A/N: Hey all! I'm sorry about this long hiatus, but it'll be over soon. I think. Either way, this chapter is my Christmas present to you. And guess what?... That's right, it's Christmas themed!

Also, recently my old keyboard seems to have broken. I'm now using this other old keyboard, and the space key I have to kind of pound to get it to work, and the keys are a bit hard to press as well. So there might be more errors that usual, and I know there's already usually more than there should be, and I'm sorry about that. I'll try to be very careful.

This chapter takes place the same year the war ends. It is their first Christmas since the war ended, and it's from Ginny's POV. And before anyone wants to start a pairing war – HarryxGinny IS canon (So is RonxHermione, btw, and I had no reason to change that). I'd also like to note that me, personally, I'm not a fan of it. I don't dislike many characters from HP, but Ginny's the closest to dislike I get in that one. So. I'm going to try to be ambiguous on how, exactly, their relationship works out. There will be hints that it will, and hints that it won't. It can go whatever way you want! (And due to a reviewer or two, I'm starting to become a little fond of HarryxLenalee, lmao, strange I know).


Ginny glanced up around. She was getting just a little impatient. She had a small suspicion that despite what he'd said, Harry would leave without her. Even if she had needed to be something of a nuisance to get him to agree to her going. She didn't know why he was being so secretive about it. It's not like nobody knew where he was planning to go. If fact, everyone knew. Why he had wanted to sneak out and go alone, she wasn't sure.

She wanted to visit the Black Order with him. It wasn't because she wanted to see the exorcists, exactly, but she was... curious. Harry was different. When the exorcists had shown up, everything had been strained, but everyone was still the same. When she saw him again in the Room of Requirement almost a year later, he had seemed quieter, a little darker, more solemn. She had been sure that had something to do with the fact that the world was resting on his shoulders and they had been in a very tough spot at the time. But then the war ended, and Harry still seemed the same.

A lot of the changes were good things. He took stress better, and he was a little less reckless, and she noticed he was a little bit more thoughtful. But that funny awkwardness he'd had was almost completely gone, and it only showed itself in rare circumstances. And she didn't miss the way that he seemed to subtly distance himself from others.

He was beyond happy that everyone was okay, and it was obvious that he treasured them all. But he tended to avoid talking about certain things with anyone, and even though Ron and Hermione definitely seemed the closest to him, they were so wrapped up in each other nowadays that Harry had simply quietly backed up and let them enjoy each other. When Ginny had tried to talk to him about the Order, he had hesitated. She could see that he wanted to share with her. And after a moment, he smiled a little sadly (Something he never seemed to do before, something she was sure without a doubt he had picked up from Allen), and he had said,

"It's the warmest, loneliest places I've ever been. It's like..." He'd paused briefly, thinking, "It's like standing at the edge of the world and you've got one side trying to pull you off, while on the other side, something is anchoring you."

She hadn't really understood. She could guess, sure, but when he spoke, his eyes were quiet and old, and he hadn't looked like the Harry she had known. The one that bucked violently under huge restrictions and who didn't ever hesitate to bend or even break rules whenever it suited him. The one that was reckless and loud and awkward.

She asked Hermione what Harry had meant, though she did it reluctantly. She confessed that she felt like Hermione and Ron were to only one's who could understand Harry recently. Hermione smiled as she hung Christmas decorations.

"I know what you mean," She had replied, "But sometimes I think that it's not Ron and I who understand him the best. I think that the only one's who can truly understand what it's like to have the world almost literally on your shoulders are others who have had, or do have, the same burdens."

When she hadn't been able to say anything to Harry originally, she had felt like she had failed some kind of test. She had felt it even then, and had hurried to backtrack. They had ended up bickering a little, but that feeling hadn't disappeared.

She was determined to show Harry that even if she didn't understand now, she could learn. So she wanted to visit the Black Order with him.

Hermione glanced into the sitting room Ginny was waiting in. She was a regular here at the Weasly household now.

"He hasn't arrived yet?" She asked, raising an eyebrow.

"No," Ginny strove to keep out any anxiousness from her voice.

"Oh. I wonder what's taking him?" Hermione mused, strangely unconcerned.

It was another couple minutes before Harry did appear. He did so looking over his shoulder, as if afraid to be caught. He seemed satisfied, and when he looked back at Ginny, he grinned a little and gave a little wave.

"Ready?"

"Of course," She huffed, and thought better of mentioning how long she'd been waiting.

They made their way out of the house quietly, and Ginny wondered why he was trying to sneak out. Just as they reached to front door, a voice called,

"Harry, dear," they turned a little to find Ginny's mother there with a box in her hands. It was at least two feet by two feet.

"Yeah?" Harry seemed nonchalant, though Ginny wondered why he didn't seem to care that he was caught, when he had been sneaking.

