Christmas at Hogwarts smelled of gingerbread and frosted pine. When Mara awoke, she shivered from the slight chill of the first frost covering the grounds. As she passed by the kitchens on her way to see her friend, Lily, she caught the heavenly scent of fresh gingerbread baking.
Her spirits warmed like she had downed a tub of butterbeer, she made her way to the great hall, humming a Christmas tune under her breath.
The tables were surprisingly empty. Only a fraction of the students sat at the tables and though this wasn't uncommon on weekends, the lack of students was still staggering to the redhead. During meal times, the Great hall was alive with chattering students and mountains of food. Now though, it seemed empty.
However, one spot at the Gryffindor table was alive. Mara grinned as she spotted the distinct hair colors of her friend's hair. It was an advantage to having friends that stood out, you never had trouble finding them.
A black and white chessboard sat between Ron and Harry while Hermione was speaking fervently about something she couldn't hear and Neville simply smiling and nodding at whatever Hermione said.
Mara grinned, almost floating towards them in her euphoria. She paused as she caught the end of their conversation, her smile faltering.
"I've looked everywhere for him! That's the last place to look. He has to be there," Hermione urgently whispered.
Neville was the first to notice her, his eyes meeting hers with a smile. He softly nudged Harry beside him and the group of four all looked up to meet her gaze.
"Hey, enjoying the holidays?" Neville asked with an easy smile. Briefly, Mara debated on whether to call them out on their avoidance.
Still, it was Christmas.
"I am, thank you very much. It's so beautiful. Did you know they're making gingerbread houses in the kitchens?" She said, plopping down next to Ron. Ron gave no indication he noticed her presence, his gaze flickering between Harry's focused face and the board.
Mara had foolishly played chess against Ron, once only a few days after school began. After a humiliating defeat, she swore never to play against him again.
"Queen to 5-8," Ron declared. The black queen stood up from her chair, taking a direct path to Harry's side of the board, stopping only a few places from Harry's king.
"Checkmate," Ron grinned. Harry looked shocked for a second before groaning, throwing his head into his hands.
Taking another look at the board, Mara could see why. Ron had cornered Harry's king by nearly every piece. No matter which way Harry moved, Ron had a piece ready to take the king.
She winced in sympathy for her brother.
Hermione gave them an amused smile. "How many losses does that make it?"
"9 to 0," Neville piped up with a grin.
Mara winced again. She was terrible at chess, always had been but Harry had always been good at it. Ron, though, was on a whole other level.
"How are you so good at chess?" Mara asked in wonder.
Ron's ear turned slightly pink but he gave her a prideful grin. "I dunno. I've always been good at chess. My brother, Bill taught me to play when I was little and I used to play it against him for hours. I'm still undefeated."
"If only you could put that much dedication to your schoolwork," Hermione deadpanned.
Ron rolled his eyes at her, crossing his arms. "Schoolwork is so much harder. I like chess. Schoolwork is boring."
He shuddered as if the thought repulsed him. Knowing Ron, it probably did, Mara thought amused.
"The train leaves in 1 hour! All students leaving report to the courtyard!" Professor McGonagall shouted out to passing students, a piece of parchment and feather pen floating behind her.
Hermione shot up. "That's my cue! Remember to keep looking for…." She trailed off, shooting a nervous look at Mara. "That book we were looking for," she finished lamely.
Mara raised an eyebrow. "Must be an important book." She stated. She didn't know how much longer she could put up with this secrecy.
"It is," Neville piped up, avoiding all eye contact. Harry stayed silent, choosing to help Ron set the chess pieces back up.
Still, it was Christmas.
"Enjoy the holidays, Hermione. Happy Christmas," She smiled.
Hermione gave her a happy grin. She got up to leave but paused for a moment. Softly, she leaned over to Harry to whisper in his ear.
Mara raised an eyebrow in interest. This was a new development.
