“Draco! You’ll never guess! Professor Snape adopted me!” Harry cried, the moment Draco stepped out of the floo.

Draco gasped “What?!”

“Yeah!” said Harry, bouncing on his toes in delight. “He asked me this morning, then a man from the adoption agency asked us both loads of questions and we signed the certificate, it felt all tingly, and Professor Snape gave me a hug and now he’s my father!” Harry stopped, more because he was out of breath than out of news.

Madam Malfoy stepped out, holding aloft a covered tray of ice-cream sundaes. “Hello, Harry, I assume the meeting with Mr Black went well?”

“You knew, Mummy?” Draco gasped. The little boy grinned up at his smirking mother “I say, that was very Slytherin of you.”

“Professor Snape said, outside lessons, I can call him ‘Dad’ or ‘Father’ if I like but, if I find that difficult, I can still call him ‘Sir’.” Harry gabbled, high on adrenaline.

“Come on Cissa! This man needs a Fortescue Calvados sorbet” cried Lucius, walking in with an arm around Severus’ shoulders. Flossie waddled between them, her head pressed reassuringly against the side of Severus’s hip.

At that moment, a small, brown owl fluttered down the hall-way and landed on Harry’s shoulder, holding out it’s tiny leg and offering a thin scroll of photo-parchment.

Releasing the tiny owl of it’s burden, Harry unrolled the scroll; his eyes widened, sparkling like emeralds behind his glasses, and a rosy flush bloomed on his cheeks.

“Guess what!” Harry cried, holding out a moving photograph of three tiny owlets “I’ve become a Daddy and a Son in the same day!”

OoOoO

“Psst! Harry.”

“Hmm?”

“Reach your feet out.”

“Wha?”

“Stretch out your legs so your feet hit the bed end.”

“kay Draco... Huh! Wazzat?!”

“Presents! It’s Yule morning!” Draco grinned, bouncing out of bed.

oOoOo

“Have you boys had a successful morning?” Lucius asked, buttering a spicy fruit bun: another Malfoy Yule tradition.

“Oh yes, Daddy!” Draco chirped “I got the stocking fillers from you and Mummy, of course, and a brilliant book on poisonous snakes, Blaise, a box of Yule Edition chocolate frogs, Vin, a large tub of Roaring Dragon sweets, Greg, a book on Egyptian Alchemy, Theo, a bottle of 4711 cologne, Pansy, a box of biscuits, Daphne, a serpent-embroidered wand holster, Tracy, a tube of Bertie Bots Beans, Milly, a cool book on Quidditch, Neville, oh and Hermione found me this cool pendant that looks like Isis” Draco said, holding out a little cloisonné snake.

“Hermione… isn’t she the muggleborn” said Lucius. Severus sent him a look.

“Yeah, can we invite her to our Yule party? It’d be a shame if she’s the only Slyth in our year left out.”

“Why of course, Draco” smiled Narcissa, who was sporting a rather magnificent sapphire necklace.

“The Hogwarts tutors were pretty boring though” Draco continued blithely “They just got me books that they’d written: I think it’s a shame when presents are useful. Hagrid came up trumps though: look” Draco tugged a little whittled snake, obviously fashioned into a type of flute, from his pocket “If you blow into its tail, it hisses like Isis!”

“Did you have any nice surprises, Harry?” Severus asked.

Harry smiled “Yeah! I had loads of presents, more than… I just mean that I was surprised to get so many!”

“Harry, you didn’t get from anyone you didn’t give to” Draco said, sprinkling curls of dark chocolate over his buttered bread.

Harry blushed “Yeah, I guess. Well, I got the sweets and wizard models and exploding-snap cards and a soft-toy owl in my stocking from you, which was really a wonderful suprise because..." Harry hesitated: he didn't really want to say that it was his first stocking for years. 

"You're very welcome, Harry, I'm glad you liked them." Severus said kindly.

