"Momma can I have more popcorn?" Lena whines, using the puppy dog eyes that Daphne believes her uncle Draco had taught her. And she doesn't know if it was alright, glancing at Harry for help, he simply shook his head.

So Daphne stood firm, tickling a finger under the girl's chin. "Tomorrow baby." She promises, noticing the yawn falling from her daughter's mouth as she settles back against Harry's chest.

She noticed his weariness taking over and his eyes were sleepy, so she leaned in, "You can go sleep, I will stay here with them,"

Harry shook his head, he already left her to deal with the family on her own for the day. He looked over at her apologetically, "Sorry about the cold, can't cast enough warming charms in here, this house is getting old now,"

"no , I find it just fine,"

"Also , did the kids tire you?"

"Not a bit, in fact James was all helping me in everything, going you know through my.. Bad days,"

Harry's eyes widened, "hold on that's not…" he leaned closer to her, whispering, "When you go through your period, your contractions can be quite painful, and James tends to help in the chores of those days.."

Daphne gasped at him while he laughed at her, "that's the definition of bad days, love!"

She didn't talk to him for the rest of the night. By the time the credits roll across the screen, the kids and Harry were asleep and Daphne sighed. drinking in the sight of this beautiful, happy family.

She felt like she was intruding on that peace, Lena was enjoying her sleep on Harry.

After a minute or two of admiring them, she carefully and with making sure Harry stays asleep, scoops sleeping Lena into her arms. She deposits the little one in her bed, tucking her under the blankets, and returns, doing the same with the boys, sure they were heavy but she managed with a weight charm on them, and like feathers she put them in their beds.

Now with only the futuristic husband left, she wanted to leave him there but there was something wrong with it, she used a spell and lifted him in the air, off where he actually belonged, his bed in the bedroom.

Out of sympathy, not that she wanted him there, she repeated in her head, she was not suddenly into him!

She give herself a mental slap; paused in the act and climbed under the covers.

She made a disgruntled noise, but slid over a few inches, and before she knew it, was being hauled against him, her face inches from the soft skin at the base of his throat.

It was immediately warmer. And it smelled fucking heavenly. She took a discreet deep breath in, hell no! She won't do this.

"I didn't mean to wake you, i will just g-," she tried to move away but a hand reached and wrapped around her, pulling her closer.

"It's okay," he was saying, his voice almost a sigh. "You can reach for me, I will never harm you." it kind of made her flush, he was not a one night stand.

And she was not a conquest.

She looked up, there was an urge to just place her lips against his throat was so overwhelming that Daphne reared back and looked accusingly at him. "Why do you smell so good?"

"What?"

"Is it cologne?"

"I don't wear cologne, no." A smile was starting to tug at his lips.

"What, then? I opened all your toiletries once and I couldn't find it." she confessed that she searched through his stuff, bluntly.

She ducked her head and inhaled at the base of his throat again. She could feel him shaking with silent laughter.

"You smelled my toiletries? When!?"

"This morning, Besides everytime our path crossed in ministry, you have that fragrance linger around,"

"Ahh, now that brings back some fresh memories, that my dear is what,"

"What's what?"

"This elusive scent.."

She squinted up at him. "I don't know. It's sort of minty but warm. Rummy, but brisk. "

He started laughing again. "Well enjoy while you can," She felt his arms tighten around her.

"I'm determined to get to the bottom of it," she said, burrowing her face near the place where his jaw met his neck. "Yes," she said through a yawn, "I believe it's concentrated somewhere here. She tucked her head against him and breathed in deeply, suddenly very relaxed.

"Do feel free to explore, Greengrass. Any help I can give," he murmured, and she felt him rest his chin on the top of her head.

"It's just unfair," she said, yawning again.

"Unfair? To smell a certain way?" His hand skimmed over her hair.

Daphne's eyes were getting heavy and she felt her grip on reality loosening. "For one person … to smell… so good," she breathed, sliding toward sleep. She couldn't make out his reply as she fell over the crevice into unconsciousness, but her last impression (or maybe it was the beginning of a dream) was of lips against her forehead and a soft hand stroking her back.

When Harry woke up well into the late hours of the morning the sky was already bright white with clouds, left over from a night of heavy snow. The glass of his windows was covered with frost but his room was warm and cozy and it brought a smile to his lips.

