Fluffystwin: Well, I'm back finally. I've taken my sweet time on writing this. I've had one of my good friends go over it and mention a few things that I needed to change, so I tried implementing them in this chapter. I do hope everyone is enjoying these chapters, according to a couple of people the chapters need to be shortened, but each chapter will be between 7-10k as I believe longer chapters are better. Either way, I hope you enjoy chapter 4 as I spent a lot of time on it. Let me know what you think.
I would like to thank George, Erin, and AirmidM for being awesome supporters of this fanfic and to the people who have put this on their alert list. Thanks guys!
Harry stared around the small waiting area in St. Mungo's. It was relatively deserted besides their small little group. Saeka was sitting on a couch with her head on Draco's shoulder, no glamour charm in place for either of them. Harry had to admit it was a little unsettling to see the Dark Mark on the man's pale arm, but he was honestly glad to see that he was beginning to accept it. It had been a point of contention between the two men when they had begun to associate with one another again a couple of years ago. Then he had heard that Draco was going in to the Ministry's Department of Magical Law Enforcement and would be working with Hermione as a wizard lawyer, with Kingsley's approval. Needless to say the day Draco and Hermione ended up working together Harry had to come in and break up a fight. Afterwards, the three of them had formed an odd sort of relationship that ended up benefiting all of them in the end. Luna giggled at his side as George and Zeherah were making faces at each other from across the waiting room. Those two had been acting like fools since this morning at breakfast, they had started with teasing Saeka and Draco, but eventually grew bored of that and began tormenting everyone with pranks and an assortment of other childish things. Harry snickered when Blaise jumped in his seat after Zeherah poked him with her wand. George had apparently found a partner in his renewed sense of mischief in those two. Blaise could be mischievous when he wanted to be and when he did, everyone was going to regret it.
His bangs swayed in front of his glasses as he turned to look at Hermione who had her head on George's shoulder, but tightly gripped Harry's hand. They had talked after breakfast when they washed the dishes and had agreed that from now on there would be no more secrets between them. They had easily fallen in to the same sort of understanding that they had had during the war. He had missed being that close to someone, someone who understood him on a deeper level.
Hermione's eyes widened. "Shit." Everyone's jaw went slack when they heard her utter a swear word. She rolled her eyes at their reactions, but understood why. "I forgot I need to stop by and see my parents soon. Really soon actually."
Zeherah smiled at her. "Well how about they show up at the club before we open and we can have a take-out dinner there. Plus, we can meet these awesome muggle parents," she said with a bright grin with an all too familiar twinkle in her eyes.
"I don't know if I want my parents to meet you guys," Hermione said with a laugh. She knew eventually she should introduce her parents to them as they were such a large part of her life. How her parents were going to react to the Slytherins were going to be one thing. She hadn't talked to them much about her life in the wizarding world lately and now she would have to catch them up on it before they met the Slytherins they would think were evil.
"I'll make sure I stay at the Zabini mansion for the night then," Draco calmly said as he unconsciously rubbed his left forearm.
Hermione rolled her eyes. "I want my parents to meet my friends, Draco, every one of them. I will explain things to them before they show up. My parents are very understanding people."
Saeka smiled and mouthed a thank you to Hermione before snuggling up against Draco again. He moved his arm and wrapped it around her shoulders, perfectly content to stay where they were. Luna smiled and looked towards the door.
"Hello Healer Hale."
"Ah, Miss Lovegood, it's good to see you. I see everyone is here on time." He glanced around at every face and he couldn't help the smile that graced his graying features. "I actually have a few apprentice Healers that need training and I was wondering if Miss Lovegood and Miss Laveau would mind working with them."
Zeherah smiled. "As long as they can stand us."
"I assure you they are hardy enough to withstand whatever you throw at them…I hope. They are down in Room 231 if you want to meet them there." Luna and Zeherah happily stood up and linked arms with each other. They then skipped from the room. Blaise stood up and hauled Harry out of his seat. He linked arms with The Chosen One and dragged him out of the waiting room. Hermione covered her mouth to prevent herself from laughing at Harry's expression. It was just too funny. "Well Miss Granger, Miss Adams, are you two ready?" Hermione and Saeka gave hesitant nods before standing up with George and Draco following them. Healer Hale's eyes traveled down Draco's exposed arm, his dark brown eyes settling on the Dark Mark on the young man's skin. Draco rolled his sleeve down quickly, he didn't need anyone thinking anything bad at the moment. "I think we might have something that can lighten that if you wish to try it Mister Malfoy. I don't know if it would do much good, but we can try."
Draco's eyes widened and he shook his head. "No thank you, but I will live with it."
Healer Hale nodded and led the four into a large room with a bench against one wall and a couple of seats rested against the wall. Healer Hale closed the door behind him and Saeka and Hermione hopped up on to the bench without a word being said. He glanced at the two men against the wall and stared at the women. "Are you sure you want them here?"
