uncle Dean, I'm playing with you! Well, the action figure you. And Da, and Uncle Ron, and Auntie Hermione." Gus did not want to be left out of the attention.
Dean bent down to examine the figures closer, ruffling Gus' blonde hair. "Well, Shay, I'm happy to report that I'm much more handsome in real life," he said, winking at Seamus, who just shook his head. "Hmm, what smells good?"
He stood and walked to the fridge, pulling a beer out and popping off the cap with his wand. Seamus rolled his eyes at Dean's easy casualness, but said nothing about the beer.
"It's for the kids. You know, because Lav and I are going out for supper? Remember?"
"Yeah…" Dean looked into his bottle before taking a sip, clearly avoiding the question.
"Dean?"
"I, um, I forgot and, then I agreed to a date tonight, seeing as it's Valentine's Day and all, and –"
Seamus tapped his fingers against the countertop, shaking his head.
"Dean, you promised! And you're single, what does it matter if it's Valentine's Day?"
"It's just, I got these tickets to an art gallery opening, they're non-refundable, and I'm really sorry, I'll make it up to you?" He winced apologetically.
"Oh, give me that," Seamus said, grabbing the bottle and taking a big swig. "You don't deserve my beer, or my friendship." He handed it back to the tall man leaning against the fridge and turned to the food he was preparing.
"Your kids love me, though!" Dean said brightly, waggling his fingers at Katie, who smiled at him before going back to deciding between a red and a blue wax crayon for the tulips she was drawing.
"Luckily for you," Seamus grumbled, grinding some pepper into what looked like a pot of pasta with marinara sauce. "Kids, go wash up. And Gus, use soap this time. Make sure he uses soap, Katie!" he called after the kids, who went running down the corridor toward the bathroom.
"I really am sorry, Seamus, I just completely forgot."
Seamus darted his eyes to the gift he'd finally wrapped satisfactorily earlier after three unsuccessful attempts. Katie had giggled each time he swore under his breath as the coloured paper broke, and Gus had just nodded knowingly. It was hard to stay mad at Dean, especially when it was he who had pushed Seamus away from the black hole of grievance and toward Lavender, saying that really, Lisa would have wanted him to be happy, and that the kids knew and liked Lavender, anyway. He sighed.
"Ah, bugger. Who's the unfortunate bloke, then?"
Dean shrugged his coat off and threw it at one of the chairs around the kitchen table, then reached up to open one of the cupboards.
"Oh, just some Muggle photographer from the studio. Handsome as anything, bit daft though. Four plates, then?"
::
Lavender looked appropriately surprised when she opened the door to Seamus, Katie in his arms holding the wrapped gift and her package of colours, Gus standing beside them, hopping on one leg then the other alternatively.
"Seamus? What are you doing here? I thought we were going to yours first," she said, tucking a stray strand of blonde hair behind her ear. She was still in a bathrobe, obviously partway through getting ready for the night.
"Is Jack here?" Gus asked before Seamus could answer. Lavender nodded, mouth agape.
"Yeah, he's in his room. Go on," she said, and Gus immediately pushed past her, Katie wiggling her way out of her father's arms to follow. Before she'd gotten too far, she turned around, ran up to Lavender and dropped the gift in her hand, then disappeared again.
"I'm sorry," Seamus said as Lavender crossed her arms, ignoring the present. He leant down to press a chaste kiss to her pursed lips, "but Dean cancelled. I didn't know what to do so I just brought them here."
She rolled her eyes, but a small smile was hidden in the corners of her mouth.
"Between you and Dean, I don't know who's more hopeless," she said, and Seamus laughed.
"You know, you're not even the first person to call me that today." He kissed her again, and this time she wrapped her arms around his neck and tiptoed to meet his lips. "You're going to have to work on your originality." They were silent for another minute as they kissed, until they heard the quick pitter-patter of children's feet behind them.
"Ew! Look Gus, my mum and your dad are kissing!" Seamus peered over the top of Lavender's head to see her son, Jack, grimacing, his tongue out and his eyes screwed up tightly. He was Gus' age, and though the two didn't always get along – Jack had inherited the McLaggen tendency toward brash behaviour, even though he could be kind like his mother when others weren't watching – they still enjoyed playing together most of the time. Gus appeared behind Jack, Katie trailing not far behind.
"That's what people do when they love each other," the little girl said solemnly, folding her hands in front of her as Gus wrinkled up his nose.
"Yeah," Seamus said, Lavender stepping away softly, "like this!" He stepped forward and grabbed Gus and Jack by their waists, pressing firm kisses on their cheek.
"Daaaa!"
"Blech, Uncle Seamus!"
Lavender laughed as Katie squeaked and sped off, Seamus chasing after her with his fingers waggling, ready to tickle her.
::
Really, Lavender and Seamus had never done things in the proper way, Seamus thought later as the two were curled up together on the couch in front of the television, glasses of wine in hand and kids tucked safely into bed, Gus in a conjured one in Jack's room and Katie on a pull-out couch in another. The unlikely family had watched cartoon movies and played Exploding Snap until the children began yawning, chip crumbs on their clothes and chocolate staining the corner of their mouths.
"Seamus?" Lavender's voice was sleepy, her tongue thick in her mouth, eyes slipping closed even though it was barely eleven. Seamus pressed a kiss to her head, smiling.
"Hmm?"
"I'm glad we stayed in tonight."
Seamus laughed quietly.
"I'm happy too. Don't tell Dean though, he still thinks he owes me a favour."
He turned the television off and helped Lavender up, stretching. They made their way to her room, stepping lightly so as not to wake the kids. Seamus paused at the door, observing Lavender as she took her clothes off to put on the snuggly flannel pyjamas he'd gotten her for Christmas. The house was quiet but for one of the boys' little whiffling snores, and the moonlight shone on Lavender's blonde wispy braid. She turned and smiled at him.
"Coming to bed?" she asked.
Yes, he thought. Yes, he could get used to this.