Warmth curled its way through Damon's heart as he watched Maya slump against Stefan as she succumbed to sleep. He was glad that she had become so relaxed with them, something he had doubted would ever happen. Stefan wrapped an arm around Maya and smiled affectionately at her, chatting with Lexi and Lee, her boyfriend, whom she had finally introduced to the group.

He smiled, knowing she had done well to stay awake for so long. They had been celebrating the Winter Solstice at the Academy since eleven the previous day, and the party was not over yet. It would last until the sun rose again, ending the longest night of the year. Maya was not alone in her slumber; many of the younger ones had succumbed to exhaustion. The festive atmosphere of music, dancing, and laughter had faded, gradually giving way to the quiet hum of conversation as everyone settled down to watch out the remainder of the longest night and greet the rising of the sun in the morning.

The Solstice Festival had been different to the previous two festivals they'd attended. The magic and ritual that had marked the Autumn Equinox and Samhain, had been minimal during this festival. A few small rituals here and there, barely noticeable amongst the joyous festivities. Instead, the focus had been much more on time spent with family and friends. Celebrating the longest night of the year and the new dawn which marked the coming of longer days as the wheel continued it's inevitable turning.

Maya had been thrilled that all of her new family would be attending this festival and had eagerly thrown herself into enjoying every aspect of it. She had done everything, from packing food parcels that would be delivered to various charities, shelters, and food kitchens around the city tomorrow, to enjoying the feast that the schools house-elves had lovingly prepared. From watching the mock battle between the Holly king and the Oak king as the sun had peaked in the sky, to watching the lighting of the yule log as it had passed beyond the horizon.

He had participated in everything alongside her, as had the rest of their small group, but mostly he had watched Maya. Watched her eyes glow with joy as she had twirled and swayed to the rhythm of the music. Listened as she had sung along with the cheerful melodies, as laughter had tumbled out of her mouth into the night air. There had been no fear, no worry, no self-consciousness, about her. Just a young, happy, child, content in the knowledge that she was loved and surrounded by family and friends. It had been like watching a burst of sunshine in the dark winter and it made him glad they'd come.

After what had happened yesterday, he had been hesitant to allow Maya out of the house, but Lexi and Maggie had both cautioned against that. She hadn't done anything wrong and keeping her from attending the festival would make it seem like he was punishing her for something that wasn't her fault. Stefan had felt the same way as he had. Neither of them had seen Katherine since 1864, her showing herself now, interacting with Maya, it left them both with a bad feeling. Enzo had been the deciding factor, validating their feelings, but pointing out that the Academy was just as safe as the house, and that they would be able to have one of Maya's professors check out the necklace Katherine had gifted her.

As if summoned by his thoughts, Aradia, took a seat next to him, holding out the box containing the necklace towards him. Despite knowing that she wouldn't hand it to him unless she was certain it was safe, he was still reluctant to touch it. He had hated Katherine for far longer than he had ever loved her, and taking the necklace back felt a little bit like he was inviting her back into his life. Into Stefan and Maya's life.

"It's safe. There are no spells on it. No curses, no hexes, nothing that will harm you or Maya in any way. It's simply and amulet, a powerful one, but still just an amulet."

"If that's all it is then why did Katherine purchase it for Maya?"

"Perhaps she sensed as I did, that it belongs with her. It would have ended up in Maya's hands one way or another, I'm sure of it. Perhaps the universe merely used Katherine to expedite the process."

"Why would the universe do that?"

"The celestials work in mysterious ways, and oftentimes the cause and affect of their actions is not immediately obvious. Take yourself for instance."

"Me?"

"Yes, you. Lady Magic named you Maya's godfather, because she knows that Maya needs you. Have you ever considered how many chance events had to take place for that to occur?"

"Chance events?"

"Katherine Pierce arriving in Mystic Falls, and you being given leave from the army at the same time. Had that never happened, had you never fallen for her, do you believe you would have become a vampire? And if you hadn't become a vampire then would Maya have had anyone else to turn to in her time of need? What about you being attacked by Vampire hunters just when Henry Potter was passing by? A chance meeting that forged a lifetime friendship and a bond with the Potter family that led Maya to your doorstep."

