Christmases Past and Future
Title: Christmases Past and Future
Fandom: Harry Potter
Pairing: Justin/Rose
Word count: 1853
Rating: G
Warnings: It's fluffy. It's so fluffy I want to die. It's so fluffy that it's fluff, stuffed with fluff, with a giant pile of fluffy fluff on the side. And it's not beta'd. Apologies all around.
Author's Notes:This is for jandjsalmon in response to the Christmas Drabble post on my livejournal. She asked for Justin/Rosie (of course!) with a prompt of Secret Santas - or trying to be sneaky with the Christmas presents.
1998
There were advantages to being small, Rose thought to herself. One was being able to pass through the perfectly round Hufflepuff dormitory doors without having to duck, and the second was knowing all the really great secret hiding places that were knee height or lower.
Justin, being as tall as he was, certainly wouldn’t ever think to get down on his hands and knees to search through the warren of cabinetry in the common room for her stash of goodies. Rose sincerely hoped that no one else would, either. She’d been horrifying the kitchen House Elves for going on three weeks now, baking at odd times when she wasn’t busy revising. But Rose knew Justin missed getting packages from his mum, and this was something that she could do for him. Biscuits and sweet rolls, fudge and sugarplums, Rose had done up batches of all of it and wrapped them neatly for his secret Santa presents, charming them to find him wherever he happened to be, here and there, for the entire month of December. Rose took Secret Santa very, very seriously.
That had been quite the feat of magical engineering, as well. Getting to draw Justin’s name out of the hat wasn’t easy; a muttered spell at both the precise moment he dropped the paper in, and the second she drew without raising anyone else’s attention? Not easy.
But she’d done it.
And even though it wasn’t absolutely the most honest way to go about things, Rose knew it would be worth it. For Justin. If only to see him smile for a moment.
Sometimes Rose wished he didn’t see her as the ‘little sister’ type. She was fifteen, after all, and even though he was three years older and wasn’t really interested in younger girls, she still wished.
But being his friend was brilliant. He was such a love. Kind, genuine, humble. And very good looking. So handsome. Some of the older girls were a bit jealous of Rose, to be honest. She and Justin always sat together at mealtime and revised together in the Common Room. They went to Hogsmeade together, and she’d even been to his family’s home at Thenford, once, meeting his Muggle family.
Rose adored Justin.
And even if he didn’t feel exactly the same way about her, that was fine.
Sort of.
She smiled at him as he ducked his way through the common room door, and she moved over on the sofa to give him room. He plopped down next to her, giving her an easy smile. “Hey, Rosie.”
“Hi,” she returned. “How was the Arithmancy final?”
“Brutal,”he confessed, leaning his head against the back of the sofa and closing his eyes. “I’m glad its over.”
“Ready to go home for the Hols?” she asked.
He cracked an eye and turned his head to her. “Not really, no.”
“Me, neither,” she confessed.
He frowned and then opened both eyes, looking at her in earnest. “Come home with me, then. Your aunt and uncle won’t mind.”
It was true. Her ‘parents’ certainly wouldn’t care whether she was there or not, and truth be told, they would be relieved if she weren’t there. But going to someone else’s home, especially at Christmas time, that seemed... desperate.
“I don’t know, Justin,” she hedged. “I don’t want to spoil your family’s Christmas.”
“Are you joking?” Justin asked incredulously, taking her hand and patting the back of it. “My father loves you. My brothers call you ‘that girl that’s too good for Justin,’ and you know how I feel, Rosie. Please?”
Rose was quite interested in the last; she wasn’t at all sure how Justin felt. “Well...” she began.
“It’s settled,” he announced with a grin. “You’ll go home with me on the train. To Thenford. Tomorrow.”
Rose smiled in return. It was so easy to make him happy. “Alright. I will.”
“Good,” he said, satisfied. He reached over to open his bag, and a box of sugarplums appeared when he pulled out his History of Magic book. “Will you look at that?” he said, opening the box and popping one of the sweets in his mouth, clearly pleased. “I have the best Secret Santa ever, this year.”
“Really?” asked Rose trying to tamp down her excitement.
“Yeah! Boxes and packages of all my favorite candies and Christmas sweets have been popping up everywhere. For weeks. It’s been brilliant.”
Rose grinned. “I’m glad you have a good one,” she said, shaking her head when he offered her a sweet. “I’m going up to pack my trunk. See you at breakfast in the morning?”
“I’ll wait down here and we’ll walk together,” he assured her.