He took his time getting out of bed, not bothering to change out of his pyjamas. He really didn't feel like changing, unless he had to leave the house, and he didn't plan on leaving the house anytime soon. He slipped into the ridiculous reindeer slippers Daphne had gotten him weeks ago, "You need to feel the Christmas spirit, and what's better than warm and comfy slippers to get you going?!" she'd exclaimed.

The moment he opened the door to his room, Harry was hit by the scent of freshly baked goods and the distant clacking of kitchen supplies. He felt warmth uncoil in his chest that had nothing to do with the temperature of the house and quietly slipped into the bathroom.

Five minutes, an empty bladder and brushed teeth later, he went downstairs.

When he entered the kitchen he was met with the sight of Daphne moving cookies from a baking tray onto a big plate with pans and bowls of various sizes surrounding her. There was a smear of flour on her cheek and a hat almost as ridiculous as Harry's slippers on her head. She looked up when she heard Harry come in and his face lit up in a smile.

"You're awake!" She exclaimed, almost dropping down a cookie. "Merry Christmas!"

It was so genuine that Daphne forgot how to frown, but something was not right in her smile, "Merry Christmas." He replied, even if not with that much enthusiasm, taking a seat on the barstool across Daphne and next to the youngest Potter.

The cookies were shaped like people, snowmen, deer, and Christmas trees and were being neatly placed onto the plate by the older woman. Harry chuckled. "All they're missing is a house." He joked but Daphne's smile only widened.

"It's currently in the oven." She declared. Of course it was. "Do you want to help me decorate these while it's baking, you see someone forgot to tell me there is a party and my role was to bake all this!"" She then offered and pointed to a few tubes of colourful frosting sitting on the counter.

"You were not ready, and supposedly won't do this," Harry shrugged and reached out to grab one.

"Has the children woke yet?" He asked.

"I choose to let them have their sleep," she shrugged, except Lena that was Imitating her mother, playing with cookie dough, the child was calm, all she wanted was fun and love.

"I hope that's not a problem or something?" She frowned.

Harry sipped his coffee, "No, Teddy just got home from Hogwarts and James is not an early bird,"

The cookies, shortly were decorated with frosting, and if Harry minded some of them looking like they'd been murdered, with red frosting forming wounds he said nothing. In fact he smiled at the final pieces with a certain kind of pride that made Daphne feel proud, too.

He was happy that she was getting comfortable now around him.

The children woke up and had their breakfast. Harry was the type of nerd to always wash the dishes right after he'd used them and sure enough he was taking the empty cereal bowls to the sink, along with the rest of the dirty ones from the baking, preparing to wash them.

Harry hopped off his chair, grabbing the drying cloth and stood next to him.

"You know that wizards invented charms so they can procrastinate on washing dishes, right?" Daphne asked and started drying the bowl Harry passed to her. "It's unnatural, and against magic nature to wash them right away."

Harry chuckled. "If I leave them now they'll pile up and I'll have more to wash later. It's easier this way."

Daphne rolled her eyes. "Aren't you supposed to be at work?"

"Took a week off, they can manage without me for a while,"

"Already lazing around, mister-head-Auror," she smirked.

"a 25 years old blonde witch won't be able to keep up with the three musketeers now that they reunited again,"

"What!?" she felt offended but again, yes, he was right and also, he was their dad, he knows things she doesn't.

"Ah, you better go get dressed, we should go buy a tree in an hour," Harry said to her.

"Alright, boss…" She walked outside the kitchen, leaving him chuckling.

Daphne walked around the shop with Teddy, who once again surprised her, he seemed fond of his adoptive mother, what did the 2010 Daphne done to havr all those children love her like this?

"What about this one Daffy?" Teddy pointed out, her eyes followed the kid's suggestion for the zillion times. and sighed, yet looking at the variety of trees the large store had to offer, and she frowned to herself. There were white trees, green trees, black trees and even silver trees. When had this craze for coloured trees started?

She headed towards the section that held the green trees -she liked tradition and that meant not getting a tree that was covered in glitter.

She wasn't Astoria or Tracey, after all!

Hold on, even since she got into this timeline she never met up with Tracey.

And there was no pictures of her in the albums or anything?

Tracey was her closest friend…

Oh! That scent again, "Have you found anything yet?" Harry popped behind her, she was getting used to his scent even more now.