"You think that was all chance events?"

"I think that was the universe pushing you where you needed to be in order to save that brilliant and beautiful goddaughter of yours from pain, misery, and death. You have every reason to hate Katherine Pierce, and I certainly don't blame you for it, but in my long lifetime, I've found that most things, good and bad, happen for a reason. Even if we don't understand that reason straight away."

"And what if Katherine is trying to manipulate Maya in some way?"

Long years of introspection and all the information the Potter family had gathered on Katherine Pierce, had shown him that Katherine was an expert manipulator. He knew Aradia was correct, in that, if Katherine had never entered his life, then he almost certainly would never have met Maya. He at least had that to be grateful for. That didn't mean he wasn't justified in his suspicion of Katherine's motives and desires. Whatever she had been up to yesterday when she had used the one moment she could to interact with Maya, he was absolutely certain that it was just the first step in a game only Katherine knew. He might be completely wrong, but he wasn't willing to take that chance. Not if it placed Maya at risk.

"Have you explained to Maya, who Katherine is? Your history with her?"

"Yes."

After Lexi had spotted Katherine yesterday, they had abandoned their girls day out. Dropping Kamala and Sora at their respective homes and bringing a somewhat confused Maya back to the townhouse. As soon as Lexi had explained what had happened, Damon had sat down with Maya and told her the whole story. Everything that had happened in Mystic Falls in 1864, and everything that he had found out in 1912. She had been confused and upset, and had asked a lot of questions none of them had been able to answer. She had willing recounted everything she could remember of her interaction with Katherine, handing over the box containing the necklace that she was still holding onto.

"Then she understands why she needs to be cautious if she ever encounters Katherine again."

"What if that's not enough?"

"She has you, your family, me, and several other people willing to defend her from anyone wishing to cause her harm. Beyond that, Maya is a smart, powerful, and talented, young witch, who can certainly handle herself long enough for help to arrive. You may hate that it happened to her, I know I do, but she fought a troll and won, she faced one of the darkest most powerful wizards in history three times and survived each encounter."

"You're right. I hate that it happened."

She laughed at him.

"Give Maya the amulet. It's a powerful tool for a powerful witch, and one day you may even find yourself glad that she has it. And like I said, it belongs with her."

He grumbled and frowned but finally accepted the box she was holding out. She was right, just because Katherine had been the one to purchase it, didn't mean he should keep it from Maya.

"Will you stay for the rest of the festival?"

"Maya wants to watch the sunrise."

"She's not the only one."

It was still mostly dark out when Maya woke up. It was that magical hour when the world was still wrapped in darkness, but the promise of a new day was in the air. She could see faint traces of pink and purple in the sky, like brushstrokes on a canvas. The streetlamps below were still shining brightly, creating a contrast with the snowy landscape. She'd wished for more snow to fall overnight, to cover the old patches that had turned grey and slushy, but it hadn't happened. A glance at her clock told her that it was just gone half six, slightly earlier than she normally woke up, but it was Christmas day.

Excitement surged within her at that thought. It was a new sensation, one that she had never experienced before. Even last year at Hogwarts, she had been more relieved than thrilled to escape the Dursley's dreadful company. Of course, she had enjoyed the feast, the snowball fight with the Weasleys, and the few presents she had received. But today was different. Today was special. She could sense it in her bones.

She couldn't believe how amazing December had been so far. Damon had gone out of his way to make her first Christmas in New York unforgettable. He had whisked her away to different events and activities all over the city, from watching the dazzling Rockettes at Radio City, to admiring the graceful Nutcracker ballet at the Lincoln Center, to marvelling at the spectacular light shows around the city. Her favourite had been the Central Park Zoo, where the lights were shaped like different animals. As she'd gazed at the glowing giraffes, elephants, and penguins, she'd felt just like a normal kid, enjoying a Christmas outing with her family.

