Happy Christmas
"Happy Christmas Lily!"
She grinned, waving at Sirius and Remus as they stepped across the threshold. "Happy Christmas Rem. And you Sirius."
"You too Lils," Sirius replied in a mock serious tone, immediately sweeping her into a huge bear hug. Or dog hug, as James liked to call it. Remus' hug was softer, but no less filled with love and affection. With a grin, she grabbed her coat.
"James! Get your arse down here!" She called up the small stairs. The cottage in Godric's Hallow was admittedly incredibly small, but she liked it that way. The best part being that she never had to yell to get James to hear her. She tugged on the coat.
"Yeah Prong your mates are here and we're bored! Come show us that pretty bum-I mean face," Sirius amended as Remus elbowed him in the ribs. Remus turned to Lily as Sirius groaned melodramatically at the pain.
"How's your Christmas been Lily?" he asked as James came tromping down the stairs.
"Just lovely Rem, and yours?" She said with a grin, ignoring James' outstretched arm and looping her instead with Remus' arm. They stepped out without a backward glance for the two other men.
"It's been alright. After James insisted he have a few days of you to himself-" Lily blushed slightly at the memories of just how well James had used this time. "-before Christmas, Sirius has been very moody and annoying. He insisted that we spend time together while you to do, which has resulted in much…annoyance. Plus, he tried to get me to share a room with him last night! It's enough that I have to share a flat with the dog, much less a room." But he said it with a grin, and Lily knew all was right with the world. "It's been a little lonely since you and James have moved out."
Though it had been many months ago, she still had many vivid and unpleasant memories of multiple encounters with naked boys in the bathrooms that had brought that rooming arrangement to a halt. Though she missed the boys, she didn't miss them enough to move back in with them. She and James needed their own house now that they were a married couple.
"Oh, you see me almost every day! We work in the same shop, for crying out loud." It was Lily who had wrangled Mrs. Wrink of Mrs. Wrink's apothecary a few months back. Though she'd been hesitant to hire a werewolf, after Lily's assurance that he was harmless she grudgingly agreed. Despite Mrs. Wrink's hesitations, there had been no problems so far, and she and Remus had gotten along pretty well.
"Thank you for that by the way," Remus said as they walked along the snowy sidewalk on the main road. In a quieter tone he added, "You have no idea what a lifesaver that job was. Especially with the flexible hours." Remus had been forced to stop working for the Order full time on account of Sirius and his complete lack of money. Though James would have been happy to have given him the entire Potter fortune, they had insisted that they earn money themselves, and somehow come to the arrangement that Remus would work for the Order part time and earn money while Sirius stayed on with the Order full time. Remus wanted to work for the same reason Lily did: their pride didn't allowed them to accept charity from James. Even as his wife, Lily didn't feel comfortable using up his fortune like that. And she wanted as much saved as she could in case the situation became worse.
"Of course Rem. Come on you two!" she added loudly to James and Sirius, who were walked slowly behind them, whispering conspiratorially. She looked back, turning farther. Remus joined her, and they shared a glance for amused worry before turning back to the boys. "What are you doing?" She asked mildly, and they jumped a little.
"Nothing," James replied, putting his hands in his coat pockets nonchalantly. Sirius copied him. Lily rolled her eyes and Remus and she faced the front again.
"I suppose we'll know what that's about before the night is up," Lily said quietly, a hint of anxiety in her voice. Remus looked at her.
"They won't pull anything. Not on Christmas."
"I don't know… You did say Sirius was really lonely… and James and I have both been reminiscing about our Hogwarts days lately…They might try and revive the old Marauder spirit tonight."
Remus glanced back worriedly. "Hopefully not. But still," he added, putting in effort to make his steps more vigorous. "We're the two best in our year. If anyone can handle them, we can."
Lily rolled her eyes again, looking slightly mollified. "You know those two haven't grown up at all since we left Hogwarts. The way James acts sometimes, I kind of expect him to be getting ready to hop on the train as soon as break is over. The only time he really acts seriously is when-" She stopped herself, looking down at their interlocked arms.
"When it's about the Order, yeah," Remus finished for her. "But that's a good thing Lily," he told her earnestly. "James is just trying to keep things alive and happy since that part of our lives just…isn't at all."
Lily sighed, resting her head on Remus' shoulder as they walked. "I suppose. The thought doesn't comfort me much though," she added with a twisted smile.
Remus had no reply to that, so instead he hurried her the last few feet to the Church. "Come on Lily, at least we have Christmas to look forward to. A nice break from all the Order madness."
She grinned and pulled him to a stop, waiting for James and Sirius to catch up. When they did, she locked arms with James, who kissed her on the head and whispered, "Happy Christmas." Then Sirius put his arm through James' and they walked up the steps of the church together.
A/n: Hope you enjoyed it! I already have a few one-shots written for this, so hopefully I'll be able to update soon. And for those reading my Doctor Who/Merlin stories, don't worry I'm still working on those :D Have a good week everyone!