Chapter Twenty-Five

The following week the Soul bonds and their friends had made their way down to breakfast after their first-morning exercise in the room of requirement and found Lockhart nowhere to be found, apparently, he had decided to have his breakfast in his own quarters for his own safety which amused everyone to no end. Ever since his nightmare Harry felt like he had turned a corner emotionally, he had been at a standstill with his Occlumency for a while and now he knew why. This last memory was a particularly nasty one and Harry had to admit the way the brain worked was kind of fascinating. He had been very young at the time and his childlike brain had obviously thought that he was too sensitive to handle what had happened and so had separated that particular night with his Uncle Vernon and hid it away safely until he could handle it.

Shaking off any residual feeling from the previous night he walked into the great hall with a huge smile on his face and Ginny's hand in his. All of them sat together that morning and chatted with Cedric, Angelina, and Oliver about their holiday and upcoming Quidditch match just being children. None of them were expecting what happened next but a girly squeal from the Ravenclaw table caused them all to turn around and they saw Cho Chang smirking at Harry and Ginny as if she had been given the Crown Jewels. Cho was a very pretty girl but along with Lavender Brown they flaunted that about themselves and Harry thought that was the most off-putting quality about people...right up there with Lockhart.

"You guys got engaged!?" Ginny and Harry were confused for a fraction of a second before Katie Bell presented them with the Daily Prophet and a front-page article featuring Harry, Ginny, Draco and Daphne and all to do with Sirius party, Luna found it hilarious and hid her face in Neville's shoulder as she laughed at the expense of her four friends.

"The Boy who gets Hitched?" Harry was disgusted and saw the byline of Rita Skeeter and was thoroughly irritated and as he looked around at the others then two had looks of disgust on their faces.

'Many changes were in the air over the Christmas holiday but none more so than the love life of the Wizarding Worlds own Saviour Harry Potter and his friend Draco Malfoy. The New Year's Eve bash of former Azkaban resident Lord Sirius Black was the most exciting event of the holiday season and the place to be on New Year's Eve.'

Harry felt like he was listening to a train wreck waiting to happen and yet he couldn't bring himself to ask Hermione to stop reading aloud, everyone in the hall at this point was listening in and you could almost hear a pin drop.

'Lord Black himself was a gracious host as was his cousin Narcissa Black formally Malfoy who looked quite stunning on the very young and very handsome arm of Charlie Weasley. It seems after the disgrace of the ex-husband and shamed death eater Lucius Malfoy the thirty-four-year-old witch has developed a taste for much younger men and less status, although as wealthy as Narcissa Black is it became clear she doesn't need a man with Stature anyway. Is Charlie Weasley only with Narcissa for her money or could this be true love? From what this reporter witnessed it appears to be the real deal but see for yourself?' Below was a picture of Charlie gazing into Narcissa's eyes looking very much in love but Draco was furious and knew his mother would be also when she saw it.

'As for the young MR Potter he had on his arm the youngest of the Weasley clan Miss Ginnifer Weasley' Ginny laughed out loud at that as did Luna Harry, however, was not amused by the whole thing never mind a name mishap.

'Miss Weasley certainly looked the part on the young Lord Potters arm but lacks the correct breeding to be a serious suitor for Harry, the black dress she was wearing looked similar and so after a little investigating the archives proved that the dress belonged to none other than the late Lily Potter. Although she is only twelve years of age young Ginnifer lacked the certain flair of Lady Potter...let we hope she gains it as the years go on.' All of them were furious at this point and Ginny looked a little bit hurt at that statement and Harry just grabbed her by the hand and placed a soft kiss on her lips causing all of the girls in the room to either be insanely jealous or swoon at how cute his gesture was and how gorgeous of a couple the two second years Hermione read on you could clearly see everyone with their own newspapers following along including some of the staff at this point. Their attention was brought down to an old Photograph of Lily Potter beside Ginny wearing the same dress.

