A/N: Thanks to those of you who left me birthday wishes- I had a great day and I saw a good movie- The Prestige. Definitely worth checking out!!
Something I had to share with you guys- it just proves that Emma is truly willing to eat anything ;) I got quite a kick out of it and decided to show you all as well.
This chapter has Gabriel, then begins Christmas day with Ethan and Maddie and will go through everybody eventually. Hope you all enjoy it and please review!
Even though he missed his grandparents, Gabriel was enjoying spending the Christmas holiday with his father and stepmother. Seamus didn't film during the holidays, so he was around most of the time and Gabriel was able to do some of the sightseeing things he'd missed on his first trip.
And later that evening, Rose and Declan were coming over for dinner. Gabriel had kept a good correspondence with his paternal grandparents who were apparently very proud that their only grandson had made the dean's list on his first semester at university.
Lavender was currently going over some last minute preparations with the cook about that evening's dinner. Gabriel was enjoying a late breakfast and reading the paper. He wasn't sure but for some reason Lavender kept shooting him surreptitious looks. In fact, now that he thought about it, she'd been doing that all morning.
"All right, what?" he finally asked, setting the paper down.
Lavender shrugged. "I have no idea what you're talking about, Gabriel."
"You keep giving me these weird looks," Gabriel replied. "Have I got something on my face?"
"No," Lavender said shaking her head. "I just am so happy that you're here with us for the holidays. Can't I be happy? I mean, that's not a crime, is it?"
"No," Gabriel said. "Sorry..."
Lavender grinned at him. She knew that she was meddling and Seamus had warned her against it, but she was a good matchmaker. After all, she'd had a hand in getting Harry and Hermione together, hadn't she? They didn't think so, but she knew if it hadn't been for her, they'd never have gotten together.
"So what do you have on tap for today?" Lavender asked taking a seat across from Gabriel at the table.
"Absolutely nothing," Gabriel said with a grin. "You have no idea how good it feels to say that."
Lavender laughed. "I can imagine."
"I know it's only my first semester of school, but it was really taxing," Gabriel leaned back.
"I don't know much about pre-med, but I imagine it's only going to get worse," Lavender said thoughtfully. "But you should enjoy your college years too, Gabe. You can't spend all your time in a library."
"I enjoy my classes," Gabriel said. "And half the time when I'm done studying, I just want to collapse."
"Well, these next couple of weeks you can just relax and take it easy," Lavender said smiling at him.
"I plan on it," Gabriel agreed. "I think tomorrow I'm seeing Saffron."
Lavender nodded. When Gabriel got up to get another cup of coffee, she checked her watch. She'd asked for the delivery to be at 10:30 and it was just about that time. "What are you going to do with Saffy?" Lavender asked.
"I'm not sure yet," Gabriel replied. "Perhaps a movie or something."
"Sounds good," Lavender said just as the doorbell chimed. "Could you get that, Gabriel? I need to go over something with Maria about the guest room..."
"Sure," Gabriel said setting his coffee mug down.
Lavender hid in the doorway as her stepson answered the door.
"Delivery from O'Leary's bakery," Alexa said from behind the stack of boxes she held.
Gabriel didn't really pick up on the name of the bakery as he stood back to let the delivery girl into the penthouse. "This must be something my step---Alexa?"
"Gabriel?" Alexa peeked around.
He stared at her for a few moments before finally remembering that she had a number of boxes in her hand. "Sorry," he said grabbing the top three boxes from her. As he did so, he got a better look at her and it wasn't his imagination, she was actually prettier than he remembered. "Hi..."
"I didn't even realise I was delivering here," she blushed. She set her boxes down. "It's really good to see you Gabe."
"You too," Gabriel said smiling at her. "I'm spending the holidays with my dad and Lavender."
Alexa nodded. "I think Saffron mentioned something about that to me."
"So, how have you been?" Gabriel asked.
Alexa shrugged. "Okay..."
Gabriel looked at her. "That doesn't sound like an okay-okay, Lexie. What's going on?"
"I guess Saffron didn't tell you," Alexa pressed her lips together for a moment. "RJ and I broke up."
"You did?" Gabriel asked.
