The days turned into weeks and finally, Christmas was right around the corner. Because of this, all five of the boys had behaved incredibly well. They had no desire to be on the naughty list this close to Christmas. For this, both Harry and Ginny were glad, as with the holidays close, both of their jobs were more taxing than usual. They were staying at Hogwarts one more day before going to their home in Godric’s Hollow.

With the end of the school term, and Christmas four days away, Ginny and Harry, with the help of Neville, Luna, and Andromeda, were taking the boys shopping. They had given each of them twenty galleons, with orders to only spend money on their respective brothers, not themselves.

Severus, ever the planner, had taken a piece of parchment and written down exactly what he was getting each of his brothers in his childish script, as well as what he was getting his Mummy and Daddy. 

Sirius knew exactly what he was going to do when he got to Diagon Alley. Wing it.

Teddy and Jamie knew what they were getting one another and Sirius, but had no idea what to get Severus or Alby. They were going to depend on whichever adult was with them.

Alby, well, as he was only two, nearly three, he really didn’t get buying presents for someone else, but knew that he was getting his Sevy something good. Because he was his.

“Okay, boys! How do you want to split up?” Harry asked them.

The boys looked at each other. They were all dressed identically, in case one of them went missing, so that their parents could show people what they were wearing. The boys had not been terribly excited about it, but with it being the holidays and overly crowded, Ginny had insisted.

So, they each had on blue jeans and a long sleeved red shirt with a moving model of the solar system. Sirius thought the solar system was stupid. Teddy hadn’t wanted to wear long sleeves. Severus had been mad that it was red. Jamie said it was ‘itchy’. Alby was actually the only one who didn’t mind the shirt.

When Ginny had told them that Santa was going to put them on the naughty list if they didn’t stop whining, however, they had immediately stopped.

“I wanna go with Gran’ma.” Teddy said. Ginny nodded, and smiled at him. She knew that Teddy didn’t get to spend enough alone time with his grandmother, and it would be good for the both of them.

“I go wif Sevy!” Alby said.

“Love, you can’t buy Sevy a present if he is with you.” Harry said. This caused Alby to pout.

“Daddy, I wanna go with Auntie Luna.” Jamie said. Harry nodded and Luna took Jamie’s hand.

“Sirius? Severus?” Harry asked. Severus stared at Sirius out of the corner of his eye.

“I wanna go with you, Daddy.” Severus whispered.

“Yea, I wanna go with Mum.” Sirius said. He knew that his Mum would help him pick out stuff for his brothers.

“I go wif Unca Nev.” Alby said, glaring at Severus.

Severus looked a bit hurt.

“Alby, you and Sev will get to eat lunch together. Now, be nice.” Ginny scolded him.

Soon, everyone was in Diagon Alley. It was the first time that Severus had ever Floo’d with anyone but Ginny, and he still did not appreciate it. It made his stomach hurt and always made him feel like he was going to vomit even if he didn’t. His Mummy had given him a stomach soother, and still it only helped a little.

Harry patted his back for a few minutes and waited until his stomach was settled and then sat him on his own two feet.

“Okay, Sev, where do you want to go look first?” Harry asked.

Severus stood for a moment and thought about it.

“Bookstore.”

The two walked down Diagon Alley towards Flourish and Blotts. Severus slipped his hand into his Daddy’s. Everyone was so much taller than him!

“Daddy…” Severus said. Harry stopped and bent down.

“Yes, son?”

“Carry me…please.” Severus said, putting his arms up.

“Are you sure about that?”

“Yes. I can’t see. There are too many people everywhere. I don’t want you to get lost.” Severus told Harry. Harry smiled. Get lost indeed.

He picked the child up and placed him on his hip and then they continued down the alley towards the bookstore.

“What are you going to get in the bookstore?” Harry asked.

“A book.”

“What kind of book?”

“For Teddy. He’s like Remus, kinda. Remus liked to read.” Severus said. Harry nodded at that assessment. Teddy favored his late father greatly.

“They have a book about metamorphoses’ for our age. I saw it in Mummy’s magazine.” Severus told his father, who nodded.

Going into that particular store was a nightmare. Harry feared if every store they went into was like that, then they would never meet everyone in time for lunch.

By the time they made their way through the crowded bookstore to the children’s section, found the book, and then made their way to the register, they had already let an hour pass.

Quickly paying for Your Ability to Shift and You, Harry and Severus found themselves outside again.

“Where to this time, buddy?” Harry asked. Severus grinned widely at being called ‘buddy’.

“Quidditch. I heard Sirius telling Uncle Neville that they have practice ground quidditch balls there. I wanna get him a bludger and bat. That way, he can hit it for practice and when he gets mad. Sirius said that you can put his age and all into it so that it wouldn’t hurt anyone.”

“That sounds like an excellent idea.” Harry said. While he and Ginny had not had any troubles with Sirius lately, there were times when the boy had anger issues, usually when he was remembering something from his adult memories. The difference between him and Severus, however, was that Sirius was a physical child, and had yet to learn to reign in his temper when it counted most, though he was getting better. A physical outlet, such as a practice bludger and bat, would do him a world of good.