"Give this to them, please," Mrs. Weasly held out the box, "It's not much, I'll admit, but it's the least I could do. I wish I could have made one for everybody. There's others in there too, from some of the others of the Order. Order of the Phoenix, of course, we're all very grateful, as you can imagine. I hope I spelled their names right, I managed to get them from Minerva-"

"I'll make sure they get them, Mrs. Weasly," Harry interrupted her mother's rambling with a smile hidden behind his hand. Something else he never did, she mused.

"Thank you, dear! And make sure they know that they know we're grateful, I fear they're not thanked enough," Mrs. Weasly smiled a little as well, "You'll be back later tonight?"

Harry glanced at Ginny briefly, and she couldn't imagine what she had to do with that question, but then he nodded slightly, "Yes, we'll be back sometime later."

Her mother looked between them in surprise, not knowing that Ginny had planned on going also, but instead of lecturing her for not saying so like Ginny thought she would, her mother pulled her into a hug instead.

"Alright, you two, just be careful."

They had to walk to the edge of the anti-apparition fields, and they did so quietly. She didn't like how awkward the silence was, but she couldn't think of anything to say.

"Here we go. We're using a port key this time. I heard their fields are up and running now," He told her, pulling out an interesting cross from under his shirt. He seemed completely at ease when he held out an arm to her. Was she the only one who had thought it was awkward?

Just before he activated his port key, he hesitated.

"Are you sure you want to come?" He asked.

"I don't know why you're being so secretive about this trip, but I wouldn't have asked if I didn't want to go," She replied matter-of-factually.

"Secretive?" He repeated, genuinely surprised, "I wasn't trying to be. I thought everyone knew I was going today."

"They do," Ginny frowned a little, "But you keep avoiding the subject and you were sneaking out like you still didn't want anybody to know."

"I didn't realize I was sneaking," He now seemed vaguely amused, and her grip on his arm tightened, "Sorry. I didn't mean to be secretive then. It's just that the Black Order is still a touchy subject, depending on who you ask, and I don't think it's going to be very Christmas-like. I figured I was probably going to go by myself, since everybody is busy or trying to avoid going. I guess I'm glad you wanted to go, but... well, I don't know."

He gave a helpless little shrug, and she let him drop the subject.

"Alright," He grinned a little, passing the box to her, "Next stop, the Black Order."

Ginny hadn't ever been to the Black Order base before, and she wasn't sure whether what she found was anything similar to her expectations or not. It was a castle, similar to Hogwarts, but instead of giving off the air of 'old', or 'magical', she found an air of 'power', and 'light'. The suits of armor were also new and they shown. Instead of old stone, she found a lot of new stone and marble. For all that it looked to be the castle of the prince in a fairytale, it was awfully solemn.

New Harry fit in well here.

She found that the thought was not particularly welcome.

Harry decided they should just start out by giving out the presents. It was easier that way, and they had all day, after all, it was only a little after lunch. He made sure to tell her that if she started to feel uncomfortable, or that she wanted to go home, then she should tell him. She wasn't comforted by the fact that he felt the need to say that. They both knew that she would say as much herself if she felt the need.

The first present recipient was Komui, and so they sought him out in his office. He was there, surrounded by paperwork, asleep and drooling on one particular pile. Ginny stared a little. She remembered seeing glimpses of the man at the Battle of Hogwarts. He looked... inadequate, comparatively.

She was even more startled when the door opened only a moment or two after they entered, and none other than Draco Malfoy entered, a stack of paperwork floating behind him.

"I should have expected as much," Malfoy mused, glancing at them. She felt herself stiffen. She had not seen the other for some time, and even knowing that he had helped her brother and Harry, she wasn't about to go about being nice. But instead of the reaction she had expected, Malfoy simply swept past them.

"How does being errand boy work out for you?" Harry asked with a grin.

"Half the time I feel like I'm the one running things around here, lately. It's only a matter of time before I promoted to a much higher ranking," Malfoy dropped the pile of paper on the desk with aloud 'thunk'. The supervisor didn't even stir.

"I'll enjoy the sight of you running errands for people while I still can, then," Harry moved closer, and Malfoy shrugged.

"Better errands and paperwork than the real grunt work around here. Anything that will keep me out of the science section and their horrible hygiene efforts."

Harry smirked. Another new expression. She was startled by their banter. She remembered how much animosity had been between them originally.

"What's that, Potter?" Malfoy suddenly said, and Harry rose an eyebrow, "You say you like Lenalee as more than a friend?"

The supervisor was on his feet with a cry of "Don't you dare – my sweet Lenalee – No!"

Ginny dropped the box in her surprise, and the sound almost seemed to echo in the silence that followed.

"Why is it that everyone feels the need to group Allen and me with Lenalee all the time?" Harry asked with a roll of his eyes, "You should use yourself to wake Komui next time, Malfoy."

"Unlike you, Potter, I'm here far more often, and I feel no need to be smothered in my sleep by some overprotective brother."

Komui coughed and fixed his askew glasses.

"That was no necessary," He said reproachfully.