"A few days ago," she said softly.
It wasn't really his business, but he was dying to know what had happened. "Was it mutual?"
Alexa shook her head.
"I'm sorry," Gabriel said. "If you don't mind me saying, he's an idiot."
"Yeah well..." Alexa looked away for a moment. "Let's just say he found someone that suits him better."
"Are you doing okay?" Gabriel asked. "Breakups are never easy. Believe me, I know."
"I'm just keeping busy and trying not to think about it," she replied.
"Good approach," Gabriel said smiling reassuringly at her.
"Yeah well... Saffy keeps telling me it's his loss," Alexa said quietly. "I'm having a little trouble keeping that thought in mind, but--"
"It is his loss," Gabriel said. "And someday, he's going to realise that."
"Thanks," Alexa said as he gave her a hug. She closed her eyes and remembered how it had felt when he had kissed her, then pushed the thought from her head.
Gabriel let her go and smiled at her. "You smell like cinnamon."
"That happens when you work in a bakery," she returned, also smiling.
Gabriel laughed. "Right."
"How's school?" she asked, not noticing Lavender peering in from the kitchen. "I've missed you Gabe- I want to hear everything that's been going on."
"Do you have time?" Gabriel asked. "I don't want to keep you if you have other deliveries..."
"This was the only one," Alexa replied. "We're only doing deliveries today- and Mum's got Ben doing the rest."
"Great," Gabriel said leading the way into the sitting room. He was eager to catch up with her as well. "School's hectic, to tell you the truth."
"I'm sure it is," Alexa sat down next to him. "But med school, it's such a big deal!"
"I'm just in pre-med now, but the course load is unbelievable," Gabriel said shaking his head. "By the end of the day, I just want to fall into bed and sleep for hours, you know?"
Alexa nodded. "What sorts of courses are you taking?"
"Sciences and maths mostly, but a few literature courses too for the general college requirements," Gabriel said. "Of course, I had some Advanced Placement credits already so that helped."
"Good for you Gabe," Alexa touched his arm. "I'm really proud of you. You're following your dreams."
"And what about you?" Gabriel asked smiling at her. "I really enjoyed those short stories you sent me in that last letter. You really are talented, Lex."
Alexa blushed. "Thanks... I'm still writing, but lately I just really haven't been inspired."
"Because of RJ, you mean?" Gabriel asked.
She nodded. "I tried to sit down and write something last night but I wound up throwing it out. I just need some time."
Lavender wished she had some Extendable Ears so she could hear better. She really had to talk to Ron about getting a set of those.
"What the hell are you doing?" Seamus asked from behind her, startling her.
"Shhhh!" Lavender whispered furiously. "Gabe's in there with Alexa!"
Seamus raised an eyebrow. "Let me guess, you had something to do with this and now you're trying to eavesdrop?"
"She had a delivery to make here," Lavender gestured at the boxes. "I ordered you some of that fudge and some pastries for Rose and Declan."
"Well, that was very nice of you," Seamus said. "But you usually use that French bakery, don't you?"
Lavender shrugged. "What's wrong with a little change?"
Seamus rolled his eyes. "You are so transparent."
She made a face at her husband and took the boxes into the kitchen. "What's so wrong with wanting my stepson to be happy?"
"Nothing, but pushing some girl on him---" Seamus started to say.
"I'm not pushing anyone on anyone," Lavender glared at him.
"Yes you are," Seamus said reaching for one of the pastries, but getting his hand slapped away by his wife. "Lav, she's dating RJ Weasley..."
"No she's not," Lavender told him. "Saffron told me they broke up."
"Well, that certainly explains things," Seamus said pouring himself a cup of coffee.
"And I honestly never thought they were much of a fit," Lavender said knowingly. "They're too different, but Alexa and Gabriel...perfect for each other."
"Just don't push," Seamus said. "Lav, let Gabe handle things on his own, all right?"
"I just gave a tiny nudge," Lavender said innocently.
"Then let that be all you give," Seamus warned.
"Okay, okay," Lavender said crossing her fingers behind her back.
"Lavender," Seamus raised an eyebrow.
"Yes, my love?" Lavender asked pulling an innocent face.
