A Lifetime Together

Prologue

It was a bright morning, windy and sunny, and as the sun dawned over the odd building, gnomes in the yard began to run out of their holes and explore the vegetables recently grown, carefully looking around for the big, ginger cat, who tended to run outside at the crack of dawn and try to 'play' with them.

The two young men, one black-haired, with dazzling green eyes, slightly skinny physique, glasses, and a lightning scar on his forehead; the other with flaming red hair and a sea of freckles all over his face, and blue eyes, looking nervous, were both up, as early as it was, discussing something in rapid tones.

Most of the house was still sleeping. Mr. and Mrs. Weasly, the redheaded husband and wife, were in the master bedroom, Mr. Weasly snoring loudly, but he had woken no one; George, the redheaded 22-year-old, usually slept at the flat over his joke shop, but he had come on the occasion of all of the family being able to gather for several weeks together, though he had been spending the last few years mostly alone, still grieving the loss of his twin; Ginny and Hermione, sleeping in Ginny's room, were both sleeping quietly under the new light coming from the small window. The ginger cat the gnomes were fearing, Hermione's own Crookshanks, lay purring at her feet on the bed while she slept, a picture of the same red-headed man in the other room and her in a coffee shop at their one-year anniversary sitting on Hermione's nightstand, and a picture of the black haired man with Ginny in front of a lake, on hers. Opposed to usual pictures, these pictures were moving; both couples were cuddling cutely and smiling in both of them.

The black-haired man was none other than Harry Potter, three years after his glorious defeat of the darkest wizard known to this day. The red-haired one was Ron Weasley, his best friend and his colleague at the Auror office. They had met nine years ago on the Hogwarts Express and remained friends to that day and much, much, longer; they were an invincible pair, inseparable, and strongest together.

Bill, Charlie and Percy were to arrive that afternoon. Bill would come with Fleur and young Victoire, his daughter, Charlie with his girlfriend, a mysterious British girl he met in Romania under the name of Jessica, and Percy with his wife, Penelope, who was to have a baby in a few months. Harry, who had known Percy also for quite a while and saw him as his least-favorite Weasley, was happy for Percy, yet he wasn't too happy that the somewhat pompous Weasley brother was coming to yet again speak big headedly on his newest promotion and the names he and Penelope thought of for the child; he'd already had several things on his mind without Percy's issues being thrown at his face as well.

Harry had been dating Ginny for three years now, and was starting to have odd thoughts, fantasies and dreams. These were not dreams the likes of which he had in his Hogwarts years, which included, to Harry's much fear and dislike, the awful sights of murder and violence, which, unfortunately, were not the fruits of his imagination, but actual occurrences all over Britain and the whole world. These included more pleasant scenarios, such as Harry and Ginny under a white marquee, or Ginny with a big pregnant belly, or setting out to Diagon Alley to buy new spell books and wands for little children with green eyes, like his. Harry was dreaming about what he desperately hoped was his future. It had been a while since these dreams started happening, but long before he had hoped this fate would magically occur to him; he had not had, up till then, what most people would call a perfect family life.

After finishing their years at Hogwarts, Harry and Ron began training to be Aurors (Dark Wizard catchers) and Hermione had also began a career in the Ministry, where she joined the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures. In the two years that she had spent there, she had already made an incredible improvement in the way wizards treat house-elves and many other less-counted-for creatures. People all over the Ministry - especially the Minister himself, Kingsley Shackelbolt, who had already made so many changes in the Ministry, it was much more than decent, even fantastic - were talking about moving Hermione to Magical Law, as they knew the changes she would make there would be phenomenal and extremely beneficial. George, who was getting plenty of help from Ron as his partner perished in the Battle of Hogwarts, had already expanded Weasley's Wizard Wheezes to a full chain. Ginny had been accepted to be a chaser at the all-witch Quidditch team, the Holyhead Harpies, and managed to win them not a few games. Harry always knew she could make it, but he started noticing she was as good as him now, and nearly better.

To his great delight, Ron confided in Harry several days previously that the same thoughts that had been running through Harry's mind for so long had been running through Ron's as well – though, thank God, they were not about Ginny, but about Hermione. It made Harry perfectly giddy, the idea of his two best friends getting married, but he had 'forgotten' to mention to Ron that he was contemplating marrying his own girlfriend of three years – Ginny was Ron's little sister, and he was so protective that after three years of living with Harry at the Burrow, while Harry and Ginny were stuck to each other as if by a Permanent Sticking Charm, Ron still recoiled and winced whenever the young couple displayed the slightest act of affection, so Harry doubted Ron would be too happy at the thought of Harry and Ginny being bound forever, and living alone. In fact, he believed Ron might even insist they would not get married… So he thought, better to think it over some more before getting Ron worked up.