'Although breeding has never mattered to the Potters before as the late Lily Potter was a Muggleborn and also had no formal Wizarding world introduction she thrived in our world as she grew into a beautiful young woman and we have no doubt the young pureblood Weasley will be no different as the years continue on...with Young Mr. Potter taking up his Fathers Role Of Lord young Ginny will have big shoes to fill as she takes over from Lady Potter whom despite her upbringing performed better than anyone expected politically.' This woman had the audacity to insult and then offer up praise of not only Ginny but also his mother, she made people sound like monkeys performing at a zoo and it made Harry sick, he was absolutely livid. It seemed as if Rita Skeeter did not know when to close her mouth as the article continued on and he knew it was probably going to get a lot worse.

'It was, however, the Potter Family Ring on Miss Weasley's hand which caused a stir and it seemed to be a trend as the young Malfoy heir had also placed a ring on his dates finger. Daphne Greengrass was sporting the Malfoy coat of Arms on her finger and one can only assume the four kids got engaged whether this is a political move or an act of Puppy love we will soon find out.' The four shared a smile at each other at that moment and laughed at everyone's expressions around them and would have loved to see their parents and guardians reactions to the article.

'Stay tuned to find out more but from what this reporter seen it is the real deal between the youngsters' Although the woman was an idiot they knew that by giving Ginny and Daphne the rings it was going to cause a stir in the Wizarding world they just hoped to get some more time but that didn't seem to be in the cards unfortunately. The rest of the paper showed Photographs and articles from the party detailing Lord Griffin and his idiotic insult to the guest's hosts along with a photograph of Charlie and Narcissa dancing and kissing. Someone had also managed to capture Draco punching the idiot and showed the eight soul bonds talking amongst their friends who were invited with their parents causing them to get accosted by questions. Furthermore, it even went on to introduce Hermione, Dan and Emma in the society pages as it seemed that Hermione's dress had caused a stir amongst the fashionistas of the Wizarding world and she was a fashion Guru which made her blush and give all of the credit to Narcissa for helping her. The rest of breakfast passed by with everyone staring at them so they all stood up and went to leave and get ready for their first day back at classes, with no one really knowing what to say to everyone they spent the majority of the day stuck to one another hoping it would all blow over.

—-

That evening Narcissa was finishing off her packing when a small and timid knock sounded from her bedroom, Sirius was standing in the doorframe looking a little bit odd, he almost looked almost nervous and she couldn't understand why. It made her want to double check her suitcase to make sure there were no pranks hidden somewhere. Her cousin was not known for his subtlety and the awkwardness of his demeanor standing in the doorway was anything but Sirius-like.

"Hey, cousin! Charlie is here...do you need a hand with your bags?" She shook her head and he saw there was only one bag on the bed. "Is that all you are taking? Seriously you? I would have expected a lot more suitcases." She smiled at him and lifted up a gorgeous Silk and Lace black and mint green strappy nightdress and waved it in his face.

"Trust me, cousin, we will not need many clothes..." She actually saw him blush at her and she did not think she ever would have had the opportunity to make a Marauder blush like a schoolboy never mind her own cousin whom if she didn't know his true feelings for Amy would accuse of being a pervert.

"Well forgive me...how are you feeling anyway?" She gave him a look and almost asked him if he was being serious before he held up his hands at her in surrender. "Sorry, that was inappropriate to ask I just meant you have never been with anyone since Lucius and you are my baby cousin. I want to take care of you..." She smiled at him and walked over to kiss him on the cheek.

"Thank you...I do appreciate it Siri...now I have to ask what is the matter with you?" He beamed an even brighter red and his whole body language looked like he wanted to run for the hills and that was her second clue of the night.

"What do you mean? Nothing wrong? Why would anything be wrong?" She raised her eyebrows at him and he knew he was in trouble.

"Ok, now I know something is going on..." She zipped her case closed and went to leave the room before he hung his head in shame and closed her bedroom door behind him. "For a Marauder, you are a terrible liar..." She smiled at him before something dawned on her and she panicked a little bit. "Has something happened to the kids?" He immediately shook his head and didn't want her to think the worst.

"No no nothing like that it's just well your relationship with Charlie is officially out...there was an article in the Daily Prophet but look don't be worrying about it. Go and enjoy your holiday and don't give it another thought..." They arrived at the bottom of the stairs and saw Charlie there waiting on them in his black leather jacket.

"Where is this article?" She stopped and Charlie looked at Sirius irritated that he told her about it and he took her hand to try and calm her down slightly.

