A night of love

Christmas

Harry was not accustomed to take the winter break. He had always stayed at school during that break, except during that last winter, when Mr. Weasley had been attacked. Now he was suddenly expected to spend time with both his in-law families. Once again, he felt quite apprehensive. Choosing where to go first could seem like he preferred one over the other, and although he said he loved Hermione much more, he didn’t want Padma to feel less loved.

His wives handled it without his intervention, eventually.

“I know Christmas has a special meaning for you,” Padma said. “I think we could spend Christmas with your parents and then stay with mine for the new year.”

“I’ll ask my parents to invite yours for Christmas, along with Parvati. Their house is large enough, and we may use a bit of magic to adjust it as needed.”

“In that case, I’ll ask my parents to invite yours for the rest of the vacation. They could learn a lot from living a few days in a magical house.”

They conveniently “forgot” to tell Harry about it. He was still quite worried on the train ride and even when going out of the platform, finding both pairs of parents waiting there. Hermione sensed his panic rising, so she grabbed his hand and squeezed it, making him feel that it would end up alright.

Padma ran directly to her parents, who hugged her tightly, and then her sister, who joined them. Hermione grabbed Harry’s hand and walked to her parents, who stood only a few paces apart from the Patil family. They hugged both Hermione and Harry warmly, showing their welcome and their love without words. Once they released him, Padma called Harry to her side, and he got another set of hugs from her parents. This didn’t help remove his confusion, though.

“Let’s go home,” Paul Granger said, as Hermione took Harry’s hand in hers, while Padma was still holding his other. His panic started rising again. How could he possibly go to two places at once?

It was short lived, though. “We’ll take Parvati in the car with us. You go with your husband,” Mrs. Patil told Padma.

They left the train station in a group, yet they couldn’t stay that way when they reached the parking lot, as each family parked at a different place. “Do you still have that map I gave you?” Mr. Granger asked Mr. Patil.

“Yes. I can find my way easily until we leave the motorway. I’d like you to wait for me before the next junction after the exit, just to make sure.”

“Are your parents coming along?” Harry asked Padma.

“Sure! They thought Christmas was more important for Muggles. They’ll stay at the Granger’s for Christmas, and the Grangers will come to my parents’ home for the new year.”

Harry sighed in relief, yet he noticed the mischief shining in the eyes of both his wives. He’d have to prank them sometime after the holidays, he decided.

As agreed, Paul waited at the side of the road for the Patil family, and then led them through the smaller streets until they reached home. While Harry and Padma had already visited there, Parvati was enchanted to visit a muggle house for the first time, making her parents smile. Hermione gave the visitors a quick tour of the house, making sure they all knew how to use the lighting switches and how to operate the bathroom. She promised the twins a thorough tour later, to include the television, stereo and the computer systems, and some more.

There was no question about sleeping arrangements. Hermione’s room would be shared with Harry and Padma, while Parvati would get her own room and so would her parents. Luckily, the Granger house was big enough to accommodate them all, despite not being very large.

Harry was a bit apprehensive at spending the vacation close to Parvati. Although she was quite smart and just as beautiful as Padma, he knew her mostly as the giggly gossip queen and the devout divination student – none of which made him appreciate her. Hermione was also unsure about this. Having spent five years in the same bedroom made her aware of some other aspects of the giggly girl, but she was unsure about the way she would act in this new situation.

Parvati surprised them both, as Padma had tried unsuccessfully to assure her mates. Without Lavender around, she was just as respectable as the other girls, although she did tend to laugh or giggle more than Harry’s wives. This tendency became more evident when she was excited, as she became when they all went shopping for the holidays.

Harry found it interesting to watch for the differences between the twins. Like Padma, when she first visited the muggle shops, Parvati was very excited and a bit overwhelmed, yet it took her longer to calm down. She was also not effective as a buyer, being easily distracted by the multitude of offers. Both other girls helped her stay focused on what they wanted to buy.

When shopping for clothes, Hermione was reluctant to share changing room with the twins. “I usually let Harry look through my eyes while I change, or he’ll get bored of waiting. I’m not sure...”

“I don’t mind,” Parvati jumped in. “He’s already seen Padma, hasn’t he? And we’re practically the same. Besides, I’ve never minded showing myself to any boy. It’s a pity Harry didn’t show any interest. He was only interested in you, really.”

“He showed some interest in Cho,” Hermione noted.

“Well, he did, but he was only fourteen and probably didn’t even know what he felt, and Cho was already a beauty while you had a bit to grow yet.”

“What does that mean?” Hermione wasn’t sure if she had been insulted or not.

“You are certainly a beauty now, but at that time you were still changing and were not as attractive as Cho was. Now she probably wishes to be as attractive as you.”

Hermione smiled. She wasn’t sure if Parvati’s explanation was correct, but she let it be. Harry was certainly attracted to her now, and that was what mattered the most.