"Don't push," he said firmly. "I know you want what's best for Gabe, but he'll do what he needs to do at his own pace."
"Okay," Lavender begrudgingly said. "I promise I will not interfere."
"Thank you," he leaned forward to give her a kiss.
"You're welcome," Lavender said before pressing her lips to his. Seamus sat down at the table with his coffee and Lavender stepped out of the kitchen so she could see what was going on in the sitting room.
"And you should have seen the look on his face when Dad let him drive the SUV," Gabriel was telling Alexa. "Nico looked like he'd died and gone to heaven."
Alexa laughed. "He sounds like an interesting guy."
"He's nothing if not interesting," Gabriel said. "I hope you get to meet him someday."
"I hope so too," Alexa replied. "I didn't tell you this, but I've started looking at colleges again... and one is USC."
Gabriel couldn't stop the smile from spreading on his face. "Really? Lexie, you'd love USC. They have a really great Creative Writing program."
"Maybe when I come for a tour you can show me around," she asked.
"It's a date," Gabriel said without thinking. At the amused look on Alexa's face, he turned red. "I mean, it's a deal."
"Right," Alexa blushed as well.
Gabriel let out a nervous laugh.
"Saffron said something about getting together tomorrow night," Alexa fiddled with her shirt.
"She mentioned something about that to me as well," Gabriel said looking down at his jeans.
"Sounds like it could be fun," Alexa said tentatively.
Gabriel nodded. "Saffy's always good for a laugh, isn't she?"
"You have no idea how great she's been," Alexa replied.
"She's your best friend," Gabriel said. "And she'd do anything for you, Alexa."
Alexa nodded. "She and Andrew just celebrated their first anniversary."
"I heard," Gabriel said nodding. "They seem pretty solid."
"I'm happy for them," Alexa said softly. "Andrew's completely mad about her."
He could hear the wistful tone in her voice. "You'll find that again, Alexa."
"It'll be awhile before I start looking," she twisted a long lock of her hair around her finger.
"Oh," Gabriel said quietly.
Alexa wished she had thought before she said that. "Well um... it's just that..."
"You're still getting over RJ," Gabriel said looking at her.
"It hasn't been very easy," she said. "But I don't want to bother you with details."
"I don't mind," Gabriel said. "You listened to me talk about Emily."
"It's okay," Alexa replied. "I've done nothing but think and talk about RJ... it's nice to talk to someone who has other interests for a change."
Gabriel smiled at her. "I, um, well my grandparents are coming in from Ireland tonight and Lavender's having this big dinner for them. Would you...would you like to join us?"
"You want me to come?" Alexa asked in surprise. "I'd have thought you would want to spend some time alone with them."
"They'll be here until after Christmas," Gabriel said. "And I'd really like it if you were there. I'm sure my dad wouldn't mind you being here."
Alexa smiled. "Okay," she agreed.
"You'll come?" Gabriel asked.
"Sure," she replied. "I'll ring you later once I talk to my parents but I'm sure it'll be fine."
"Great," Gabriel said grinning at her. "Dinner's at seven."
"Sounds good," Alexa stood up. "I should get back to the bakery."
Gabriel stood up as well and walked her to the door. "It's really great to see you again, Alexa."
"I'm glad you're back for the hols," she gave him a hug.
"Me too," Gabriel said hugging her back.
Alexa gave him a quick kiss on the cheek before leaving.
Gabriel touched his cheek and smiled.
"Did that delivery come?" Lavender asked breaking him out of his reverie.
"What?" Gabriel jumped.
"The delivery from the bakery?" Lavender asked smiling at him.
"Yeah," Gabriel motioned to the three boxes still sitting on the table. "Where'd the others go?"
"Um, Seamus must have gotten those," Lavender covered. "You know how your father is with fudge..."
"Yeah," Gabriel smiled.
"You look rather pleased with yourself," Lavender said innocently.
"Alexa was the delivery girl," Gabriel replied.
"Was she really?" Lavender asked. "What a small world..."
Gabriel gave her a look. "You knew she was coming."
"I did not," Lavender lied.
