Chapter 28 - Changes

The second half of the year quieted down with all of the friends busy in their jobs and other pursuits. The two newlywed couples enjoyed their changed status, although they honestly didn't see much change in their daily schedules and activities. Still, all four acknowledged that knowing they were magically bound did cause an intrinsic difference. Ron and Hermione had briefly discussed moving out of Grimmauld, but Harry and Ginny persuaded them otherwise. The large house had plenty of room and neither couple was ready to start adding on to their families yet. Having Ron and Hermione stay would also give them time to save and consider where they wanted to live.

July gradually waned and August dawned with record high temperatures that would not let up for most of the month. Harry was still working his special assignment assisting Robards in the office, but Ron was on a moving surveillance detail tracking one of the younger generation from a Death Eater family. Several nights he returned to Grimmauld grumbling about the abominable heat and the fact that all of his surveillance seemed to be outside. Often he was even limited on casting cooling charms, as he had to avoid detection. Finally, on the second of September, his hard work paid off just as the weather began to break. The small team that he was heading up had enough evidence of illegal dealings to finally set a trap and arrest Antigonus Gibbon. Unfortunately, the young man was not taken easily and managed to fire off a couple of quick spells before he was incapacitated. One of these hit Ron in the hip. The damage was superficial, but still meant a few hours at St. Mungo's getting the muscle and skin repaired. Hermione had been in class when Robards had sent a junior Auror to deliver the news. Ron was on desk duty for the last couple of days of the week, but by the next Monday, Robards had a new assignment for him. Ron tried to downplay the incident, but he was left with yet another noticeable scar. Hermione tried to remain supportive, but each small incident brought back old fears. She knew who she had married and was resigned to the dangers as much as she could be, but no amount of resignation helped to calm her on the days when Ron was undercover and gone for longer spells with no word home.

Summer also brought a seeming flurry of engagements for the group of friends. First, Padma and Parvati announced that they were marrying the Malone cousins in a double fall wedding in October. The timeline was tight, but both wanted a fall wedding and were not willing to wait another year. The following Thursday it was Hannah who was proudly showing off the large sapphire ring that Neville had presented to her when he proposed following a romantic picnic. They planned on allowing longer for planning, with a tentative date earlier the following year. One week later brought the even more startling announcement from Cho that she was marrying her muggle business partner and boyfriend in one month on September 22nd. More than a few were a bit surprised at the sudden announcement and correctly guessed the reason for the speedy wedding since Cho was due to deliver their first child in early March. Shortly after Cho's announcement, Lee started to nudge Zach, who had remained unusually quiet. When he refused to speak up, George took the hint from Lee and decided to find out what was up.

"So Zacchy boy, anything you want to tell us? Haven't seen you bring a pretty bird to dinner in a while. Going through a bit of a dry spell?"

"Not exactly…"

"Exactly what?"

Zach sighed. He wasn't as tight with the larger group as a lot of the other DA members were, but still Lee was one of his best friends and he and Neville had relied on each other during the hard days of the Carrows occupation of Hogwarts. It wasn't really something he wanted to be embarrassed about. In truth, when he had first planned on coming to dinner, he had planned on telling the group, but then Cho made her announcement. He and Cho had once been a hot item and he regretted not ending things with her properly. It didn't seem to be the time for his own news delivery.

"Really everyone, let's focus on Cho and Wes. A toast to the happy couple and their soon to be new arrival…"

Everyone agreed and a loud toast went up around the table. Once George finished his especially ribald addition to the toast, Cho set her glass down and looked at her ex-boyfriend.

"Alright Zach, I appreciate the thought, but you are not going to keep me and everyone else wondering. What is up? By the way, I might suggest that arguing with a pregnant witch is not advisable."

That comment brought a round of chuckling from everyone, including Minerva, who had made it to a DA dinner for the first time in a month and seemed to be quite enjoying Harry's good wine and the companionable atmosphere.

Zach sighed and nodded as he reached into an inside pocket of his jacket and withdrew what looked like a small piece of paper.

"Alright everyone, I also had an announcement. I planned to tell you this before, but then Cho made her announcement and I wanted this to be her night. We're all friends here, but you all know that I wasn't always the kindest to her when we were together. For that I apologize Cho. I'm glad you've found yourself a good man. As for me, I am still looking for my match. You all remember Charlie, the muggle I was dating and introduced you to about six months ago?"