Harry nodded, sending her a thankful smile. Hermione beamed at him before taking off with one last "Happy Christmas! See you after the holidays!"
"Bye, Hermione!" Mara waved after her.
"Miss Potter, Heir Potter," a voice said from behind her.
Mara turned around, seeing the pale, pointy face of Draco Malfoy. The tanned and suave Blaise Zabini stood beside him with a smirk. To be honest, she liked Blaise much more than Draco though she still didn't trust either of them. Their constant attempts to get into her and Harry's good books already make her suspicious.
Draco inclined his head in a slight bow. Mara was hesitant but courtesy required she follow. She tilted her head towards him in an acknowledging fashion, seeing Harry doing the same from the corner of her eye.
Draco presented a letter towards her. Mara could see the seal for The House of Malfoy sealing it. She pursed her lips, raising an eyebrow at the odd gesture. Still, though, she took the letter, opening it carefully. It wouldn't be the first time someone tried to kill her through her mail and it certainly wouldn't be the last. She read the first few lines, her eyes going wide.
"The Malfoy Winter Ball? You came over to invite us to your party?" She said, incredulously.
Draco rolled his eyes, crossing his arms. "We host it every year. My father thought it would be a good idea to invite House Potter."
Mara got a distinct feeling Draco disagreed with this decision.
"I'm afraid our parents have to work overseas this holiday season. We won't be able to attend." Harry said, cooly.
Mara always admired how quickly Harry could put up his mask. She was never able to deal with all these snooty purebloods like he was.
Draco sent him a smirk before shrugging. "That's fair. I'd skip out on it if I had a choice. They're dreadfully boring," He sent Blaise a bored look and Blaise chuckled.
"It's not my fault I got banned," Blaise sent him an amused grin.
"You stole your mother's wand and turned our peacocks into penguins and tried to ride them like a sled," Draco deadpanned.
Mara bit her tongue to stop from giggling. She could just imagine a tiny Blaise trying to sled down a snow-covered hill on a penguin. She would have killed to have seen the look on Lucius Malfoy's face.
Blaise sent her a wink before grinning at Draco. "It was worth it."
"You nearly started an international incident when you sledded right into the French Ambassador," Draco told him, giving him a blank look.
Mara tried to hold her giggles in, she really did but the image of Blaise, riding a penguin crashing into the French ambassador really had her lose it.
Mara laughed, hiding her smile behind her hand.
"See, Miss Potter approves," Blaise said matter of factly.
Draco rolled his eyes with a fond grin.
Mara looked between the two pureblood. For the first time, the two seemed almost…human in a way. Like they were actual people and not just purebloods. Mara almost kicked herself. Of course, they were real people. They were just like her, kids, despite how different they had been raised.
She gave them a soft smile. "Happy Holidays, Heir Malfoy, Heir Zabini," she said, nodding her head towards them.
Draco and Blaise both gave her a surprised look but Blaise looked pleased with himself. He bowed slightly.
"Of course, Miss Potter," He sent her one last wink before turning to leave.
Draco raised an eyebrow but smiled politely nonetheless. He inclined his head to both Mara and Harry.
"Happy Holidays."
He too followed his friend out of the Great Hall.
"Was it just me or did the two of them seem nicer than usual?" Neville piped up to ask, his eyes narrowed at where the two boys had disappeared.
"Let it be. It's Christmas after all! Let the celebrations begin!" Mara cheered.
Harry raised an eyebrow before gesturing around them with one hand. "With who?"
Mara hadn't noticed but the Great Hall was almost completely empty.
She forgot, she thought as she sulked on the table.
Everyone left for the holidays.
Despite the lack of remaining Hogwarts students, it didn't damper Mara's spirits.
"You know, witches and wizards used to celebrate Yule and not Christmas. Christmas only took over once more muggle-borns started being accepted into the school," Lily stated as the two girls sat at the Gryffindor table.
Mara sent her an uninterested look. "Can't make me unlove Christmas, Lil."