"O'Leary's bakery and you didn't know?" Gabriel smirked at her. "She's going to come over for dinner tomorrow night, if that's okay."
Lavender beamed at him. "That's fantastic, Gabriel! We have more than enough food and Declan and Rose will love her..."
"Just don't try and play matchmaker," Gabriel said. "She's getting over RJ."
"Me?" Lavender asked. "Matchmaker?"
Seamus snorted from the doorway. "He knows you too well."
"She's pretty transparent," Gabriel said grinning at his stepmother.
"You two," Lavender stamped her foot. "I am not transparent! I just care, that's all!"
"I appreciate your efforts on my behalf," Gabriel said helping himself to one of the pastries.
"Those are for Rose and Declan," Lavender took it out of his hand.
"B-but--" Gabriel sputtered.
"Give it up," Seamus replied.
"There are six boxes here, Lavender," Gabriel argued. "Surely, I could have just one..."
"One," Lavender relented.
"Thank you," Gabriel said retrieving the pastry. "You're the best."
"He gets one but I don't?" Seamus asked his wife.
"You can have one too," Lavender said. "But only one."
"Thank you," Seamus pecked her on the cheek.
"You're welcome," Lavender said. "Admit it; you two would be completely lost without me."
"How did you know?" Seamus asked.
"I'm very intuitive," Lavender said modestly.
Gabriel grinned at her.
"Come on, Gabe," Seamus said. "We'd better get a move on if we want to hit the shops..."
"It's four days before Christmas," Lavender admonished. "You waited until the last minute again, didn't you?"
"Maybe I did, maybe I didn't." Seamus put his empty coffee cup in the sink.
"You're unbelievable," Lavender admonished before walking out of the kitchen.
"What's unbelievable is her if we didn't have anything with her name on it under the tree on Christmas morning," Seamus joked.
Gabriel laughed. "I don't know if we'd ever recover from that, Dad."
"We wouldn't," Seamus confirmed.
"So where are we going first?" Gabriel asked.
"Harrods," Seamus put his coat on.
Gabriel sighed. "I really hate shopping."
"It's not on my fun list but it's got to be done," Seamus patted his arm. "One of life's necessary evils."
Gabriel grabbed his coat. "Let's get it over with then."
"Good idea," Seamus said as they left.
"What time are Grandma Rose and Grandpa getting here?" Gabriel asked as they got on the lift.
"Around five," Seamus said.
"I'm really looking forward to seeing them again," Gabriel said.
"Mum's dying to see you as well," Seamus replied. "She keeps talking about having a doctor around now. And Da's wanting you on the golf course."
Gabriel smiled. "Maybe during Spring Break...'"
"Don't forget to ring Margaret and Lewis," Seamus reminded him. "They're eight hours behind us here."
"I will," Gabriel promised.
"They really weren't angry about you coming over here for the hols were they?" Seamus hailed a taxi.
"Gran wasn't," Gabriel admitted. "But, Grandpa was a little...um...."
"He's still not happy with me," Seamus nodded.
"I'm sorry, Dad," Gabriel said quietly.
"It's not your fault Gabe," Seamus told him.
"I keep hoping he'll come around," Gabriel said.
"Sooner or later he'll have to," Seamus said. "Now that you're here Gabe..."
"What?" Gabriel asked.
"I'm just glad you're here," Seamus said. "I know you'll probably think I spoiled you a bit this Christmas but I couldn't help it."
"What did you do?" Gabriel asked. "Dad--"
"You'll see," Seamus wore a mysterious grin.
Gabriel laughed. "Okay, okay."
Seamus groaned as they pulled up to Harrods. "Ready for the crowds?"
"Not really," Gabriel admitted. "But the sooner we get in, the sooner we can get out."
"Right," Seamus sighed. "Well come on then... this can't be worse than working with Bruce Green again..."
"Says you," Gabriel joked.
He cuffed his son. "Laurie Hoffman was asking about you."
"It's not nice to lie to your son," Gabriel said to him.
"Would this face lie?" Seamus asked.
"There's a reason why you work behind the camera and not in front of it, Dad," Gabriel said. "You're no actor."