Hermione nodded. "We are happier if they are here if you don't mind."
He shook his head. "Nope, I just had to ask. So, shall we begin? How are your scars healing?" he addressed both of them. They turned to each other and shrugged. "May I see?" The women nodded. Hermione slipped her shirt off and it took Saeka a minute to unbutton the top half of Draco's shirt, before it joined Hermione's. George's eyes widened as he got a full few of the scars covering not only Hermione, but Saeka. His head wiped around to stare at Draco with shock and the blond gave a silent nod. George wasn't seeing things, his love had that many reminders. Healer Hale smiled as he stared at Hermione's arms and stomach. "Most of your scars have faded. I'm assuming you used all of the cream we gave you?"
"Yes, thank you for that. Only a few remain now and those, well, those are the ones that won't ever go away," Hermione answered.
Healer Hale nodded and allowed Hermione to slip her shirt back on. He directed Saeka to lift her arm, which she did, and he waved his wand over the letters in her side. She lowered her arm and his waved ran over her neck and down across the heavier scars on her stomach, chest, and back. "Well, I see the ones not made with a wand have vanished. We have a new theory pertaining to scars formed by dark magic. We believe that overtime the magic will leave and that it will allow us to go in and heal the scars. Some of the assistants are trying to come up with a potion that will aid the process of the magic leaving the scars. I can have them send their notes to you if you wish."
Saeka stared at Draco, who didn't say anything. He knew this was her choice, he had no claim over what she wanted to do with this. She took a deep breath. "No."
Healer Hale smiled at her. "Well then I guess we won't have to worry about glamour charms anymore then, huh?" Saeka shook her head as she slipped the button up back over her head. Hermione patted her hand. The boys watched as Healer Hale made them stand up and he waved his wand over them and muttering to himself. They had no clue as to what was going on, other than that his wand tip occasionally changed to blue. They weren't quite sure as to what was going on. When Healer Hale was done Saeka simply sat down in Draco's lap while Hermione pulled a chair over to George. Draco was softly asking Saeka questions, but she was expertly dodging them. George saw the pair and gave Hermione a questioning look. She shook her head, it wasn't time to explain that. Healer Hale made a few notes on his charts before pulling his chair over to the four of them. "Well, Miss Granger, I am pleased to say that the potion you have been taking has healed some of the damage to the inside of your body. I am pleased to say that you are out of the danger zone, but you're not in the clear either. If you do decide to have children you will need to come and see me to make sure it will be a safe delivery. I believe we will be able to make this work, but it may take a few times for you to conceive. Though with how much love I see in that man's eyes I don't think trying to conceive will be a problem for you two." Hermione blushed at shot George a seething glare. He only shrugged and gave her a devilish smile that made her blush darken. Healer Hale turned to Saeka and he simply shook his head. She gave him a weak smile and stood up from Draco's lap as she walked out of the room at a brisk pace. Draco attempted to stand up, but Healer Hale grabbed his elbow to keep him still. "I have a feeling she has not told you. She never will so I am going to help you. There is a very high chance she will never be able to have kids, if she does somehow manage to have a child it will be a miracle. There's nothing I can do. We have tried a bunch of remedies, but her body either rejects it or it doesn't do enough to help. She is in the nursery, Miss Granger knows where it is at and can take you there. I will see you two in six months. Have a good day," he finished and swept out of the room.
Draco dropped his head into his hands as he realized what exactly Saeka had been yelling at his mother earlier. George was upset for the man, he knew that this would be hard for them. Harry had accidentally mentioned children that morning and everyone joked around about a mini-Draco running around. Now he knew why Saeka had excused herself from the table afterwards. Hermione placed a hand on Draco's shoulder and tugged on his arm to prod him to get out of the chair. He followed Hermione like a zombie as his brain was still trying to comprehend everything that was happening. George's hand found Hermione's and the two smiled at each other, their future was beginning to unfold before their eyes and for once nothing was going to hold them back. They just had to make sure their friends didn't drown behind them. Hermione led them down towards a brightly colored door labeled nursery. She placed a finger to her lips to reinforce the quiet warning on the door before she opened it. Saeka was already inside with a newborn clutched in her arms as she lulled it to sleep while she rocked another cradle with her foot. She jerked her head in the direction of a cradle behind her and Hermione automatically walked toward it. A beautiful baby boy with light dirty blonde curls lay there staring up at her with bright hazel eyes. She smiled down at him and picked him up. The baby simply stared at her with an alertness that was astounding. George smiled and walked over to Saeka, he quickly took the baby from the cradle and began to rock the baby girl in his arms. It had been a while since he had held a newborn. There was nothing like it to him. Hermione smiled and nodded in the direction of Saeka.
