Christmas Eve was one of Lily's favourite days of the year. A day when all her family was home, wrapping last minute presents and sending owls off with forgotten cards.
Her dad was even home early, which James dubbed a Christmas miracle in itself. Lily suspected it may have had to do with their mother's visit to him not that long ago, gathering by the heated looks the two of them shared.
When Teddy arrived, his own lips looking swollen, they Apparated in pairs to Godric's Hollow. When James teased Teddy about having a reaction to a French delicacy, Ginny clouted him over the head. "Be nice, it's Christmas," she instructed.
Lily lingered behind, content to observe her family. Her dad was quiet, as always when they visited the cemetery. Teddy hurried to catch up with him, his hair a bubblegum pink. Lily knew that was for his mother, Nymphadora Tonks. She was a brave Auror, a member of the Order of the Phoenix. Teddy talked a lot about his parents with her, perhaps thinking he could ramble on and she wouldn't understand, but she did. For as much as he loved, respected and admired his parents, he never knew them. The only parental figures he knew were her own, and at times, he felt guilty for feeling that way.
Her mother walked between James and Albus. Lily was amused to see that both boys were now taller than her. Still, as Uncle Ron liked to say, you often forgot how small Ginny was, because she was big on personality.
She studied her brothers. James, the cocky, confident one. She wondered if he had decided on a career between Quidditch and becoming an Auror. Was it brave, to consider a field your parents had excelled in? He would only be at Hogwarts for six more months; she would miss seeing him around Gryffindor tower.
Albus. How happy he looked these days. Was it all because of Scorpius, or was it the better relationship he had with their dad these days, not that she fully understood the reason for the breakdown in the first place? Still, she knew that both her brothers had to overcome being the 'son of-' in their own ways, in a way she never had to.
Mum. Ginny Weasley Potter. Quidditch champion. Harry Potter's Chosen One. Even now, her mum looked back at her, checking to see if Lily was all right.
Lily nodded, and Ginny smiled. In that smile was love and protection and comfort, like a lovely warm blanket settling over Lily's shoulders.
They stayed an hour or so, walking closely together down the street to the little house where Harry had been born. Albus and Ginny now walked by Harry's side; silent.
They greeted residents they had gotten to know over the last few years, for they all visited the cemetery in Janurary, June and December. Harry and Ginny made the trek in March for his father's birthday and Mother's Day, November for Sirius' birthday, and of course, All Hallow's Eve.
Finally they were home. Harry immediately offering to make hot chocolates as the kids hung their stockings, even Teddy. With Christmas carols on the wireless and the fireplace lending a warmth to the room, Lily's heart was full of Christmas spirit.
/*/*/*/*
James was always the first to wake on Christmas morning. He thundered to his sibling's rooms, flinging open the doors. "Wake up, it's Christmas."
Lily groaned and glanced at the clock. It was seven in the morning. "James!"
James whooped as he headed for Albus' room and repeated himself. "Wake up, it's Christmas." He then did the same to Teddy.
Lily lay in bed, debating whether to get up just yet. She heard James head for their parent's room. "Mum, Dad, wake up, it's mmm" - then nothing, apart from him running down the stairs.
"Gin, love, I don't think a Silencing spell will stop James from being excited it's Christmas," she heard her dad's amused voice.
"He is as bad as Ron. Honestly, didn't we say eight oçlock last night? I'm sure we did," protested a sleepy Ginny.
"Well, he's woken the house now, we may as well go down. Unless you don't want your presents?" asked Harry.
"What I want," purred her mother, "is..."
Lily grabbed the pillow and shoved it over her head, althoiugh she did hear Albus call out, asking for a Silencing spell on him, so he didn't have to hear them talk like that to each other.
"Fine," huffed Ginny, "may as well get up then."
Her dad said something Lily couldn't hear, and her mother laughed in that husky way her dad liked. Albus called out something else, Teddy came out of his room and asked what was going on, and James thundered back up the stairs, silencing spell lifted and demanded to know where everyone was.
They all went downstairs, and exchanged gifts. Then Harry made breakfast and they all ate, listening to James brag about his new broom. After, Ginny, Teddy and James went for a fly in the back garden, and Albus went to write a note to Scorpius.
Harry cleaned the kitchen; Ginny had cleared the discarded wrapping paper and boxes from the lounge to the recycled bin already. Lily lay on the sofa, flicking through a new book she had received.
Harry accepted the Christmas edition of the Daily Prophet from an owl, and sat in his chair as he read it. It was mostly full of boxing day sale ads, although they had put together the ten most newsworthy things that had happened over the year.
"How many did you make, Dad?" teased Lily, when she saw the headline.