Everyone nodded as Lee spoke up.

"Ooh yes, that delicious blonde muggle. I take it you broke up with her? Did she not handle the news about you being a wizard?"

"Actually, I never told her, at least not before we broke up, shortly after you all met her. Just too many differences and disagreements on life goals. Well, that's changed now. Charlie made me a father nine days ago. My son's name is Robert Stephen Smith. She agreed to let him carry my name."

The table was suddenly quiet as everyone took in the bombshell announcement. Zach took the piece of paper, which was actually a static muggle picture of cherubic bald newborn, and passed it to Neville on his right, who then passed it on as the picture made it around to everyone. After Cho took a good look at the picture, she broke the silence.

"Well Zach, congratulations. So, what are your plans with Charlie? Does she know you're a wizard now? The boy could start showing signs of accidental magic soon if he's a wizard."

"Yes, I know. We've been broken up for almost six months. She didn't realize she was pregnant until she was almost four months. Or at least that's what she told me. Once I knew, I agreed to support her and I've been giving her a bit each month to help with bills. Her parents never were fond of me, but the fact that I'm helping her has warmed them up a bit. We both agreed we shouldn't marry just because of Robbie. Still, I will be a part of his life. Two weeks before he was born, I got clearance from the Ministry to tell her and her parents about the magic world. A Ministry official was there to ensure the proper oaths were taken. It was very hard and, if the official hadn't been there, I might have had to use some defensive spells to keep her mother off me. Charlie took it better than them and was actually a bit glad that it explained my secrecy. Robbie hasn't shown signs yet, but Charlie knows what to watch for and I usually see him once a week or so."

Once again, everyone took a moment to absorb the news. Hermione was the next to speak up.

"Wow, that makes three weddings, including one double, a new baby and another on the way all announced in the last couple of weeks. And within the last several months another new baby and two other weddings. I guess none of us is wasting time."

That comment brought a chorus of chuckling from around the table, although Minerva just nodded before joining the conversation.

"Indeed. It's much the same as with the first war. The first two years after the war it seemed like I was attending a wedding or visiting a new arrival every other month. Actually, the lot of you has taken things a bit slower than the previous generation did after the first war. I also saw the same after the muggle war in the forties. Magical or muggle, the reaction is the same. Once a war is over, primal instincts seem to drive the survivors to rebuild and replenish."

Harry suppressed a laugh at the notion of replenishing. It was an interesting way to consider things. Still, he and Ginny were being careful to wait on their own replenishing. He loved the idea of having his own family, but had agreed to give Ginny a few years playing Quidditch first. Hermione was much the same, wanting to finish her extra schooling and get her career established. After all, they were still in their early twenties. Actually, Ginny was just 19. It was hard to believe they were still so young. Some days Harry felt fifty. Anyway, it seemed that their friends would be providing plenty of little ones to cuddle if they wanted. Then there was Teddy. The boy was now a feisty toddler who loved to keep his 'aunts' and 'uncles' on their toes whenever he came visiting.

The picture of little Robbie finished making the rounds and Zach carefully tucked it back into his pocket as dinner resumed and wedding plans were discussed. Tony had his notebook out and was taking random notes, as the gears began turning as he and Cho discussed wedding details. With the way the DA was pairing off, they would keep their friend busy for a while yet. The rest of the dinner passed happily and then everyone retired to the living room for drinks and more conversation. Minerva left not long after, claiming that old bones needed rest. She hugged each of her former charges and wished them all well. Over the next couple of hours, the friends gradually drifted home after another fine Thursday night dinner.