"But what if she'll say no?" Ron asked nervously, for about the fiftieth time that morning. He was sitting on his bed, in his maroon pajamas, his hair messed up and his hands put together. He seemed to be staring at a spot on the carpet.

Harry sighed. The idea of Hermione, who couldn't be more smitten with Ron for all these years, saying no to his offer of marriage, was positively hilarious. He couldn't help but remember vividly the scene at the eve of their final N.E.W.T:

"It's like a dream… It's like we've finally realized what we have together, and it's perfect… As if our souls are bound or something… I couldn't be happier," Hermione had said, a smile so wide upon her face as if she had been sleeping with a clothing hanger in her mouth. "The past year was just this disarray of feelings, and I feel… I feel like I'm the luckiest girl in the world, since we fell in love with each other. Oh, damn, the Transfiguration test's tomorrow… have you seen my Advanced Transfiguration Handbook?"

It was at the library, when Hermione finally managed to say goodbye to Ron when he valiantly went to get her books, which she had forgotten to take, from the common room. Since then, Harry couldn't be more certain that Hermione and Ron were meant to be… and frankly, he was surprised with himself at the fact that he hadn't realized this simple fact all these years.

As for him and Ginny… as the thought leaped to his mind, yet another scene had popped into it:

They were at the Hogwarts grounds at twilight, over by the lake, menacingly close to the giant squid. But they didn't mind at all. Ginny's lips were on Harry's, and Harry was holding her tightly and caressing her back. She had both her arms around his neck and seemed to come closer and closer toward him every second, as if she couldn't be close enough. It was divine, her smell, and the way she felt…

"Promise me… Promise it won't end again, that it'll last forever, that there'll be no more calling quits…" she panted, between kisses. Even as Harry kissed her, his mouth twitched to a brilliant smile.

"I won't dream of it… It was unbearable, knowing you were out there, knowing you might not be safe, I couldn't stop thinking about it, about you… I couldn't ever bare to be apart from you again…"

The words came out of his mouth, but he didn't even notice it. He had never told Ginny how he longed for her during that awful year, how he searched through the Marauder's Map for her dot every night at the girls' dormitory. But as he was kissing her, as she was revealing how she herself felt then, he couldn't bare to hold it in. He couldn't notice anymore, but the words "I love you" were now shooting out of his mouth over and over, and she was saying it too… Finally, he was getting his share…

He switched back to the present. That day had been one of the happiest days of his life, he still used that memory for his Patronus nearly every time. Ginny, like nothing else, had made his Patronus so strong, he was actually feared by the Dementors every time they sent him to visit Azkaban, which, frankly, due to his occupation and high ranks at the Ministry, was quite often. Suddenly, his thoughts drifting from his Patronus and back to Ginny, he realized he had actually told her they would be together forever, so he had agreed to marry her quite a while ago. Surprisingly enough for him, it didn't bother him at all.

"She won't say no," Harry said laughingly, also for the fiftieth time, averting his mind from a lifetime with Ginny back to Ron's own marriage contemplations. At first he was acting reassuring, as he knew himself how unnerving it could be, but now, a half-an-hour later, it was simply amusing.

"How can you know that?" Ron leapt to his feet, pacing. Harry didn't move from where he lay on his bed, as Ron had done this so many times since they had woken up, he saw there was no point. "What if she's changed her mind? What if Viktor will come back or something, she'll probably pick him over me anyway…"

"You're being ridiculous," Harry said, unable to stifle a laugh. "Didn't you read the Prophet last week? Krum's getting married, it was all over the paper, don't you remember, that Italian Quidditch Player?"

Viktor Krum had indeed announced his engagement to Italian Quidditch Player, Annabelle Botalino, only a week earlier. But this, instead of reassuring Ron Hermione and Krum were ancient history, had only reminded him of Krum and Hermione's closeness at their fourth year. The foolproof sign that Ron was terrified of Hermione abandoning him for Krum was shown to Harry just a few days earlier; Harry and Ron had gone to inspect a house in Yorkshire, where a family suspected to be cursing Muggles and collecting dark items resided. They were innocent, but their kitchen cupboard held a Boggart, and before Ron cast the Riddikulus Charm on it, causing it to blow to pieces, Harry had seen his Boggart: Hermione, wearing a white dress, kissing the Bulgarian athlete, wearing a glistening wedding ring. He had not mentioned it, knowing how embarrassed it would make Ron, but he made sure not to speak of Krum unless he had to in front of Ron.

Light was gleaming brightly into the little room now. The sound of a door opening in the house was heard through Ron and Harry's own door, as they were both quiet after the mentioning of Krum. Ron sat back down on his bed, in the same old, nervous position, apparently bearing no retort, as Mrs. Weasly, still wearing her flowery dressing gown and yawning, entered the room.