"Hmm, let's see, three, no, four. Damnit, five," he scowled. "Oh come on, how is Ginny and me on vacation the number four spot? It's hardly newsworthy...and they used the photo of your mother in that bikini!"
"I thought you liked that bikini," teased Ginny, coming in looking sweaty, despite the snow outside. She leaned over the back of his chair to kiss his forehead.
"Not on the front page of the Prophet, for everyone to see," he grumbled. Ginny looked and giggled. "What?" he asked grumpily.
"Looking might fine yourself, Mr Po-tter," she drawled, gesturing to the paper.
He grabbed her arm and flipped her over, causing her to shriek. She fell into his lap, right onto the paper. "Well, hello," she drawled.
"Nice of you to drop by," he taunted.
"Anytime," she responded.
"Ugh, can you go flirt somewhere else?" asked Lily.
"Nope, I like it right here," said Ginny, her arms around his neck. Harry wrapped his arms around her waist to keep her there, too.
"Harry, Ginny?"
Teddy spoke tentatively, making Harry, Ginny and Lily stop to look at him. "Er, would you mind if I went to Shell Cottage. I want to see Vic before we go to the Burrow. I-I need to ask her something."
"Of course you can, Teddy. We'll see you later," said Harry.
Relieved, Teddy Flooed away. Her parents exchanged looks. "What's going on?" asked Lily.
"Er, nothing, what could be going on?" asked her mum. Her dad dragged the paper out from under her butt and held it up to cover their faces.
" - will say yes, won't she?" Lily heard her dad whisper.
"I'm sure she will, she's been waiting for this moment a long time," replied her mother in an equally bad whisper.
"You do know I'm still here, right?" said Lily, loudly.
"Didn't you cast Muffliato?" she heard her mum whisper.
"I thought you did," she heard her dad say.
"My hands are up here, you're the one with his hand near my wand."
"I wasn't exactly looking for your wand, you know," said her dad in that husky tone.
"I CAN STILL HEAR YOU," called Lily, chuckling.
Harry set the paper down. "Oh, Lily-loo, still here?"
"We think Teddy might be proposing to Vic today," explained Ginny, "but" – she addded quickly – "you mustn't say anything to anyone, just in case...you know."
"Vic will say yes," nodded Lily confidently.
"Well, I'm going to go and have a shower, flying made me all hot and sweaty. Be back soon," said Ginny, and she got off Harry and went upstairs.
Lily watched her dad watch her mum go up the stairs. She sighed. Were all parents like this, she wondered.
"So dad, I was wondering something..." began Lily.
Harry's gaze was still on the stairs, but he turned back to look at her. "Hmmm? Sorry, Lil, what?"
"Who is the bravest person you know...and it can't be mum," she asked.
"Why not?" asked her dad.
"Because I said so," replied Lily.
"Well, it's kind of hard to narrow it down to one person after your mum, but if I had to, then...Ron, no wait, Neville," he said. He looked sheepish. "It's hard to choose, but I'd probably pick Neville."
Lily tilted her head in curiousity "Why, because he chopped the head off the snake? Because he helped Mum when she was a sixth year?"
Harry smiled a sad, gentle smile. "Those are all worthy reasons, honey, but no, that's not why I chose him. I chose Neville because in my first year, he won the house cup for Gryffindor."
Lily was confused. "How does that make him brave?"
"Because it may be brave to stand up to your enemies but it is even braver to stand up to your friends...and that's exactly what Neville did. I guess it was a sign of things to come," said Harry.
"And Uncle Ron, well, it's a given, he was with you for most everything you went through, he and Aunt Hermione," said Lily.
Harry shook his head. "It was the spiders, my second year. We had to follow the spiders into the Forbidden forest."
"But Uncle Ron hates spiders," said Lily.
Harry simply nodded. "Exactly."
"Lil? You still want me to do that charm on your hair?" called Ginny, from upstairs.
"Yes, please," replied Lily, loudly.
"Then come upstairs now," called Ginny.
"Fine," sighed Lily. She got up to go when her dad calling her name stopped her. She turned to look at him.
"If I had to pick one person, I'd still pick your mum first," he said.
Lily rolled her eyes. "Yeah, for putting up with you, I remember." She continued on her way.
Harry watched her go. "And for so many other reasons," he said quietly.
/*/*/*/*
Christmas was even more meaningful this year, with the announcement of the engagement of Teddy and Victoire. They were the centre of attention, as they had to repeat the details of the proposal – where, when, how – the acceptance – how long did you make him wait till you said yes? – the ring, and the plans for the wedding. Bill still looked a bit dazed that his daughter was engaged, while Fleur beamed with joy that her beloved daughter had found a love like she and Bill shared.