While the summer began to pass, life moved on as plans for weddings progressed. For Susan and Ernie, they were enjoying the early months of being new parents. Andrew was a happy baby for the most part, although he was doted on so much that if he had to cry for longer than a few minutes he would quickly grow mad. Ernie's mum quashed early ideas that they had about hiring a nanny. Ernie was an only child and his mum relished having a tiny one around again. Ernie's office was down the hall from his father's, in a converted old carriage house on the estate and a modest walk from the manor. His mum soon developed a routine where she would take Andrew to the Prophet at lunch for Susan to feed him, then return to Ernie's office, where the babe would spend most of his afternoon napping in a cradle near his father while his grandmum attended to other duties. Susan would then make sure she was home promptly to feed him, although she sometimes had to bring home articles for review later in the evening. After the attempted mutiny at the Prophet, things had settled down and she was finally feeling better about the course the paper was on. In the month following the incident, another half dozen people who were unhappy with the new management left, adding to the workload of the overstretched staff. Susan herself even pitched in to help write a couple of small articles between her editor duties. Within a few months, the gaps began to get filled with young talent that Susan carefully selected with Harry's approval. Gradually the tone of the paper changed across all sections and the overall readership increased a bit each month. Some in the wizarding community still sniffed and spoke disdainfully of the changes, but for the most part the general attitude was a tempered approval. As for Harry, he felt that his goals with the paper were finally coming to fruition. He had spent a lot to secure his large majority percentage, but even the goblins acknowledged the wisdom of the investment at his last meeting with them.

Soon the date for Cho's wedding arrived and all of the friends found themselves at a fancy hotel in west London that was owned by a couple of squibs and quietly catered to both the magical and muggle communities. The hotel was close to two hundred years old and elaborately elegant, offering several large spaces to choose from for events. Wes had little family other than his parents, who were aware of the magical world, so they had opted for a muggle luncheon for all of his friends and few family. They were informed that the ceremony had been a small civil affair prior to the luncheon, with only a few immediate family in attendance. In reality, the ceremony was scheduled for the afternoon after the luncheon. Following the magical ceremony, a full catered dinner was arranged with all of Cho's family, business associates and friends, as well as Wes's parents in attendance.

The hotel was a perfect setting, with a small function room in the north wing dedicated to the luncheon and the formal ballroom in the east wing dedicated for the ceremony and dinner. The spaces were spaced well apart, allowing the couple to 'leave' the building after the luncheon and then attend to the second half of the functions on the other side of the hotel. Given the short notice, Tony had once again worked his own unique magic, along with his capable staff, and assembled an amazing fall themed wedding using creams, oranges, and gold as the primary colors. Cho was just past her first trimester and thankfully had stopped being sick daily. Her petite frame showed just the barest of baby bumps and the designer dress she had selected swooped sideways in a swirl of crystals that masked her impending arrival. Although she was thrilled with the dress, she was far too happy to care what anyone thought, as her pregnancy was hardly a secret. Those closest to her and Wes were happy for her, and if a couple of great aunts and a few other family friends wanted to chitter behind their hands, she disregarded them with little thought.

The day's activities all went as planned, with the muggle and magical crowd carefully separated. The bride and groom wore constant smiles, and if anyone doubted the match, their fears were gradually put to rest. For his part, Wes couldn't believe his good fortune. He was forty-two and had first met Cho when he started working with her father shortly before she left for Hogwarts. He had never dreamed that she would grow into the beauty she was, nor that he could ever capture her eye. She was still young and had been hesitant about their relationship, but the unplanned pregnancy had brought them closer. He would never have pushed her, but neither could he deny how happy he was with the way it had worked out. The only regret they had was that Cho's father was not able to see the day. After dinner and dancing, the couple left the party around nine in the evening, taking a portkey to New York City for a brief honeymoon in the city.

Once Tony finished Cho's wedding, he was immersed full force into the details for the twins' double wedding. This was an especial challenge, as he had to undergo a crash course in the Indian culture. Neither Padma or Parvati were very traditional, but their family still expected them to stick to certain traditions. In addition, their grooms still held ties to Ireland, despite their immediate family all being American. The mixture of the two presented unique challenges, but Tony reveled in finding a way to blend the two cultures. At night when he returned home to Mike and discussed details over dinner, his partner couldn't help but smile at Tony's enthusiasm over the complex planning involved. This was complicated by the fact that the twins had only given him a few months to plan what was going to be a large and complex wedding. Soon October 27th arrived and the big day was upon them all. Although traditional Indian weddings were known to last for several days, both of the brides decided one large, festive day was more than enough.

The day started early in the morning, as the brides and grooms ate breakfast in their respective suites with their attendants. The wedding was being held on the Patil estate south of London, on a large swath of forested land about twenty kilometers to the southeast of the village of Crawley. The estate was well suited to handle the large wedding, although the manor and guest houses only provided enough space to house the immediate family. Since both families were magical, it simplified travel a bit, but given the fact that relatives were coming in from nine different countries, the Patils reserved a large lot of rooms at a hotel in Crawley for visitors.