George turned around to see Saeka smiling at Draco as he stared at the baby boy in her arms. It was obvious he had never had any dealings with babies before. Another baby began to fuss and Saeka handed Draco the happily sleeping baby in her arms. Draco's expression was priceless. It was one of utter fear. Saeka shook her head, but the grin on her face belied any other thoughts. She moved his arms so he could better hold the child and told him what to do. She left his side for a second as she picked up the fussing baby and rocked it in her arms. She began humming to the bundled child and the fussing noises quieted down quickly. George looked around and wondered where all the nurses were.
"We volunteer here after our appointments. The nurses get a lunch break and we can spend time with the newborns. Zeherah and Luna are with the older kids and we will join them in a bit. This is soothing for us and we enjoy it more than we let on," Hermione said softly. She suddenly grinned when she saw the bright smile on Draco's face. Saeka had placed the formerly fussing baby back in its crib and waved her wand so it would continuously rock. She walked back over to take the child to see a bright smile across Draco's face. Hermione handed George the baby in her arms and he expertly held both babies as Hermione dug into her pocket for her phone. She brought it out and took a quick picture of Draco smiling as he held a baby. He looked up at Saeka and she smiled at him. Hermione took a few more pictures before she stuffed the phone back into her pocket. George handed her the other baby and he kissed her on the cheek. This was something he would always remember now. He wanted to give her this and everything else she could possibly want.
"I think he's going to explode or something," Saeka laughing said as she motioned to Draco who was still smiling.
"I haven't broken it yet," he said happily.
Saeka rolled her eyes and kissed him on the forehead. "You are not going to break a baby and I highly doubt you would drop him. I'd be more worried about how you would react when the kid wakes up. Speak of the devil." Saeka smiled down at the now awake bundle in Draco's arms. "Well he has the brightest eyes I've ever seen. They're even lighter than Luna's." A chubby little arm came out and latched on to Saeka's index finger. Hermione's eyes drifted over Draco's face as he stared at Saeka with an emotion she never thought she would see on his face.
"What do I do with it?" Draco asked as the baby stared up at him.
George laughed as he rocked the sleeping bundle in his arms. "You don't drop him. You've never had any interaction with kids have you?"
"I was an only child and raised as a pure blood, I don't think I had interactions with anyone besides Blaise and Pansy as a kid," he admitted to the room as tiny fingers attempted to wrap around Draco's finger.
Hermione saw the emotion roll across Saeka's face before all emotion was cut off and that fake smile was plastered on her face. "Just wait until you meet the older kids, you will have no clue what to do…oh my god, Blaise. If he doesn't know how to react around kids like Draco then he is probably in hell right now."
George and Saeka snickered at that thought. "We probably should save him though," George finally said. He placed the happy bundle in the cradle just as the door opened with a brightly clad nurse. The woman smiled at them before Hermione, but the baby back in its cradle. Saeka allowed Draco to set the baby boy back down and he stared down at the bright blue eyes. He leaned over and gave Saeka a kiss on the cheek.
"I'm not giving up," he whispered to her and she closed her eyes to prevent the tears that she knew would come. She took his hand and led him out of the nursery with Hermione and George in front of them. Hermione and George were leading the way to a different section of the children's area in St. Mungo's when they heard Blaise let out a curse. Draco groaned, of course Blaise would have issues with children and now he was going to have to clean up the mess. Hermione winked at them before pushing open another door that led in to a large play area for the children. The walls were decorated in vibrant colors and pictures were taped all along the walls. Saeka squeezed Draco's hand and stepped away from him. She was instantly bombarded by four young kids who were all chatting to her at the same time. Hermione didn't have the same issue as she caught the child that jumped into her arms and listened to the kid babble away.
"Okay Marlene, yes I am Zack, no I'm not going to do that Nina, and yes I will, but you should go get it for me Cameron," Saeka managed to spit out over the noise of the four children. One of the boys ran off down the room and opened the closet with the help of Luna. He reached in and pulled out a guitar covered in bright stickers with the strap covered in pins and ribbons. Draco raised an eyebrow at Saeka and she shrugged, but the smile on her face showed that she was happy. The kids grabbed her larger hands and tugged her in the direction of the chairs in the room. Zeherah snickered as she walked over while sipping on a juice box.
"I think you might wanna go save Blaise, he's being interrogated by the boys. They weren't happy when he walked in. Harry seemed to get away unscathed, but I doubt you two will."
Harry groaned and leaned against the wall. "I never knew kids had this much energy." Luna patted his arm and smiled at him.
George's grin grew wider as he picked up a little boy and spun him around in the air. Hermione couldn't help the smile on her face. "Well we know George won't have a problem here."
Zeherah hip bumped Hermione. "Just make sure he doesn't test any of his products out on the kiddies."
Hermione's eyes widened. "George, don't you dare feed these kids anything!" she warned him.
"Aw, why not 'Mione? I wouldn't feed them anything dangerous."