After another hour, (the quidditch store was even worse than the bookstore as little boys seemed to always find their way to the store during the holidays with eyes wide with wonder and excitement at the Christmas Quidditch displays in the windows) Harry and Severus found themselves outside again.

Severus seemed to be becoming irritated with the crowds, and would not let Harry put him down at all by then. Harry himself was wondering why they had waited so long to come Christmas shopping and vowed to go much earlier the next year. (though that never would happen, as much as Harry swore, for it years to come it seemed that someone always needed to go to Diagon Alley a day or so before Christmas…it was frustrating, to say the least.)

“Where to now, Son?”

Severus sighed.

“Daddy, I wanna get Jamie something from the joke shop, and Alby wants a Hogwarts Express. And, Mummy needs something pretty, but I don’t know what. I am tired of shopping Daddy. It’s frustrating.” Severus said, laying his head on his Daddy’s shoulder.

Harry laughed.

“I agree with you there, Sev. Now, you know that you don’t have to get Mummy anything, right?” Harry questioned him.

“I know, I wanna. I love Mummy.” Sev stated simply, as if the reason should have been obvious.

Harry laughed at patted Sev on the pack.

“I know you do, son, I know you do. How about we quickly go to the toy store and get Alby’s train. Then we will go next door to the joke shop and get Jamie…hmmm…how about of the Canary Creams, Mammal Milk Chocolates, and Serpent Suckers. Jamie will think that it is neat if he can turn into some animals. And then for Mummy…”

“I wanna go to the Apot-a-cary.” Severus told him simply.

Harry looked at him, then nodded.

“I need to go to the quill store too. Then I am done. Then can we go home?” Severus asked.

Again, Harry laughed.

“After we meet with everyone and have lunch. I am sure that you and your brothers will be in desperate need of a nap.”

“Nah.” Sev responded.

Harry simply smirked.

~sdrawkcab~

Two and a half hours later, one train, various animal turning sweets, one customizable cauldron that Harry didn’t really understand the point of but humored his son nonetheless, and some mysterious gift from the quill shop that had been hidden from Harry, and they were finally at the Leaky Cauldron waiting on everyone else.

As soon as they had sat down, Severus crawled out of the chair that his father had placed him in and then climbed into Harry’s lap, one leg on each side of Harry with his stomach against his, and laid his head on his Daddy’s chest.

By the time that Ginny arrived with Sirius, who looked slightly perturbed, Severus was sleeping.

Ginny smiled at her husband and son, and walked over to them. Bending down to kiss, first Harry then a sleeping Severus, Ginny pulled a chair close to his and sat Sirius on it.

“How did it go, Love?” Harry asked.

“It went. We will discuss it more at home. How about with Sev?” Ginny asked, watching Sirius closely.

The child was pouting now. Harry also noticed this, but took his wife’s word for it and would wait until they got home to discuss whatever it was.

“It went well, though I didn’t think he was going to make it past the second store. He knew exactly what he wanted, and if it hadn’t been for the lines, we would have been finished in less than half an hour.” Harry told her.

“We would not have been.” Ginny said, then left it at that.

Soon, Luna and Neville with Alby and Jamie, came into the small pub. Alby, like Severus, was fast asleep and it looked as if Jamie, who was being carried by Luna, was nearly there as well.

Andromeda came in right behind them with a grinning Teddy, which could only mean that he had accomplished everything that he had set out for. Andromeda smiled lovingly at him as his hair changed from red to blue to green to yellow to orange and back again in his excitement.

“Okay, boys, why don’t we go on home, since Sev and Alby are sleeping. Then we can eat lunch and everyone can lay down.” Ginny told them.

Everyone nodded.

“Ginny, do you mind if I take Teddy with me to my house for a while? We have a few Christmas things to finish.” Andromeda asked.

Ginny looked at her.

“Aunt Dromeda, you know you can.” She said with a smile.

A few chaotic moments later and everyone was ready to leave and going through the Floo.

Ginny, with Sirius, was the last one through and looked at the little sullen boy.

“Go to the study and place your nose in the corner, young man.” Ginny told him. He didn’t even look up, but instead did what he was told.

Harry looked at Ginny and she lightly shook her head. They would talk in a moment.

“Let’s lay Severus and Alby down in their rooms. Jamie are you hungry?” Ginny asked.

“Ginny, Luna and I are dining in the Great Hall. We will take Jamie with us so that he can eat and then bring him back in an hour or so.” Neville said, already picking the boy back up after handing Ginny Alby.

“Thanks, Nev. I am sure that Jamie would enjoy that.” Harry said. Jamie was nodding his head up and down quickly, making his parents laugh. It wasn’t often that he got both Aunty Luna and Uncle Neville by himself.

After watching the trip leave the quarters, Harry and Ginny looked at one another, each with a sleeping child in their arms.

They placed Alby and Severus in their rooms and then went directly into the study.

Sirius was standing in the corner, which was a good thing, as he knew his Mum wasn’t all that happy with him at the present moment.

“Sirius, come here.” Ginny said as she sat down on the couch.

Sirius turned from the corner slowly and walked over to Ginny and Harry, stopping just out of reach.

“Go on, Sirius. Tell Daddy exactly what you did.” Ginny said then tightened her lips and raised her eyebrows.

Oh yea, Sirius thought, he had definitely gone too far this time.