"Morning, dears," she said sleepily. "Nice to see you up already. Why don't you get dressed and go downstairs, I'll wake everyone up and be down in a minute to make breakfast. Ron, why are you skulking?"

Mrs. Weasly had super-senses to detect any sort of distinct feeling with her sons, and since Harry moved in and practically became her kind-of-son anyway, also Harry's. So it was obvious she would notice Ron being upset over Hermione business… She was simply asking to be polite.

"Nothing, Mum, we'll be right down. Do you remember where my nice robes were?"

"Your second drawer, dear. I'll see you in a minute, then."

Harry and Ron dressed, brushed their teeth and descended down the stairs. The odd house was just as usually cramped and slightly messy, but otherwise it was extremely pleasant. A broom was sweeping the kitchen floor and a small rag was cleaning the kitchen table. The first time Harry saw things like these happening in the Burrow, he was astonished; now, he was so used to the broom greeting him in the morning, he shooed it away when it got too close, as if it was some kind of excessively annoying dog.

Two owls were perched on one of the windows; one was a Snowy owl, just like Hedwig was, that Harry had got after her terrible death. The owl's name was Todd, picked out by Ron, on a very un-creative morning. The other was a brown, sleepy owl. His name was Shabby, the Weasly owl. They had replaced poor Errol long ago, when it accidentally flew through the chimney instead of the window and reminded everyone weirdly of a big, winged lump of ash.

On another window, Fox, George's owl, mainly for shop orders, sat in his cage, along with Pig, Ron's tiny scops owl. A portrait of an old, red-headed man, one of Arthur's deceased great-uncles, told Ron, "My, you look rather scruffy today," and Ron retorted angrily, "Bugger off, we're having a private conversation." The man in the portrait tut-tutted irrespectively and vanished, leaving a strange, pinkish backdrop behind.

"Ron, you've got to calm down," Harry said, hoping it will be the last time. "I'm tired of saying this, but I'll say it again: She won't say no! She loves you so much, she's up to her ears with it, she's told me so loads of times, I'm sure she'll think nothing's better than marrying you."

Ron, despite of himself, gave his mouth an odd twitch, the closest he's had to a smile all morning.

"God, I hope she will. 'Cause, you know, I bought a ring." Ron smiled a little more now. The thought of an engagement ring on Hermione's finger must have made him happy.

"You did?" Harry asked, amazed. "Let us see it then!"

"I can't! With Mum around here, lurking in every corner, just waiting for me to finally pull out a ring, she'll tell Ginny and Ginny'll tell Hermione… It'll be a big mess."

Harry couldn't help agreeing silently with Ron. Mrs. Weasley did seem to be everywhere you wouldn't want her to be, and when she found something out, she couldn't bare to hold it in. It would be an honest disaster if she found out about Ron's plans.

"Look, but what if—"

But Ron was cut off by the sounds of voices, footsteps and yawning. The rest of the family had woken up and was coming downstairs. Harry held his index finger to his mouth.

"Good morning," Mr. Weasley said, coming down the stairs. Behind him were Mrs. Weasley, now dressed in her robes, but still sleepy; George, looking slightly bitter, as he had for a while; Ginny, in a purple sweater and jeans; and finally Hermione, her bushy hair pulled back, wearing Muggle clothes similar to Ginny's, Crookshanks close at her heels, gazing out the door, in search of gnomes.

The others said good morning as well, as Ginny came to kiss Harry and Hermione kiss Ron. Harry didn't know if he was imagining it, but the look on Ginny's face indicated that she, like him, really, was still in the 'honeymoon' phase of their relationship, as long as it might've been already, and so was Hermione. Both girls were deeply in love, and nothing Ron could claim could change that.

They sat and ate once Mrs. Weasley had quickly fixed up a nice breakfast, mostly quiet except for exchanging expectations to the upcoming weeks: Several days after the rest of the Weasleys come, Hermione's parents would come too, to meet the man Hermione had 'told them so much about'. Celestina Warbeck was singing in the radio, and Mrs. Weasley was humming the tune. Finally, when the song ended and everyone were buried deep in their pudding, Mrs. Weasley asked,

"So, Harry, Ron, what were you so upset about this morning?"

Ron and Harry glanced at each other, and noticed all of the others' eyes were on them, and so Ron muttered, "Nothing, nothing at all. Just… you know, work. Work and stuff."

Harry stifled a laugh. Then he said, "Ron's just a little unsure about something."

He laughed a private sort of laugh, and spotted Mrs. Weasley looked scarily at him.

"Don't worry. You'll know."