"Bullocks."
Blaise ran over to Draco and hid behind him. "Draco, man, these kids are crazy. They're interrogating me to see if I'm worthy enough."
"Worthy enough for what?"
"I think they're going to sacrifice me."
Hermione burst out laughing at the absurdity of that comment. "They're little kids Blaise, they aren't going to sacrifice you to some pagan god."
Two little boys stood in front of Draco and Blaise with their arms crossed over their chests. Draco and Blaise gave each other confused stares before looking down at the younglings. The boys glared at the older men. Zeherah pulled Hermione off to the side, essentially Draco and Blaise were left to the devices of two 8 year olds. Luna was now sitting off to the side with a group of young girls teaching them how to braid their hair in various ways. Hermione was pulled over to Luna's group while Zeherah was tugged over to Saeka, who was currently teaching the kids a song that they could sing later. The two young boys stared up at Blaise and Draco.
"Martin?"
"Yea Seth?"
"I don't think they are worthy enough."
"No they aren't."
Draco kneeled down next to Seth, the taller of the two boys. "What aren't we worthy of?"
The boys pointed towards Zeherah and Saeka. "Zeherah says we can't be their husbands when we are older. That means you're our competition."
Draco laughed, but then he saw that the boys hadn't moved. "You guys are serious?"
Blaise nodded. "They kept grilling me about us and what we wanted with them."
Draco nodded, the boys were worried about them. "Well, do you want them to be happy?"
Martin smiled brightly at him. "Of course, Saeka and Zeherah are always sad when they aren't playing with us."
"We are the same way. It's our job to make them smile more," Draco said. "Just don't tell them that, we should let them find that out."
Martin and Seth happily nodded before skipping over to Saeka and Zeherah. George smirked and plopped down on a small plastic yellow chair in front of Draco and Blaise. Harry willingly took a seat next to George and motioned for the other two to join him. All four men sighed heavily and slumped in their seats, these kids were mentally exhausting for them. A little girl with short strawberry blonde hair crawled into George's lap and she pulled on his shirt. He looked down and gave his undivided attention to her.
"Zeherah says you share a birthday with her."
"I do?" George asked in confusion.
"Uh huh, her birthday is April 1st. Are you going to share a cake? My mommy says that you should get a giant cake because Zeherah eats a lot," the little girl said happily.
George grinned. "I eat a lot too so we will have to have a ginourmous cake that will feed our hungry tummies." He stuck his tongue out at her and tickled her sides. Her laughter echoed in the room before she managed to squirm out of his grasp. She ran over towards Hermione and jumped into the woman's lap. George looked around and leaned forward so none of the girls could hear him.
"How the hell are we going to do this? Our birthday is in two days and I had no clue she shared the same birthday. I have no gifts and there is no party planned."
Blaise smirked. "My mother can throw a party together like nothing. I'll tell her to get in touch with Molly and everything will be taken care of. All we have to worry about is gifts."
Silence fell over their little group before they all leaned together. "I have no clue what to get Zeherah or you, George," Harry said. "How the hell are we supposed to do this in two days?"
"Actually one, since Hermione is bringing her family over tonight," Draco threw in.
"We can't just leave them alone, you heard Kingsley, Ron is a dolt and the Neo-Death Eaters are still after them." George glanced at Hermione. "I would prefer she's alive for my birthday."
Blaise nodded. "How about we ask Lucius for some of those guards? He did place Adrian with Ginny so he must know a few other people that could help us."
"Uh, Saeka is not fond of my father, remember? Any idea from him will not be widely accepted by her."
"She'll do it if you persuade her…we can take her with us," Harry said suddenly. The guys stared at him with confused looks before realization dawned on them. "She can help us pick something! She will know exactly what she likes. Draco, we leave it up to you to persuade her."
"Why in the bloody hell do I have to do it?"
It took them another three hours before they left St. Mungo's. The boys had been forced to play with the younger ones and ended up being just as tired as the girls afterwards. Hermione and Luna had their hair in braids that Hermione was still trying to get out. Luna was happy with her's, including all the feathers sticking out of it. Saeka and Zeherah were laughing about a few of the boys who can't sing, but kept trying to impress them. Martin and Seth had threatened Blaise and Draco with beating them up if they didn't take care of Saeka and Zeherah before everyone left. The females had simply giggled and left the room with a quick goodbye to the kids. They divided up, with Harry and Hermione going to get her parents and the others going back to the Zabini mansion to change for the night.
Harry held out his arm for Hermione and she gladly accepted the offer. She stuck close to his side and was smiling happily as they tried to find an out of the way place to apparated to her parents.
"Hey, Harry?"
"Yeah?"
"What do you think my parents will think when they see Draco? Or even George and I?"