"Look, babe, it's not important...let's just go and enjoy ourselves." She shook her head just as Dobby popped into view.

"Is Mistress Cissy and Mr. Dragon Man Charlie ready to go?" She nodded her head at him and asked him if he could take their luggage on ahead and get the residence ready. They were heading to Gryffindor Island which belonged to Ginny, it was given to Yelena Gryffindor as a present and so Ginny and Harry offered it to Charlie and Narcissa as a Christmas gift. The Elder Weasley was excited to actually see the Island where Godric Gryffindor had lived. Once the elf popped away to their destination her attention was captured by a newspaper sitting on the table in front of her and before the two men in the room could do anything she conjured the paper and started reading. Surprisingly it wasn't too bad truth be told she thought it would be worse and considering it was Rita Skeeter well let's just say she is anything but reputable.

"How dare that woman call Ginny lower breeding I have half a mind to strangle her..." Narcissa had become very protective of all of the children. She spent another five minutes reading the article before she set it down and went over to Charlie.

"We are going to go on Holiday and when we get back I am gonna light a fire under Rita Skeeter arse...for now tell Draco we are working on it and I will call him on the mirror in a few days?" The man in question nodded his head at his cousin and she took Charlie's hand in her own before a Portkey whisked them both away from the Manor and left leaving Sirius amazed at how well that went. As they found their feet they took a second to take in their surroundings and were in awe, in front of them was a huge black gate quite similar to that of Hogwarts and large green fields. None of them knew where to look first, a large stone bridge stood in front of them both and as they made their way across it the came to large Griffins on either side of the stone steps leading up to the door. More extravagance met them as Dobby swung the door open and had a face like poison.

"Dobby thought he is being the only elf...Dobby most aggrieved to find other elves..." Narcissa and Charlie stepped into the foyer and were met with what appeared to be ten house elves with amazed faces staring at the couple with awe and excitement.

"Master and Mistress Gryffindor!" A little one looked up expectantly and Narcissa felt a little bit strange considering she was a Slytherin through and through. She held up her hand a lifted out her mirror from her pocket and called Harry's name into it. Harry's face popped up and looked at his pseudo mother for all intents and purposes with a huge grin. "Is everything ok?" She laughed at him and turned the mirror around to see all of these little faces peering at him in confusion.

"I was not aware There were elves here..." Narcissa did not really know what to do and only Harry could command them anyway so she was stuck between a rock and a hard place.

"Oh crap...after Potter Manor I meant to go around all of my properties and check for this kind of thing..umm hi...this is Narcissa and Charlie they are my family and will be staying for a while...I would love to meet all of you but I am back at school but I will see if my head of house will let me away to come and meet you all soon." They all seemed excited at that prospect and began fawning all over their guests and Harry held up his thumbs before saying farewell and leaving the couple alone. Four hours, dinner and a tour later Charlie and Narcissa had made it to their room and both of them sat down on the edge of the bed and smiled. Finally being alone Charlie suggested a swim in the heated pool outside to which she nodded her head and after getting ready in the bathroom she threw on a silk bathrobe and they both made their way downstairs to the pool on the terrace. A glass of champagne each was waiting for each of them and they both knocked it back pretty quickly, Charlie lifted his shirt off and dove into the water and as he broke the surface Narcissa was standing at the top of the steps with a smile on her face.

"What's wrong? Aren't you coming in?" He asked her and she just smirked causing him to feel both excited and nervous and the awkward and slightly frightened look she was giving him.

"Well considering a pool was not something I expected from Godric Gryffindor...I didn't bring a suit?" He quirked his eyebrow and she opened her bathrobe to reveal not a stitch and considering it was Charlie's first time seeing her completely naked she took his breath away and he was mesmerised as she walked down the steps towards him and smiled as he wrapped his arms around her feeling her skin against his for the first time with no barriers.

"You are stunning...I love you..." She smiled at him and pulled his lips down to hers and it was as if the floodgates opened. Narcissa had never felt the love part you are supposed to feel when making love but with Charlie it was extraordinary. Charlie Weasley was not exactly experienced when it came to women but with Narcissa, everything was so natural for him. He wanted to love her and prove to her she was worthy of love but the way she was kissing him was almost too much.