A few weeks ago, they had all hit the ice at the outdoor rink in Bryant Park. That was when she had met Lee for the first time. He had turned out to be a great addition to their group, as he and Lexi were the only ones who knew how to ice-skate. He had patiently taught her how to glide and balance on the ice, while Lexi had done the same for the others. She had laughed so hard when Enzo had slipped and crashed into Stefan and Damon, sending them all tumbling down like dominoes. She was pretty sure it had been a deliberate act on Enzo's part, but it had still been really funny. Maya had enjoyed every minute of the day, especially the warm and creamy hot chocolate they had shared afterwards.

Decorating the Christmas tree had been a new experience for Maya, one that she had enjoyed immensely. Petunia had never let her join in this activity, claiming that she would ruin her flawless vision. She had always watched from afar as Petunia arranged the ornaments and lights with meticulous precision. Damon and Stefan had been the complete opposite. They had encouraged Maya to choose all three of the trees they had bought. They had also taken her to the Christmas market in Union Square, where they had collected dozens of decorations of all shapes, sizes, and colours. Even the set of handmade Star Wars decorations that she had loved from the moment she'd spotted them.

Anything that caught their eyes was added to their basket, without any regard for coordination. When they finished decorating, the trees and the house looked like a kaleidoscope of colours and patterns. Nothing matched, but Maya loved it. It felt more authentic and festive than Petunia's decorations ever had. Petunia had always picked her colour scheme based on what was fashionable that year, not on what she liked. Maya preferred their eclectic and personal style, which reflected their personalities and preferences. It felt truer.

They'd helped decorate Maggie and Enzo's house for the holidays as well. Maggie had shown Maya the art of making garlands from popcorns and cranberries, a simple but festive way to adorn the tree. She had explained that it was a tradition from her childhood, when money was tight, but spirits were high. Enzo and Damon had joined in the fun, sneaking bites of popcorn until Maggie had shooed them away to hang the lights outside. They had felt like a real family, bonded by love and laughter. They had cemented their bond when they had gone to the Winter Solstice Festival at the Academy together. It had been a magical night of music, games, and fireworks. It had filled Maya's heart with warmth and wonder, something she had never experienced before at Christmas time.

The only thing that had slightly marred the holidays so far, was her encounter with Katherine, the vampire who had sired Damon and Stefan. Not that she'd known who it was at the time. She'd just seemed like a nice if slightly odd lady. It wasn't until Maya had seen the fear in Lexi's eyes, that she'd realised something was wrong. She didn't even realise till they'd got home that she was still holding the box Katherine had pressed into her hands before disappearing.

Damon had ended up telling her the whole story of Katherine. From when she had arrived in Mystic Falls in 1864 to the information Henry had sent to him in 1912 and the little, he had been able to learn since. Katherine was apparently very good at hiding her movements and most of what he knew came from the files that the different magical ministries around the world had put together. The ones that bothered to keep track of vampires anyway, which wasn't many of them, and most of it was unconfirmed rumours.

She glanced at the amulet that was currently hanging on the jewellery stand on her dressing table. Professor Aradia had checked it over and declared it to be free of any dangers and Damon had reluctantly given it back to Maya. She knew he didn't really want her to have it, because he was afraid of what Katherine might want in return. He'd been muttering something about cryptic advice when he'd passed it to her and had warned her once more to be careful of Katherine if she ever encountered the vampire again.

With one last glance at the brightening sky and the greying snow outside, Maya went to get dressed. It was still early, but she was way too excited to even think about trying to go back to sleep now. She added the final touch: the Christmas jumper that Damon had given her the night before. It was a hilarious gift that made Maya smile, Enzo cringe, and everyone else laugh. Damon had bought matching jumpers for the whole gang, insisting that they wear them on Christmas day. Maya couldn't wait for Christmas, but Damon was even more eager. He had planned a three-day extravaganza for the holiday, starting from yesterday and ending tomorrow. Maya suspected that the others were just humouring Damon's zeal for her sake. She didn't mind it though; she was overjoyed to spend her first Christmas ever with her family. A family that loved her, instead of loathed her.

Maya checked the clock again. It was still a bit early, but she didn't think she could wait any longer. She slipped out of her room and headed downstairs. The door to Damon's bedroom was wide open so she knew he at least was up. The living room and the dining room were both devoid of life, so she continued down to the ground floor and found Damon in the kitchen with Dobby.