"Hermione, your parents love you. They are very understanding and will go along with whatever makes you happy." Harry patted her arm and they ducked in to an alley. He winked at her before they apparated away to the home of the Grangers. Harry took a deep breath and held on to Hermione so she wouldn't dash off towards the door without him. Hermione pulled him along behind her as she skipped across the stone pathway. The door was opened before they even got to the front steps. Jean, Hermione's mother leaned against the doorframe and smiled at them. Harry released Hermione's arm finally and she dashed the last few feet to her mother. Jean laughed as she hugged her daughter tightly to her. Harry grinned and waved at Jean as he followed at a more sedate pace. It had been a while since he had last seen the Grangers and he was happy to see that they were doing just fine.
It had taken a while for him and Hermione to track down her parents after they left for Australia. They finally did find them and Hermione restored their memories. Her parents hadn't been happy that their memories had been altered, but couldn't bear to be unhappy with their daughter for only thinking of protecting them. They had stayed with the Grangers for a few days explaining what had all happened. A few months later, the Grangers had moved back to London and became more integrated into the wizarding world because of their daughter. They lived comfortably now because of the reward money Hermione had received for being a part of the Golden Trio. They couldn't be more proud of their daughter than they already were. Arthur and Molly stopped by once a week to spend time with Jean and her husband, Shaun, where they all had a good time just talking about their children and their very different lives.
"Harry, it is good to see you. We haven't seen you in a while, but Molly has been bragging about how you are now a very important man in the Ministry," Jean said as she held out her other arm so she could hug him.
Harry happily accepted the hug from her. "I wouldn't know about very important, but I think I'm doing fairly well. Hermione is as well."
Jean smiled brightly at her daughter. "I've heard you've been doing amazing things for people darling. Why don't you come inside?"
Hermione grabbed her mother's hand to stop her from moving back into the house. "Actually, mum, I would like to invite you and dad out to have dinner with us and a few other people I'd like for you to meet."
Jean smiled at her daughter. They had never been invited to visit any of their daughter's friends and she wasn't going to pass this up. "Of course hun. Let me find your father and we will go with you. Do we need the car?"
Harry shook his head with a laugh. "No, you'll be apparating with us."
"Oh, is that where you spin around and vanish with a large cracking sound?" Jean asked as she moved inside the house.
"Yes mum."
"Shaun, darling! Come out from the garden, our daughter wants to take us out."
Shaun came in from the garden and smiled at his daughter. "Well what are we waiting for then?"
Jean and Shaun grabbed their coats from the hanger and stepped out of the house. Shaun locked the door behind him and they stared at the two magical ones. Hermione smiled and held out her arm for her mother. "I need you to hold on tight. It is going to feel very odd, but you simply need to breathe. It will be over quickly. We will apparated into the hallway by the bathrooms in case you need it."
"Well, why would I need the loo after this?" Jean innocently asked.
Hermione smiled and shook her head. "It's a little disorienting mum."
"Oh, well then, disorient away!"
Harry smiled as Hermione's laughter rang in the air in front of them. Harry shook his head, she hadn't even made a pop when she disappeared, but he should have been expecting that. Hermione was the best at everything for a reason. Harry held his arm out for Shaun and the older man hesitatingly took it. Shaun nodded to Harry and he quickly spun around and disappeared with a light pop. They reappeared with a louder pop and saw Jean leaning against the wall in the hallway. Hermione was rubbing her mother's shoulder as Jean closed her eyes and sighed. Shaun gripped Harry's arm tightly as he tried to reorient himself. He preferred not to do that again if he had to. Harry let out a small chuckle before biting his lip to stop his laughing. He truly did like Shaun and the man had always been interested in how they travel. Now he had gotten his wish.
"Harry, Hermione, dears, you should have brought them through the floo. I'm sure Saeka would have been willing to connect her floo to their's," Molly said as she walked down the hallway with a glass of water in each hand. "I wish they had told me what was going on—" Molly was quickly cut off as music started pumping through the speakers in the hallway.
Hermione smiled brightly and grabbed Harry's hand. She pulled him down the hallway away from her parents. They couldn't stop the grins that spread across their face when they saw the sight of Saeka and Angelina on top of the tables dancing. Zera was twirling around on the floor with a squealing Teddy in her arms. Hermione slipped past Harry and jumped into George's arms. Harry's eyes widened as he saw Kingsley sitting at the table as well, laughing with Arthur as they watched the new generation have fun. Kingsley held up his glass and nodded at Harry. Before Harry a mass of blonde hair and feathers blocked his view as Luna pulled him into the dancing. Luna smiled up at him, her bright eyes twinkling with mischief. Harry glanced around the crowd quickly and caught sight of what he assumed was her doing. Former Slytherin and Gryffindor Quidditch teams were mingling without a single bad word being said. Luna winked at him before stopping abruptly when Molly walked in with Hermione's parents. Zeherah waved her wand and the music cut off. Jean smiled at them.
