"Harvey, I don't believe in the Easter bunny."
"Louis, no one over the age of seven believes in the Easter bunny," Harvey replies. He's sitting on Louis' kitchen island as Sheila finishes their dinner, Louis complains and Donna cuts out rabbit paw stencils. Harvey decided they're organizing Lucy an Easter egg hunt even though she is not even two yet.
"No, I mean my daughter is Jewish and she will not take part in your goy traditions," Louis all but humphs.
Harvey raises his brows skeptically. "I don't know what that means. Also, I'm sure every other child in Lucy's pre-school will have an Easter egg hunt. Do you really want Lucy to be singled out by the other kids for growing up in an orthodox household?"
Louis sputters and Donna has to press her lips together to keep from bursting into laughter. Sheila looks like she'd rather not be consulted on the matter, even though Harvey is pretty sure she agrees with him. From the way Louis is indignantly looking from one of them to the others instead of actually answering, Harvey knows he's won.
"Fine. But whatever it is that you're planning has to be Passover-compliant."
"Relax, Louis, she doesn't even understand the whole 'thousands of people escaped Egypt through a parting in the sea' concept yet."
"I don't appreciate the tone you're using to talk about my ancestors," Louis replies and his voice alone is enough evidence that he's balling his fists.
"Alright," Donna finally cuts in. "Don't worry, Louis, the beauty of the Easter bunny myth is that it's so secular it goes with any religion. It'll just be a few flour paws around the house and hidden Easter eggs and then we can all have some matzah balls you probably have leftover from last Seder."
Louis seems satisfied at that. Harvey gets a warning glare from Donna, but it doesn't last long as he squeezes her hand beneath the table and she shoots him a grin.
Harvey and Donna are spending Easter with Marcus and the kids. Harvey actually suggested they went to Connecticut, seeing as it's a big holiday with Donna's family, but Donna insisted they should spend it with the kids instead.
That is yet another unexpected positive effect of being with Donna. Harvey has always loved his family, but he let the whole thing with his mother build resentment and distance and that translated into few visits over the years and too many missed moments with Haley and Tom.
Donna, on the other hand, is very close with pretty much her whole family apart from her older sister. Even her cousins and aunts get a regular phone call for updates and pleasantries, and that has been rubbing off on Harvey.
So this year he decided proper traditions were in order. He may not care much for kids but he wants to have a relationship with Haley, Tom and Lucy. And having Donna by his side not only provides him with much-needed experience and child-whispering abilities, but also a deep sense of excitement and appreciation for any and all moments he gets to live by her side.
So, Easter egg hunts. They're having one with Lucy before they head up to Marcus', and another one with the kids.
It's actually kind of exciting. Harvey had no idea of the amount of Easter eggs and related gifts available in the market. After a few stressful hours searching online and Donna's merciful intervention, they bought lots of tiny chocolate eggs and one larger egg with a surprise inside for each child. Add to that clues scattered around each house and Easter bunny "traces" and they should keep the kids pretty entertained for a while.
They have time for a couple more clue cards before Sheila finishes dinner and they stop to eat. Despite how annoying Louis can be, visiting their friends never fails to remind Harvey how good it is to have the people he cares about close to him.
.
.
Donna has probably taken about two hundred and thirty-four pictures of Lucy in her bunny ears and Harvey is not complaining. He secretly loves how cute her curly dark-brown hair looks against the furry pink ears and how she wobbles on her feet and yells out "buh-ee" every time she spots one of the white paws on the floor. She's the most adorable little thing and Harvey struggles to believe she's Louis' sometimes.
Sheila holds her hands and helps her around the living room, the bedroom and, finally, the garden, while the rest of them just follow, laughing and "aww"-ing every time the girl does something cute. Harvey more than once thinks he spots Louis wiping away a tear.
It's surreal, getting to experience Easter - or anything, really - through the eyes of a child. The wonder and novelty is something Harvey hadn't had contact with in a very long time, not only because he regrettably missed a lot of Haley and Tom's childhoods but also because his life is only now starting to resemble what is most people's regular life, without the constant threat of lawsuits, prison, blackmail and backstabbing. Harvey's life has finally quieted down enough to let wonder back in, and even though he misses the speed sometimes, he is also grateful that he has more time to smell the roses.
He feels Donna's fingers wrap around his and they share a chuckle as Lucy crawls behind a bush and squeals as she finds an egg. Louis keeps praising her in Hebrew, which he seems to think she understands, and every new discovery gets her a party from mommy and daddy. He's happy they get to be here for this.
Once Lucy is done finding all the eggs it's time for pictures and lunch, and then it's off to Boston, where the hunt with his niece and nephew is considerably more lively. He got Marcus to help out and the clues are complex and well-hidden and the whole thing basically evolves into a game of tackle while Donna and his brother drink beers and chat.
It's domesticity and tradition wrapped in ways he'd never experienced before and he's pretty sure he's getting soft with age but this warms his chest in an unexpected way.
Marcus and him are both atheists, but he still takes Donna to church on Sunday - she insists on not going during service because she doesn't want him to have to sit through it with her. He tells her he doesn't mind and even offers to drop her off and pick her up afterwards if it makes her feel better but she turns him down; he waits in the car for ten minutes as she says a few prayers and meets him back outside.
He knew Donna's family is religious but he never heard her talk much about it, so it was unclear to what degree Donna partook in rituals and celebrations. Turns out she doesn't care for church, fasting and the other stuff he's heard about, but she likes Easter and Christmas service and she prays a little on occasion. He asked her once, back at the beginning, about why she did some things but not others. She told him she had the faith, but not the patience to follow all the rules, so she settled for just believing and accompanying her parents on the big dates.
It's funny to him, how Donna manages to take this huge thing, something millions upon millions around the world follow to a T, and make it her own in a way that leaves no room for questions of whether she's doing it right. If he didn't know better he would fully believe that's what Christianity is supposed to look like. It's just another one of his wife's quirks, the tiny little things he thankfully got to discover even after he was absolutely sure he knew all there was to know.
That and the fact that she doesn't like her food to mix on the plate, that she'll always bring a housewarming gift when she visits a new home, and that she makes a point of never asking girls the traditional gender-role questions about marriage or looks, something Haley seems to appreciate.
They bake a s'mores pie and decorate it with a marshmallow bunny on top and Marcus comments he wishes Katie were still around to share these moments. Donna squeezes his forearm and tells him she doesn't like sharing the "boss lady" title anyways. Harvey isn't sure, but he thinks that soothes Marcus as his brother smiles at her just a little different than he usually does.
.
.
"I will spare you of the tired 'Playboy bunny on Easter' cliché-"
"Wait, no, I don't wanna be spared!"
"But I do believe a little chocolate is in order."
"... Donna Paulsen, to think I drove you to church just this morning."
"What would I repent for if I didn't sin a little?"
"Forget a little, you might just be the devil itself."
"Are we gonna keep up the religious metaphors or can I go fetch the chocolate I melted while you showered?"
Harvey doesn't even mind how overeager he must look when he nods enthusiastically at her. Donna laughs, but he knows she likes it too. This weekend definitely upgraded his definitions of Easter.
A/N: Just a side note: I'm not Jewish, so a little research was needed. Apologies if I messed anything up! Also, I don't think Harvey would mock anyone's religion, but I absolutely do think he'd pull Louis' leg about it a little. Also, Donna being a Christian is a consistent headcanon of mine; she lived in Connecticut for a long time, and Google tells me that's a considerably Christian state so I'll allow myself this little myth :)