Catharsis [Tom Riddle]

Epilogue

Five Years Later

Without fail, Tom always woke up before Avalon. He would typically have enough time in the mornings to take his daily shower, get ready for the day, and fetch them their two cups of coffee-- which, over the years, had both grown to become the same light mocha color.

The one exception to this routine was Christmas morning.

When Tom's eyes opened, he was greeted with Avalon's excited, hazel stare. She was already wide awake, her grin growing the moment she saw him shift toward her. After spending five Christmas mornings with her, he knew better than to be surprised by waking up to her anxious smile, but her loud greeting still caught him off guard.

"Merry Christmas!" she sang out, laughing at his still-sleepy eyes as he glanced over at the clock and noted the small hand resting on the 5.

"Merry Christmas, dove," he sighed, his voice still raspy when he pulled her back into his embrace and kissed her forehead. He could barely hold her still, she was practically bouncing off the bed with sheer child-like excitement.

Avalon noticed him resting his chin atop her head and could hear his breathing start to slow down again as he tried to go back to sleep and she quickly squirmed out of his grasp, shoving him off the bed with a loud thud. His eyes shot wide open, sitting up on the ground and glaring at her. "What in the bloody hell-"

"Wake up!" she insisted, already springing to her feet and rushing over to her suitcase. She dug around for a moment, tossing her things onto the ground in her quest to find the item she desired. Tom watched as she made a mess of their room, an annoyed groan leaving his lips at the same moment she let out an excited squeal and pulled out her ocean blue sweater, a light grey 'A' knitted into the center.

While she eagerly changed out of her pyjamas and into the sweater, Tom flicked his wand at the mess she had made and watched as her clothes neatly folded themselves and floated back into her suitcase. He got back onto his feet, stretching his arms as he pulled his shirt off over his head and folded it up before he grabbed a black jumper out of his own belongings and tugged it on.

Avalon had already disappeared into the bathroom by the time he even had a chance to glance back in her direction. He followed behind, standing at her side as the couple brushed their teeth and fixed their hair, getting ready for the day. He couldn't help but smile at the way she was bouncing up and down on the tip of her toes, her love for the holidays coursing through her, just as prevalent as it had been the years prior. Some things never changed, it seemed.

His arm snaked around her waist while they got ready, but she dragged him out of the bathroom the moment they were done, hurriedly making her way toward the door when the sight of something overhead caught her attention. She glanced up at the ceiling, noting the mistletoe that hadn't been there before. Her eyes dubiously trailed over to Tom, her eyebrow quirked up as she asked, "Did you notice that before?"

Tom shook his head, shrugging with a slight laugh. "No," he answered. "But why put it to waste?"

And, before she could respond, he pulled her into his hold, his fingers tilting her chin up just a moment before he pressed his lips gently onto hers. She smiled into the kiss, a slight laugh escaping her mouth, giving him just enough of a chance to swipe his tongue across her bottom lip and tangle his hand into her hair.

But, right as she snaked her arms around his neck, desperate to deepen the kiss, a megaphone plopped out from the mistletoe, the loud alarm startling them both before they heard, "No PDA in Fred and George's childhood bedroom."

Not even a moment later, the megaphone sprouted out a sprinkler, releasing a downfall of cold water onto both of their confused figures. Avalon let out a gasp, her eyes widening just as much as Tom's. She flinched when she heard someone pound on the door, still not used to abrupt loud noises, and the slight display of fear only made Tom more upset as he heard the twins cackling outside their door. Without a moment of hesitation, he swiped his wand toward the door, watching as it flung open and whacked Fred and George right in the faces.