Again, Lily was content to sit back and watch her family. The dynamics were interesting. Her parents had spent a lot of time with Bill and Fleur and their family over the years, with Teddy and Vic being close and all. Ron and Hermione were close with George and Angelina, due to the brothers working together. Harry, Hermione and Percy might be seen together too, as Ministry workers in various departments. Ginny and Angelina could usually be spotted together, moaning about the latest pranks James and Freddie had gotten up to, and Fleur, Angelina, Hermione and Audrey would talk about their daughters.
The cousins were the same. James and Freddie were as thick as thieves, as was Dominique and Roxeanne. Rose and younger Molly were close, both being in Ravenclaw. Lily, Hugo and Lucy were the youngest, and tended to stick together against their older cousins, who liked to tease them, especially Lucy. Hugo and Louis were the only two that didn't really have an interest in Quidditch, so they would drift away together when talk turned to the game.
But throughout every group, her mother flittered, stopping by this group and that, adding a comment or staying for a discussion. She'd mention something she'd heard at the Ministry, or talk about the new line at WWW. She assured Victoire that May was a great time for a wedding, and stopped Lucy from sitting on a mince pie that Freddie had put on her chair. She argued with Ron about the Cannon's Seeker, and she, Audrey and Fleur talked about going to the Muggle cinema to see a movie. She took Harry a cup of egg nog and one of Lucy's biscuits.
Grandma Molly sat with a smile; she always enjoyed have the whole family over. Ginny and her sisters-in-law took over the kitchen duties, allowing the family matriarch to relax and enjoy the day.
Grandpa Arthur sat near the fire, almost asleep. Lily could almost remember what it was like when she was a little girl, and she and Lucy would climb into their grandpa's lap and the three would nap together after their big meal.
Lily went and sat on the arm of his chair. He looked up, smiling at his youngest grandchild. "Hello, Lily love."
"Hi, Grandpa. I was just remembering past Christmases, when Lucy and I would climb on to your lap and we'd all fall asleep," giggled Lily.
Arthur patted his lap. "I always have room for my girls," he said, and Lily slid onto it. "I did the same for your mother when she was little, too," he said.
She rested her head on his still sturdy shoulders. "Had a good Christmas, love?" he asked quietly.
She nodded. "Christmas is my favourite time of the year. Even more so with Teddy and Vic's news."
He waited, sensing she wanted to ask him something.
" Grandpa?"
" Yes, Lil?"
" Who is the bravest person you know?" she asked quietly. Molly, Rose and Louis were playing a game of Exploding Snap nearby.
" Why, that's easy," chuckled her grandpa. " Your grandmother."
" Grandma?" They both looked over at Molly, who was trying to coax Harry into another piece of Christmas pudding.
" Some things never change. Your grandmother has been trying to fatten your father up ever since the moment he stepped foot in the Burrow," chuckled Arthur.
They watched as Ginny came to Harry's side, protesting to her mother that Harry was full and not about to starve to death. Harry pulled Ginny onto his lap, and had a goofy look on his face. From a sofa in the corner, Ron and George were chuckling quietly, watching them. They snickered when Ginny lightly smacked Harry's hands when they started to wander under the table.
" I think the eggnog is spiked," commented Lily. "Uncle Ron, Uncle George!" she cried out, sounding very Ginny-ish. She shot them a glare she had seen her mum use on them. When everyone turned to look at them, they wilted. Only the arrival of Scorpius and Draco Malfoy saved them from a tongue lashing.
"Now," said Lily, turning back to her grandpa, " you mentioned grandma?"
"Of course," replied her grandpa. " Tell me, Lil, what do you think of when you think about your grandmother?"
" Well..." Lily thought quickly. "Her hugs; she hugs the tightest of anyone I know. Her jumpers; it wouldn't be Christmas without a Weasley jumper. Her delicious food; she's such a good cook."
Arthur nodded in agreement. " Now, sum that up in one word, the best word to describe your grandmother?"
Lily nearly said love, but quickly changed her mind. " Family! Grandma is all about family!"
Arthur nodded, his eyes full of love as he looked at his wife of so many years. "Family is everything to your grandmother."
They watched as Molly Weasley welcomed the Malfoy men to the Burrow, quickly ushering them to the table and filling plates for them. Albus had come to greet Scorpius, sliding into the seat next to him. Draco was watching in amusement as Harry continued getting handsy with Ginny and she swatted him away.