The late October date meant that the weather was uncertain, although the fact that the estate was in the southern part of the country did help. Both the brides were determined to have the ceremony itself outdoors to enjoy the beautiful fall colors of the wooded land they had grown up on. Following the ceremony, the party would continue indoors to the manor's grand ballroom, parlor, art gallery, and dining room, which were connected by open doors and cleared to allow space to setup dinner for the four hundred expected guests.

Tony was at the estate the day before to begin working on the setup, although his friends did drag him away that evening for required attendance at the stag party. In the year plus that the cousins had been dating the twins, they had become quite friendly with all the members of the DA, despite being a few years older, and the party combined the brides' and grooms' friends. Tony returned early the next morning with the help of a hangover and pepper up potion to complete the myriad details that were left. Meanwhile, he had two groups of staff that were working for him. One group was assigned to the estate to assist, while the second group had been involved in the travel arrangements and accommodations for all the guests. It was a testament to the company that they had the talent to handle everything that was needed.

In the early afternoon, Parvati and Padma retreated to their suite of rooms with Cho, Katie, Alicia, and two cousins from India to begin their personal preparations. The grooms meanwhile had another hour before they began their own preparations with their five groomsmen. Promptly at five in the evening, the ceremony began outside on the west lawn of the estate. The weather was good with a pleasant temperature around fifteen Celsius, which was quite decent for that time of year. The setting was beautiful, as the guests all sat below a canopy of orange, yellow, and burnished red trees that glowed as the sun began to slowly recede. In the distance, a creek on the property added a babbling refrain to the unusual combination of a Celtic harp with an Indian sitar. The musicians were family members from both sides who had been practicing on melding the two unique traditional forms of music. The guests were arrayed on slightly rustic oak chairs that were decorated with swaths of silk ribbon in shades of gold and accented with jasmine and ivy, symbols important to both the brides' and grooms' cultures. At the end of the long aisle a traditional mandap was set under two large oak trees. The mandap was made of many meters of gold, orange, and burgundy silk with more jasmine and ivy details. In addition, a drape of embroidered fabric ran along the top with an elaborate Celtic knot design done in gold thread. The mandap had been one of the first details that the brides had arranged for and it had arrived only two days prior to the ceremony.

The music changed to a slightly more lilting number, signaling the start of the ceremony. Robert and Alex were grinning broadly as they waited under the mandap with their groomsmen and the Ministry official, a friend of the brides' father. They each wore cream colored suits with robes accented in gold over the suits. The brides had opted to include many of their own traditions, a few Celtic traditions, and quite a bit of a modern ceremony as their bridesmaids preceded them up the aisle. The music reached a crescendo and settled on a brighter note as the two brides appeared at the head of the aisle, one on each side of their father. Both were attired in traditional red saris, although Parvati accented her slightly more burgundy shade with a lot of gold, looking very Gryffindor. When the brides reached their grooms, their father kissed them each on their cheeks before handing them over to their grooms. Both brides and grooms then turned to their attendants, who were waiting to hand them traditional jai mala flower garlands. Robert went first as the eldest and placed his garland on Padma, who then placed hers on him. Then Alex and Parvati exchanged their own garlands in the tradition of the twins' culture. With the garlands in place, the four turned to the officiant, who began the incantation to start the magical binding. Traditional magic vows followed with an exchange of rings. Then, before the magic was sealed, each couple took each other's hands as the mothers of the two grooms stepped forward with a gold ribbon and proceeded to tie the hands of each couple in a traditional Celtic handfasting. Following the handfasting, the brides' parents stepped forward and took a bowl of scented water, which they dipped their fingers in and then sprinkled each couple, granting the jalastnchana blessing. With both couples linked and the most important traditions for each family complete, the officiant then finished his incantation as two golden circles of light embraced each couple and signaled the end of the magic ceremony. Finally, both couples were allowed to proceed with the modern traditional kiss and the resulting cheer from their friends.

With the ceremony complete, both couples proceeded up the aisle with their attendants following. The next few hours were spent eating, drinking, dancing, and celebrating with all their friends and family. The food selection was once again a mix of all cultures, with large platters of curry next to traditional potato soup. Finally, shortly before eleven, both couples said their goodbyes and took separate portkeys to their different honeymoon locations. Most of the guests then availed themselves of the several floos at the manor, as they were not in a proper state to safely apparate.