"Where are the kids?"

"Playing with the dancing tress over there, won't you join them teddy?"

"Nah, that's kid's game,"

"Have you suddenly grown up!?" Harry feined a surprise while Daphne held her giggle back.

Teddy's hair turned orange, " Of course I am!"

"Oh Daphne look, a silver and blue snowing elves tree!" Harry exclaimed.

"Oh it turned red and green now!" Daphne gasped

"Where?" Teddy turned around.

And they both laughed out loud, Harry laughed, "he totally bought it!"

"Not funny!" Teddy's cheeks flushed just as his hair did. But Daphne moved toward him, towering over, "now, now, don't be mad at us, it was just as you said, silly billy joke,"

Harry walked next to her, his eyes fell on even more coloured trees. Pink trees and gold trees. "Okay no joke, we have a mission and evening to prepare for fellas!"

"Look who's talking," she smirked at him.

"Well, I tried to help at least,"

"Oh really, mister-knowing-all,"

"What,"

"Can we just pick," Teddy rolled his eyes, ignoring the flirtatious glares the adopted parents of his were doing and embarrassing him.

"Absolutely not!" She shook her head, ignoring Teddy's whines about wanting a silver tree. After all, Christmas trees were supposed to be green. She wasn't a fan of the coloured ones, or the ones covered in snow. Just a nice plain green tree would do for them. They looked the best when decorated and with lights on.

No tree in the shop seemed perfect for her first Christmas with the Potter family,

And Harry and the boys were trying to help her as best as it, to make it look all easy.

but Daphne had plans to rectify that when she managed to find the right moment, and she was sure that the moment would present itself over the holiday. She didn't miss the way she would blush when he complimented her, or the way she fit so easily into the small family she already had.

The family left the store, after buying the children the chocolate that they loved and had practically begged for. There were a few more places where they could get a tree after all and she wanted Christmas to be perfect for them, the least she can do instead of their actual mother.

It wasn't often she got to spend so much time with a family figure after all, she doesn't even remember the last one she actually enjoyed.

Harrg froze when he walked past the greengrocers. The man running the shop was putting trees outside of his shop, leaning them against the wall of the closed building next door.

"Something wrong?" Daphne asked,

"Tree!" Lena run to it, ignoring the man.

Daphne's eyes widened, "The tree.. I sense it's freshness," she murmured.

"Ah… Lena is picking her "tree"!" Harry smiled, walking to his daughter.

Daphne didn't move, Lena had the gift.

"How much?" Harry asked, stopping to inspect one that had been opened from the netting that was holding the others closed.

The man smiled. "Selling them off cheap, I'll sort you out for thirty."

Harry nodded. "Perfect." The tree smelt wonderful and would look nice in the house.

"But the purple one was much better!" James groaned.

"And the shaking tree, was funny!" Teddy joined the protests.

"If Lena wants it, she gets it," Harry dug around in his pocket, pulling out £30 and handing it over, before hoisting the tree effortlessly onto his shoulder.

They both sighed in defeat, the tree was normal and nothing was charming and magical about it.

"Come on Daphne, let's get this home," Harry said. "We'll decorate it this evening, if you'd like?"

Daphne woke up from her zoning and followed them,

James excitedly took her hand as he stared up at the tree. "Is it massive?" he asked.

Daphne chuckled. "It is," she confirmed. "It's much bigger than you!"

"Who wants to be daddy's helpful Christmas Elves?"

"I do," James and Teddy both exlaimed.

"And me," Lena added, almost jumping up and down on her little toes.

Still grinning, Harry dove into one of the bags and pulled out two green elf hats. Settling one on the children's head,

he then put the other one on Lena's soft blond curls. Giggling happily, Lena swung her head from side to side, making the little bell on the end of her hat jingle merrily.

The music was playing smoothly in the back.

"I was thinking that we should leave these three to it and prepare ourselves for the party?" Daphne said to Harry as he got the boys start unpacking bags and boxes.

"Nah, we can make it on time," Harry said.

Leaving her children to keep themselves busy helping their father decorate the Christmas tree, she felt like she would intrude but Harry pushed her in the end into mess.

"Come on, Mama, you can't leave us do all the hard job alone," he teased her.

"You are completely fine without me," she stepped back.

"Are you sure?" He teased her again, holding a reindeer hat forward.