Lily laughed. "I actually like how enthused you are about Christmas. It's a nice change of pace. My mom hates Christmas."
Mara nearly got whiplash as her head snapped up at the tidbit of information. "How can anyone hate Christmas?" She said, incredulously.
Lily just laughed.
Come to mention it, that was the first time Lily had mentioned anything about her parents and so far, it wasn't exactly heartening. She shook off the thought, giving her friend a bright smile.
"We always celebrate at my home. This year, my parents are heading to France for work." Mara smiled at her.
"Does that bother you?" Lily asked, curious.
Mara grinned. "Nah, Harry and I wanted to spend Christmas at Hogwarts for our first year anyway. Headmaster Dumbledore is letting our parents take us out to Diagon Alley and we're gonna celebrate with everyone. I really miss them, I can't wait to see them."
"Well, I hope we don't disappoint you," A husky voice said from behind her.
Mara squealed as she turned around spotting her grinning uncle.
"Uncle Sirius!" She cried, launching herself out of her seat and into his arms. Sirius laughed, catching her around her waist.
"How's my doe?" Sirius grinned.
"I haven't been in the hospital this month so good!" Mara gave him a mischevious grin.
Sirius ruffled her hair while she heard a sigh from behind him.
"I suppose that's the best we can hope for," Remus shook his head. Mara giggled, reaching forward to hug him as well.
"It's good to see you. How're your classes?" Remus asked.
Sirius scoffed. "Her classes? That's what you want to know? I want to know how she keeps getting away with breaking the rules. Seriously, kid, you've got to teach me your secret."
He pouted, giving her his best puppy dog eyes.
Mara laughed. "I'll never tell! I'll take it to my grave!" She grinned. Sirius threw his hand over his forehead dramatically.
"How could you be so cruel, doe! I practically raised you!" Sirius broke character at the last moment, giving her a wink.
Mara giggled. Remus shot him a deadpanned look before smiling at Mara.
"He was the worst marauder anyway."
"How dare you!" Sirius gasped, outraged.
Remus shot her a wink and Mara giggled.
"I thought mum and dad were coming to pick us up," Mara said, giving them a questioning look.
"Are we not enough for you? Oh, rejected by my own child," Sirius cried dramatically.
Mara rolled her eyes.
Remus gave her a fond smile. "You dad got called in on a mission and your mum's still at work. I don't know the details, but you know-"
"It's unspeakable. I know, Uncle Moony." Mara laughed.
"So where's my favorite nephew?" Sirius asked, fluffing Mara's hair with a grin.
Mara scoffed, throwing her hand against her head in a dramatic fashion. "Am I not enough? Oh rejected by my own uncle."
Remus sighed while Sirius threw his head back in a booming laugh.
Mara grinned up at them before spotting a flash of red hair in the corner of her eye. Lily had been slinking off, a smile on her face as she watched them.
"Oh, this is my friend, Lily! Lily, these are my uncles Remus and Sirius," Mara said proudly.
Lily paused as the two men swerved their heads to look at her. She gave them a patient smile.
"Another Lily? That's going to be too confusing. How about we call you…" Sirius pondered for a moment, his eyes moving towards Lily's messenger bag at her waist. A sewn patch of a rabbit stood out against the purple colors.
"Bunny! Doe and Bunny! Perfect." Sirius grinned, proud of himself.
"You couldn't be more original?" Mara deadpanned, crossing her arms.
Remus rolled his eyes. "This is the person who nicknamed me "Moony" and James "Prongs."
"Good point," Mara said.
"Hey!" Sirius glared at them.
"You guys must be close," Lily giggled. "If you can joke with each other like that."
Remus raised an eyebrow towards the girl who only smiled back. "Does your family not joke with one another?"
For the first time since Mara had met her, Lily's smile faltered. She shuffled uncomfortably.
"Not really," she admitted quietly. Mara looked at her questioningly. they were interrupted though by a rumble from Lily's bag, much like a low growl from an animal.