Just days after the wedding, Samhain arrived and brought the usual flurry of activity for the Aurors. The date when the division between the living and the dead faded to a mere whisper was one which many utilized for a variety of rituals. While most were innocuous, it seemed every year that a few with nefarious goals also utilized the auspicious date for necromancy and evil workings. The Aurors had been tracking a couple of individuals and gathering intelligence on one new 'social club' that had restarted itself about a year previously. The club was supposedly a reincarnation of an organization that had slowly dwindled about a hundred years previously. While the club espoused only to be a means of social revelry between 'like minded individuals of traditional magical ancestry', it was actually a front for a few purebloods to once again gather and begin to reassert their ideas of purity after having remained quiet in the initial aftermath of the war. While their ideas were disturbing, in the early months of their gathering they had done nothing that could be construed as malicious. Gradually though the Aurors began to get wind that things were changing and that Samhain was to be the date when the organization began to wake up and reassert its authority. Elaine returned from the States a week prior and took over her work assisting Robards, although Harry still helped some. When a particularly disturbing bit of information came out linking the group to the disappearance of a muggle runaway, Robards immediately assembled a team of fourteen Aurors to increase surveillance. By the time of the fateful night, the department had enough evidence to plan a raid on the social gathering being held at the old Yaxley estate. Although most Death Eater properties had been seized by the Ministry, the estate had been willed to a lesser cousin who had no provable Death Eater ties and was thus able to retain the property. Now the young man was one of the key figures that the surveillance had been focused on.

As twilight descended on Samhain, the fourteen Aurors and ten additional support arranged themselves on three properties neighboring the old Yaxley estate. Among the support staff, there were three cursebreakers on loan from Gringotts, including Bill Weasley. Precisely at ten, they began their work to bring down the old wards surrounding the estate. The wards took only a couple of minutes before crashing down and allowing the Aurors to begin their infiltration of the property. Although they circled the manor carefully, it was obvious that no one was home. Continuing on, they focused on a grove of trees on the northeast side of the manor. The location was one that was rumored to have been used for ceremonies all the way back to the time of the Picts and, as the Aurors approached, they could indeed feel the workings of most ancient magic.

Ron and Harry were leading two of the three groups that approached the grove and were shocked by what they found, but had little time to absorb what they saw before all hell broke loose. Their intelligence had indicated a total of eighteen were to be involved in the ceremony. In actuality, there were close to thirty. Although the Aurors were well trained, they were greatly outnumbered and the magic that had begun to be woven for the ceremony seemed to aid the defenders. Harry began organizing his group as they pressed the assault. Ron did the same, although he did take a few seconds to send a quick patronus back to Robards, indicating the higher than anticipated numbers and calling for assistance. The fourteen Aurors and their support staff fought in a frenzy, circling the ancient grove, but remaining out of the circle that had been inscribed for the ceremony. Meanwhile, the curse breakers took cover where they could and began to unweave the enchantments that had begun. Bill was the lead for the curse breakers and was just taking down one layer of spellwork when a familiar scream caused his hair to stand up. Darting out from behind a tree, his heart dropped as he saw the figure of his youngest brother being dragged by another Auror, who deposited Ron behind a nearby boulder. Bill immediately gave up on unweaving the enchantments and instead began an offense as he fired off spells and gradually worked his way toward Ron. It seemed to take forever, but he finally reached him and searched for signs of life. Thankfully, he detected a faint pulse. Knowing that his contracted duty to take down the wards was complete, he was not required to remain and instead gathered his brother in his arms as he apparated to St. Mungo's.

Meanwhile, the battle continued as the Aurors gradually started to gain against the defenders. The curse breakers had managed to unweave enough magic that the enchantments began to fall apart. Combined with the arrival of another eight Aurors and Robards, they finally finished the battle and claimed victory a half hour after they had begun their assault. For the relatively brief time that the battle took, the injuries were significant. A total of nine Aurors were injured, with three being transferred to St. Mungo's immediately. As for the defenders, two were dead and another fourteen were injured, with eight being transferred to St. Mungo's under petrification and full guard. Two more were also put under sleep spells and transferred for medical treatment. The muggle runaway and another young muggle girl were in need of treatment for various cuts, as well as ritual abuse that had been inflicted by the three senior mages of the group. Although Harry had a minor injury, he was well enough that Robards assigned him the Senior Auror cleanup role. Harry was worried about Ron and the others, but Robards assured him that none had died on their side so far. Although it was difficult, Harry took the news and began to organize his resources to gather evidence and finalize the investigation into the ritual and the group. The work took the rest of the night and into the morning. Finally, shortly before eight the following morning, he had all the details they could gather from the site and was able to finally get to St. Mungo's, where he had been informed that Ron was in recovery.

