Christmas Story 2018 - In the Spirit, part 15 (H/D)

Title: In the Spirit – Part 15
Author: sesheta_66
Prompts used: slythindor100’s early bird prompts 1: Christmas dinner and 12: Christmas pudding/cake (pictures under the cut) and dracoharry100’s prompts 20: house guests and 29: kitchen disaster
Word Count: <1K
Rating: PG, for now
Warning: none
Summary: Harry had a rough Christmas last year, to say the least. But things are looking up this year, and he plans to embrace the season, even if he is still single.
Disclaimer: Harry Potter characters are the property of J.K. Rowling and Bloomsbury/Scholastic. No profit is being made, and no copyright infringement is intended.
Author's Notes: Written for the slythindor100 Early Bird 25 Days of Draco and Harry and the dracoharry100 Christmas Challenge.

On LJ: Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 |
Part 13 | Part 14

OR on AO3



In the Spirit – Part 15

"Harry!" Luna opened the door and greeted him with a one-armed hug. "Come on in."

"Happy Christmas, Luna." He went inside, gave her a peck on the cheek as he passed, then lifted his arms to indicate the food. "Let me put these down and I’ll give you a proper hug."

"Mmm," She smiled. "Your famous meatballs?"

"Yup." He indicated his left hand. "And cookies." He indicated his right. "Special requests from Ron."

"Mmm," she said again. "We’re running out of space on the dining table, so you can put the meatballs there and the cookies in the kitchen. It’s a bit of a disaster in there, but you should be able to find a spot for them."

"Will do." Harry slipped off his shoes, gave a cursory nod and called out a quick, "Happy Christmas" to the guests in the front room, then made his way to the dining room. She wasn’t kidding: the table was packed with all sorts of delicious looking food.



He found a spot near the back for his meatballs and put a quick warming charm on them before heading to the kitchen to deposit the cookies. As he put them on the table, he noticed a scrumptious looking cake, complete with – he leaned over and breathed in the scent – a vanilla rum drizzle.



"Mmm. Gorgeous."

The fridge door closed and Harry jumped. He hadn’t realised anyone else was in the room. "Well, I know I look good, Potter," Malfoy said, now leaning against the fridge with his arms folded over his chest, "but I hardly expected you to notice, much less acknowledge it out loud."

Harry ran his eyes over the other man. He was smartly dressed in black trousers and a steel grey button down that set his eyes off perfectly and had a slight sheen to it, looking soft enough to touch. Harry resisted. The collar was open, making him look more casual than Harry recalled ever seeing him since school, and yet still so put together. "Yes, well ... there’s no denying you clean up nicely these days, Malfoy, but I was actually talking about the cake." He pointed needlessly to the cake he’d been admiring a moment ago.

Malfoy blinked at Harry, momentarily at a loss for words. Then he tilted his head slightly and said, "Is this more of your teasing banter or did you just compliment me?"

Suddenly feeling incredibly awkward, Harry said, "No teasing." He cleared his throat. "Just stating the obvious."

Malfoy smiled, casually pushed off the fridge and closed the gap between them in three steps. He did not resist touching Harry’s shirt and Harry was suddenly very glad he’d chosen the brushed silk one Hermione had bought that she said brought out the green of his eyes. Malfoy adjusted the collar and ran his hands over Harry’s shoulders. Their eyes met and Harry couldn’t look away. Didn’t want to look away. "You clean up alright yourself, Potter."

"Harry, where’s that hug you promised me?" Luna burst into the room, took in the scene, then grinned. Malfoy dropped his arms and Harry immediately missed their warmth. "Oh, I’m sorry. I’ve interrupted." Before Harry could say anything in response, she started to back out of the room. "I’ll just leave the two of you alone." Then she turned and went back to the front room.

Spell broken, Harry stepped away from Malfoy. "So, I guess we should join the others."

"Sure." Malfoy chuckled. "Lead the way."

Part 16

Christmas Story 2018 - In the Spirit, part 16 (H/D)

Title: In the Spirit – Part 16
Author: sesheta_66
Prompts used: slythindor100’s early bird prompts 13: snow along a park path and 15: owl post storefront (pictures under the cut) and dracoharry100’s prompts 23: last minute shopping and 26: feeding the less fortunate
Word Count: 1.3K
Rating: PG, for now
Warning: none
Summary: Harry had a rough Christmas last year, to say the least. But things are looking up this year, and he plans to embrace the season, even if he is still single.
Disclaimer: Harry Potter characters are the property of J.K. Rowling and Bloomsbury/Scholastic. No profit is being made, and no copyright infringement is intended.
Author's Notes: Written for the slythindor100 Early Bird 25 Days of Draco and Harry and the dracoharry100 Christmas Challenge.

On LJ: Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 |
Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15

OR on AO3



In the Spirit – Part 16

Harry entered Diagon Alley the next afternoon, determined to complete his Christmas shopping before the crazed rush a few days before the 25th. He’d bought most of the main gifts for everyone – all of Mr Weasley’s gifts coming from Muggle London, of course – but still had a handful of other things to buy. He willed himself to focus on the task at hand so he wouldn’t forget anything and have to come back, but his mind kept drifting to Luna’s party. She’d invited Malfoy because, as she’d explained, he was her friend and what better time than Christmas to bring different friends together. He wasn’t so sure that was true, or at least not her only reason.

Repeatedly, Harry had found himself in the company of Malfoy. Not that he’d tried to avoid the man, but circumstances just seemed to conspire to have them suddenly appear by each other’s side, or be pulled into a conversation in which the other was taking part, or asked for insight into something or other. By the end of the evening, he’d been quite sure Luna hadn’t been the only one conspiring. With the exception of Ginny and Ron and possibly a couple of others, Harry was quite sure everyone else had been in on it.