"Be gentle with me..." He said and she smiled at him before the frenzied kissing made way for soft and slow explorations of each other's body and truth be told it was beyond magical for the both of them and continued on for hours. The following morning they both woke up wrapped in each other's arms and as the older woman woke up first she saw her much younger boyfriend lying beside her and she did not feel insecure in any way. He did not see their age gap and he had spent the whole night previous worshipping her body and she worshipping his. Now she knew what the feeling of making love and even though he had been with people before it was not anything serious and he had only ever had sex with one person and so both Charlie and Narcissa had spent the night learning each other's bodies and it was even better than she could have possibly imagined.

"Why are you thinking so hard?" He quirked his eyebrow in a much similar way to the night previous and pulled her closer to him before kissing the crevice between her neck and chest.

"I am so blissfully happy..." He smiled and sat up on his elbow so he was slightly above her and nodded.

"Me too...I never knew it could be like this...your smile, your voice and your body I have never felt so connected to another human being." He leaned down and kissed her whilst running his spare hand down her body before coming to rest on a scar on her stomach. He had seen it before but never asked her about it, now he had seen and loved every inch he felt that he could ask her now.

"What happened here?" She went to cover it with her hands but he was too quick and shook his head before holding onto her hands to stop them. She knew she didn't have anything to be worried about and she knew he found her extremely attractive and a scar is not going to change that but she hated even thinking about her life before him, it made her feel dirty and unworthy.

"When I married Lucius before Draco was born he was one of Voldemort's most loyal follower as was my sister Bellatrix. If you are a woman within the death eater ranks and have the mark you are respected because you had to kill or torture to get it..." Charlie was uncomfortable but not with her just because he did not know where this was going but it couldn't have been good considering she had no Dark Mark on her arm.

"You don't have to tell me..." She shook her head at him and she wanted to tell him, the only person that knew the story was Andi and Emma Granger after too many glasses of wine and both helped her deal with it.

"No, I want to...umm...so the likes of my sister was a well-respected death eater...I was the wife of one and not as worthy. I didn't bear the mark and Voldemort asked him to share me...I was pretty and there were several men in his ranks that would appreciate me..." Charlie felt sick to his stomach and didn't know if he did, in fact, want to know what had happened to this vibrant beautiful woman.

"Lucius to his credit refused...saying we were trying for a child and if I was to get pregnant that it was to be his child, not anyone else's mutt. Nothing about inappropriate behavior just his own heir he needed. He didn't share me around that day but Voldemort Crucioed me and I miscarried...a little girl...I had to go to St Mungos where they had to open me up because of the exposure to the Crucio and my insides were a mess. I was lucky to have Draco apparently because of the tissue that was scarred...my scar had to be opened up again when he was being born because he was in distress and my body wasn't progressing the way it should have done..." He held onto her for grim death and leaned down to kiss the scar on her stomach before placing small pepper like kisses the whole way up her body leaving goosebumps in their wake.

"You are the most beautiful and courageous woman in the world...I can't believe you are mine." She smiled at him and pushed him over onto his back and straddled his waist before kissing him. They spent the rest of the week exploring almost every inch of the house including the library and the maze outside, Charlie Weasley was a man addicted to Narcissa Black. A couple of years ago he would not be able to fathom it but he had her and now he was never letting her go. When it came time to leave Harry had managed to convince Minnie to let all of the soul bonds out of school on Saturday.

They were all accompanied by a parent or Guardian and Siri was meeting her there with Harry and Draco. After finding the house elves in Potter Manor and Gryffindor Castle they all decided to visit their properties to ensure no elves were left behind. In total Harry had accumulated fifty-seven House elves from his properties alone, Ginny had twenty-seven. The majority decided to stay and to coordinate with the Black and Potter elves whilst Harry was at school. Draco had thirty elves whilst Daphne had fifteen all of which decided to stay and coordinate with both the Black and Greengrass elves. Luna had forty-seven and Neville had twenty-three, they decided to stay also with two going to stay with Mr. Lovegood to help him out and the other coordinating with the Longbottom elves.