Harry arrived at the hospital and breezed through reception. The clerk at the desk and those gathered in the waiting room said nothing, but parted and let the bedraggled and bloody form of the well known Harry Potter pass through their ranks. Harry immediately made his way to the critical care floor, where he found Bill first, who then showed him to a waiting room where the rest of the family was. Harry immediately embraced his wife and then Molly. Turning back to Ginny, his eyes begged a hundred questions as she took a deep breath to relay what she needed to tell him.

"Harry love, you look exhausted. Come, sit, I'll tell you what the healers have said."

Harry nodded and let himself be led to a nearby bench, where he settled next to Ginny, his fingers entwined with hers as she continued.

"Ron is critical right now, but he is finally stable. Hermione is with him since he is only allowed one visitor at a time. It was good that Bill brought him right away, his heart actually stopped right after they apparated. They started working on him in the lobby. He took a reducto to the left side of his chest. The armor saved him, but he still broke almost all the ribs on that side and also punctured the lung and bruised his heart. If it hadn't been for the armor, he would have been killed instantly. He was also hit with a severing charm, perhaps after he went down. He lost two fingers on his right hand and had a lot of blood loss from that. Right now he's on infusions of blood replenishing potion, skele-gro and several other potions to speed healing. The healers are keeping him asleep to slow his heart and help with healing. Due to the lung damage, they also have him under the bubble head giving him additional oxygen. They're hopeful, but we won't know the full extent of long term damage until he wakes up."

Ginny finished what she had to say and was trembling as Harry took her in his arms and tried to control his frustration and rage. The operation the night before was supposed to be straightforward. They had faced many more defenders than planned and no one had realized how extensive the magic in the grove would be. Damn, their intelligence should have been better! As Harry blew out a long breath, he raked his fingers through his filthy hair and smarted with a bit of pain. Then Molly was shouting and went running from the room. Harry was puzzled at first, until he took his hand down and realized it was covered in blood. Ginny pulled back from him and gasped.

"Harry! Your head! You're bleeding! You must have opened something up again. Hold on, I think mum went for a healer."

A moment later, a healer appeared and immediately crossed the room to Harry. She quickly inspected his head and then ran a couple of quick diagnostic scans as the entire family watched tentatively. With the diagnostics done, she ran another quick healing spell and Harry hissed as his head smarted from what she was doing.

"Well Mr. Potter, you seem to have taken a crease from a spell across the top of your head. It's fairly deep, but you were too busy and it clotted up on its own, except that you opened it again. I just healed it and I'll give you a potion to apply after you wash your hair a bit. You actually have a fair bit of blood in it, except its thick and dark so you don't notice. The damage is minimal, but you might find your hair parts a bit strange right there."

"Great, as if I didn't have enough trouble getting my hair to lie flat before."

Ginny and several others laughed and the mood lightened as the healer went to collect the potion Harry needed. George turned and shook his head at Harry.

"Really, you would think you would have learned to duck by now!"

Harry groaned and swatted at his brother-in-law. The healer reappeared with the potion he would need later and then Hermione appeared in the doorway. Harry let go of Ginny and crossed over to hug her. As he pulled back from her, Hermione reached up and brushed his hair aside, looking at his head.

"A healer told me you were here Harry. He said you got creased."

"I'm fine Hermione. Although I could use a shower. Ginny updated me, but how is Ron?"

"The same. They're keeping him under stasis, which is best for now. It…it was…cl..close."

Hermione stuttered and then fell into Harry as he took and led her to a seat, where Ginny took her other side. Hermione was silent for a moment before she exploded.

"Damn Harry! What happened? Ron was confident that this operation was a simple raid. I almost lost him. I don't know if I can bloody well take this any more! Fuck, I knew what he signed up for, or I thought he did, but he keeps getting hurt. It wasn't supposed to be like this. I hate seeing you hurt, but at least it's a crease. Why does Ron always get it worse?"

