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Chapter 75 - Chapter 75

Early the next morning Harry woke to the sounds of pans banging, footsteps, and doors slamming. In an instant he was wide awake, on alert, wand in hand, and creeping into the hallway. A quick check reassured him that both of his sisters' doors were closed and secured.

More noise and instincts that had been forced into his mind kicked in. Back to the wall he peeked around one corner at a time, securing each room before reaching the source. Had someone managed to force their way into the home? Were they under attack? Were they...?

A certain redheaded woman stepped into the room, before stopping and turning to notice the boy standing so close, clearly on edge. Neither spoke, neither so much as moved as they stared at each other until James entered the room from behind the woman. "Love, what's..."

Harry quickly lowered his wand, flushing with embarrassment with a muttered apology.

His words seemed to break through to the woman, who had her own moment of fluster. "No, no I should be the one who... we have a bit of a tradition where we..."

She trailed off, before glancing back at her husband in desperation.

He let out a deep sigh, "Your mom... she has a problem Harry, one we've tried to hide form the public but..."

Lily replied by smacking him in the arm, which did little to dissuade the man.

"She feels no one has the right to sleep in on their holidays, it's a terrible condition, one we've tried to diagnose, tried to cure but to no avail." This promptly earned a mock growl from the woman, along with a grin from the man. "But in all seriousness, your mom has always done her best to let the girls sleep in on Christmas, but they can be deep sleepers , which means she often 'encourages' them to wake up a bit early."

Rubbing at her forehead the woman turned towards the, still a bit confused, boy, "I'm sorry Harry, I... I just didn't take into account that you might not be the same way. It usually takes about an hour or two for them to be disturbed."

"Oh... uh sorry I've always been..." this time his words fell short. How was he supposed to explain that if he slept in someone would be kicking at the door to his 'room' followed by angry shouting and even being dragged out. "I guess I'm just a light sleeper."

Neither parent looked convinced, but neither pushed. Instead, Lily gestured back towards the kitchen. "Would you like to sit down and finish waking up? We have coffee if you drink it or hot chocolate or..."

There was obvious frustration on her face, and the boy understood instantly. She didn't know him, didn't know what he liked, what his favorite foods were, what he drank in the morning, what his hobbies were, or anything else.

He was in much the same position.

"Hot chocolate sounds great."

****

The boy-who-lived was all smiles watching his redheaded counterpart's eyes almost blur back and forth between colored objects, trying to decide what to open first. After another minute or two her mother clearly had run out of patience. "Amaryllis either pick something or let your sister open..."

"This one!"

She promptly tore into a box, earning the shaking of two adult heads as she unwrapped a box containing new clothes. With that the 'dam had been broken' and a frenzy of paper and boxes were ripped into. Amy would receive several more outfits, along with various Quidditch books, and posters.

Her sister received various clothing as well along with more than a few books and a new messenger bag type of item that was magically expanded on the inside, allowing her to carry around school supplies and books with greater ease.

For Harry there was, to no one's surprise, clothing and books. Those chosen were various texts that one would expect of a fifth- or sixth-year student. His 'big gift' was a new wand holster, one specially designed for duelists.

The two adults had bought each other only a few gifts, with Lily receiving a new, heated, bathrobe and a book or two with James being gifted, oddly in Harry's opinion, a rather expensive looking necklace.

It was then that James Potter excused himself for a moment, before bringing in a last-minute object, one that the younger boy almost instinctively identified.

So too, could Amy when it was handed to her based upon her squeal of glee.

A Nimbus Two Thousand.

It was only a second later that a twinge of fear made its way through the wizard's spine and settled in his gut. That broom wasn't cheap, and he didn't see any other gift for his dark-haired sister.

He almost didn't want to see her expression. Would it be jealousy? Envy? Bitterness?

Risking a glance any concern immediately evaporated at the warmth on Harriet's face. "Did you get everything you wanted Harry?" Lily asked from the nearby couch, a bit of concern clear on her features.

"More than I could hope for." It was then that he remembered his own surprise and reached under a nearby couch to pull out several gifts he had hidden late the previous evening. "Uh Merry Christmas" he muttered shyly before handing one package out to each person, all of which stared in surprise.

"Harry..." the older man whispered, "You didn't... you shouldn't have."

"We didn't get you anything."

The sadness in his raven-haired twin's voice was quickly waved off. "I'm just glad I have family to buy for, it isn't anything super fancy though."

There was hesitation as each began to unwrap, far calmer for everyone, even Amy's hands were slow and careful. She received a pair of warming gloves for Quidditch, much to her delight. Harriet's gift was a magical bookmark that kept track of where the reader was regardless of the book, moving between them automatically.

James and Lily were given matching, self-heating or cooling mugs for either iced or hot beverages.

****

Almost as soon as the unwrapping was done Amy was begging to do some flying, to no one's surprise. Lily, despite her husband's 'puppy dog eyes', ordered them to eat breakfast first. Shortly after, with the girls going to change, a voice stopped the boy's own departure.

"Harry," the boy turned to look at the older man. James had an odd expression on his face, one he couldn't explain. "Can I ask where you got the money for our gifts from?"

He blinked before shrugging, "Some of the students paid me."

The man shifted in clear discomfort, "They didn't... take advantage of you, did they?"

Harry's face blanked, "I mean... it wasn't exactly pleasant if that's what you're asking." It was something akin to horror that appeared in the man's eyes which the boy-who-lived allowed for a few moments before snickering, "I'm kidding, some of my classmates asked for tutoring in Defense class and offered to pay me for it. While it wasn't exactly fun dealing with Slytherins it wasn't as bad as you're thinking."

James noticeably relaxed before crossing his arms and pouting, "It wasn't that funny..."

"It kind of was, besides I thought you and Sirius were the avid pranksters."

The man looked away for a second before speaking, "You shouldn't... that is your money Harry, you shouldn't be spending it on gifts, especially not for your mom and me."

He let out a sigh, "I know you might not understand this, and I hope Amy and Harriet never do but... the one thing I've always wanted, the only thing I wanted growing up for Christmas was a family who loved me. You could get me nothing for my birthday or the holidays for the rest of my life except for just being here and I would be happy."

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