Several times, when he and Malfoy had been drawn together into a conversation yet again, they’d shared a knowing glance, which told him that they’d both caught on to their friends’ shenanigans, though Malfoy hadn’t seemed particularly bothered by it. More bemused than anything. Truth be told, Harry hadn’t minded either. In fact, he’d found out quite a bit about the other man and what he’d been up to since school.



As he passed by the Owl post, Harry made a mental note to send cards to the MACUSA group he’d worked with last time he was in the States. They were a good bunch and had made him feel at home when he’d been there on his own for an unexpectedly lengthy stay. As a result, they’d kept in touch.

Moving on, Harry picked up some packages of chocolate – always good to have on hand, particularly if he found himself invited somewhere or having people over on short notice – and some goodies to keep around the house. He now had enough cookies to feed even Dudley over the entirety of the holidays, after getting a bit carried away the other day, so he didn’t need any ingredients for that.

He glanced into Ollivander’s, but the wand maker wasn’t there. Harry knew from Luna, who kept in touch with everyone it seemed, that he still made most of the wands, but left the day-to-day operation of the shop to a young import from Eastern Europe Harry presumed was the man standing behind the counter. He’d go in another day when he had more time. Not needing robes or cauldrons or tea, he skipped by the various shops carrying those wares as well. But when he spotted the apothecary, his mind went back, predictably, to Malfoy.

After the war and the trials, Malfoy had spent a couple of years in France with his parents, where he’d worked under one of their more renowned potioneers, much to the chagrin of Lucius. Apparently, his father had envisioned Draco working alongside him, managing the family money and schmoozing with the right people in the right places to reinstate the family name. Much to Harry’s surprise, Draco had wanted nothing to do with his father’s plans. He’d stayed with his parents for two reasons, and two reasons only: he had no independent funding to support himself while in training and – most importantly – he loved his mother and wanted to keep an eye on her. It seemed his hero-worship of his father was a thing of the past.

He’d received his licence and had continued to work under the French potioneer’s tutelage for another year, eventually setting himself up in an apartment in a wizarding village on the outskirts of Paris. It had worked out well for him, but he’d missed England. When his parents had announced their intended return, he’d come with them. With the money he’d saved, he was able to secure a flat in Wiltshire – close enough to visit his parents regularly, but far enough to remain independent and just out of Lucius’ reach. But when finding work in England had proven difficult, and his lack of employment had threatened his independence, his mother had provided him some seed money with which to open his own lab. Several years later, he had a healthy business, supplying many of the country’s apothecaries with both standard potions and some of his own signature ones.

He’d paid his mother back in full, despite her protestations, with Lucius none the wiser, and he was now quite comfortable, thank you very much. Harry rather thought that independence suited him.

Still not much for potions himself, despite his stellar performance in his sixth year at school, Harry bypassed the place and made his way to Quality Quidditch Supplies, a shop where he knew he could get something for half the people on his list. He picked up a few items for Ron, Ginny, George, Angelina, Bill and Charlie, then made his way to Obscurus Books to find something out of the ordinary for Hermione. He left with not one but three books – one on Nordic runes for Hermione, the latest on household spells for Mrs Weasley and, for Fleur, a historical book on Veela influence in France and beyond that the shopkeeper had recommended.

He picked up some quills and parchment at Scribbulus, and some fancy teas for Andromeda at Rosa Lee’s, and then he was nearly done. Last stop, Weasleys Wizarding Wheezes. He braced himself for utter mayhem before diving in. Fifteen minutes later, having spent five of those chatting to George, he emerged with an assortment for Teddy that would, no doubt, earn him a stern look from Andromeda and an equally excited reaction from his godson. He’d already got a stuffed toy for Rose and didn’t dare risk Hermione’s wrath with something from Wheezes for her daughter. Not yet, anyway.

Feeling utterly spent, but thoroughly successful, he decided to take a walk on this fine, winter evening. Sending his packages home with a wave of his wand, he turned down a path through the park. He’d taken longer than he’d realised and the sun had already begun to set, but the Christmas lights lit the way cheerily.



As he neared the end of his circuit, he stood to enjoy a carolling group and breathed in the crisp, fresh air. As they sang, he thought about the next day and wondered what it would hold for him. He’d promised to take Teddy skating and somehow had managed to invite Malfoy to join them. He knew he’d been hoodwinked, as Luna had prompted the conversation, then casually thrown in that Draco was a wonderful skater. Malfoy had looked nearly as surprised by her comment as Harry had, which had, naturally, prompted Harry to say, "Oh, really? So, Malfoy, you think you could keep up?" Which, of course, Luna had known he’d do.

And by the laughter in Malfoy’s eyes as he said, "You’re on," he’d known it too. Thank Merlin Harry wasn’t this transparent when dealing with suspects or he’d be dead by now. Whatever. It was done. And they’d done alright at Andromeda’s the last time they’d spent time together. And, unless he was very much mistaken, there’d been something there in the kitchen at Luna’s. He knew it, and was pretty sure Malfoy did too. And even if Harry had misread the situation and there wasn’t anything, they were adults and the past was behind them. They could get along just fine. Besides, Teddy would be there, so they’d both behave. Or something. At least they wouldn’t throw punches.

He was jolted from his musings when the carolling stopped, the singers announced they were taking a break, and the crowd began to disperse. Harry thanked the carollers, wished them a Merry Christmas, and put a handful of Galleons in the collection tin they’d set up to help feed the less fortunate on Christmas.

He spent the rest of his walk, the trip home and most of the night wondering what on Earth he was doing and what he was getting himself into. Even still, he fell asleep quickly that night, with a smile on his face, looking quite forward to the next day.

Part 17