As a Christmas present, I'm trying to see if I can push out some chapters to stories that need them, as well as finish up The Lives Of The Broken. Hopefully that as well as The Other Side will be done by Christmas night.

On with the fic. And Merry Christmas. Or if you're Jewish, Happy Hanukkah :D

...pretend I posted this last night lol


I wanna learn how to believe again

Find the innocence in me again

Through your young heart

Help me find a way, help me try

I wanna see Christmas through your eyes

-Gloria Estefan Christmas Through Your Eyes


Chapter Twenty-Eight: Christmas, Bristol

Harry woke up warmly, snuggled up beside Daphne who had snuck into his room the night before, just to talk. Instead, they stayed up chatting, flirting, and snogging until they had both fallen asleep.

Harry reached for his glasses and put them on. He took a look at his watch. 7:02 in the morning. As much as he didn't want to wake up the blonde goddess beside him, he knew that they would be in trouble if she was found.

He kissed her on the forehead, causing her to smile in her sleep at the feel of his lips. Harry rolled his eyes. So much for waking her up sweetly.

"Daph? Daphne? Daphne, wake up." he said as he gently shook her.

Daphne yawned as she woke up, her crystal eyes not wanting to open. "Mmmm good morning, Harry." she said as she stretched beside him, her breasts grazing his side, causing him to think not so gentlemanly thought for a second.

"Happy Christmas, love." said Harry. "You need to go back to your room."

"What time is it?" she asked groggily.

"7 in the morning."

Daphne's eyes popped open widely. "Oh shit!" she said springing up out of bed and running out the room as quick as she could. Harry couldn't help but fall out in a fit of laughter.

He was wide awake, so he decided to take a shower and get dressed for the day. After he was done, he reached in his trunk and pulled out the flat present that he had gotten Daphne, excited to be able to give it to her.

He took a look in the mirror at his unruly raven locks. Groaning, he tried to comb it into somewhat of a neat style, only for it to become unruly the instant he put the comb down.

"Seriously? You can't give me Christmas?" said Harry to his hair as he looked in the mirror. He took a deep breath and then headed out the door and downstairs.

Elaine reminded Harry a lot of Mrs. Weasley in some of her mannerisms. One being that she was always up before them, fixing breakfast. By the time they would get downstairs, breakfast was ready to be served. She fixes an abundance of scrumptious and delectable food. Harry didn't know if it was just her, or the fact that she was a veela but everything that Elaine did to him and her girls was perfect in his eyes.

"Happy Christmas, Harry." said Elaine in her cheery voice, causing Harry to stop dead in his tracks and stand straight up. He hasn't gotten over the fact that she was indeed a veela. It wasn't like Fleur, where she had to turn on vwr veela charm like a light switch. Elaine Greengrass just radiated it without even trying.

"Happy Christmas to you too." said Harry, breathlessly.

Elaine laughed as she sat an plate of bacon, eggs, toast, ham, and applesauce in front of him. Harry couldn't tell if it was her presence or the wonderful smell of the food that was making him float on air.

Happy Christmas Miss Elaine." he said breathlessly.

Elaine chuckled. "Still not over it, huh Harry?"

Harry gulped. "I'm so sorry."

"It's fine. It's not your fault. I just hope you swoon just as much for my daughter, and not because she is part veela."

Harry blushed, but shook his head. "It isn't that. I really care a lot about her. She...she comforts me." said Harry, hesitantly as he stuck a forkful of eggs in his mouth.

"Comfort?" asked Elaine.

"I'm having...episodes. My mind seems to flash back to the past months and last year. I feel like I'm there and apparently I have fits, and Daphne helps me through it. She seems to be the only one that can." said Harry, looking down at his plate.

"Sounds like PTSD. Daphne and Astoria's father went through it when the first wizarding war went on. That's what drove him to Voldemort, actually." said Elaine as she sat down and sipped her tea.

Harry looked at Elaine, desperate for him to finish his story.

"My husband was a good man before the war started. He was much older than me mind you, and at 19, a year out of Hogwarts, I felt that I knew everything, being the headstrong and impulsive Gryffindor that I was. And still am today. I saw potential in him. My family hated it. I was already betrothed to someone else, but we eloped. For about two years things were fine. But then he got caught up in the war. My brother helped fill his mind with thoughts of evil and working for Voldemort and he saw the light side losing tremendously. He had dreams. Bad ones. He would literally fight me in his sleep."

"He then decided to go with my brother on a Death Eater mission. The mission went awry, and Voldemort thought that he had double crossed him. He set out to eliminate us. Daphne had been born six months prior, and when Voldemort showed up to kill us, he saw her, and desired her." said Elaine with pure disgust in her mouth.

"My husband offered her hand in marriage to him. And since then, he acted as if he hated her. And I'm betting that she told you the rest."

Harry nodded, once again feeling the hate and rage against Daphne's father that hr had when Daphne first told him. "She did. Sorry to say that it made me want to kill the man."

Elaine gave Harry a small smile. "It's fine. I no longer care for the man anymore, and I'm glad he is locked away, far from the girls. I only wish that Astoria didn't worship him as if he were a hero. I love her just as much as I love her sister, bit sometimes I feel she thinks that all she has is her father. It's hard on her knowing he is never coming back and she is never seeing him again."

