Ya'll make me happy. I swear it.
Most of my fics are darkish and so this love bomb has my teeth rotting and I absolutely just LOVE it and I love that you guys love it too!
Thank you, so much, for reading and reviewing!
Enjoy! :)
Hermione, Remus, and Teddy popped into a grassy field a short way from the tree farm that Hermione had frequented as a child with her parents. The weeds were waist high, swaying in the slight breeze as winter stole the last of their life from them.
Teddy moaned, holding his stomach, side-along apparition didn't agree with him, and Hermione lifted the boy into her arms, rubbing circles on his back and encouraging him to take deep breaths.
The boy quickly calmed, feeling better and soon perked right up with excitement as he remembered the prospect of getting what he'd taken to calling "the absolutely best Christmas tree".
Once they'd trekked through the field and emerged on a well-worn dirt road, Hermione set Teddy back down, one hand grasping hers, and the other of his tiny hands sliding into his Father's. Hermione squeezed his hand, remembering her Mother's favorite expression of affection. Squeezy squeezy means I love you.
They wound their way through the crowded farm, pointing out possible trees while Teddy's excitement grew. There were spruce trees, pine trees, and fir trees galore, and the smell reminded Hermione of winters long past, of warm fires and hot cocoa and so many strands of silver tinsel.
"Oh, Dad!" Teddy exclaimed, pulling Remus along by the arm, heading towards a massive seven-foot fir tree. The tree was beautiful, Hermione thought, smiling as the boy jumped up and down, pointing at the tree he'd found. "This one, Dad!"
Remus lifted his son into his arms, spinning him in a circle, causing the boy to shriek with laughter. "This tree, Ted?" Remus asked, "Out of all the trees here, this is the one?"
"Yes, Dad! This one!" Teddy said firmly, a serious look on his face. Remus settled the boy into his chest, squeezing him tightly.
"All right Teddy," Hermione laughed, taking the boy into her own arms and kissing him on the forehead. "I like this tree too! It'll be as tall as the ceilings at home!"
The three set off in search of an attendant to help them bundle up the tree, and Remus lifted it straight onto his shoulder with ease. Hermione thought it made him look quite strong and rugged, and more than a few of the nearby muggles were looking at him appraisingly.
They set off for the secluded field they'd arrived in, and when they reached their destination, Remus flicked his wand to shrink the tree, tucked it into his pocket, and apparated home, Hermione and Teddy right behind him.
Arriving at Grimmauld, Hermione set Teddy down on the sofa and headed towards the kitchen. It was cold outside, and they'd spent nearly an hour at the tree farm. She knew the boys would enjoy a hot cup of cocoa with marshmallows.
Remus pulled the shrunken tree from his pocket and set to work enlarging it and setting it up in the sitting room at the front of the house.
Hermione smiled as she heard Teddy's tinkling laughter. Over the course of the years, following the end of the war, she'd healed holding that baby in her arms, rocking him to sleep, singing him songs. She never imagined that she'd love him quite so much, or that he'd be such an important part of her life. She often feared that Tonks would show up and sweep Remus and Teddy right out of her life, and the thought was almost unbearable to her.
She poured milk into the saucepan on the stovetop, using her wand to light a small flame to heat the liquid as she stirred it slowly, lost in thought.
When the wooden spoon was gently lifted from her fingers, she startled, not realizing how lost she was in her own head. Harry stood next to her with a small smirk on his face, as he dangled the spoon in his hand.
"You are certainly daydreaming in here, Hermione." he chuckled, well aware that he'd caught her in a personal moment. "What are you thinking about?"
Hermione blushed brightly, skin flaring red on her cheeks and neck.
"Harry! You aren't supposed to sneak up on people, you know! It's not polite!" she scolded him, as she held in her laughter.
Draco chose that moment to enter the kitchen, sidling up to Harry and wrapping an arm around his waist. Hermione appraised the man, looking at him from head to toe. Dressed in flannel sleeping pants and a white shirt, he still looked immaculate, and she often thought the world was a bit unfair to make a man quite so pretty.
"Draco, Hermione nearly burned the house down, in here daydreaming while the milk boiled over!" Harry teased.