"Well don't let us stop you." Zeherah shrugged and made to turn it back on, but Blaise stopped her. Hermione jogged back over to her parents and smiled at them. "I can see you've been having fun away from us," Jean said just for Hermione to hear.
Molly patted Hermione's shoulder. "I've explained the basics of things for right now," she whispered.
Hermione gave Molly a small smile, she knew it was hard on the woman to see one son stray from the path he had been on and then for her to go to a different son. Shaun wrapped an arm around Hermione's shoulder and kissed her forehead. "We expect explanations later."
"Of course, but first, I would like to make some introductions that I believe are long overdue."
"No need for you to do the introductions," Zera said as she walked up behind Hermione. "Hi, I'm Zera Laveau and this is little Teddy Tonks. Say hi Teddy." The little boy shyly waved his hand before burying his head in Zera's neck. "He's a tad bit shy around new people, but he'll get over it. His hair keeps changing every five seconds. He's gonna be popular when he goes to Hogwarts. Aren't you? You're gonna be an amazing…well I'm a bit biased, but I think your father would prefer you being in Gryffindor wouldn't he?" Harry walked up to Zera and held out his arms. Teddy smiled happily and strained to get out of Zera's arms to see his godfather, his hair flashing to a black color.
Zera released Teddy into Harry's arms and smiled as Harry situated the growing boy on his hip. "You're welcome to stay as long as you like. I can talk to Saeka about setting up a floo connection to your place so it will be easier for you to go home."
"If it's not an inconvenience for anyone," Jean said with a smile. She was really not fond of this apparating thing.
"It's not trouble at all," Saeka said as she walked up to them and threw an arm around Zera's shoulders. "I'm Saeka Adams."
Hermione smiled brightly at her friend. "Her and Zeherah were my first solo case in the ministry. Actually, Saeka…can you get rid of the glamour charms?" Saeka's shocked expression was something Hermione was experiencing. "They know about the war and…I want them to truly see everyone."
"I think you're mental, but you can deal with the repercussions this time," Saeka said as the glamour charms faded. Jean gasped and bit her lip to refrain from saying anything else. "Maman, how about you go charm your way into Kingsley's lap."
"Oh! Avec plaisir." Zera hastily made her way back over to the long table and sat down next to Kingsley, who narrowed his eyes at Saeka. She just smiled sweetly and gave him a cheesy wave. Hermione grabbed her parents' hands and pulled them over to the table so introductions could be made. She was shocked to see how many people were there, she knew for a fact that someone was behind it. George wrapped an arm around Hermione's waist and placed his chin on her shoulder as she got ready to introduce him.
George smiled at her parents. "Anyone with ginger hair is a Weasley, don't worry about which one it is."
Hermione swatted him on the arm, but counted the Weasleys in the room. "Did Bill and Fleur not show up with the rest of the caravan?"
Molly shook her head. "Victoire has been sick lately so they are staying home for the night. They send their apologies though."
Hermione nodded. "Well one less Weasley for you to have to remember then. This one is George, you already know Molly and Arthur, you probably remember Ginny, but she's grown up a bit, and that one over there is Charlie…who I thought was supposed to go back to Romania."
"With the current atmosphere my father believes it would be better if everyone stayed in London," Draco chimed in as he sat down at the table near Hermione.
"And I would prefer it if he were never mentioned at this table," Saeka said without looking up from grabbing a Smirnoff on the table. Draco held his hands up in a motion of surrender and kept his mouth shut. Blaise patted Draco on the shoulder and snickered before clinking bottles with Saeka.
George smiled at the two and gave Hermione a small squeeze before introducing the former Gryffindor Quidditch team members in the room. Angelina, Katie, and Oliver waved when they heard their names mentioned. "We have an alumni game coming up and thought we'd get everybody together for the first time in a while."
Hermione looked confused. "If Angelina and Katie are being Chasers again, Oliver is keeper, you are a beater, and Harry is a seeker again aren't you missing two players still?"
George laughed. "Ginny and Charlie are alumni, love. Charlie is joining me as a beater and Ginny is a professional Quidditch player. I don't think we will have a problem."
Zeherah scoffed. "So you think."
George rolled his eyes. "They think they're going to win. Slytherin vs. Gryffindor, ah how this brings back memories. Especially the day that I knocked Saeka off her broom with a bludger," he said with a wink towards Saeka.
Said witch pointed a knife at him. "You're lucky Adrian was flying beneath me or else I would have hexed you into the hospital wing. By the way, Hermione, I don't know if you know them, but that's Terence Higgs and that's Warrington. I think we can give them a run for their money this time around, so don't count your dragons before they hatch George."
Jean laughed at the analogy. "That's a new one."
Shaun held out a chair for his wife and slipped into the chair between her and Saeka. "Well it is good to finally meet all of you."