"Nice to know how much faith my son has in me," Seamus said, pushing his son inside as he saw some paparazzi approach.
They made quick work of their shopping despite the large crowds. Gabriel was able to find a small gift for Lavender and a few things for his grandparents with Seamus' help, of course.
"That wasn't as bad as I thought," Gabriel admitted.
"Did you get anything for Alexa?" Seamus asked as they made their way back home.
"Do you think I should?" he asked.
"You fancy her, right?" Seamus asked him.
"Dad," Gabriel complained.
"I'm not trying to matchmake," Seamus said quickly. "I'm just trying to help you out. If you do fancy this girl, and I'm not saying that you do or don't, you should buy her a little something."
"Maybe I will," Gabriel mused.
"We can stop somewhere else if you like," Seamus suggested. "That way you don't have to go back out..."
"I have no idea what to get her," Gabriel said. "And what if I get her something and she thinks it's too forward of me?"
"You could always buy something neutral," Seamus said thoughtfully. "Do you know what sort of music she likes? Or books? "
"Maybe I should ask Saffron," Gabriel suggested.
"You can use my mobile if you'd like," Seamus said reaching into his pocket for it.
"Thanks," Gabriel took it. "I left mine at home."
"No problem," Seamus said looking out the window as his son dialed his cousin.
Gabriel talked with Saffron for a few moments. "Saf said she likes classical music," he told his father when he hung up.
"Tower Records in Piccadilly Circus," Seamus told the driver.
"Thanks Dad," Gabriel said gratefully.
"It's my pleasure," Seamus said. "It's what fathers are supposed to do, right?"
"I suppose," Gabriel grinned at him.
"Help you with the ladies," Seamus said leaning back in his seat.
"I need all the help I can get," Gabriel leaned back against the seat.
"Just be yourself," Seamus advised.
"I will," he answered.
*** *** ***
Due to a three am twirl in the snow in their backyard, Ethan and Maddie slept in a bit on Christmas morning. It was around half past nine when he finally stirred, only to find his wife lying half across his chest.
"Mrs. Potter," Ethan said sleepily.
"Mmm..." Maddie mumbled.
"Happy Christmas, Mrs. Potter," Ethan said tickling her side.
Maddie jumped. "Ethan!"
Ethan laughed. "Yes?"
"I'm too tired to get up," she buried her face in his shoulder.
"Even for presents?" Ethan asked. "And I can hear Blue rattling his cage downstairs..."
"Oooh," Maddie suddenly perked up. "I do have some lovely gifts for him."
"What about for your husband?" Ethan asked.
"Some for him too," Maddie pressed her lips to his. "Happy Christmas."
"Happy Christmas," Ethan said again.
"Our first one as a married couple," Maddie smiled dreamily at him. "I can't believe it was almost a year ago now that you proposed."
"This will be the first of many Christmases together," Ethan promised giving her another kiss.
"That sounds absolutely marvellous," Maddie closed her eyes.
"Come on," Ethan said feeling like a little kid. "Let's go see what Santa left you."
"Okay," Maddie grinned. "Maybe another Cornish Pixie."
"We can barely cope with the one we have," Ethan joked as he pulled the covers back.
Maddie pulled her robe on and brushed her hair back over her shoulders. "Want some hot chocolate?" she asked.
"That sounds great," Ethan said. "How about I fix it and you let the blue demon out of his cage?"
Maddie giggled. "Sure."
They held hands as they went downstairs. Blue was sitting on the swing in his cage wearing a small red Santa hat. "Where did he get that?" Maddie asked.
"I don't know," Ethan replied.
When the pixie spotted Maddie, he rattled the bars of his cage.
"Happy Christmas, Blue!" Maddie exclaimed.
"I think you'd better let him out," Ethan chortled. "He's liable to pull those bars right off."
Maddie giggled and undid the lock on his cage. "Come on out, you."
Blue flew right to her shoulder and pecked her on the cheek.
"Awwww," Maddie said smiling sideways at him. "That's my baby."
Ethan shook his head. "He's more and more human by the day. What are you feeding him?"
"He doesn't like that pixie food I picked up from the Magical Menagerie," Maddie explained. "He...well, he ...you promise you won't laugh?"
