Their first Christmas after the war is spent coping. Still mourning in places, but life has a way of marching forward, especially when you don't want it to. But Harry and Ginny have each other and when the mood hits, they sneak off somewhere to be alone – no Ron, no Hermione, no parents, and especially no media or Ministry types trying to get a quote, a picture, or a favor.
Harry decides he likes these times the best. And sometimes, he and Ginny don't even talk at all. They just hold each other and sit quietly, or snog, or…well, he admits the snogging has been happening more and more. The fire that girl creates in him is wild and untamed and for the first time in his life, he embraces it. He soon finds out that he creates the same sort of flame in her and as much as that scares him, it pleases him, too. Harry decides he likes being wanted.
He thinks of last winter, freezing in the tent and feeling miserable and he goes out of his way to make sure that Ginny is never cold, never hungry, and never goes without…him. He is glad she doesn't seem to mind him constantly around; in fact, she seems to insist on him being there, as though she too is thinking of the time when they couldn't be together.
But on the occasions they do talk, they talk for hours. He has filled her in on almost everything, by this point. She knows about the end, the final moments of his life when he thought of her lips (she blushes madly and kisses him quite enthusiastically at this particular factoid). She knows about meeting Dumbledore at King's Cross and she knows how scared he felt when he finally faced Voldemort. Ginny understands in a way that no one else can; sometimes Harry thinks she even understands more than he does.
As they eat a subdued, but still happy Christmas dinner with the rest of their family, Harry looks across the table at her – sees the way the glow of the fairy-lights catch the bold colors of her hair. He sees the way she makes sure her brother George is eating instead of just drinking the Elderberry wine and the way she later helps her mum with the dishes. How she helps her father in and out of his chair and Harry just knows one thing for sure – he will spend the rest of his life with her.
And later, when she sneaks him into her room on the pretense that she has another present for him, (and oh, goodness does she, Harry finds out) he thinks it again. They start to learn what each other's bodies are for – and he can barely believe it, the physical act much quicker than he would have thought. He feels overwhelmed and there is sensory overload at first, and he tells her in mumbled words and she knows, she gets it, she feels the same, and Harry eventually calms his heart and his almost-panic fades as he holds her again and he thinks, yes, yes, this is what it was for.
He also thinks he wants to try it again. And again and again, until they are perfect. He has faith that one day they will be – both of their fiery natures demand it, even.
The second Christmas after the war is better. Less subdued. Memories of their lost ones are still present, but life has marched on again, and now Harry and Ginny are together at Grimmauld Place, slowly but surely turning it into a home. He is busy with being an Auror and she has just found out she will be playing with the Harpies, and there are busy times and family times and sometimes they don't get to see each other as much as he'd like, but whenever that mood hits him, Harry whisks her away to one of their hidden places. So what if they don't spend as much time there as they used to? It's okay. For Harry and for Ginny, the quality (not the quantity) of their time together, as always, outweighs everything else.
And on Christmas, after Ginny has joined him in bed for her special, annual present (he laughs now about it) he asks her to marry him and the look on her face is pure happiness and he feels his heart swell again. He is the reason she is so happy. They make love all night practically, having reached their perfection a few months back and it's a bit of a record, even for them, and as the sun is rising on a new day and their new life, Harry thinks yes, yes, this was what it was for.
Christmases start to fly by – and soon they are expecting their first child – although they are nervous they also feel confident by their success rate with Teddy. Harry loves his godchild more than anything and he has always tried to be there – as he imagines Remus would want him to be – as he imagines how Sirius would have been for him.
He tells Teddy stories of Remus and Tonks, and then stories of James and Sirius. And when Teddy laughs, Harry feels as if the whole world lights up. He can't wait to do the same with his own child – a child that hopefully has none of his faults and all of Ginny's brilliance. He makes a promise to always be the father who is there for his children, no matter what. Harry is proud to say that he succeeds. Mostly.
A few Christmases later, and Lily Luna has joined them and as Harry holds Ginny, while she holds their daughter, he feels as though his heart – the battered, broken heart of his younger years is finally a ghost of a past he no longer fears. The ghosts of those years have finally been replaced by new memories, new loves, and new joys. They laugh together as Lily crawls under the Christmas tree and starts to play peek-a-boo with Teddy, who is so old now, he soon will be leaving to start his own adventure at Hogwarts. And while James plays Exploding Snap with Albus and Ginny gets up to bake their Christmas pies, Harry thinks yes, yes, this was what it was for.
Harry turns fifty over the summer. He is amused by this fact. Ginny teases him and calls him 'old man'. He decides to retire early. He would much rather spend his days making love to his wife and puttering around the house than fill out forms and listen to the stories of the younger, more motivated-something-to-prove men under him. Their world has been at peace for a long time and he takes pride in this fact – the small work he has done throughout his life has helped accomplish that peace. The children are almost all grown, with only Lily returning for Christmas this year, but it is all right. He knows there will be more get-togethers, more Christmases to enjoy down the road. Harry has learned that life always finds a way to remind him of what is important.
And as they watch the lights twinkling on the tree, he whispers what he wants in Ginny's ear, and she giggles – still so girlish and beautiful and everything she was the moment he realized he loved her – and she leads him up the stairs, that same fierce look from decades ago thrilling him down to his toes. Their union is slow and sweet, and as they gaze at each other in the aftermath, Harry thinks yes, yes, this is what it was for.
All the sacrifice, all the pain – all of that to be here for this feeling. This feeling of completeness and love. So much love. Ginny has helped heal him and he hopes, along the way, that he did his bit to heal her as well. That they healed each other with each and every Christmas and all the days in between.