Luna walked back into the room from the kitchen with Andromeda and Dahlia behind her, all three of them carrying food. Harry took the tray from Luna and placed it on the table. On the rather large tray was an assortment of meat, potatoes, vegetables, and even a bowl of Cribbages wizarding crackers. He glanced up at Zera and she simply shrugged before taking a piece of chicken off the tray and placing it on her plate to cut into smaller pieces for Teddy. Harry took his seat between Luna and Blaise before digging into the delicious smelling food. He had a feeling another house-elf that worked for Dahlia cooked the food, but he wasn't going to tell Hermione that. As she was currently explaining things to her parents with George chiming in every once in a while. His eyes caught Ginny's down at the end of the table as she was talking to Adrian and Terence about her Quidditch career. She gave him a soft smile before turning back to the two men. Jean was busy looking around at everyone and was barely catching what her daughter was saying. The atmosphere surrounding them was so lively that it was impossible not to be smiling at everything. Her daughter truly had found her own way in life and was living it to the fullest. Shaun placed his hand over Jean's and nodded, he agreed with her. Their daughter was just fine in this world and they were glad to see who she had decided to surround herself with. Though of course, they would always be worried about her as it was their job after all. They enjoyed the rest of the large meal while happily chatting with anyone and everyone. They couldn't believe their eyes when the plates of food on the trays replenished themselves. Hermione smiled to hold back her laughter at her parents shock. It was amazing to finally have them experiencing a real night spent in her world. She wanted them to be a part of it and to see all the beauty in it. George gave Hermione a soft kiss on her cheek and her cheeks flushed a bright pink.
Saeka smiled behind the lip of her bottle. "I think you should do that again George. Her cheeks are fantastic when they're colored like that."
Hermione gaped at Saeka before squealing at the sudden onslaught of kisses from George. She began laughing and tried beating him off with her hands, but he was enjoying making her laugh. Harry grinned brightly at the sight. The smile that graced Hermione's face was enough for him to believe that she was finally in good hands. Luna sat her fork down and turned to Jean and Shaun, who were still watching Hermione and George.
"So, are we okay for Hermione?"
Jean's cheeks flushed and Shaun's eyes twinkled with happiness. "I don't think we will have to worry," he said for them.
Luna grinned happily and her earrings swayed as she bounced in her seat. "Glad to hear, though I must saw you will probably question us after a while."
"Well we do have some questions now, if Hermione will allow us to ask," Jean said as Hermione was finally able to shove George away from her.
Hermione gave them a confused look before readjusted her shirt. "Yeah, I didn't realize you had any."
"We always have questions pertaining to your world, but some of those can wait for now," Shaun said before looking at Jean.
Jean patted her husband's hand before turning her brown eyes towards Draco. Everyone tensed. They knew exactly where this was going now. Hermione held her breath as it dawned on her what was going to be asked. "Last we heard, you were the bad guy in all of this, but here you sit in the good graces of our daughter. What happened?"
Draco leveled a harsh glare at Saeka and she wisely kept her mouth shut. Hermione quickly barged into the conversation. "I think that's a question to be answered later, mum."
"It's fine Hermione. I was actually expecting it. At the end of the war, my family switched allegiances. One in a way to save our own hide, but mainly because we were no longer under the control of Voldemort, that last minute change saved us. We began working with Kingsley to root out the remaining Death Eaters and spent our time and effort into cleaning our family name. I strived to prove that I wasn't my father's former image and rose in the ranks of the Department. I work with Hermione a lot as we have begun the process of trying to eliminate old pure-blood laws still in effect. I've spent the years since the war trying to prove myself and help all the people my family has harmed." His eyes flickered to Saeka before going back to Jean. "Somehow, I ended up in the inner circle of Harry and Hermione. How, I don't know, but their support has been more than enough for me."
"He can still be an arse though," George said with a smirk. A wizard cracker was thrown at George and it exploded on his forehead sending the ginger falling out of his chair. A feathered fedora floated down to land on his face. The entire table busted out laughing and Saeka and Zeherah high-fived each other. Jean and Shaun were confused as George sat up with his head peeking over the table edge. Hermione adjusted the fedora on his head before giggling. He had a scorch mark on his forehead now. Molly shook her head, it brought back old memories of bangs happening in her home. Arthur smiled gently, knowing that if Fred was still here he would be plotting with Zeherah and Saeka to drive George crazy. Though driving George crazy might be a bit of a process. Harry shook his head, but had a giant smile on his face. He couldn't hide it, that had been one of the funniest things that he had seen in a while.
Suddenly the fireplace turned a brilliant emerald green and Lucius stepped through with Narcissa following close behind. Saeka hissed and slammed her fork down into the wooden table. Lucius strode over to the table, his cloak billowing out behind him.