Harry didn’t complain of seeing Parvati almost naked through Hermione’s eyes, although he had seen Padma before. They were so similar that only their different hairdo allowed him to easily discern them when not clothed, along with the different feelings Hermione had for each, which he could sense as well. Still, no boy his age would object to seeing a sexy girl in the buff, no matter how similar she looks to another.

Hermione teased him later. “Was it really so important for you to see Parvati naked?”

“I’m a horny teenager, you know. Why should I object?”

“But she’s identical to Padma. It’s almost like seeing Padma twice.”

“Almost – but not quite. There are some minor differences, and each evokes different sentiments in me.”

“And what sentiments do they evoke, dear?”

There was no right answer to that, Harry was sure, but he tried to answer as honestly as he could. “When I see you I feel love and devotion above all, and then some lust as well. With Padma I also feel love and lust, although less than I feel with you. Parvati only makes me vaguely interested and a bit lusty, and I direct the lust to you and to Padma, so it’s not harming our relations at all.”

Hermione smiled, showing that she didn’t really worry about this. “Very good answer. I’ll be sure to let you show your lust to me when we return home.”

‘As if you don’t do it every night,’ he thought.

‘I’ve heard that,’ Hermione’s voice sounded in his mind.

‘I knew you would,’ he smirked internally.

Harry had to block his mind later, so that he could buy a nice present for Hermione and another for Padma. Hermione and Padma joined him for buying presents for the Granger couple, the Patil couple and Parvati. They also bought a present for Ginny, not yet sure how to make it reach her before Christmas.

They later met the adults for lunch at a fast food outlet. It was the first time both Padma and Parvati had such experience. It was actually Harry’s first time as well, as his relatives hadn’t let him eat out even when they stopped for hamburger or pizza for Dudley. He didn’t care much for the food, yet he enjoyed looking at Padma, as she got excited by the new experience, seeming almost as lightheaded as her sister for a few moments.

With their shopping done, they returned to the Granger home and started decorating for Christmas. It was also a new experience for Harry. The Dursley had never given much thought to decorating. All they had ever done was buying a Christmas tree and putting the presents under it – giving Harry only hurtful or shaming “presents”. Now he was decorating as an important part of the enlarged family, surrounded by two loving wives and two pairs of parents-in-law who had already accepted him as family, and a sister-in-law who was very friendly, almost too much so.

Hermione enjoyed seeing Harry so content, feeling accepted and loved. It made her content as well and made her love him even more. Padma’s eyes also seemed to sparkle as she watched her husband so happy.

It turned even happier when they started opening the presents at Christmas morning. Harry didn’t mind what exactly he got – he now had enough money to buy anything he liked – yet he loved the attention and the thought put in each and every present, either given or received, and there were many wonderful presents, making everybody enjoy the holiday wholeheartedly.

It was the best Christmas for Hermione as well, enjoying it with Harry and enjoying his joy through their link, which seemed to get stronger each day. There were times she thought she even caught glimpses of his inner thoughts, not only of his feelings, and it made her feel even closer to him.

For Padma, celebrating the holidays with her family was no news, yet this time was different, as being married to Harry made everything more special. Of course, being able to watch TV was an innovation neither she nor her sister could withstand. They both watched all they could for most of the day, to the amusement of Harry and Hermione.

Harry felt almost sad when the Patil couple left the next day. They were now his family and he liked them. Parvati stayed, to enjoy the muggle world some more.

“So, what would you like to do today?” Hermione asked them all.

“I’d like some more shopping and more TV,” Parvati said.

“Won’t you like a movie better?” Hermione asked.

“What’s a movie?”

“It’s like seeing a TV program, but on a much larger screen. We may also choose to go to the theater and see a live performance, with real actors or singers appearing on stage.”

“Can we try both?”

Hermione smiled at Parvati’s eagerness, sensing that Harry wouldn’t object to either program as well. “Both may be too much for one day. We may see a movie today and a live performance tomorrow. We need to rest a bit as well, you know.”

Parvati smiled teasingly. “You mean – you need to go to bed. I have nobody to do it with here, and it wouldn’t be wise to join you. I’m sure neither you nor my sister would approve.”

“I’m sure you’ll find your own man when it’s the right time.”

The twin girls enjoyed shopping in London, admiring the big shops and the huge choice. Harry also bought some more casual clothing. He liked the feeling of being able to buy whatever he wanted and not having to ask for permission.

Two days later, after both twins had enough Muggle experience, at least for a while, they all moved to the Patil residence. It was just as fascinating for Harry, Hermione and the Granger parents as the previous visit was for the Patil parents and their daughters. Although both Harry and Hermione had already visited the Weasley home, an admittedly low class residence, they were not ready for what a middle-class magical residence would be like.