After a lot of discussion through letters, Dobby had arrived a week ago. He was nominally bonded to Maya, because house-elves needed a bond in order to use the full extent of their abilities. In all other respects, on Maya's insistence, he was a free-elf. Damon had written up a contract, similar to the one he'd had with the cleaning service, which Dobby had happily signed. It laid out what Dobby's duties would be, his wages, and his holiday entitlement, which Damon had assured both Dobby and Maya, was what all work contracts contained. In exchange for carrying out the same duties that the cleaning service had carried out, Dobby would be paid three galleons a week. He would also have an afternoon off every week, a full day off ever month, and three weeks paid holiday a year.

It had taken a lot of arguing and discussion to get to that point. Maya had been insistent that Dobby should be paid an equivalent amount to the cleaners who worked for the service were paid. Which would have worked out to about fourteen galleons a week. Dobby however had seemed horrified by this offer and had argued fiercely against it. Maya had mulishly given in on the wages front, but had stood her ground on the time off and paid holidays. Damon had patiently let her work it out with Dobby and had just filled in the amounts on the contract once they'd finally come to an agreement.

Despite only being there a week, Dobby had already slid easily into the family and was proudly sporting his own matching Christmas jumper as he got breakfast ready.

"Merry Christmas Damon, Merry Christmas Dobby."

"Merry Christmas Miss Maya."

"Merry Christmas, kiddo."

Maya leaned into Damon as he wrapped his arms around her. Hugging him and letting him hug her was getting easier and easier. Dobby shooed them both out of the kitchen and up to the dining room for breakfast. It didn't take long for everyone else to join them, all wearing their own jumpers, greetings, Christmas wishes, and hugs were exchanged as they all settled down to enjoy the rich nutty porridge Dobby had prepared for them.

"Right so after breakfast we're exchanging presents."

As Damon began to run through the schedule again, eliciting groans, exasperation, and laughter from the others, a curl of anxiety wrapped around Maya's excitement, dampening it slightly. This was the first year she'd had anyone to buy presents for, last year had just been Ron and Hermione and she'd kept it simple, giving them both sweets. This year she'd had a whole host of people to get presents for, and she wanted them to like the items she'd chosen. Damon had helped her pick out most of the gifts she'd chosen, but Stefan had been the one to help her with Damon's and his present was the one she was worried about the most.

All the presents had been placed under the tree in the lounge. It was the biggest of the three that they had put up, adorned with all their favourite decorations, including the Millenium Falcon tree-topper that Maya had chosen personally. Damon had chosen personalised stockings for everyone, including Dobby, and these had been strung along the shelves of the two bookcases in the room, since there wasn't a fireplace. Maya had never seen so many presents under one tree before.

"Stockings first!"

Damon was in his element, directing everyone into the seats he wanted them in, and drafting Stefan into handing out the stockings once they were seated. Hers was a royal purple with small gold hearts on it and her name embroidered in glittery pink thread. It was packed full of little presents, so many in fact that they threatened to spill out over the top. Once everyone had their stockings, Damon sat on the sofa next to Maya with his own and aimed a grin at the room.

"Rip in!"

With varying levels of enthusiasm and care, they all began to open their gifts. The first item in her stocking was a small instant camera and she took a picture of Damon straight away upon unwrapping it. The rest of the items were a mix of bath stuff, nail-polish, jewellery, toys, and accessories. She loved all of it, particularly the unicorn hat and scarf combo and the space themed charm bracelet, which was a mix of planets, stars, and rocketships. Everyone else had a similar mix of items around them, small, funky, and mostly inexpensive items, but still chosen with love and care to suit the person they were purchased for. Dobby in particular seemed very pleased with his mix of socks, clothing accessories, like the pin-badges Maya had chosen for him, and muggle kitchen items.

Maya snapped a few more pictures of everyone with her new camera and leaned against Damon hugging him fiercely.

"Thank you."

"You're welcome kiddo, and I assume I have you to thank for this little gift."

He held up the book that had been in his stocking; 'How to be Funny' by Jon Macks. Maya's grin was cheeky, amusement danced in her eyes.