"I'll try," Ethan replied.
"He likes fish and chips," Maddie admitted. "So, I've been getting that for him every night."
Ethan stared at her. "Fish and chips?"
"Yes," Maddie said defensively. "A month or so, I came home late from work. You were out of town and I picked up fish and chips on the way home...well, I was eating it and Blue was just staring at me like he wanted a bite. So, I gave him one and he looked positively elated, Ethan."
Ethan shook his head and stifled a laugh. "This doesn't surprise me in the least."
"He also likes toast and black currant jam," Maddie said. "So, if you could make that for him while you're making the hot chocolate..."
"Anything else?" Ethan asked. "Some scones, perhaps? Or how about a full seven course meal?"
Maddie rubbed her stomach. "Maybe later, but for now the toast and hot chocolate will do."
Ethan muttered to himself as he disappeared into the kitchen.
"Okay," Maddie said to Blue, who was still perched on her shoulder. "I have a special present for you. Are you ready to open it?"
Blue flew around her head excitedly.
Maddie reached under the tree and pulled out a small box. "Here you go."
Blue eagerly tore into the box with his little claws.
Maddie bit her bottom lip hoping he'd like what she'd bought. She watched as Blue pulled back the tissue paper to reveal the small wireless.
The little pixie cackled and flew up near the ceiling with the tiny radio.
"You can listen to it anytime you want," Maddie said happily.
Blue took it into his little cage then flew back onto Maddie's shoulder.
"And I think Ethan got you something too," Maddie said. She looked under the tree and pulled out another small box. "Here you go."
Blue let out another happy sounding cackle and dug into the box.
"Ethan!" Maddie called out. "He's opening yours now!"
"You couldn't wait two seconds?" his voice drifted out.
"You don't want to miss this!" Maddie called out.
Ethan appeared in the doorway as Blue finally managed to open the box.
Maddie looked at the very small cage and looked quizzically at Ethan. "What---"
Ethan pulled his wand out. "Try this on for size little guy," he said as he set the cage on the ground and tapped it. To Maddie's astonishment, it grew until it was almost as tall as her.
"Ethan!" Maddie squealed.
"What do you think?" Ethan asked with a grin. "I thought his cage might be getting a bit small."
"I love it," Maddie said still in awe. She watched as Blue flew inside the cage. "And I think he loves it, too!"
"There's room for a lot in there," Ethan said. "I thought you could make him a little bed down there and he's got all the space he needs up here to eat and we can hang his swing... what?"
Maddie launched herself at him and planted kisses all over his face. "That's the sweetest, most kindest, most wonderful thing..."
"If I get a reaction like that I'll buy him a new cage every week," Ethan said with a huge grin.
Maddie grinned back at him. "So, do you want to get back to the cocoa and toast or do you want to see what I got for you?"
"It's almost ready," Ethan replied. "I'll get it and then we can give each other gifts."
"Okay," Maddie said giving him another kiss. "Hurry!"
"All right all right," Ethan went back into the kitchen.
Maddie settled back on the sofa and watched Blue as he flew around his new cage.
"Like it baby?" she asked. "We'll make it really comfortable for you before tonight, I promise."
Blue beamed at her and Maddie giggled. She wished that Dolly could have met Blue.
"All right," Ethan came back into the room with two mugs and a plate of toast and jam balanced on a tray.
"Come on out," Maddie said to Blue. "Daddy fixed you a nice plate of toast."
"We can put it right into the new place," Ethan pushed the toast inside. "Eat your heart out buddy."
Blue eagerly picked up a piece of toast and nibbled on it.
Ethan laughed as he sat down next to his wife and handed her a mug of hot chocolate.
"Thanks," Maddie said. "This smells so good!"
"Perfect for Christmas morning," he agreed. "All right, you open first."
Maddie set her mug aside and stood up. She looked under the tree and saw four packages with her name written on the tag. "Which one should I open first?"
"Doesn't matter," Ethan sat back.
Maddie picked up the larger box and sat down beside the tree. "It's kind of heavy..."
"Yeah," Ethan grinned. "Open it already..."
"Okay, okay," Maddie said laughing. She unwrapped the present and gasped. "Ethan..."