Malfoy simply gave him a roll of his eyes and patted the new stack of papers, "These are due by tomorrow."

When Malfoy left and Komui plopped ungracefully in his seat, Ginny followed Harry up to the desk with raised eyebrows.

"So," Komui rubbed his temples, "Can I help you? And if you really are here to confess to illicit feelings towards my sister, I am afraid that you may never leave this room."

"Don't worry," Harry chuckled, "I promise that whoever the poor sap is that ever does that, it won't be me."

Ginny herself didn't really appreciate the conversation, but she didn't say anything until Komui asked to know who she was. She introduced herself, instead of waiting for Harry to do it. Komui seemed a little bemused, for some reason, and she was mostly just quiet while she watched Harry reach into his box and pull out a wrapped present with a large bow, followed by another, and a couple cards. Komui was obviously surprised.

Ginny got the strange impression that he was genuinely touched.

When they left, Harry mused on who to visit first. Ginny didn't know many people here, so she felt a little out of the loop, and not to mention rather like a third wheel, but she was determined in her purpose here.

They visited the training rooms first. Harry seemed sure that at least one of their targets would be there. There were multiple training rooms, however, and she watched him peek into each one. Most were in use by founders. One, however, did hold a pair of sparring exorcists.

Ginny rather thought they looked a lot different without their impressive uniforms, and even though the air around them still had some kind of undercurrent of strangeness, they were still a lot less intimidating. She was more distracted by the way that Harry's eyes lit up upon seeing them, but instead of calling out, he quickly caught himself and remained silent. Confused, she nudged him with her elbow, nodding toward the two when he looked.

He shook his head before leading the way inside. He caught the door behind her so that it didn't make any noise when he closed it, and then he waited.

She took the time to observe. The two that were practicing were both large men. Older than both of them, to be sure, and they had fairly impressive physiques, though one was larger than the other. The larger one was also noticeably the more skillful one, and he didn't even look at them when they entered. After a few moments, though, the other seemed to notice them.

He turned, startled, and received a back-fist to the face hard enough to send him sprawling. Ginny noticeably started, eyes widening. They had been so good that it looked practiced. She hadn't expected one of them to actually get hit.

"You can't allow yourself to get distracted, Choaji," The larger one admonished, "As much as you might be advancing in your training, that is still a fatal flaw of yours."

"I'm – I'm sorry," Choaji rubbed his no doubt aching cheek in embarrassment, "I was so concentrated, seeing something from the corner of my eye moving surprised me."

"It's dangerous," The other shook his head, "But you've practiced enough for today. Go ahead and rest."

Choaji visible relaxed, and when he turned to them, he gave a polite bow. Before he could slip past them, Harry called out for him to wait.

"For me?" The other asked, startled, as he took the present.

"Of course," Harry smiled a little, "Some people are still really thankful, you know? These two in particular."

Harry handed a separate letter over, and Ginny wondered how he would know something like that when he'd just received the presents to give out not that long ago. Either way, Choaji took it with an expression of wonder before he bowed again, deeply, and left.

Ginny figured it'd be much the same with the other occupant, but instead, Harry was much warmer.

She noted that his hand was almost engulfed in the strangers hand.

"Good to see you again, Marie," Harry then asked as they shook hands, "You're still helping to train him?"

"Choaji was nothing but a simple sailor before," Marie replied, "And because his Innocence is what it is, it's vital he is as good at martial arts as he can be. Master is away a lot, so Kanda and myself do what we can, even though I think Kanda wouldn't admit to it."

"You're probably right," Harry mused, "How have you and Kanda been?"

"Full moon was a couple weeks ago. Everyone is almost adjusted to what that entails," Marie nodded in such a way that Ginny suddenly realized that he was actually blind. It explained his strange, milky eye color. "We are doing... as well as can be expected, I suppose."

"You guys don't celebrate Christmas?" Ginny asked. She had fully meant to ask, and it was mostly out of curiosity. She remembered Allen's explanation so long ago. The Black Order was a religious organization. They believed in God, so one would think they indulged in Christmas.

"Often times, those around here do not find much to celebrate," Marie replied softly, and she wondered a little at that.

"Marie, this is Ginny," Harry introduced then, "Ginny, this is Marie. He helped teach me when I was here."

Ah, she though. An exorcist friend, then.

They shook hands, and she noticed how big and calloused they were. It was hard to tell, but seeing up them close, she noticed pale, white scars crisscrossing his hands. It made her glance at his other hand – which made her realize he was missing a couple fingers on that hand.

He was unaware of what she noticed and how startled she was, or he pretended not to notice. He let her fade to the background as he exchanged some words with Harry. He excepted his present and his letters – and the chocolate frog that came with them.

"Those move when you open it," Harry mentioned, "So, you know. Beware."

Marie looked at the Chocolate Frog with a raised eyebrow, even though he couldn't actually see it, and the expression was one so comical, Ginny had to cover her mouth to keep from laughing.

