✓ | EPISKEY → remus lupin [ discontinued ]

Chapter Twenty Two

When Christmas morning came, Emily was the first of the Harpshire family to wake. Although she knew it was Christmas morning, all the girl wanted to do was sleep. She settled back into her bed and was half-asleep when her door was thrown open and somebody jumped on her bed.

"Get up, sleepyhead, it's Christmas!" she heard Melanie cry. Emily's older sister continued to bounce crazily on her bed until Emily finally opened her eyes, yawned and sat up. She smiled faintly.

"It's Christmas," she muttered.

"It's Christmas!" Melanie cried in a more excited voice. She whooped before leaping off Emily's bed to wake up the rest of the family.

"IT'S CHRISTMAS!" Emily heard her mad sister shout, effectively waking everybody up. Emily shook her head, dismissing Melanie's behaviour, and threw her duvet off her. She shoved her feet into her slippers, grabbed a dressing gown and headed out into the hall.

"Deck the halls with boughs of holly!" Melanie cried as she ran past Emily.

"Mel, quit your madness!" Joanne grumbled as she stepped out of her bedroom across the way from Emily. The sisters shared a look.

"You'd think that after fourteen years, she'd be used to Christmas by now," Emily commented, rubbing her eyes sleepily.

"Apparently not," the two heard Alanna grumble. She stomped past them, an angry look on her face. When Joanne and Emily heard Alanna yelling at Melanie, they glanced at one another before they both burst out laughing.

"Isn't Christmas just your favourite holiday?" Emily asked Joanne as they trotted downstairs together. Joanne shrugged.

"Not particularly."

"No?"

Joanne shook her head. "No, I actually prefer Halloween. We get all dressed up and expect people to give us candy. It's great."

Emily paused, a confused look on her face. Joanne continued down the stairs. Emily shook her head, rolling her eyes, before she followed her sister downstairs.

Once the entire family was gathered downstairs, Harena began handing gifts out to everyone. She passed one to Melanie, then Joanne, then Alanna and lastly young Emily. Then she sat back on the sofa next to her husband and watched with delight as her daughters opened their gifts.

Melanie was the first to tear through her wrapping paper. Her gift appeared to be a large box. When she shook it, she didn't hear anything. She gave her parents suspicious looks.

"If there's nothing in here, I swear ..."

"Just open it, woman!" Stephan ushered.

"Alright, alright!" Melanie said. She grinned widely as she opened the box, only to reveal another box. She sighed in frustration before sitting back and folding her arms.

"If it's one of those kind of gifts, somebody else can do it."

Stephan chortled with laughter while Harena elbowed her husband in the ribs.

"Don't worry, honey, it's just your father trying to be hilarious and completely failing."

"Ingenious," Joanne snorted. "Just open it, Mel."

Melanie sighed before she opened the second box. This time, her eyes widened before she squealed in delight. She reached into the box and pulled out too many make-up palettes, nail polishes, and anything else a normal teenage girl would want. She jumped up and hugged both of her parents while repeatedly thanking them.

"Alright, calm yourself," Stephan told his daughter. "Your turn, Jo."

Joanne bit her lip nervously. Her gift was the smallest out of the four sisters, not that she wasn't grateful. She definitely hoped it wasn't anything like Melanie had received; she was never going to use much make-up or nail polish.