"Uh, what was that?" Sirius raised an eyebrow to the odd girl. Lily gave him a convincing smile.
"Uh, nothing really. I'll just be going." Lily said, anxiously.
Not even Mara believed her.
"I hope you have fun on your trip, Mara. I'll be in the library later," Lily sent her a soft smile.
Mara nodded, uncomfortable with Lily's nervous body language. Lily clutched her bag tightly as it wiggled at her side but Lily simply walked away as if nothing was happening.
Sirius and Remus turned to her but Mara only shrugged. She didn't think those rumors about Lily having an animal in her bag were true but now, she wasn't so sure. She shuffled on her feet nervously.
Luckily though, a change of subject came in the form of her missing brother.
"Padfoot!"
Sirius barely had time to catch them both as Harry threw himself at Sirius. He managed to stay standing by sheer will power.
"Hey, pup. You're sure excited." Sirius raised an eyebrow, exchanging a meaningful look with Remus.
Harry took a step back from his godfather, his cheeks reddening the slightest bit. Luckily no one called him out on him. Mara frowned. His behavior just kept getting more abnormal as the days went on.
"Sorry, just been stressed. It's really good to see you," He grinned at his godfather, gripping his hands behind his back.
Sirius sent Mara a questioning look. She shrugged. She didn't have any answers, Harry refused to talk to her half the time, she thought bitterly.
Shaking her head at the mean thought, she gave her uncles a smile. "Are you gonna take us shopping?"
Sirius looked between her and Harry with a calculating look but luckily didn't say anything.
"Sure am!" Sirius said. "Emilia will be joining us at the alley and Lily and James will be done with work in a couple of hours. I've been instructed not to let you or Remus into Cholmondeley's."
"Well, we better get going," Mara said, hurriedly changing the subject. She sent Remus a look and his lips quirked upwards briefly. Mara grinned.
Sirius sent the two of them suspicious looks. "I'm not going to drag you two out of another chocolate disaster. Your mum will have my head."
Mara gave him a perfectly innocent smile. "I would never disobey my mum, Uncle Sirius."
Harry and Sirius scoffed at the same time. Remus sent her an amused look.
"You've been spending way too much time with Moony, doe. You've got his innocent look down pat." Sirius shook his head.
Mara grinned in reply.
Goblins don't celebrate Christmas, Mara reminded herself as she walked into Gringotts with her brother and uncle.
Harry hadn't said a word to her, chatting with Sirius and Remus when they asked him questions. His posture was more relaxed than in the past few weeks in the castle but his shoulders were clenched in tension and he hadn't let go of his right hand at all despite the bandage covering it.
Still, though, it was Christmas, she tried to think happily.
Goblins celebrated old celebrations like Yule and it showed by the decorations in Gringotts. Meaning, there were none.
It was oddly depressing to grab her usual amount of coins from the vault, the world still as bleak and colorless as any other time. Every time she came in, it was like time stopped.
The bank hadn't changed for over a hundred years and she doubted it would in a hundred more. The thought made her feel more depressed.
Still, it was Christmas, she thought, trying to brighten her spirits.
Goblins don't celebrate Christmas, she reminded herself, but witches and wizards do. Diagon Alley was a fresh breath of relief from the suffocating air in the goblin-run bank.
"It's so pretty!" She squealed, looking at all the decorations piled around the alley. Fairy lights hung from nearly every store in every color she could possibly think of while a large frosted tree, covering in twinkling lights and glass baubles stood in the courtyard. It was even bigger than the one at Hogwarts and that was saying something.
Mara had been there when Hagrid had lugged the thing in, the half-giant struggling to pull it into the castle even with his superhuman strength.
Light snow covered the pavement at each of the stores were packed with witches and wizards buying last-minute presents.
Small vendors were set up along the street. A woman selling enchanted flowers that sang Christmas tunes, a man selling roasted chestnuts and several twinkling jewelry vendors were only the highlights.
