The Corpse That Lived.

Chapter 20

A/N Excited to share this!!! Votes and Comments are appreciated

Dahlia woke before the sun, heart racing with the thrill of Christmas morning. The house was silent, the air crisp, and excitement fizzed through her so fiercely she couldn't stay still. She bounded down the hall and into Sirius's room without knocking. "Sirius! Wake up!" she whispered loudly, shaking his shoulder. He groaned and turned over, burying his face in the pillow. 

"Come on! James and Lily promised a real Christmas breakfast, pancakes, everything!" she said, giving his arm a firm shake. Nothing. She tried again. And again. After the third attempt, she resorted to tugging the blanket off him. 

"You're the worst," she muttered, laughing under her breath. That did it. Sirius's hand shot out, catching her wrist, and before she could react, he pulled her down onto the bed with him. Dahlia yelped, dissolving into laughter as he half-pinned her there, both of them tangled in the blanket.

 "Stop wriggling," he murmured, voice low and rough with sleep. "It's too early. James and Lily aren't even awake yet." 

"Maybe because you're still asleep," she said, trying to sound indignant, but the words came out softer than she meant them to. Sirius cracked one eye open, a lazy grin tugging at his mouth. "You really can't sit still for a second, can you?" 

"Not on Christmas morning," she whispered. He chuckled, his thumb brushing absentmindedly against her wrist before letting go. For a moment, neither of them moved. The morning light spilled across the bed, turning his hair silver at the edges, and she found herself smiling. She had never been this happy in her life. She hoped she could live all her days like this. 

"Fine," she said finally, settling back with a sigh. "One more minute."

It took a while to get Sirius out of bed but when he did they flooed to the potter manor and they could smell the tantalising scent of bacon and sticky buns wafting down the hallway, accompanied by the sound of James and Hyacinth laughing merrily. She had dreamed of such things, but even in her wildest fantasies, it was never this wonderful. As much as she wanted to go join her family, it was instinct to commit these moments to memory, storing them up in case this joy was later taken from her. Hyacinth broke out into more peals of laughter, followed soon by James's deep, reassuring chuckle. Dahlia didn't understand, didn't know how she'd gone from having no home and no family to being a part of something this wonderful. It wasn't perfect, and sometimes it felt a bit awkward and forced, but she was gradually growing more comfortable in this house with the people she'd come to trust so quickly.

Dahlia enjoyed the time Lily spent with her, helping her learn new magic around the house, and she loved James's exuberance for life and the fun they had together, and she even loved the near-constant presence of her twin sister, always there with a smile and a laugh and that look of true affection that amazed her every time. Her family loved her, and it seemed that love knew no limits.

Lily immediately smiled at Sirius and Dahlia's arrival to and went to kiss her forehead in her customary morning greeting. "Happy Christmas, Love. Your dad and Hyacinth are making an absolute mess of my kitchen, but they claim they'll have something edible soon. Hungry?" She was, actually, and the full fry-up smelled amazing. "Famished," she admitted. "Let's feed you then! Just stay in your pyjamas. We'll all open presents and sit around all day in them." "Really?" She asked in surprise. "Christmas is made for being lazy," Sirius laughed. "And presents, of course."

Sirius immediately went to the Kitchen. It seemed like food was the only thing that beat his sleepiness. Last night, the Christmas tree had been one of the most beautiful things she'd ever seen. Lily had showed her how to charm ordinary objects into glistening ornaments, and James made the most spectacular lights. Hyacinth insisted on showing her how to string cranberries, an old tradition of Lily's that she passed on. The end result was a glittering tea with sparkling lights, and she thought she could have stared at it all night.