They received a few tips from Marie as to where everyone else might be, and they made a quick stop by General Sokaro's room, as well as General Tiedoll and Krory's rooms. They were all out on missions, and so they left the presents – and cards, when applicable – inside their rooms. Of course, they all kept their doors locked, but it was nothing that Harry couldn't handle. Unfortunately, Ginny had yet to turn seventeen, so she still couldn't use magic outside of school.

They started to go to one of the study rooms to find Timothy, and discovered Miranda on the way there.

She gave a friendly, if timid, smile when she spotted Harry and he waved her over. Ginny quietly thought she'd never seen an adult so unsure of themselves or so timid.

When Harry gave her the present, her lower lip trembled.

"But I didn't get anything in return!" She cried, "I'm such a horrible person!"

Ginny watched, bewildered, when the woman looked ready to throw herself out the window. This was the one from the Battle of Hogwarts, who had protected Harry and withstood some immense pressure Ginny couldn't really understand?

"It's okay, Miranda!" Harry laughed a little, "How could you have known? Think of it as a present from someone who's simply grateful to you. If it makes you feel better, everyone's getting something similar."

Miranda opened it to discover a scarf of shimmering copper, that shone just enough to be pretty rather than obnoxious, and Ginny knew that when the woman's lip trembled again, it wasn't from insecurity.

"Thank you," She said softly, and Harry shifted uncomfortably.

"I only helped with the spells on them," He brushed it off, "They'll definitely keep you warm, and they're suppose to be really durable as long as, you know, it's not something like a bullet."

Miranda smiled genuinely, and Ginny thought that it was a little too grateful for something like a simple scarf, even if it was pretty.

The study room they were looking for became obvious when they neared it. From inside it, she heard a loud, exasperated sigh.

"No, Timothy, that's incorrect."

"Well who cares?" A younger male voice exclaimed, "I don't need to know history to kick akuma's butt!"

"While that may be true, I refuse to have an idiot for an apprentice," The older, female voice chided, "The sooner you do well, the sooner you can leave."

Harry knocked on the door a little cautiously. There was a pause of silence before the female called permission for them to enter.

Inside, there was the boy that Ginny recognized as the one that had saved her at the Battle of Hogwarts as well as his teacher, who had saved them both. They were separated by a desk, which had several papers a a book spread wide on top.

"Sorry to interrupt," Harry apologized, "I can come back later, if you like."

"Can't I go already?" Timothy groaned, "Come on, it's Christmas!"

"In the spirit of the holidays, I will allow you to cut the lesson short," the woman replied business-like, "But I expect you to answer the questions on that sheet in complete sentences and a rough outline of the essay I gave you."

Timothy seemed thoroughly annoyed with that, but he was out of his seat in the next moment and headed toward the door. Harry stepped in his way on purpose.

The General (Cloud Nyne was her name, Ginny learned), accepted the gift in surprise but also appreciation. Ginny was surprised herself that the other showed any real appreciation at all. She hadn't seemed the type to care much.

Afterward, when they left, Timothy hounded them, wondering if they had something for him.

"Maybe," Harry grinned a little, "But you know, it's actually only Christmas eve, Timothy, so maybe I should wait to give it to you tomorrow."

"Wha~t? That's not fair!"

"That's the tradition of things," Harry countered.

"Tell him that's not fair!" Timothy exclaimed, unexpectedly bringing her into it. She blinked and rose an eyebrow. She'd gotten use to being mostly just a specter.

"Well, we are suppose to wait until Christmas..." She smiled a little at his crestfallen expression, "But it does seem unfair to make him wait, somehow."

Harry sent her a sidelong glance, and she didn't recognize the look.

"Yeah," He relented, "I guess so. Well, if you insist..."

"I insist!"

Harry laughed, and suspected that the only reason the kid hadn't kicked him in the shins was because then he wouldn't get the present.

Timothy looked at the scarf in surprise and fascination. It was a deep blue and it shimmered and moved as if made from water itself. Even held perfectly still, it seemed as if it were made of waves. It came with a matching headband, and Timothy regarded that with even more fascination. Ginny expected at least a little disappointment – the kid was only, what, nine years old? Kids that young wanted something useful, something fun. Not a scarf and headband.

But the kid regarded it for a moment before looking at Harry suspiciously.

"What does it do?" He asked.

"What makes you think it does anything?" Harry shot back, pausing in his digging around in the box to smirk at him.

"The time you spelled my last headband to sing whenever I put it on," Timothy scowled at him, and Ginny slowly looked at her companion. She didn't bother trying to hide a giggle. Harry glanced at her, but Timothy continued with, "He did! It was horrible singing too, he thought he was so funny."

"Excuse me," Harry feigned hurt, "I was just trying to lighten that scowl of yours. I'm sorry I haven't quite gotten it down well enough that the signing was actually good. Maybe next time I'll make it dance!"

Timothy paused.

"Can you?"

