Chapter Text
Harry hid his grin in his shoulder as he reached above his head, hands grabbing for the crooked tinsel that was tacked to the wall above the entrance to their living room. “Because, love; it’s tradition.” Harry stated, smiling at the scowl he heard from the bottom of the ladder he was perched on. Harry wobbled for a heart-stopping moment, hands flailing until they finally clasped the shelf to his right, which had been adorned with leaves of holly and ivy to accomodate for the festive season. Harry glanced down at his boyfriend who was standing on the ground bellow him, examining one the the lengths of tinsel he’d been handing Harry over the past ten minutes. He eyed the shimmering decoration with so much suspicion and resentment it looked as if the blond was expecting it to suddenly become self-aware, spring to life, curl it’s way around his neck and strangle him to death. “Draco.” Harry narrowed his eyes as his boyfriend jumped. “You’re supposed to be holding the ladder. It’ll be your fault if I fall off this damn thing and break my neck right before Christmas. I’d love to hear you explain that to the healers.” Draco scoffed, but grudgingly placed his hands on either side of the ladder.
“I am a fucking healer, Harry. And if we had just done this by magic like I’d said, I wouldn’t have to even hold the ladder! Because there wouldn’t be any goddamned ladder! Nor would there be any chance of you having to go to St Mungos!” Draco muttered angrily, eyeing Harry as he begun tugging at the golden tinsel above his head once more, attempting to stop it from slipping of the nail again.
“There’s always a chance of me getting into St Mungos when you’re around, Draco.” He could feel the Slytherin’s glare on the back of his neck as he spoke. “And I want to do it without magic. It makes it more special.” He felt a defeated breath on the back of his leg, and adjusted the tinsel for the final time before leaning back carefully to examine his work. Satisfied, he began making his way down the ladder, sock-covered feet hitting the carpet as he turned to see Draco. He pulled the pouting blond into an embrace, admiring the warmth of it and the feeling of their torsos pushed together, separated by nothing more than Harry’s Weasley Sweater from the year prior, and Draco’s expensive woollen jumper.
He pulled away, meeting the blond’s eyes. “I-I want to do it this way because I never got a chance to do it as a kid. I wanted it to be something special that we could do together, you know?” Harry bowed his head, resting it against Draco’s shoulder and spoke into his ear. “I wanted our first Christmas we spend together to be nice.” He felt the blond deflate slightly beneath his before he was pushed back by elegant fingers. Harry met Draco’s intense stare.
“Harry, if you want to decorate this house the same crazy, unproductive way muggles do, I have absolutely no problem with that. I’ll help every step of the way.” Harry felt his heart swell as he pulled the blond into a gentle kiss, arms winding their way around a slim waist. “Just don’t expect me to go anywhere near that fucking muggle Santa thing you bought. It gives me the fucking creeps.” Harry chuckled into his lover’s warm lips, grin sliding across his face.
“’Course not love.” Satisfied, Draco placed a kiss to Harry’s forehead and pulled away, wandering into the kitchen.
“Wine, Harry?” Harry grinned, answering yes please as he turned back to the gradually emptying box of adornments he had bought on his unplanned Christmas haul three days ago. Two innocent eyes blinked up at him between a box of baubles and a pack of rainbow fairy lights.
“Draco?” He heard Draco hum a reply from the kitchen, glasses clinking. “You haven’t happened to have heard of Elf On The Shelf, have you?”