A/N: Yay! A new chapter! I hope everyone enjoys this little glimpse of holiday fluff. :D Please review!!!

Also, I want to remind everyone of the ages of the Snape children. Felicity is eleven, Kenton and Rosalyn are five, Vivienne is three, and Hunter is almost one. Hermione is 31 and Severus is 49.

Disclaimer: I don't own HP or "Hard Candy Christmas." J.K. and Dolly Parton do.

Me, I'll be just fine and dandy

Lord, it's like a hard candy Christmas

I'm barely getting through tomorrow.

Hermione sat in the Snape living room on Christmas Eve, staring at the fire. She held her youngest son, Hunter, in her arms as he slept. Tears filled her eyes, even as she heard her other four children, Felicity, Kenton, Rosalyn, and Vivienne laughing in the other room.

It didn't matter how many Christmases went by, they never felt the same without her mother. It had been almost eleven years since the accident, but each of those eleven Christmases had felt slightly empty to Hermione. It didn't matter how many gifts Severus gave her, how many she gave him, or how many they gave their five children. It didn't matter how happy Hermione acted at all the parties she and Severus attended. That was just it; she was acting. Sure, she was happy to be with Severus and her children, but there was a hole where her mom should be.

She broke out of her reverie when the three youngest children ran into the room and jumped onto the couch next to her. Felicity walked in calmly, being eleven years old and all.

"Mommy, Mommy! Can we open a present tonight?" Kenton said, bouncing up and down on the cushion.

Hermione smiled. "You'll have to ask Daddy," she said, glancing up as Severus came through the door.

"Ask Daddy what?" he asked, feigning innocence.

Kenton jumped up and ran to Severus. "Can we open a present each tonight before we go to bed?! You and Mommy can open one too!" he begged. Rosalyn and Vivienne nodded quickly.

"Hmmm," Severus said, putting his index finger on his chin and winking at Hermione. "What do you think, Mum?"

"Well, I suppose that's fine," she said, bracing herself for the hugs. All the children jumped on her, even Felicity, and hugged her around the neck, waking up Hunter in the process.

"Well, pick one out and we'll open them. But only ONE apiece!" Severus warned. The kids nodded and dove under the tree. Felicity picked the smallest box, being wise enough to know that great things come in small packages. Kenton picked a long box from the back of the tree, and of course Rosalyn picked the package of the same shape. Vivienne took forever picking hers, and finally chose a medium sized box.

They sat on the ground in front of the fire, anxiously holding their treasures in their laps. Severus picked up one of Hunter's gifts and laid it next to Hermione, but first, he chose a flat, square shaped box, and held it out to her. She cocked her head to the side.

"What's this?" she asked.

"You and I get to open one too, remember? This is the one I want you to open."

She smiled, a genuine smile. She took it from him, and placed Hunter in his arms.
"All right, darlings, rip into them!" They didn't waste a second. Paper and ribbon were flying all over the place.

Felicity gasped as she opened her small box. It contained a white gold chain, with a lion charm hanging from it. There was a real ruby where the lion's eye would have been.

"Oh, Mum, Dad, I love it!" she squealed, hugging them both tightly. They grinned.

Kenton opened a new child-sized broomstick ("AWESOME!"), Rosalyn opened her broomstick ("COOL!"), and Vivienne a stuffed puppy ("Awww!"). All the children were now happy, playing with their new belongings, and Hunter even helped open his gift, a new blanket Hermione crocheted.

Severus sat down next to his wife, waiting for her to open his gift to her. She grinned and tore the paper off, then, when she saw what was inside, tears spilled over her eyes with absolutely no warning.

It was a photo album. More like a scrapbook, really. On the front, there was a picture of her mom at about age twenty-three, holding a baby Hermione. She ran her hand along the picture, watching her mother rocking her back and forth. Her eyes shined with tears as she looked up at Severus. She was frozen; she couldn't open the book. He reached down and opened it for her.

As he turned the pages, she watched as her life with her mother alive passed through the pages. Her kindergarten graduation, the day she learned to ride a bike, the day she got her letter from Hogwarts, her seventeenth birthday, her graduation from Hogwarts, the day Severus proposed, her wedding day, and on and on and on. She let the tears fall silently down her face, not able to stop them. She looked up at Severus and merely said, "I love you."

He nodded. "I love you too, darling. I knew you needed this," he said as he kissed her forehead.

She smiled. "I did. It reminded me that I still have a lot of life to live with my babies… and you. And she would want me to live that life," she said through her tears.

He smiled and wrapped his arms around her. "Happy Christmas, my love."

"Happy Christmas, Severus," she whispered as she leaned into him, watching her children play quietly in front of the fire.

But still I won't let sorrow bring me way down.

tbc

Hope everyone liked it! Please review, I need encouragement to keep going! It's been awhile since I've written! Love, love!

-r