Harry laughed and shook his head a little, "Manually, sure. But not when you put it on or something fancy."

"So then what does this one do? Or is moving around all magic like what it does?"

"Besides the fact that they're warm and durable, the headband is charmed not to fall off. It's also made out of even tougher stuff, and don't tell anyone, but it's suppose to shrink and stretch according to head size, so you can't outgrow it."

"Really?" The boy was regarding it in more interest now, and after a moment, he exchanged it for his older one. "How does it look?"

Harry took the scarf and wrapped the kid in it enough that Timothy spun around a couple times.

"You look great," He beamed a little while the other struggled to unwind himself, "It suits you. Don't you think Ginny?"

It was the first time he included her of his own volition, and she smiled a little.

"Yeah," She agreed, "A smashing little rouge."

Any complaints of his drained away, and he muttered into the scarf that it wouldn't be so bad to wear them sometimes.

"You can show it off to your friends," She added, and she wasn't entirely sure why. She guessed it was because little boys liked showing things of theirs off, she knew, and she had felt the need to add in something else. But for a moment he dimmed, though he then shrugged it off like a professional.

"They would be jealous," He grinned mischievously.

After he jogged off on his own, she asked Harry about Timothy's parents and if they celebrated Christmas.

"Timothy is from an orphanage, and as I understand it, his father wasn't exactly good parenting material," Harry explained, "It was a poor orphanage. I don't think they could ever afford a Christmas."

They went to the library next, and Harry seemed sure that Lavi or, at the very least, Bookman would be there.

"It's where they always seem to be in their free time," He admitted, "Lavi told me that sometimes they even sleep there."

"Imagine if Madame Pince ever caught them at it," Ginny smiled.

"It would be funny to watch her bully them around. Everyone else leaves the library to them, it's like it's theirs," Harry shifted the box to his other arm, "It would be a big clash."

The library was impressive, for a muggle one. It was comparative to the Hogwarts library, but then, she wasn't sure that it was possible for a muggle one to come close. This one, though, was edging on it.

She didn't immediately spot anybody. Harry wasn't deterred, and they ventured inside.

They did, thankfully, find their targets. She remembered Lavi, and it seemed Lavi remembered her.

"Look who it is!" He exclaimed with a welcoming grin, spreading his arms wide, "It's been a while. Giving her the grand tour, Harry?"

"Something like that," Harry grinned, allowing the other to ruffle his hair.

Bookman glanced their way through heavily-lidded eyes but said nothing.

"I came to deliver a thing or two," Harry added motioning the box, "Trying to track everyone down."

"Who have you yet to find?" Lavi asked, raising an eyebrow. Now that he had that magical blue eye instead of an eye patch, it was far easier to tell when he was doing so.

"Only Kanda, Allen, and Lenalee. Marie didn't think they've gone recently. Do you know if they have?"

"Nope," Lavi shrugged a little, "Hard to say. For the record, though, I just saw Kanda not that long ago, and everyone got their regular round of coffee, so Lenalee was around at least earlier. I haven't seen Allen, but I don't know if he's left on a mission today or not."

"Okay, well, we'll figure it out sooner or later," Harry set the box on a table and began to dig through it, "Mrs. Weasly was really disappointed when I told her you probably wouldn't be around for Christmas, but she sent me along with her presents anyway."

"Presents?" Lavi repeated, his other eyebrow raising to join the first.

"Yeah," Harry could be heard shifting through what remained inside the box, which was obviously much bigger inside than it was on the outside, "Usually she makes these sweaters with your initial on it, but she wanted to make something a little nicer, so the material had to be less. I chipped in, but she put it mostly together."

Harry held out one package to Lavi, and motioned the other to Bookman, who rose an eyebrow. For a moment, he and Lavi actually looked similar.

"All the exorcists get one," Harry supplied to the old mans questioning stare, "She wanted to make sure they all know how grateful she is."

Ginny knew better than to mention her mother also just felt bad for them, what with none of them seemingly having any family or real life outside the Order.

Of course, both Bookman and Lavi received scarves. Bookman's was tan, and though it didn't shimmer, it was extremely soft to the touch. Harry's suggestion – Bookman never seemed impressed, or put much weight, on fancy material things. Something useful, on the other hand?

Lavi's was silky forest green pattern that liked to slowly spin and shift. Its edges were black, and it rather had an elegant feel to it, while somehow still managing to be something... fitting, to Lavi. Also in Lavi's package was a pair of gloves similar to the ones he use to wear, but Ginny recognized them as dragonhide. Good quality too, near impervious to flame, and extremely durable. Extremely expensive too. She guessed that was a personal present from Harry himself. She watched him set another package, this one much thicker and in plain brown wrapping, upon the table. She recognized the writing on the tag as none other than Dumbledore's. It was addressed to Bookman. A second stacked on top, addressed to Lavi, and she recognized the twins handwritting.