Hermione's flood of unusual curse laden invective stopped as she choked back a sob and collapsed against Harry. He wished he had answers for her, but he didn't. The job was always uncertain, but for some reason Ron seemed to always get the worse end of things. Unable to say anything, he just held her for a few minutes until she collected herself and declared it was time to return to Ron. Harry and Ginny stayed with the family a while longer, but everyone decided to set up rotations where a couple of the family would remain for Hermione in shifts while the others went home for breaks. Harry headed home with Ginny for a much needed shower and rest.

The following day, Ginny and Harry took an early shift at the hospital and then Harry headed for the office. Most of those they'd arrested were out of the hospital and questionings had begun, as well as the usual piles of reports that had to be filed. It took a couple of days, but eventually they had a good picture of what the goals were of the group. They were basically a bunch of young second grade purebloods who had missed out on joining up with Voldemort and wanted to initiate a new movement of pureblood ideals. The ritual they had been conducting was to grant additional powers to their top members and also provide a warning to muggles. They had planned on completing the torture of the two girls and then displaying them prominently as an initial warning. Harry raged as he realized that what he had fought to end with Voldemort was still continuing, just in smaller and less capable groups. Thankfully, this one had been stopped early. Nine of the top leaders were headed for life in Azkaban, while another dozen had lesser sentences. Harry made sure that their sentences received top billing in the Prophet, hoping to warn off others. As frustrated as he was, he was only furthered in his resolve to continue fighting the old ideals that bred madness.

Nine days after he entered St. Mungo's, Ron finally was brought out of his stasis and started to make more rapid improvement. A day later he was moved from the critical care ward to the standard ward, where he was able to have more visitors. Hermione was on leave from Ministry, but she continued her law studies by his bedside. A few days after he was moved to the standard ward, they finally had the talk that Hermione had been dreading. It came one morning after breakfast when Ron was working on adjusting his wand grip to allow for his missing fingers. Hermione had been watching him work on it for a day and knew he was wondering how long before he could return to the Aurors. As much as she realized how important it was, she was no longer certain she could handle the risks he took.

"Ron, can we talk?"

"What? Of course love. I can tell you're worrying, you're chewing your lip. What is it? I'm getting better. The healer said I may be out of here by the end of the week."

"I know and I can't wait to have you home, but, well…"

Ron looked at his wife and leaned over to take her hand. She was trembling slightly and he knew something was really bothering her. The two sat in silence for a couple minutes while they immersed in their own thoughts. Ron thought he had an idea what the issue was and it was something he'd been thinking on for a couple days as well.

"Mya, this is about the Auror corps isn't it? Do you want me to quit?"

Hermione's eyes shot open as she stared at her husband and tried to form a response.

"Um, no, well, not exactly."

"I don't think I understand Mya?"

"Bloody hell! I don't know Ron! I knew what I was getting into, or thought I did, but I can't lose you. But I can't ask you to give up on your dreams either. That's not fair to you. Still, when I first got to the hospital and they were working on you, you were so close to being gone, I had a chance to wonder what I would do without you."

Hermione quieted and Ron pulled on her hand to bring her to the bed, where he sat her down on the edge so that he could wrap his arms around her. He held her as the tears began and he let her cleanse from all the stress of the previous days. Many minutes later, she finally settled and Ron sat her back so that he could look at her.

"Mya, it's been a few days since I woke up and I've been thinking a lot. Actually, I was thinking for a while even before I got hurt. I wasn't sure then, but I am now. I became an Auror because it seemed right after the war and my best friend was doing the same. I've done well and yes, I'm glad that I had the chance to pursue it, but I think I need to build my own future. Harry is my brother and I love him, but I'm not him. He is made to do this, but I'm not. For some reason I seem to attract trouble and honestly, I don't handle it as well as he does. If I never see this stupid hospital again after I leave, it will be too soon. I'm going to quit the corps. I'm sure George can use my help full time. If not, maybe I can use a bit of our fame to find other work."

Hermione looked at him with a spark of joy in her eye, but then it stopped as she regarded him seriously.

"Ron, don't quit because of me. Don't give up your dreams for me."

"Mya, my greatest dream was you. To have you as mine and build a life with you. I can't do that if I keep getting nearly killed."