Harry continued to listen, but went back to his plate, avoiding saying anything about the girl that he totally despised. Elaine smirked knowingly.

"I can tell that you really care a lot about Daphne. Please, treat her right and take care of her." said Elaine.

"I promise." said Harry as Daphne walked into the room.

"Promise what? Happy Christmas, Mum." said Daphne, kissing hey mother on the cheek.

"Happy Christmas, Amina. You looked refreshed." said Elaine, kissing her back and rubbing her back.

"It is Christmas after all." said Daphne, as she sat down in front of a breakfast plate.

"Christmas huh? I would have thought that you had a good sleep with Harry last night" said Elaine, casually.

Both Daphne and Harry paused mid bite and wide eyed and looked at each other and then back at Elaine, who was laughing.

"I'm a Mum, I know everything. Just don't get my daughter pregnant. I'm too young to be a grandmum." she said, amused at the look on their faces.

The rest of the day went pleasantly well, despite the fact that Astoria was there glaring most of the time. Elaine had been nice enough to even buy Harry a new set of beautiful quail feather quills. He had gotten a deluxe broom servicing kit from Daphne, books on vintage brooms and quidditch supplies from Hermione, a Honeydukes box from Ron, a WWW package from George with his latest goodies, and his usual Weasley sweater from Mrs. Weasley. Harry had decided to give his present to Daphne in private that night.

Elaine then took them to a sledding hill, where they actually had a lot of fun sledding and snowboarding (Harry was shocked to find that Daphne could do a muggle activity like snowboarding) down the huge hills of snow.


After dinner, Harry and Daphne went outside to the good sized pond that was in her backyard.

"I wish it had frozen over like it usually does." said Daphne. "Stor and I used to ice skate on it every winter.

Harry smirked and took out his wand. "That's what magic is for, silly." he said, pointing his wand to the pond. "Infrigore"

A small white beam of light shot out of his wand and into the pond, freezing it solid on impact. Daphne smiled brightly and kissed Harry on the cheek before she ran into the house to get her ice skates. Harry magically made blades and attached them onto his shoes.

Daphne came back out stepping heavily in the snow with her skates. Harry took her hand and then they went out on the ice.

Harry hadn't learned to ice skate until he was 11 years old. During the holiday break, Ron and the twins had shown him how, as the leave had frozen over and students were skating. By the time the holidays were over, Harry had gotten the hang of it, and by third year, he was as good at ice skating as he was at Quidditch.

Daphne on the other hand had been skating since she was three and was an expert at figure skating. Harry watched mesmerized as Daphne took to the ice as if she were flying, her spins and twirls were enchanting to watch.

"I didn't know you could skate like that." he said, catching up to her.

"You never asked." said Daphne, blushing. "I love skating. Makes me feel free. When I'm on the ice, nothing is wrong. Nothing bothers me. Ice can be peaceful, comforting, and completely beautiful. It is also strong. All things that I feel I really want to be."

"You already are." said Harry, skating in front of her and taking her hands into his. "I don't know why you don't see that."

Daphne blushed and looked down at her feet. "Hearing the total opposite all the time growing up sticks with you, Harry. Even when Mum would tell me not to listen to him. I tried so hard to prove to my father that I was a good girl. I even forced that hat to put me into Slytherin, thinking he would accept me. I was actually supposed to be a Gryffindor. But even that didn't work. It's tough for me to accept kindness. Especially from men."

"But you accept me."

That's because I feel strongly for you." said Daphne, putting her arms around Harry's neck as he moved his to her waist. "I feel like we are connected in some way, I can't really explain it. You're always talking about me helping you, when also you help me a lot."

"That reminds me." said Harry, reaching into his pocket and pulling out his present for Daphne. "Open it." he said as he handed it to her.

Daphne giggles as she ripped off the paper and uncovered a blue velvety box. Daphne looked up suspiciously at Harry, who was smiling from ear to ear with anticipation.

"Harry, you didn't.." said Daphne as she opened the box. She gasped as she looked at the white gold chain that laid upon blue silk. At the end of the necklace was a beautiful ice blue diamond heart.

"Oh Harry, it's absolutely gorgeous!" said Daphne, breathlessly.

"Harry blushed. "It was my mother's."

Daphne stared back up at Harry, stunned as he lifted the necklace out of the box and hooked it around her neck.

"Harry.."

"I've seen it in pictures in my parent's vault, and in a picture that my godfather had shown me. He said my father gave it to her sixth year as a Valentine's Day/apology present. Said it was made with old magic and has been in the Potter family for centuries."

"I can't accept this. It's too special. You mum-"

"Wouldn't want it sitting in an old dusty vault. She would want me to give it to you" said Harry, placing the pendant directly in the middle of Daphne's chest.

Daphne blushed as the two kissed. Harry smiled under Daphne lips, feeling like he truly loved this girl, but scared to say it. Hopefully, the necklace spoke the words for him.

Elaine watched the pair from the kitchen window, her heart warmed. Astoria watched with her, hating the fact that she had to give the git credit that he actually was a good person to her sister.