"I recognize this," Lavi grinned a little, which softened into a smile, "I appreciate it. Tell Mrs. Weasly that she should come here and teach Jerry a recipe or two, her cooking has been missed."

"I thought you liked Jerry's a little more?"

"Not even Jerry knows everything about cooking, as much as he loves it."

"I'll mention it to her then," Harry nodded a little, "We're off to find Kanda then. See you later?"

"Definitely," Lavi nodded back firmly.

Just as they left, Ginny heard the old man scowl, "Don't get distracted!"

"Oh, you're just jealous you didn't get something as cool-"

The sound of something heavy hitting the table and annoyed exclamation of pain. When she glanced back before the door shut, she caught Lavi's eye, and the other blinked, grinned, and then winked.

Kanda was not, thankfully, as hard to find as either of them had suspected he would be. When Harry asked a scientist named Reever, they were pointed outside.

There was an area not far behind the castle that was clear and pretty perfect for something like meditation. Ginny suspected that Kanda, who had never seemed to have any inclination of preference towards being outside, probably felt much more at home out by the forest than he had before he'd become a werewolf.

Harry didn't outright interrupt the meditation, instead taking a seat on a rock that jutted out nearby. He seemed content to wait. Ginny wasn't about to interrupt either. She didn't know Kanda as well as she knew Lavi or Allen (and that wasn't very well either, really), but she had watched Kanda. He didn't like loud people. Or noisy people. Or all kinds of other types that should could name. But interrupting his meditation was something that, eventually, everyone in the Weasly house came to understand as something that rather annoyed the other. In fact, if one were to pursue the interruption, he would just get very shout with them and start to loose his patience.

So Ginny understood the need to wait, and noticed Harry watching her, trying to catch her eye. She tilted her head. He motioned to the rock beside him. A hint that it might be a somewhat long wait. She declined. She wanted to watch. That was what she had come for. To watch and try to understand his strange distance from them, the way he seemed to understand the exorcists... and why he seemed to believe the exorcists were the only ones who could understand him.

While she waited, she noted the way that Harry so easily slipped into a meditation of his own. She remembered why he had failed Snape's lessons at Occlumency so horribly. One of the reasons was that he failed pretty badly at what was, effectively, meditation. He could not clear his mind, could not focus, and could not sit still. Now, he was extremely still, and his position and form was the same as Kanda's. His breathing was not as controlled, but he seemed to be the picture of calm anyway.

After a while, she got bored of watching him, so she looked at Kanda, but there was nothing new there. So she looked to her surroundings, and she noticed there were faint gauges in the earth around them. The trees a ways away had almost no bark on the side facing them. She noticed Harry's breathing falling into time with Kanda's own.

When she looked back, they sat near, and their breathing was deep and controlled. Harry sat with his back straight, his legs crossed, all just the same as Kanda. She thought they looked similar, in some strange way. She wasn't sure how. Physically, they didn't look at all alike, and their posture was the same only in form, but not in attitude.

She wasn't sure how long she waited, but she could be patient when she needed to be. Eventually Kanda asked a short, "What?" without opening his eyes.

"... Came by to wish a happy holiday," Harry had taken a moment to answer, so caught up in his own meditation.

"Unnecessary," Kanda shot back.

"Even you couldn't say no to Mrs. Weasly," The corner of Harry's lips twitched upwards. "I come with presents."

One of Kanda's eyes cracked open to glare at Harry, who could probably feel it as his twitch turned into a smirk.

It didn't take long to find what was addressed to Kanda in what remained inside the box. Harry stood and stretched, letting out a satisfied sigh as a couple things popped. He held out the package. Kanda merely glanced from it, to Harry, with a flat look before shutting his eyes again.

"Do you really want me to be forced to go back and tell her you wouldn't open the present she handmade you?" Harry asked, and Ginny knew he was only saying as much to make the other feel guilty, but she was amused nonetheless. "She'll be really sad, Kanda. Really sad."

Kanda opened his eyes and glared again, snatching the present and snapping, "There. I have the damn thing. Now scram."

"You're not going to open it?"

Kanda leveled a put-upon stare at Harry.

"It's just a Christmas present, Kanda, it's not going to bite," Harry rolled his eyes, and when the other didn't move added a, "I promise."

"I don't do Christmas."

"Well, then it's a thank you gift."

A stare off proceeded to happen, and she simply leaned back and watched. She had heard a little about Kanda, not to mention what she knew from staying under the same roof for a while. Harry really did seem to get along at least somewhat well with the other.

Finally, Kanda ripped the present open with one flick of the wrist, and allowed the contents to spill into his lap. He eyed the scarf first. Most of it was the deepest of blacks, but as it tapered off to the end, it slowly shifted to a midnight blue, to royal blue at the ends. It was soft, and it wasn't flashy like Timothy's, or like Miranda's sort of was. It was similar to Bookman's in that it was more meant to be useful rather than pretty, but it was definitely of richer color.

The second thing from the present was a bundled clothe. When held up questioningly, Harry supplied an explanation.