Harry blushed and nodded "I also got a snake whistle, from Hagrid, and Vin got me a box of paints, ‘cos I once said I enjoyed painting and Theo got me a book on Arabic Alchemy…”

Uh Oh thought Severus

“And Blaise, he gave me a big pot of new-formula Sleekezy, which I really wanted, and Greg got me a box of ginger chocoballs, Tracy gave me homemade biscuits too, Pansy gave me some violet creams, because I said I like them last time, Milly got me Bertie Bots Beans, Daphne, a wand-holster, Nev, a book on raising baby owls, Hermione bought me a snake pendant too and the teachers gave me books, like they did Draco. They look really fascinating.”

Severus smiled “I hope you’ll like your gift from me, too, Harry.”

“I’m sure I will Sir… um…” Harry blushed: why was one little word so difficult.

Severus smiled and patted the young boy’s hand sympathetically.

“Daddy! Are you really going to eat another bun! I want to unwrap presents!” Draco whined.

“Yes, Draco. However, Harry hasn’t finished eating yet, nor have your mother and Severus.” Lucius said patiently.

Draco sighed and whispered to Harry “Adults simply have no sense of priorities!”

oOoOo

“Snap!” Draco cried, unwrapping the snitch Harry had bought him.

Harry giggled, holding his own, fluttering snitch. “Open it and see what’s inside!”

“You mean… you put something in here too?”

“Wha…you did as well?!”

“Oh Odin!”

Harry and Draco held aloft two tiny broomtags.

“Harry Potter” the little blue and yellow ball python rasped metallically.

“Draco Malfoy” the tangerine and black striped snake croaked.

Lucius laughed “I can see you two are of one mind.”

“I didn’t see this in the shop” marvelled Harry, looking at the tiny snake.

“I had it altered for you; there was one that was almost right but for the colours” Draco explained “Thanks Harry!”

“Thanks Draco.” Harry beamed.

“And, now, boys, you need something to put them on” Lucius said, pulling two promisingly long parcels from behind the sofa.

A quick flurry of paper later; “Yes! Nimbus 2000! Thanks Dad! Thanks Mum!” Draco cried, jumping on the broom and soaring around the room.

"Thankfully, I took the precaution of casting geminio charms on the porcelain. The originals are in the attic" smirked Lucius, as a Ming vase wobbled precariously in Draco's wake.

“Th…thank you so much Mr and Mrs Malfoy!” Harry gasped, amazed at their kindness.

“You are very welcome, Harry!” smiled Mrs Malfoy.

“And here are my gifts to you, Harry and Draco” Severus held out two boxes. Draco skidded to a stop and quickly unwrapped the present.

“Oh wow, two way mirrors!” Draco grinned "Brilliant"

“They are, in fact, six way mirrors” Severus smiled “a rare set I discovered in an auction last year. If you share them out amongst your friends, you can stay in contact over the holidays.”

“These are fantastic, Sir” Harry beamed back at Draco's smiling reflection.

“You are welcome, Harry” smiled Severus, adjusting the new watch on his wrist.

oOoOo

“Wow! This looks fantastic Mrs Malfoy!” Harry said, admiring the lunch-table on a crisp, white tablecloth, crystal sparkled and silver shone. However, it was the glossy goose, tureens of nutmeggy sprouts, fragrant, crisp potatoes and sweet parsnips, acompanied by sauceboats of scarlet cranberry sauce, creamy breadsauce and shimmering brown gravy, which drew Harry’s and Draco’s eyes.

“Harry?” Severus held out an ornate, silver and green cracker. When Harry tugged on it, it went off like a cannon and a pirate’s hat sprang out, along with some chocoballs and a little silver chess set.

“Wow!” Harry beamed: magic never failed to fill him with delight and awe.

Severus smiled, gently plonking the Pirate hat on Harry’s head. “Happy Yule, Harry.”

"Happy Yule Ss... Dad!"