Hermione saw that he was set on his decision and her heart soared as she embraced him and kissed him soundly. Ron wholeheartedly pulled her closer and soon she was straddling his lap as their hands began to wander. Any pain Ron had was ignored as he became aroused and began to unbutton Hermione's blouse. Then the door opened and a senior healer strode in.

"Mr. Weasley! Well, I guess I see why your heart rate just went up. You worried us. Now, although you are healing, you are not healed completely yet. I must ask that you curtail activities that will stress your heart. Please."

Ron groaned and Hermione suppressed a laugh as she climbed off the bed while buttoning her blouse. Once she was together, she turned to the healer.

"Sorry healer, we got a bit carried away. I know better. I'll keep him under control."

The healer nodded and smirked before proceeding to Ron's bed and checking him over. Reassured that his patient was fine, the healer left and Hermione turned back to Ron. They talked for a bit until Ron started to doze and Hermione insisted he rest while she studied.

Four days later Ron was well enough to be released and went home to Grimmauld. He had confided in George about his intention to quit from the Auror corps and George was thrilled, assuring Ron that there was plenty of work for him. Ron asked that he keep the news quiet from the rest of the family until it was official. After he was home for a week, Ron was finally well enough to visit the Ministry and went to turn in his resignation with Robards. Although Robards wasn't happy, he understood Ron's reasoning and wished him well. Once his boss was officially notified, Ron went to the outer office and called together the other Aurors who were in office to say his goodbyes. Everyone was supportive and made sure to let Ron know that he would still be expected to make appearances at their Wednesday night dinners at the Leaky once a month. Ron's final task was to head downstairs two floors and sign the forms with the personnel department. By lunch time he was tired, but free as he exited the Ministry and left his first career behind. His departure happened the third week of November. With another week to recuperate, he was ready to start working at Wheezes again at the beginning of December to prepare for the holiday rush.

The second week of November also saw Harry pulled back into the assistant position for Robards when Elaine abruptly left to move to the States. Apparently when she had visited earlier in the year, she had reconnected with an old friend and a romance had blossomed. With his desire to move a senior Auror into the unofficial position, Robards received Kingsley's sign off to make the position of Assistant Director of the Auror Department an official position. Given Harry's background, he was soon tasked with a number of additional tasks to help lessen the strain that the larger department had put on Robards. A few mumbled about his sudden leap to the position, but no one was brave enough to openly speak out against the famed war hero.

Soon the holiday season descended upon Britain as a blanket of snow coated all territories from London to the highlands of Scotland. All the members of the DA gathered for the Thursday night dinner on the 20th to celebrate the holiday together. With marriages and far flung careers, the friends were no longer able to all be together on the holiday, but they were determined to celebrate the season as close as possible. The newlyweds were teased and babies were passed as friends queried when the twins would be adding to their numbers. Zach even brought baby Robbie for a visit and he was a hit with everyone. Despite the fact that Zach was no longer with Robbie's mum, it was obvious that he was proud of his son. A month previously, the child had given his mother a fright when he had summoned a bottle off a table while she had been busy in the kitchen. She had called Zach immediately, who was delighted to declare that it appeared his son was most definitely magical. The evening also saw Neville and Hannah receive a bit of ribbing about their own upcoming Valentine's day nuptials. The couple accepted the teasing happily as they remained entwined around each other on a couch. The evening went quite late and was made all the better when Harry's surprise arrived shortly before dinner when all the Hogwarts professors, including Hagrid, arrived for the meal. The house was packed full and he thought it was his happiest holiday yet, especially since it was his first as a married man.

Before long the holidays had passed and a new year loomed. One baby was on the way, a wedding was in the works and more of each were most definitely in the future. There were still changes coming, but the future looked brighter than ever.

A/N: Sorry for the delay. I went on vacation and did not take a computer (gasp). When I returned, work acted like I had been gone a month instead of a week. Anyway, I am finally starting to catch up.

One other note on the twins' wedding. I did a lot of research since I know Indian weddings can be quite complex. I picked a few elements to include and tried to mix the Celtic traditions that I also researched. I hope I provided a good mix and presented the elements well. I also tried to keep in mind that this was going to be a really blended wedding of modern and traditional, as well as adding the magical element. Please let me know if I messed anything up. Reviews appreciated.