"We need to get everyone out now. They're on their way. Terence, Warrington, set up a perimeter as quickly as possible. Adrian, make sure they get through the floo and someplace safe. Kingsley, we need to get you out of here as well."
"I can handle myself perfectly well, Lucius. Everyone, quickly, do as he says. Sorry, Mr. and Mrs. Granger, but we are still having some issues within our world and I was hoping they wouldn't try anything tonight."
Saeka was glaring at Narcissa and Lucius from her spot at the table. Draco gently grabbed her elbow, but she shrugged him off. She wasn't going anywhere. Hermione rolled her eyes and ushered Dahlia over to the floo, with a struggling Teddy in her arms. The little boy knew something was wrong and was upset about it. Before anyone could make another move Zeherah and Saeka jumped up and reached for their wands.
"They've breached the wards!"
Dahlia vanished in the green flames and Adrian jumped in front of Hermione to protect her from the sudden appearance of Neo-Death Eaters. The atmosphere became tense quickly as everyone was waiting for the opposing force to make the first move. Blaise chose for them as he flipped one of the tables over and both him and Oliver pushed the Grangers behind it for safety. Spells began flying over their heads as Blaise came out from hiding and his spot was taken by Angelina. The two former team players quickly sent out a barrage of magic to protect the two muggles. Shaun held Jean tightly in his arms as the woman was staring at everything in shock. Not far from her, Alicia was hit with a stunning spell and Katie caught her falling body. Saeka slid over to them and sent off a barrage of spells quick enough for Katie to cast rennervate on Alicia. Saeka slipped from their side and threw a kick at a Neo-Death Eaters' face, cracking the mask in place. Draco stunned a man coming at her back. Across from them Adrian and Hermione were fighting back to back as they fought off multiple skilled Neo-Death Eaters. Hermione cursed her luck; of course this batch had to be more skilled than their predecessors. All magic stopped within seconds when one Neo-Death Eater had managed to sneak between Adrian and Hermione's guard and captured the two with ease. Saeka was sent to the floor with a punch to the face when she stopped after seeing Hermione get captured. Blaise grabbed Draco's arm to stop the blonde from making any sudden moves. Zeherah stood next to George, Luna, and Harry who were all prepared for more fighting. One man stepped forward and removed his mask.
"Ah, Yaxley," Kingsley said. His voice was calm, but they all knew he was far from calm.
"How the mighty have fallen, Lucius," Yaxley said, completely ignoring everyone. "You're rolling around in the gutter with filth now I see. It's a shame really, you're family was once so powerful."
"You're the filth," Saeka said, but was silenced with a swift kick to the stomach. Zeherah started to move, but held her place as she began to formulate a plan.
Yaxley chuckled as he watched Saeka over his shoulder. "I see the half-breed is still here. Now, why would you associate yourself with the likes of her anyways? She's nothing to us, or are you sympathetic to their plight now?"
"Why are you here?" Lucius demanded.
"Ah, straight to the point as always. We are simply following orders. All we want is the mudblood, half-breed, and blood traitor, but we are not afraid to take a few more if they get in our way. Take their wands."
Hermione and Adrian surrendered their wands without a fight. The ten other wands pointing at their face made the decision for them. Ginny growled as her wand was pulled from her hand and Terence glared at the mask man that took his. The one who had kicked Saeka was reaching for her own wand. "Like bloody hell." Saeka cursed before swiping the legs out from underneath the person and rolled on top of them to throw more punches at the person's masked face.
Yaxley rolled his eyes. "Lets go!"
The Neo-Death Eaters then apparated away without another word, including the one fighting with Saeka. The only ones left behind were the few that were still stunned and the one Saeka had knocked out with her kick earlier. An unnatural splash sound was heard and Draco's eyes widened as he caught sight of the fresh pool of blood on the floor where Saeka had been. Zera quickly turned to Kingsley.
"She's been splinched, we have to find them quickly. With that amount of blood it is not safe for us to leave her. We need to find them."
Lucius nodded. "Yaxley will be needing a place to hideout and the Greengrass family has a mansion on the outskirts of London that they may be using as a hideout."
Harry stepped up next to Lucius. "We'll need reinforcements, we can't just go barging in."
Zera shook her head. "They'll be expecting us to do that. We have enough right now. A sudden crash and grab will work just fine."
"We won't be able to crash and grab with Saeka," Molly chimed in. "If her injury is severe it may hurt her more."
Kingsley shook his head. "We have no choice Molly. We don't know what is going to happen to them. As the Minister of Magic I am giving you permission to track them down by whatever means are necessary, after all they did try and attack me," he said with a smirk.
Fluffystwin: Why yes, I did leave a cliffhanger. I hope you enjoyed this chapter and that you will review. Please review! I like hearing what everyone has to say. I love getting emails saying a bunch of people have added this to their alert list, but I would like to know how I am doing. If you could leave me a little tiny hint that would be great. Thanks guys!