"I knew you'd wanted one of these," Ethan said as she pulled out the heavy silver picture frame. "You put all the photos you want to display in there and it shows them all like a Muggle slide show."
She'd seen one at Drew and Darla's and had admired it every time she'd seen it. "I love it!"
"Knew you would," Ethan gave her a kiss.
Maddie set it on the coffee table and then retrieved another package from underneath the tree. Inside was the prettiest jumper she'd ever seen. It was a light blue colour. "Ethan, this is cashmere!"
"Julie and Saffy convinced me that you'd like that one," Ethan confessed.
Maddie smiled at him. "I'm going to wear it today to Nana's."
"You'll look gorgeous in it," he said softly.
Maddie leaned over and gave him a kiss. "Thank you, Ethan."
"Very welcome," he replied.
Maddie picked up another package which was smaller than the previous two. Inside were two charms that she could put on her charm bracelet.
"It's a little pixie!" she said happily. "What's this one though?" she looked closely at it.
"Snowflake," Ethan said smiling at her. "You know..."
"You are so perfect," she threw her arms around him.
Ethan hugged her tightly. "I'll remind you of that next time we have a row."
She giggled. "Your turn now."
Ethan shook his head. "You have one more..."
"Oooooh," Maddie retrieved the gift.
Ethan watched as Maddie opened her last present. It was a print of one of her favourite pieces of art. She and Ethan had seen it in a gallery a few months ago.
She squealed. "You remembered!!!"
"Well, I practically had to drag you away from it," Ethan teased.
"You're quite the good secret keeper," Maddie told him. "I never in a million years thought you'd be this good at getting gifts and not telling about them."
"I learned a few things over the years watching my parents," Ethan said.
"You did very, very good." she kissed him. "Thank you so much."
"It was my pleasure," Ethan said touching her cheek. "I just want to make you happy, Mads."
"You always make me happy," Maddie said softly.
Ethan gave her another kiss before getting to his feet. "Let's see what you got me, Mrs. Potter."
"I think you'll like it," she smiled as he tore into his first box.
"What's in here?" Ethan asked.
"Open it and find out, silly," Maddie gave him a goofy grin.
Ethan had to stand up since the box was so big. His jaw dropped. "Maddie...this is that new racing broom!"
"Surprise," she laughed.
"Wow," Ethan asked as he pulled it from the box. "This is...you are....this is...just ...wow."
"I didn't know it would make you speechless," Maddie giggled. "But I'm glad you like it."
"I'll even take you for a ride on it later," Ethan promised.
"That's a deal," Maddie agreed.
Ethan smiled. "And do my eyes deceive me or do I have one more present under there?"
"You should have two," Maddie replied. "Your dad helped me with this next one."
"Oh, here's the other one," Ethan said picking up one of the packages. "Let's see how you and Dad did..."
Maddie could hardly wait for him to open it and the two seconds it took for him to tear into the box were almost excruciating.
"Whoa," Ethan said his jaw dropping.
"It's your own invisibility cloak," Maddie bit her lower lip. "I hope it's not too boring, but I thought you could use it for work."
"Whoa," Ethan repeated pulling it out. "This is amazing, Mads. Saffy has Dad's..."
"I know how much you liked his," Maddie replied. "And we searched everywhere for one... it took a few months to track that down."
Ethan gave her a kiss. "Thanks."
"You're very welcome," she replied, happy that he liked it. "Your last one is a bit ordinary by comparison..."
"I'm sure that I'll love it," Ethan said picking up the last box.
Inside was a jumper almost exactly like the one he'd gotten her. "Great minds think alike," she joked.
"Very much so," Ethan said laughing.
"Happy Christmas," Maddie put her arms around her husband.
"Happy Christmas," Ethan said giving her a kiss. He would have loved to stay there with her for the rest of the day, but they were due at the Burrow soon.
"Think we have time to take a shower together?" she asked.
"We'll make time," Ethan said picking her up.
"Ethan!" Maddie giggled.
"You love this and you know it," Ethan said making his way toward the stairs.
"I have to admit I do," she said as he carried her into their bathroom.
