a/n: Happy December everyone! Some Christmas cheer and Harmony here to get us through to Christmas Day. This is from the Harmony Advent Fest in 2022. Each chapter is a drabble from Christmas time in my Divergence Universe. It's the road map for this story if I can pull it off.

Prompt: Write a story featuring HHr celebrating their first Christmas together. They can be friends, dating, engaged, or married.

Chapter 1: A Lifetime

Friday, December 25, 1998

Life comes at you fast. That was a phrase Hermione understood far too well. What she had very little experience dealing with was when life comes at you slow. Sitting on the couch with her tea, she watched Harry leaning over Lily as the baby gripped both his index fingers so tightly her pudgy knuckles were white. The wobbly ten month old tried to find her balance not realizing if her dad let her go, she'd land unceremoniously on her bottom. Harry shuffled forward, Lily giggled, swung one foot out to move with him. To call it a step would have been very generous. Taking a sip, Hermione took in the mess of wrapping paper littering the study's floor. The blue flames trapped in festive baubles were strung around, casting a soft light, adding calm to the lazy morning. Their first Christmas together as a family appeared to be a success. She was glad they decided to have the time to themselves. That afternoon they'd make their rounds. The morning was theirs.

Despite Harry's best efforts to encourage their daughter to take a step on her own, Lily had had enough and plopped herself down in the center of the mess. Hermione couldn't help but think the two of them looked like they had sprung from a present. Without a camera nearby, Hermione decided it was an image she wasn't going to forget. Harry rearranged some new toys around Lily, before grabbing is own cup of coffee and flopped down next to Hermione.

She leaned into him, took joy in the small noises Lily made exploring her new presents. Everything had to go in her mouth first. It was very strange to Hermione. "At what stage do they decide taste isn't the best way to figure out what something is?" she wondered aloud. She didn't think that information was in any of the books she had on parenting.

Harry kissed her temple, pulled her closer to him. "Hmm. Most likely the day they encounter sand. I think. I hope," he finished with a laugh. "I remember playing in a sandbox with Dudley. I filled up a bucket with the sand, stuck a straw in it and told him it was a milkshake. That was the last time Petunia let me in the sandbox."

Lily apparently decided the toy bludger bat was safe, she pulled it from her mouth, a line of drool connecting it to her before she started swinging at a miniature bludger. After a few misses, she finally made contact, sending it straight for the Christmas tree. Hermione squinted her eyes, waiting for disaster. At the last moment, it veered right and bounced off the wall. "Honestly, couldn't Fred and George have found something less destructive to give her?"

"I… I think that is the less destructive option they settled on," Harry explained as he considered the latest releases from the joke shop. Not many of their items would he consider peaceful. "They think she's going to be a beater like them. I should have gotten her a snitch."

Hermione had to admit Harry was likely correct. The twins didn't really specialize in subtly. "Did Dudley really try to drink the sand?"

That earned her a hearty laugh. "Oh yeah. He sucked up a mouthful. I still remember him sticking out his tongue and it being coated with mud."

Silence fell for a beat as Harry remembered the family he left behind. He had made sure they got their house back, but had let the ministry deal with the details. Hermione wasn't sure he'd ever have a desire to see them again. She couldn't really blame him. Without warning the toy bludger landed in her tea cup, splashed up at her.

"Oh. Well," Harry sighed, fished it out helpfully for her. He sat up, and grabbed a towel from the end table to dry it off. He threw it back to Lily and smiled. "Maybe she's a chaser. That was a good shot. Do you want me to make you a new cup?"

Shaking her head, Hermione put the cup down. "No. I should probably shower and get Lily cleaned up. My parents will have dinner ready in a couple hours. It's already four o'clock in Perth."

Harry checked his watch. "The portkey isn't until ten. We've got time."

Hermione was about to ask what they had time for, when a small wrapped present was put in her hands. "Harry, you already got me a present," she said, wondering what he had done.

"I got books, parchment, and quills for Professor Granger. This is for Hermione," he explained, wiping his hand nervously on his jeans.

With some apprehension, she pulled at the tape on the bottom, and neatly unwrapped the box. Lifting the lid off, she saw a velvet box inside. Jewelry? That would be weird. She didn't wear much of any and it wasn't really a gift they had ever discussed. Deciding she'd wear whatever it was because he thought she'd like it, she flipped it open. Nestled in the blue velvet was a ring with a rose cut diamond set in a rose gold band shaped to resemble a flower, the diamond in petals and the stem forming the band as it wrapped around. Hermione was speechless. She looked up to find Harry only to find he was on his knee next to her. Her hand flew up to her mouth. They had discussed marriage many times. They hadn't felt like they were in a rush since they were already magically bound when they signed the familial bond contract. "Harry…" she finally got out.

He flashed her a sweet smile, took the ring out of the box and held it between them. "I've been fortunate to be loved by two amazing, fierce women who thought nothing of laying down their lives to save me. It's occurred to me that I might never have a chance to show you how much I love you like you did. It might take a lifetime. And I wondered if you wouldn't mind giving me that lifetime? Together."

Tears pricked at Hermione's eyes as she processed his words. She simultaneously had zero doubts that he would do the same for her while having a burning desire to never be in a position where he had prove his words. She leaned forward and kissed him, reveled in the moment before pulling back. "You can have every minute of that lifetime."