Two weeks later found Harry and Ginny fighting for any time they could spend together. Ginny was now in training for the Puddlemere match, and Harry was busier than ever. More sightings of the Death Eaters had the DMLE on full alert. Harry had barely had a day off since their dinner together.
Lily was dividing her days between Andromeda's and the Burrow. Sometimes, Ginny wouldn't have to train till later, so she'd pick the kids up and take them all to the Burrow. If she trained early, she left Ali there with her parents, or at one of her brother's houses, which left Lily and Teddy at Andromeda's.
Ron was off again. He had been absent the last two days and was due back tomorrow. No-one seemed the least surprised, but Harry made a mental note to ask him about it.
With Ron being away, Harry found himself partnered with Susan again. He still felt uncomfortable around her, as she continued her flirting, but it didn't bother him that much any more. He was content with how things were going with Ginny, although he ached to spend some quality alone time with her. He was off tomorrow, so he hoped to spend time with her then.
All of a sudden, Harry felt something twitch in his pants. He grabbed it, and stood up. Susan, who was using Ron's desk, looked up.
"Problem, Evans? Ah, some thing's twitching down there. Need some help with that?" she smirked.
Harry pulled out a small coin. "It's my daughter. She needs me. She has one and I have the other. She would only use it if she was in danger. Come on. It's also a Portkey. It will take me straight to her. HURRY!" cried Harry.
Susan immediately turned into the good Auror she was. She grabbed her wand and came around to Harry's side. She touched the coin, and they were whipped away.
They landed in Diagon Alley. Harry looked around, and saw a crowd gathered at Magical Menagerie. He saw cameras, and gathered the press was there, too.
"Come on," he called to Susan, setting off in a run.
Harry fought his way through the crowds, Susan not far behind him. "Let me through, I'm an Auror," he cried.
Some made way for him, and as he got closer, he was shocked to see a furious Ginny waving her wand at someone.
"You have no right to say such things," she shouted.
"The public has a right to know," purred a female voice.
"Get back, out of my way," said Harry, wanting to get to Ginny.
"Tell us, Mrs Longbottom, is it true that your husband pretended to be the Chosen One, to gain special favours while at Hogwarts?"
"No, that's not-"
"Where exactly did you get married? There's no record of it anywhere that I could find."
"That's none of your bloody business. Do you mind, I have my daughter here with me, and you're upsetting her. Have some decency, please," snapped Ginny.
Harry was furious. Ali was here, and hearing all this shit about her father. Who was this woman, asking these horrible questions? He was nearly there, nearly close to Ginny and Ali.
"Is she really a Longbottom? You were quite a popular witch at Hogwarts, weren't you Ginevra? Poor Neville died before she was born. We only have your word for it that she's his. I mean, you don't even use his name."
"You bitch! You've sunk to a new level, Rita. I'm making a formal complaint about you. Now get out of my way, and let me get my girls home," snapped Ginny.
Harry burst through the crowd. "Ginny," he called.
"Jay," called Ginny, almost sobbing in relief.
"Who's this, Ginevra? Your latest lover? What's his name? How close are you? Will you be leaving Quidditch to get married and settle down? The public wants to know," cried Rita.
"Who's the other girl, Ginny? Another daughter? You called them, 'my girls'. Are you leaving Quidditch? Tell us, Ginny," called another reporter.
"Alice, hey, Alice, what do you know about your Dad? Who's this guy, Alice? Who's your little friend? What's it like having Ginny Weasley for your Mum?"
Harry saw Ali and Lily huddled together. Ginny was in front of them, protecting them as best she could. Harry could see the girls were crying, looks of shock on their face.
The crowd surged forward. The girls stepped back in fear, and Ali tripped over. Ginny turned as she heard Ali let out a little cry as she fell.
Harry yelled at the crowd to stop, but no-one paid him any attention. He could hear Rita saying to her photographers to get photos of a fallen Ali.