She nodded and Justin watched her go, his heart tugging at the sight of her. It wasn’t the right time now, but someday it would be. He was sure of it. He’d never met anyone like Rose; she was intuitive, kind and genuine. There was no artifice to the girl at all. For instance, he knew she’d been baking like a mad woman at every given opportunity. Stealth just wasn’t in her skill set. He’d bet his inheritance that she was his Secret Santa, and had engineered it to be that way. She’d been sitting next to him for the past quarter hour with a smudge of flour on her nose, and she was continually giving gasps of surprise when he received his presents.
She was so funny.
He really did love her. He only hoped she’d feel the same one day.
Christmas Eve at Thenford was somber, but less so with Rosie there. She was quiet, forever frightened that she was going to be the one to break the Statute of Secrecy and bring all the secrets of the magical world crashing down around her. But even so, she was charming and sweet to his family, who were just glad to have a girl in the house to spoil. She blushed at the attention, but looked lovely doing it, so it really didn’t bother Justin one bit.
Justin slipped out of the parlour where the festivities were happening to hurry up to Rose’s room. He had a gift for her that he didn’t want everyone to see. He slipped the small package under her pillow with a smile, and then rushed back down in time to push his older brother out of the way so that he could sit by his best friend during the carols.
Rose closed the bedroom door behind her, leaning against it momentarily. She loved it here, even if she was afraid to open her mouth around Justin’s Muggle family. They were much like him; open, caring and loving, and Rose wished not for the first time, that she could have known Justin’s mother. She must have been extraordinary.
She dressed for bed, yawning, and intended to stay up reading for a few minutes, but her eyelids were drooping and sleep beckoned. She turned out the light (madness!) and pulled the covers over her shoulder, hugging the pillow close.
Rose’s hand hit something firm under the pillow and she grinned when she saw the box in the moonlight spilling in from the window. She tore off the paper quickly, and when she opened the box, her mouth formed an ‘o’ of surprise. It was a necklace; the silver chain glittered in the dim light, and the pendant was a clear, round stone with so many facets that Rose couldn’t even begin to count. It was beautiful and it was too, too much.
She bit her lip, wondering what to do, when a charmed note flew out of the box and Justin’s voice began speaking.
Rosie,
First of all, Merry Christmas. Secondly, don’t get out of bed and march down to my room right now and tell me that I spent too much on your Christmas present. I didn’t, don’t worry. That particular stone came from one of my mother’s rings that are mine to do with as I wish. I had it set in the pendant and bought the chain, but that’s all. She would have been thrilled for you to have it, Rosie. That kind of beauty shouldn’t be sitting in a bank closed up in a box; it should be adorning an equally beautiful girl. So please accept this present. I would be honored if you’d wear it.
I’m so glad you’re here, Rosie. It would be a miserable Christmas without you.
The note folded itself and flew back into the box. Rose smiled and sighed happily, and then she fastened the jewelry around her neck and got out of bed, moving to the mirror to see how it looked. It really was breathtaking. She put her hand over the diamond, vowing to tell him how she felt about him. One day, anyway.
2015
Rose sighed tiredly as she drew back the bedclothes in the darkened room and crept into bed. Everything was done. The presents were wrapped, the cookies left out for Santa, one of which had an artful bite taken out of it, the stockings were hung and everyone was in bed, hopefully asleep.
“You should have come to bed an hour ago.”
“Mmm,” she agreed, letting Justin cuddle her close to his side. “I couldn’t. It’s Christmas.”
“You’re fantastic at Christmas.”
“So’re you.”
“What was the best Christmas present you ever got, Rosie?” he asked quietly.
She smiled, remembering all the Christmases past and the hundreds of things he’d bought for her, and leaned up to kiss him. “You.”
“No,” he said with a chuckle. “An actual gift.”
“You aren’t an actual gift?”
“It’s debatable,” he murmured.
“I don’t think so,” she argued softly. “But as far as material things, I’d have to say my necklace.” Her hand moved to toy with the pendant and she looked up at him. I still love it.”
He nodded.
She asked, “What about you?”
“I dunno,” he replied. “I haven’t really thought about it. You and the boys, of course.”
She smiled against his chest in the darkness. “Want one of your Christmas presents, now?”
“Always,” he said eagerly.
Rose threaded the fingers of her right hand with his left and placed it over her still flat midriff. “Midsummer, you’ll get to meet your daughter.”
Justin was silent for a moment, and then sat up in bed to look down at Rose. “You’re pregnant?”
“Yes.”
“And it’s a girl?”
“Well done,” Rose said, giggling.
He laughed, a startled, halting sound, and then gave a joyful shout. “A girl!”
“Shh, Justin, you’ll wake the boys,” she whispered with a smile.
“A girl!” he whispered. “A girl.”
“You’re happy, then?” she asked winding her arms around his neck.
“More happy than any man has a right to be.”
Rose smiled and kissed him. Nearing twenty years of knowing this man and she loved him more than ever. “Happy Christmas, darling.”