"Flourish and Blotts, first!" Mara said, nearly running towards the familiar shop. Despite the slight cold chill around her, she felt warm.
It was Christmas, after all.
Flourish and Blotts were lit up just like any other shop but it was the familiar figure in front of the store that had Mara grinning.
"Emilia!" Mara said, delighted.
Said woman had a pair of sunglasses on her head as she sat on a bench just outside the shop. She was looking around, a huge smile on her face.
"What are you doing?" She asked, curiously. Emilia grinned at her.
"New invention. Do you wanna see?" she asked.
Mara nodded, enthusiastically. Last time she got to try one of Emilia's inventions, it turned her skin purple for a week. Mum was not happy but Mara quite liked the shade. It clashed horribly with her hair though.
Emilia pulled the glasses off her head, giving them over with a smile.
Mara nearly shoved the glasses on her face in her hurry and gasped. She could see Diagon Alley but it was almost unrecognizable at this point. The world was a clash of bright, swirling colors near all the shops. The world was glowing. It wasn't until she spotted the singing flower shop that she realized what was happening.
The woman in the shop was showing a patron the flower and tapped her wand on the plant. Mara watched in astonishment as bright colors flowed out of her wand, circling around the plan. As she heard the plant begin singing a rendition of Celestina Warbeck, she could see music notes flowing out of its mouth.
She took off the glasses and the world returned to normal. She gaped at Emilia who laughed.
"It allows you to see the magic in a comprehensible shape," she stated.
"This so cool!" Mara squealed, sticking the glasses back on her head.
"Em!" Sirius jogged up to them with a bright grin. Mara couldn't help but smile as she literally saw red hearts appear in his eyes.
Emilia winked at Mara with a grin, her eyes glowing for a moment before she turned to Sirius, the same red hearts appearing in her own.
Mara laughed, turning around to look at Harry and Remus as they came up at a walk. She could see the slight green swirls around Remus, probably from his lycanthropy, she thought.
She turned to Harry but her insides went cold. Around his bandaged hand, sickly green sparks were flying around his hand.
Harry must have noticed her look because he moved his hand behind his back. Mara shut her eyes as the colors around his hand flashed, making her see white for a moment. She took the glasses off, rubbing at her eyes. She frowned at Harry, who shuffled awkwardly, avoiding her gaze.
She wanted to yell, she wanted to scream and demand he tell her what was happening. Mara knew her twin though. She knew he would only shut away even further. She heaved a sigh, trying to swallow her worry.
It was Christmas.
"Something wrong, doe?" Sirius asked, his hand entwined with Emilia's. Mara shook her thoughts away giving him a bright smile. She shook her head, handing the glasses back to Emilia, who took them, looking between the twins with an odd look.
"Well, what kind of books do you need?" Emilia said, changing the subject with a smile. Mara sent her a grateful look. No doubt one of her uncles was going to confront them soon. For now, though, Mara just wanted to look at some books.
Harry had been expecting to be singled out by one of his uncles ever since they arrived at Hogwarts. Neither was particularly subtle about it either.
He managed to escape the clutches of his godfather by piling on too many books at Flourish and Blotts. Only a few were for Christmas presents and he was so busy at keeping his uncle at bay that he probably bought more duplicates than he needed. He can always give them away, He thought.
Remus brought up Florean's and Harry could see his uncle's bribery tactics a mile away. Harry avoided that attempt by starting an argument with Mara about her favorite fairytale book, Wables Fables. It ended with Mara buying a fourth copy and justifying it by saying that Hermione would appreciate the unusual wizarding tales.
At Sugarplum's Sweets Shop, Harry barely had time to shove a random sweet down Sirius' throat as he started his sentence with "Kiddo". Much to Harry's relief, the sweet made Sirius' tongue grow three times the normal size and all he could get out was gibberish.
He managed to avoid Remus at Gambol and Japes by setting off the nearby farting gnomes. The shop cleared out and Harry safely made his escape.