"A cloak, with hood. Charmed to keep out water and extreme temperatures. It's also charmed to repair itself, to an extent. As long as you don't utterly destroy it, it should continue to to repair itself," Harry grinned cheekily, "And it even matches. Black, like usual, right?"

Kanda only grunted. Ginny wondered what he would do, but Harry turned away, reaching into the box and pulling out two letters which he also handed over. Then he motioned towards her, and she stood somewhat reluctantly.

She supposed that the closest thing to a thank you that she would ever see Kanda give was when she saw him wearing the cloak later on when he left for a mission, scarf in hand.

They found Lenalee in the science section when they couldn't find Allen in the cafeteria or his room. Ginny had only ever seen one glimpse of the other girl before, but when she had heard the other was Chinese, she had immediately thought of Cho Chang and of her connection to Harry.

Lenalee was the same age as Ginny, and she was prettier than Cho Chang could ever hope to be. She had a warm, friendly smile when she spotted Harry. It made Ginny's stomach clench a little.

They got closer, and she barely resisted the urge to glower at how short the girls' skirt was. Harry introduced them, and Lenalee's eyes lit up in recognition.

"Harry's talked about you," Lenalee told her with a similarly friendly smile, "It's nice to finally meet you."

"He has, huh?" Ginny asked in surprise, glancing at the boy who was studiously looking away from them both.

"What brings you here on Christmas eve, Harry?" Lenalee questioned when the conversation fell short.

"To play Santa, it seems," He joked, "I would have transfigured this box into a red sack instead if I could have."

"You can't?" She seemed actually interested, which was a dangerous thing to Ginny.

"The magical properties it has that allows it to be so big on the inside makes it a lot more complicated than you might think. If it was just a box, it'd be easy."

Lenalee chuckled slightly, and a passing scientist asked Harry if he had something that would make the science section stink less in his box-that-wasn't-a-sack. It set off a bout of teasing among some of the other scientists. Ginny herself had noticed the rather distinct smell of men, but she swore everyone was exaggerating. Just a little.

"Draco has been very insistent that everyone bath regularly," Lenalee's eyes twinkled in mirth, "Some of the scientists didn't like that since sometimes it interferes with their work, so they reached a compromise. As long as they stay here, where I guess there are some charms against bad odors, then they can do as they like."

"Oh, so we're odors now," Another scientist snarked, but then gave himself away by grinning a little.

"Anyways, what was it you came to see me for?" Lenalee asked, and calmly brushed some of her hair behind one ear. Her hands seemed delicate, Ginny thought, but then again, so did her legs. And she had seen those legs at work. Once was all she had needed.

Harry fished around in his box for a brief moment before pulling out the present, which he simply held out to her. She was obviously startled, but she accepted.

"Oh," She blinked, "I – thank you. I didn't expect anything."

"One is from me, the other is from Mrs. Weasly," Harry told her, "I know you never met her personally, but she made one for all the exorcists. She said that she was afraid you guys just aren't thanked enough."

At that, Lenalee looked quite surprised, and then she blushed a little shyly.

"Thanks aren't necessary," She murmured softly, fingering the bow, "We're just doing what we can."

Ginny had mixed feelings about the attitude. She was struck by the fact the other girl seemed genuine – it was no act. She was really embarrassed, really actually more touched than she let on.

"But they're nice to get, aren't they?" Harry asked just as softly, and when their eyes met, some kind of understanding seemed to pass between them. Lenalee smiled a little and Harry just nodded knowingly.

Ginny didn't like it.

"Can I open it here?" Lenalee asked then, just a smidgen excited.

"Nothing stopping you," Harry shrugged nonchalantly.

Lenalee opened it and regarded the scarf in awe. It was a beautiful shade of lavender that had slightly darker shades stripped through it that resembled the markings on a cat, and that you could only see tilted at a certain angle. It was shimmering the same way Miranda's had been, and it brought out her hair. Ginny knew that her mother had labored over the scarves and had gone through her memories many times in order to get good glimpses at what the exorcists looked like to match them.

The other thing in the present was a necklace. It was adjustable to be as tight or loose as the wearer could want, and in the shape of a cross. It was large and made of real silver. She wondered why he would pick something so large, but then Lenalee's fingers found a small latch and it swung open to reveal that it was a locket.

When Lenalee looked back up, her smile was so utterly bright that Ginny was even amazed. She hadn't known someone could beam almost literally.

While she was quietly wondering why Harry had given Lenalee a personal present, she followed him to find their last recipient. He had only chosen to give a present picked out by himself to Lavi, Kanda, and Allen, the ones who had stuck with him throughout the past year. Or, at least, that's what she had thought. And she was pretty sure that Lenalee was the only only other than the other three who did get one.

They found Allen while she was still brooding. They barely caught him in time, as he was just leaving.

"I've been looking for you!" Harry exclaimed exasperatedly.