“Happy Christmas, Rosie.”
Fandom: Harry Potter
Pairing: Justin/Rose
Word count: 1853
Rating: G
Warnings: It's fluffy. It's so fluffy I want to die. It's so fluffy that it's fluff, stuffed with fluff, with a giant pile of fluffy fluff on the side. And it's not beta'd. Apologies all around.
Author's Notes:This is for jandjsalmon in response to the Christmas Drabble post on my livejournal. She asked for Justin/Rosie (of course!) with a prompt of Secret Santas - or trying to be sneaky with the Christmas presents.
1998
There were advantages to being small, Rose thought to herself. One was being able to pass through the perfectly round Hufflepuff dormitory doors without having to duck, and the second was knowing all the really great secret hiding places that were knee height or lower.
Justin, being as tall as he was, certainly wouldn’t ever think to get down on his hands and knees to search through the warren of cabinetry in the common room for her stash of goodies. Rose sincerely hoped that no one else would, either. She’d been horrifying the kitchen House Elves for going on three weeks now, baking at odd times when she wasn’t busy revising. But Rose knew Justin missed getting packages from his mum, and this was something that she could do for him. Biscuits and sweet rolls, fudge and sugarplums, Rose had done up batches of all of it and wrapped them neatly for his secret Santa presents, charming them to find him wherever he happened to be, here and there, for the entire month of December. Rose took Secret Santa very, very seriously.
That had been quite the feat of magical engineering, as well. Getting to draw Justin’s name out of the hat wasn’t easy; a muttered spell at both the precise moment he dropped the paper in, and the second she drew without raising anyone else’s attention? Not easy.
But she’d done it.
And even though it wasn’t absolutely the most honest way to go about things, Rose knew it would be worth it. For Justin. If only to see him smile for a moment.
Sometimes Rose wished he didn’t see her as the ‘little sister’ type. She was fifteen, after all, and even though he was three years older and wasn’t really interested in younger girls, she still wished.
But being his friend was brilliant. He was such a love. Kind, genuine, humble. And very good looking. So handsome. Some of the older girls were a bit jealous of Rose, to be honest. She and Justin always sat together at mealtime and revised together in the Common Room. They went to Hogsmeade together, and she’d even been to his family’s home at Thenford, once, meeting his Muggle family.
Rose adored Justin.
And even if he didn’t feel exactly the same way about her, that was fine.
Sort of.
She smiled at him as he ducked his way through the common room door, and she moved over on the sofa to give him room. He plopped down next to her, giving her an easy smile. “Hey, Rosie.”
“Hi,” she returned. “How was the Arithmancy final?”
“Brutal,”he confessed, leaning his head against the back of the sofa and closing his eyes. “I’m glad its over.”
“Ready to go home for the Hols?” she asked.
He cracked an eye and turned his head to her. “Not really, no.”
“Me, neither,” she confessed.
He frowned and then opened both eyes, looking at her in earnest. “Come home with me, then. Your aunt and uncle won’t mind.”
It was true. Her ‘parents’ certainly wouldn’t care whether she was there or not, and truth be told, they would be relieved if she weren’t there. But going to someone else’s home, especially at Christmas time, that seemed... desperate.
“I don’t know, Justin,” she hedged. “I don’t want to spoil your family’s Christmas.”
“Are you joking?” Justin asked incredulously, taking her hand and patting the back of it. “My father loves you. My brothers call you ‘that girl that’s too good for Justin,’ and you know how I feel, Rosie. Please?”
Rose was quite interested in the last; she wasn’t at all sure how Justin felt. “Well...” she began.
“It’s settled,” he announced with a grin. “You’ll go home with me on the train. To Thenford. Tomorrow.”
Rose smiled in return. It was so easy to make him happy. “Alright. I will.”
“Good,” he said, satisfied. He reached over to open his bag, and a box of sugarplums appeared when he pulled out his History of Magic book. “Will you look at that?” he said, opening the box and popping one of the sweets in his mouth, clearly pleased. “I have the best Secret Santa ever, this year.”
“Really?” asked Rose trying to tamp down her excitement.
“Yeah! Boxes and packages of all my favorite candies and Christmas sweets have been popping up everywhere. For weeks. It’s been brilliant.”
Rose grinned. “I’m glad you have a good one,” she said, shaking her head when he offered her a sweet. “I’m going up to pack my trunk. See you at breakfast in the morning?”
“I’ll wait down here and we’ll walk together,” he assured her.
She nodded and Justin watched her go, his heart tugging at the sight of her. It wasn’t the right time now, but someday it would be. He was sure of it. He’d never met anyone like Rose; she was intuitive, kind and genuine. There was no artifice to the girl at all. For instance, he knew she’d been baking like a mad woman at every given opportunity. Stealth just wasn’t in her skill set. He’d bet his inheritance that she was his Secret Santa, and had engineered it to be that way. She’d been sitting next to him for the past quarter hour with a smudge of flour on her nose, and she was continually giving gasps of surprise when he received his presents.