He should've known that his tactics would only last so long though. Both Sirius and Remus were extremely stubborn.
Sirius finally managed to corner him when Mara took off to Magical Menageries for treats for her familiar and Remus and Emilia followed her when Sirius said he needed to talk to Harry for a minute.
Harry knew he was caught. He avoided his uncle's eyes for as long as he could as they sat down on a bench outside Quality Quidditch Supplies.
"So, ready to tell me what's up with you, pup?" Sirius said. Harry sunk lower into the bench, guilt welling up in his chest.
He heard Sirius sigh.
"We're here for you, pup. You don't have to keep things from us. Whatever is up, I promise it's not as bad as you think it is."
That's easy for him to say, Harry thought bitterly, he didn't have to deal with a glowing hand with no answers or a Cerberus guarding a mysterious object on the third floor.
Sirius sighed heavily.
Silence dwelled across them before his godfather thoughts took form.
"You probably don't remember this but your first word was Padfoot."
That got Harry to look up. His godfather was staring into the distance, a fond smile on his face.
"It drove James bonkers. He kept trying to get you to say "Dad" but all you would say was Pa'foot," Sirius grinned down at him.
He gave Harry a soft smile, ruffling Harry's already messy hair with one hand.
"It's okay if you don't want to tell me what's wrong but don't keep it inside. It may feel like it sometimes but the world isn't on your shoulders. We're always here for you, Me, Remus, your mum, your dad, and especially, your sister," Sirius said, giving him a knowing look.
Harry looked down at his lap, covering his bandaged hand. He was right, Harry knew he was right but actually getting the words out of his throat was different than admitting it to himself. Gathering all of his Gryffindor courage, he managed to say one thing.
"I'm scared," he admitted.
Sirius frowned at him. "Of what?"
Harry sighed.
"Myself, mostly. I lost control."
Realization set on Sirius' face as he gave him a grim look. "On Halloween you mean. When you faced down the troll."
Harry looked at his hands, his frustration over the last few months coming to the surface and boiling over. All the words he hadn't been saying suddenly pouring out like a dam pouring.
"Mara was hurt and she was bleeding. There was so much blood and I… I lost it. It was like it was me but it wasn't at the same time," Harry said. "I was just so angry."
"You wanted to protect Mara and your friends, that's okay, Harry."
"No, it was more than that," Harry shook his head. "I wanted to hurt it. I wanted it to suffer in the most painful way possible. It was like that was all that was left. I couldn't see my friends or Mara, I didn't even recognize the headmaster."
Harry looked down at his hand, gripping it so tightly the skin began to turn white.
"What scares me the most is that I don't regret it," Harry said, his voice shaking a bit. "I'm not ashamed of what I did and some part of me believes it was right."
He could still feel the ghost of the magic flowing through his hand, pumping the anger through his veins until it was consuming him again. He never wanted to experience that again. He could feel his hand begin to heat up from his emotions and struggled to keep calm.
"What if it happens again? What if I can't stop next time? What if I hurt Mara or my friends?" He asked, finally voicing his fears.
Harry waited for his godfather, clenching his hand, his eyes trained on where he knew the cut was slightly glowing. He took a deep breath, trying to keep his emotions calm.
"Harry," Sirius said.
Harry sunk lower into his seat.
"You're being an idiot," Sirius deadpanned.
Harry turned to his uncle, bewildered.
Sirius gave him a flat look. "I'm not sure what's going on but I know for a fact you would never hurt your sister or your friends. You beat the bloody hell out of a bunch of garden gnomes when you were six just because they ate Mara's flowers."
Harry's cheeks reddened slightly.
"The only times you've ever been violent were to protect someone else. Do you remember when you punched me when you were eight?"
Harry let out a soft chuckle as Sirius' shoulder bumped into him.
"You made Mara cry," He smiled.