Hermione at first had a problem owning elves but after their magic was explained she wanted to help them in true Hermione fashion. She had accumulated thirty-two elves and Ron surprisingly had thirteen and two of Ron's went to help his Mother with cooking and cleaning etcetera and the one of Hermione's was assigned to her parents and a young elf called Twiffy decided to take on that responsibility and Sirius found it hilarious at Dan's stuttering with the elf who shoved him in the chair and gave him a foot rub. All in all the elves were beyond ecstatic at the Founders Descendants returning and had immediately bonded with their new masters leaving eight very tired children returning to Hogwarts to pass out as soon as their heads hit the pillow and Narcissa and Charlie to fall fast asleep also considering the busy week they had.

—

The first few weeks of classes had passed well for the eight children and their training and dueling practices were going well. After the article, everyone seemed to die down and treat them the way they always had which ever since the whole Chamber of Secrets fiasco was actually worse than usual. On their way back to their Common room, however, they stopped dead in their tracks and felt fearful again. Ever since the Christmas holidays, they had been lulled into a false sense of security and now all of their dread and trepidation from last year was coming back tenfold. Lying in front of them all was Colin Creevey with his camera sitting in front of his face petrified, they instantly activated their bracelets to call for Severus and Minerva, surprising both teachers by how sensible they were being. Within two minutes both teachers had arrived and the young boy was taken to stay with the others to the hospital Wing and Pomona was advised there was another victim that needed The restoration draught.

"Professor I really don't know how we are going to stop this but someone is going to get killed." Harry knew they knew this but all of these people were innocent and they needed to figure out a way to fix it. Harry had given Severus and Flitwick permission to tell the other teachers what was going on and some Auror patrols had been set up but by the looks of things, the culprit had been able to evade them. It was starting to freak out all of the students that nothing had been able to be done about it and so the whole way between then and Valentines Day was spent on eggshells with worry. The Twins being who they were felt like the whole school needed a pick me up and so create a prank worthy of Valentine's Day with Harry's Help, of course, Unfortunately, it wasn't going to be just the Defense teacher who got it today.

All of the known and unknown couples were going to be apart of something collective that no one knew about, not even the twins. Lockhart albeit not a part of a couple was being singled out with a little something extra. Breakfast started out relatively normal except for the influx of owls with Valentines for everyone. Katie Bell got one from her new boyfriend Oliver Wood a relationship which surprised the soul bonds, Harry, Draco, Neville, and Ron, of course, got Valentine's cards, chocolate and roses for their girls. The girls in turn for them a card and something else but the boys were going to get it later in the room of requirement. Before anyone could notice anything else the boys of the crowd who were a part of a relationship were sporting matching Pink hair and the girls were sporting bright red hair. Severus did not look amused whereas Aurora was taking it in her stride.

Small whistles greeted everybody and as they turned toward the door in walked Lockhart with Pink hair and whistling shoes that twit twooed with every step he had taken. Once he was greeted by almost all of the entire student body with Pink and Red hair he seemed to relax slightly knowing that it wasn't just him that had fallen, victim. For all of the students and teachers not in a relationship, every time they spoke bright pink and blue bubbles appeared from their mouth which made Dumbledores speech all the better if you would have asked Harry. The rest of the day passed in an array of studying and chilling out, the souls bonds decided to avoid the main Valentines meal in the great hall and head to the room of requirement. Apparently, the girls had something special planned for them all and the boys were intrigued.

—

Narcissa was not generally an easy woman to make nervous but as she put her finishing touches on her makeup in preparation for her Valentines Date with her boyfriend she could not help but welcome the butterflies in her stomach. All week long Charlie kept dropping hints about Valentines Day and the something special he had planned for her but would not give her anything more than Dressy/ Casual so she put on a pair of dark wash blue jeans with knee-high boots and green silk top with her hair left down her back. Ever since their little trip away they both as a couple had reached fever heights and knew that the only way was up for them both. She slowly made her way downstairs and saw Sirius and Remus standing looking completely different. Remus had on blue jeans and a white t-shirt whereas Sirius had on a white shirt and tie with black trousers and a suit jacket.

"Where exactly are you boys going this evening?" She smiled at her cousin as he tugged on the closed collar of his shirt in annoyance.