" But how does a love for family make Grandma brave?" asked Lily, chuckling over Scorpius' delight in unwrapping a Weasley jumper the same colour as Albus' . Draco tried to look thrilled as Harry encouraged him to put on the red and gold jumper he had been gifted.
" Your grandmother was- is," he corrected himself, " a powerful witch, all the Prewett women are. Your grandmother, your mother, you. She was the youngest of three, you know, two older brothers."
" Just like me," murmured Lily, watching her grandmother pour tea and offer mince pies to Draco and Scorpius.
" Yes. She idolised her older brothers...Gideon and Fabian. Both good men, who adored their little sister."
Lily's eyes searched for James; when they made eye contact he stuck his tongue out at her, then winked. She then looked for Albus; of course he was sitting with Scorpius, watching him eat.
"When Voldemort first started showing his power, Albus Dumbledore formed the Order of the Phoenix. Molly's brothers joined. Molly and I, we were the parents of six young sons; Molly was early on with Ginny. Voldemort ordered them killed, Lily. Your grandmother was devastated," said Arthur, gravely.
"I didn't know," said Lily. " Wait, is that the watch Dad wears. It's Grandma's brother's?"
Arthur nodded. " Having the boys and knowing another was on the way was probably the only thing that kept her going. She would have terrible days where she didn't want to get out of bed. She was the same after the final battle, when we lost Fred."
" Oh." Lily was at a loss for words. Instead she watched her grandmother smack Harry's hands from moving up Ginny's waist. Her dad didn't seem to mind, or even notice, as he whispered things in Ginny's ear that made her giggle, like Lily and her dormmates did at night.
" So for me, being brave is your grandmother, losing her brothers and then, years later, fighting for the greater good alongside her sons and daughter, when every instinct inside her must have been screaming for them to go home and be safe," finished Arthur, who then took his handkerchief out and dabbed his eyes.
Lily leaned her head back onto his shoulder. " I'm sorry, Grandpa, I didn't mean to make you upset by remembering."
" You misunderstand, Lil love, it's not the remembering, because we must never forget – why we fought, the people we lost. Your grandparents, Teddy's parents, your uncle Fred, and so many more good people. I just miss my son, especially when we're all here together. "
Lily sat with her grandpa, watching her family. She saw her mum have a quiet word with Uncle George, she saw Hermione perform a Sober-me-Up spell on her dad, and she saw James and Freddie whispering in the corner, which didn't bode well for any of them.
And if she saw Albus and Scorpius slip away unnoticed, well, she wasn't going to say anything to anybody.
/*/*/*/*
It was the day before she, Albus and James were to return to Hogwarts, when she finally sat down to write her essay. Her dad was at work, James was at the Burrow flying with Teddy, Vic, Freddie, Roxeanne, Dominique and Rose. Albus was again at Malfoy Manor; it was though those two couldn't survive a day apart. One day at the Potter's, the next at the Malfoy's.
Ginny was in the kitchen, burning something and muttering under her breath about the dodgy oven. The fire was lit, Lily had flicked the wireless to a popular music channel and was humming as she set out her parchment, quills and inkpot on the table. The family cat, Quaffle – so named because he was big and round and looked like he swallowed a Quaffle– sat on her schoolbag, settling down for a nice nap.
Her mum came out of the kitchen, looking flustered. " - bloody charm that thing to Siberia, I will, oh, Lily love, finally working on that essay?"
Lily nodded, but craned her neck for an uneasy look in the kitchen. " Mum, is everything all right in there?"
Ginny sat calmly, flicking through last month's edition of Quidditch Illustrated. "Hmm, oh, no, the oven is broken. I've been telling your father that for months," she replied. " We'll have to get take away for dinner."
" It worked fine for him yesterday...and I made biscuits before that and it was fine," frowned Lily.
Ginny tossed the magazine aside. " Fine, it's not working for me, okay? You don't think James has put some sort of spell on it, do you? No, not James, George, or maybe Ron," she spluttered indignantly.
Lily tried not to laugh as her mother got all worked up, pacing in the lounge. " Mum, MUM, stop, it's fine," she laughed.
" What's fine, love?" asked Ginny.
"Mum, you can't be brilliant at everything, you know," said Lily.
Ginny snorted. " Who am I, Hermione? I know that...it's just, I wanted to make a nice dinner for you all, it's our last night home as a family for awhile."
" Mum, Dad's coming home early to make us a nice dinner, he said so before he went to work this morning," said Lily.
" I know, but I wanted to surprise him by having most of it done. He deserves a break from the kitchen too," sighed Ginny.
" Mum, he loves it, he really does...and I don't think he wants to spend our last night in St Mungo's," teased Lily gently.