Harry didn't stop to think. As if Ginny could read his mind, she stepped back and wrapped her arms around Lily. Harry bent down to pick up Ali, who buried her face in his neck. He turned back to put his free arm around Ginny. With a scathing look at the crowd, he Apparated them out of the store.
"Get back, you vultures. Rita, I can't believe you. Picking on defenceless kids now. Let me tell you, I wouldn't be surprised if Ginny doesn't take out a restraining order against you," yelled Susan.
"The public have a right to know, Auror Bones. Like, how a certain Auror has moved so quickly up the department, and what did she have to do to get there?" asked Rita, in a sickly acidic voice.
Susan paled. "You lot, clear off. All of you, you're blocking the Alley. Move now, or I'll start to arrest you for loitering. NOW!" she yelled.
They all moved off, except for Rita, who smiled evilly at her. "My, my, someone certainly is carrying a lot of tension around. My dear, surely there is something, or someone, you can do to relieve it? Or are you running out of partners, my dear?"
Susan took a step forward, till she was just inches away from Rita's face. "Fuck you!" she hissed. She took a step away, then turned back. "And you can quote me on that, you bitch!"
Rita simply smirked at her, then Apparated away. Susan threw a nasty look at some people who were still hanging around, and they quickly walked away. After checking that no-one else had been hurt, and that no damage had been done, Susan Apparated back to the office. She had a lot of thinking to do.
Meanwhile, Harry and his girls arrived at the Burrow. They Apparated into the garden. Harry remained steady as they landed, yet Ginny was unsteady. Harry brushed a kiss on her forehead as she clung to him. He could still feel her shaking. So was Ali.
Ginny backed away from him, and checked to see if Lily was okay. Harry tried to set Ali down, but she clung to him, and wouldn't let him go.
"Shh. Shh, now, it's all right, Ali. We're not in Diagon Alley any more. Look around you, sweetheart. You're at your grandparents house. Come on sweety, ssh now," crooned Harry.
It only made Ali cry harder, so Harry got up and walked around with her, rocking her. Ginny had tears in her eyes, as she watched Harry be so caring and gentle with her daughter. She held Lily close, transferring her love from one daughter to another.
"Ginny! Ginny, love, what's wrong?" called Arthur and Molly, running from the house to their little group.
Ginny shook her head, unable to speak. She was so shaken by what had happened. Harry was still rocking Ali, but she wasn't crying so much now. Ginny hugged Lily, while Molly gathered them both in her arms.
Arthur walked hurriedly over to Harry. "Ali, sweety, its Grandpa. You're safe, now. Come to me, sweety."
Ali lifted her head and took in the people around her. She leaned her head against Harry's shoulder, staring at her grandpa.
"Let's go and sit down," suggested Harry, keeping his arms around her. She tightened her grip on him. She felt safe in his arms.
Arthur nodded, and they walked back to the women. Molly and Arthur walked away with Lily, their arms around her. Harry was surprised they were treating Lily as if she was one of their own grandchildren.
Harry stopped in front of Ginny, giving mother and daughter a chance to talk. "Oh, Ali, love, I'm so sorry. So very sorry," whispered Ginny. Tears formed in her eyes, as she ran a hand over her daughter.
"It's not your fault, Mum," hiccuped Ali.
Harry gathered Ginny close, under his free arm. Ginny put her arm around his waist, and together, with Harry still holding Ali, they walked into the Burrow.
Molly was bustling around, making cups of tea and bringing out cake. Arthur was watching Harry carefully as he sat on the lounge. Harry was happy to let Ali decide if she wanted to stay close to him, or sit on the lounge. She chose to stay with him.
"So, hello again, James. Welcome to the Burrow," said Arthur.
"Thank you, sir. I must say, I've heard so much about it, from the girls, you know. It just seemed like the safest place to bring them," said Harry.
"What in Merlin's name happened?" asked Molly. She, Ginny and Lily were handing out cups or tea, with sugar in it. "For shock," explained Molly, as Ginny took a sip of hers and grimaced.
