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"Do you think we got enough garland?"
Raising his brows at Theo's question, Harry pointedly counted out the ten bundles of garland currently piled on their coffee table, accompanied by the dozen boxes of colorful lights (and even more packages of miscellaneous ornaments).
Theo frowned. "Is that a yes or a no?"
"Yes, love, we have plenty," Harry said, his lips quirking upwards in a fond smile. "Unless you were planning to wear it? Knit it into a sweater maybe?"
"Listen here, Potter," Theo huffed, turning to grip his boyfriend's collar. The soft wool scrunched in his hands, wrinkling as he used it as a tether to drag them together. He nudged his nose into Harry's, letting their foreheads meet gently and sighing. "I'm just nervous. You know I've not exactly hosted things like this, and definitely not for people I actually like being around."
Harry smiled, reaching up to cup his face. "It'll all be fine. Besides, you know I'll take any excuse to swing at Malfoy if he so much as flinches at your decorations."
Laughing, Theo shook his head. "You think I'm worried about Draco? As if! It's Pansy that you have to look out for. She's vicious about the aesthetics. I misplaced a candle at one of her parties in the common room and she nearly gutted me."
He paused, rolling his eyes as he smoothed Harry's sweater back down. "And no punching the guests. Even though he might need to be knocked down a peg or two, pretentious as he can be."
"Whatever you say, love," Harry murmurs, pressing a light kiss to the corner of his mouth. "Now, can we get these decorations up before I have to start cooking?"
Theo looked at the mountain of bundles, bags and boxes, breaking into a little grin. "Maybe if we use a certain magical assistant…"
Harry groaned, covering his face with his hands. "You know I hate asking him to do anything. He's not even bound to the family anymore!"
"So what? He lurks around here anyways, waiting for you to give him orders. And you certainly don't complain when things are magically cleaned overnight. Don't pretend you don't notice it, we both know you've done plenty of cleaning in your lifetime," he teased, nudging his elbow into Harry's side. "Besides, you can just ask him to listen to me for the day. I'm more than happy to order him about, even if Hermione scolds me for it."
"Fine, fine! Just… don't go overboard, or you're taking it down after the party all by yourself, without magic." He frowned, giving Theo one last withering look. "Kreacher?"
The word was barely out of his mouth when the crack of apparition sounded and Kreacher was standing in front of them, a maliciously eager grin on his wrinkled face. If he wasn't clearly trying to be friendly, Harry would call it downright terrifying (and probably still would).
"Yes, Master?"
Harry grimaced, taking a deep breath. "What did we discuss about using that title, Kreacher?"
Kreacher grumbled under his breath, something indecipherable – but likely about the decline of proper manners and respect for a great wizarding family – before trying again. "Yes, Harry Potter?"
Frowning again at the use of his full name, Harry pushed past the awkward greeting for now. "Kreacher, Theo would like some help decorating Grimmauld Place for the holiday party. Will you help him?"
Staring at him with a deadpan look, as if the request was an insult, Kreacher snapped his fingers and the hum of magic was immediately felt. Candles lit themselves and the garland unfurled and strung itself around the room, other bundles floating out of the room to coat the rest of their home in festive cheer. Theo grinned widely, squeezing Harry's shoulder before waving his wand over the pile of ornaments and magically arranging them on the tree.
Harry sighed, leaning against the hallway door frame to watch the flat turn from a lifeless grey to sparkling reds and greens. Theo had volunteered them both for hosting Christmas this year, a task that he hadn't exactly been keen on, but would help with anyways for Theo's sake. While most of his Christmases hadn't exactly been jolly, Harry knew that Theo's had only gotten worse during their school years.
Last year had been the second holiday party after the war, and the first year Harry had celebrated anywhere other than the Burrow or Hogwarts. It cemented the party as a tradition, one of the few times a year that all of his friends, would be in the same room, including quite a few people he had never expected to count among them. Pansy had been all too eager to take over as soon as Neville had introduced her to the group, and no one had been willing to argue with her. They did, however, agree that the responsibility should at least have some kind of rotation, and that was how Harry found himself dipping into his overfull vault for a veritable hoard of holiday decorations. He had never expected Theo to be so passionate about decorations, but he had no plans to hold him back from something he clearly was enjoying.
He watched fondly as Theo bickered with Kreacher over the placement of a wreath, unsurprised when the house elf snapped his fingers, hanging the wreath across the room from where Theo gestured with a withering glare. He couldn't help the snicker that escaped him as Theo summoned the wreath back, quickly trying to cover it by clearing his throat. The look that Theo shot him clearly meant he'd failed.
"What are you laughing at? Your house elf is being deliberately unpleasant, you should be doing something about it, not laughing," he pouted, turning away from the aforementioned house elf that was glaring daggers into his back.
"First of all, he's not my house elf anymore. Secondly, you're the one who asked me to summon him. And third, when is he not deliberately unpleasant? You've met him, this shouldn't be a surprise."
Theo only pouted further at that, crossing his arms in front of his chest.
Harry rolled his eyes. "Come here, ignore him," he said, holding his hands out to beckon Theo closer. It seemed like he wasn't going to for a moment, but finally, Theo dragged himself across the room and dropped his hands forcibly into Harry's with a huff.
Laughing, Harry drew him closer and wrapped an arm loosely around his waist. "Let Kreacher handle the decorating. You can change anything you want after he leaves," he whispered, gently tilting Theo's face to meet his gaze.
He waved his free hand behind his back, wordlessly summoning a sprig of mistletoe that hung itself over the door frame. "Besides, I think we can come up with a few other tasks to keep us busy, now that decorating is handled." His eyes darted upward, a smug smirk forming on his lips.
Theo glanced up, staring at the clearly deliberate placement of decoration, one he was sure hadn't been there a moment ago. He laughed, raising his brows at the obvious implication. "Oh, really? Like what?"
His challenge was immediately met with lips pressed against his own, Harry's hands curling around his hips to pull him in and deepen the kiss. Theo responded in kind, an underlying tinge of desire creeping into the embrace as Harry dragged them both backwards, towards the stairs and away from Kreacher's decorating efforts.
"Harry James Potter, are you trying to seduce me when we have a Christmas party to prepare for?" He pulled back just enough to murmur the words into the kiss, shivering as Harry's hands gripped his waist and kept him in place.
"Is it working?"
"Shut up and kiss me again."