Ginny's eyes widened. " Are you suggesting I'd poison you lot if I cooked?" She almost looked devastated.
Lily smirked. " Suggesting...no. Stating outright...Mum, I'm kidding," Lily hastened to add, despite her laughing. "Although, I suppose we could be brave and try to eat what you cook."
"That's not bravery, that's stupidity," scoffed Ginny, sliding into the seat next to Lily.
" So what do you think bravery is? Who is the bravest person you know?" asked Lily. " And it can't be Dad," she added.
" Of course it can, who said it can't be? Yes, it's your dad. Of course it's your dad, Lil," stated Ginny.
Lily sighed. " Mum, everyone in our world knows what dad did. It would be too easy to write about him for my essay."
" It's nothing to do with what your father did, Lily. Most of those things he had help with – Dumbledore, Ron, Hermione. Remus, my parents, Merlin, the list could go on and on," said Ginny, more to herself.
" Well then, what? What is so brave about Dad, despite him killing Voldemort?" asked Lily. This essay was turning about to be a nightmare.
Ginny turned pained eyes on her daughter. " You didn't see him back then. Every year he'd come to Hogwarts, and something bad would happen. Then every June, he'd go back to his so called family – Muggle bastards. He'd go weeks without seeing any of us, and one summer, we were told we couldn't send him any letters or anything."
Lily had heard the stories of her dad sleeping in the cupboard under the stairs, and then her uncles rescuing him from an upstairs bedroom with bars on the window.
"Yet somehow he remained true to himself, a good, noble man who would help anybody in need. Who carried the guilt of all who died in the battle on his shoulders, and still continued protecting us, by becoming an Auror. Who would do anything for me, you and your brothers to make us happy, even if it means coming home stressed from work and late and then have to cook for us on that bloody, useless oven." Ginny was frowning at the mention of the oven, even shooting a death glare at the closed kitchen door.
" Mum, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to upset you," stammered Lily, feeling awful.
Ginny smiled tearfully. "You didn't, love. If anything, you reminded me of why I love him so much."
" So much you want to cook for him," realised Lily.
" But not so much that I want to poison him," grinned Ginny. She stood and opened the kitchen door. The smell of something burnt wafted out to the dining room. She waved her wand and did a freshening spell, then looked back at Lily. " I think I love him enough to let him cook for us tonight."
The two smiled, with Lily nodding. She picked up her quill, chewing on the end. "You know, Dad said you're the bravest person he knows."
That seemed to surprise Ginny. "Really?"
Lily nodded. "Lots of people I asked said you."
Ginny shrugged. " Stubborn, maybe, but brave...? I think we all have a bit of brave in us, just waiting for when we need it. Maybe some need it more than others, who knows."
"I don't think I'm brave," announced Lily. At Ginny's curious look, she took a breath and explained. "I couldn't play Quidditch in front of all those people like you do. I couldn't fight in a battle like you and dad did. I couldn't be brave and be tortured or held in a dungeon, or lose someone I loved," she cried, thinking of her aunt, godmother and grandmother.
Ginny placed her hands on Lily's shoulders from behind. " Lily, I am your mother. I see more of you than you could possibly imagine. You may not think so, but I know you could do any of those things, I just pray you never have to. It's not about the fighting; this history, this legacy that our family has. It's about doing what is right. Fighting for what you believe in. We didn't fight for your dad, we fought with him to make our world safer for the children and our children's children. Merlin, what are they teaching you in History of Magic these days?" asked an exasperated Ginny.
" You really think I could do that?" asked Lily, in a small voice.
Ginny sat next to Lily again, taking both her small hands in her own. She squeezed them then stroked them with her thumb. Comfort. " Professor Longbottom tells me you Bat-Bogey hexed a Hufflepuff last term." She looked knowingly at her daughter.
" They were saying horrible things about Albus and Scorpius. Luckily they didn't hear, but James, Rose and I did. Ooh, they made me so mad, Mum," growled Lily. She groaned. " I can't believe Uncle Nev told you about that."
Ginny grinned. " Yep, that very night. Thought I'd like to know. Lily, that's standing up for what is right. Do you really believe Al and Scorpius are the only gay people at Hogwarts? They may just be the only ones brave enough to be themselves, to be open and in love. It's a beautiful thing, Lil, not something to be shamed."
" Oh, now I'm so confused, I don't know what to write for my essay," groaned Lily, crossing her arms over each other and laying her head on them.
Ginny stood and ruffled Lily's hair. " You'll think of something, my clever Lily-loo.
I believe in you."
Taking a deep breath, Ginny stepped back into the kitchen.
Lily stared at her parchment, willing the words to come. Eventually, they did.