"Well, Dora has never been to a Muggle concert before so we are going to see someone called The Cure...I personally have never heard of them but apparently, they are good..." She smiled at him and knowing nothing of Muggle Music then she just assumed that despite the name it would be a good night out.

"What about you?" She aimed her question at Sirius who was getting more and more uncomfortable by the second.

"Well, both Amelia and I have never been to the Opera so I thought it would be nice to treat her to dinner and then a show." Both women appeared with Dora dressed down in ripped jeans, a white off the shoulder t-shirt and the craziest boots ever. Bright yellow doc martins completed her outfit and Amelia had on a beautiful red dress that fit her like a glove.

"You both look lovely..." Charlie came through the door dressed casual and walked up to his gorgeous girlfriend and kissed her on the lips.

"So where exactly are you both going tonight?" Apparently, Sirius was like a big child and could not understand how Narcissa was ok with not knowing what was happening. Charlie, in turn, tapped his nose and they all said their farewells before moving off to their own destinations. As Charlie and Narcissa apparated away from the house they landed in Diagon Alley in front of a rather large storefront. Narcissa was confused for a second before looking at Charlie in frustration.

"What's going on?" Charlie fished out a key from his pocket and unlocked the door which shimmered for a second before they both walked into a large empty shop floor with a table for two set up in the middle. "Charlie..." He knew he would have to explain himself and so he let go of her hand and flipped on the fairy lights behind him with his wand.

"When I saw your plans in the bedroom I knew you had such an amazing idea...I wanted to invest in it so I decided to start looking at spaces available and it was actually Draco whom came to me and told me that both Harry and Hermione both had property in Diagon Alley." She smiled at him in disbelief and looked around at her surroundings.

"Now if you don't like the location that is fine but I have bought the deed in your name and well the children are very excited about it. Imagine a long bar here and a kitchen back there where Dan can cook up some of those amazing Things he creates. Bookshelves all throughout here with both Muggle and magical titles. It can be whatever you want it to be babe..." She was in absolute awe of him and she walked over to him and kissed him square on the face and he immediately returned it.

"I love it...and you...this is amazing I can't believe you bought this for me!" He smiled at her and shrugged his shoulders at her.

"I got a good deal and damn those kids can drive a hard bargain." She smiled at him and kissed him again before he led her over to a table for two and pulled out her chair for her to sit in.

"Now what we have here is garlic and rosemary ciabatta with Spaghetti Bolognese or Carbonara...both loaded with garlic so we can both reek of it. For dessert, we have a choice of Salted Caramel Cheesecake or Sticky Toffee Pudding. Made courtesy of Dan Granger with Twiffy's help." She smiled at him and giggled before they got tucked in and she told him all of her plans she had to get everyone else on board still but hopefully that will not be a problem.

—

The eight children had all met in the Room of Requirement and saw four tables sitting in different places throughout the room, the girls apparently had decided to treat the boys to dinner, and it didn't look elf made either.

"What's going on?" They all looked rather nervous as they sat down on their corresponding chairs and soup and a Salad appeared in front of them.

"Well were are having dinner away from prying eyes...ever since that article came out people have been staring at us and watching and waiting on baited breath for us to do something..." They were getting very irritated with everyone's obsession with them and were grateful for the time alone. "We all decided to ask the elves permission to use the kitchen and cook dinner for you all." All of the boys smiled at the four of them and they all sat down to enjoy their Valentines day meal. Once dinner was over Hermione produced a large spherical ball with Runes etched all over it causing the boys to look even more confused. Within seconds the tables were gone and a lot of blankets and pillows had appeared on the floor with a blank white wall in front of it.

"What is that?" Hermione smiled at them all before the other three girls sat down on their respective male shift bed with the boys following behind.

"This is a memory ball...Narcissa had one they are very expensive but she let me borrow this one for tonight...Sirius and Remus tweaked it slightly..." The ball in question began to hover and after Hermione tapped it with her wand a large image projected out of it and it was opening credits for a movie.

"So without further ado, I present to you Back to the Future..." They spent the rest of the night watching movies and then all passed out in the Fort that the room had created for them and that is exactly how their friends found them the following morning. Luckily the twins, Cedric, Susan, Dean and Seamus did not give them too much grief and they just laughed at the children with a promise that they too wanted to see a movie.