Sirius grinned. "Nothing's wrong with you, Harry. You've always tried to protect your sister. That's okay. If it wasn't for you, we could've lost Mara and your friend. It's okay, I promise."
As his vision began to cloud, Harry couldn't help but think of how much he needed to hear that.
"You're okay, Harry," Sirius whispered, quietly. Harry plunged his arms around his godfather. Sirius' arms curled around him.
And even if everything wasn't fixed, even if Sirius didn't know about his glowing hand or the Cerberus on the third floor or the flurry of emotions he couldn't control, for now, for just this moment, Harry believed him.
Harry wiped his face as he pulled away from his godfather. He gave him a watery smile and Sirius smiled down at him.
"Feel better, pup?" Sirius asked.
Harry nodded. It felt like the knots in his chest had become unfurled. Relief poured through him.
"Well, you still haven't found the perfect present for Mara, have you?" Sirius said with a knowing smirk. Harry rolled his eyes.
"I could probably get her pens and she would be happy," Harry said, though the statement left a bad taste in his mouth.
"Probably," Sirius nodded then gave him a knowing look. "But would you be?"
"No." He admitted. He hated it when his godfather was right. He'd probably rub it in for the next twenty years.
"Well, what about that?" Sirius pointed to a vendor on the alley selling brightly colored jewelry. Harry frowned until his caught onto what Sirius was pointing at. A grin split across his face. He gave Sirius a grateful look who simply winked at him.
"Sirius!" the familiar voice of Emilia rang out.
At the sound of her footsteps, both Sirius and Harry gave her a worried look.
She gave Sirius regretful look. "Sorry, love, I didn't want to interrupt but Remus and Mara went into Cholmondeley's."
"Fuck," Sirius swore.
Christmas at home was different from Hogwarts but no less amazing. As soon as mara stepped out of the fireplace, the smell of floo powder and soot was replaced with the smell of freshly baked sugar cookies and mistletoe.
Colored stockings that Mara remembered making when she was only a child hung around the fireplace. From the kitchen, she could smell sugar cookies baking in the oven. Fresh honey glazed meat and fresh bread had her mouth watering.
Everywhere she looked, garland and colorful fairy lights were strung around the manor. She could hear her mum humming Christmas carols softly and her dad moving ornaments in the living room.
True to her word, Her father was standing in the living room placing ornaments onto the Christmas tree by hand (you can't use magic to do everything, James, she would say, plus its part of the experience).
The fairies in the lights were giggling softly at his attempts and Mara couldn't stop the bright smile from stretching across her face.
"Happy Christmas, Dad!" she nearly tackled her dad in a hug.
"I missed you so much, doe!" James said, his grin almost splitting his face in two. He squeezed her and lifted her up into his arms. He groaned under her weight but held her to his chest happily.
"Dad, I'm not two!" She complained, her cheeks turning red.
James whimpered. "You'll always be my baby girl," He said, softly.
Mara's cheeks turned bright red but she hugged her dad back anyway.
When he finally put her down, James grinned at Harry, who was standing there awkwardly, shifting back and forth on his foot. He opened his arms wide.
Harry rolled his eyes but hugged him anyway. Mara smiled as she could see her brother's eyes glistening under the lights.
"I missed you both so much," James said, his eyes just as misty.
Mara grinned.
"Your mum's just finishing up dinner," James said, with a grin, "She won't admit she missed you, though."
"I have no problem admitting I missed my babies," Lily said, appearing behind him with a large plate of cookies in her hands. She turned to Mara and Harry with a bright smile, placing the plate on the table beside her. She opened her arms and Mara wasted no time jumping into her arms with a bright smile.
Lily's hand stroked her hair for a few seconds before Harry joined them, crushing Mara and Lily into an even bigger hug. Lily laughed, squeezing them tightly.
"All right," Lily said, letting the two go. "We've got about four hours before you two need to be back at Hogwarts. Let's open some presents,"
Mara beamed.