"I thought you could use the help."

She shrieked with helpless laughter as Damon began to tickle her mercilessly.

"Well apparently I can make you laugh without any help."

"Personally mate, I think you're beyond help."

Damon gave up on tickling Maya and turned on Enzo with a mock-glare.

"And you call yourself my friend!"

"Just being honest mate, that's what friends do. You're just not that funny."

"I'm funny!"

"Not as funny as me."

"Says who!"

"Maya."

Enzo looked so supremely smug that Maya ended up dissolving into giggles once more and Damon could no longer hold it in either. The fake glare he'd graced Enzo with transformed into a broad smile and he began to laugh as well.

"Fine I give in… for now."

Damon leaned over and kissed Maya's forehead.

"Thank you for the book. Now." He clapped his hands together and stood up. "Presents."

"I want to give out mine first." Maya said quickly.

The thought of having to wait to hand the gifts she had brought filled her with panic. She didn't think she could handle waiting and worrying that they wouldn't like what she had chosen. Better to get it out of the way, at least then she would be able to relax a bit. Damon's smile was indulgent, and he waved Maya towards the tree. With some help from Stefan, she handed out the pile of presents she'd placed under the tree a few days ago, and sat back down looking at everyone expectantly. She was anxious about everyone's presents, but Damon's most of all.

For Dobby, she had got him skeins of wool in a rainbow of different colours and an array of different knitting needles. He had mentioned in passing that he liked to knit, and she hoped that the gift would help him feel at home with them. For Maggie she had, with Damon's help, chosen a pair of earrings, that were charmed to give off a low humming noise if the wearer was ever in danger. Lexi had received the same but in the form of a necklace.

For Enzo she had gifted him a rare edition of one of Charles Darwin's diaries. Darwin had been a muggleborn wizard and upon his death, several of his diaries, pertaining to his studies of magical evolution had been seized by the ministry to prevent them from falling into muggle hands. These diaries had later been published, though the number of copies had been small, and so they were considered to be somewhat of a collectors item. Narcissa had been the one to source it for Maya, from a bookstore in Celestial Alley in London, that sold rare and unusual books. Enzo had a PhD in History, so Maya had figured he might enjoy it.

Lee had been the hardest to buy for since she hadn't known him as long as she had the others. Stefan who'd been the first to meet him had helped her. He'd purchased a bottle of Firewhisky, a bottle of gigglewater, and a bottle of elf-wine on her behalf and Maya had given him those plus a box of Christmas cookies that Damon had helped her bake and decorate. For Stefan, who was currently studying philosophy at NYU, she had given him the complete writings of Confucius. Which included many treatises that had long been lost in the muggle world. Narcissa had once again been of great help to Maya in sourcing this gift.

In addition, all of the vampire members of her family had received boxes of blood-pops. For Dobby she had changed this to a box of Bertie-Botts every flavour beans. She had also given them each one of the drawings she had done since arriving in New York. Maya could only hope that they liked what she had chosen.

Damon's gift was the about. She'd spent the last month working on it and as she watched him open it, she crossed her fingers and hoped she'd done good.

"Oh Maya."

Damon's eyes were filled with a mix of emotion as he looked at the painting, she had made for him.

"Is it okay?"

"Kiddo. It's absolutely perfect. Thank you."

Damon turned the painting around and showed it off to everyone else. Stefan was the only one who'd already seen it, having helped Maya get it framed. Maggie gasped and covered her mouth and Enzo's jaw dropped open as they saw what she had created.

"It's lovely."

Maya beamed, not just at Lexi's compliment, but at the fact that Damon liked what she had made. It was a group portrait, Damon in the middle with Maya, surrounded by everyone, Stefan, Maggie, Enzo, Lexi, Lee, and all the Potter's. From her great-great-grandparents; Henry and Elladora, to her mum Jasmine and her dad Luke. It was her family, but it was Damon's family too.

Maya had poured her heart and soul into the painting, and seeing the love and gratitude in Damon's eyes made it absolutely worth it.

"Love you, Damon."

"I love you too kiddo."