She grabbed the wooden spoon from his hand and whacked him in the arm with it. "Don't you tease me, Harry Potter!" she laughed, before stirring the chocolate into the steaming milk, watching it melt and mix to create the wonderfully smooth drink they all loved. "Now get me some cups!"
The three emerged from the kitchen minutes later, carrying trays of cocoa and cookies, and Hermione led them to the living room, where the tree was already standing massively in front of the bay windows looking out to the street.
Remus had gone to the cellar and pulled several boxes of old Christmas decorations, some left from Sirius, and some Hermione had brought with her from her parent's muggle home.
Hermione sat quietly on the couch, looking at her Mother's writing scrawled across one of the boxes, a longing settling into her chest.
Remus knew he'd have to distract her from her thoughts before they engulfed her completely, and he lept to his feet, a plan forming in his mind already.
"Teddy!" he exclaimed. "Do you want to go to the shops and see if we can find some special ornaments for our new tree. I think we need some brand new ones since it's the first tree we've had!"
Teddy, who was nestled in Hermione's arms, lifted his head from her chest with bright eyes and a wide grin.
"Can we get snitch ones, Dad?" he asked Remus, "Because I love them and Uncle Harry loves them because he was the seeker and Uncle Draco too so the only one who doesn't like snitches is Mine but Dad can we?"
Hermione laughed loudly at the boy's exclamation. She wrapped an arm around him, holding him against her chest and then began tickling his sides as he shrieked in laughter. "I like snitches, Teddy!" she told the boy. "I just don't like flying. And I suppose I like books more!"
Draco and Harry were openly laughing as well, Remus was smiling broadly, and the warmth in the room from the fire and the happiness felt just like home. Hermione never wanted it to end.
She rose from the sofa, setting Teddy down on the floor. "Go get ready, wee man, and we'll go to the shops then!" she told him, and he wasted no time tearing through the house to get his coat and boots back on.
She turned to Remus, sending him a gentle smile. "We'll have to get some lunch while we're out. I suppose we can't live on hot cocoa and cookies alone!" she told him.
Harry snorted, knowing Remus would definitely live on hot cocoa and cookies alone if it weren't for Hermione and Draco cooking dinners nearly every night.
Hermione smirked at Harry, "Do you two want to come as well, then?" she asked him. "We can get ornaments, and lunch, and maybe even a few gifts, while we're at it."
Harry went to refuse, wanting Hermione and Remus to be able to spend this time together, but Draco answered on his behalf.
"Actually, Miss Hermione," he drawled, before rising from his seat, dragging Harry along with him, "We would love to come. I haven't been decoration shopping, well... ever. Mother always had the elves do it, and we've not had one here. Perhaps we could make it a new tradition!"
"Perfect idea!" Remus told him as Teddy rushed back into the room, coat in hand. "Teddy, your Uncles are going to come with, so we'll give them a few minutes to get ready and then we'll go, okay?" he told his son.
Remus shot a look at the pair, telling them in just his glance that he expected they not daly with changing and getting ready. The boys had the grace to at least look a bit sheepish. Hermione couldn't help but giggle, knowing those two would sneak off for a bit of bedroom fun any chance they could get.
"Ten minutes, you two." Remus told them, "We'll go ahead and get us a table at the Leaky. You can meet us there."
Harry sent a mock salute in Remus direction, before pulling Draco up the stairs to prepare for a day full of shopping.
Hermione pulled on her coat, and as she began tugging on her scarf, Remus stepped in front of her, taking the scarf in his hands and placing it gently around her neck, tying it in a knot, and pulling her into a strong hug. He rested his chin on the top of her head, taking in her scent and the warmth of her body.
"I know this is hard, sweetheart," he whispered softly to her, ensuring Teddy didn't hear him. "I'm here if you need me."
She nodded against his chest, he thought she might have been crying.
"Thank you for doing this." he told her. "For my son. For me. For all of us. And for you. You don't know how much it means to me."
She'd wrapped her arms tightly around his waist. He knew he needed to step back and get them on their way, but for just a moment, he had her in his arms and could imagine his life like this, every day.
Gathering his thoughts, he released her, but kept a grasp on one of her gloved hands, before lifting Teddy onto his waist, and guiding them to the floo.
