YEAR TWELVE: My True Love Gave To Me...

By Pansy

Twelve years ago at a lame Ministry holiday ball, I'd been determined to prove that I could bring Potter and Weasley to their knees on a whim.

By the end of the night, I'd been the one on the floor (and draped across the table, and hunched over a chair), thoroughly seduced by them both.

After that, every December has been a new revelation for me.

I used the detest holidays, found them to be a practical joke. Thought they were only good for one thing.

Now…

Christmas really is the best time of the year!

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INTERMISSION TWELVE

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They sneaked into the living room once the children were abed and set up the presents under the tree.

Ron assured the door to the living room was locked and Silenced, just in case any curious, little minds decided to get up and meander about in the middle of the night, too eager to wait for morning and the surprise waiting for them.

Harry filled the stockings hanging from the fireplace while sucking on a candy cane.

Pansy ate all of the fruit cake left for Santa, a sudden craving for it taking her over and making her shaft her diet for just one night. A dessert now and then never hurt anyone, right?

When they were done getting everything ready for their children's holiday in the morning, they collapsed on the sofa together and relaxed before the cheery fire as it burned low in the grate. It had been a long week of last-minute shopping, a party at the Burrow, another at Nott Manor, a Ministry charity ball in between. Finally, it was done and tomorrow was the big day.

Then, they could pack it all up…only to do it all again next year.

"Oi, who got Rose the stuffed toy dragon?"

To her right, Harry laughed. "Who do you think?"

Ron scowled. "Ferrety git. If he thinks he's going to someday get Rose to marry his Scorpius, he's got another thing coming!"

Pansy sighed in happiness at the thought. Her daughter was a cute, squishy caterpillar that had all the earmarks of one day emerging from her cocoon as a strikingly beautiful butterfly. As for Scorpius…Draco's sharp, pointy angles had been rounded out by Hermione's gentler genetics in their son and yet the boy was tall and thin for his age, like his father and grandfather had been. It was pretty much a foregone conclusion that he would grow to be a gorgeous, fit man, so long as he balked his father's addiction to sweets.

Draco was starting to get chubby around the middle.

"They both have such pretty hair," she said, as if that sealed the deal between the children. "I bet they'll make a lovely couple someday. Either that or she'll quietly murder him and bury him in the backyard by the time they're sixteen."

"He won't give her a reason to want to kill him. He'll be Hufflepuff," Harry predicted with a suffering sigh of his own. "Rose is going to own his soul by the time they finish Hogwarts."

"Unless Jamie gets to him first," Pansy pointed out. Everyone saw how charmed the Malfoy boy was for their son, too, and Jamie seemed equally as fascinated by the quiet boy with the platinum hair and solemn grey eyes. "You never know."

Next to her on her left, Ron snorted. "There's always Astoria Nott's boys. Maybe we can pawn one of them off on Malfoy's kid."

"You just don't want Draco as an in-law relation," Harry accused.

"That would be at the top of my Christmas wish list, yeah."

Regardless, it was silently understood that their two families would most likely end up tied up at some point down the line. It seemed an inevitable karma. Of course, Pansy wouldn't discourage such a thing. The Malfoy family was quite wealthy…

She leaned her head on Ron's shoulder. "You want to know my only Christmas wish this year?" she asked him.

He took her hand. "Of course."

On the other side, Harry did the same with her right hand. "Tell us," he encouraged her.

"To have one more child, to make things even. Three of us, three of them."

Next to her Harry stiffened, as did Ron.

"Really?"

She wasn't sure which of them asked it, as they were both acting a bit squirrely all of the sudden and that had made her so nervous, her heart had started pounding, which had distracted her… "You don't want another child?"

"Um…"

"Er…"

They didn't, did they? The idea was a bit of a crushing blow, honestly. She'd hoped...

Quietly, Harry handed her a wrapped box that he'd sat to the side when he'd been putting down the gifts under the tree earlier.

"We're pretty sure that wish-" Ron began.

"-has already come true," Harry finished.

Frowning in confusion, she took the gaily wrapped box from them and tore it open, eager to see what was inside.

It was a Muggle pregnancy test.

"You missed your period," they said together.

Had she again?

Oh, dear…

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~FIN~

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AUTHOR'S FINAL NOTE:

So we come to the end of this trio's tale. I hope you enjoyed my first foray into Ronsanarry (Haranson? What would this ship be called anyway?). No sequel planned. Please review, if you would be so kind. I'd love to hear your final thoughts as well.

My love to you all, and I hope you're being safe and staying healthy during this time.

XOXO,

- RZZMG