"I definitely prefer coffee these days," she complained, with a smile at Harry.
"Yuck," cried Ali, having had a sip of her tea.
"Try and have a bit more, darling," said Molly, gently.
"Jay, this is my Mum, Molly. You already met Dad at the Ministry, didn't you?"asked Ginny.
"Hello, ma'am," said Harry, nodding to her.
"Please, call me Molly," said Molly. "Ginny, what happened in Diagon Alley?"
"Well, the girls wanted to make some invitations for the birthday party, and I had to get some owl food and treats, so we thought we'd floo to Diagon Alley, pick up something for tea, then go home. We went to Scrivenshafts, and everything was fine. It was as we were leaving Magical Menagerie that we got ambushed by Rita Skeeter. It didn't take long to get the crowd all riled up, then other reporters showed up, too," explained Ginny.
"They were saying mean things about my Dad, about Mum and Dad," said Ali. She slipped off Harry's lap and sat next to Lily on the sofa. Lily grabbed her hand and held it, offering some small comfort.
"I don't know how Jay knew about it, but next thing I know, he and Susan came burrowing through the crowd to get to us. Rita was getting nasty, and the girls were scared. Ali tripped and fell, and it was just like the crowd surged forward. I was sure we were all going to get trampled. Jay simply picked Ali up, then Apparated us all here," said Ginny, visibly trembling as she re-lived the story.
"Gin, Gin are you here-thank Merlin?" sighed Ron, rushing in to the lounge. He came over and hugged his sister. He knelt down in front of Ali and Lily. He cupped Ali's face in his hand.
"You all right, Munchkin Number One?" he asked. She nodded, smiling at him.
"Munchkin Number Two?" he asked Lily. She giggled and nodded.
"Good," he sighed in obvious relief. He patted Harry on the shoulder. "You got them out of there? Good job," he said, as Harry nodded.
"We heard it on the wireless. Ron flooed us to yours, Ginny, then he flooed us here," said a voice from the kitchen.
Harry looked up to see a young woman walking slowly towards them. He recognised her from the photo on Ron's desk. However, the woman in front of him didn't look quite the same.
Her face and neck were scarred, and she walked with obvious pain. "Come on, love, come and sit down," said Ron, gently.
He quickly got up to help her, and lead her to a comfy chair. "James, this is my wife, Lavender. Love, this is my partner, James Evans. He's Rose's Dad," introduced Ron.
"Hello, it's nice to meet you," said Harry, trying to hide the shock on his face.
"Hello, James. It's nice to meet you, too. Of course, your daughter talks about you all the time," rasped Lavender.
"Easy, love," said Ron.
Molly brought her over a cup of tea. "Thanks, Mum," she said gratefully.
Ginny spoke up. "Thanks guys, for checking on me. Especially so soon, after..."
She didn't finish her statement, and Harry felt everybody knew what was unsaid, but him.
"I want to press charges. Or take out a restraining order on Rita Skeeter. I won't put up with that harassment, and I won't subject Ali or her friends to it, either," said Ginny, fiercely.
"About time. We've been telling you that for ages," said Ron, helping himself to a plate of biscuits.
Harry noted how attentive to his wife he was. He thought it was sweet. Obviously something was wrong with Lavender, and Ron looked after her on certain days.
"Your house was surrounded by the press. I don't think you should go back there tonight, Gin," said Ron.
"They were peering in the windows," rasped Lavender.
"My garden!" cried out Ali.
Ginny's eyes grew hard. "If they have so much as trampled one little flower in her garden, then I'm charging them with trespass, too," she cried.
Bill stumbled out of the floo. "Ginny? Ali, are you there? Mum, Dad, oh there you are. Merlin, Gin, are you all okay?"
Ginny opened her mouth, when her brother George called out from the kitchen. "Mum, Dad, is Gin and Ali there with you?"