She was so funny.
He really did love her. He only hoped she’d feel the same one day.
Christmas Eve at Thenford was somber, but less so with Rosie there. She was quiet, forever frightened that she was going to be the one to break the Statute of Secrecy and bring all the secrets of the magical world crashing down around her. But even so, she was charming and sweet to his family, who were just glad to have a girl in the house to spoil. She blushed at the attention, but looked lovely doing it, so it really didn’t bother Justin one bit.
Justin slipped out of the parlour where the festivities were happening to hurry up to Rose’s room. He had a gift for her that he didn’t want everyone to see. He slipped the small package under her pillow with a smile, and then rushed back down in time to push his older brother out of the way so that he could sit by his best friend during the carols.
Rose closed the bedroom door behind her, leaning against it momentarily. She loved it here, even if she was afraid to open her mouth around Justin’s Muggle family. They were much like him; open, caring and loving, and Rose wished not for the first time, that she could have known Justin’s mother. She must have been extraordinary.
She dressed for bed, yawning, and intended to stay up reading for a few minutes, but her eyelids were drooping and sleep beckoned. She turned out the light (madness!) and pulled the covers over her shoulder, hugging the pillow close.
Rose’s hand hit something firm under the pillow and she grinned when she saw the box in the moonlight spilling in from the window. She tore off the paper quickly, and when she opened the box, her mouth formed an ‘o’ of surprise. It was a necklace; the silver chain glittered in the dim light, and the pendant was a clear, round stone with so many facets that Rose couldn’t even begin to count. It was beautiful and it was too, too much.
She bit her lip, wondering what to do, when a charmed note flew out of the box and Justin’s voice began speaking.
Rosie,
First of all, Merry Christmas. Secondly, don’t get out of bed and march down to my room right now and tell me that I spent too much on your Christmas present. I didn’t, don’t worry. That particular stone came from one of my mother’s rings that are mine to do with as I wish. I had it set in the pendant and bought the chain, but that’s all. She would have been thrilled for you to have it, Rosie. That kind of beauty shouldn’t be sitting in a bank closed up in a box; it should be adorning an equally beautiful girl. So please accept this present. I would be honored if you’d wear it.
I’m so glad you’re here, Rosie. It would be a miserable Christmas without you.
The note folded itself and flew back into the box. Rose smiled and sighed happily, and then she fastened the jewelry around her neck and got out of bed, moving to the mirror to see how it looked. It really was breathtaking. She put her hand over the diamond, vowing to tell him how she felt about him. One day, anyway.
2015
Rose sighed tiredly as she drew back the bedclothes in the darkened room and crept into bed. Everything was done. The presents were wrapped, the cookies left out for Santa, one of which had an artful bite taken out of it, the stockings were hung and everyone was in bed, hopefully asleep.
“You should have come to bed an hour ago.”
“Mmm,” she agreed, letting Justin cuddle her close to his side. “I couldn’t. It’s Christmas.”
“You’re fantastic at Christmas.”
“So’re you.”
“What was the best Christmas present you ever got, Rosie?” he asked quietly.
She smiled, remembering all the Christmases past and the hundreds of things he’d bought for her, and leaned up to kiss him. “You.”
“No,” he said with a chuckle. “An actual gift.”
“You aren’t an actual gift?”
“It’s debatable,” he murmured.
“I don’t think so,” she argued softly. “But as far as material things, I’d have to say my necklace.” Her hand moved to toy with the pendant and she looked up at him. I still love it.”
He nodded.
She asked, “What about you?”
“I dunno,” he replied. “I haven’t really thought about it. You and the boys, of course.”
She smiled against his chest in the darkness. “Want one of your Christmas presents, now?”
“Always,” he said eagerly.
Rose threaded the fingers of her right hand with his left and placed it over her still flat midriff. “Midsummer, you’ll get to meet your daughter.”
Justin was silent for a moment, and then sat up in bed to look down at Rose. “You’re pregnant?”
“Yes.”
“And it’s a girl?”
“Well done,” Rose said, giggling.
He laughed, a startled, halting sound, and then gave a joyful shout. “A girl!”
“Shh, Justin, you’ll wake the boys,” she whispered with a smile.
“A girl!” he whispered. “A girl.”
“You’re happy, then?” she asked winding her arms around his neck.
“More happy than any man has a right to be.”
Rose smiled and kissed him. Nearing twenty years of knowing this man and she loved him more than ever. “Happy Christmas, darling.”
“Happy Christmas, Rosie.”