"Oh, really? I'm sorry," Allen chuckled, "I was helping Jerry for the feast tomorrow."

"Feast?" Harry echoed.

"Yeah," Allen shrugged, "We can't really have a traditional Christmas. I guess that the Order just has a feast on Christmas day, and they eat a really big dinner every day for the week after that."

"You sound like you don't know personally."

"This is my first Christmas at the Order too," He waved around a little, "Or, at least, I hope so. I intend to be back by dinner tomorrow, it's not a big mission."

"I hope you do," Harry set the box at his feet, "But since I won't get the chance, I came here to give out the presents today. Yours is last but not least."

The present Harry held out was started at for a full moment before Allen took it very carefully, as if afraid whatever was inside was fragile.

"Open it," Harry suggested when Allen didn't immediately do so. The slightly glazed look faded from Allen's eyes and he smiled as he did so.

Instead of ripping in into pieces like Lavi or opening one end like Kanda, he was very careful in the way he peeled off the tape and the edges. When he was done, he folded the wrapping paper and slipped it into his pocket.

He regarded the scarf in keen interest. It was of a very nice silvery-blue that was soft, rather than shimmering, but it also showed snow as it whirled around.

"It shows the weather," Harry mentioned, "On top of the standard warming charm and durability."

As Allen handled it, his eyebrows briefly rose in confusion before he slipped something from in between the folds. He held up a key.

"That goes to the present that I got you," Harry added, "Which you'll find in your room whenever you return."

"I see," Allen paused, then slipped the key into his pocket and the scarf around his neck, "Thank you, Harry."

"Just wait until you see my present," Harry grinned a little mischievously.

After Allen left, Ginny couldn't help but ask what the present was.

"It's a pensieve," The other shut the box tightly, "inside a command operated lock-box that can shrink."

"Harry, he can't use a pensieve without a wand," She pointed out slowly.

"Special pensieve," Harry stood up straight, "Memories don't really need to accessed with a wand, you know."

She didn't, and she was fairly sure he probably hadn't either before he'd looked into it.

"I figure that out of everybody, he could use it the most."

Later on, both she and Harry attended dinner. They sat with Lenalee and Lavi, and partway in, Timothy appeared and forced his way into the conversation. Ginny actually enjoyed it, even with the irritation at how Harry had gone out of his way with Lenalee.

Part way through dinner, Komui appeared, and his eyes and demeanor were both different from earlier.

"Lenalee, I need you to prepare to leave immediately," He said authoritatively, "I've received news that Allen may need a little backup where he's going."

"Alright, brother," Lenalee nodded, her eyes more serious as the mirth in them faded away, "I'll be just a moment."

Komui swept away. Lenalee only took a few more bites of her food before she had to say goodbye to them. She turned to Ginny and gave a fleeting smile.

"It was really nice to meet you," She said, "It would be nice to see you again sometime."

Ginny only nodded, taken aback not by the change in attitude, but in the air around her. It was suddenly much heavier. Out of all of them, Lenalee had been the least strange, the least otherworldly, but there it was.

Sh watched the other leave, and as she did so, she was able to see the way the 'Finders' parted for Lenalee, the way that her eyes were hard when she saw Komui waiting for her again. The way those strange bands around her ankles seemed to glow briefly and flash in the light, just faintly.

Ginny wasn't sure what it was about that moment. She didn't think that anything in particular stood out to her besides the obvious. But she quietly thought that maybe she understood, just a little. Maybe it was the others back, or maybe it was her walk. But it reminded her of Harry. Of watching him circle Voldemort, wand raised. Of how he fell and died with the same proud set of shoulders and a tilt to his lips. Of how he had known he was walking towards his death, and had done it anyway.

But it was a strange, fleeting comparison that she didn't fully understand or appreciate, and when she tried to grasp it again, it slipped between her fingers.

She was used to seeing the exorcists as Harry's guards and protectors. Not as saviors in their own right, in their own home.

Harry was different. He wasn't impossible to understand, now, but he was different, and the real question was whether Harry would let her understand this other him. She didn't know if he would, if he even could.

Either way, the exorcists were something new, something different in a different way, and she realized they were simple people living not-so-simple lives. They were doing what they could to save the world in their own way. They didn't get a break, not for Christmas and certainly not because they wanted one. All their struggles were of the silent kind. So few knew about the Order and the exorcists. Had they ever been thanked properly? She didn't know, and it was a sad thing. She wanted to change this. She almost felt that if she could change things for the exorcists, she was changing things for Harry.

And if the exorcists walked into their rooms sometime Christmas day and found a new present or card, well, that was just one step closer.


A/N: Christmas present indeed! That took forever to finish! I think this is longer than any chapter in TAFD, except maybe one, and I have severe doubts about that. It's now almost five in the morning and I started hours ago. So I'm gone.

I hope that everyone who celebrates it has a Merry Christmas, and those that don't, still has an awesome time! (And any variation of Christmas or holiday that happens around this time).