Mara munched on sugar cookies as everyone took turns opening presents. Harry got a new expanding trunk with six compartments, one which can even be used as a small apartment, it's that big. It had so many magical locks, it made her head spin. Mara wasn't surprised that their Uncle Sirius gave both of them a copy of their book, The Marauders Handbook (It's a fantastic gift, Lily, They need to keep out of trouble, Sirius said with a wink).
Mum wasn't happy. Mara was happy though as she opened a present to find a new stuffed black dog. She wasn't ashamed to say she let out an inhuman shriek at the adorable plush. She was glad it wasn't one of the magical plushes. Her last plush acted like a real dog except for all the mess except of course for when it ran into the fireplace. She had been heartbroken.
Neither Mara or Harry were surprised at the new Nimbus 2001's their dad "conveniently" saw in the shop (lies). They both got custom wand holsters from Remus and Mara squealed as he presented her with a giant chocolate bar.
Harry, of course, got a ton of books she had never heard of and both of them recieved a new wardrobe.
Emilia even got them some cool presents too. Emila gave Harry ocular tints to his glasses. (It's very similar to the glasses from earlier except it allows you to see harmful magic aimed towards you, she told them excitedly). Mara opened her present to find a small gold jewelry box. The top of it looked like a rose from above and Mara was even more excited when the box opened much like a rose blossoming. The inside was empty but it was gorgeous. (It even has separate compartments, Emilia told her, just change the color dial on the front). Sure enough, there was a color dial with four different colors, each opening to a new compartment.
Mara couldn't stop herself from tackling her into a hug. Especially when she found that her mum had given her a charm bracelet to go along with it including multiple charms. A pawprint, a moon, antlers, a lily and witch hat charms to represent her family.
Emilia was also kind enough to upgrade their journals. Mara and Harry were stunned when she placed a two-way mirror into the journal, seemingly blending it into the back page.
Their present to Remus was an entire trunk full of stuff like new robes, clothes, books and other necessities he might need. She also added in a few chocolate bars as well. Remus wasn't fooled as he kept glaring at Sirius and James who whistled innocently. Mara and Harry, of course, denied his accusation that they had anything to do with it, even though the trunk and items were worth over a 100 galleons.
They provided their dad with new robes of his favorite quidditch teams (Puddlemere United) and a brand new mug that switched between messages. Mara couldn't stop laughing when he drank hot chocolate from a mug that said 'You are so deer to me'.
They got their uncle Sirius a new leather jacket, muggle style which she doubted he would ever take it off.
They even got Emilia some new rare spell and potion ingredients including fur from a snow tiger and a feather from a sun phoenix (courtesy of Aura and Breena). The way her eyes lit up into what Mara has been calling her 'Mad scientist look', she knew she was happy.
Finally, their mum unwrapped her gift from them. She gasped at the beautiful glass figurine. A doe in a field with two fawn cuddle on her side. When the light shone into the glass, rainbows reflected throughout the room. Lily cried, hugging them close to her.
Mara hugged her mum close, a happy smile on her face. If she closed her eyes, it was almost as if she had never left and everything that had happened over the last few months was simply a dream.
"What I don't get a hug?" James pouted as Lily let go of her two kids. Lily rolled her eyes, but a smile tugged on her lips. She stood up and wrapped her arms around her husband, giving him an adoring look.
"Of course you do. After all," She said with an innocent smile, "I'm quite fawn'd of you."
James breath hitched as Mara and Harry burst into giggles. He looked down at her with a starstruck look on his face.
"I love you," He breathed, capturing her lips into a kiss.
Mara beamed from the light nearly bursting through her chest. She placed a hand on her chest, looking at the smiling faces of her family.
She didn't have any answers for what's been happening at school and she doubted she'd get them anytime soon, but for now, as she looked at her brother and godfather laughing and her parents staring at one another, their eyes alit with their love and Sirius shooting her a grin from beside Emilia, that was okay.
For now, it was all okay.
After all, she thought with a smile, It's Christmas.