"In here," called Molly, used to these sudden bursts of people arriving..
Harry stared in amazement as more and more people came through. Someone called Angelina, who seemed to be George's wife, came through, bursting into tears as she saw Ginny and Ali were safe.
"Hormones, mate," said George, as Harry looked worriedly at her. "She's preggers."
As Angelina's stomach looked ready to burst, Harry thought George had no need to explain.
"Ginevra? Alice, are you both all right?"
"In here, Percy," called Bill, Ron, Ginny and George.
Alice and Lily giggled.
As Ginny explained what had happened, Harry looked around at all the people. Bill's face was scarred too, although not as bad as Lavender's. Angelina was sitting on George's lap. Bill was pacing, while Percy was advising Ginny on her legal rights. Ron was calmly eating biscuits, constantly checking on his wife.
"Right, looks like a full house again for tea," said Molly, getting up and making her way to the kitchen.
"Girls, could you go and pick some nice veggies for tea," she called.
Ali and Lily got up and went outside.
"James, I'm Bill Weasley, Gin's oldest brother. I'm going to go to Gin's house and cast some wards. Did you want to come and help? Ron and George are coming, too."
Harry thought for a brief moment. "Just let me go tell the girls. I don't want them getting upset again. If they want me to stay, I'll stay." He went to find them outside.
Bill nodded, and smiled. His sister had found a winner there, that's for sure.
Harry looked around as he went outside. It was the strangest house he had ever seen. It was like they'd just added a layer to the house when they'd needed it. It sat on a large property. In the distance he could see a pond and some Quidditch hoops. Harry liked it. It had a homey feel to it.
"It's not much, but it's home," said Ron, from behind him.
"I think it's brilliant," said Harry, glancing over his shoulder at him.
Ron smiled and pointed. "The girls will be over there."
Harry found the girls. They smiled at him as he came closer. "I'd like to go with your uncles to set some special wards around your house, Ali. Would you girls mind if I left you here? Ginny is staying, and your grandparents, Ali."
"But you'll come back, right?" asked Lily. Ali looked equally concerned.
"Of course. We're all having tea here. I'll need you two to tell me who everybody is. There's a lot of Weasleys in that house," said Harry, chuckling.
"Wait till my birthday. Everyone will be here, then. Even Uncle Charlie is coming home, from Romania," said Ali, happily.
"Another brother?" groaned Harry.
Ali nodded. "Uncle Bill's the oldest, then Uncle Charlie, Uncle Percy, Uncles Fred and George, Uncle Ron and then Mum."
"I don't think I've met Fred," said Harry, frowning.
"That's cos he died in the Battle of Hogwarts. Like my Dad," said Ali, quietly.
"Oh," said Harry. "When's your birthday?"
"Soon. I was nearly born on the same day as my Dad, but I was one day late. My birthday's the thirty-first of July," said Ali.
"Hey, that's the same day as yours, Dad," said Lily, excitedly.
"Really?" asked Ali. Harry nodded. "It's also Harry Potter's birthday, so it's a holiday for everyone. Aren't we lucky?" she asked him.
Harry nodded again. He noticed Lily had her head down. Like her, he hated lying to this wonderful family.
"Jay, are you going with my brothers? They're ready to go," called Ginny, coming over to them.
"Hey, guess what Mum? Mr Evans and my birthdays are the same day. On Harry Potter's birthday! Isn't that something?" cried Ali.
Ginny gave him a look of surprise. "Wow, it is. So your birthday is soon, then? When's yours, Rose?"
"August eleventh," said Lily.
"Wow, that is so weird," said Ali.
Lily frowned. "What is?" she asked.
Harry looked at Ginny. She had a strange look on her face.
"Well, mine and your Dad's birthday is the same day, right?"
"Yeah, so?" asked Lily.
"And yours and Mum's is the same day. August eleven!" cried Ali.
They all turned to stare at Ginny, who nodded.
"It's true," she said.
